CHAPTER FIVE

God:
 Unique In His Attributes

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God Almighty is absolutely unique in His Person and in His Attributes. In no way is he to be compared, or comparable, with any other person or thing that we know or can imagine. In the last verse of the Sura quoted in the preceding chapter, we are reminded that not only "Is nothing like Him, but nothing is in the likeness of Him that can be imagined". Then how can we know Him? We will realize him through His Attributes.

The last and Final Revelation of God – the Holy Qur'an – gives us ninety-nine Attributres of God with the crowning name – ALLAH! These ninety-nine attributes or names called the Asma-ul-husna (the Most Beautiful names) are interspersed throughout the whole Qur'anic text, like a beautiful necklace of pearls with a magnificent pendant – Allah.

Here is a sample segment of that necklace:

HE IS ALLAH,
BESIDES WHOM THERE IS NO OTHER GOD,
THE SOVEREIGN, THE HOLY ONE,
THE SOURCE OF PEACE (AND PERFECTION),
THE GUARDIAN OF FAITH,
THE PRESERVER OF SAFETY,
THE EXALTED IN MIGHT,
THE IRRESISTIBLE,THE SUPREME:
GLORY TO ALLAH: (HIGH IS HE)
ABOVE THE PARTNERS THEY
ASCRIBE TO HIM,
HE IS ALLAH, THE CREATOR,
THE EVOLVER, THE BESTOWER OF FORMS (OR COLOURS).
TO HIM BELONG THE
MOST BEAUTIFUL NAMES:
ALL THAT IS IN THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH,
DOTH DECLARE HIS PRAISE AND GLORY:
AND HE IS THE EXALTED
IN MIGHT, THE WISE.

 (SURA HASHR) Holy Qur'an 59:23-24
[English interpretation by A. Yusuf Ali]

"THE MOST BEAUTIFUL NAMES"

In the two verses quoted above, we count thirteen of the ninety-nine attributes interspersed throughout the Holy Qur'an. Even the most jaundiced and inimical opponent of Islam will be forced to admit that, even in its translated form, the attributes and the phraseology are beautiful and unique. In its original Arabic, the wordings and their construction are absolutely inimitable and sublime.

How could an ummi, and unlettered person, among an ummi  -unlearned nation cognitive such a rhapsody of God fourteen hundred years ago? We must remember that there were no encyclopaedias or treatises that Muhammad (pbuh) could consult even if they were lying around in the deserts of Arabia. From where, then, did Muhammad (pbuh) get this treasure trove of theology? He said, "It is all given to me by God through inspiration!" how else can we account for it?

It would be a good experiment to ask the most learned of our learned friends to conjure up some attributes of God for us. I assure you that with all their acquired knowledge the professors of theology and the doctors of divinity will not be able to recount even a dozen. The worldly-wise will say that “You see, Muhammad was a genius, and after all a genius can excel ten times better than us!” To which we respond: “It is true that a genius can do ten times better than us. The Prophet (pbuh) gave us ninety-nine attributes, but what makes his list MIRACULOUS and DIVINE is the one he left out of his list.” The word “Father”, that is Miracle!

THE FATHER IN HEAVEN

        In our human list, no contributor will fail to utter the word FATHER in the first half-a-dozen attributes. The miracle of Muhammad’s (pbuh) list [This is not Muhammad's list. The Qur'an is not his handiwork. I am using these terms in a manner of speaking to the unbeliever.] is not the “ninety-nine “ but this particular one which he (?) kept out of his (?) Qur’an. The word “father” as an attribute of God was dangled before him for the twenty-three years of his prophetic life. He eschewed it. He kept it out of his vocabulary (consciously or unconsciously) for over two decades, and hence out of the theology of Islam.

          You have a right to ask me, “What about the Christians’ Lord’s Prayer?” Yes, what about it? Read it Mr Deedat! So I read:

“0 our father which art In heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

“What is wrong with that?” you ask. “Nothing!” Then why are the Muslims so allergic to it? I am not so jaundiced as our opponents. We have to acknowledge that the Christian prayer is a beautiful prayer but there are certain deficiencies in it. You see my child will never ever learn God’s name through this prayer. What is His Name? [A book under the same title "What is His Name?" is available from the IPCI free of charge.]

       In all the twenty-seven books of the New Testament God’s name does not occur even once! “Father” is given here as a substitute. This is not His Name! As an attribute, meaning — Lord, God, Creator, Provider, I can take no exception to it. “The loving Father in Heaven. O our Heavenly Father!” etc. We Muslims take exception to the new meaning, the acquired connotation of the word Father.

ONLY BEGOTTEN SON ETC.

          In Christian theology, this simple, innocent word “Father” has acquired a novel meaning. He is, according to Christianity, the One Who BEGOT the son Jesus. They say in their catechism [Catechism. A short book, giving in question-and-answer form, a brief summary of the basic principles of a religion, especially Christianity.] “Jesus is the very God of very God, begotten of the Father, begotten NOT made.” If words have any meaning, what does this mean? Of course it means what is says! God has many sons according to the Holy Bible. Adam, Israel, Ephraim, David, Solomon, etc ... But all these are metaphorical sons. God Almighty as the Creator and Cherisher is metaphorically the father of His every creature; every animal or human being: but Jesus (pbuh), the Christians say, is not like these. He was BEGOTTEN, not MADE! This according to Islam is the most abominable utterance, attributing to God an animal nature — the lower animal function of sex!

MEANINGS CHANGE

In the beginning the word “Father”for God did not carry any blasphemous associations, but words do change in their meanings at times. I will give you just two as examples: “Comrade” and “gay.”

“Comrade”: originally a beautiful and innocent word, meaning - a friend, an associate or a companion; derived from the Old French comrade, roommate or soldier sharing the same room. But today the same word stinks in the nostrils of the Americans as a “commy”, a communist, a member of the Marxist-Leninist party, any radical veiwed as a subversive or revolutionary who should be eliminated as a pest or parasite. If any foolish friend addresses you today as COMRADE in the United States, he could jeopardize your career, as well as your life!

"Gay:" What is wrong with this word? Nothing at all! I learnt this word in my early schooling as showing or characterized by cheerfulness and light-hearted excitement; a merry person. I was taught to sing –

"GENTLE LORDS AND LADIES GAY
ON THE MOUNTAIN DAWNS THE DAY".

I have forgotten the balance of the poem. Here, I understood the meaning of the word "gay" to mean happy and joyous. I did not have the slightest inkling that one day such an innocuous word which children learn at school would in time acquire a filthy, dirty meaning of being homosexual: sodomites and catamites in its very primary sense. So, "LADIES GAY" would mean today – LADIES LESBIAN! In like manner the respectable word "Father" has become contaminated by the belief of – "the only BEGOTTEN of the father!" etc.

RABB OR ABB?

God Almighty through Muhammad (pbuh) has protected Islam and the Muslims by keeping the word "Father," (ABB) for God, out of its religious vocabulary. It is a miraculous fact that though the Holy Qur'an lists ninety-nine attributes to God, including the word RABB which means – Lord, Cherisher, Sustainer, Evolver, etc, (this attribute Rabb occurs dozens of times in the Book of God) - But the easier word Abb, meaning "Father" in Arabic and in Hebrew, is not used even once, thus preserving the Muslims from the blasphemy of the only BEGOTTEN son! To whom must we give credit for this feat: Allah or Muhammad (pbuh)? The Holy Prophet (pbuh) disclaims any credit, always saying that all this is given to him by inspiration, the words ye hear are not his, they are God's Word as dictated to him!