Attributes of Allah - The Belief Of True Salaf

Society Religion & Philosophy
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Allah is Attributed with Perfection

Bismillah, Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, to Him belong the endowments and the befitting perfections and commendations. I ask Allah to raise the rank of Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, and to protect his nation from that which he fears for it, Thereafter:

In this post insha’Allah, we shall mention all that we need from the sayings of the scholars of “Salaf” and “Khalaf”.

Why Salaf? The “True” Salaf are the scholars of first 300 years after the Prophet Sallallahu Alayhi Wa sallam, so they were most knowledgable and more closer to the prophet and companions. And khalaf are scholars of the 300 after the first 300 hundred.

Among the scholars of the True Salaf are like Imam Abu al-Hassan al-Ash^ariy and Abu Mansoor al-Maturidiy, and from those scholars many scholars came and set a Madhhab, which is a set of rules, a school of Islamic rules. The leaders of the 4 schools that are being followed by alsunna nationwide are: Imam Abu Hanifah, Imam Malik, Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal and Imam Shafi^iy.

This post is based on the sayings of the scholars from those 4 schools.

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Bismiallah wal Hamdulillah wa Sallallahu ^ala Sayidi Rasulullah,

The saying that Allah, ta^ala, exists without a place is the belief and the creed of the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, the Companions and the True Salaf and Khalaf, those who graciously followed them, and it shall be until the Day of Judgment. The proof of this precious statement is what Allah said in the Qur'an, in Surat ash-Shura, ayah 11 which means: "There is nothing like Him and He has the attribute of Hearing and Seeing." This ayah absolutely and totally clears Allah of resembling the creation. It comprises that Allah, ta^ala, is different from the creations in the Self, Attributes, and Doings. Hence, it shows that Allah, ta^ala, exists without a place, because the one who exists in a place would, by nature, be composed of atoms, i.e., he would be a body, occupying a space, and Allah, ta^ala, is clear of occupying spaces.

Al-Bukhariyy, al-Bayhaqiyy and Ibn al*Jarud related that the Messenger of Allah, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, said which means: "Allah existed eternally and there was nothing else."

This hadith proves that Allah was alone in al-'azal, (the status of existence without a beginning,) i.e., before creating any of the creation. There was nothing with Him: no place, no space, no sky, no light, and no darkness. It is determined in the rules of the Religion and the judgments of the sound mind that Allah, the Exalted, does not change. Hence, it is impossible that after having been existing without a place, He would become in a place, because this is a development, and the development is a sign of needing others, and the one who needs others is not God.

Allah knows best.

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Imam Abu Mansur al-Baghdadiyy related in his book, Al-Farqu Bayn al*Firaq, that Imam ^Aliyy, the fourth of the caliphs, may Allah reward his deeds, said which means: *Allah existed eternally and there was no place, and He now is as He was, i.e., without a place. *

And as mentioned in prevous post, Imam Abu Hanifah, who is one of the authorities of as-Salaf, said in his book Al-Fiqh al*Absat:

"Allah existed eternally and there was no place. He existed before creating the creation. He existed, and there was no place, creation, or thing; and He is the Creator of everything."

Imam al-Hafidh al-Bayhaqiyy said in his book, Al-Asma'u was-Sifat, on page 400: *".... What was mentioned towards the end of the hadith is an indication of denying Allah has a place and denying the slave is alike to Allah, wherever he was in proximity or remoteness. Allah, the Exalted, is adh*Dhahir--hence, it is valid to know about Him by proofs. Allah is al-Batin--hence, it is invalid that He would be in a place." *

He also said: "Some of our companions used as a proof to refute the place to Allah the saying of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam : 'You are adh-Dhahir and there is nothing above You, and You are al-Batin and there is nothing underneath You.' Therefore, if there is nothing above Him and nothing underneath Him, He is not in a place."

These are some of the sayings of the true salaf, no wahabisem no ibn taymiesm, no ikhwan, no tahririyah, or other sects.. Nothing new! Pure sayings of well known scholars of Ahlus-Sunnah.

I will compile more sayings insha'Allah to increase the benefit and refute ambiguity.

Allah Subhnahu knows best.

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^ What do you understand therefore from the Prophet's (saw) question, "Where is Allah?"... i'm NOT interested yet in how you understand the answer given to this question... i'd be interested in getting your take on the question itself... is it OK to ask such a question for example, because according to your recent posts you want us all to believe in a God that doesn't exist anywhere - is that right?

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Not right.

Brother, one must believe that **Allah exists as he existed eternally **before the place or the throne. So Allah exists WITHOUT a place or heavens.

Al-Bayhaqiyy and Ibnul-Jarud narrated with sahih chain that the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, said “Kanallahu wa lam yakun shay’un ghayruh,” which means “Allah existed eternally and nothing other than Allah existed with Him.”.

For the question of the women, you mus tknow that the Arabic is very rich it cannot be interperted to english and have the same meaning. If I say so and so is very reached the skies, it means he has a high status.

One of the companions said: "Balaghna as-Sama'a Majduna wa Thana'una". This does not mean we arrived to the heavens ! Rather it means we have reached a very high status and rank.

Imam Abu Hanifah, who is one of the authorities of as-Salaf, said in his book Al-Fiqh al*Absat: "Allah existed eternally and there was no place. He existed before creating the creation. He existed, and there was no place, creation, or thing; and He is the Creator of everything."

Thus Allah does not change or develop. Allah exists withotu a place.

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To add to what was mentioned berfore, all scholars of Islam had the belief that Allah exists eternally without a place.

Imam Ahmad Ibn Salamah, Abu Ja^far at-Tahawiyy, who was born in the year 237 after Hijrah, and was one of the Heads of Great Salaf wrote a book called Al-^Aqidah at-Tahawiyyah. He mentioned that the content of his book is an elucidation of the creed of Ahl as-Sunnah wal Jama^ah, which is the creed of Imam Abu Hanifah, who died in the year 150 after al-Hijrah, and his two companions, Imam Abu Yusuf al-Qadi and Imam Muhammad Ibn al-Hasan ash-Shaybaniyy and others.

He said in his book: *"Allah is supremely clear of all boundaries, extremes, sides, organs and instruments. The six directions do not contain Him--these are attributed to all created things." *

Such is the saying of Imam Abu Ja^far who is among the heads of as-Salaf. He explicitly stated that Allah is clear of being contained by the six directions. The six directions are above, below, in front of, behind, right, and left.

The linguist and scholar of hadith, Imam Muhammad Murtada az-Zabidiyy, narrated by a continuous chain from himself back to Imam Zayn al-^Abidin ^Aliyy Ibn al-Husayn Ibn ^Aliyy Ibn Abi Talib, (who was among the first of as-Salaf, who earned the title of as-Sajjad, i.e., the one who prays a lot), that Zayn al-^Abidin said in his treatise as*Sahifah as-Sajjadiyyah about Allah: which means: "O Allah, You are clear of all imperfection. You are Allah, the One Who no place contains You." He also said which means: "O Allah, You are clear of all imperfection. You are Allah, the One Who is not in boundaries."

In the explanation of al-Bukhariyy in the chapter on Al-Jihad, Hafidh Ibn Hajar al-Shafi^iysaid: "The fact that the two directions above and below are impossible to be attributes of Allah, does not necessitate that Allah would not be attributed with aboveness, because attributing aboveness to Allah is a matter of status and the impossibility lies in it being physical."

The scholar Imam Zayn ad-Din Ibn Nujaym, the Hanafiyy, in his book Al-Bahr ar*Ra'iq, on page 129 said: "Whoever says it is possible that Allah would do a doing in which there is no wisdom commits blasphemy, and also he commits blasphemy by affirming a place to Allah, the Exalted."

Imam Muhammad Ibn Hibah al-Makkiyy, in his book Hada'iq al-Fusul wa Jawahir al-^Uqul,--also called Al-^Aqidat-as-Salahiyyah because he gave it as a gift to Sultan Salah-ad-Din al-Ayyubiyy who ordered that this book be taught to the children in schools and broadcast from the top of minarets--said:

which means: "Allah existed eternally and there was no place, and the judgment about His existence now is that He is as He was, i.e., without a place."

Allah knows best.

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^ for a supposed "Islamic Studies Teacher" you sure know how to avoid answering a question... actually, from your reply i see you didn't even understand my question in the first instance so obviously your reply would be way out... never mind, i won't waste my time...

one tip however... the next time you insist on citing from Al-Fiqh al-Absat you might want to tell your students that it's a book transmitted to us through a chain containing at least one arch-liar and hadith fabricator and possibly two! I'll leave you to worry about that one

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Regarding Ibn Taymiah, the book is not the only one that has statments of Ibn Taymiah attributting to Allah the: place, the body, the sitting, the movement, and the organs. In serveral books he mentions that. He also says about hellfire that it demolishes and the punishment on the kuffar will cease. He also claims that the "Kind of the world" is eternal, that is has no beginning!!.

If you like to learn more, only read about what Imam al-Mujtahid as-Subkiy said about him.
And Imam al-Hafith al-Iraqiy said about him: "His knowledge is bigger than his brain".

Regarding Imam Abu Hanifah, he May Allah have mercy and blessings upon him, authored 5 books that talk about the beliefs of the Muslims, and one of them was al-Fiqh al-Absat, no 2 educated Muslims disagree.

Imam al-Bayadiy al-Hanafiy explained the saying of Imam Abu Hanifah that Allah exists eternally without a place or direction. If you wish look up his book "Isharat al-Maram" at when he explained the saying of Imam Abu Hanifah that was mentioned.

Imam al-Bayadiy and followers of the Hanafiy school are more knowledgable then you about the school of thought of Abu Hanifah.

May Allah have mercy upon all fo them, for they were the true defenders of Islam.
Allah konws best.

My new April DriveHitMIX 2007 (45 minutes with unreleased Bhangra/Trance)
My new April DriveHitMIX 2007 (45 minutes with unreleased Bhangra/Trance)
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^ still no quote from Ibn Taymiyya... you are just a time waster...

as for the books of Imam Abu Hanifah (r)... you pretend not to know that there is great dispute among scholars - historians and hadith specialists alike - as to whether any of the books authored by him have survived... some say a few have, some say none have...

... as for al-Fiqh al-Absat... again you pretend not to know that at least one of the reporters through whom this book has been transmitted down to us is grossly weak... al Hakam ibn Abdullah: about whom Imam Ahmed said that "it is not permissible to report anything from him", Abu Dawud said his hadith are "abandoned" and al Dhahabi said he is a "hadith forger"... see his biography in Ibn Hajr's Lisan al Mizan and al Dhahabi's Mizan al Itidal...

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And you also forgot to add gupguppy that also wahabies not only report such lies about Abu Hanifah, rather they consider him "Murji'iy" which is a kafir person!!. Some people don't watch out where they get knowledge from, they just repeat what they read or hear.

**The students of Imam Abu Hanifah until now report from his books and his sayings. And Imam Abi Ja^afar at-Tahawiy reports to us the creed of Abu hanifah and he said: it represents the belief of Ahlus-Sunnah he mentioned that the content of his book is an elucidation of the creed of Ahl as-Sunnah wal Jama^ah, which is the creed of Imam Abu Hanifah, who died in the year 150 after al-Hijrah, and his two companions, Imam Abu Yusuf al-Qadi and Imam Muhammad Ibn al-Hasan ash-Shaybaniyy and others.

He said in his book: "Allah is supremely clear of all boundaries, extremes, sides, organs and instruments. The six directions do not contain Him--these are attributed to all created things." **

If Abi Hanifah was not recognized to you who else is?

Imam al-Bayadiy al-Hanafiy explained the saying of Imam Abu Hanifah that Allah exists eternally without a place or direction. If you wish look up his book "Isharat al-Maram" at when he explained the saying of Imam Abu Hanifah that was mentioned.

Imam al-Bayadiy and followers of the Hanafiy school are more knowledgable then you about the school of thought of Abu Hanifah.

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Insha'Allah I now continue the explanation of the attributes of Allah according Quran/Hadith and sayings of the scholars of Salaf and Khalaf.

The great true Salafi, Imam Ja^far as-Sadiq said: "He who claims that Allah is in something or on something or from something, commits ash-shirk. Because if He was in something, He would be contained, and if He was on something, He would be carried, and if He was from something, He would be a creature."

Shaykh ^Abdul-Ghaniyy an-Nabulsiyy said: "He who believes that Allah fills the heavens and earth or that He is a body sitting above al-^arsh (ceiling of Paradise; throne) is a kafir."

Such are great scholars of Islam that truly knew the hadith of the Prophet and truly memorized knowledge in their hearts.

Imam Abul-Qasim ^Aliyy Ibnul-Hasan Ibn Hibatillah Ibn ^Asakir said in his ^Aqidah: "Allah existed before the creation. He does not have a before or an after, an above or a below, a right or a left, an in front of or a behind, a whole or a part. It must not be said when was He, where was He, or how was He. He exists without a place."

Imam Abu Sulayman al-Khattabiyy said: "What is obligatory upon us and upon every Muslim to know is that our Lord has no shape or form, because the shape has a 'how' and 'how' does not apply to Allah or His Attributes."

Know beyond doubt that the question 'how' does not apply to Allah, because this is a question about shapes, bodies, places, depths and dimensions; Allah is clear of all of that. Also be firm that it is invalid to say about Allah "... but we do not know how", because in essence, it falsely indicates that Allah has a color, shape, dimensions, body, place, but one is ignorant of the 'how' of it.

Imam al-Ghazaliyy said: " Allah, the Exalted, existed eternally and there was no place. He is not a body, jawhar (atom), or property, and He is not on a place or in a place."

All of these sayings show that attributing the sensuous physical aboveness and place to Allah is contrary to the Qur'an, the Hadith, the Ijma^, and the intellectual proof. The intellectual proof that Allah exists without a place lies in the fact that the one who is in a place would have an area, and the one who has an area is in need of it, and the one who needs others is not God. Moreover, as the mind determines that Allah existed without a place before creating places, the mind determines that after Allah created the places He still exists without a place.

The scholars like Imam Ahmad ar*Rifa^iyy the head of the Sufies of his time determined that lifting the hands and the faces towards the sky when performing du^a (supplication) is because the heavens are the qiblah of du^a just as the Ka^bah is the qiblah of as*Salah. From the heavens, the mercies and blessings of Allah descend.

Hence, it is clear for the one who seeks the truth that the saying that Allah exists without a place is what complies with the Qur'an, the Hadith, the Ijma^, and the criteria of the sound intellect. Be firm and certain that before creating places, Allah Who created everything (places and others), existed without a place, and after creating places, He still exists without a place.

I ask Allah to increase our Islamic knowledge and keep us steadfast on the creed of the Prophet and the sahahbah. Ameen.

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no one’s reporting lies about Abu Hanifah (r), it’s just that you can’t read English… my comment was about al Hakam ibn Abdullah, the transmitter (or author according to some) of al-Fiqh al-Absat… he is a “hadith forger” according to al Dhahabi and someone whose reports are “abandoned” according to Abu Dawud (or are you now going to accuse these of being “wahabies”??)

the debate over whether any of Abu Hanifah’s books have survived is well known… even if you don’t know anything about it…

… live with it… tell your students about it… and move on

oh, and stop the mindless copy-and-pastes hoping that somewhere in there there’s an answer to the question(s) asked of you… there isn’t

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If the book of al-Fiq al-Absat is not abu Hanifa’s, then how come his great students kept reporting his sayings? I have never had anyone negating till we met you!

Besides, my topic is not if it’s his book or not. I will make a different post for your sake Insha’Allah, giving you the Isnad of that book to Abu Hanifah may Allah have mercy upon him and all his students.

My topic is that Abu Hanifah and his followers confirmed clearing Allah from having a form, body or place. That’s the point.

His student said in Tahawaiyya:** "Allah is supremely clear of all boundaries, extremes, sides, organs and instruments. The six directions do not contain Him--these are attributed to all created things." **

Imam al-Ghazaliyy said: " Allah, the Exalted, existed eternally and there was no place. He is not a body, jawhar (atom), or property, and He is not on a place or in a place."

That's all you need to know and learn.

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Continuing in reporting the sayings of Ahlussunnah Wal Jama^ah in talking about the attributes of Allah, Subhanahu

We have determined that the creed of the Muslims is that Allah exists without a place and that the question 'how' does not apply to Allah, it is clear to us that al-^arsh (the throne) which is the biggest of the creations of Allah and the ceiling of Paradise, is not a place for Allah, the Exalted.

Imam Abu Hanifah said in his book, al*Wasiyyah,: " ... and He is the Preserver of al*^arsh and other than al-^arsh, without needing it, for had He been in need, He would not have the power to create the world and to manage and preserve it. Moreover, had He been in a place needing to sit and restbefore creating al-^arsh, where was Allah?"** That is, the question 'where was Allah' would have applied to Him, which is impossible.

Also, in his book, Al-Fiqh al-Absat, Imam Abu Hanifah said: "Allah existed eternally and there was no place; He existed before creating the creation. He existed and there was not a place, a creation or a thing; and He is the Creator of everything. He who says 'I do not know if my Lord is in the heavens or on the earth,' is a kafir. Also is a kafir whoever says that 'He is on al-^arsh, and I do not know whether al-^arsh is in the heaven or on the earth'."

The students of Imam Abu Hanifah kept reporting his sayings and teaching it, till it was a wide spread.

I ask Allah to guide us to the Ijma^ of the scholars, the path of the mass of the nation of Prophet Muhammad.

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^ neither did Ibn Taymiyya say Allah has a body or whatever despite your false accusations...

learn more about urself
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If that's what you think that's fine with me. At least you do not defend him like followers. They confirm that, but claim it was his opinion. No opinions in the religion of Allah. Qur'an and alsunna are the pathway.

Shaykh ^Abdul-Ghaniyy an-Nabulsiyy said: "He who believes that Allah fills the heavens and earth or that He is a body sitting above al-^arsh (ceiling of Paradise; throne) is a kafir."

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Consequently, the great True Salafi Scholar Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal declared a kafir whomever says these last two phrases because they contain attributing a direction, boundary, and place to Allah.

Everything which has a direction and boundary is by necessity in need of a Creator. Thus it is not the intention of Imam Abu Hanifah to prove that the heaven and al-^arsh are places for Allah, as those who liken Allah to the creation claim. This is by virtue of the aforementioned saying of the Imam: "Had He been in a place needing to sit and rest, then before creating al-^arsh where was Allah?", which is clear in negating that Allah has a direction or a place.

In his book, Ihya'u ^Ulum ad-Din, Imam al*Ghazaliyy said:

"... places do not contain Him, nor do the directions, earth, or heavens. He is attributed with an istiwa' over al-^arsh as He said in the Qur'an--with the meaning that He willed--and not as what people may delude. It is an istiwa' which is clear of touching, resting, holding, moving and containment. Al-^arsh does not carry Him, but rather al-^arsh and those that carry al-^arsh are all carried by Allah with His Power and are subjugated to Him. He is above al-^arsh and above the heavens and above everything--in status*-- an aboveness that does not give Him proximity to al-^arsh or the heavens as it does not give Him farness from earth. He is higher in status than everything: higher in status than al-^arsh and the heavens, as He is higher in status than earth and the rest of the creation."*

Shaykh ^Abdul-Ghaniyy an-Nabulsiyy said: "He who believes that Allah filled the heavens and earth or that He is a body sitting above al-^arsh, is a kafir."

Ayah 93 of Surat Maryam means: [All those in the heavens and earth must come to Allah as a slave.]

In his Tafsir (book of explaining the Qur'an), Imam ar-Raziyy said: "... and since it is affirmed by this ayah that everything that existed in the heavens and earth is a slave to Allah, and since it is obligatory that Allah is clear of being a slave, thus He is clear of being in a place or direction, or on al-^arsh or al-kursiyy."

Hence as we mentioned before, Surat Taha, ayah 5, in the Qur'an, clearly does not mean that Allah sits on the throne or that Allah is firmly established on the throne. In the Arabic language, the word istawa has fifteen (15) different meanings, among of which are to sit, to subjugate, to protect, to conquer, and to preserve.

Based on what we have covered so far it is clear that it is blasphemous to apply the meaning 'to sit' to Allah. However the terms to preserve and to subjugate are in compliance with the Religion and the language. And those so-called translations of al-Quran that referred to the term "Istawa" to "Sits" or "Sat"or "Established himself firmly on the throne" contradict Arabic rules, and Islamic bases. Bewarned from such translations and such attribues, Allah is almighty clear from the sitting, movement, size, shape, form or change.

Allah knows best, Allah is great.

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In Conclusion to what has been mentioned, Allah's attributes are perfect.

The scholars of Islam said that it is obligatory upon every mukallaf (Accountable preson) to know Attributes of Allah, among which 13 attributes that have been mentioned repeatedly in al-Quran.

Allah is attributed with: Existence, Oneness, Eternity, Everlastingness, Non-neediness of others, Power, Will, Knowledge, Hearing, Sight, Life, Speech, and Non-resemblance to the creation.

*The explanation of these attributes is as follows: *

Existence: It is obligatory to believe that Allah exists and that there is no doubt in His Existence.He exists without a place.Time does not lapse on Allah.

Oneness: Allah is One without any partners.He is One in His Self, His Attributes, and His Actions.

Eternity: Allah is Eternal; there is no beginning to His Existence.He has existed since before the creation.

Everlastingness: Allah is Everlasting; His existence does not come to an end.He does not perish.

Non-neediness of others: Allah does not need any of His creations and they are all in need of Him.

Power: Allah has Power over everything.

Will: Everything that occurs in this world is by the Will of Allah.

Knowledge: Allah knows about all things before they occur.

Hearing: Allah hears all what is hearable, without an ear or any other organ.

Sight: Allah sees all what is seeable, without a pupil or any other organ.

Life: Allah is alive without a soul, skin, or heart.His Life is not similar to ours.He is alive and does not die.

Speech: Allah's Speech (Kalam) is without a tongue or lip.His Speech is not in a language, Arabic or anything else.His Speech does not resemble the speech of the humans.

Non-resemblance to the creations: Allah does not resemble the creations.

Walhamdulillah, wallallahu a^lam.
Allah knows best.

ELECTION CAMPAIGN FOR SHIKRA
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Re: Attributes of Allah - The Belief Of True Salaf

sounds just like something Ibn Taymiyya would have said… thank you

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imaam maalik ibn anas disliked such questions to be asked