«6»- فس، تفسير القمي أَبِي عَنِ الْأَصْفَهَانِيِّ عَنِ الْمِنْقَرِيِّ رَفَعَهُ قَالَ: جَاءَ رَجُلٌ إِلَى عَلِيِّ بْنِ الْحُسَيْنِ عليهما السلام فَسَأَلَهُ عَنْ مَسَائِلَ ثُمَّ عَادَ لِيَسْأَلَ عَنْ مِثْلِهَا فَقَالَ عَلِيُّ بْنُ الْحُسَيْنِ عليهما السلام مَكْتُوبٌ فِي الْإِنْجِيلِ لَا تَطْلُبُوا عِلْمَ مَا لَا تَعْمَلُونَ وَ لَمَّا عَمِلْتُمْ بِمَا عَلِمْتُمْ فَإِنَّ الْعِلْمَ إِذَا لَمْ يُعْمَلْ بِهِ لَمْ يَزْدَدْ مِنَ اللَّهِ إِلَّا بُعْداً.
Tafsir al-Qummi: Al-Minqari said: A man came to Imam Zayn al-'Abidin, peace be upon him, and asked him some questions, then returned to ask the like of them again. Imam Zayn al-'Abidin, peace be upon him, said: It is written in the Gospel: Since you have not acted upon your knowledge, do not seek the knowledge of what you do not know; for knowledge, when it is not acted upon, increases nothing but distance from God.
إيضاح: لعل المراد النهى عن طلب علم لا يكون غرض طالبه العمل به و لا يكون عازما على الإتيان به و يحتمل أن يكون النهى راجعا إلى القيد أي لا تكونوا غير عاملين بما علمتم حتى إذا طلبتم العلم الذي يلزمكم طلبه يكون بعد عدم العمل بما علمتم فيكون مذموما من حيث عدم العمل لا من حيث الطلب.
Clarification: Perhaps what is meant is the prohibition of seeking a knowledge which the seeker does not intend to act upon and is not resolved to carry out. It may also be that the prohibition attaches to the qualification — that is, do not be scholars without practice, whose seeking of knowledge comes after abandoning action upon what they already know, which is blameworthy; so the blame is for not acting upon that knowledge, not for seeking knowledge.
«7»- ب، قرب الإسناد ابْنُ سَعْدٍ عَنِ الْأَزْدِيِّ قَالَ قَالَ أَبُو عَبْدِ اللَّهِ عليه السلام أَبْلِغْ مَوَالِيَنَا عَنَّا السَّلَامَ وَ أَخْبِرْهُمْ أَنَّا لَا نُغْنِي عَنْهُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيْئاً إِلَّا بِعَمَلٍ وَ أَنَّهُمْ لَنْ يَنَالُوا وَلَايَتَنَا إِلَّا بِعَمَلٍ أَوْ وَرَعٍ وَ أَنَّ أَشَدَّ النَّاسِ حَسْرَةً يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ مَنْ وَصَفَ عَدْلًا ثُمَّ خَالَفَهُ إِلَى غَيْرِهِ.
Qurb al-Isnad: Imam al-Sadiq, peace be upon him, said to al-Azdi: Convey my greetings to my friends, and tell them that nothing shields us from God's punishment but works, and that they do not attain our guardianship except by works or by God-fearing; and that the most regretful of people on the Day of Resurrection is one who described justice and then in practice went against it.
تبيين: قال الجزري يقال أغن عني الشرك أي اصرفه و كفه و منه قوله تعالى لَنْ يُغْنُوا عَنْكَ مِنَ اللَّهِ شَيْئاً ١
Al-Jazari said: one says "aghni 'anni al-shirk", meaning: turn it away from me and suffice me against it. And the sense of the noble verse "Truly they will avail you nothing against God; and the wrongdoers are friends one of another, but God is the friend of the God-fearing" is likewise.
«8»- ل، الخصال ابْنُ الْوَلِيدِ عَنِ الصَّفَّارِ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ عَنِ الْقَدَّاحِ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عليه السلام قَالَ: جَاءَ رَجُلٌ إِلَى النَّبِيِّ صلى اللّٰه عليه و آله فَقَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ مَا حَقُّ الْعِلْمِ قَالَ الْإِنْصَاتُ لَهُ قَالَ ثُمَّ مَهْ قَالَ الِاسْتِمَاعُ لَهُ قَالَ ثُمَّ مَهْ قَالَ الْحِفْظُ لَهُ قَالَ ثُمَّ مَهْ قَالَ ثُمَّ الْعَمَلُ بِهِ قَالَ ثُمَّ مَهْ قَالَ ثُمَّ نَشْرُهُ.
Al-Khisal: Knowledge has five degrees. The sixth Imam, peace be upon him, related from his father that a man came to the Prophet — may God bless him and his family — and said: O Messenger of God, what is knowledge? He said: Silence before the teacher. He said: Then what? He said: Listening to it. He said: Then what? He said: Memorising it. He said:
ما، الأمالي للشيخ الطوسي جَمَاعَةٌ عَنْ أَبِي الْمُفَضَّلِ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ الْعَلَوِيِّ عَنِ ابْنِ نَهِيكٍ عَنْ جَعْفَرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدٍ الْأَشْعَرِيِّ عَنِ الْقَدَّاحِ مِثْلَهُ.
Then what? He said: Acting upon it. He said: Then what? He said: Spreading it to others. Amali of al-Shaykh al-Tusi: A company related the like of the above hadith from al-Qaddah.
بيان: لعل سؤال السائل كان عما يوجب العلم أو عن آداب طلب العلم و يحتمل أن يكون غرضه استعلام حقيقته فأجابه عليه السلام ببيان ما يوجب حصوله لأنه الذي ينفعه فالحمل على المبالغة و الإنصات السكوت عند الاستماع فإن كثرة المجادلة عند العالم توجب الحرمان عن علمه.
Perhaps the questioner was asking about what brings knowledge about, or about the etiquette of seeking knowledge; and it may be that his purpose was to learn its reality, and the Imam, peace be upon him, answered him by setting out what brings it about, since that is what profits him. So it is to be taken as hyperbole, and as silence at the time of listening — for much disputing in a scholar's presence causes a man to be deprived of his knowledge.