Exemplary Foundations Concerning the Beautiful Names and Attributes of Allāh
Imām ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Bāz
A scholar’s review and summary of a book explaining the the foundations to knowing the status of the names and attributes of Allāh in the religion.
The Commendation of Imām ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn Bāz:
Shaykh al-Islām ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Bāz (d.1420H) – raḥimahullāh – said,
“The praise is for Allāh and may the peace and greetings be upon the Messenger of Allāh and upon his Family and whosoever is guided by his guidance. To proceed:
So indeed, I have reviewed the valuable book that was written by the possessor of excellence, our brother, al-ʿAllāmah, Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-ʿUthaymīn concerning the Names and Attributes. He named it al-Qawāʿid al-Muthlà fī Sifātillāhi wa Asmāʾ al-Ḥusnà. I have listened to it from its beginning to its end, so he wrote an illustrious book. Indeed, it contains a clarification of the creed of the Salaf al-Ṣāliḥ in the Names and Attributes. Likewise, it comprises of great foundations and collective benefits concerning the topic of the Names and Attributes.
He clarified the meaning of al-Maʿiyyah (Allāh’s being with His creation in knowledge, whilst being above His Throne in His Essence) that is mentioned in the Book of Allāh the Mighty and Majestic in a specific and general sense according to Ahl al-Sunnah wa-al-Jamāʿah. Verily it is the truth in reality, it does not require a blend or mixture of the two creations. Rather, He is the One free from all imperfections, above His Throne, as He has informed about Himself, and as is connected to His Majesty. It only necessitates His knowledge, congnizance and acquaintance with them, and that He listens to their statements and movements, and He sees their conditions and situations, and He preserves and watches over His Messengers and His believing awliyāʾ (close allies), and He grants them victory and success to other than that from whatever relates to the general and particular maʿiyyah. It contains sublime meanings and realities that Allāh the Glorified has affirmed for Himself.
Likewise, this book comprises of an opposition to the statement of the people of taʿtīl (denial), tashbīḥ (resemblance) and tamthīl (likening), and the people of al-Ḥulūl wa-al-Ittihād (incarnation and union between Allāh and His creation).
So may Allāh increase him in goodness and increase him and us in knowledge, guidance and success. May Allāh benefit all of the Muslims by reading his book. Verily He is the best Disposer for that and well-capable of it. So may the peace and greetings of Allāh be upon our Prophet Muḥammad and His Family and His Companions.
Stated by the one needy of Allāh the Exalted:
ʿAbdul-ʿAzīz ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn Bāz
Head of the Department of Knowledge-Based Research,
Religious Verdicts, Call and Guidance. 5/11/1404H.”
Introduction:
The praise is for Allāh, we praise Him, seek His aid and ask for His forgiveness. We repent to Him and seek refuge in Allāh from the evils of our selves and from the evils of our sinful de eds. Whosoever Allāh guides, then none can misguide him; and whomsoever Allāh allows to be led astray, then there is no guide for him. I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship besides Allāh alone without any associate; and I testify that Muḥammad is His servant and Messenger. May the perfect and complete greetings of Allāh be upon him, his Family, his Companions and whosoever follows him in goodness.
To proceed:
So īmān (faith) in the Names and Attributes of Allāh is one of the pillars of faith in Allāh the Exalted, and that consists of faith in the wujūd (existence) of Allāh, faith in His rubūbiyyah (lordship), faith in His ulūhiyyah (divinity) and faith in His Names and Attributes.
The Status That The Religion Has Given to Knowing The Names and Attributes of Allāh:[1]
So Tawḥīd of the Names and Attributes of Allāh is one of the three categories of Tawheed, they are: Tawḥīd al-Rubūbiyyah, Tawḥīd al-Ulūhiyyah and Tawḥīd al-Asmāʾ wa-al-Sifāt. So the status of Tawḥīd al-Asmāʾ wa-al-Sifāt in the Religion is uppermost and of the utmost importance. It is not possible for anyone to worship Allāh in a complete way, until he has acquired knowledge of the Names and Attributes of Allāh the Exalted, in order to worship Him upon insight (baṣīrah). Allāh the Exalted said,
وَلِلَّهِ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَىٰ فَادْعُوهُ بِهَا
“And Allāh has Beautiful Names, so call upon Him by them.”
[Sūrah al-Aʿrāf 7:180]
So this consists of duʿāʾ al-masʾalah (supplication of request) and duʿāʾ al-ʿibādah (supplication of worship).[2] So duʿāʾ al-masʾalah is that you in front of your request that which befits the occasion from the Names of Allāh the Exalted, such as when you say, ‘O Ghafūr (Oft-Forgiving), forgive me,’ and ‘O Raḥīm (Bestower of Mercy), bestow mercy upon me,’ and ‘O Hāfiẓ (Preserver), preserve me,’ and the likes of that.[3]
And duʿāʾ al-ʿibādah is that you worship Allāh the Exalted by the necessary requirement of these Names. So you repent to Him because He is at-Tawwāb (the One who accepts repentance), and you remember Him by your tongue because He is as-Samīʿ (the All Hearing). You worship Him through your limbs because He is al-Baṣīr (the All-Seeing), and you fear Him in secrecy because He is al-Laṭīf al-Khabīr (the Kind, the All-Informed) and so on.
So due to this status of Tawḥīd al-Asmāʾ wa-al-Sifāt, and due to the people speaking about it with truth in some occasions, and with falsehood which emanates due to either ignorance or bigotry (taʿassub) upon other occasions; I decided to write whatever was easy concerning it from the widespread foundations, hoping from Allāh the Exalted that He makes this action of mine a sincere effort seeking His Face, being in agreement with His pleasure and beneficial for His servants. So I have named it al-Qawāʾid al-Muthlà fī Sifātillāhi Taʿālà wa Asmāʾ al-Ḥusnà.
The First Foundation: All the Names of Allāh the Exalted are Beautiful[4]
This is to say that they reach the utmost limits of beauty. Allāh the Exalted said,
وَلِلَّهِ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَىٰ
“And Allāh has Beautiful Names.”
[Sūrah al-Aʿrāf 7:180]
That is because the Attributes demonstrate absolute perfection, they do not possess any defect at all, neither in probability (of defectiveness), nor in implication. An example of this is that al-Ḥayy (the Ever-Living) is a Name from the Names of Allāh the Exalted demonstrating perfect life which was not preceded by absence, nor is it followed up by a death. Such life necessitates perfection for the Attributes such as Knowledge (ʿilm), Capability (qudrah), Hearing (samaʿ), sight (baṣr) and other than them. Another example is that al-ʿAlīm is a Name from the Names of Allāh demonstrating perfect knowledge which is not proceeded by ignorance, nor is it followed up by forgetfulness. Allāh the Exalted said,
قَالَ عِلْمُهَا عِندَ رَبِّي فِي كِتَابٍ ۖ لَّا يَضِلُّ رَبِّي وَلَا يَنسَى
“Knowledge of it is with my Lord, in a Book. My Lord is not unaware, nor does He forget.”
[Sūrah Tà Hà 20:52]
The Knowledge (ʿilm) is comprehensive and it encompasses everything generally and specifically, whether it be related to His Actions or the actions of His creation. Allāh the Exalted said,
وَعِندَهُ مَفَاتِحُ الْغَيْبِ لَا يَعْلَمُهَا إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ ۚ وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلَّا يَعْلَمُهَا وَلَا حَبَّةٍ فِي ظُلُمَاتِ الْأَرْضِ وَلَا رَطْبٍ وَلَا يَابِسٍ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مُّبِينٍ
“And with Him are the keys to the Unseen, none knows of it besides Him. And He knows whatever is upon the earth and in the sea. Not a leaf falls, except that He knows of it. There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth, nor anything flesh or dry, except that it is written in a Clear Record.”
[Sūrah al-Anʿām 6:59]
وَمَا مِن دَابَّةٍ فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَّا عَلَى اللَّهِ رِزْقُهَا وَيَعْلَمُ مُسْتَقَرَّهَا وَمُسْتَوْدَعَهَا ۚ كُلٌّ فِي كِتَابٍ مُّبِينٍ
“And there is no living creature upon the earth, except that Allāh provides its sustenance. And He knows of its temporary place and permanent abode. All of it is in a Clear Record.”
[Sūrah Hūd 11:6]
يَعْلَمُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا تُسِرُّونَ وَمَا تُعْلِنُونَ ۚ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ بِذَاتِ الصُّدُورِ
“He knows whatever is in the heavens and the earth, and He knows whatever you hide in secrecy and whatever you do openly. And He knows whatever is within the chests.”
[Sūrah al-Taghābun 64:4]
The third example is that al-Rahmān (the Most Merciful) is a Name from the Names of Allāh the Exalted demonstrating perfect mercy about which the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh has more mercy towards His servants than this woman has towards her son.”[5] Meaning, the mother of the child found it in captivity, so she took it away, placed it close to her stomach and breast-fed it. It is also demonstrative of the vast mercy about which Allāh said,
وَرَحْمَتِي وَسِعَتْ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ
“And My mercy encompasses everything.”
[Sūrah al-Aʿrāf 7:156]
And He said about the supplication of the Angels for the Believers,
رَبَّنَا وَسِعْتَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ رَّحْمَةً وَعِلْمًا
“Our Lord encompasses everything in mercy and knowledge.”
[Sūrah Ghāfir 40:7]
The beauty of the Names of Allāh the Exalted can be expressed through every Name by itself, and it can be expressed by combining it with other than itself. So by combining a Name with another, perfection upon perfection is achieved.[6] An example of that is al- ʿAzīz al-Hakīm (the Mighty, the Wise), since Allāh the Exalted combines these Names in many places within the Qurʾān. So each of the two represents a particular type of perfection that is a necessary requirement of the other. So it is al-ʿizzah (might) in al-ʿAzīz (the Mighty) and al-hukm (judgement) and al-hikmah (wisdom) in al-Hakīm (the Wise). So combining between the two represents another form of perfection; it is that the ʿizzah of Allāh the Exalted is coupled with Wisdom (hikmah). So His ʿizzah (might) does not necessitate oppression, tyranny and evil actions, as is the case with the mighty ones from amongst the creation, since the mighty ones from amongst them use their ʿizzah for sin. So he oppresses, tyrannizes and conducts evil behaviour. Likewise, the ḥukm and ḥikmah of Allāh the Exalted is coupled with perfect might, contrary to the hukm and hikmah of the creation, since they are afflicted with disgrace.
The Second Foundation: The Names of Allāh The Exalted Are Titles and Descriptions:[7]
Titles refer to the Essence and descriptions refer to the meanings.[8] So with respect to the first category, they are mutaradīfah: being that they all refer to one thing, and that is Allāh the Mighty and Majestic. And with respect to the second category, they are mutabāyinah: being that they all have a specific meaning. So al-Ḥayy (the Ever-Living), al-ʿAlīm (the All Knowing), al-Qadīr (the Omnipotent), al-Samīʿ (the All-Hearing), al-Basīr (the All Seeing), al-Rahmān (the Most Merciful), ar-Rahīm (the Bestower of Mercy), al-ʿAzīz (the All-Mighty) and al-Hakīm (the All-Wise); all of them are Names that refer to one thing and that is Allāh the Glorified and Exalted. However, the meaning of al-Ḥayy is not the meaning of al-ʿAlīm, and the meaning of al-ʿAlīm is not the meaning of al-Qadīr and so on. So we say that they are titles and descriptions due to the Qurʾān indicating that, just as it is found in the statement of Allāh the Exalted,
وَهُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ
“And He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Bestower of Mercy.”
[Sūrah al-Aḥqāf 46:8]
And there occurs the statement of Allāh,
وَرَبُّكَ الْغَفُورُ ذُو الرَّحْمَةِ
“And you Lord is the Oft-Forgiving, the Possessor of Mercy.”
[Sūrah al-Kahf 18:58]
So the second āyah can be described with mercy. The people of language and custom have a consensus (ijmāʿ) upon the fact that only one who has knowledge can be described with knowledge and only one who hears can be called a hearer, and only one who sees can be described with sight. And this is an affair that is too evident to be in need of a proof.
So with this, the misguidance of those who deprive the Names of Allāh the Exalted of their meanings becomes known. Such are the people of taʿtīl (denial) who say, ‘Allāh the Exalted is the All-Hearer without hearing and the All-Seeing without sight and the Mighty without might,’ and so on. And their justification for this reasoning is that affirming multiple Attributes necessitates multiple deities. This is a sickening justification. Rather, it is fatal, because the indications of samaʿ (hearing) and ʿaql (intellect) prove its falsehood.
As for hearing, then that is because Allāh the Exalted has described Himself with many descriptions, along with maintaining the fact that He is uniquely One. So Allāh the Exalted said,
إِنَّ بَطْشَ رَبِّكَ لَشَدِيدٌ ﴿١٢﴾ إِنَّهُ هُوَ يُبْدِئُ وَيُعِيدُ ﴿١٣﴾ وَهُوَ الْغَفُورُ الْوَدُودُ ﴿١٤﴾ ذُو الْعَرْشِ الْمَجِيدُ ﴿١٥﴾ فَعَّالٌ لِّمَا يُرِيدُ ﴿١٦﴾
“Verily the Punishment of your Lord is severe. Verily it is He who begins and repeats. And He is Oft-Forgiving, full of love, possessor of the Glorious Throne. He does whatever He wills.”
[Sūrah al-Burūj 85:12-16]
And Allāh the Exalted said,
سَبِّحِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ الْأَعْلَى ﴿١﴾ الَّذِي خَلَقَ فَسَوَّىٰ ﴿٢﴾ وَالَّذِي قَدَّرَ فَهَدَىٰ ﴿٣﴾ وَالَّذِي أَخْرَجَ الْمَرْعَىٰ ﴿٤﴾ فَجَعَلَهُ غُثَاءً أَحْوَىٰ ﴿٥﴾
“Glorify the Name of your Lord, the Exalted. Who has created everything and then proportioned it. And who has measured, then guided, and who brings out the pasturage, and makes it dark stubble.”
[Sūrah al-Aʿlà 87:1-5]
So in these noble āyāt are many descriptors for one thing being described, yet this does not necessitate affirming multiple deities. As for the intellect, then that is because the Attributes themselves are not separate from the one being described to the extent that they would necessitate affirming multiple deities. They are from the attributes of whoever is characterized by them. So they are dependant upon him. And it is inevitable that everything in existence must have multiple attributes. So it has the attribute of existence (wujūd), and its affair can either be wājib al-wujūd (obligatory existence) or mumkin al-wujūd (possible existence). And its affair can be individually dependant upon itself, or it can be a description for other than itself. So with this as well, it becomes known that al-Dahr (time) is not from the Names of Allāh the Exalted, because an inanimate name cannot guarantee a meaning befitting for the Beautiful Names, and because it is a name of moment and age. Allāh the Exalted said about the resurrection of the evil ones,
وَقَالُوا مَا هِيَ إِلَّا حَيَاتُنَا الدُّنْيَا نَمُوتُ وَنَحْيَا وَمَا يُهْلِكُنَا إِلَّا الدَّهْرُ ۚ وَمَا لَهُم بِذَٰلِكَ مِنْ عِلْمٍ ۖ إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا يَظُنُّونَ
“And they say, ‘There is nothing except our life in this world. We live and we die and nothing destroys us except al-Dahr (time).’ And they have no knowledge of it, they only conjecture.”
[Sūrah al-Jāthiyah 45:24]
They were referring to the passing of the day and night. So as for the statement of the Prophet (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam), ‘Allāh the Mighty and Majestic said, ‘The son of Ādam wrongs Me. He curses the time (al-Dahr), yet I am the time. The affair is in My Hands, I turn the night and the day.”[9] So this does not mean that al-Dahr (time) is from the Names of Allāh the Exalted. That is because those who curse the time only intend the time that is the place of events, they do not intend Allāh the Exalted. So the meaning of His statement, ‘And I am the time,’ is explained by His statement, ‘The affair is in My Hands, I turn the night and the day.’ So Allāh the Exalted created the time and whatever it contains, and He clarified that He turns the night and the day and the two of them are the time. So with this it becomes clear that it is impossible for al-Dahr in this ḥadīth to be referring to Allāh the Exalted.
If the names of Allāh are transitive, they fall under three affairs: Firstly, affirming that name for Allāh The Mighty and Majestic; Secondly, affirming the attribute contained in that name of Allāh The Mighty and Majestic; Thirdly, affirming its ruling and necessary requirement:
Due to this, the people of knowledge have allowed overlooking the punishment for the highway robbers who repent, using as proof the statement of Allāh the Exalted,[10]
إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا مِن قَبْلِ أَن تَقْدِرُوا عَلَيْهِمْ ۖ فَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
“As for those who repented before they fell into your power, then know that Allāh is Oft-Forgiving, the Bestower of Mercy.”
[Sūrah al-Māʾidah 5:34]
This is because the necessary requirement of these two Names is that Allāh the Exalted has forgiven them of their sins and bestowed mercy upon them by overlooking the prescribed punishment from them. An example of that is as-Samīʿ (the All-Hearing) which requires [i] affirming al-Samīʿ as a Name of Allāh the Exalted; [ii] and affirming as samaʿ (hearing) as an Attribute for Him; [iii] and affirming the ruling and necessary requirement of that.[11] And it is that He hears whatever is secret and confidential, as Allāh the Exalted said,
قَدْ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ قَوْلَ الَّتِي تُجَادِلُكَ فِي زَوْجِهَا وَتَشْتَكِي إِلَى اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ يَسْمَعُ تَحَاوُرَكُمَا ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ بَصِيرٌ
“And Allāh hears the dispute between you both. Verily Allāh is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”
[Sūrah al-Mujādilah 58:1]
And if they are not transitive, they fall into two circumstances: Firstly, affirming that name for Allāh The Mighty and Majestic; Secondly, affirming the attribute that this name of Allāh The Mighty and Majestic necessitates:
An example of this is al-Ḥayy, which requires affirming al-Ḥayy as a Name of Allāh the Mighty and Majestic and affirming life as an Attribute of Him.
Endnotes
[1] This is a heading that we have added for the purpose of clarity.
[2] Refer to Badāʾiʿ al-Fawāʾid (1/164) and Madārij al-Sālikīn (1/23-24).
[3] Benefit: Stated al-Hāfiẓ Ibn al-Qayyim (d.751H) – raḥimahullāh, “It is to ask concerning every request by a Name that is a necessary requirement of that request, so that the questioner may reach out to Him by that Name. Whomsoever reflects upon the supplications of the Messengers will find them to be in conformity to that…” He also said, “The questioner comes with a Name that the request requires in order to be fulfilled, such as when you say, ‘Forgive me and bestow mercy upon me. Verily You are the All-Forgiving, the Bestower of Mercy.’ So it is not proper for the occasion that you say, ‘…Verily You are the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.’” Refer to Badāʾiʿ al-Fawāʾid (1/160-164). And Abū Bakr ibn al-ʿArabī al-Mālikī (d.532H) – raḥimahullāh – said, “He requests by every Name whatever is connected to it. You say, ‘O Rahīm (Bestower of Mercy), bestow mercy upon me. O Hakīm (All-Wise), bestow wisdom upon me. O Razzāq (Self-Sufficient), sustain me. O Hādī (Guider) guide me.’ So if you were to supplicate with a general Name, you would have said, ‘O Mālik (Master), bestow mercy upon me. O ʿAzīz (Mighty), grant me wisdom. O Latīf, sustain me.’ If you supplicate by the greatest Name, you say, ‘O Allāh,’ since it represents every Name in accordance to whatever was explained in the Eternal Book. So you do not say, ‘O Razzāq, guide me,’ except if you mean, ‘O Razzāq, sustain me with Your Guidance.’ So this is how your supplication must be arranged, according to your creed, so that you will be from amongst the beneficient ones if Allāh wills.” Refer to Ahkām al-Qurʾān (2/815-816).
[4] This foundation was mentioned by al-Hāfiẓ Ibn al-Qayyim in al-Badāʾiʿ al-Fawāʾid (1/163), so he said, “Eleventh, all of His Names are Beautiful. There is not a Name amongst them having that as its basis. Indeed, there has preceded from His Names that which applies to Him as an action, such as al-Khāliq (the Creator), ar-Rāziq (the Sustainer), al-Muhyī (the One who gives Life) and al-Mumīt (the One who gives Death). So this proves that all of His actions are genuinely good, not having any evil in them, because if He had performed evil, then He would have a derivative of that in a Name and then all of His Names would not be Beautiful, and that is falsehood. So evil is not to be attributed to Him. So just as it does not enter into His Attributes, it cannot be connected to His Essence, nor does it enter into His Actions. So evil is not to be attributed to Him, nor is it to be attributed to Him in action or description. It can only enter into the objects upon whom His Actions are performed and there is a difference between an action and the object to which the action is done. So the evil occurring within the objects upon whom His Action is performed is different than it occurring within He Himself, nor in His Action. So reflect upon this, since it has been hidden from many of the theorists and their feet have slipped in regards to it and the understandings have gone astray. So Allāh guided the people of the truth where they differed by His permission. And Allāh guides whomever He wills to the Straight Path.” Refer also to Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā (8/94-96) of Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah.
[5] Related by al-Bukhārī (no. 5999) and Muslim (no. 2754). This is from the ḥadīth of ʿUmar ibn al Khattāb – raḍī Allāhu ʿanhu – who said, “A prisoner group came before the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam). So a woman was searching for her child, so when she found here child there, she brought him close to her stomach and breast-fed him. So the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said, “Could you see this woman casting her son into the Fire?” We said, ‘No by Allāh, not as long as she is capable of preventing it.’ So the Messenger of Allāh (ṣallallāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said, “Allāh has more mercy towards His servants than this woman has towards her son.”
[6] Benefit: Stated al-Hāfiẓ Ibn al-Qayyim (d.751H) – raḥimahullāh – in al-Badāʾiʿ (1/161), “In this manner, when the Names and Attributes that are found in the Qurʾān are combined. So al-Ghanī (the Self-Sufficient) is an Attribute of perfection and al-Hamīd (the One deserving of all praise) is likewise; but the combination of al-Ghanī with al-Hamīd amounts to another form of perfection. So He is praised for His Self-Sufficiency (ghinā), He is praised for His praiseworthiness (hamd) and He is praised for the combination of the two. Likewise, al-ʿAfuww al-Qadīr (the Pardoner, the Omnipotent), al-Hamīd al-Majīd (the One deserving of all praise, the Magnificent) and al-ʿAzīz al-Hakīm (the Mighty, the Wise). So reflect upon it, since it is from the noblest areas of knowledge.
[7] This principle was mentioned by al-Hāfiẓ Ibn al-Qayyim (d.751H) in al-Badāʾiʿ (1/162). So he said, “Fourthly, that His Beautiful Names are titles and descriptions. And their descriptor does not negate the title, contrary to the descriptions of the servants, since it contradicts their titles, because their descriptions are concurrent. So they negate the titles, which are specialized, contrary to the descriptions of Allāh the Exalted.”
[8] Refer to al-Badāʾiʿ (1/163).
[9] Related by al-Bukhārī (no. 8491) and Muslim (no. 2246), from the ḥadīth of Abī Hurayrah (raḍī Allāhu ʿanhu).
[10] Benefit: Stated al-Khattābī (d.388H) – raḥimahullāh, “It means, ‘I am the possessor of time and the Manager of the affairs which you curse as time. So whosoever curses time due to the one who runs the affairs, his curse comes back to Me, since I am the doer. I made it a receptacle for the occurrence of affairs.’ It was from the customs of the people of jāhiliyyah (pre-Islāmic ignorance), that if severe difficulty or something disliked from an affair afflicted them, they would associate it with time and curse it. So they would say, ‘How evil is the time,’ or ‘May the time be destroyed,’ and the likes of that from statements. Therefore, they did not affirm rubūbiyyah (lordship) for Allāh, nor did they know time to be a creator. Indeed, Allāh mentioned that from their statement when they said,
وَمَا يُهْلِكُنَا إِلَّا الدَّهْرُ
“And nothing has destroyed us, except al-Dahr (time).”
[Sūrah al-Jāthiyah 45:24]
So due to this, they were called, al-Duhriyyah, and they held that time was eternal having no beginning. So Allāh the Exalted knew that time was initiated, He turned the night and the day, with time not having any part in anything in terms of action related to good or evil. However, it is a receptacle for events and a place for their occurrence, and all of their affairs are in the Hands of Allāh the Exalted. And He Himself is their Originator, Producer and Refiner, the Glorified having no partner,” Aʿlām al-Ḥadīth (3/1904). Stated al Hāfiẓ Ibn al-Qayyim, “So the cursor of time inevitably revolves around two circumstances: he either curses Allāh, or commits Shirk with Him. So if He believes that al-Dahr is a doer along with Allāh, then he is a mushrik (one who commits Shirk). If he believes that it is Allāh alone who did that, and he still curses the one who did that, then he curses Allāh,” al-Badāʾiʿ al-Fawāʾid (1/164).
[11] Translator’s Note: Stated Imām Muḥammad Ibn Ṣāliḥ al- Uthaymīn (d.1421H) – raḥimahullāh – in his book, Sharh Lumuʿat al-Iʿtiqād (p. 23), “The meaning of each of Allāh’s Names applies to [i] Allāh Himself; [ii] the Attribute that such a Name implies, and; [iii] the effect of such an attribute, if it is transitive. Faith in Allāh’s Names cannot be complete without affirming all of this. An example of those names that are not transitive is the Name al-ʿAdhīm (The Most Great). One’s faith is not complete until he believes that it is a name of Allāh whose meaning applies to Him Himself, as well as the attribute that it encompasses, which is His magnificence (ʿadhamah). An example of a name that is transitive is al-Rahmān (the Most Merciful). One’s faith is not complete until he believes that it is a name of Allāh that applies to: [i] Himself; [ii] the attribute that it encompasses, which is his mercy, and; [iii] what results from that, which is that he grants mercy to whom He wills.
Translated by Maaz Qureshi
