Muhammad ibn abu 'Abdallah and Muhammad ibn Yahya - both in a marfu' manner- have narrated from Imam abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the following.
"Imam Amirul Mu'minin mobilized people against Mu'awiya for the second time and when people came in multitudes he stood up to give a speech. 'All praise is due to Allah, the One, only One,
the Self-sufficient, the Single one Who did not cone into being from anything and was not created from something that had come into being before. He is the power.
With His power He is distinct from others and the other things became manifest through His power. There is no attribute that would reach Him and He has no limit for a definition or an
analogy. All the linguistic beauty and expressions fall far short to express His attributes.
In speaking of Him all attributes prove to be misleading. The depth of the schools of thoughts are perplexed and confused about the wonders of His kingdom. All the comprehensive
interpretations have remained far short of establishing any footing in His knowledge. The barriers of the unseen have curtained His treasured secrets.
The high flying ambitious intelligence with the ability to reach the depth of very subtle matters lose their way at the very beginning of their journey to Him. Most Holy is Allah. To Him
not even the far-reaching ambitions are able to reach. No deep diving intelligence is able to comprehend Him.
Most High is He Who is not subject to the effects of any calculated time or extended period or limited attributes. Glorious is He Who has no beginning for His start, a destination to
approach or an end to diminish. Glorious is He Who is just the way He Himself has introduced.
All those who speak of His praise can never praise fully and duly. He designed a limit for everything at the time He created them. It is because that there is no similarity between them and
He and that because He is not similar to any thing else. He is not absolved in anything so that it could be said He is within anything and He is far from anything so that it could be said He has
nothing to do with them (the creatures).
He has not distanced Himself from them so that it can be said where is He? He is far Glorious (and above such associations). He has encompassed all things through His knowledge. He has made
their design firm and has enumerated them for safe preservation. Even the unseen and hidden things in the air, is not unnoticed to Him.
Nor things deeply hidden in the darkness of black nights, all things high above in heavens and down to the lowest earth are not unnoticed to Him. For everything there is a protector and a
guard and everything therein has limits within something and a limit for that limit.
He is the One, the only One, the self sufficient, Who is not subject to the changes due to times. The creation of things never over burdens Him. He only, when willing, commands it to exist
(and it comes into existence). He invented whatever He has created without any examples to follow and without feeling of over burdened or exhaustion. All manufacturers manufacture things from
something.
Allah has not created whatever He has created from anything. Every knowledgeable one learns after being ignorant. He has not being ignorant and has not learned from any one. He has
encompassed all things through His knowledge before their coming into existence and their existence has not increased any thing to His knowledge.
He knew them before their coming into existence just as He knows them after their coming into existence. He did not bring them into existence to strengthen His authority or for fear of
banishment or reduction. He did not bring them into existence as helpers against a competing opponent, and a peer who would be of more (power) or a partner who would show greatness.
He created them as creatures that required preservation and protection as subdued servants. Glorious is He, Who does not become tired in the creation of what He has created or the
preservation of all that He has formed into beings.
He does not undergo in this work any weakness or exhaustion. Whatever He has created has deemed it sufficient. He knows what He has created and created what He knew. It did not happen as a
result of new thinking that He found to be a correct one not because of some doubts that He may have found in whatever that He had not yet created. It is due His unchangeable decree, His firm
knowledge and resolute command.
He is the One only Lord and is very special in His Oneness. He is pure in His Glory and praise. He is the only one in Oneness, the Glory, in Highness, in Oneness in praiseworthiness and in
Glory and Gloriousness. He is Far High above having children. He is far Holy and clean above involvement in touching women and by far Majestic and Glorious above the association of the
partners.
In whatever He has created there is nothing to oppose Him nor there is any thing in what He created to stand parallel to Him and no one shares Him His kingdom. He the One and only the
Self-sufficient, Who brings the timeless time to an end, is the owner of the extended duration of time.
He is the one Who is eternal with eternal Oneness before the beginning of the times and after all the changes in the creation. He is the one who never banishes or diminishes. Thus, I speak
of my Lord. There is no lord besides Allah. He is the Great and of un-matching greatness. He is the Most Majestic and of unmatched Majesty. He is the Most Glorious and of unmatched Glory. He is
far above what the unjust think of Him to be."
H 347, Ch. 22, h 2
Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Salih ibn Hammad from al-Husayn ibn Yazid from al- Hassan ibn Ali ibn abu Hamza from Ibrahim from abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) Who has said the
following.
"Allah, the Most Holy is Whose name, the Most High is Whose praise, the Most Glorious are Whose attributes. He is the Most Sacred, the Most Holy, the only One in oneness. He is eternal, the
First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden. There is no beginning for Him. He is the Most Exalted in His highness.
The Highest in power, Exalted in authority, the greatest in kingdom, the Most bountiful, His Highness is the Most High. He is the One whose praise no one can complete, and can not bear the
knowledge of His Lordship. No one is able to limit Him because it is not possible to reach Him with qualities."
H 348, Ch. 22, h 3
Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from al-Mukhtar ibn Muhammad ibn al-Mukhtar and Muhammad ibn al-Hassan from 'Abdallah ibn al-Hassan al-'Alawi all from al-Fath ibn Yazid al-Jurjani who has said
the following.
"A road on my way back from Makkah to Khuransan joined me with Imam abu al-Hassan (a. s.) the 2nd who was going to Iraq and I heard him saying, "Whoever observes piety before Allah he is
protected and whoever obeys Allah he is obeyed." I calmly walked to him and on reaching him I offered my salutation and he responded likewise and said, "O fath whoever pleases Allah is not
worried about the anger of people.
Whoever causes the Creator to become angry with him he deserves that Allah would cause to subject him to the anger of the people. One can only speak of the attributes of the Creator the way
he Himself has spoken about Himself. How can a person speak of One from Whose perceiving all the senses are frustrated and even the imagination is not able to comprehend Him or ones sharp
feelings would reach Him in any way or manner or the eyes would limit Him in any manner.
He is far above the description of those who speak of His attributes and the praise of those who speak of His praise. He is far in His nearness and is near in His being far. He in His
far-ness is near and is far in His nearness. He is the condition of the conditions and no one can say that He is in a condition or is somewhere. No one can about Him where because He is far above
the conditions and places."
H 349, Ch. 22, h 4
Muhaamd ibn abu 'Abdallah in marfu' manner has narrated from Imam abu 'Abdallah (a.s.) who has said the following.
"Once Imam Amirul Mu'minin addressed the people in the Mosque of Kufa from the pulpit and a man called dhi'lab a very good orator and brave in heart said, "O Amirul Mu'minin, have you seen
your Lord?" The Imam replied, "Fie upon you O Dhi'lab, how would I worship a Lord whom I would not see?" The man said, "O Amirul Mu'minin how have you seen Him?"
The Imam said, "Fie up on you O Dhi'lab, the eyes are not able to see Him physically but it is the hearts that see Him through the truth of the faith. O Dhi'lab, my Lord is subtle in
subtleties but can not be described by means of subtle matters. My Lord is great but can not be described by means of greatness.
His greatness surpasses all greatness but he can not be described by means of such greatness. He is Glorious in His Glory but He can not be described in terms of
thickness.
He is before everything and it can not be said that something was before Him. He will be after all things but it can not be said that there is something after Him. He willed the existence
of things but not by means of first thinking about it.
He comprehends things but not with a great deal of efforts. Things are not mixed with Him and nor is He indifferent about them. He is clearly manifest but not with contacts and changes. He
shines but not in the form of being found out with eye sight. He is far but not in the form of distance. He is near but not in the form of nearness.
He is very fine but not in the form of physical fineness. He exists but not after nothingness. He acts but not because of being forced. He measures things but not by means of movement. He
wills but not by means of thinking. He hears but not with tools. He sees but not with instruments.
He is not contained in place and held up in times. Attributes do not limit Him and slumber does not seize Him. His Being was before the time and His existence was before nothingness. He was
before eternity. His giving the sense awareness prove that He does not have the tools for sensing. His giving substance to the substances is proof that Himself is not a substance. The existence
of a contrary to everything is proof that there is nothing contrary to Him. His giving nearness to things is proof that there is nothing similar to Him.
He has made the light contrary to the darkness, the wetness to the dryness, the harshness to the softness, the coldness to the heat. He combines their transgressing and separates their
closeness. The separation among things is evidence of the existence of the One Who causes separation in them and their combinations is evidence of the existence of the One Who combines
them.
It is jus as Allah has said, "We have created everything in pairs so that perhaps you may take heed (51:49)." He has made a distinction between the before and after to show that there is no
before and after for Him. The instincts show that the One who created the instincts Himself has no instinct. The time is evidence that there is no timing for the One Who made the
time.
Things are hidden from each other are evidence that nothing hides them from their Creator. He was the Lord when there was nothing to enjoy His Lordship. He was to be worshipped when there
was no worshipper. He had the knowledge when there was nothing to know. He was hearing when there was nothing to hear."
H 350, Ch. 22, h 5
Ali ibn Muhammad has narrated from Sahl ibn Ziyad from Shabab al-Sayarafi called Muhammad ibn al-Walid from Ali ibn Sayf from 'Amira who has said that Isma'il ibn Qutayba said the
following. "I and 'Isa ibn al-Shalqan went to see Imam abu 'Abdallah (a.s.). The Imam said 'It is strange that a group of people ascribe to Amirul Mu'minin certain things that he had never said.
Amirul Mu'minin addressed people in Kufa in the following words.
"All praise is due to Allah Who inspired His servants with His praise and natured them in a way that would give them the desire to acknowledge His Lordship.
It is He, Who guides people through His creation to His Own existence and His creatures are evidence of His eternity. The fact that His creatures are similar is evidence that there is
nothing similar to Him. His signs are evidence of His great power. His Own-self prohibits acceptance of descriptions and so are His being seen with the eyes and His being comprehended in the
imaginations.
There is no time limit for His being in existence and there is no final destination for Him. Awareness can not contain Him and coverings can not cover Him. The curtain between Him and His
creatures is His creating them. It is because of being impossible for Him what is possible in the essence of the creatures and because of what may be possible in their case is impossible in His
case.
It is also because of the difference between the Creator and the created, the limited and the unlimited and the Lord and the worshippers. He is One without being a unit of a particular
kind. He is the Creator but not terms of motion. He is seeing but not by means of tools. He is hearing but not with distinguishing instruments. He observes but not by means of touching. He is
hidden but not with covering. He is clearly manifest but not with lapse due to distance.
His eternity is beyond the reach of thinking and a stop for the aims of the intelligence. His reality has worn out the ability of sight and His Ownself has uprooted the (spreading) vines of
imaginations. Whoever tries to describe Allah has thought of Him as limited and whoever considers Him limited he has enumerated Him and whoever enumerates Him he has invalidated His
eternity.
Whoever asks where is He, he has considered Him as having an end. Whoever says on what is He, he has considered Him as distanced. Whoever says wherein is He, he has considered Him contained
in some thing."
H 351, Ch. 22, h 6
The above is narrated from Muhammad ibn al-Husayn from Salih ibn Hamza from Fath ibn 'Abdallah Mawla Banu Hashim who has said the following.
"I wrote to abu Ibrahim (a.s.) asking him about the Oneness of Allah." He wrote back to me in his own hand writing, "All praise is due to Allah, Who inspires His servants with His praise."
He mentioned in it facts similar to those in the Hadith of Sahl ibn Ziyad (No. 5 above) to his words that read, 'His essence has uprooted the (spreading) vines of imaginations' with the following
addition. "The first thing in His religion is to know Him.
A perfect knowledge about Him is to know that He is One. A perfect belief in His Oneness is to negate all attributes from Him. Every attribute is evidence that it is different from what it
is attributed to. That everything to which an attribute is ascribed is evidence that it is something other than the attribute. Both the attribute and to whatever it is attributed are evidence
that there are two things which invalidate His being eternal.
Whoever attributes a quality to Allah he has considered Him limited. Whoever considers Him limited he has enumerated Him and whoever enumerates Him he has considered His eternity invalid.
Whoever says how is He, he has he has considered Him describable.
Whoever says in what is He, he has considered Him as contained. Whoever says on what is He, he has become ignorant of Him. Whoever says where is He, he has considered some place without
Him. Whoever says what is He, he has attributed certain qualities to Him. Whoever says up to what limit is He, he has considered Him as having an end. He had knowledge before there was anything
to know.
He was the Creator before there was any creatures. He was the Lord before there was a worshipper. Thus, is our Lord spoken of and it is above the way others speak of Him."
H 352, Ch. 22, h 7
It is narrated from a number of our people from Ahmad ibn Muhammad ibn Khalid from his father from Ahmad ibn al-Nadr and others whom he mentioned from 'Amr ibn Thabit from a man whom he
mentioned from abu Ishaq al-Subay'i from Harith al-A'war who said the following.
"Amirul Mu'minin gave a speech in the afternoon and people liked it very much because of the beautiful manner in which Allah, the Most Holy, the Most High, is praised. Abu Ishaq has said
that he asked al-Harith if he has recorded that sermon." Al-Harith said, "I have recorded the sermon in writing." He then dictated it to us from his book.
"All praise is due to Allah Who does not die Whose wonders do not end. It is because everyday He has a task in the form of the invention of something that did not exist. It is He Who has no
children so that He would share others in Majesty and He is not the child of others so that He would be inherited and Himself banish. The imaginations can not comprehend Him to figure Him out in
some form of similitude.
The eyes have not perceived Him so that after changing position He would also change. It is He for whose beginning there is no end nor there is a final destination for His being the last.
It is He before Whom there is no time and is not preceded by any duration. He does not become defective by reduction or addition. He does not become attributed with direction or of what is He
made of or with place.
It is He Who knows all the hidden matters and has surpassed all intelligence what is evident in His creatures of plans and maintenance. It is He about Whom the prophets were asked and they
did not speak of Him in terms of limits and parts. They spoke of His acts and showed people His signs.
The intelligence of thinkers can not deny Him because the One who has created the heavens and earth and all that is in them and between them and is their Creator no one is able to stand up
to His power. It is He, Who is different from the creatures and there is nothing similar to Him. It is He, Who has created the creatures for His worship and has given them the ability to obey
Him.
With the capabilities that He has placed in them and has removed all their excuses He has placing His authority among them so that after knowing the authority would perish whoever would
like to perish and after knowing the authority receive salvation whoever would like to receive salvation. Benevolent is Allah to begin and to repeat.
Then, Allah, to Whom all praise is due, introduced praise for His Own-self. He has finished the affairs of the world and the coming of the next life with praise for His Own-self saying, "He
has judged among them with the truth" and All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds."
All praise is due to Allah, Who has dressed up with greatness but with out a body, Who has put on the gown of Majesty and Glory which has no similarity. It is He, Who has control over the
Throne without losing such authority. He is far Exalted above the creatures but without being far from them or being in touch with them. He has no limit that would end to a limit nor there is
anything similar to Him to help know Him better. All things are humble before His power and might. All things, although great, are small before Him.
All things respect His Greatness, obey His authority and Majesty. Glimpses of eyes are weak and exhausted in trying to comprehend Him. The imaginations of the creatures fall far short off
describing Him. He is the first before all things and there was is no one before Him. He is the last after all things and there is no after for Him. He has control over all things with
might.
He observes all places without moving thereto. No touching touches Him and no sense senses Him. He is the Lord in the heavens and the Lord on earth. He is All-wise and All-knowing. He has
given firm shape and form to His creatures the way He willed but not with following previous examples and without experiencing any fatigue in the creation of the things that He has
created.
He began what He wanted to begin and invented what He wanted to invent and the way He willed of the two great and heavy creatures, the man and Jinn so that they would know Him through such
evidence His Lordship and established in them His obedience.
"We thank Him with all of His praise for all of His bounties. We ask Him for His guidance to give us wisdom in our affairs. We seek His refuge from the evil of our sinful deeds and ask Him
to forgive our sins that we may have committed before. We testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad (s.a.) is His servant and messengers.
He sent him with truth as a prophet, as a sign of His existence and a guide to Him. (We) found guidance through him from straying and are saved through him from ignorance. Whoever obeys
Allah and His messenger has indeed gained a great success and has earned a great reward.
Whoever disobeys Allah and His messengers has indeed suffered a clear loss and is subjected to a painful punishment. Make sure to succeed in obedience and listening, sincerity, good advice
and proper support. Be helpful to yourselves to keep on the straight path and shun the detested matters.
Deal among yourselves with truth and cooperate thereby with me. Hold back the unjust and feeble minded hands. Make others do good and prevent them from committing unlawful deeds. Appreciate
excellence of the excelling people. May Allah protect you and us through guidance and make you and us steadfast in piety. I ask Allah for forgiveness for myself and for you."
