Who is Allah?

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 the 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 hasbeen 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: "Inthe name of God, the Merciful, the
Compassionate." In one of the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) 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 bountiesand favors. Actually
God'sattribute of Mercy has fullmanifestation in His attribute of
Justice. People suffering throughout their lives forHis sake and
people oppressing and exploiting other people all their lives 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, inthe 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?" (68:34-36)
Islam rejects characterizing God in anyhuman form or depictingHim 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 anydeity or personality with God as a deadly sin
whichGod will never forgive, despite the fact He may forgive all other
sins.
[Note that what is meant above applies ONLY to those people who die in
a state wherein they are associating others with God. The repentance
of those who yet live is acceptable to God if He wills. - MSA of USC]
The Creator must be of a different nature from thethings 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 outside him causes him to
continue to exist, which means that he must be self-sufficient. And if
the 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 alsopreserves them and takesthem 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." (39:62, 63)
"No creature is there crawling on the earth, but its provision rests
on God. He knows its lodging place and it repository." (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 acquirenew 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 absolutely 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." (23:91)
And Why, were there gods in earth and heavenother than God, they
(heaven and earth) would surely go to ruin." (21:22)
The Oneness of God
The Quran reminds us of the falsity of all alleged gods. To the
worshippersof man-made objects, it asks:
"Do you worship what you have carved yourself?" (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?"
(13:16)
To the worshippers of 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
themoon rising, he said, 'This is my Lord.' But when it set he said,
'If myLord does not guide me I shall surely be of the people gone
astray.' When he saw the sun rising, he said, 'This is my Lord; this
is greater.' But when it set he said, 'O mypeople, surely 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
idolaters.'" (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 believed that only the Supreme God could do
allthis, 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 is God alone Who deserves to be worshipped, and thus
abstains from worshipping any other thing or being.
Having achieved this knowledge 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 by
deeds." Foremost among those mental states is the feeling of gratitude
towards God which couldbe 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 Himand
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
thusthe life force of faith, without which it fades and withers away.
The Quran tries to promote this feeling of gratitude by repeating the
attributes of God veryfrequently. We find most of these attributes
mentioned together in the following verses of the Quran:
"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,
theGuardian 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 theheavens and the earth
magnifies Him; He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise." (59:22-24)
"There is no god but He, the Living, the Everlasting. Slumber seizes
Him not, neither sleep; to Him belongs all that is in the heavens
andthe 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 preservingof them
oppresses Him not; He is the All-High, theAll-Glorious." (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 theMessenger of God, and His Word that He committed to Mary, and
aSpirit from Him. So believe in God and His Messengers, and say not,
'Three.' Refrain; better is it for you. God is only oneGod. Glory be
to Him - (Heis) above having a son." (4:171)

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And Allah Knows the Best!

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Published by :->
M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA

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