Can Allaah be described as hesitating?. - Names and Attributes of Allaah -

What is the meaning of the words "I do not hesitate about anything…"
in the hadeeth qudsi?Does our Lord, may He be glorified and
exalted,hesitate? How can we answer those who say that it cannot be
true that Allaah hesitates?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Al-Bukhaari (6502) narrated that Abu Hurayrah (may Allaah be pleased
with him) said: The Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah
be upon him) said: "Whosoever shows enmity to someone devoted to Me, I
shall be at war with him. My slave draws not near to Me with anything
more loved by Me than the religious duties I have enjoined upon him,
and My slave continues to draw near to Me with supererogatory works
sothat I shall love him. When I love him I am his hearing with which
he hears, his seeing with which he sees, his hand with which he
strikes and his foot with which he walks. Were he to ask[something] of
Me, I would surely give it to him, and were he to ask Me for refuge, I
would surely grant him it. I do not hesitate about anything as much as
I hesitate about [seizing] the soul of My faithful slave: he hates
death and I hate hurting him."
The hesitation mentioned in the hadeeth is hesitation in taking the
soul of the believer, out of mercy and compassion towardshim, and out
of love for him, because he hates death and his Lord, may He be
exalted, hates hurting him.
This is not like the hesitation of created beings, which stems from
doubt about one's ability or the rightness of the action.
Hence we must clearly define the way in which Allaah hesitates, which
isthat He hesitates to take the soul of the believer, which is what is
mentioned in the text, but Allaah cannot be described as hesitating in
general terms, which would include all kinds of hesitation due to
inability and imperfection, which cannot be attributed to Allaah.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked: In the
hadeeth "Whosoevershows enmity to someone devoted to Me…", at the end
of the hadeeth Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted,says "I do not
hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate about [seizing] the soul
of My faithful slave". Does this mean that Allaah may bedescribed as
hesitant? How can we understand this issue?
He replied: It is not permissible to describe Allaah as hesitant in
general terms, because Allaah has mentioned hesitation with regard to
this matter: "I do not hesitate about anything as much as I hesitate
about [seizing] the soul of My faithful slave". Thishesitation is not
due to uncertainty as to whether this thing is right or not, or
uncertainty as to whether He is able to do this thing; rather it is
because of mercy and compassion towards thisbelieving slave. Hence
Hesays in the same hadeeth: "he hates death and I hate hurtinghim."
This does not mean that Allaah can be described as being hesitant
about His power or His knowledge, unlike the human being who hesitates
when he wantsto do something, either because he is uncertain about the
outcome or whether it is right, or because he is uncertain about his
ability to do it. But this does not apply to the Lord, may He be
glorified and exalted. End quote from Liqaa'aat al-Baab il-Maftooh
(59/12).
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked
about what is meant by Allaah hesitating in this hadeeth.
He replied: This hadeeth was narrated by al-Bukhaari from Abu
Hurayrah, and it is one of the noblest hadeeth that has been narrated
concerning the attributes of the awliya' (close friends of Allaah).
One group rejected this word and said that Allaah cannot be described
as hesitating, and it is only the one who does not know the
consequences who hesitates, and Allaah knows best about the
consequences. And someof them said: It probably means that His action
may be described as hesitant but He is not hesitant.
But in fact the words of His Messenger are true and no one knows
Allaah better than His Messenger or was more sincere towards his ummah
than him, or more eloquent or better at explaining things. Once this
is understood, we may say that those who try to be clever and who deny
it are among those who have gone farthest astray, and they among the
most ignorant of people and the most lacking in proper etiquette.
Indeed, they should be rebuked and punished, and the words of the
Messenger of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) should
be protected from false interpretations and corrupt beliefs. But if
one of us hesitates because he does not know what the consequences
will be, then hesitation in the case of Allaah is differentto this
type of hesitation,because there is nothinglike unto Allaah, either in
His Essence or His attributes or His actions. Moreover, hesitation is
not only because one does not know what the consequences will be,
because one of us may hesitate because he is unsure of the
consequences or because of weighing thepros and cons when choosing one
of two options, so he may want to do something because of the
interests it serves, but he may not want to do it because of its
negative consequences, not because he is unaware of the pros and cons
of aparticular action.
This is like when a sick person wants to take his bitter medicine, and
when the believer wantsto do righteous deeds that one may dislike. In
al-Saheeh it says: "Hell has been surrounded with desirable things,
and Paradise has been surrounded with unpleasant things." And Allaah
says (interpretation of the meaning): "Jihaad (holy fighting in
Allaah's Cause) is ordained for you (Muslims) though you dislike it…"
[al-Baqarah 2:216].
Thus we may understandthe word hesitate that is mentioned in this
hadeeth qudsi. Allaah says "My slave continues to draw near to Me with
supererogatory works sothat I shall love him." Such a person becomes
beloved to Allaah and loves Him, and he draws closer to Him first of
all by doing obligatory deeds which Allaah loves, then he strives to
do naafil deeds that Allaah loves and loves those who do them, so he
does all that he can ofwhat Allaah loves, therefore Allaah loves him.
The Lord does not like toharm His slave and beloved one. … But Allaah,
may He be glorified and exalted, has decreed death, and everything
that He has decreed He wills and it must inevitably come to pass. So
the Lord wills that he should die because of His decree, yet He still
dislikes hurting His slave, which refers to the pain involved in
death. So death becomes something which Allaah wants for one reason
and dislikes for another reason, which is what is meant by hesitating,
when a thing is wanted for one reason and disliked for another. Oneof
the two will inevitablyprevail, just as the divinedecree that death
must occur will prevail, although Allaah dislikes hurting His slave,
and Hiswill that the believer whom He loves and dislikes hurting must
dieis not like His will that the kaafir whom He hates and wants to
hurt must die. End quote from Majmoo' al-Fataawa (18/129).
And Allaah knows best.

Is al-‘Adl (Justice) one of the names of Allaah?. - Names and Attributes of Allaah -

Is al-'Adl (Justice) one of the names of Allaah, mayHe be glorified
and exalted?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Al-'Adl (justice) is not narrated as one of the names of Allaah in the
Qur'aan or in any saheehhadeeth. It was narratedin a famous hadeeth
listing the names of Allaah, which was narrated by al-Tirmidhi and
others. The scholars discussed this hadeeth and regarded it as
weak,and said that this list cannot be attributed to the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). Al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar
al-'Asqallaani (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in Fath
al-Baari(11/217): Ibn al-'Arabi said: It may be that thesenames are
added to complete the list mentioned in the hadeeth attributed to the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him), and it may be
that it is a composition of some reporters, which seems more likely to
me.
Al-San'aani said in Subul al-Salaam (4/108): The scholars are agreed
that the list of names of Allaah mentioned in the hadeeth was drawn up
by some of the reporters.
But the word al-'adl (justice) is mentioned in the Qur'aan as a
description of the wordsof Allaah, such as in the verse
(interpretation of the meaning): "And the Word of your Lord has been
fulfilled in truth and in justice" [al-An'aam 6:115].
Therefore the scholars differed as to whether al-'Adl is one of the
names of Allaah, may He be exalted, and a number of them did count it
as one of His names, as Shaykh 'Abd al-Rahmaan al-Sa'di did at the end
of his Tafseer where he said, when listing the names of Allaah and
discussing their meanings: al-Hakam al-'Adl Who judges between His
slaves in this world and in the Hereafter by His justice and fairness.
End quote.
Al-Bayhaqi said in al-Asma' wa'l-Sifaat (1/198): … al-'Adl, which
appears in the report of al-Asaami mentioned above. End quote.
This was the view of a number of scholars, including al-Khattaabi, Ibn
Mandah and others.
Another group were of the view that it is not one of the names of
Allaah, for the reason wehave mentioned, which is that it is not
listed as a name of Allaah in any saheeh text. Among these scholars is
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him), when he listed
ninety-nine names of Allaah from the Qur'aan and Sunnah in his book
al-Qawaa'id al-Muthla, but he did not mention the name al-'Adl among
them. The same was done by al-Haafiz Ibn Hajar al-'Asqallaani and
others.
But it is proven that Allaah has the attribute of being just, and He
is just in all that He does, as it is narrated in al-Bukhaari (3150)
and Muslim (1062) from 'Abd-Allaah ibn Mas'ood about the man who
objected to the Prophet's division of the booty, and he (the Messenger
of Allaah (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)) said: "Who will
be just if Allaah and His Messengerare not just?"
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
Justice is one of His attributes, so He is just inwhat He says and
what He does and what He rules.
A similar report was narrated from Mu'aadh (may Allaah be pleased with
him), that he did not sit in any gathering of dhikr but he would say:
"Allaah is Just and Fair, and those who have doubt are doomed."
Narrated by Abu Dawood (4611). It is mawqoof and was classed as saheeh
by al-Albaani.
It says in 'Awn al-Ma'bood: i.e., just judge.
And Allaah knows best.

--

- - - - -
Presented by :->
" M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA "

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤

Islamic Stories -, Story of a man called Juraij

Narrated Abu Huraira:
Allah's Apostle said,"There was an Israeli man called Juraij, while he
was praying, his mother came and called him, but he did not respond to
her call. He said (to himself) whether he should continue the prayer
or reply to his mother. She came to him the second time and called him
and said, "O Allah! Do not let him die until he sees the faces of
prostitutes." Juraij used to live in a hermitage. A woman said that
she would entice Juraij, so she went to him and presented herself (for
anevil act) but he refused. She then went to a shepherd and allowed
him to commit an illegal sexual intercourse with her and later she
gave birth to a boy. She alleged that the baby was from Juraij. The
people went to Juraij and broke down his hermitage, pulled him out of
it and abused him. He performed ablution and offered theprayer, then
he went to the male (baby) and asked him; "O boy! Who is your father?"
The babyreplied that his father was the shepherd. The people said that
they would build for him a hermitage of gold but Juraij asked them to
make it of mud only." Source: Sahih Bukhari (Volume 3, Book 43, Number
662)
Allah's help is with those who are sincere to their faith.

Two things that he feared, Islamic Stories -,

It is said about Shaddad ibne Aws (RA) that he once began to cry.
People asked about his crying, and he replied: It is something I heard
from Rasulullah (SAW) which makes me weep when I remember it.
Rasulullah (SAW) had said: I fear for my peoplefrom Shirk (ascribing
partners to Allah) and Hidden Desires. Shaddad(RA) says: I had asked:
O Rasulullah! Would your people be guilty of idolatry after your
death? Rasulullah (SAW) had replied: Yes (but) they will not worship
the sun, the moon, a stone or an idol; but they will act for display
(without sincerity). Hidden Desire is that oneof them will start the
dayfasting, but when one ofhis desires will present itself to him; he
will abandon his fast (and satisfy his desire). Source: Musnad Ahmed.
Let us not worship nicelyso that others can see and praise us. Today,
wewear beautiful clothes and jewelleries when attending an invitation
or meeting a renowned person. Whereas, when the pious people of the
past would get up for tahajjud prayer at night,they would wear their
best clothes, put on the surma and decorate themselves nicely to stand
in front of Allah.

--

- - - - -
Presented by :->
" M NajimudeeN Bsc- INDIA "

¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤ ¤