32- The Difference Between the Names and Attributes of Allah the Exalted
By “names” is meant everything that points to the essence of Allah the Exalted in such a way that attributes of perfection are also established for Allah the Exalted, such as: the All-Powerful, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise, the All-Hearing and the All-Seeing. These names, in addition to pointing to the essence of Allah, also point to the attributes of Allah the Exalted: knowledge, wisdom, hearing and sight. By “attributes” is meant those perfect qualities of Allah the Exalted that subsist in the essence of Allah the Exalted, such as the attribute of knowledge, wisdom, hearing and sight. Therefore, a name points to two things, whereas an attribute points to one thing. The name includes the attribute, and the attribute is inseparable from the name. It is necessary to believe in the names and attributes established for Allah the Exalted in the manner that befits Him, and it is also necessary to believe that no created being resembles Allah the Exalted even in attributes, just as none resembles Him in respect of His essence. Allah the Exalted says:
قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ لَمْ يَلِدْ وَلَمْ يُولَدْ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ
“Say: He is Allah, the One. Allah is the Self-Sufficient. He did not beget, nor was He begotten. And there is none comparable to Him.”
Allah the Exalted also says:
لَيْسَ كَمِثْلِهِ شَيْءٌ وَهُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ
“There is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”
