Allah’s Attributes are Distinct from the Attributes of Creation
Source: Fatāwā Arkān al-Islām
❖ Question
What is the ruling on someone who believes that the attributes of the Creator (Allah) are like the attributes of the creation?
❖ Answer
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd!
- Whoever adopts the belief that the attributes of the Creator (Allah) resemble the attributes of creation is certainly misguided.
- The Qur’an explicitly affirms that Allah’s attributes are unlike those of any created being.
Allah says:
﴿لَيسَ كَمِثلِهِ شَىءٌ وَهُوَ السَّميعُ البَصيرُ﴾
(Sūrah al-Shūrā: 11)
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”
◈ Similarity in Names Does Not Mean Similarity in Reality
- The similarity of names and terms does not necessitate similarity in essence or reality.
- This is a well-known principle: name resemblance does not imply actual resemblance.
Examples:
➊ Both a human and a camel have a “face,”
➋ But their faces differ greatly in form and reality.
➌ Both a camel and an ant have a “hand,”
➍ But can their hands be considered identical?
➎ Absolutely not!
◈ Allah’s Attributes are Unique and Incomparable
- Similarly, Allah’s blessed Essence and Attributes are real but incomparable to creation.
➊ Allah has a Face, but it is not like the faces of creation.
➋ Allah has a Hand, but it is not like the hands of creation.
Allah says:
﴿يَومَ نَطوِى السَّماءَ كَطَىِّ السِّجِلِّ لِلكُتُبِ﴾
(Sūrah al-Anbiyā’: 104)
“The Day when We will roll up the heavens like a scroll rolled up for books.”
- Is there any hand among creation that can be compared to the majestic Hand of Allah?
- The answer is: Absolutely not!
◈ Distinction Between Creator and Creation
It is obligatory to believe that:
➊ The Creator is not like the creation — neither in His Essence nor in His Attributes.
Allah repeats this truth in His Book:
﴿لَيسَ كَمِثلِهِ شَىءٌ وَهُوَ السَّميعُ البَصيرُ﴾
(Sūrah al-Shūrā: 11)
◈ The “How-ness” of Allah’s Attributes is Beyond Imagination
- No one is permitted to imagine the modality (kayfiyyah) of Allah’s Attributes.
- Nor may anyone claim that Allah’s Attributes resemble the attributes of creation.
ھذا ما عندي والله أعلم بالصواب
