Hadith 11-7

حَدَّثَنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ أحْمَدَ السَنانِيُّ رَضِىَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قالَ: حَدَّثَنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ الكُوفِيُّ قالَ: حَدَّثَنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ إِسْمَاعِيل البَرمَكيِ‏ُّ قالَ: حَدَّثَنا الحُسَيْنُ بْنُ الحَسَنَ قالَ: حَدَّثَنا مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ عِيسَى، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَرَفَةَ قالَ: قُلْتُ لِلرِّضا عَلَيْهِ السَّلامُ: خَلَقَ اللَّهُ الأَشْياءِ بِالقُدرَةِ أَم بِغَيْرِ القُدرَةِ؟ فَقالَ‏ عَلَيْهِ السَّلامُ: لا يَجُوزُ أَنْ يَكُونَ خَلَقَ الأَشْياءَ بِالقُدرَةِ لأَنَّكَ إِذا قُلْتُ: خَلَقَ الأَشْياءَ بِالقُدرَةِ، فَكَأَنَّكَ قَدْ جُعِلْتَ القُدرَةَ شَيْئاً غَيْرَهُ وَجَعَلتَها آلَةً لَهُ بِها خَلَقَ الأَشْياءَ، وَهذا شِركٌ، وَإِذا قُلْتُ خَلَقَ الأَشْياءَ بِغَيْرِ قُدْرَةٍ فَإِنَّّما تَصِفُهُ أَنَّهُ جَعَلَها بِاقتِدارٍ عَلَيْها وَقُدْرَةٍ، وَلكِن لَيْسَ هُوَبِضَعيفٍ وَلا عاجِزٍ وَلا مُحْتاجٍ إِلى غَيْرِهِ، بَل هُوَسُبحانَهُ قادِرٌ لِذاتِهِ لا بِالقُدرَةِ.

Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Sinani - may God be pleased with him - narrated that Muhammad ibn Abi Abdullah al-Kufi quoted on the authority of Muhammad ibn Isma’il al-Barmaki, on the authority of Al-Husayn ibn Al-Hassan, on the authority of Muhammad ibn Isa, on the authority of Muhammad ibn Arafa, “I asked Al-Ridha’ (a.s.), ‘Did God create things using His Might or without it?’ The Imam (a.s.) replied, ‘You cannot say that God created things using His Might since when you say that God has created thing using His Might, you are considering His Might to be something other than Him. Saying that God has created things using the Might He has had over them [10] is like saying that God’s Might is something other than Him, and He has used it as a tool with which He creates. This is polytheism. When you say that God has created things using some other Might, it is as if you consider that Might to be separate from Him and He gets His Power over things using it. However, God is neither weak and incapable, nor is He in need of others. He is Glorified, and Mighty in nature, and not via an external power.’”