What is the belief of Ahlus-Sunnah Wal-Jamaa’ah regarding the Names and Attributes of Allah? And what is the difference between a Name and an Attribute? And does confirming the Name necessitate confirming the Attribute? And does confirming the Attribute necessitate confirming the Name?
The belief of Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah regarding the Names and Attributes of Allah is to affirm the Names and Attributes which Allah has confirmed for Himself, without:
(1) Tahreef (distorting or changing a Name or Attribute of Allah other than its true meaning)
(2) Ta’teel (denying or negating it)
(3) Takyeef (describing and explaining the reality of Allah’s Attributes, e.g., by saying: “I affirm Allah’s Attribute of possessing a Face, and His Face look like such and such,” or questioning the “how” of them, e.g. by saying: “How does Allah’s Face look like?”)
(4) Tamtheel (to imply a similarity between the Attributes of Allah and that of His created beings)
The difference between a Name and an Attribute is that a Name is something by which Allah has named Himself, and an Attribute is something by which Allah has described Himself and there is a clear difference between them.
A Name is considered to be an appellation by which Allah, the Almighty, the All-Powerful is known, and which implies an Attribute; and confirming a Name entails confirming the Attribute, for example:
(إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ)
“Verily, Allah is Ghafoor (the Most Forgiving), Raheem (the Most Merciful).”
and the Name: غَفُورٌ (Ghafoor) necessitates confirming the Attribute of Forgiveness, while the Name: رَحِيمٌ (Raheem) necessitates confirming the Attribute of Mercy.
But confirming an Attribute does not necessitate confirming a Name, for example, the Attribute of Al-Kalam (speech) does not necessitate that we confirm for Allah the name: Al-Mutakallim (the Speaker); and based upon this, the Attributes are greater in number, because every Name necessitates an Attribute, but not every Attribute necessitates a Name.
[Adapted from Fatawa Arkanul-Islam (Islamic Verdicts on the Pillars of Islam) by Sheikh Muhammad ibn Salih al-‘Uthaymeen]
- Regarding the Hadith “Verily, Allah has ninety-nine names; one short of one hundred. Whoever enumerates them will enter Paradise.”
- Download this PDF file listing the authentic Names of Allah with references from Al-Quran and As-Sunnah. Download this list to learn the Beautiful Names of Allah.
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- Learn the Pillars of Islam and Iman (Faith)
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