Table Of Content<UN>
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The Conclusive Argument
from God
Shāh Walī Allāh of Delhi's Ḥujjat Allāh al-Bāligha
Translated by
Marcia K. Hermansen
BRILL
leiden | boston
<UN>
This paperback was originally published in hardback as Volume 25 in the series Islamic Philosophy,
Theology and Science. Texts and Studies.
Cover illustration: Drawing of the Jāmiʿ Masjid in Delhi in the 19th century, Germany 2019, unknown artist.
The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows:
Walī Allāh al-Dihlawī, 1702 or 3-1762 or 3.
[Ḥujjat Allāh al-bālighah. English]
The conclusive argument from God = Shāh Walī Allāh of Delhi’s Ḥujjat
Allāh al-bāligha / translated by Marcia K. Hermansen.
p. cm. — (Islamic philosophy, theology, and science, ISSN
0169-8729 ; v. 25)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and indexes.
ISBN 900410298 1 (cloth : alk. paper)
I. Islam—Early works to 1800. I. Hermansen, Marcia K.
II. Title. III. Series.
BP160.W313 1995
297’.2—dc20 95-22093
CIP
Typeface for the Latin, Greek, and Cyrillic scripts: “Brill”. See and download: brill.com/brill-typeface.
ISBN 978-90-04-44477-5 (paperback, 2021)
ISBN 978-90-04-10298-9 (hardback, 1996)
ISBN 978-90-04-44476-8 (e-book, 2021)
Copyright 1996 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi,
Brill Sense, Hotei Publishing, mentis Verlag, Verlag Ferdinand Schöningh and Wilhelm Fink Verlag.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system,
or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise,
without prior written permission from the publisher. Requests for re-use and/or translations must be
addressed to Koninklijke Brill NV via brill.com or copyright.com.
This book is printed on acid-free paper and produced in a sustainable manner.
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This translation is dedicated to Fazlur Rahman, an inspiring
teacher who wanted Shah Wali Allah's thought to be more
widely known.
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments ...................................................................... xiii
Translator's Introduction........................................................... xv
The Conclusive Argument from God. lfujjat Allah al-Baligha
VOLUME I
The General Principles from Which Are Derived the
Beneficial Purposes Considered in the Rulings of
the Divine Law
Shah Wali Allah's Preface....................................................... 3
Shah Wali Allah's Introduction............................................... 11
BOOK I The First Investigation: The Causes of
Religious Obligations and Requital ...................... 31
I. Absolute Origination, Creation of the Material World
and Divine Management ................................................... 33
2. The World of Images ('Alam al-Mithiil) ........................ 37
3. The Highest Council.......................................................... 43
4. God's Customary Way of Acting
(Sunna) ................................................................................ 49
5. The True Nature of the Spirit (Rul;,,) .............................•. 53
6. The Inner Dimension of the Imposition of Religious
Obligations ............................. ....... ........................ .............. 57
7. How Religious Obligation is Derived from What
is Divinely Decreed........................................................... 60
8. Why Religious Obligation Necessitates Requital.......... 69
9. The Variations in the Natural Dispositions of People.. 73
10. The Causes of the Thoughts Which Motivate
Actions................................................................................ 78
11. The Adhering of Acts to the Soul and Its Being Held
Accountable for Them....................................................... 80
12. The Connection of Actions to Psychological
Attitudes ........................................................ ...................... 84
13. The Causes for Requital ................................................... 87
viii CONTENTS
BOOK II The Second Investigation: The Manner of
Requital during Life and after Death.................. 91
14. Punishment for Acts in This Life.................................... 93
15. The True Nature of Death................................................ 97
16. The Variation of the States of People in the
Intermediary World............................................................ 101
17. Concerning Some of the Secrets of the Events
of the Day of Assembly ................................................... 106
BOOK III The Third Investigation: The Supports of ....... .
Civilization (The Irtifiiqat) .................................. 113
18. The Manner of Discovering the lrtifiiqat ....................... 115
19. The First lrtifiiq ................................................................. 119
20. The Art of the Proper Manner of Livelihood
(The Second Irtifiiq) .......................................................... 121
21. The Management of the Household ................................ 123
22. The Art of Economic Transactions (Mu'amaliit) ........... 127
23. The Governing of the City-State (the Third lrtifaq)..... 129
24. The Conduct of Kings....................................................... 132
25. The Policy towards Assistants......................................... 134
26. The Fourth lrtifiiq (the Caliphate)................................... 137
27. The Agreement of People on the Principles of
the / rtifi iqiit .. . .. .. .. .. . .. . . .. . ... .. . . .. .. .. .. . . . .. . .. .. .. .. .. . .. . . . .. .. . . .. .. . .. . . .. 140
28. The Conventions Current Among People....................... 142
BOOK IV The Fourth Investigation:
Human Felicity ........ .. ........................................... 145
29. Concerning the True Nature of Felicity......................... 147
30. The Ditfe rences among People in Felicity ................. .... 151
31. The Divisions among People in their Manner of
Obtaining This Felicity..................................................... 153
32. The Principles to Which the Attainment of the
Second Way Goes Back.................................................... 156
33. The Way of Acquiring These Qualities.......................... 161
34. The Veils Preventing the Manifestation of the Sound
Original Nature (Fifra) ..................................................... 165
35. The Way of Removing These Veils................................ 168
CONTENTS ix
BOOK V The Fifth Investigation:
Piety and Sin ........... ...................... ..... .................... 171
36. Preface: Concerning the True Nature of Piety
and Sin................................................................................ 173
37. The Unity of God (Tau!J,id) .............................................. 175
38. Concerning the True Nature of Associationism (Shirk) 179
39. The Categories of Associationism (Shirk)...................... 184
40. Belief in the Divine Attributes ........................................ 190
41. Belief in Predestination ............. ............... ......................... 197
42. Belief that Worship is the Right of God, May
He be Exalted .. ............. .... .. .................. ................ ........ .... .. 203
43. Honoring the Emblems of Allah, May
He be Exalted..................................................................... 210
44. The Inner Meanings of the Ablution and Full Bath..... 214
45. The Inner Dimensions of Prayer...................................... 218
46. The Inner Meanings of the Zakiit ............. ..... .................. 221
47. The Inner Dimensions of the Fast................................... 224
48. The Inner Dimensions of the Pilgrimage ....................... 227
49. The Inner Meanings of Various Types of
Pious Actions...................................................................... 229
50. The Ranks of Sin............................................................... 232
51. The Harmful Influences of Sins....................................... 236
52. The Acts of Disobedience of a Person which
Have an Impact on Himself ............................................. 238
53. The Sins which are Between a Person and
Other People .. .. ... .. .... .... ............ ..... . .. ... ...... ..... .. .. . .. ........ .... . 241
BOOK VI The Sixth Investigation:
The Regulation of Religion................................. 245
54. The Need for the Guides to the Paths and the
Founders of Religions....................................................... 247
55. The True Nature of Prophecy and Its
Characteristics ...... ......... .... .... ..... ...... ... . .. .......... ... .. ......... .... 250
56. The Explanation of the Fact that the Basis of
Religion (Din) is One and the Religious Laws
(Shara'i') and Codes (Maniihij) Vary ............................. 257
57. The Causes of the Revelation of the Divine Laws
Relating to One Age Rather than Another, and to
One People Rather than Another ... ..... ...... ...... .... ......... .... 262
X CONTENTS
58. The Causes for Being Held Accountable for the
Codes (ManiihiJ) .•............................................................... 271
59. The Secrets of the Ruling (/fukm) and the Reason
for Legislation ('Illa) ......................................................... 275
60. The Beneficial Interests (Ma~iili/J) which Require
the Obligatory Religious Acts, the Pillars, the Proper
Behaviors, and Their Like ................................................ 280
61. The Inner Meanings of the (Appointed) Times ............. 287
62. The Inner Meanings of the Numbers and the Fixed
Quantities ............................................................................ 292
63. The Inner Meanings of Making Up (Qa(jii')
(for Missed Religious Obligations) or Receiving
Dispensations (Rukh~a) (to Diminish Them) ................. 299
64. The Establishment of the Supports of Civilization
(lrtifiiqiit) and the Reformation of Conventions ............ 303
65. Rules which Bring into Effect Other Rules ................... 310
66. Rendering the Ambiguous Precise, Solving the
Problematic, and Deriving Rulings from All-Embracing
Principles and So On ........................................................ 316
67. The Facilitation (of Religious Duties - Taisir) ............. 322
68. The Inner Meanings of Encouragement
(to Righteousness) and Deterrence (from Sin) .............. 327
69. The Ranks of the Community with Regard to
Arriving at the Desired Perfection or Its Opposite ....... 334
70. The Need for a Religion which Abrogates the
Other Religions .................................................................. 340
71. Fortifying the Religion Against Distortion ..................... 346
72. The Causes for the Differing of the Religion of
Our Prophet, from the Religion of the Jews
and Christians ..................................................................... 353
73. The Causes of Abrogation ................................................ 357
74. The Explanation of What Had Been the Condition
of the People of the Jahiliyya which the Prophet
Reformed ............................................................................. 361
BOOK VII The Seventh Investigation:
The Derivation of the Shari'a Laws from the
Reports of the Prophet..................................... 371
75. The Explanation of the Categories of the Prophet's
Knowledge .......................................................................... 373
