Secondly: Cognizance of the virtue of Islām’s Imāms, their measures, their rights, and their grades, and that their virtue, their knowledge, and their advising is for Allāh and His messenger does not make acceptance of all of what they say and what occurred in their verdicts, from the issues in which what the Messenger came with was hidden to them, incumbent, for they spoke with the extent of their knowledge. The truth [being] contrary to them does not make repudiation of their statements entirely, degradation and defamation of them incumbent.
وَالثَّانِي: مَعْرِفَةُ فَضْلِ أَئِمَّةِ الْإِسْلَامِ وَمَقَادِيرِهِمْ وَحُقُوقِهِمْ وَمَرَاتِبِهِمْ، وَأَنَّ فَضْلَهُمْ وَعِلْمَهُمْ وَنُصْحَهُمْ لِلَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ لَا يُوجِبُ قَبُولَ كُلِّ مَا قَالُوهُ، وَمَا وَقَعَ فِي فَتَاوِيهِمْ مِنْ الْمَسَائِلِ الَّتِي خَفِيَ عَلَيْهِمْ فِيهَا مَا جَاءَ بِهِ الرَّسُولُ فَقَالُوا بِمَبْلَغِ عِلْمِهِمْ وَالْحَقُّ فِي خِلَافِهَا لَا يُوجِبُ إطْرَاحَ أَقْوَالِهِمْ جُمْلَةً وَتَنَقُّصَهُمْ وَالْوَقِيعَةَ فِيهِمْ؛
These two extremities deviate from the goal, and the goal of the path is between them [both]. We do not accuse [people] of inequity nor do we render [them] immune [from error]. With them, we do not traverse the Rāfiḍah’s path with regards to ‘Alī, nor their path with regards to the two Shaikhs. Rather, [with them], we traverse their own path with regards to whoever is before them from the Companions, for surely, they do not accuse them of inequity, nor do they render them immune [from error], and they do not accept all of their statements nor do they relinquish them.
فَهَذَانِ طَرَفَانِ جَائِرَانِ عَنْ الْقَصْدِ، وَقَصْدُ السَّبِيلِ بَيْنَهُمَا، فَلَا نُؤَثِّمُ وَلَا نَعْصِمُ، وَلَا نَسْلُكُ بِهِمْ مَسْلَكَ الرَّافِضَةِ فِي عَلِيٍّ وَلَا مَسْلَكَهُمْ فِي الشَّيْخَيْنِ، بَلْ نَسْلُكُ مَسْلَكَهُمْ أَنْفُسَهُمْ فِيمَنْ قَبْلَهُمْ مِنْ الصَّحَابَةِ، فَإِنَّهُمْ لَا يُؤَثِّمُونَهُمْ وَلَا يَعْصِمُونَهُمْ، وَلَا يَقْبَلُونَ كُلَّ أَقْوَالِهِمْ وَلَا يُهْدِرُونَهَا.
So how do they rebuke us regarding the four imams for a path they traverse with regards to the four Caliphs and the rest of the Companions?
فَكَيْفَ يُنْكِرُونَ عَلَيْنَا فِي الْأَئِمَّةِ الْأَرْبَعَةِ مَسْلَكًا يَسْلُكُونَهُ هُمْ فِي الْخُلَفَاءِ الْأَرْبَعَةِ وَسَائِرِ الصَّحَابَةِ؟
There is no incompatibility between these two affairs for [the one] whose chest Allāh opened to Islām. They are only incompatible with one of two men: a [person] ignorant of the measure of the imams and their virtue or a [person] ignorant of the reality of the Sharī’ah that Allāh sent His messenger with.
وَلَا مُنَافَاةَ بَيْنَ هَذَيْنِ الْأَمْرَيْنِ لِمَنْ شَرَحَ اللَّهُ صَدْرَهُ لِلْإِسْلَامِ، وَإِنَّمَا يَتَنَافَيَانِ عِنْدَ أَحَدِ رَجُلَيْنِ: جَاهِلٍ بِمِقْدَارِ الْأَئِمَّةِ وَفَضْلِهِمْ، أَوْ جَاهِلٍ بِحَقِيقَةِ الشَّرِيعَةِ الَّتِي بَعَثَ اللَّهُ بِهَا رَسُولَهُ،
[The one] who has knowledge of the Law and fact knows decisively that an esteemed man who has a righteous involvement in Islām and good effects, and [has] a place with respect to Islām and its people, could [have] a lapse or a mistake happen from him for which he is excused—and even rewarded for his [independent] deliberation. Thus, it is not permissible that he be followed in it, nor is it permissible that his station, his leadership, and his status be relinquished from the hearts of the Muslims.
وَمَنْ لَهُ عِلْمٌ بِالشَّرْعِ وَالْوَاقِعِ يَعْلَمُ قَطْعًا أَنَّ الرَّجُلَ الْجَلِيلَ الَّذِي لَهُ فِي الْإِسْلَامِ قَدَمٌ صَالِحٌ وَآثَارٌ حَسَنَةٌ وَهُوَ مِنْ الْإِسْلَامِ وَأَهْلِهِ بِمَكَانٍ قَدْ تَكُونُ مِنْهُ الْهَفْوَةُ وَالزَّلَّةُ هُوَ فِيهَا مَعْذُورٌ بَلْ وَمَأْجُورٌ لِاجْتِهَادِهِ؛ فَلَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يُتْبَعَ فِيهَا، وَلَا يَجُوزُ أَنْ تُهْدَرَ مَكَانَتُهُ وَإِمَامَتُهُ وَمَنْزِلَتُهُ مِنْ قُلُوبِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ.
Ibn al-Qayyim, Iʿlām al-Muwaqqʿīn ʿan Rabb al-ʿĀlamīn 3/220
ابن القيم، إعلام الموقعين عن رب العالمين ٣/٢٢٠
http://shamela.ws/browse.php/book-11496/page-816
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