God does not burden with the unseen; He burdens with the apparent. And He does not burden with free will; He burdens with command. Divine obligation is contingent upon human capacity to act. God does not burden His servants with what they cannot bear. "Indeed, God does not burden a soul beyond its capacity." This ruling is not only applicable to existing divine obligations but extends to the very principle of obligation in relation to God Almighty. Reason dictates the impossibility of obligating what cannot be borne. Two proofs attest to this: First, what a person cannot bear is impossible for them to do. God Almighty does not obligate the impossible. Second, God is aware of His servants' capacities and is compassionate towards them. Therefore, He does not burden them with what they cannot bear. It is clear that the Mahdi, in this view, differs from the Ash'arites, who hold that "God Almighty may obligate His servants with what they can bear and what they cannot bear," aligning with their view that nothing God does is ugly, and all that He does is justice. His view aligns with the Mu'tazilites, who prohibited obligating what cannot be borne because it is ugly, and the ugly is impossible to emanate from God Almighty. However, we note that his statement is inconsistent with what we have seen regarding his affirmation of God's absolute will. He agreed with the Ash'arites on the premise but differed from them on the necessary conclusion, showing some contradiction in his views. Kitab al-Qawa'id: Ibn Tumart (38). Same source and page. Ibn Tumart (39). Risala fi al-'Ibadah: Ibn Tumart (40). See: Ibn Tumart: Risala fi al-'Ibadah (41). We have deduced the two proofs from his statement: "...If what they obligated were impossible, its existence would be prevented, and the All-Knowing, All-Wise Creator does not obligate His servants with impossibilities, nor does He burden them with what they cannot bear." See, for example: Al-Ghazali, Al-Iqtisad fi al-I'tiqad (42). See: Al-Razi, Usul al-Din (43). See regarding this: Al-Qadi 'Abd al-Jabbar, Al-Mughni, 11/367, and Sharh al-Usul al-Khamsa, 396. 2066