too, perished. <strong>The</strong>n he saw a fourth and <strong>in</strong>voked <strong>Allah</strong> likewise to annihilate him. It was thenthat <strong>Allah</strong> <strong>in</strong>spired him, "O Abraham! Stop! If We were to annihilate each one <strong>of</strong> Ourservants who commits a s<strong>in</strong>, then only a small number will survive; but if one s<strong>in</strong>s, We givehim a respite; if he repents, We accept his repentance, and if he persists, We postpone hispenalty know<strong>in</strong>g that he cannot escape from Our doma<strong>in</strong>."It is also narrated that a young man used to commit many s<strong>in</strong>s, and he used to persist <strong>in</strong>s<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g; nay, he even used to repent and immediately go back to s<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g. Hav<strong>in</strong>g done soquite <strong>of</strong>ten, he was addressed by Satan thus, "For how long will you keep s<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g andrepent<strong>in</strong>g?" Satan wished that <strong>Allah</strong> would cause that man to lose hope <strong>in</strong> His mercy andbecome despondent. When night came, the man performed his ablution and <strong>of</strong>fered tworeka`ts, then he raised his eyes to the heavens and said, "O You Who protects the righteousaga<strong>in</strong>st s<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g, Who safeguards those who are protected from s<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g, Who makes therighteous what they are! If You neglect me, You will f<strong>in</strong>d me los<strong>in</strong>g heart; my forelock is <strong>in</strong>Your hand; my debts are before You! O You Who changes the hearts! I <strong>in</strong>voke You to keepmy heart firm on follow<strong>in</strong>g Your creed!" <strong>Allah</strong>, thereupon, said to His angels, "O angels <strong>of</strong>M<strong>in</strong>e! Have you all heard his statement? Bear witness, then, that I have forgiven all his pasts<strong>in</strong>s and safeguarded him aga<strong>in</strong>st s<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g for the rest <strong>of</strong> his life."34. "Al-`Azeem"<strong>The</strong> Almighty has said, "So glorify the Name <strong>of</strong> your Lord, the Great" (Qura'n, 56:96). "Al-`Azeem" is a superlative derived from the noun `izam, greatness, magnanimity, dignity,honour, esteem, pride... <strong>The</strong> Absolute Azeem is the One Whose greatness cannot be graspedby vision; it is beyond all limits, so much so that no human <strong>in</strong>tellect can ever absorb it. <strong>Allah</strong>has said, "He is the Most High, the Great" (Qura'n, 2:255).<strong>The</strong> most prom<strong>in</strong>ent person <strong>in</strong> a town is called its greatest. This is the mean<strong>in</strong>g <strong>of</strong> what theunbelievers say as the Holy Qura'n quotes them: "... to a man great <strong>in</strong> both towns..." (Qura'n,43:31). <strong>Allah</strong> has said, "... and the great Qura'n" (Qura'n, 15:87). When the Messenger <strong>of</strong><strong>Allah</strong> wrote a letter to Heraclius (which will be discussed later <strong>in</strong> this book Insha-<strong>Allah</strong>), headdressed him as "the azeem man <strong>of</strong> Rome," that is, the greatest dignitary <strong>in</strong> Rome. Heraclius,who ruled from 610 - 641 A.D., was a Byzant<strong>in</strong>e emperor, ruler <strong>of</strong> the Eastern Roman empire.was <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> many wars with the Persians from 634 - 642 A.D. He did not accept <strong>Islam</strong>;his armies were eventually conquered by <strong>Islam</strong>ic troops, so he lost Syria, Palest<strong>in</strong>e andMesopotamia (upper Iraq) as well as Egypt, one after the other.If you consider the greatness <strong>of</strong> al-Az`eem, you will come to know that anyone besides Himis <strong>in</strong>significant. <strong>The</strong> human be<strong>in</strong>g, no matter how knowledgeable, is limited <strong>in</strong> the scope andcontent <strong>of</strong> his knowledge. How can you compare such a limited amount <strong>of</strong> knowledge withthat <strong>of</strong> the Almighty? An example <strong>of</strong> His might exists <strong>in</strong> 31:28: "Neither your creation noryour rais<strong>in</strong>g (bai`th, the reunion between the soul and the recreated body) is only like (that <strong>of</strong>)
a s<strong>in</strong>gle soul" (Qura'n, 31:28). To the Almighty, the creation <strong>of</strong> the entire cosmos is as easy asthe creation <strong>of</strong> one s<strong>in</strong>gle soul: "Our word for a th<strong>in</strong>g when We <strong>in</strong>tend it is only to say to it:Be, and it is" (Qura'n, 16:40). <strong>Allah</strong> has required us to revere His signs; He says, "That (shallbe so), and whoever respects the signs <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>, it surely is (the sign) <strong>of</strong> the piety <strong>of</strong> thehearts" (Qura'n, 22:32). One who highly regards the signs <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>, respects religious rites,holds <strong>in</strong> high esteem anyth<strong>in</strong>g related to <strong>Allah</strong>, is surely held <strong>in</strong> high esteem by both <strong>Allah</strong>and His servants.<strong>The</strong> Messenger <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>, Muhammed, has conveyed the follow<strong>in</strong>g glad tid<strong>in</strong>gs: "One wholearns then becomes fully knowledgeable then acts upon what he has learned is called great <strong>in</strong>the k<strong>in</strong>gdom <strong>of</strong> the heavens."Ibn `Abbas quotes the Messenger <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong> say<strong>in</strong>g, "If someone enters a room to visit a sickperson on the br<strong>in</strong>k <strong>of</strong> death and he repeats seven times the say<strong>in</strong>g <strong>of</strong>: `I plead to <strong>Allah</strong> theGreat, Lord <strong>of</strong> the Great Throne, to heal you,' that sick person will be healed by the Will <strong>of</strong><strong>Allah</strong>."35. "Al-Ghafoor"<strong>Allah</strong> has said, "... surely <strong>Allah</strong> forgives the faults all <strong>of</strong> them; surely He is the Forgiv<strong>in</strong>g, theMerciful" (Qura'n, 39:53)."Al-Ghafoor" is derived from the root word ghafr, veil<strong>in</strong>g or cover<strong>in</strong>g. He is al-Ghafoorbecause He quite <strong>of</strong>ten veils the s<strong>in</strong>s and forgives those who commit them. He does notdispute about them with His servants. Maghfira means the cover<strong>in</strong>g and the forgiv<strong>in</strong>g <strong>of</strong> s<strong>in</strong>s.<strong>Allah</strong>'s forgiveness means His protection <strong>of</strong> a servant <strong>of</strong> His aga<strong>in</strong>st His torment. Its verbmeans: to openly overlook his s<strong>in</strong>s.Al-Ghafoor is the Master Whose power is perfect; He may unconditionally forgive due to thefavours He bestows upon His servants, and to His benevolence.<strong>The</strong> Holy Qura'n has referred quite <strong>of</strong>ten to forgiveness, and <strong>Allah</strong> has diversified it so thatthe hearts <strong>of</strong> those who disobey Him may not lose hope <strong>of</strong> His mercy, and so that no crim<strong>in</strong>alwill despond <strong>of</strong> the mercy <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>. He forgives the s<strong>in</strong>s and accepts the repentance. In SuratGhfir, we recite this verse: "<strong>The</strong> One Who forgives the faults and Who accepts repentance,Who is Severe <strong>in</strong> punish<strong>in</strong>g, the Lord <strong>of</strong> bounty" (Qura'n, 40:3). Other such references are asfollows:... so forgive us and have mercy on us; You are the best <strong>of</strong> those who forgive. (7:155) Mostsurely I am the most Forgiv<strong>in</strong>g to one who repents and believes and does good deeds thencont<strong>in</strong>ues to follow the right guidance. (20:82) He has created the heavens and the earth withthe truth; He makes the night cover the day and the day overtake the night, and He has made
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AllahThe Concept of God in Islam (a
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IntroductionIn any theistic religio
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eminded him of the bloody and shame
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Knowing AllahMuhammed, the Messenge
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All Praise is due to Allah, the One
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The Praised One has said, He is the
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you then made you complete, then He
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The Ninety Nine Attributesof AllahI
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The Almighty is Endless regarding H
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produce it. They will also realize
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Who grants mercy beyond which there
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Unity of Allah (Tawhid)Islam falls
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is Allah, your Lord; so, worship Hi
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keep closing their eyes to the fact
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Abu Abdullah Imam Ja`fer al-Sadiq h
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descends during the night of the mi
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and the Exalted One, whereby He des
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- Page 50 and 51: e overcome or in any way harmed, th
- Page 52 and 53: Holy Qura'n bestows the Attribute o
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- Page 59 and 60: e called badee' at all; so, this At
- Page 61 and 62: said, "And most surely We bring to
- Page 63 and 64: Al-Saboor, Glory to Him, is the Cle
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The Messenger of Allah has desired
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penalty for it equal in size and ki
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This Attribute is derived from "mer
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His creation, and the norms of His
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perfection of the Self. All qualiti
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eminding those whom He forgives of
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"Wait, therefore; surely they (too)
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The Messenger of Allah used to say,
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taken account in a clear Book. (36:
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ing the dead to life, and He shows
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Al-Mumeet causes your heart to die
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thoroughly" (Qura'n, 27:88).The roo