Al-Kafi · Hadith 20

The Book on Virtue of Knowledge · Chapter on Innovations, Personal Opinions and Analogies · Volume 1, book 2, chapter 19, Hadith 20

Original Arabic text

20ـ عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنْ أَحْمَدَ بْنِ عَبْدِ الله الْعَقِيلِيِّ عَنْ عِيسَى بْنِ عَبْدِ الله الْقُرَشِيِّ قَالَ دَخَلَ أَبُو حَنِيفَةَ عَلَى أَبِي عَبْدِ الله (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) فَقَالَ لَهُ يَا أَبَا حَنِيفَةَ بَلَغَنِي أَنَّكَ تَقِيسُ قَالَ نَعَمْ قَالَ لا تَقِسْ فَإِنَّ أَوَّلَ مَنْ قَاسَ إِبْلِيسُ حِينَ قَالَ خَلَقْتَنِي مِنْ نَارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِنْ طِينٍ فَقَاسَ مَا بَيْنَ النَّارِ وَالطِّينِ وَلَوْ قَاسَ نُورِيَّةَ آدَمَ بِنُورِيَّةِ النَّارِ عَرَفَ فَضْلَ مَا بَيْنَ النُّورَيْنِ وَصَفَاءَ أَحَدِهِمَا عَلَى الاخَرِ.

Published English translation

20. Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from his father from Ahmad ibn ‘Abdallah al-‘Aqili from ‘Isa ibn ‘Abdallah al-Qurashi who has said the following. “Once abu Hanifah came to see Imam abu ‘Abdallah (a.s.) who said to abu Hanifah, “O abu Hanifah, do you practice analogy as I hear you do?” Abu Hanifah replied, “Yes, I do practice analogy.” The Imam then said to him, “Do not practice it because the first person who used analogy was Satan when he said, “Lord, you have created me from fire and created him from clay.” He analogized fire with clay. If he would have analogized the light in the clay and fire he would have learned about the difference between the two lights and the excellence of one over the other.”

Narrator and transmission

See the transmission information preserved in the original source text.

Attributed scholarly assessments

Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi: صحيح

Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (1/201)

Assessment transcribed from the source's named scholar and reference. No new grading or consensus is asserted; differing entries remain separate.

Shaykh Baqir al-Behbudi: Catalogue non-inclusion note (not an authenticity grade)

Ṣaḥīḥ al-Kāfī

Source records non-inclusion in this scholar's selection; this is not itself a weak or authentic grade.

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edition: Al-Kafi, volume 1, Thaqalayn digital edition / Muhammad Sarwar translation
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translator: Muhammad Sarwar
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