Any Thing that Could be Called a Thing is Created by God

The goal of this blog is to publish only the traditions that are considered authentic and acceptable from the Ahlul Bayt (as).  I will put an effort to add a commentary to each blog post to either provoke some thoughts or to elaborate on each tradition. If you, the reader, have a different opinion on the acceptability status of the traditions that I post or the notes that I write, please do not hesitate to comment on my posts to inform me about your views and opinions.  Keep in mind, this blog is dedicated to the teachings of the Ahlul Bayt (as), and issues are examined from the perspective of Tashayyu.

I have access to the Arabic and often (but not always) to the corresponding Farsi texts for each tradition. To translate these traditions to English, I have sought the help of Arabic-speaking translators.  I strongly recommend that readers, who can, to always check and double-check the translations themselves, and if there are any issues or mistakes, please let me know.

Now, with this brief introduction in mind, let us not wait any longer and proceed to examine a very important topic.

Most people in their lives have contemplated God's nature.  Regardless of their religions, philosophies, or personal opinions, people throughout millennia have either academically or non-academically reflected on an entity, which many have labeled as God.  In this post, I will unveil the light of Tashayyu on this topic via authentic and acceptable traditions of the Imams of Ahlul Bayt (as).

Arabic Text:

عَلِيُّ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ عَنِ ابْنِ أَبِي عُمَيْرٍ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ عَطِيَّةَ عَنْ خَيْثَمَةَ عَنْ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ ع قَالَ

إِنَّ اللَّهَ خِلْوٌ مِنْ خَلْقِهِ وَ خَلْقَهُ خِلْوٌ مِنْهُ وَ كُلُّ مَا وَقَعَ عَلَيْهِ اسْمُ شَيْ‏ءٍ مَا خَلَا اللَّهَ تَعَالَى فَهُوَ مَخْلُوقٌ وَ اللَّهُ خَالِقُ كُلِّ شَيْ‏ءٍ

Farsi Text:

 امام صادق (ع) فرمود :

به راستى خدا تهى است از خلقش و خلقش از او تهى باشند و هر چه كه بر او نام چيز صادق آيد جز خداى تعالى مخلوق باشد و خدا خالق هر چيز است.

English Text:

It is narrated from Imam Abu Ja‘far (peace be upon him), who said:

"Allah is distinct [or vacant] from His creatures and the creatures are distinct [or vacant] from Him, and anything that could be called a thing, except Allah the Almighty, is created, and Allah is the Creator of all things."

Source:

Al-Kafi, Volume 1, Page 83, Tradition #5

Explicit teachings:

• Neither God is in His creatures nor are His creatures in God.
• God is the creator of all things (شَيْ‏ءٍ).

Implicit teachings:

• In Islam, Pantheism and Panentheism are rejected.
• If the theory of Wahdat al-Wujud (unity of existence) is any form/type of either Pantheism or Panentheism, then it ought to be rejected.

Questions to ponder:

• Is there anything that exists that is not a thing? Abstract concepts? Thoughts? Ideas?
• What does “thing” mean? Does “Thing” or (شَيْ‏ءٍ) imply physical existence?