Ibn Taymiyyah on the Importance of Divine Revelation

Shaykh Ibn Taymiyyah commenting on the importance of divine revelation said in Majmu’ al-Fatawa:

وفي هذا الذي قرَّرناه يقول ابن تيمية رحمه الله: “الرسالة ضرورية للعباد لا بد لهم منها، وحاجتهم إليها فوق حاجتهم إلى كل شيء، والرسالة روح العالم ونوره وحياته، فأي صلاح للعالم إذا عدم الروح والحياة والنور؟ والدنيا مظلمة ملعونة إلا ما طلعت عليه شمس الرسالة،

 وكذلك العبد ما لم تشرق في قلبه شمس الرسالة ويناله من حياتها وروحها فهو في ظلمة، وهو من الأموات، قال تعالى: {أَوَمَنْ كَانَ مَيْتًا فَأَحْيَيْنَاهُ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُ نُورًا يَمْشِي بِهِ فِي النَّاسِ كَمَنْ مَثَلُهُ فِي الظُّلُمَاتِ لَيْسَ بِخَارِجٍ مِنْهَا كَذَلِكَ زُيِّنَ لِلْكَافِرِينَ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ} [الأنعام: 122].

فهذا وصف المؤمن كان ميتا في ظلمة الجهل فأحياه الله بروح الرسالة ونور الإيمان وجعل له نورا يمشي به في الناس. وأما الكافر فميت القلب في الظلمات… فإن الله سبحانه جعل الرسل وسائط بينه وبين عباده في تعريفهم ما ينفعهم وما يضرهم وتكميل ما يصلحهم في معاشهم ومعادهم..

Divine revelation is essential for the servants [of Allah]. Their need for it outweighs their need for anything else. Divine revelation is the soul, light, and life of the world. What good is the world if its soul, life, and light are extinguished? This world is a dark curse unless the sun of divine revelation rises over it.

Similarly for the servant [of Allah], for as long as his heart does not shine with the sun of divine revelation then he is in darkness, and he is from the dead [spiritually], for Allah said: “And is one who was dead and We gave him life and made for him light by which to walk among the people like one who is in darkness, never to emerge therefrom? Thus it has been made pleasing to the disbelievers that which they were doing.” (6:122).

This is the description of the believer who was dead [spiritually] in the darkness of ignorance, and then Allah brought him to life with the soul of divine revelation and light of Eman and made it a light for him to walk by amongst the people. As for the kafir, then his heart is dead in the layers of darkness… For Allah - may He be glorified – made the messengers as intermediaries between Himself and His servants in getting them to know what benefits and harms them and know what complements and makes perfect what benefits them in this life and the next…