1 00:00:00,180 --> 00:00:09,089 A summary of the concepts held by the Ahl al-Sunnah. 2 00:00:09,089 --> 00:00:13,089 The misconceptions of those who negate the divine attributes and the refutation thereof. 3 00:00:13,089 --> 00:00:18,269 The Mu'attilah—those who negate the attributes of Allah—claim 4 00:00:18,269 --> 00:00:24,269 that by this negation, they are merely declaring Allah’s transcendence and affirming His oneness. 5 00:00:24,269 --> 00:00:28,269 Their argument for this is that affirming an attribute 6 00:00:28,269 --> 00:00:31,269 necessitates likening Allah to His creation. 7 00:00:31,269 --> 00:00:36,270 This is because we only recognize attributes in existence as they pertain to created beings. 8 00:00:36,270 --> 00:00:39,270 Therefore, if we affirm them for Allah, 9 00:00:39,270 --> 00:00:42,270 we have likened Him to His creation. 10 00:00:42,270 --> 00:00:48,500 The answer to this is that affirming an attribute does not in any way necessitate anthropomorphism. 11 00:00:48,500 --> 00:00:53,500 Rather, we affirm the attribute of the Creator without likening it to the attribute of the created. 12 00:00:53,500 --> 00:00:57,500 Even created beings share certain attributes among themselves, 13 00:00:57,500 --> 00:00:59,500 yet they are not identical in them. 14 00:00:59,500 --> 00:01:03,500 A human has a hand, and an animal has a hand, 15 00:01:03,500 --> 00:01:07,500 yet there is a vast difference between the two, even though both are created. 16 00:01:07,500 --> 00:01:12,500 The common denominator between attributes exists only in the mind, 17 00:01:12,500 --> 00:01:15,500 not in the reality and essence of the matter. 18 00:01:15,500 --> 00:01:20,500 How much more so, then, for the Creator, who is distinct from His creation in all His attributes, 19 00:01:20,500 --> 00:01:23,500 all of which are attributes of perfection and majesty. 20 00:01:23,500 --> 00:01:25,750 Secondly: 21 00:01:25,750 --> 00:01:28,750 Their claim that asserting a plurality of attributes 22 00:01:28,750 --> 00:01:31,750 leads to the assertion of a plurality of essences. 23 00:01:31,750 --> 00:01:34,750 They argue that if we affirm attributes for Allah, 24 00:01:34,750 --> 00:01:36,750 they would be eternal just as He is, 25 00:01:36,750 --> 00:01:40,750 and this leads to the claim of a plurality of eternal entities, 26 00:01:40,750 --> 00:01:42,750 which contradicts the doctrine of Tawhid. 27 00:01:42,750 --> 00:01:47,750 The answer to this is that such talk is nonsense and delirium. 28 00:01:47,750 --> 00:01:51,750 The attributes of Allah are established by His essence, 29 00:01:51,750 --> 00:01:53,750 not separate from it. 30 00:01:53,750 --> 00:01:57,750 They are attributes of majesty and perfection belonging to a single essence. 31 00:01:57,750 --> 00:02:00,069 Thirdly: 32 00:02:00,069 --> 00:02:06,140 As for the Ash'aris, who affirm only seven attributes for Allah while rejecting the rest, 33 00:02:06,140 --> 00:02:09,139 they have fallen into contradiction. 34 00:02:09,139 --> 00:02:13,139 Both the Ahl al-Sunnah and the Mu'attilah have refuted them, 35 00:02:13,139 --> 00:02:16,139 arguing that your affirmation of these seven attributes, 36 00:02:16,139 --> 00:02:20,139 which you claim are proven by reason, 37 00:02:20,139 --> 00:02:25,139 traps you in the very anthropomorphism you claim to be fleeing from. 38 00:02:25,139 --> 00:02:31,139 For every one of these attributes that Allah has affirmed for Himself in His Noble Book, 39 00:02:31,139 --> 00:02:35,139 He has also affirmed for others among His creation, 40 00:02:35,139 --> 00:02:38,139 even if the reality of their nature differs. 41 00:02:38,139 --> 00:02:43,259 Allah has described Himself with power, saying: 42 00:02:43,259 --> 00:02:47,259 ﴾Indeed, Allah is over all things competent.﴿ 43 00:02:47,259 --> 00:02:51,259 And He described some of the created beings with power, saying: 44 00:02:51,259 --> 00:02:56,259 “Save those who repent before ye overpower them. For know that Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (5:34) 45 00:02:56,259 --> 00:03:00,259 ﴾...so they knew that Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.﴿ 46 00:03:00,259 --> 00:03:05,259 However, we say that Allah has a real power 47 00:03:05,259 --> 00:03:09,259 that befits His perfection and majesty. 48 00:03:09,259 --> 00:03:15,259 Just as created beings have a power that befits their state, their incapacity, and their mortality. 49 00:03:15,259 --> 00:03:18,259 The difference between these two powers 50 00:03:18,259 --> 00:03:23,259 is like the difference between the essence of the Creator and the essences of the created. 51 00:03:23,259 --> 00:03:26,259 This holds true for all seven attributes. 52 00:03:26,259 --> 00:03:31,330 Allah described Himself with will, saying: 53 00:03:31,330 --> 00:03:38,330 “But His command, when He intendeth a thing, is only that He saith unto it: Be! and it is.” (36:82) 54 00:03:38,330 --> 00:03:42,330 And He described some of the created beings with will, saying: 55 00:03:42,330 --> 00:03:47,650 “It is not for any prophet to have captives until he hath made slaughter in the land. Ye desire the lure of this world and Allah desireth (for you) the Hereafter, and Allah is Mighty, Wise.” (8:67) 56 00:03:47,650 --> 00:03:51,650 He described Himself with knowledge, saying: 57 00:03:51,650 --> 00:03:54,650 ﴾And Allah is Knowing of all things.﴿ 58 00:03:54,650 --> 00:03:58,650 And He described some of the created beings with knowledge, saying: 59 00:03:58,650 --> 00:04:02,740 “They said: Be not afraid! Lo! we bring thee good tidings of a boy possessing wisdom.” (15:53) 60 00:04:02,740 --> 00:04:05,740 He described Himself with life, saying: 61 00:04:05,740 --> 00:04:10,780 ﴾Allah - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence.﴿ 62 00:04:10,780 --> 00:04:14,780 And He described some of His creation with life, saying: 63 00:04:14,780 --> 00:04:18,779 “Have not those who disbelieve known that the heavens and the earth were of one piece, then We parted them, and we made every living thing of water? Will they not then believe?” (21:30) 64 00:04:18,779 --> 00:04:23,939 He described Himself with hearing and sight, saying: 65 00:04:23,939 --> 00:04:27,970 ﴾Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Seeing.﴿ 66 00:04:27,970 --> 00:04:33,970 And He described the created human as hearing and seeing, saying: 67 00:04:33,970 --> 00:04:40,029 “Lo! We create man from a drop of thickened fluid to test him; so We make him hearing, knowing.” (76:2) 68 00:04:40,029 --> 00:04:43,029 ﴾...and We made him hearing and seeing.﴿ 69 00:04:43,029 --> 00:04:47,290 He described Himself with speech, saying: 70 00:04:47,290 --> 00:04:51,290 “And messengers We have mentioned unto thee before and messengers We have not mentioned unto thee; and Allah spake directly unto Moses;” (4:164) 71 00:04:51,290 --> 00:04:53,350 And He said: 72 00:04:53,350 --> 00:04:58,350 “And when Moses came to Our appointed tryst and his Lord had spoken unto him, he said: My Lord! Show me (Thy Self), that I may gaze upon Thee. He said: Thou wilt not see Me, but gaze upon the mountain! If it stand still in its place, then thou wilt see Me. And when his Lord revealed (His) glory to the mountain He sent it crashing down. And Moses fell down senseless. And when he woke he said: Glory unto Thee! I turn unto Thee repentant, and I am the first of (true) believers.” (7:143) 73 00:04:58,350 --> 00:05:02,540 And He described some of the created beings with speech, saying: 74 00:05:02,540 --> 00:05:09,540 “And the king said: Bring him unto me that I may attach him to my person. And when he had talked with him he said: Lo! thou art to-day in our presence established and trusted.” (12:54) 75 00:05:09,540 --> 00:05:15,740 Thus, the Ash'ari claim that affirming attributes necessitates anthropomorphism 76 00:05:15,740 --> 00:05:20,740 is a burden they must also bear regarding the seven attributes they accept via their reason. 77 00:05:20,740 --> 00:05:28,740 If they say that these seven attributes are affirmed for Allah in a manner befitting His majesty and perfection, 78 00:05:28,740 --> 00:05:31,740 and are not like the attributes of the created, 79 00:05:31,740 --> 00:05:32,740 we say to them: 80 00:05:32,740 --> 00:05:36,740 Then you must apply this same logic to all the other attributes 81 00:05:36,740 --> 00:05:43,740 that Allah has affirmed for Himself and that His Messenger (peace be upon him) has affirmed for Him. 82 00:05:43,740 --> 00:05:49,740 There is no validity to your claimed distinction between "attributes of essence" and "attributes of meaning," 83 00:05:49,740 --> 00:05:53,740 otherwise, you are contradicting your own arguments. 84 00:05:53,740 --> 00:05:55,899 The conclusion, therefore, 85 00:05:55,899 --> 00:05:59,899 is the obligation to affirm everything that Allah has affirmed for Himself, 86 00:05:59,899 --> 00:06:06,899 and everything that His Messenger (peace be upon him) has affirmed for Him, of His Most Beautiful Names and Exalted Attributes. 87 00:06:06,899 --> 00:06:10,899 We must be certain that they are all real attributes 88 00:06:10,899 --> 00:06:14,899 that befit the majesty and perfection of Allah. 89 00:06:14,899 --> 00:06:20,899 They are distinct from the attributes of the created, which correspond to their state—a state that is never free from incapacity 90 00:06:20,899 --> 00:06:23,899 and is destined for annihilation. 91 00:06:23,899 --> 00:06:28,959 The difference between His attributes and the attributes of His creation 92 00:06:28,959 --> 00:06:34,959 is exactly like the distinction and difference between the essence of the Creator and the essences of the created. 93 00:06:34,959 --> 00:06:39,980 A summary of the concepts held by the Ahl al-Sunnah.