Chapter 1, Section 3
Tahqiq (Research) on Names
& Attributes
Allah Almighty has said:
“The most beautiful Names belong to Allah.
So call on It by
them…” (Koran [7:180])
(For complete
collection please click here...)
Consensus amongst the Sufi
Nation is that the Glorious and
Majestic Lord has infinite Names (Asmaa) and unnumbered Attributes
(Sifaat)
[0]. Each Name is a guide towards an Attribute and
each Attribute a passageway
towards a Prehension [1] and each Prehension
appropriation of a Divinity and
each Divinity unconditionally demands Acquiescence. The Divine Fiat has
decreed
the selection of ninety-nine Names from the infinite ensemble—fitting
the
intellectual cognitive faculties, human capacity and
endurance—uncovered the
curtains of unseen to début at the Sahara of Zohoor (perceptible
outer-manifests).
And the beauty of the Attributes (Sifaat) within the said perceptible
outer-manifests, upon the vision of the passionate spectators exhibited
the
face of Its everlastingness and everlasting face of Itself.
So each moment, Its manifest,
a solace and each shaft of
light piercing through every Name rendering the beauty of some Sifat
(Attribute) thus ever-increasing beatitude upon beatitude and passion
upon
passion. Because each moment when the face of a new Sifat (Attribute)
unearthed, the heart rejoiced with beatitude anew whereupon de novo
desires and
passions due to the perception of the beauty of the Zhaat (Divine
Essence)
aroused within (the lovers). Thus from beyond Its Transcendental
Absence (Qayb)
Ishaarat (hints) transmitted to busy and engage (the fancy of the
lovers) until
the day of preordained rendezvous (day of resurrection) and the birds
of Its
secrets immovable upon the branches of longing singing the song:
Anytime
thirsting for those wet lips
Gulping
the wine upon the heart
What
comparison the wine and those wet lips?
At best
intoxicating delirious my ailing heart
(The poem points at our
interface with Sifaat as the best we
can do to be near the Beloved)
The Praiseworthy Lord has
indeed far beyond the ninety-nine
names, and be cautious suspecting that the Divine Names you have
already heard
are all that there is (for Its Names). Since copious Names stored
within the
treasury of Its Omnipotence, concealed within Its Sequestered Seclusion
(Qayrat) and no being except the Divine Knower of all secrets (the
Lord) has
any information about. And the Azali (Void of any beginning and cause)
Knowledge exclusively installed for their cognizance (the hidden
Names). Its
Names are unnumbered and Its Attributes (Sifaat) infinite. And as far
as the
Divine Names and Attributes that have reached you which by means of
Divine
Edict (Sharia) has been attributed and defined by It, do not believe
that their
true meanings are what you have comprehended. Or the nature and essence
of
these Names and Attributes are your corresponding nature and essence
since no
man is able to traverse beyond the human essence. These are the limits
of your
cognition concerning the Names and Attributes and your portion of
comprehension
incomparable to their true infinite and highly ranked nature:
“But over all endued with knowledge is One
(Allah), the
All-Knowing” Koran [12:76]
“We raise some of them above others in ranks”
Koran [43:32]
As the Names are boundless the
meanings and essence of each
Name are limitless as well. The boundaries of comprehension of each
comprehensor beget a personalized and exclusive meaning and the portion
of
acquisition of each seeker of a Name’s nature, a personalized and
exclusive
essence. (Each seeker discovers a different frontier for a Name)
Be aware not to compare and
confuse the Lord’s Attributes
(e.g. Divine Mercy) with that of the people’s Attributes (e.g. human
mercy).
Since Its Sanctified Lofty Zhaat (Essence) is not similar to any other
essence
and Its Sifaat (Attributes) dissimilar to any others’. The reasons for
manifesting those specific Names and Attributes to you are:
- The Divine Benevolence and Azali (No
beginning or cause) Grace has endowed the Children of Adam with
well-portioned finely crafted Sifaat (Attributes). And thus exalted the
Sifaat whereupon with sublimity translated into the Names. (Enrobed
with Names). Therefore people benefit according to their aptitude and
ability.
- To teach and culture the slave with
morality that is not based upon the slave’s imagination and
inventiveness rather based upon the Divine Nomenclature It has selected
for describing and invoking Itself. Thus It is attributed by Attributes
It has attributed to Itself. (“It
hath inscribed for Itself (the rule of) Mercy”, Koran [6:12])
The consensus amongst the Sufi
Nation is that each Sifat
(Attribute) from Divine Attributes, is an immovable Truth and its
meaning truly
discernable from another Sifat (Attribute) and the nature of it derived
from
the Divine Essence (Zhaat). (Sifaat the Attributes are atomic but
unlike the
components of an assembly)
However worldly paradigms and
cognizance can enter the
Sifaat (Attributes) e.g. Upright Posture [2],
Descend, Hand, Step, Smile and
Marvel, these are all signs or hints from the nature of Its Oneness and
guidance
for understanding Its Nonesuch being, “Whomever understood then
understood and
whomever did not understand then did not understand” (Nothing further
to be
added). No one should confuse these descriptions as measure of
similarity and
suchlike. The duty of the people is to believe in these Attributes in
spite of
the fact that they can never comprehend their nature and any inner
workings of
them. As was adumbrated by Anas Bin Malik with regards to a question
about
Lord’s ‘Upright Posture’, “’Upright Posture’ is a clear notion but its
inner
workings impenetrable to minds, faith in it a must and questions about
it
inventiveness”.
End.
[0] Names constitute objects such as identifiers, data,
knowledge, descriptions, software… any form of cognition within our
minds to point out towards a known attribute. For example, Mercy
(Rahmah) is an attribute; the word ‘mercy’ is the Name as well as our
descriptions of being merciful by means of examples or elucidations.
[1] Prehension -- category of existence representing
the concrete fact of relatedness. The most fundamental type of
perception in which a subject perceives all relevant past actual and
eternal objects.
The
way in which we perceive things, the meaning we attach to them, the way
we integrate these sensory impressions into a coherent whole involves,
as Kant would say, the spontaneous activity of the mind organizing its
sensations. Whitehead suggests that this
model of perception can be generalized as our model for understanding
all causation. Therefore, he takes the word "apprehension", a conscious
taking account of other things, and [modifies it to create the word]
“Prehension". Prehension is the opposite of the way we generally
perceive causation. Therefore, if A causes B, the B prehends A.
In the Genetic Theory, the
cell is exhibited as
appropriating for the foundation of its existence, the various elements
of the
universe out of which it arises. Each process of appropriation of a
particular
element is termed a Prehension. (Alfred North Whitehead, Process &
Reality)
[2]
These are
attributes of Allah discussed in Koran or by the Prophet. For example
‘Upright
Posture’ is with regards to Allah’s position on the throne Koran [10:3].
© 2004-2002,
Dara Shayda