Islamic Culture and Religious Studies Book -4

Lesson Seven : Qualities of God

When you look at any object in this world, it reflects some quality or qualities of its inventor/creator. Take this book you are reading, through the writing, you can see what kind of person its author is. His qualities i.e. the extent of his knowledge, his opinions, his thoughts and ideas are all displayed to anyone who reads his book. If you look at a building you will be able to make out the creativity and competence of its architect.

The wondrous world we live in also shows the nature of its Creator and tells anyone who wishes to learn from it, about His unique qualities. The world therefore acts as a mirror in which the perfection of its Creator can be seen. In this mirror, scientists have discovered things that surprise even the greatest amongst them.

As man's knowledge increases, his amazement at the magnificence of this world also increases. Max Plank, a famous physicist says: "As man advances in science, he accordingly remains further in childhood. He must always be prepared for new amazements."

This mirror thus reflects that its Creator must possess unlimited knowledge and perfection to be able to create such an awesome and complex structure. Attributes of Allah (S.W.T.)

Since Allah (S.W.T.) is unlimited in His perfection, He possesses all attributes that arise from excellence. In describing them, we can divide them into Positive and Negative attributes. The word negative in no way refers to flaws but is used to describe the angle from which the perfect attributes are viewed. We will elaborate more on this under the relevant subsection.

Positive Attributes

Allah (S.W.T.) is Knowledge. The system of this world alone reveals His unlimited wisdom. His knowledge encompasses everything and there is no secret hidden from Him, be it deep in the hearts of people or high in the heavens above. "…Surely Allah (S.W.T.) knows everything." Sura Anfal, Verse 75.

Although we say that Allah (S.W.T.) listens to and sees everything, his hearing and sight is not like ours. He does not use eyes and ears and His perception is based on Knowledge and a Consciousness of everything.

Allah (S.W.T.) is All-Powerful. His creation in all its magnificence glorifies His immense capacity. Nothing is impossible for Him and in His unlimited ability there are no terms such as difficult, large or hard in description of tasks. His Power controls everything.

He created man, gave him life and death and after the human body decomposes, He is capable of raising him back to life and bringing him to Judgment on the Day of Qiyamat.

"…Surely God has power over all things." Sura Baqarah, Verse 20

Allah (S.W.T.) is Kind and Merciful. There is no limit to his compassion and He is a thousand times more loving to people than their own parents can ever be. In His own words, He is closer to a human being than the jugular vein (a most important blood vessel situated in the neck).

Any body can communicate and become familiar with Him, sharing grievances and seeking support from Him. He is most considerate to those who plead with Him and take Him as their support.

"And when My servants ask you (O Muhammad) concerning Me, then surely I am very near, I answer the call of the supplicant when he calls on Me, so they should answer My call and believe in Me, that they may achieve perfection." Sura Baqara, Verse 186

The above verse gives hope to all those who are in distress. Even when we feel guilty about the numerous sins we have committed, we should turn to Him for forgiveness and have faith that He will accept us back because He loves us. Despairing of the Mercy of God is a quality of the disbelievers and doubters. "Verily none are desperate of Allah (S.W.T.)'s Mercy but the disbelieving people." Sura Yusuf, Verse 87

Allah (S.W.T.) is Ever-Living and Self-subsistant. All things depend on Him to exist but He depends on nothing. His existence is not like that of other living organisms that require motion, growth, breath, food and reproduction to survive. These creations need certain elements for life and continuity - a condition of which Allah (S.W.T.) is absolutely independent.

"There is no God but Him, the Ever Living, the Self Subsistent." Sura Baqara, Verse 255

In addition to these, Allah (S.W.T.) possesses numerous other qualities such as that He is Forgiving, Honourable, Needlessness, Praiseworthy etc.

Negative Attributes

A defect is lacking of something and since God is Perfect and lacks nothing, the title does not refer to any negative attributes in the literal sense. It actually talks of those qualities that arise from shortage and that cannot be attributed to Him.

Thus, those qualities that are NOT found in God are called Negative attributes. For example, ignorance and weakness are a result of lack of knowledge and potency and therefore ignorance and weakness are not found in God.

Allah (S.W.T.) is not Material because a substance is limited and transformable, and none of these qualities are found in Him.

A creation composed of parts and requires these to exist and survive, to such an extent that if any of the elements are removed that creature will become deformed or cease to exist. Thus the creation is needful of its parts and Need is not in the essence of Allah (S.W.T.).

Allah (S.W.T.) is also not composed of a substantial form because lack, dependency and shortcomings are inevitable to such a form. A body of any sort would require movement and would be open to change. Every motion and change needs a motive and Allah (S.W.T.) is needless of such a requirement.

Allah (S.W.T.) inhabits no Space because to do this He would have to be confined to an area. Allah (S.W.T.) is infinite and cannot be defined as occupying such and such a position or place. Thus, contrary to those who consider the place of Allah (S.W.T.) to be in the Heavens (skies), He does not dwell in any particular place but every place is a creation of His.

He is everywhere and cannot be pointed at. We should not mistake this to mean that he fills the entire universe from east to west but rather that He exists in a way we cannot observe or explain in terms of our own existence. This means that He cannot and will never be seen with human eyes. He can only be found in the heart with the vision of faith.

"Vision does not perceive Him but He perceive all visions; He is all aware and knower of the subtleties". Sura An-aam, Verse 103

Imam Ali (a.s.) once replied a man who had asked him if he could see his God, saying, "Eyes cannot perceive God, but hearts full of faith can recognize Him." There is no sleep, old age, negligence, regret, envy, lies or oppression in the attributes of God because all these are derived from shortcomings and He is free from any kind imperfection.

Allah (S.W.T.) is not in need of the prayers of His servants or of their good deeds, obedience and alms. It is we, the servants, who benefit from all these! The wrath and the happiness of Allah (S.W.T.) do not mean that our actions cause an impression on Him, some of them angering Him and others causing Him joy.

These circumstances are not found in Allah (S.W.T.), because the necessary condition for them is that the subject in question should be changeable and capable of being influenced. Whereas, transformation from one state to another, is not a quality found in God. When man performs a righteous deed, he seeks the Mercy of Allah (S.W.T.). We thus say, that Allah (S.W.T.) has applied His mercy to His nature. On the other hand when a person commits a sin, he is said to be far from the mercy of Allah (S.W.T.) and this is his greatest punishment.

Extent of our Knowledge

Having discussed so much about Allah (S.W.T.), we now need to ask ourselves that once we start this search for Him, how far can we go in it? How well can we truly know our God?

Generally, the extent of our knowledge about anything is in two levels:

1. Being aware of its Existence.
2. Knowing its condition in detail.

For the first kind of knowledge, any indication, no matter how small, is good enough for us. If someone claps his hands out of our sight, we need only have heard it to know that that it occurred.

However, to know who clapped their hands, why they were clapped and other details, we need to have the second level of knowledge mentioned. This requires us to ask questions, seek out the source etc. This means that we apply some sort of skill in acquiring the information.

We can therefore distinguish the two extents of knowledge by saying that the first needs nothing other then a natural sense while the second requires a level of intellect and ability.

On the subject of knowing Allah (S.W.T.), we can say that discovering His existence is easy through his creation. The heart sees the indications of His Presence and Power wherever it turns, and finds Him. "Wherever you turn, the face of God is on that side."

Sura Baqarah, Verse 115

But knowing Allah (S.W.T.) fully - in the manner He knows Himself - is quite impossible for the human mind. This is due to the fact that Allah (S.W.T.) is an unconfined being and cannot be confined and understood by our flawed intellect. This does not mean that we cannot have any kind of knowledge about Him. Just discovering the positive and negative attributes of His nature is a means of knowing Him.

It has been highly recommended by our Aimmah (a.s.) that we work hard in strengthening our belief in Allah (S.W.T.). The Prophet (s.a.w.w.) said: "We do not know You in the real essence of Your knowledge, and we did not worship You in the real essence of Your worship".

Lesson 8 : One Vs Many

When we discuss theological issues, we use the word Monotheism to refer to the belief in one God and Polytheism for the belief in a number of deities. Each of these words holds a deeper meaning when discussed in full. As you read further, you will realize that the definitions are not as simple as they first seem to be.

I. MONOTHEISM

Monotheism - which is called Tawhid in Islam - can be divided into two major parts:

i.Theoretical monotheism : the faith that a person who believes in one God expresses.

ii.Practical monotheism : the effects and outcome of this belief in his life. Let us first look at the theoretical:

i. Theoratical Tawhid

This in itself has different dimensions:

a. Monotheism in Essence. b. Monotheism in Actions. Let us look at each dimension in turn.

A. Monotheism in Essence

This is the basic principle of Monotheism. It means to believe that God is One in essence. He is unique and has no partner. This belief of oneness in essence has already been proven in a previous lesson. (Lesson 5)

We saw that the world is a well co-ordinated system that works perfectly without any flaw. Such organization shows that a single power controls the entire structure. That Power is God.

B. Monotheism In Actions

This means that God does not need help from anyone or anything else when performing His work. Whatever ability a creature possesses, God gave it him and therefore already has it. How is it possible to believe that a creation who is in constant need of God, should have the power to assist Him?

Looking at the other side of the coin, this belief also means that there is no being that is self-sufficient and needless of God. To elaborate on this, we should understand that every creature has the strength to perform its duty and effect other creations e.g.

the sun has an effect on the growth and survival of plants and germs have the power to cause sickness in man. Despite this apparent control, neither the sun nor germs possess influence of their own accord. It was given to them by God and thus, they are not independent of Him. This is true of everything in existence.

There is only one independent influential entity in existence and that is Allah (S.W.T.). All control and authority is in His hands and none can change what He has willed. The Qur'an says:

"Praise be to God, Who has not taken a son, nor has He a partner in the Kingdom and He has no helper to save Him from disgrace. And proclaim His greatness, magnifying His glory. Sura Al-Isra, Verse 111

Note that belief in monotheism of actions does not mean disowning man's free will. Rather, it means man's free will is from God and a creation of His.

ii. Practical Tawhid

After a man has proclaimed his belief in the oneness of God - theoretical Tawhid, then he must ask himself what relations must be established between God and himself. He must then implement this belief so that it can be seen practically in his life only then will he claim of faith hold true.

According to the belief of monotheism in actions, control of all affairs is with God. From this we derive the fact that no one deserves to be obeyed and worshipped except the Almighty. This is called practical monotheism i.e. worshipping only Him. This is why the first step to becoming a Muslim is to say "I bear witness that there is no God but Allah (S.W.T.)!" This is an expression of practical Tawhid.

To put belief to action requires establishing God as the centre of your heart and making Him your goal. Everything else takes second place to Him and His commands. In the Holy Qur'an we are told that Prophet Ibrahim (a.s) said: "Surely I have turned myself, being upright wholly to Him who created the heavens and the earth and I am not of the polytheists." Sura Anam, Verse 79

"Say surely my prayer and my sacrifice and my life and my death are all for Allah, the Lord of the worlds.

No associates, has He. I was commanded this and I am the first of the Muslims." Sura Anam, Verse 162 & 163

These statements of Prophet Ibrahim (a.s.) reflect true Tawhid in practice.

II. POLYTHEISM

Polytheism is the opposite of monotheism. In Islamic terms we refer to it as Shirk. Just as Tawhid is of two kinds, so is Shirk i.e. theoretical and practical.

i. Theoretical Shirk

This belief in God is outside the boundaries set by Tawhid and thus can be called a wrong understanding of God. Theoretical Polytheism is likewise divided into, Shirk in essence and Shirk in actions.

A. Shirk in Essence:

This is belief in more than one separate god. The belief in two and three gods is referred to as dualist-shirk and trinity-shirk respectively. Shirk in the essence of God is the opposite of Tawhid in His essence.

B. Shirk in Actions:

This is an expounded version of Shirk in Essence whereby a person believes that different things were created and are controlled by different deities/powers e.g. that good things were made by God and bad things were made by a devil or demon, or that the god of the sea is different from that of the sun!

ii. Practical Shirk

Again this is the exact opposite of practical Tawhid and involves a person who submits himself in worship to others beside the Almighty. In Islam, when we speak of worship we do not mean only physical prostration but it is an expression of submission and obedience towards something. Therefore, whenever we surrender ourselves to the power of something or somebody, we will have worshipped him and taken him to be our God.

To abandon practical shirk, a person must set himself free from obedience to anyone other than God and then should succumb to what God is commanding Hidden and Clear Shirk When a person obviously and openly believes in several gods then his polytheism is distinct or clear. In this case, he is totally outside the borders of Islam. However, there exist levels of shirk that may not be as clear and transparent as that mentioned above.

These hidden traits of polytheism do not result in a total abandonment of Tawhid and Islam. For example, when a person follows his carnal desire against God's command or greedily seeks wealth, he engages in this hidden form of shirk.

Thus deviation from pure Tawhid is possible if one is not careful and can express itself in theory or practical form. The Prophet (s.a.w.w.) has recommended great sensitivity and accuracy in approaching the subject of Tawhid. He has warned us saying:

"To discover Shirk in the hearts of people is more difficult than finding a small black ant, passing on a smooth black stone, in the darkest hours of the night." How devious this Shirk is! From this hadith, we understand the importance of being always aware of what we believe and accept.

Sura Ikhlas, which has been given great importance in Islamic teachings, is based on Tawhid and the belief in one God. It says:

" In the Name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful Say: He God is (only) One.

God is He Whom all depend on.

He begot not nor is He begotten And none is like Him."

Sura Ikhlas, Verses 1-4

The word Ikhlas means Sincerity and is further explained to mean purity in the belief of one God. Reciting it with earnestness is a way of removing any stain of polytheism that may have tainted our hearts and that is why we are encouraged to do often.

The lessons taught to us by Prophets (a.s.) - and especially the Holy Prophet (s.a.w.w.) - are also concerned with ways in which we can purify our faith and stay away from polytheism. Although the path towards true Tawhid is not easy and requires effort on our part, we can achieve our goal as long as we are determined to do so and rely on Allah (S.W.T.) to guide us.