سَأَلْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ( عليه السلام ) عَنْ قَوْلِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبارَهُمْ وَ رُهْبانَهُمْ أَرْباباً مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ فَقَالَ أَمَا وَ اللَّهِ مَا دَعَوْهُمْ إِلَى عِبَادَةِ أَنْفُسِهِمْ وَ لَوْ دَعَوْهُمْ إِلَى عِبَادَةِ أَنْفُسِهِمْ لَمَا أَجَابُوهُمْ وَ لَكِنْ أَحَلُّوا لَهُمْ حَرَاماً وَ حَرَّمُوا عَلَيْهِمْ حَلَالًا فَعَبَدُوهُمْ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَشْعُرُونَ .
Translation
A number of our companions, from Ahmad Bin Muhammad Bin Khalid, from his father, from Abdullah Bin Yahya, from Abdullah Bin Muskan, from Abu Baseer who said, ‘I asked Abu Abdullah<sup>asws</sup> about the Words of Allah<sup>azwj</sup> Mighty and Majestic <span class="ibTxt"><a href="/#/books/quran:9#h31"><a href="/books/quran:9#h31">[9:31]</a></a> They have taken their Rabbis and their Monks for lords besides Allah</span>. So he<sup>asws</sup> said: ‘But, by Allah<sup>azwj</sup>, they (priests) did not invite them (people) to worship them, and had they invited them so, they would not have responded to them, but they (priests) permitted for them the Prohibitions, and prohibited upon them the Permissible. Thus, they (people) worshipped them (followed their commands rather than Divine Laws) from (a perspective) they were not aware of’.
Compiled by Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Kulayni
Source
License: Free for educational and research use (Thaqalayn Data API)
Provided for research and educational purposes. Original source: Thaqalayn Project. Open License.