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The-concept-of-Allah-in-Islam

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A servant <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong> should never tire <strong>of</strong> thank<strong>in</strong>g and prais<strong>in</strong>g Him, <strong>in</strong>cessantly andunhesitat<strong>in</strong>gly. In a supplications by the Messenger <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>, he says, "Lord! I am <strong>in</strong>capable<strong>of</strong> prais<strong>in</strong>g You enough; You are as You have praised Yourself." Prais<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Allah</strong> and thank<strong>in</strong>gHim as He really deserves is not with<strong>in</strong> the human capacity. A servant <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>, therefore,must leave it to the One Who can do so: <strong>Allah</strong>, Praise is due to Him, and ONLY to Him. Howcan man acquire perfection <strong>in</strong> such an area while he contemplates upon some bless<strong>in</strong>gsbestowed upon him by <strong>Allah</strong> and says to himself: "I was mere naught and <strong>Allah</strong> caused me tobe, then He granted me the beautiful outward appearance, and the power <strong>of</strong> reason which isthe very best <strong>of</strong> my <strong>in</strong>ner qualities, then He granted me hear<strong>in</strong>g and vision and guided me toknow Him, then He made His great rewards atta<strong>in</strong>able and even praised me <strong>in</strong> his GreatBook"? If you move your tongue and say: Alamdu-lillh (Praise to <strong>Allah</strong>), th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g that meresay<strong>in</strong>g so is sufficient to express gratitude for all the great favours He has bestowed upon you,then you surely have taken leave <strong>of</strong> absence from your sanity, for you surely will not havethanked Him at all. "Talk is cheap," says an axiom, whereas "actions speak louder thanwords." Express your gratitude towards your Maker by actions, not only by words. Aservant's true expression <strong>of</strong> gratitude is his own admission that he simply is <strong>in</strong>capable <strong>of</strong>sufficiently express his gratitude to His Maker, Susta<strong>in</strong>er, and Benefactor.Jabir ibn Abdullah al-Ansari has quoted the Messenger <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong> say<strong>in</strong>g, "If one is givensometh<strong>in</strong>g while be<strong>in</strong>g capable <strong>of</strong> f<strong>in</strong>d<strong>in</strong>g a way to likewise give, let him do so, but if he isnot, then let him praise the giver, for one who rema<strong>in</strong>s silent and says noth<strong>in</strong>g commits kufr,apostasy. And if one were to put on clothes which he was not given, he would then be likeone who wears two outfits <strong>of</strong> forgery." [7]37. "Al-`Aliyy"<strong>Allah</strong> has said, "... what they call upon besides Him is falsehood; <strong>Allah</strong> is the High, theGreat" (Qura'n, 22:61)."Al-`Aliyy" is one <strong>of</strong> <strong>Allah</strong>'s Attributes, and it is derived from uluww, height, sublimity, orl<strong>of</strong>t<strong>in</strong>ess versus lowl<strong>in</strong>ess. <strong>The</strong> height referred to here is that <strong>of</strong> status. Al-`Aliyy is High, soHigh that He can never be conceived nor visualized. M<strong>in</strong>ds are at a loss regard<strong>in</strong>g HisGreatness; <strong>in</strong>tellects are <strong>in</strong>capable <strong>of</strong> conceiv<strong>in</strong>g His perfection. Accord<strong>in</strong>g to Al-Mufradat,one who is `aliyy is a prom<strong>in</strong>ent person, a man <strong>of</strong> dist<strong>in</strong>ction. When applied to the Almighty,as <strong>in</strong> 22:61 cited above, the implied mean<strong>in</strong>g is that He is above be<strong>in</strong>g described by anyone ortruly known by anyone, and He is above what anyone says about Him.He is the One above Whose status there is none at all, and everyth<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong> existence is underHis control. <strong>Allah</strong> has said, "He is the Most High, the Great" (Qura'n, 2:255), "... judgmentbelongs to <strong>Allah</strong>, the High, the Great" (Qura'n, 40:12), and, "... the Great, the MostHigh" (Qura'n, 13:9).

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