Al-Kafi · Hadith 6

The Book on Oneness of Allah (God) · Chapter on Comprehensive (Ahadith) about the Oneness of Allah · Volume 1, book 3, chapter 22, Hadith 6

Original Arabic text

6ـ وَرَوَاهُ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ الْحُسَيْنِ عَنْ صَالِحِ بْنِ حَمْزَةَ عَنْ فَتْحِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الله مَوْلَى بَنِي هَاشِمٍ قَالَ كَتَبْتُ إِلَى أَبِي إِبْرَاهِيمَ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) أَسْأَلُهُ عَنْ شَيْ‏ءٍ مِنَ التَّوْحِيدِ فَكَتَبَ إِلَيَّ بِخَطِّهِ الْحَمْدُ لله الْمُلْهِمِ عِبَادَهُ حَمْدَهُ. وَذَكَرَ مِثْلَ مَا رَوَاهُ سَهْلُ بْنُ زِيَادٍ إِلَى قَوْلِهِ وَقَمَعَ وُجُودُهُ جَوَائِلَ الاوْهَامِ ثُمَّ زَادَ فِيهِ أَوَّلُ الدِّيَانَةِ بِهِ مَعْرِفَتُهُ وَكَمَالُ مَعْرِفَتِهِ تَوْحِيدُهُ وَكَمَالُ تَوْحِيدِهِ نَفْيُ الصِّفَاتِ عَنْهُ بِشَهَادَةِ كُلِّ صِفَةٍ أَنَّهَا غَيْرُ الْمَوْصُوفِ وَشَهَادَةِ الْمَوْصُوفِ أَنَّهُ غَيْرُ الصِّفَةِ وَشَهَادَتِهِمَا جَمِيعاً بِالتَّثْنِيَةِ الْمُمْتَنِعِ مِنْهُ الازَلُ فَمَنْ وَصَفَ الله فَقَدْ حَدَّهُ وَمَنْ حَدَّهُ فَقَدْ عَدَّهُ وَمَنْ عَدَّهُ فَقَدْ أَبْطَلَ أَزَلَهُ وَمَنْ قَالَ كَيْفَ فَقَدِ اسْتَوْصَفَهُ وَمَنْ قَالَ فِيمَ فَقَدْ ضَمَّنَهُ وَمَنْ قَالَ عَلامَ فَقَدْ جَهِلَهُ وَمَنْ قَالَ أَيْنَ فَقَدْ أَخْلَى مِنْهُ وَمَنْ قَالَ مَا هُوَ فَقَدْ نَعَتَهُ وَمَنْ قَالَ إِلامَ فَقَدْ غَايَاهُ عَالِمٌ إِذْ لا مَعْلُومَ وَخَالِقٌ إِذْ لا مَخْلُوقَ وَرَبٌّ إِذْ لا مَرْبُوبَ وَكَذَلِكَ يُوصَفُ رَبُّنَا وَفَوْقَ مَا يَصِفُهُ الْوَاصِفُونَ.

Published English translation

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.”

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 (2/103)

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

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translator: Muhammad Sarwar
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