Explanation Kitaab ut Tawheed – Part 2

We studied Tawheed ar Rububiyyah and Tawheed al Uluhiyyah. 

The third category of Tawheed is Tawheed of Allah’s names and attributes, which pertains to the beautiful Names and Attributes of Allah. In reality this is actually a part of Tawheed ar Rububiyyah but due to the people of bidah [innovation and misguidance] who spread their doubts [shubuhat] the scholars made this a category of Tawheed in order to establish the truth [haqq] and to purify this tawheed from the doubts of Ahlul Bidah [the people of innovation].

So we must believe in Allah  , that He is the only One who deserves to be worshipped alone and we must to believe in what Allah   described Himself and also what His Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم  described Allah   with regarding His Names and Attributes. We believe in Allah’s  Names and Attributes and in the meaning. In addition, we affirm it without Tahreef, Tateel, Takeef, or Tamteel.

We need to understand first the Aqeedah of Ahlus Sunah wa Jama’ah then we need to know from where these deviations came. The Ashairah became obsessed with this matter to the extent that they will call anyone who says that Allah has hands or Allah speaks, a kafir [disbeliever]. Allah proved the attribute of speaking and Allah proved the attribute of Hands and yet they deny it!

Tahreef means to deviate- to go away from the true and correct meaning to a deviated one. For instance, they deny the beautiful attribute of Allah, ‘mercy’ and view it as being a form of weakness, and claim it to mean Allah’s willingness to reward His slaves. 

Ahlus Sunnah wal Jam’ah on the other hand proves the meaning of Allah’s mercy but without “Tamtheel” comparing it to His creation. Thus we do not say Allah’s mercy is similar to that of a human’s, like a mother’s mercy to her child. Never! Our mercy does not resemble the mercy of Allah. The attribute of mercy that Allah has gifted humans withof  Allah, and it is not based on knowledge nor wisdom and itcan never rsemble the mercy of Allah.

We prove the Hands of Allah yet they are not like the hands of His creation. For example, a table is described as having ‘legs’ yet we do not compare the legs of the table to that of a human’s!  Thus, to Allah belongs the highest of examples, Allah is the Creator and there is none like Him nor similar to Him. He is exalted, and perfect and we on the other hand are deficient in every way. 

We confirm Allah’s Names and Attributes without distorting the meaning. But it is not enough to just confirm. What is the greatest principle for Asma wa Siffat? 

لَيۡسَ كَمِثۡلِهِۦ شَىۡءٌ۬‌ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلۡبَصِيرُ (١١)

There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer.– [Surah Shuraa 42: 11]

We never Resemble Allah to His creation, we believe Allah has hands but the attribute which is not like any hand nothing is like the Hands of Allah.

And we don’t make Takeef “asking how”, “How Allah descends?”, “How Allah speaks?” because our minds are very limited and although they can understand the meaning of Allah’s attributes, saying Allah’s hands are like my hands.. No! No resemblance to the creation. No One is like Allah. Allah can never resemble a creature. He is Perfect in every way and never can resemble the deficient.

So we prove it within the frame of :

لَيۡسَ كَمِثۡلِهِۦ شَىۡءٌ۬‌ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلۡبَصِيرُ (١١)

There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer.– 

[Surah Ash- Shuraa 42: 11]

The Shaikh ul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said that we believe in everything which Allah described Himself with without distortion , resemblance or asking how.

Allah Has an essence, but our minds can never fully understand this because we have never seen Allah,  and there is no one like Allah. Thus ‘Kaifiyyah is Mushtaheela’ – we should never ask about it when it is impossible to understand.

 The best thing about Islam is this certainty. A heart full of doubts and full of wondering, not knowing where the truth is, causes nothing but pain.

As for those whom Allah guided to the correct path, you will find them that they are assured and their hearts are content and assured. They read the Quran and the Sunnah and whenever they learn a Name and Attribute of Allah, they affirm it and believe in it with certainty. Whatever Allah affirms for Himself they believe it without doubt, and no one knows Allah more than Himself. and Allah is the most truthful.

If you want the pure truth then who will give you this truth except Allah. No one can give a clear statement better than Allah as Allah said :THe 

يُرِيدُ ٱللَّهُ لِيُبَيِّنَ لَكُمۡ وَيَہۡدِيَڪُمۡ سُنَنَ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبۡلِڪُمۡ وَيَتُوبَ عَلَيۡكُمۡ‌ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ۬ (٢٦)

Allah wishes to make clear (what is lawful and what is unlawful) to you, and to show you the ways of those before you, and accept your repentance, and Allah  is All-Knower, All-Wise. [Surah Nisaa 4: 26]

This is out of His Mercy, everything was clarified to us. Allah showed this and clarified and revealed in order not to go astray.

بِٱلۡبَيِّنَـٰتِ وَٱلزُّبُرِ‌ۗ وَأَنزَلۡنَآ إِلَيۡكَ ٱلذِّڪۡرَ لِتُبَيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ إِلَيۡہِمۡ وَلَعَلَّهُمۡ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ (٤٤)

And We have also sent down unto you (O Muhammad ) the reminder and the advice (the Qur’an), that you may explain clearly to men what is sent down to them, and that they may give thought. [Surah Nahl 16: 44]

ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ‌ۚ لَيَجۡمَعَنَّكُمۡ إِلَىٰ يَوۡمِ ٱلۡقِيَـٰمَةِ لَا رَيۡبَ فِيهِ‌ۗ وَمَنۡ أَصۡدَقُ مِنَ ٱللَّهِ حَدِيثً۬ا (٨٧)

And who is truer in statement than Allah  ? – [Surah Nisaa 4: 87]

The shaikh continues, that these verses show us that Allah has shown us everything and clarified everything to His creation. The Quran and Sunnah has shown us everything in a very transparent way. The greatest thing we need in order to be able to worship Allah upon a correct understanding is to know Allah by His Names and Attributes, there is nothing more important. How can you worship Allah according to what pleases Allah., if we don’t understand Him. Understanding His Names and Attributes is the greatest need of the creation. How can you please Him if you don’t know about Him? How can you hope in Him, fear Him, rely on Him, or even act in accordance to these attributes? How can you know what He loves, such as having [Haya] modesty, generosity in giving, or excusing people. How can you worship someone when you don’t know their attributes or how can you worship someone who has no attribute. Subhan Allah!

We ourselves have attributes, how can we worship someone with no attributes. This is impossible! That is why we need to know the attributes of the One worshipped so we can develop love, understanding and all those vital things in order for us to have a special relationship with our Creator. Furthermore, these attributes will help us with many things in our religion, such as taking refuge in Him when we are in need of Him. We will seek His refuge and turn to Him in worship with truth. We cannot transgress our limits by asking ‘how’. How Allah descends and How Allah sustains every single person and creation at the same time, Or we cannot say Allah is like so and so, or I am trying to figure out the state of Allah ’s Attributes. If you are still unable to unravel the mysteries of your own Nafs, the Ruh, how can you try to comprehend the complexities of the One that gave you life!e essence of our soul, and how the angel of death takes it out of the body and the body dies? The soul “ Ruh “ is taken out from this body in front of our eyes yet we cannot see it or prevent it? So, If we are not able to realize the Nafs of your own body then more likely you will be unable to realize the state of what Allah attributed to Himself. So refrain from asking ‘How’ and ‘Why’ anything regarding the Names and Attributes of Allah. 

In addition, prevent yourself from imagining ‘Al Kaifiyyah’- of imagining the Hands of Allah or Face of Allah or how. Struggle to prevent yourself from imagining “Kaifiyyah” How is Allah.  If you follow this path you will be relieved and in a state of ease. This was the state of the Salaf, they felt this easiness and this state of confidence and assurance. Subhana Allah!

This is why, when a man came to Imam Malik when he was giving a lecture. He asked, “O Abu Abdullah [Allah said:] ‘Ar-Rahman upon the Throne Istawa’, how was His Istiwa?” So Imam Malik lowered his head, then he said: “Al-Istiwa’ is known and the Kayf (how) is incomprehensible, believing in it is obligatory, and asking about it is innovation, and I do not think that you are anything but an innovator, you are a Mubtadi , then he ordered that the man be let out.”

The mind of the creature cannot comprehend the true essence of Allah   with His Greatness, His Vastness that does not resemble any of His Creation it is beyond our capability to comprehend.