AFFIRMING ALLĀH’S NAMES AND ATTRIBUTES (III)

 FAJR REMINDER: AFFIRMING ALLĀH’S NAMES AND ATTRIBUTES (III)

By: Umm Affān

Ṣafar 7, 1448 (22-July-2026)

Another aspect of denying Allāh’s Perfect Names and Attributes is to ascribe to others an Attribute that belongs exclusively to Him. Among these exclusive Attributes is the knowledge of the Ghayb (the unseen or hidden). This is a quality that no one possesses except Allāh. He (ﷻ) says: “And with Him are the keys to the Ghayb (all that is hidden), none knows them but He. And He knows whatever there is on the land and in the sea; not a leaf falls, but He knows it. There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record.” [Sūrah Al-An’ām (6): 59]

The knowledge of the unseen is one of the matters that Allāh has reserved for Himself alone. However, out of His Wisdom, He may reveal whatever portion of it He wills to His chosen Messengers through Revelation. This is not because they possess independent knowledge of the unseen, but because Allāh informs them of what He wishes. He (ﷻ) says: “(He Alone) the All-Knower of the Ghayb (unseen), and He reveals to none His Ghayb (unseen). Except to a Messenger (from mankind) whom He has chosen (He informs him of unseen as much as He likes)...” [Sūrah Al-Jinn (72): 26-27]

In contrast, fortune-tellers, soothsayers, astrologers, and others who claim to know hidden matters are falsely competing with Allāh in one of His exclusive Attributes. No one competes with Allāh except those who are doomed. By Allāh! They are nothing but liars who exploit people's fears, emotions, and ignorance. Some of them receive information from the Jinn, who may occasionally relay fragments of truth mixed with countless lies. Whatever accuracy they appear to have does not make them possessors of the unseen, nor does it justify believing their claims.

Sadly, many Muslims have also fallen into this dangerous error by believing that those individuals possess knowledge of the unseen. Such a belief corrupts one's Islām and Eemān because it gives a created being an Attribute that belongs solely to Allāh.

An example of this exaggeration appears in the famous poem of Imām Sharaf al-Dīn al-Būṣīrī, where he described the Prophet (ﷺ) as follows: “Fa-inna min jūdika ad-dunyā wa ḍarratahā, Wa min ‘ulūmika ‘ilma al-lawḥi wa al-qalami (Indeed, from your generosity are this world and its counterpart (the Hereafter), and from your knowledge is the knowledge of the Preserved Tablet and the Pen).” [Qaṣīdat al-Burdah also called al-Kawākib ad-Durriyyah fī Madḥ Khayr al-Bariyyah, verse 154 in the common 160-verse recension]

Subḥānallāh! This statement is a clear example of ghulūw (exaggeration) in praising the Prophet (ﷺ). The World and the Hereafter are undoubtedly among Allāh's creations and are from His Generosity alone. They are not from the generosity of Prophet Muḥammad (ﷺ), because he did not create them. Allāh (ﷻ) says: “Allāh is the Creator of all things, and He is the Wakīl (Trustee, Disposer of affairs, Guardian, etc.) over all things.” [Sūrah Az-Zumar (39): 62] He (ﷻ) also says: “And truly, unto Us (belong) the last (Hereafter) and the first (this world).” [Sūrah Al-Layl (92): 13]

Likewise, the knowledge of Al-Lawḥ al-Maḥfūẓ (the Preserved Tablet) belongs to Allāh alone. Neither the nearest Angels nor any of the Prophets—including Prophet Muḥammad (ﷺ)—knows what it contains except what Allāh chooses to reveal to them. This is why Allāh commanded His Messenger (ﷺ) to declare: “Say (O Muḥammad [ﷺ]): ‘I possess no power of benefit or hurt to myself except as Allāh wills. If I had the knowledge of the Ghayb (unseen or hidden), I should have secured for myself an abundance of wealth…’” [Sūrah Al-A’raf (7): 188]

There is no doubt that Prophet Muḥammad (ﷺ) is the noblest and greatest of Allāh's creation. Loving him, honouring him, and following him are obligations upon every Muslim. However, true love for him is to keep him in the lofty position that Allāh has given him without elevating him to a rank that belongs only to his Lord.

How astonishing it is that some people have gone even further by attributing such qualities to individuals whom they call Awliyā' (saints), some of whom may not even have been righteous. They invoke them, seek their help, and believe they know hidden matters, thereby granting them rights that belong exclusively to Allāh. This is nothing but Shirk. How can one who receives no Revelation from Allāh claim to possess knowledge of the unseen?

Every Muslim should therefore be vigilant in protecting his or her Tawḥīd. Exaggeration in praising the creation has always been one of the greatest doors leading to Shirk. We must affirm for Allāh what He has affirmed for Himself, deny from Him what He has denied from Himself, and refrain from assigning any of His exclusive Attributes to His creation.

I beseech Allāh (ﷻ) to keep us firm upon pure Tawḥīd, protect us from all forms of Shirk and misguidance, and cause us to die as sincere Muslims. Aameen.