The Meaning of Al-Shawkani's Statement on the Name of Allah: The Obligatory Existent
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner:
The Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, says: The Imam Al-Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on him) said in *Nail al-Awtar*, when explaining the introduction: "Allah is a name for the Self that is the Obligatory Existent, deserving of all praise." He asks: Is this phrase correct?
The Shaykh:
Yes, it is a correct phrase. Yes, the phrase is correct. So, Allah is a name for the Divine Self; no other is called by it, (Glorified and Exalted is He). This name is not applied to anyone but Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He). Yes.
The questioner:
The Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, says: O Professor.
The Shaykh:
His statement "the Obligatory Existent" is one of the expressions of the theologians. They mean that He is not a created existent like the creatures, because the creatures are created after they did not exist. As for Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He), He has no beginning and no end,Sunan Ibn Majah 3831Sahih (Darussalam), yes.
The Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, says: The Imam Al-Shawkani (may Allah have mercy on him) said in *Nail al-Awtar*, when explaining the introduction: "Allah is a name for the Self that is the Obligatory Existent, deserving of all praise." He asks: Is this phrase correct?
The Shaykh:
Yes, it is a correct phrase. Yes, the phrase is correct. So, Allah is a name for the Divine Self; no other is called by it, (Glorified and Exalted is He). This name is not applied to anyone but Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He). Yes.
The questioner:
The Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, says: O Professor.
The Shaykh:
His statement "the Obligatory Existent" is one of the expressions of the theologians. They mean that He is not a created existent like the creatures, because the creatures are created after they did not exist. As for Allah (Exalted and Majestic is He), He has no beginning and no end,
You are the First and there is nothing after You; You are the Last and there is nothing after You
الأول فليس قبلك شيء، وأنت الآخر فليس بعدك شيء
Source
شرح كتاب المنتقى من أخبار المصطفى صلى الله عليه وسلم، المقدمة، وأول كتاب الطهارة — islamhouse.com (56:29)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.