Oneness of Allah Regarding His Names and Attributes (Tawhīd al-Asmā wa al-Sifāt)

Believing in Allah's Names and Attributes has enormous influence both on the soul of a Muslim as well as on his worship of the Lord (Allah). The impact includes that feeling he has in the course of his engagement in heart-related devotion to Allah, which makes him rely on Allah and be mindful of his physical and mental actions. He will also gain control of his thoughts; and thus, think only of what pleases Allah, and loves anyone or anything  strictly for His sake alone. His hearing and sight will be in accordance with Allah's commandments, and yet, he will be full of hope for Allah's Mercy and has a fair thought concerning Him.

               

               All these and other concepts relating to the belief in the meaning of Allah's Names and Attributes cause one to offer both noticeable and unnoticeable acts of worship to Allah. Worshippers are, however, not the same in this regard because of worshippers devotion to his/her Lord, and that is a favour of Allah which He bestows on whoever He likes.

The great impact of Allah's Name 'Al-Ghaffar' (the Oft-forgiving) for instance, manifests in the love one has for Him, and the ceaseless hope he shows for His Mercy.

               The impact of Allah's Name 'Shadid al-Iqab' (The One who is stern in punishment) is so enormous that one would fear Him and never dare to break His laws. Similarly, all other Names or Attributes of Allah, based on what each of them denotes, have impacts on the soul of a Muslim as well as on the level of his compliance with Allah's law. That further gives rise to hearty love for Allah: the basis of a Muslim's happiness in this world and the the world to come, the key to every success, and the most valuable assistance one could get regarding the worship of his Lord in the most accurate manner. The degree of such love for Allah determines how easy or tedious the physical acts of worship become for a worshipper.

               Perfecting an act of worship or improving it in accordance with the wish of Allah depends on the hearty love one has for Him, which is also contingent on knowing Him by His Names and Attributes. No wonder the Messengers of Allah worshipped Him most, since their love and knowledge of Him surpass those of any other human beings.

Definition:

               It is to believe in any name or attribute ascribed to Allah, either by Himself or by His Messenger (Peace and blessings be upon Him), and to absolve Him from such names or attributes which He or His Messenger has declared as not befitting Him (the Exalted). This is also entails acknowledging the true meaning of or indication of any divine Name or Attribute, as well as bearing in mind its impact and implication on Allah's creatures.

Proper Method of Establishing this Belief:

               That is to believe absolutely and decisively in whatever term either Allah or His Messenger has used to describe Him, with neither distortion, nor negation, nor subjecting such terms to descriptive designation (i.e takyīf) or anthropomorphic explanation (i.e. tamthīl).

Distortion means alteration or misrepresentation of something, and it is done in two ways:

1- Literal or Physical distortion, by adding something to a word, deleting part of it, or changing a vowel sign in it. An example of this occurs in the following verse:

[Allah] the Most Gracious rose over the Throne. [Quran (20):5]

Some people distorted the word 'istawā (He rose over...) in this verse to mean 'istawlā (He took possession of...).

The author of al-Nūniyyah [a well-known literary masterpiece] thus commenting saying,

"The letter 'N' which the Jews inserted [Cf. commentaries on ayahs 58 and 59 from Surat al-Baqarah.] and the 'L' [i.e. استوى = استولى] being inserted by the Jahmites are both addition to the revelation of the Lord of the Throne"

2- Abstract distortion, by twisting a word to mean something different from what Allah and His Messenger intended by it. An instance of this is the interpretation by some, of  "Hand" with respect to Allah as either His Power or Blessing. Such a wrong interpretation, which conforms to neither religious nor linguistic rules.

               Negation or 'Ta'til' in Arabic is to deny Allah's Attributes, such as a claim by some that He has no attributes at all. The difference between this and the earlier mentioned distortion lies in the fact that the latter involves substituting an incorrect meaning for the already misrepresented word, while denial of the intended or the correct meaning remains a common denominator in both.

               Takyīf  means subjecting the Attributes of Allah to human imagination in terms of how a certain quality of His could be. Some erring individuals or groups try to give descriptive explanation of Allah Attributes and thus claim that His Hand, or His being above the Throne is in this or in that manner etc. This, indeed, is an undue claim, for the state of Allah's Attributes is known only to Him; it is beyond what a human being can comprehend.

               Tamthīl is to compare Allah (the Exalted) to His Creatures, such as saying that He has hearing or face that are similar to ours. Far exalted is He above such a similitude.

The correct method applicable regarding Allah's Names and Attributes has three fundamentals rules, fulfilment of which is enough to guarantee safety from any deviation in this respect. These are:

1- Eliminating any anthropomorphic element in our conception of Allah's Qualities. In other words, none of Allah's Attributes should be likened to that of His creation.

2- Believing in any Name or Attribute ascribed to Allah either by Himself  or by His Messenger, in a manner that suits His sublimity and Majesty.

3- To have no aspiration to comprehend the actual condition of Allah's Attribute, as it is impossible for a created being to know this. 

           True implementation of those rules indicates genuine establishment of faith regarding the Names and Attributes of Almighty Allah, and in line with the principles laid down by the worthy scholars of Islam.

Thursday, March 20, 2014