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The Attributes
of the Divine Being
by
Dr. Hamid Algar
How does the
Quran present God?
When we wish to assess the scientific personality and
knowledge of a scholar, we examine his works and subject them to close
study. Similarly, in order to measure the talent, creativity and ability
of an artist to invent original images, we undertake the study of his
artistic production.
In the same way, we ca n al so perceive the attributes
and characteristics of the pure essence of the Creator from the qualities
and orderliness that pervade all phenomena, together with their subtlety
and precision. Thereby, within the limits set by our capacity to know and
perceive, we can become acquainted with God's knowledge, wisdom, life and
power.
If it be a question of complete and comprehensive
knowledge of God, then, of course, we must accept that man's ability to
know does not extent that far. God's characteristics cannot be placed
within given limits, and whatever comparison or simile we offer for them
is bound to be false, for whatever is observable to science and thought in
the natural realm is the work of God and the product of His will and
command, whereas His essence is not part of nature and does not belong to
the category of created beings. Hence, the essence of the divine being
cannot be grasped by man by way of comparison and analogy.
He is, in short, a being for the knowledge of Whose
essence no measure or criterion exists and for the fixing of Whose power,
authority and knowledge, we have no figures or statistics.
Is man, then, too abject and powerless to perceive
anything of the essence and attributes of so elevated a reality? To
concede the weakness of our powers and our inability to attain complete,
profound and comprehensive knowledge of God does not imply that we are
deprived of any form of knowledge, however relative. The orderly pattern
of the universe loudly proclaims His attributes to us, and we can deduce
the power and unlimited creativity of the Lord from the beauty and value
of nature. Phenomena are for us an indication of His unique essence.
Contemplation of the will, consciousness, knowledge and
harmony inherent in the order of being and all the various phenomena of
life, makes it possible for us to perceive that all these
qualities-together with all the other elements that speak of aim,
direction and purpose-necessarily derive from the will of a Creator Who
Himself possesses these attributes before they are reflected in the mirror
of creation.
That which comes to know God and to touch His being is
the remarkable power of thought-a flash which deriving from that
pre-eternal source shone on matter and bestowed on it the capacity of
acquiring knowledge and advancing toward truth. It is within this great
divine gift that the knowledge of God is manifested.
Islam deals with the knowledge of God in a clear and
novel way. The Quran, the fundamental source for learning the worldview of
Islam, applies the method of negation and affirmation to this
question.
First, it negated, by means of convincing proofs and
indications, the existence of false gods, because in approaching the
transcendent doctrine of unity, it is necessary first to negate all forms
of pseudo-divinity and the worship of other-than-God. This is the first
important step on the path to unity.
The Quran says: "Have the ignorant polytheists
abandoned the true God and chosen, instead, the false and powerless gods?
Tell them: "Bring forth your proof!' This call of mine to unity is my
saying and that of all the learned men of the community, as well as the
saying of all the Prophets and learned men before me. But these
polytheists have no knowledge of the truth and constantly avert themselves
from it."(21:24)
"Say, O Messenger, 'You worship one other than God who
has no power to help or to harm you. It is God Who is all-hearing and Who
bows the state of all of creation."(5:79)
The one who has severed his connection with divine unity
forgets, too, his own true position with respect to the world and being
and becomes estranged from himself. For the ultimate form of
self-alienation is the severing of all links with one's essential nature
as man. Conversely, once man has become alienated from his own essence,
under the influences of internal and external factors, he will also be
separated from his God and become enslaved by other-than-God.
Subordination to other-than-God, then, takes the place of all logical
thought. This represents a reversion to the worship of phenomena, for
worshipping an idol and according primacy to matter both are forms of
regression that rob man of his innate capacity for growth.
Monotheism is the only force that makes it possible for
man to recapture the creativity of human values. By regaining his true
rank, he enters a state of harmony with his own human nature and the
ultimate nature of all being, thus attaining the most perfect form of
existence open to him.
Throughout history, all divine summons and movements have
begun with the proclamation of divine unity and the exclusive lordship of
God. No concept has ever occurred to man that is more productive of
creative insights and more relevant to the various dimensions of human
existence, or a more effective brake on human perversity, than the concept
of divine unity.
Using clear proofs, the Quran shows man the way to
attaining knowledge of the divine essence as follows: "Did man emerge
from non-being through his own devices? Was he his own creator? Did
mankind create the heavens and earth? Certainly they do not know
God."(52:35-36)
The Quran leaves it to man's reason and
commonsense to realize the falsity of these two hypotheses-that man came into
being of himself, or that he was his own creator-by testing and analyzing them
in the laboratory of his thought. By reflecting on the signs and indications of
God, he will come to recognize with clear and absolute certainty the true source
of all being and to understand that no value can be posited for any model of the
universe unless behind it an organizing and capable intellect is at work.
In other verses, man's attention is drawn to
the manner of his creation and gradual emergence from non-being. He, thus, comes
to realize that his remarkable creation, with all the wonders it contains, is a
sign and indication of the infinite divine will, the penetrating rays of which
touch all beings.
The Quran says: "We
created man out of an essence of clay, then We established him in a firm place
in the form of sperm. Then We made the sperm into coagulated blood, and then
into a formless lump of flesh. Then we made it into bones, and then clothed the
bones with flesh. Finally We brought forth a new creation. How well did God
create, the best of all creators!" (23:12-14)
When the foetus is ready to receive shape
and form" all the cells of the eyes, the ear, the brain, and the other organs,
start to function and begin their ceaseless activity. This is the truth to which
the Quran is directing men's attention. It, then, poses to man the question of
whether all these wondrous changes are rationally compatible with the hypothesis
that there is no God.
Is it not rather the case that phenomena
such as these prove and demonstrate" with the utmost emphasis, the need for a
plan, a design, a guiding hand inspired by conscious will? Is it at all possible
that the cells of the body should learn their functions, pursue their aim in a
precise and orderly fashion, and crystallize so miraculously in the world of
being, without there being a conscious and powerful being to instruct them?
The Quran answers this question as follows:
"He it is Who creates and brings forth (the totality of
parts), Who separates (the parts belonging to each organ), and Who gives form
(to different aspects)."(59:24)
The Quran describes every sense phenomenon
that man sees around him as something calling for reflection and the drawing of
conclusions. "Your God is but one God. There is no god
other than Him, Compassionate and Merciful In the creation of the heavens and
the earth, in the alternation of night and day, in the ships that ply the seas
to the benefit of man, in the water sent down from the heavens to revive the
earth after its death, in the different species of animals scattered across the
earth" in the rotation of the winds, in the clouds that are subordinate to God's
command between heaven and earth-in all of this, there are signs for men who use
their intellects."(2:163-164) "Tell men to reflect
with care and see what things the heavens and the earth contain."(10:10)
The Quran also mentions the study of human
history and the peoples of the past with all the changes they have undergone, as
a special source of knowledge. It invites man to pay heed, in order to discover
the truth, to the triumphs and defeats, the glories and humiliations, the
fortune and misfortune, of various ancient peoples, so that by learning the
orderly and precise laws of history, he will be able to benefit himself and his
society by aligning the history of his own age with those laws.
The Quran thus proclaims: "Even before your time, certain laws and norms were in force,
so travel and examine the historical traces left by past peoples, to see what
urn the fate of those who denied the truths of revelation and the promises of
God."(3:137) "How many were those powerful ones whom
We destroyed in their cities on account of their oppression and wrongdoing, and
We made another people to be their heirs."(21:11)
The Quran also recognizes man's inner world,
which it expressed by the word anfus ("souls"), as a
source for fruitful reflection and the discovery of truth. It points out its
importance as follows: "We make our signs and indications
entirely manifest in the world and in the souls and inner beings of Our servants
so that it should be clear that God is the True."(41:53) "On the face of the earth there are signs fur the
possessors of certainty, and also in your own selves; will you not
see?"(51:20-21)
In other words, there is an abundant source
of knowledge in the beauty and symmetry of the human body, with all of its
organs and capacities, its actions and reactions, its precise and subtle
mechanisms, its varied energies and instincts, its perceptions, feelings and
sensations, both animal and human, and most especially in the astounding
capacity of thought and awareness with which man has been entrusted-a capacity
which still remains largely unknown, for man has taken only a few steps in
studying this invisible power and its relationship with his material body.
The Quran proclaims that it is sufficient to
reflect on and examine your own self in order to be guided to the eternal,
infinite source that is free of all need, has unlimited knowledge, skill and
power, and a feeble reflection of which is manifest in your being. You will then
know that it is that infinite reality which has thus brought together in one
place so fruitful a compound of elements and brought it forth onto the plain of
existence.
Given the existence of such vivid
indications and decisive proofs, placed at your disposal and within your own
being for you to seek the knowledge of God, no excuse will be accepted from you
for misguidance and denial.
The Quran also applies the method of
negation and affirmation to the question of God's attributes. Thus, it describes
the attributes that the essence of the Creator possesses as "affirmative
attributes." Among them are knowledge, power, will, the fact that His existence
was not preceded by non-existence and that His being has no beginning, and the
fact that all the motions of the world derive from His will and His power.
The Quran says: "He is
God, the One other than Whom there is no god, the knower of the hidden and the
manifest, the Compassionate, the Merciful. He is God, the One other than Whom
there is no god, the Commander, the All-powerful, Pure and Without Defect, the
Bestower of Safety, the Protector, the Precious; the Mighty, the Sublime, the
Most Elevated. Exempt and purified be He from the partners which they ascribe to
Him."(59:22-23)
The "negative attributes" are those from
which God is free. They include the fact that God is not a body and has no
place; His sacred being has no partner or like; He is not a prisoner to the
limitations set up by the bounds of the senses; He neither begets nor is
begotten; there is neither change nor motion within His essence, for He is
absolute perfection; and He does not delegate the task of creation to
anyone.
The Quran says: "O
Messenger, say: "He is God, the One, the God Who is free of need for all things
and of Whom all beings stand in need. No one is His offspring, and He is not the
offspring of anyone, and He has no like or parallel."(12:14) "Pure and exalted is thy Lord, God the Powerful and Unique,
Who is pure of what men in their ignorance ascribe to Him."(37:80)
Human logic, which inevitably thinks in
terms of limited categories, is incapable of sitting in judgment on divinity,
because we must admit that it is impossible to perceive the ultimate ground of
that being for whom no observable or comprehensible analogue or parallel exists
in the world of creation. The most profound schools of thought and the greatest
methods of reflection here fall prey to bewilderment.
Just as all existent beings must lead back
to an essence with which existence is identical, to an independent being on
which all other beings depend, so, too, they must derive from a source of life,
power and knowledge, from the infinite being of which all these attributes and
qualities surge forth in abundance.
The Conditions for an Ideal
Object of Worship
The Lord of the World, as presented in the
Quran, possesses all the necessary conditions of an ideal object of worship. He
is the creator of love and all forms of beauty, the originator of all forms of
power and energy. He is a vast ocean on the slightest ripple of whose surface
the swimmer of the intellect is tossed around like a plaything. It is He Who
preserves the heavens from falling and the earth from collapsing. If, for an
instant, He closes His eye of mercy or averts it from this world, the whole of
the universe will perish and hurtle toward non-being in the form of dust. The
existence and survival of every atom in the universe is, therefore, dependent on
Him.
It is He Who bestows all bounties and all
felicities, Who owns us and may freely dispose of us. When He commands and an
order goes forth, as soon as He says, "Be!," a creature comes into being.
Truth and reality derive their substance
from His essence, and freedom, justice, and other virtues and perfections derive
from the rays of His attributes. To take flight towards Him, seek to draw near
to His glorious threshold, is to attain all conceivable desire at the highest
degree. Whoever gives his heart to God, gains an affectionate companion and a
loving friend; the one who relies upon Him has placed his hope on a firm
foundation, while the one who attaches his heart to other-than-God is a prey to
illusion and builds a foundation on wind.
He Who is aware of the slightest motion that
takes place any where in creation can also determine for us a path leading to
happiness and lay down a way of life and a system of human relations that
conforms to the norms He has established in the order of creation. He is, after
all, aware of our true interests, and it is even His right alone to lay down a
path for us as the logical outcome and natural consequence of His divinity. To
act in accordance with the program He lays down is the only certain guarantee
for our ascent toward Him.
How is it possible that man should be so
enamored of truth and justice that he is ready to sacrifice his life fur their
sake, unless he is aware of their source and origin?
If a being is worthy of worship, it cannot
be anyone other than the Creator Who is the axis of all being. No thing and no
person has such a rank as to deserve the praise and service of man. All values
other than God lack absoluteness and primacy and do not subsist in and of
themselves; they are relative and serve only as a means fur the attainment of
degrees higher than themselves.
The primary qualities that elicit man's
worship are being the bestower of all bounties and being aware of all the
possibilities, needs, capacities and energies contained in man's body and soul.
These qualities belong exclusively to God; all beings stand in need of and rely
upon that being Who is existent by by virtue of His own essence. The caravan of
existence is constantly moving toward Him by means of His aid, and His commands
descend unceasingly of every speck in the universe.
Absolute submission and worship belong,
then, exclusively to His Most Sacred Essence. His glorious presence,
uninterrupted by a single moment of absence, is felt at the heart of each atom
of being. All things other than God resemble us in that impotence and deficiency
prevail over them. They are, therefore, unworthy of our submission and are not
worthy of usurping sovereignty over any part of God's realm, which is the whole
broad plain of existence. Man, too, is too noble and valuable a being to be
subjected and humbled by anything other than God.
In the whole broad plain of being, it is God
alone Who deserves man's praise. Man must grant to his love of God, to his
efforts to draw near to Him and earn His pleasure, precedence over all other
beings and objects of love. This Will result in the ennobling of man and, the
augmenting of his value, for man is but a small drop and if not united with the
ocean, he will be swept away by the storm of corruption, dried up by the burning
sun of chaos. Man gains his true personality and becomes eternal when he
attaches himself to that effulgent source, when God gives meaning to his world
and becomes the interpreter of all the events of his life. It is in this sense
that men's worlds may be either broad and expansive or narrow and
constricting.
The Commander
of the Faithful, Ali, peace be upon him, says, in discussing the weaknesses
of man and his limited capacities: "How strange and remarkable is the affair of
man! If he becomes hopeful with regard to a certain desire, greed will render
him abject; desire will lead to greed, and greed will destroy him. If he falls
prey to hopelessness, grief and sorrow will kill him. If he attains happiness
and good fortune, he will fail to preserve them. If he falls prey to terror and
fear, they will reduce him to utter confusion. If abundant safety is granted
him, he will become negligent If his blessings are restored to him, he will
become arrogant and rebellious. If he is stricken with misfortune, sorrow and
grief will disgrace him. If he acquires wealth, he will become overweening. If
poverty lays hold of him, he will be plunged in misery. If he is weakened by
hunger, he will be unable to rise from the ground. If he eats to excess, the
pressure of his stomach will discomfort him. So all deficiency in the life of
man is harmful, and all excess leads to corruption and ruin."[1]
Generally speaking, justice, nobility,
virtue and other qualities that earn respect and praise must either be
illusionary and imaginary, or we must consider these values as real and
necessary, based on the perceptions of conscience and instinct. In the latter
case, we ought humbly to submit to that universal existence and absolute
perfection which flows over with virtue, life and power, and from which all
values derive.
When we look into the matter carefully, we
see that all the countless beings that exist in the world, as well as the love
and aspirations that are rooted in the depths of our being, all converge at one
point, all revert to one source-God. The very essence and reality of the world
is identical with its connection, relation and attachment to God. Being
reascends by a different route to the point where it began and from which it
descended, and that point alone is worthy of man's love and devotion. Once man
discovers this point, he becomes so enamored of its absolute beauty and
perfection that he forgets all else.
We see that all phenomena have emerged from
non-being into a state of being, and that throughout the period of their
existence, whether short or long, they are dependent on a source external to
themselves for aid and sustenance; they are marked indelibly with subordination
and lack of autonomy.
If the ideal object of worship we seek and
toward which we are attempting to advance were unaware of the pains we suffer
and the nature of the world; if it were unable to satisfy our desires and
longings, being replete with impotence and deficiency just like ourselves and
belonging to the same category as us-it could not possibly be our final aim and
ultimate object or possess absolute value.
When we seek the fulfillment of a wish by
means of our worship, it is God alone Who can respond by meeting our needs. The
Quran says: "Those whom you call upon other than God are
servants like yourselves (i.e., they have no power of themselves)."(7:194)
The Commander of the Faithful, upon whom be
peace, while supplicating his Lord in the mosque of Kufa, said: "O my Master, O
my Master! You are God the Great and I am your wretched and insignificant slave.
Who can show mercy to His insignificant slave but God the Great? O Master of
mine, O Master of mine! You are strong and powerful, I am weak and impotent;
other than one strong and powerful, who can show mercy to the weak?
"O Master of mine, O Master of mine! You it
is Who bestows generosity on the beggar, and I stand as a beggar at your
threshold. Who will show mercy to the beggar other than the generous and the
munificent one?
"O Master of mine, O master of mine! You are
eternal existence and I am a creature destined to perish. Who will have mercy on
one destined to perish other than the eternal, everlasting essence?
"O Master of mine, O Master of mine! You are
the guide Who points out the way, and I am lost and bewildered. Who will take
pity on the lost and bewildered if not the guide Who points out the way?
"O Master of mine, O Master of mine! Have
mercy upon me by Your infinite mercy; accept and be satisfied with me in Your
generosity, favor and kindness, O God, possessor of generosity, favor and
kindness, and in Your all-embracing mercy, O most merciful of the merciful!"[2]
Thus, to show reverence to other-than-God,
to orient oneself to other than His pure essence, is in no way justifiable;
apart from God, nothing can have the slightest effect on our true destiny. If an
object of worship deserves man's devotion and love and is capable of lifting him
to the peaks of felicity, that object of worship must be free of all deficiency
and inadequacy. Its eternal rays must touch all creatures with sustenance and
life, and its beauty must cause every possessor of insight to kneel down in
front of it. Possessing infinite power, it quenches the burning thirst of our
spirits, and gaining knowledge of it, is nothing other than attaining the
ultimate source of our true nature.
If we choose an object of love and worship
other than God, it may have certain capacities and be able to fulfill our
desires up to a point, but once we reach that point, it will no longer be an
object of love and worship for us. It will no longer be able to arouse and
attract us; it will, on the contrary, cause us to stagnate. For not only will it
not satisfy our instinctive desire to worship, it will prevent us from
reflecting on any higher value and imprison us in a narrow circle, in such a way
that we no longer have any motive to advance or ascend.
If the object we choose to worship and love
be inferior to us, it can never cause us to ascend and refine our beings. Our
inclination to it will, on the contrary, drag us down to decline, and we will,
then, be like the needle of a compass which is diverted from the pole under the
influence of a completely alien magnetic field. The result will be total loss of
direction; eternal misery will become man's inevitable destiny.
