Your Faith Part 5

Belief in Allah’s Names and Attributes

This involves belief in the names and attributes which Allah has affirmed for Himself or which His Messenger May Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him has affirmed for Him in a manner that suits His majesty.

Allah May He be glorified and exalted has the most beautiful names and perfect attributes. All His names and attributes are unique, as the Qur’an states, “Nothing is like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” (Soorat Ash-Shooraa, 42:11) Therefore, none of whatever He has created has similar names or attributes in any way.

Some of Allah’s Most Beautiful Names

“The Beneficent, the Merciful.” (Soorat Al-Faatihah, 1:3)

“He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.” (Soorat Ash-Shooraa, 42:11)

“He is the Mighty, the Wise.” (Soorat Luqmaan, 31:9)

“Allah, there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining.” (Soorat Al-Baqarah, 2:255)

“All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds.” (Soorat Al-Faatihah , 1:2)

Benefits of Belief in Allah’s Names and Attributes

Getting to know Allah May He be glorified and exalted better, for belief in Allah’s names and attributes increases one’s knowledge of Allah, which in turn increases one’s faith in Him. Those who know and understand Allah’s names and attributes are bound to have their hearts filled with awe of Him and love for Him and tend to submit to Him alone.

Praising Allah by using His most beautiful names, which is the best form of remembrance of Allah (dhikr), as the Qur’an states, “O you who believe, remember Allah much.” (Soorat Al-Ahzaab, 33:41)

Asking and invoking Allah by His names and attributes, as the Qur’an states, “To Allah belong the Most Beautiful Names, so call on Him by them.” (Soorat Al-A‛raaf, 7:180) An example of this is to say, Yaa Tawwaab, tub ‛alayya! Yaa Raheem, Irhamnee! “O Most Forgiving, forgive me! O Most Merciful, have mercy on me!”

The Highest Level of Eemaan (Faith)

Faith, or eemaan, comprises different levels. The more a Muslim neglects his duty towards Allah and disobeys Him, the more his faith decreases. Conversely, the more he obeys Allah, worships Him and fears Him, the more his faith increases.

The highest level of faith is what Islam terms ihsaan (literally perfection, charity, performance of good deeds, etc.), which the Prophet r defined as follows: “It is to worship Allah as though you are seeing Him and while you see Him not, yet truly He sees you.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhaaree: 50; Saheeh Muslim: 8)

Therefore, you must remember that Allah is watching you all the time, whether you are standing or sitting, being serious or joking, and thus you must not disobey Him while you know that He is always watching you. Do not let fear and despair get the better of you while you know that Allah is with you. You will by no means experience loneliness when you privately pray to Allah and invoke Him. How can you commit a sin while you firmly believe that Allah is fully aware of what you do secretly and publicly? If, however, you commit a sin, repent to Allah and seek His forgiveness, He will certainly forgive you and accept your repentance.

Some Benefits of Belief in Allah

Allah safeguards the believers against harm and adversity and protects them against their enemies’ plots, as the Qur’an states, “Surely Allah defends those who are true believers.” (Soorat Al-Hajj, 22:38)

Belief in Allah brings happiness and is the source of a good life, as the Qur’an states, “To whoever does good deeds, man or woman, and is a believer, We will surely give a good life.” (Soorat An-Nahl, 16:97)

Belief in Allah frees the human mind from superstitions. Those who believe in Allah I completely rely on Him and are wholly devoted to Him, being the Lord of all the worlds and the only true God without any partners. As a result, they do not fear anyone and show their devotion to none but Allah. This frees them from all superstitions and misconceptions.

The best benefit of belief in Allah is attainment of Allah’s good pleasure, admission into Paradise and enjoyment of everlasting bliss and Allah’s boundless mercy.