قَالَ لِي أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع أَنْهَاكَ عَنْ خَصْلَتَيْنِ فِيهِمَا هَلَاكُ الرِّجَالِ أَنْهَاكَ أَنْ تَدِينَ اللَّهَ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَ تُفْتِيَ النَّاسَ بِمَا لَا تَعْلَمُ.
"I would like to warn you about two forms of behavior that lead a man to destruction. I prohibit you from dealing with Allah on the basis of falsehood and from giving fatwa to people without knowledge.”
قَالَ لِي أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع إِيَّاكَ وَ خَصْلَتَيْنِ فَفِيهِمَا هَلَكَ مَنْ هَلَكَ إِيَّاكَ أَنْ تُفْتِيَ النَّاسَ بِرَأْيِكَ أَوْ تَدِينَ بِمَا لَا تَعْلَمُ.
‘Beware of two forms of behavior. It is such behaviors that have lead many people to their destruction. Beware of giving fatwa to people on the basis of your own opinion and to follow a religion without knowledge.’”
مَنْ أَفْتَى النَّاسَ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ وَ لَا هُدًى لَعَنَتْهُ مَلَائِكَةُ الرَّحْمَةِ وَ مَلَائِكَةُ الْعَذَابِ وَ لَحِقَهُ وِزْرُ مَنْ عَمِلَ بِفُتْيَاهُ.
“Whoever gives a fatwa (a religious verdict) to people without knowledge and guidance, the angels of mercy and the angels of punishment curse him. The burden of those who act upon his fatwa will fall upon him."
مَا عَلِمْتُمْ فَقُولُوا وَ مَا لَمْ تَعْلَمُوا فَقُولُوا اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ لَيَنْتَزِعُ الْآيَةَ[2] مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ يَخِرُّ فِيهَا أَبْعَدَ مَا بَيْنَ السَّمَاءِ وَ الْأَرْضِ.
“What you know you may speak it up but what you do not know say, ‘Allah knows best’. A man refers to a verse in the holy Quran and gives it a meaning that is farther from the truth than the heavens are from earth.”
لِلْعَالِمِ إِذَا سُئِلَ عَنْ شَيْءٍ وَ هُوَ لَا يَعْلَمُهُ أَنْ يَقُولَ اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ وَ لَيْسَ لِغَيْرِ الْعَالِمِ أَنْ يَقُولَ ذَلِكَ.
“It is very proper for a scholar to say, ‘Allah knows best’ if he does not know. This is not for a none scholar.”
إِذَا سُئِلَ الرَّجُلُ مِنْكُمْ عَمَّا لَا يَعْلَمُ فَلْيَقُلْ لَا أَدْرِي وَ لَا يَقُلْ اللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ فَيُوقِعَ فِي قَلْبِ صَاحِبِهِ شَكّاً وَ إِذَا قَالَ الْمَسْئُولُ لَا أَدْرِي فَلَا يَتَّهِمُهُ السَّائِلُ.
“If one of you would be asked of what he does not know he must say, ‘I have no knowledge and he must not say, “Allah knows best” because it may create doubts in the hearts of his audience. If the person questioned would say, “I do not know his audience will not accuse him of anything.”
سَأَلْتُ أَبَا جَعْفَرٍ ع مَا حَقُّ اللَّهِ عَلَى الْعِبَادِ قَالَ أَنْ يَقُولُوا مَا يَعْلَمُونَ وَ يَقِفُوا عِنْدَ مَا لَا يَعْلَمُونَ.
“I asked Imam abu Ja‘far (a.s.) this, ‘What are the rights of Allah on people?’” The Imam (a.s.) replied, “They must say what they know and abstain from saying anything that they have no knowledge of.’”
إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَصَّ عِبَادَهُ بِآيَتَيْنِ مِنْ كِتَابِهِ أَنْ لَا يَقُولُوا حَتَّى يَعْلَمُوا وَ لَا يَرُدُّوا مَا لَمْ يَعْلَمُوا وَ قَالَ عَزَّ وَ جَلَ أَ لَمْ يُؤْخَذْ عَلَيْهِمْ مِيثاقُ الْكِتابِ أَنْ لا يَقُولُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَ[1] وَ قَالَ بَلْ كَذَّبُوا بِما لَمْ يُحِيطُوا بِعِلْمِهِ وَ لَمَّا يَأْتِهِمْ تَأْوِيلُهُ[2].
“Allah has addressed His servants in two verses of the holy Quran very particularly: Did they not make a covenant (with God) in the Book not to speak any thing other than the Truth about God and to study its contents well? They call a lie something that is beyond the limit of their knowledge and whose interpretation ha
مَا ذَكَرْتُ حَدِيثاً سَمِعْتُهُ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ ع إِلَّا كَادَ أَنْ يَتَصَدَّعَ قَلْبِي قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبِي عَنْ جَدِّي عَنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ص قَالَ ابْنُ شُبْرُمَةَ وَ أُقْسِمُ بِاللَّهِ مَا كَذَبَ أَبُوهُ عَلَى جَدِّهِ وَ لَا جَدُّهُ عَلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ص قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ ص مَنْ عَمِلَ بِالْمَقَايِيسِ فَقَدْ هَلَكَ وَ أَهْلَكَ وَ مَنْ أَفْتَى النَّاسَ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ وَ هُوَ لَا يَعْلَ
"I have never mentioned a hadith that I heard from Ja'far ibn Muhammad (as) except that my heart almost trembles." He said, “My father narrated from my grandfather that Rasulullah (sw) said, ‘Those who act on the basis of analogy (qiyas), will face their destruction and lead others to their destruction. Those who give