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C O N C E P T O F G O D I N I S L A M
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Published by:
THE INSTITUTE OF ISLAMIC INFORMATION AND EDUCATION
P.O. Box 41129,
Chicago, Ill 60461-0129 U.S.A.
Sponsored by:
Muslim Community Center,
Chicago, Illinois U.S.A.
Digitized by:
Aminuddin Ahmad
Islamic Study Center
3030 N.Maryland Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53211.
(Malaysian student at UW-Milwaukee, July 1990)
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It is a known fact that every language has one or more
terms that are used in reference to God and sometimes to
lesser deities. This is not the case with Allah. Allah is
the personal name of the One true God. Nothing else can
be called Allah. The term has no plural or gender. This
shows its uniqueness when compared with the word god
which can be made plural, gods or feminine, goddess. It
is interesting to notice that Allah is the personal name
of God in Aramaic, the language of Jesus and a sister
language of Arabic.
The One true God is a reflection of the unique concept
that Islam associates with God. To a Muslim, Allah is
Almighty, Creator and Sustainer of the Universe, Who is
similar to nothing and nothing is comparable to Him. The
Prophet Muhammad was asked by his contemporaries about
Allah; the answer came directly from God Himself in the
form of a short chapter of the Quran, which is considered
the essence of the unity or the motto of monotheism. This
is chapter 112 which reads:
In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
Say (O Muhammad) He is God the One God, the
Everlasting Refuge, who has not begotten, nor has
been begotten, and equal to Him is not anyone.
Some non-Muslims allege that God in Islam is a stern and
cruel God who demands to be obeyed fully. He is not
loving and kind. Nothing can be farther from truth than
this allegation. It is enough to know that, with the
exception of one, each of the 114 chapters of the Quran
begins with the verse: "In the name of God, the Merciful,
the compassionate." In on of the sayings of Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him) we are told that "God is
more loving and kinder than a mother to her dear child."
But God is also just. Hence evildoers and sinners must
have their share of punishment and the virtuous, His
bounties and favors. Actually God's attribute of Mercy
has full manifestation in His attribute of Justice.
People suffering throughout their lives for His sake and
people oppressing and exploiting other people all their
life should not receive similar treatment from their
Lord. Expecting similar treatment for them will amount to
negating the very belief in the accountability of man in
the Hereafter and thereby negating all the incentives for
a moral and virtuous life in this world. The following
Quranic verses are very clear and straightforward in this
respect.
Verily, for the righteous are gardens of Delight, in
the Presence of their Lord. Shall We then treat the
people of Faith like the people of Sin? What is the
matter with you? How judge you? (Quran 68:34-36)
Islam rejects characterizing God in any human form or
depicting Him as favoring certain individuals or nations
on the basis of wealth, power or race. He created the
human-beings as equals. They may distinguish themselves
and get His favor through virtue and piety only.
The concept that God rested in the seventh day of
creation, that God wrestled with one of His soldiers,
that God is an envious plotter against mankind, or that
God is incarnate in any human being are considered
blasphemy from the Islamic point of View.
The unique usage of Allah as a personal name of God is a
reflection of Islam's emphasis on the purity of the
belief in God which is the essence of the message of all
God's messengers. Because of this, Islam considers
associating any deity or personality with God as a deadly
sin which God will never forgive, despite the fact He may
forgive all other sins.
The Creator must be of a different nature from the things
created because if he is of the same nature as they are,
he will be temporal and will therefore need a maker. It
follows that nothing is like Him. If the maker is not
temporal, then he must be eternal. But if he is eternal,
he cannot be caused, and if nothing caused him to come
into existence, nothing outside him causes him to
continue to exist, which means that he must be self-
sufficient. And if he does not depend on anything for the
continuance of his own existence, then this existence can
have no end. The Creator is therefore eternal and
everlasting: 'He is the First and the Last'
He is Self-sufficient or Self-subsistent or, to use a
Quranic term, Al-Qayyum. The Creator does not create only
in the sense of bringing things into being, He also
preserves them and takes them out of existence and is the
ultimate cause of whatever happens to them.
God is the creator of everything. He is the guardian
over everything. Unto Him belong the keys of the
heavens and the earth (Quran 39:62,63)
No creature in there crawling on the earth, but its
provision rest on God. He knows its lodgingplace and
its repository (Quran 11:6).
GOD'S ATTRIBUTES
If the Creator is Eternal and Everlasting, then His
attributes must also be eternal and everlasting. He
should not lose any of His attributes nor acquire new
ones. If this is so, then His attributes are absolute.
Can there be more than one creator with such absolute
attributes? Can there be for example, two absolute
powerful creators? A moment's thought shows that this is
not feasible.
The Quran summarizes this argument in the following
verses:
God has not taken to Himself any son, nor is there
any god with Him: For then each god would have taken
of that which he created and some of them would have
risen up over others (Quran 23:91).
And Why, were there gods in earth and heaven other
than God, they (heaven and earth) would surely go to
ruin (Quran 21:22).
THE ONENESS OF GOD
The quran reminds us of the falsity of all alleged gods.
To the worshippers of man-made objects it asks: Do you
worship what you have carved yourself (Quran 37:95) or
have you taken unto you others beside Him to be your
protectors, even such as have no power either for good or
for harm to themselves? (Quran 13:16).
To the worshippers of the heavenly bodies it cites the
story of Abraham:
When night outspread over him he saw a star and
said, "This is my Lord." But when it set he said, "I
love not the setters." When he saw moon rising, he
said, "This is my Lord." But when it set he said:
"If my Lord does not guide me I shall surely be of
the people gone astray." When he say the sun rising,
he said, "This is my lord; this is greater." But
when it set he said, "O my people, surly I quit that
which you associate, I have turned my face to Him
who originated the heavens and the earth; a man of
pure faith, I am not of the idolators."
(Quran 6:76-79)
THE BELIEVER'S ATTITUDE
In order to be a Muslim i.e., to surrender oneself to
God, it is necessary to believe in the oneness of God, in
the sense of His being the only Creator, Preserver,
Nourisher, etc.. But this belief - later on called
"Tawhid Ar-Rububiyyah" is not enough. Many of the
idolaters knew and believe that only the supreme God
could do all this. But that was not enough to make them
Muslims. To 'tawhid ar-rububiyyah,' one must add 'tawhid
al'uluhiyyah' i.e., one acknowledges the fact that it is
God alone who deserves to be worshipped, and thus
abstains from worshiping any other thing or being
Having achieve this know;edge of the one true God, man
should constantly have faith in Him, and should allow
nothing to induce him to deny truth.
When faith enters a person's heart, it causes certain
mental states which result in certain actions. Taken
together these mental states and actions are the proof
for the true faith. The Prophet said, "Faith is that
which resides firmly in the heart and which is proved bu
deeds."
Foremost among those mental states is the feeling of
gratitude towards God, which could be said to be the
essence of 'ibada' (worship).
The feeling of gratitude is so important that a non
believer is called 'kafir', which means 'one who denies a
truth' and also 'one who is ungrateful.'
A believer loves, and is grateful to God for the bounties
He bestowed upon him, but being aware of the fact that
his good deeds, whether mental or physical, are far from
being commensurate with divine favors, he is always
anxious lest God should punish him, here or in the
Hereafter. He, therefore, fears Him, surrenders himself
to Him and serves Him with great humility. One cannot be
in such a mental state without being almost all the time
mindful of God. Remembering God is thus the life force of
faith, without which it fades and withers away.
The Qur'an tries to promote this feeling of gratitude by
repeating the attributes of God very frequently. We find
most of these attributes mentioned together in the
following verses of the Qur'an:
He is God; there is no God but He. He is the Knower
of the unseen and the visible; He is the All-
merciful, the All-compassionate. He is God; there is
no God but He. He is the King, the All-holy, the
All-peace, the Guardian of faith, the All-preserver,
the All-mighty, the All-compeller, the All-sublime.
Glory be to God, above that they associate! He is
God the Creator, the Maker, the Shaper. To Him
belong the Names Most Beautiful. All that is in the
heavens and the earth magnifies Him; He is the All-
mighty, the All-wise (Quran 59:22-24).
There is no God but He, the living the Everlasting.
Slumber seize him not, neither sleep; to Him belongs
all that is in the heavens and the earth. Who is
there that shall intercede with Him save by His
leave? He knows what lies before them and what is
after them, and they comprehend not anything of His
knowledge save such as He wills. His throne
comprises the heavens and earth; the preserving of
them oppresses Him not; He is the All-high, the All-
glorious (Quran 2:255).
People of the Book, go not beyond the bounds in your
religion, and say not as to God but the truth. The
Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only the messenger
of God, and His Word that He committed to Mary, and
a spirit from Him. So believe in God and His
messengers, and say not, "Three." Refrain; better is
it for you. God is only one God. Glory be to Him -
(He is) above having a son (Quran 4:171).
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INTRODUCTION OF III&E
The Institute of Islamic Information and Education
(III&E) is dedicated to the cause of Islam in North
America through striving to elevate the image of Islam
and Muslims by providing the correct information about
islamic beliefs, history and civilization from the
authentic sources. Inquiries are welcome.
For more information please contact:
THE INSTITUTE OF ISLAMIC INFORMATION AND EDUCATION
P.O. Box 41129
Chicago, IL 60641-0129
U.S.A.
or:
MUSLIM STUDENT ASSOCIATION
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee,
Milwaukee, WI 53201.
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