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Taken from Belief in Allah (Islamic Creed Series Vol. 1), pp. 368-382...
http://carryonummah.blogspot.co.uk/2016/07/taken-from-belief-in-allah-islamic.htmlThere are a number of important principles and main points to which the scholars draw attention to, we would like to quote in brief below.
The First Principle: What is said about some Attributes applies to all other Attributes too 128
By means of this principle, the view of many groups may be refuted:
a) Those who affirm some attributes and deny others.
They affirm that Allah has life, knowledge, power, hearing, seeing, speech and a will. They regard these as true attributes. But they dispute concerning Allah's love, pleasure, anger and hatred, and regard them as metaphorical, or they interpret them as being aspects of His will, or as blessings and punishments.
It should be said to these people: there is no difference between what you affirm and what you deny; what is said concerning one of them also applies to the others. If you say that His life and knowledge are like the life and knowledge of His created beings, then you must say the same about His pleasure, love and anger.
If you say that He has life, knowledge and a will in a manner that befits Him and that do not resemble the lives, knowledge and wills of His created beings, then you must also say the same with regard to His pleasure, love and anger.
If you say that anger means that the blood in the heart is boiling with the desire for revenge, it must also be said that the will is the heart's desire to get something good or ward off something bad. If you say that this is the will of the created being, we say that this is the anger of the created being.
b) Those who affirm the Names but deny the Attributes
They say that He, is alive without life, All-Knowing without knowledge, and so on.
It should be said to these people, there is no difference between affirming His Names and affirming His Attributes. If you say that affirming life, knowledge and power implies likening Allah to His creation (tashbeeh) or thinking of Him in physical terms (tajseem) because we do not find anything that has attributes that is not physical - we say in response: the same applies to His Names, for we do not find anything that is called alive, knowledgeable or powerful, but it is physical. If this is the case, then you should deny the names of Allah too. If they say that these names befit His Perfection and Majesty, we say, the same applies to His Attributes.
c) Those who deny both the Names and the Attributes
They claim that they deny them so that they will not liken Allah to His creation. It should be said to them: you deny His knowledge and l life just as you deny that He is All-Knowing and Alive, for fear of likening Him to His created beings, but the implication of your ideas t is that you are thinking of Allah in terms of non-existence.
The Second Principle: 129 Speaking about the Attributes is like speaking about the Essence of Allah
Allah has an Essence, which does not resemble the essences of His created beings. By the same token, His attributes and actions do not resemble the essence and actions of His created beings.
Therefore, if someone affirms that Allah is a proven reality, with the attributes of perfection which are unmatched by anything else, then he should accept that His hearing, seeing and speech which are also proven to be real, do not resemble the hearing, seeing and speech of His created beings.
If someone were to say: I deny that Allah rose over His Throne, for fear of likening Allah to His created beings, it should be said to him, Deny the existence and essence of Allah then, because they also imply likening Allah to His created beings. If he says, Allah exists in a unique manner, and He has a unique Essence that does not resemble the essence of His created beings, then we say: the same applies to His descending and His rising above His Throne (istiwaa).
The Third Principle: The Fact that names may be the same does not imply that the things so named are the same
We know that what Allah has told us about the milk, honey and wine in Paradise is true, that these are real things, which happen to have the same names as things that exist in this world, but they are not like them. The difference between them and their earthly counterparts is known only to Allah. The difference between the Creator and His created beings is far greater than the difference between one created thing and another. Indeed, in this world a number of things may be given the same name, but each of them has its own nature. We may say for example, the leg of a camel, the leg of a journey and the leg of a man; the leg in each of these three phrases has its own meaning.
The Fourth Principle: Allah cannot be described only in terms of negation
Allah has affirmed certain Names and Attributes for Himself, and has denied certain names and attributes for Himself.
This affirmation and denial of names and attributes is both general and specific. The general affirmation occurs in the context of general praise ascribed to Allah, as indicated in the aayaat:
All the praises and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the 'Aalameen mankind, jinn and all that exists]. (Qur 'an 1: 2)
...And for Allah is the highest description..) (Qur 'an 16: 60)
The detailed affirmation deals with every name or attribute narrated in the Qur'an and Sunnah.
The general negation denies every fault or shortcoming that could detract from the perfection of Allah, as when He says:
...There is nothing like Him;..) (Qur 'an 42: 11)
...Do you know of any who is similar to Him? (Qur'an 19: 65)
The specific negation means declaring that Allah is far above each and every one of these faults and shortcomings. So Allah should be declared to be above having a father, a son, a partner, a wife or a rival, and above being ignorant, slumbering, sleeping, doing things for no purpose, etc.
But the Qur'anic method of negating is not to deny anything in absolute terms. So the Qur'an does not deny that Allah has any shortcomings except in the context of praising Him and mentioning His perfection. It does not deny anything absolutely as some of these groups do. 13O
Allah says:
Allah! Laa ilaaha illa Huwa [none has the right to be worshipped but He], Al-lfayyul-Qayyoom [the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists]. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is he that can intercede with Him except with His Permission? He knows what happens to them [His creatures] in this world, and what will happen to them in the Hereafter. And they will never compass anything of His Knowledge except that which He wills. His Kursiy extends over the heavens and the earth, and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them... (Qur'an 2: 255)
Here Allah denies that He slumbers or sleeps, but the denial of these two implies the affirmation of His life and self-sustainment.
One aspect of the perfect nature of His life is that He is not overtaken by slumber (which is the beginning of sleep) or sleep. The phrase LAnd He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them...' (Qur'an 2: 255) implies the perfection of His power, for the meaning is that it does not tire Him out or weigh Him down.
A similar example is the aayah:
...Not even the weight of an atom [or a small ant] or less than that or greater escapes His Knowledge in the heavens or in the earth...' (Qur'an 34: 3).
The denial that anything may escape His knowledge implies that He, the Exalted, All-Knower, knows every atom (or small ant) in the heavens and on earth.
And Allah, says:
And indeed We created the heavens and the earth and all between them in six Days and nothing of fatigue touched Us.) (Qur'an 50: 38).
Denying fatigue (which is tiredness and exhaustion) points to the completeness of His power and strength.
Allah says:
(No vision can grasp Him,...) (Qur 'an 6: 103)
- means, no vision can encompass Him. Even though He will be seen in the Hereafter, because of His greatness, no vision will encompass Him.
Similarly, each time Allah denies something, it implies a positive attribute for which Allah is to be praised.
Allah does not describe Himself in terms of absolute denial, unless it highlights a positive attribute. Thus it becomes clear that those who tend to engage in excessive denial (or what they call negation) are mistaken, because negation does not imply praise or perfection unless it implies a positive affirmation. Absolute denial is absolute nothingness, and absolute nothingness is nothing.
Most of the innovators who deny in absolute terms say: "Allah does not speak, He does not see, He is not high above the universe." Some of them go to extremes and say: "He is neither within the universe nor outside it; He is neither separate from it nor joined to it," and other such nonsense which makes Allah as if He is nothing - Exalted and Glorified be He.
The Fifth Principle: Words which may be true or false
The attributes narrated in the Qur'an and Sunnah are true, and we are obliged to believe in them, even if we do not understand their meaning.
But the things that people say about Allah, not narrated in the Qur'an or Sunnah, and which people dispute about - we neither affirm them nor deny them until we know what the person saying them means.
For example, it may be said to the one who denies that Allah has direction, "What do you mean by direction? If you mean that Allah is within the physical confines of the heaven, and that the heaven contains Him, then it is not permissible for us to say that Allah is in a certain direction. But if you mean that Allah is above His creation and above the heavens, then this is true."
The Sixth Principle: Denial of Attributes caused primarily by
anthropomorphic beliefs (Tashbeeh)
The principle is explained by Shaykh Muhammad al-Ameen ash Shanqeeti (may Allah have mercy on him), who pointed out that the origin of this problem was the fact that hearts are contaminated with the filth of tashbeeh. So when a person whose heart is thus contaminated with the filth of tashbeeh hears of one of the attributes of perfection by which Allah praises Himself, such as His descent to the first heaven during the last third of the night, or His rising over His throne, or His coming on the Day of Resurrection, and other attributes of Majesty and perfection, the first thing that crosses his mind is that this attribute resembles an attribute of created beings. So his heart is contaminated with the filth of tashbeeh, and he does not estimate Allah with an estimation due to Him or venerate Allah as He should be venerated, because the first thing that crosses his mind is that the attribute of the Creator resembles the attribute of His created beings. So first of all his heart is contaminated with the filth of tashbeeh, and this evil tashbeeh leads him to deny the attribute of the Creator on the basis that it resembles the attributes of His created beings. So he starts with tashbeeh
(anthropomorphism) and ends up with ta'teel (denying the divine attributes altogether), but from the beginning to the end he is insulting the Lord of the Worlds, denying His attributes by claiming that these attributes do not befit Him.
The Shaykh mentioned a principle of usool upon which the scholars are unanimously agreed. It was not permissible for the Prophet to delay teaching anything once it was needed, especially in the case of 'aqeedah (creed - matters of belief). If we were to go along with their false argument, that the apparent meaning of the aayaat is kufr (disbelief), we should note that the Prophet did not interpret istiwaa as meaning controlling or any of these other interpretations.
Had these aayaat meant what these interpretations say, the Prophet would have hastened to explain that, because it was not permitted for him to delay explaining things when needed.
The Shaykh explained that what the Muslim is obliged to do, when he hears of an attribute which the Creator of the heavens and the earth ascribed to Himself, or which His Messenger attributed to Him, is to fill his heart with glorification of Allah and be certain that this attribute has reached the utmost in perfection, majesty, honour and highness, in such a manner as to cut off any possible thoughts of tashbeeh
(anthropomorphism) or resemblance between this attribute and the attributes of His creation. Thus (the believer's) heart glorifies Allah and declares Him to be far above such resemblance, uncontaminated with the filth of tashbeeh. Thus his heart will be receptive to faith and belief in the attributes of Allah with which He is to be praised and with which His Prophet praised Him, as Allah says:
(... There is nothing like Him and He is tile All-Hearer,
the All-Seer ({Qur an 42:11) 1
The worst thing is not to glorify Allah, when the first thing that crosses a person's mind is that the attribute of the Creator resembles the attributes of the created being, so that this poor soul is forced to deny the attribute of the Creator on the grounds of this false claim.
The Seventh Principle: The Aayaat (Verses) which speak of the Divine Attributes are not ambiguous
Shaykh Ash-Shanqeeti stated that many people describe the aayaat, which speak of the divine attributes as being ambiguous aayaat (mutashaabih). In one way this is a mistake, and in another way it could be acceptable, as Imam Maalik ibn Anas said: "Istiwaa is not unknown, how is not understandable, asking about it is bid 'ah and believing in it is obligatory."
Likewise, it may be said about Allah's descent (to the first heaven during the last third of the night): The descent is not unknown, how is not understandable, asking about it is bid 'ah and believing in it is obligatory. The same applies to all the attributes, because these attributes are known to the Arabs, but in the case of the Creator of the heavens and the earth, they are too perfect, too majestic and too great to resemble any of the attributes of the created beings. Just as the essence of the Creator is real, so too the created beings have their essences, but the essence of the Creator is too perfect and too great to resemble the essences of His creatures in any way.
The Eighth Principle: The Apparent meaning of the Attributes does not imply Tashbeeh so there is no need to find a different interpretation
The guideline in the field of usool is that if a word has only one possible meaning, then it is called nass (a statement), such as the aayah (verse),
...Making ten days in all..) (Qur'an 2: 196).
If there are two or more possible meanings, then one of the two possibilities is more apparent than the other, or both are equally apparent.
If both are equally possible then it is called mujmal (general, not specific). An example would be the phrase 'adaa al-lasoos al-baarihah 'ala 'ayn Zayd (yesterday the thieves attacked the 'ayn of Zayd). The word 'ayn' could mean the eye of Zayd, which they blinded; or it may mean his spring, which they dammed; or it may mean his gold and silver, which they stole. This is an example of mujmal (general meaning). The ruling concerning mujmal words or phrases is that we should refrain from interpreting it in a particular way unless there is evidence to specify what is meant.
But if the text is clear and unambiguous, then we should follow it and not turn away from it unless there is proof that it has been abrogated.
If one of the two possible meanings is more apparent, this is called Az-Zaahir (the apparent), and its counterpart is called muhtamal marjooh (unlikely, possibility). The apparent meaning is the one which should be followed, unless there is evidence to divert us from it. For example, if you say 'ra 'aytu asadan,' the apparent meaning is a savage animal (I saw a lion), but it may refer to a courageous man.
So when we read the aayaat which speak of the attributes of Allah, such as ...The Hand of Allah is over their hands...(Qur 'an 48: 10) and other similar aayaat, is the first thing that strikes our minds that this aayah is likening the attributes of Allah to His creation, so that we have to interpret it in order to divert the word away from its apparent meaning? Or is the apparent meaning that comes to mind when we read it that the Lord of the heavens is above resembling His creation in any of His attributes so we accept this aayah in that context, declaring Him to be above any such resemblance? The answer to that is that the first thing which should come to the Muslim's mind when he hears of any of the attributes of the Lord of the heavens and the earth is that Allah is completely above any resemblance to His creation.
The correct understanding is to accept the apparent meanings of these aayaat (verses), which is to think of the Lord of the heavens and the earth as being far above any resemblance to His creation in any of His attributes. Can any rational person deny that the first thing that crosses the sound mind is that the Creator differs from His creation in His essence and in all His attributes? No, by Allah, no one will dispute this except those who are arrogant.
The Ninth Principle: The Reality of Ta 'weel 131
The word ta'weel which has tempted people and led thousands of this ummah astray could mean three things:
I) It could mean the way the things develop and end up. This is the meaning in the aayaat such as the following:
...That is better and more suitable for final determination [ta 'weelan].) (Qur 'an 4: 59)
...Even before the elucidation [ta'weel] thereof has reached them..) (Qur'an 10: 39)
- Abdullah Yusuf 'Ali's translation, i.e., the way things ultimately turn out.
...On the Day the event is finally fulfilled [ta'weel], those who neglected it before...) (Qur 'an 7: 53)
2) Ta'weel may mean tafseer (interpretation). This is a well-known usage, such as Ibn Jareer's comment: the opinion on the ta'weel
(interpretation) of the aayah (verse) is such and such...
3) In the terminology of usool, ta'weel means: interpreting a word in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind, on the basis of evidence.
According to the scholars of usool, interpreting a word in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind is done in three cases:
a) It is interpreted in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind on the basis of saheeh (sound) evidence from the Qur'an or Sunnah. This kind of ta'weel or interpretation is correct and is acceptable; there is no dispute about it. Examples of this kind include the hadith narrated from the Prophet:
"The neighbor has more right to proximity." 132
The apparent meaning of this hadith is that the neighbor has the right of pre-emption (concerning decisions on or sales of neighboring property etc.).
But if we interpret this as referring specifically to a neighbor whose property is contiguous, this is following a meaning that is not immediately apparent. But the saheeh hadith narrated by Jaabir, "When boundaries are being drawn up and routes are taking shape, there is no right of pre-emption," 133 proves that what is meant by the neighbor who has more right to proximity is specifically the neighbor whose property is contiguous. This kind of interpreting a word in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind on the basis of clear evidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah is called ta'weel saheeh (correct interpretation) or ta'weel qareeb (acceptable interpretation).
b) A word is interpreted in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind because of something which the scholar believes to be evidence, but in fact it is not an evidence. This is called ta'weel ba'eed (far-fetched interpretation), or sometimes it is called faasid (corrupt).
An example of this is Abu Haneefah's interpretation of the word 'woman' in the hadith of the Prophet:
"Any woman who gets married without the permission of her guardian, her marriage is invalid." 134
His interpretation of this as referring specifically to a slave woman who had a written contract of emancipation, is ta'weel ba'eed (a farfetched interpretation), because the particle ayy in the word ayyumaa (any) is general in meaning; the suffix maa emphasizes the fact that this phrase (ayyumaa imra 'atin - any woman) is general in meaning, referring to any woman whatsoever. Interpreting this as referring to a specific case (the slave woman who has a written contract of emancipation) is interpreting it in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind, without any evidence for doing so.
c) With regard to interpreting words or phrases in a way other than the apparent meaning which first springs to mind, without any evidence, this is not called ta 'weel; in scholarly terminology it is called la'ib (playing), because it involves playing with the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger. An example of this is the way in which the extreme Rawaafid (shi'as) interpret the aayah, ...Verily, Allah commands you that you slaughter a cow..) (Qur 'an 2: 67). They said, (this refers to) 'Aa'ishah.
This kind of (mis)interpretation also includes interpreting the aayaat (verses) which speak of the attributes of Allah, distorting them from their apparent meanings to unlikely meanings for which Allah has not revealed any authority, such as when they interpret istawaa (rise above) as meaning istawlaa (possess, take control). This cannot be included under the heading of ta'weel, because there is no evidence for this at all. In the terminology of the scholars of usool, it is called la'ib (playing), because it is playing with the Book of Allah with no evidence and no basis. This kind of interpretation (which is misinterpretation) is not permissible, because it is an assault against the words of the Lord of the Worlds. The basic principle which was known to the scholars among the salaf(pious predecessors), is that it is not permissible to change the meaning of anything in the Book of Allah or the Sunnah of His Messenger from the apparent meaning which first springs to mind, unless there is evidence which must be referred to.
128 Majmoo' al-Fataawa Shaykh ai-Islam, 3/17.
129 Majmoo' al-Fataawa Shaykh ai-Islam, 3/25.
130 E.g., Al-Jahamiyah al-MaMah. See Majmoo' al-Fataawa, 3/39.
131 I have written a paper on this topic entitled: At-Ta 'weel khutooratuhu wa athaaruhu (Interpretation: its dangers and effects).
132 Ahmad, Nasaee and Ibn Maajah (Muntaqa al-Akhbaar, Pp. 492, hadith no.
3177).
133 Bukhari, Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi and Ahmad (Muntaqa al-Akhbaar, Pp. 492).
134 Abu Dawood, Tirmidhi, Ibn Maajah and Ahmad (Muntaqa al-Akhbaar, 539, hadith no. 3452).
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July 16, 2016, 05:39:46 PM