Clarifying the Position of Ahlus-Sunnah Wal-Jama’ah In Response to The Asharites Denial of Certain Attributes of Allah
Ahmed Lasisi
International Open University (IOU)
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Abstract
This paper explores the implications of the Asharites position based on the concept of Jawhar and
A’rad. It examines the origins of the concepts and the basis for the attempt to describe contingencies by them. The position of the scholars of Sunnah concerning the use of such entities
are examined before reviewing the peculiarities associated with the rejection of Allah’s attributes
according to the Asharis. The basis of denying Allah’s attributes according to the Asharis is identified, as well as what that portends regarding the existence of a Supreme. Finally, the position of the Ahlus-Sunnah regarding the attributes of Allah are introduced in general, with emphasis on those attributes rejected by the Asharites. This work closes with an encouragement to stick to the
methodology of the Salaf in addressing issues regarding revealed knowledge of which the names
and attributes of Allah are of utmost importance.
Keywords: Jawhar, A’rad, Names and Attributes of Allah, Ash’ari
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Clarifying the Position of Ahlus-Sunnah Wal-Jama’ah In Response to The Asharites Denial
of Certain Attributes of Allah
may His peace and benedictions be upon the noblest of ,(ﺳﺒﺤﺎﻧﮫ وﺗﻌﺎﻟﻰ) Praise be to ALLAH
.his household, companions, and his followers till the Last Day ,(ﷺ) mankind, Muhammad
As to what follows, the proposition brought forward by the Ash’ari scholar, as intelligent as it may
seem, is tantamount to denying the essence and attributes of Allah altogether. What is left to affirm in the created if the creation is already stripped of essence and attributes? If this can be said as
According ?(ﷻ) regards the created, how much more about the Creator of the Heavens and the earth
to Ahlus-sunnah wal-Jama’ah, Allah is described in the way He described himself.
Jawhar and A’rad
as indicated in the question to mean essence or the thingness of an ,(ﺟﻮھﺮ) The concept of Jawhar
entity is not of Arabic origin, let alone Islamic. Shaykhul Islam, Ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728 AH) was
asked concerning Jawhar, he replied saying that it is has no Arabic roots, and that it is one of the
on the other hand can be (أَ ْﻋراض) Arabized words of foreign origin (Ibn-Taymiyyah, 2005). A’rad
said to mean the vanities of this world amongst other meanings indicative of sickness, syndrome or illnesses (AlMa’any, 2020). This is at best a literal translation. Technically, A’rad means non- essential attributes of an entity that are not required for it to exist. According to some kalam
The former is .(أَ ْﻋراض) and A’rad (أﻋﯿﺎن) thinkers, the universe is divided into two parts: A’yan indicative of independent entities while A’rad depends on other entities to exist (Al-Maturidi,
2019). A’yan-which could be translated as notable realities is further divided into two: simple and
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complex. The simple reality or thingness of a being is referred to as Jawhar while the complex
A’yan indicates bodies-Jism (ArRazi, 2001). The question that comes to mind is the origin of these classifications. Are they from the Qur’an and Sunnah? Are these convoluted groupings discussed by the companions or their successors? Rather, these are intellectual exercises that have been inherited from Hellenistic philosophy and thoughts. The sincere ones amongst the kalam thinkers recant these exercises and mental juxtapositions. Notable amongst them is Imam Fakhrud-deen
ArRazi (d. 606 AH) who concluded that the closest path to firmness and correctness is the path of the Quran rather than engaging in kalam (Ibn-Qudamah, 2013). Based on the foregoing, the
meanings of Jawhar and A’rad have been established to the reader. Next, we proceed to the some
of the attributes of Allah that have been denied by the Asharis through their use of these innovated
terminologies.
Asharis and Allah’s Attributes
By virtue of describing the creation with Jawhar and A’rad, the Asharites rejected Allah’s attributes because they think Allah is indescribable by those terms, albeit created by them.
is bereft of essence and attributes. Free is Allah (ﺳﺒﺤﺎﻧﮫ وﺗﻌﺎﻟﻰ) Therefore, according to them, Allah
over what they fabricate! One of the early proponents of this view is Abul Hassan Al-Ashari (d.
324 AH), who had been a rationalist (Mu’tazilite) before being exposed to proper Islamic theology
(Carman, 1994). It is therefore not surprising when he began to deny certain attributes of Allah by way of rational thoughts. Although it can be argued that Ibn Kullab is the father of the Ash’ari school of thought but here is not the place for that discussion.
The basis of denying Allah’s attributes according to the Ash’aris can be traced back to tashbeeh
(Qazar Al-Jasim, 2008). Otherwise, it will not be difficult to see that likening the creation’s
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attributes to Allah automatically removes Him from having a real essence let alone attributes. In
the Qur’an, the illegitimacy of establishing such comparison has been established profusely.
The Quran says:
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.” {Ash-Shura: 11} And: “So do not assert Similarities to Allah” {An-Nahl: 74} If this is understood, there would be no basis for attempting to (or not to) describe Allah with
Jawhar and A’rad. Hence, let alone deny His attributes. Furthermore, knowing that Allah’s
Essence (Dhaat) does not resemble the creation necessitates that His attributes should not be
likened to contingencies. A lack of this understanding (or its negligence thereof) has led to denying
attributes such as Istiwa, Nuzul, Allah’s Hands and Essence altogether. Abul-Hasan Al-Ash’ari (d.
324 AH) recanted many of these denials towards the end of his life in his books, Al-Ibaanah and
Al-Maqaalaat, evincing the fact that they form an intrinsic part of the Ash’arite creed (Ibn Hanbal,
2013).
Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah and the Attributes of Allah
The attributes of Allah according to the Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah are accepted has they have
been revealed. These attributes are to be imbibed apparently and inwardly without takyeef (asking
how), tashbeeh (making semblance), tamtheel (drawing likeness), tafweedh (accepting the
wording but leaving the meaning to Allah), ta’teel (rejecting its meaning), tahreef (changing its
meaning), ilhaad (deviation from the true meaning) or ta’weel (false interpretation) (Ibn-l-
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Uthaymeen, 1970). The Asha’irah however have reservations for about seven of those attributes.
It suffices that we focus on some of them in this article (Imam, 2018).
1. Al-Istiwa is Allah’s ascendance over His Throne. Allah says:
“Ar-Rahmaan has ascended (Istawaa) over the Throne” {Taha: 5} There are several verses in the Quran and Ahadith corroborating this. Ibn Jareer At-Tabari
(d. 310 AH) commented on the verse concerning Istiwa: “Rising above and Ascending”
(Ibn Hanbal, 2013) . In the hadith compilation of Imam Abi Dawood (d. 204 AH),
authenticated by Imam Nasirud-deen Al-Albaani (d 1420 AH), a young slave girl was
emancipated for affirming that Allah is above his creation (Sunan Abi Dawud, 2012).
While this hadith emphasizes Uluww (transcendence) more than Istiwa, it does not negate
it. It is often difficult to separate between these two attributes of Allah. Some of the pious
predecessors have understood them to mean the same. Al Imam Ahmad bn Hanbal (d. 241
AH) was reported to have said: “He used to say that the meaning of Istiwa is to rise and
ascend, He is over and above everything”(Qazar Al-Jasim, 2008). Therefore, the essence
of both attributes (Istiwa and Uluww) entails fawqiyyah, as Allah says what means:
“And He is the Subjugator over His servant” {Al-An’aam: 18}
2. Uluww and Nuzul are two attributes of Allah that are often negated by the Ash’aris (Ibn-
l-Uthaymeen, 1970). This is because they are unable to reconcile the two as a result of
hulul (containment), jihah (direction) and tahayyuz (occupying a space) (Imam, 2018). If
we ponder deeply about these purported reasons, we realize that the main problem of the
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Ash’aris is tashbeeh. Ibn Taymiyyah said: “The Sifaat of Allah are just like His Dhaat.
Thus, just as the Dhaat of Allaah is established in haqeeqah (reality), without considering
it to be like that of the creation, likewise His Sifaat are also established in haqeeqah without
likening them to those of the creation” (Ibn-Taymiyyah, 1955).
As for reconciling between Allah’s transcendence (uluww) and descent (nuzul)
(Muslim, 2011) and the seeming contradiction, scholars have invested time clarifying the seeming contradiction. The summary of their statement is that Allah descends from His Throne to the lowest heaven every night, yet He is transcendent over His creation and not contained by it. Once we understood that the attributes of Allah are not like those of the creation, it will not be difficult to realize this explanation. Allah says:
“And there is none like Unto Him, The One.”
{Al-Ikhlas: 22}
3. Allah’s Hands remains a point of argument and a reason for rejection in the circles of the
-Abul-Hasan Al (ﺳﺒﺤﺎﻧﮫ وﺗﻌﺎﻟﻰ) Asharites. Concerning the verses affirming His Hands
Ash’ari claimed they are majaaz (metaphorical) (Ibn Hanbal, 2013). However, while
metaphorical interpretations can be entertained, they have to satisfy four requirements (Ibn-
l-Uthaymeen, 1970). One of these requirements calls for a clear proof from the Qur’an and
Sunnah. Rather, Allah has referred to His hands in the Qur’an in singular, dual, and plural
forms, all in apparent and real terms, antithetical to the need for any metaphorical
interpretation. The need for metaphorical interpretation is often due to questioning “how”.
Al-Imam Ishaq binRahwayh (d. 238 AH) said it is not permissible to ask the “how”
question due to His statement:
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“He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned”
{Al-Anbiya: 23}
Hence, it is not permissible to imagine Allah’s attributes and actions as one views the
affairs of the creation (Qazar Al-Jasim, 2008); and His Hands are not an exception.
Conclusion
To fully appreciate the point of view of the Asharites concerning invented concepts such as Jawhar
and A’rad, it is incumbent to realize that they all stem from tashbeeh. This is after Allah has
repeatedly established His absolute freedom from any form of likeness or similarity to His creation
have spoken in the terms of (ﷺ) in unequivocal terms. None of the companions of the Prophet
Jawhar and A’rad to necessitate their denial of Allah’s essence. Rather, it is as Imam Ibnul-
Qayyim (d. 751 AH) said, “The companions did not differ with regards understanding the verses
on the Attributes of Allah in one place” (Lahmami, 2017). Therefore, denying Allah’s Attributes
and Essence is a dangerous affair. Alas, upon realizing this intricacies, Abul Hasan Al-Ashari
himself repented from this way of thinking as document in his last book, Al-Ibaanah because
success indeed is in adhering to the Qur’an and Sunnah as understood by the pious predecessors.
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