Symposium 11
There is Neither Strength Nor Power
But Through Allah
Anwar:We were talking about what remained from the types of monotheism last time, and now I am thinking of some questions I eagerly need answers for.
Hasan:Of course, Anwar. With all pleasure! But please, I need you to put your questions clearly.
Anwar:Yes, definitely. My first question is about the existence of the Glorious Allah. I’m thinking, what would my answer be if someone asked me who created God? My other question is about the explanation of this common expression in prayers, ‘with the power of Allah and His
strength, I stand up and sit down (بحول الله وقوته أقوم وأقعد)’. What does it really mean? I also need to know more about the qualities of Allah, Praised Be His Name, especially the Omniscient, the Omnipotent and the Alive.
Hasan:Excellent! These are very good and important questions. Let us start with your first question. To say ‘who created God’ is against our faith regarding the divine nature in the first place; The Almighty Allah is not in need to anyone or anything, and this is an absolute fact of our faith; if we say ‘He is a creature, then He is in need to others in order to exist, and consequently He would deserve to be God. So, to say ‘who created God’ is a big fallacy and we have to warn the questioner that the Glorious Allah is neither in need nor a creature.
Now, the answer to your second question would be:
No creature has power to exist or survive, that is, we all need the Almighty Allah to exist and to survive, and this is the meaning of what the Lord says in the following verse:(Allah! There is no God save Him, the Alive, the Eternal…)3;2.
Thus, we cannot survive on our own; it is the Almighty
Allah that gives us power to move and work. We are impotent without His strength. That is why we seek power and strength from Allah, Praised Be His Name, as well as beauty and perfection. This is what ‘with the power of Allah and His strength, I stand up and sit down’ means. Actually, philosophers and religious experts believe that the power of creatures is in linear relation with the power of Allah, Praised Be His Name, and not in cross relation.
Anwar:What do you mean by ‘in linear relation with the power of Allah, Praised Be His Name, and not in cross relation’?
Hasan:It means that creatures do not independently possess the power to do anything; it is the Almighty Allah that empowers the creatures to take any actions. So, there is no comparison between the power of creatures and the power of the Glorious Allah, otherwise what is possible to exist would be what is essentially in existence, and that is what impossible turnabout means.
Anwar:Excuse me, Sir! You are using philosophical terms now and I need some explanation for them.
Hasan:I am at your service! So, you need clarification for possible, essential and impossible turnabout, don’t you?
Anwar:Yes, exactly.
Hasan:When we say ‘possible’, we mean what can possibly exist or possibly stay in nonexistence – so to say, and by ‘essential’ we mean what must be in existence since eternity and with no dependence whatsoever. ‘Impossible turnabout’ is to turn what is possible and in need to what is essential and not in need, and that is totally impossible.
Anwar:Thank you. What about the third question?
Hasan:Next time, Inshallah.
Symposium 12
More on Qualities of the Glorious Allah
Anwar:I think we need to talk about my third about qualities of Allah, Praised Be His Name.
Hasan:We have already gone through this discussion that the Glorious Allah is essentially in the existence and in absolute existence. Thus, He cannot have the qualities of the possible or creatures.
Anwar:Will you put in plain words, please?
Hasan:All right. We previously said that every perceptible has to be essential in existence, possibly in existence, or impossible in existence. This classification is a proof that there is what necessarily exists without having a creator, and there is what is possible to exist
and so it has to have a creator, and finally what cannot exist is impossible in existence. Now, what is essential to exist is absolute and unlimited in existence. So, the qualities He has are absolute and unlimited, and He has neither a couple nor a copy; He is the One and the Eternal.
Anwar:God bless you. How beautiful is this reasoning!
Hasan:This is one of the important proofs to the existence of the Most Exalted.
Anwar:I am all ears, Akhi Hasan! Please, go on.
Hasan:Yes, Inshallah. Therefore, if the qualities or the characteristics of the possibly in existence are excluded from Him, this tells us that He is not a matter, a compound, visible, an image or reflection of it; it also cannot be described with lightness, heaviness, tallness, shortness, direction, condition, movement, stillness, deficiency, time or place. This is because these are all qualities of possibly in existence or creatures and they are limited. So, if these qualities are excluded, He will consequently have the perfect qualities attached only to the Most Exalted.
Anwar:Why would you say ‘He will consequently have the perfect qualities’? This is as if you are saying this might not be true. Right?
Hasan:Very well! But, it is impossible not to be.
Anwar:Will you please give an example to clarify the idea?
Hasan:Of course. If we say you are human and we proved this, then the case in which you might not be human is totally cancelled. This is because you cannot have both qualities: human and non-human. It is impossible you are both human and non-human at one and the same time.
Anwar:Thanks a lot. It is very clear now. Continue, please.
Hasan:So, if the qualities of the possibly in existence are excluded from the Glorious Allah, it is proved He has the perfect qualities.
Anwar:What are those qualities that are ‘proved’?
Hasan:Look. The qualities are divided into two parts: proved and negative. The negative qualities are those
we have just talked about and we excluded the Almighty Allah from them. But the proved qualities are again divided into two parts:
Essence qualities:we can know these qualities from observing the very essence of God. This way we find out that we cannot gather up the essence quality with its opposite. For instance, we cannot say He is the Omniscient and not the Omniscient; it is just impossible. He is Omniscient, the Omnipotent, the Superior, the Alive, the One, The Everlasting, etc. and His essence is always described with them i.e. these qualities can never be detached from Him.
Deed qualities:they are subject to the situation; one quality can be true in one condition but the opposite in another condition like the Creator, the Provider, the Merciful, etc. and so, Allah, Praised Be His Name, is Merciful to believers but He is not Merciful with polytheists.
Anwar:I see you are looking at your watch. Are we done for today?
Hasan:Yes, I think we’ll have to continue our discussion next time, Inshallah.