The Sufficient (Vol 1) · Hadith 219 (#Ḥadīth #1)

1ـ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ يَعْقُوبَ عَنْ عَلِيِّ بْنِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عِيسَى عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ أَبِي نَجْرَانَ قَالَ سَأَلْتُ أَبَا جَعْفَرٍ عَنِ التَّوْحِيدِ فَقُلْتُ أَتَوَهَّمُ شَيْئاً فَقَالَ نَعَمْ غَيْرَ مَعْقُولٍ وَلا مَحْدُودٍ فَمَا وَقَعَ وَهْمُكَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ فَهُوَ خِلافُهُ لا يُشْبِهُهُ شَيْءٌ وَلا تُدْرِكُهُ الاوْهَامُ كَيْفَ تُدْرِكُهُ الاوْهَامُ وَهُوَ خِلافُ مَا يُعْقَلُ وَخِلافُ مَا يُتَصَوَّرُ فِي الاوْهَامِ إِنَّمَا يُتَوَهَّمُ شَيْءٌ غَيْرُ مَعْقُولٍ وَلا مَحْدُودٍ.

1. Muhammad ibn Ya‘qub has narrated from Ali ibn Ibrahim, from Muhammad ibn ‘Isa from ‘Abd al-Rahman ibn abu Najran who said the following. “I asked abu Ja'far about the Oneness of Allah saying, ‘Can I think of Him (the creator) as a thing?’” The Imam replied, “Yes, but not as something well understood and clearly defined with in limits. What may become a subject of your thoughts is different from Him. Nothing resembles Him and the thoughts and imaginations can not reach Him. He is different from what can become the subject of thoughts and is different from whatever that can be perceived in ones thoughts. You can think of Him as some thing but not well understood and clearly defined (under certain limits).”

Gradings are classical jarḥ-wa-taʿdīl, name-matched to a rijāl index (not individually re-verified).