1Cademy - بخش ۱۳ - ۱۳ ابوعبداللّه الحارث بن اسد المحاسبی، رضی اللّه عنه / Section 13 - 13 Abu Abdullah al-Harith ibn Asad al-Muhasibi, May Allah Be Pleased with Him

Learn Before

کشف المحجوب / Kashf al-Mahjub

Excerpt

بخش ۱۳ - ۱۳ ابوعبداللّه الحارث بن اسد المحاسبی، رضی اللّه عنه / Section 13 - 13 Abu Abdullah al-Harith ibn Asad al-Muhasibi, May Allah Be Pleased with Him

Original content

و منهم: امام فنون، و جاسوس ظنون، ابوعبدالله الحارث بن اسد المحاسبی، رضی الله عنه
عالم بود به اصول و فروع و همه اهل علم را تولا و اقتدا در وقت وی به وی بود. کتابی کرده است «رغایب» نام اندر اصول تصوف و به جز آن وی را تصانیف بسیار است اندر هر فن. عالی حال و بزرگ همت بود و اندر وقت خود شیخ المشایخ بغداد بود.

ازوی روایت آرند که گفت: «العلم بحرکات القلوب فی مطالعة الغیوب أشرف من العمل بحرکات الجوارح.» آن کس که به حرکات دل اند رمحل غیب عالم بود بهتر از آن که به حرکات جوارح عامل بود. مراد اندر این آن است که: علم محل کمال است و جهد محل طلب و علم اندر پیشگاه بهتر از آن که جهد بر درگاه؛ که علم مرد را به درجهٔ کمال رساند و جهد از درگاه اندر نگذراند و به حقیقت علم بزرگ تر از عمل بود؛ از آن که خداوند تعالی را به علم توان شناخت و به عمل اندر نتوان یافت و اگر به عمل بی علم بدو راه باشدی، نصاری و رهبانان اندر شدت اجتهادشان اندر مشاهده اندی و مؤمنان عاصی اندر مغایبه. پس عمل صفت بنده است و علم صفت خداوند، تعالی.
و بعضی از راویان این قول را غلطی افتاده است و هر دو، عمل را روایت کنند و گویند: «العمل بحرکات القلوب اشرف من العمل بحرکات الجوارح.» و این محال است؛ که عمل بنده به حرکات دل تعلق نکند و اگر بدین، فکرت و مراقبت احوال باطن می خواهد این خود بدیع نباشد؛ که پیغمبر گفت، علیه السلام: «تفکر ساعة خیر من عبادة سنة.»

و به حقیقت اعمال باطن فاضل تر از اعمال جوارح، و تأثیر اعمال باطن تمام تر از تأثیر اعمال ظاهر و از آن بود که گفتند: «نوم العالم عبادة و سهر الجاهل معصیة.»
خواب عالم عبادت بود و بیداری جاهل معصیت؛ از آن چه اندر خواب و بیداری سرش مغلوب باشد و چون سر مغلوب گردد، تن نیز مغلوب گردد. پس سر مغلوب به غلبهٔ حق بهتر از نفس غالب به حرکات ظاهر و مجاهدت.

و از وی رحمة الله علیه می آید که: روزی درویشی را گفت: «کن لله وإلا فلاتکن.» خداوند را تعالی باش و اگرنه خود مباش؛ یعنی به حق باقی باش یا از وجود خود فانی؛ یعنی به صفوت مجتمع باش یا به فقر مفترق و به حق باقی باش یا از خود فانی، یا بدان صفت باش که حق تعالی گوید: «اسجدوا لآدم (۳۴/البقره)»، یا بدان صفت باش که: «هل أتی علی الإنسان حین من الدهر لم یکن شیئا مذکورا (۱/الانسان)». اگر حق را باشی به اختیار خود قیامت به خود بود و اگر نباشی به اختیار خود قیامت به حق بود و این معنی لطیف است و الله اعلم بالصواب.

English translation

And among them: the leader of the arts, and the spy upon suspicions, Abu Abdullah al-Harith ibn Asad al-Muhasibi, may Allah be pleased with him.

He was learned in the principles and the branches, and in his time all people of learning turned to him and followed him. He composed a book named 'Raghaib' on the principles of Sufism, and besides that he has many writings in every art. He was of exalted state and lofty aspiration, and in his time he was the master of the masters (Shaykh al-Mashayikh) of Baghdad.

They narrate from him that he said: 'Knowledge, through the movements of the hearts in contemplating the unseen, is nobler than action through the movements of the limbs.' That is: he who through the movements of the heart is present at the place of the unseen is better than he who through the movements of the limbs is a worker. The meaning in this is that knowledge is the place of perfection and effort is the place of seeking, and knowledge in the audience-hall is better than effort at the threshold; for knowledge brings a man to the degree of perfection, while effort does not carry him past the threshold. And in truth knowledge is greater than action, for God the Exalted can be known through knowledge and cannot be attained through action. And if there were a path to Him through action without knowledge, the Christians and the monks, in the severity of their striving, would be in the state of witnessing (mushahada), while the sinning believers would be in a state of absence. Thus action is the attribute of the servant, and knowledge is the attribute of the Lord, the Exalted.

And some of the narrators fell into an error concerning this saying, and both narrate 'action' and say: 'Action through the movements of the hearts is nobler than action through the movements of the limbs.' And this is absurd; for the action of the servant does not attach to the movements of the heart, and if by this is meant reflection and watchfulness over the inner states, then this itself is nothing novel; for the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: 'Reflection for an hour is better than the worship of a year.'

And in truth the inner works are more excellent than the works of the limbs, and the effect of the inner works is more complete than the effect of the outer works, and it is from this that they said: 'The sleep of the learned is worship and the wakefulness of the ignorant is disobedience.' The sleep of the learned is worship and the wakefulness of the ignorant is disobedience; because in sleep and wakefulness his secret (sirr) is overcome, and when the secret is overcome, the body too is overcome. Thus the secret overcome by the domination of the Real is better than the self dominant through outward movements and striving.

And it comes from him, may Allah's mercy be upon him, that one day he said to a dervish: 'Be for Allah, or else do not be.' Be for God the Exalted, and if not, do not be at all; that is, be subsisting through the Real or be annihilated from your own existence; that is, be gathered in purity or be scattered in poverty, and be subsisting through the Real or annihilated from yourself; either be of that attribute of which the Exalted Real says: 'Prostrate to Adam (2/al-Baqara)', or be of that attribute: 'Has there come upon man a period of time when he was not a thing mentioned (1/al-Insan)'. If you are the Real's by your own choice, the resurrection is by yourself, and if you are not, by your own choice, the resurrection is by the Real. And this meaning is subtle, and God knows best what is correct.

Updated 2026-07-20

Contributors are:

Who are from:

References