Al-Kafi · Hadith 1

The Book on Oneness of Allah (God) · Chapter on Another Chapter (Related) to the Previous Chapter · Volume 1, book 3, chapter 17, Hadith 1

Original Arabic text

1ـ عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنِ الْمُخْتَارِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ الْمُخْتَارِ الْهَمْدَانِيِّ وَمُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْحَسَنِ عَنْ عَبْدِ الله بْنِ الْحَسَنِ الْعَلَوِيِّ جَمِيعاً عَنِ الْفَتْحِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ الْجُرْجَانِيِّ عَنْ أَبِي الْحَسَنِ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) قَالَ سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ وَهُوَ اللَّطِيفُ الْخَبِيرُ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ الْوَاحِدُ الاحَدُ الصَّمَدُ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ كُفُواً أَحَدٌ لَوْ كَانَ كَمَا يَقُولُ الْمُشَبِّهَةُ لَمْ يُعْرَفِ الْخَالِقُ مِنَ الْمَخْلُوقِ وَلا الْمُنْشِئُ مِنَ الْمُنْشَإِ لَكِنَّهُ الْمُنْشِئُ فَرْقٌ بَيْنَ مَنْ جَسَّمَهُ وَصَوَّرَهُ وَأَنْشَأَهُ إِذْ كَانَ لا يُشْبِهُهُ شَيْ‏ءٌ وَلا يُشْبِهُ هُوَ شَيْئاً قُلْتُ أَجَلْ جَعَلَنِيَ الله فِدَاكَ لَكِنَّكَ قُلْتَ الاحَدُ الصَّمَدُ وَقُلْتَ لا يُشْبِهُهُ شَيْ‏ءٌ وَالله وَاحِدٌ وَالانْسَانُ وَاحِدٌ أَ لَيْسَ قَدْ تَشَابَهَتِ الْوَحْدَانِيَّةُ قَالَ يَا فَتْحُ أَحَلْتَ ثَبَّتَكَ الله إِنَّمَا التَّشْبِيهُ فِي الْمَعَانِي فَأَمَّا فِي الاسْمَاءِ فَهِيَ وَاحِدَةٌ وَهِيَ دَالَّةٌ عَلَى الْمُسَمَّى وَذَلِكَ أَنَّ الانْسَانَ وَإِنْ قِيلَ وَاحِدٌ فَإِنَّهُ يُخْبَرُ أَنَّهُ جُثَّةٌ وَاحِدَةٌ وَلَيْسَ بِاثْنَيْنِ وَالانْسَانُ نَفْسُهُ لَيْسَ بِوَاحِدٍ لانَّ أَعْضَاءَهُ مُخْتَلِفَةٌ وَأَلْوَانَهُ مُخْتَلِفَةٌ وَمَنْ أَلْوَانُهُ مُخْتَلِفَةٌ غَيْرُ وَاحِدٍ وَهُوَ أَجْزَاءٌ مُجَزَّاةٌ لَيْسَتْ بِسَوَاءٍ دَمُهُ غَيْرُ لَحْمِهِ وَلَحْمُهُ غَيْرُ دَمِهِ وَعَصَبُهُ غَيْرُ عُرُوقِهِ وَشَعْرُهُ غَيْرُ بَشَرِهِ وَسَوَادُهُ غَيْرُ بَيَاضِهِ وَكَذَلِكَ سَائِرُ جَمِيعِ الْخَلْقِ فَالانْسَانُ وَاحِدٌ فِي الاسْمِ وَلا وَاحِدٌ فِي الْمَعْنَى وَالله جَلَّ جَلالُهُ هُوَ وَاحِدٌ لا وَاحِدَ غَيْرُهُ لا اخْتِلافَ فِيهِ وَلا تَفَاوُتَ وَلا زِيَادَةَ وَلا نُقْصَانَ فَأَمَّا الانْسَانُ الْمَخْلُوقُ الْمَصْنُوعُ الْمُؤَلَّفُ مِنْ أَجْزَاءٍ مُخْتَلِفَةٍ وَجَوَاهِرَ شَتَّى غَيْرَ أَنَّهُ بِالاجْتِمَاعِ شَيْ‏ءٌ وَاحِدٌ قُلْتُ جُعِلْتُ فِدَاكَ فَرَّجْتَ عَنِّي فَرَّجَ الله عَنْكَ فَقَوْلَكَ اللَّطِيفُ الْخَبِيرُ فَسِّرْهُ لِي كَمَا فَسَّرْتَ الْوَاحِدَ فَإِنِّي أَعْلَمُ أَنَّ لُطْفَهُ عَلَى خِلافِ لُطْفِ خَلْقِهِ لِلْفَصْلِ غَيْرَ أَنِّي أُحِبُّ أَنْ تَشْرَحَ ذَلِكَ لِي فَقَالَ يَا فَتْحُ إِنَّمَا قُلْنَا اللَّطِيفُ لِلْخَلْقِ اللَّطِيفِ وَلِعِلْمِهِ بِالشَّيْ‏ءِ اللَّطِيفِ أَ وَلا تَرَى وَفَّقَكَ الله وَثَبَّتَكَ إِلَى أَثَرِ صُنْعِهِ فِي النَّبَاتِ اللَّطِيفِ وَغَيْرِ اللَّطِيفِ وَمِنَ الْخَلْقِ اللَّطِيفِ وَمِنَ الْحَيَوَانِ الصِّغَارِ وَمِنَ الْبَعُوضِ وَالْجِرْجِسِ وَمَا هُوَ أَصْغَرُ مِنْهَا مَا لا يَكَادُ تَسْتَبِينُهُ الْعُيُونُ بَلْ لا يَكَادُ يُسْتَبَانُ لِصِغَرِهِ الذَّكَرُ مِنَ الانْثَى وَالْحَدَثُ الْمَوْلُودُ مِنَ الْقَدِيمِ فَلَمَّا رَأَيْنَا صِغَرَ ذَلِكَ فِي لُطْفِهِ وَاهْتِدَاءَهُ لِلسَّفَادِ وَالْهَرَبَ مِنَ الْمَوْتِ وَالْجَمْعَ لِمَا يُصْلِحُهُ وَمَا فِي لُجَجِ الْبِحَارِ وَمَا فِي لِحَاءِ الاشْجَارِ وَالْمَفَاوِزِ وَالْقِفَارِ وَإِفْهَامَ بَعْضِهَا عَنْ بَعْضٍ مَنْطِقَهَا وَمَا يَفْهَمُ بِهِ أَوْلادُهَا عَنْهَا وَنَقْلَهَا الْغِذَاءَ إِلَيْهَا ثُمَّ تَأْلِيفَ أَلْوَانِهَا حُمْرَةٍ مَعَ صُفْرَةٍ وَبَيَاضٍ مَعَ حُمْرَةٍ وَأَنَّهُ مَا لا تَكَادُ عُيُونُنَا تَسْتَبِينُهُ لِدَمَامَةِ خَلْقِهَا لا تَرَاهُ عُيُونُنَا وَلا تَلْمِسُهُ أَيْدِينَا عَلِمْنَا أَنَّ خَالِقَ هَذَا الْخَلْقِ لَطِيفٌ لَطُفَ بِخَلْقِ مَا سَمَّيْنَاهُ بِلا عِلاجٍ وَلا أَدَاةٍ وَلا آلَةٍ وَأَنَّ كُلَّ صَانِعِ شَيْ‏ءٍ فَمِنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ صَنَعَ وَالله الْخَالِقُ اللَّطِيفُ الْجَلِيلُ خَلَقَ وَصَنَعَ لا مِنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ.

Published English translation

1. Ali ibn Ibrahim has narrated from al-Mukhtar ibn Muhammad ibn al-Mukhtar al-Hamadani and Muhammad ibn al-Hassan from ‘Abdallah ibn al-Hassan al-‘Alawi both of them from al-Fath ibn Yazid al-Jurjani from abu al-Hassan (a.s.) al-Thani or al-Thalith who has said the following. “I heard the Imam saying, ‘He (Allah) is the Subtle, All-aware, All-hearing, All-seeing, the One, the Self-sufficient, Who does not have any children, is not any one’s child and there is no one similar to Him. Had Allah been as those believing in similitude (al-Mushabbihah) say there would have been no distinction between the Creator and the created, the inventor and the invented but He is the Inventor. There would have been no distinction between Allah and what He has given body and form to bring into existence. In fact, nothing is similar to Him and He is not similar to anything.” I then said, “Yes, may Allah take my soul in your service, but you just said, The One the Self-sufficient, that no one is similar to Him. Allah is One and a man is one. Are the two not similar in oneness?” The Imam replied, “O Fath, you said something impossible. May Allah grant you steadfastness. Similarity is in meaning. In the case of names they are all the same. The names refer to the nominee. When it is said a man it, at the same time, is a report about one body and not two bodies. In fact, man is not one thing. His parts, colors and the color of his colors that consist of distinct parts, that are not equal. His blood is different from his flesh. His nerves are different from his vines, his hairs are different from his skin. The black things in him are different from the white things therein. The same is true of all other creatures. Human beings are one in name but not in meaning. Allah, Great Whose Majesty is, is only One and no one other than Him is one. There is no difference, imbalance, increase or decrease in Him. Human beings are created, designed, compounded of different parts and various substances. Only when combined becomes one.” I then said, “May Allah take my soul in service for your cause, and grant you happiness, would you explain to me the meaning of your words “Subtle and All-aware? Explain it as you just did with the One? I know that His Subtlety or kindness is different from those of His creatures but I like more clarity.” The Imam said, “O Fath, we said He is Subtle it is because of His knowledge of the delicate creatures, may Allah give you success and steadfastness, so you should consider His creation. Consider His design in delicate and not so delicate plants and other creatures like animals, small and large such as flies and cricket and smaller ones that even eyes can not. Because of their small size no one knows which is male and which is female, which is new born and which is old. We find tremendously delicate things with signs of His Subtlety, in their desire for reproduction, running away from death, collecting what is good for them and what is in the depth of the oceans and on the barks of trees, in the wilderness and desolate places. We find more fastidiousness in such animals and their ability to communicate with each other, and what their offspring understand from them, their transporting food to their young and their colors, red along with yellow, white along with red so fine that our eyes are not able to catch for their very exquisite shape. Our eyes are not able to see them and our hands are not able to touch them. All these show that the Creator of all such marvelous creatures are Subtle Who is kind to all the creatures we mentioned. He has done it without instruments and means. Every designer and manufacturer builds and manufactures some thing from something but Allah does it from nothing.”

Narrator and transmission

See the transmission information preserved in the original source text.

Attributed scholarly assessments

Allamah Baqir al-Majlisi: مجهول

Mirʾāt al-ʿUqūl fī Sharḥ Akhbār Āl al-Rasūl (2/50)

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.

Source, rights, and attribution

dataset Name: Thaqalayn public library, via ThaqalaynAPI snapshot
source Url: https://thaqalayn.com/hadith/1/3/17/1
license: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
edition: Al-Kafi, volume 1, Thaqalayn digital edition / Muhammad Sarwar translation
imported At: 2026-10-18T21:36:12.871Z
license Url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
rights Statement Url: https://thaqalayn.com/terms
attribution: Source: Thaqalayn (Stichting Thaqalayn). Compiler: Shaykh Muḥammad b. Yaʿqūb al-Kulaynī. Translation: Muhammad Sarwar. Data transport: MohammedArab1/ThaqalaynAPI. No endorsement implied.
translator: Muhammad Sarwar
source Revision: becbad600b693ce23735d7403c4126ce7c896d34
content Hash: 2e912261494a0af9a84aace05ae973604216b9a8949e8aa903981a3951ca1b42
source File Hash: 30bc491c96eb3860f3d3dfe97f46353a88858d7cb9e06d662ebdd04252ac5a3e
original Source Url: https://thaqalayn.net/hadith/1/3/17/1
changes: Arabic and English texts preserved verbatim from pinned snapshot. Compiler introduction excluded where present; references mapped to fields; assessment whitespace trimmed; source-supplied English sanad retained separately. Search normalization is not applied to displayed text.
verification Note: Publisher content rights, translator attribution and structural checks, with independent publisher-page spot checks—not scholarly authentication or printed-edition collation. Historical text and scholarly reference strings may contain source errors; they are not silently corrected. No full commentary prose or inferred narrator identity is added. Muʿjam coverage, where present, is only the supplied excerpt, not the complete work.