Belief and Islam

thousand and one of His Names to human beings. In the religion
of Muhammad ‘’alaihis-salâm’, ninety-nine of them, called “al-
Asmâ’ al-husnâ,” were revealed.
There are eight Attributes of Allâhu ta’âlâ called Sifât-ithubûtiyya,
according to the Mâturîdiyya Madhhab and seven in
the Ash’ariyya Madhhab. These Attributes of His are eternal and
everlasting like His Person; that is, they exist eternally. They are
sacred. They are not like the attributes of creatures. They cannot
be comprehended through reasoning or assumption or by
comparing them with beings in the world. Allâhu ta’âlâ has
endowed upon human beings an example of each of His
Attributes. Seeing these examples, the Attributes of Allâhu ta’âlâ
can be understood to a small extent. Since man cannot
comprehend Allâhu ta’âlâ it is not permissible to think of or to
attempt to comprehend Allâhu ta’âlâ. The eight Attributes of
Allâhu ta’âlâ are neither the same as nor other than His Person;
that is, His Attributes do not make up His Person, nor are they
other than He. These eight Attributes are:
Hayât (Life), ’Ilm (Omniscience), Sem’ (Hearing), Basar
(Seeing), Qudra (Omnipotence), Kalâm (Speech, Word), Irâda
(Will), and Tekwîn (Creativeness). In the Ash’ariyya Madhhab,
Tekwîn and Qudra make up the same attribute. Mashiyya and
Irâda are synonymous.
Each of the eight Attributes of Allâhu ta’âlâ is unique and in a
uniform state. No change occurs in any of them. But each of them
varies in its related quality in creatures. That an Attribute of His
varies in its relation to creatures and in affecting them does not
harm its uniqueness. Similarly, even though Allâhu ta’âlâ has
created so many kinds of creatures and is protecting all of them
against annihilation, He is still One. No change ever occurs in Him.
Every creature needs Him every moment in every respect. He
does not need anybody in any respect.
2. The second of the six essentials of îmân is “to believe in His
angels.” Angels are material but ethereal (latîf), more ethereal
than the gaseous phase of matter. They are nûrânî (luminous,
spiritual). They are alive. They have reason (’aql). Evils peculiar to
human beings do not exist in angels. They can take any shape. As
gases turn into liquid and solid and take any shape when becoming
solid, likewise angels can form beautiful shapes. Angels are not
souls that have parted from the bodies of great men. Christians
presume that angels are such spirits. Unlike energy and power,
they are not immaterial. Some ancient philosophers supposed so.
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