Is the attribute of weariness attributed to Allah?
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The questioner : May the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and Allah's mercy and blessings.
The questioner : In the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sunan Ibn Majah 4241Hasan (Darussalam) Is this attribute, namely weariness, attributed to Allah (Mighty and Majestic)?
The Shaykh : I answer you with the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): What is the matter with you, seeking to establish or deny the attribute of weariness for Allah?
You know that the Messenger addressed the Companions with this, and you know that the Companions were more eager than all of us to know the attributes of Allah the Exalted. Did they ask the Messenger: Does He get weary or not? Or did they say: We heard and we believed, and we believe that Allah does not get weary until we get weary?
So whatever deficiency there is in weariness is for us, not for Allah, for Allah the Exalted is perfect in His attributes.
Therefore, we must stop searching and discussing this matter. I say to you, to others, and to whoever hears my words: The attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) require the utmost caution from a person. Do not go beyond what has been revealed. If one goes beyond what has been revealed, he is destroyed, because he will fall into one of two things: either likening Allah to creation and necessitating deficiency in the attributes of Allah, or denial of the divine attributes. One of the two. I mean, glory to Allah the Great, the Companions were one hundred and twenty-four thousand, and the Tabi'un were more and more, and the Imams of the Muslims remained silent about this and did not go searching for it. Then later scholars come, and the young brothers who are students who want to go deep—so they claim—into the attributes of Allah, digging into such issues: How many fingers does Allah have? How is His eye? How is His face? Do you not know that Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him), when a person said to him: O Abu 'Abdullah![Taha 20:5] How did He rise above the Throne?
He lowered his head until he was sweating from the shame of this question and its gravity, and from magnifying the Lord (Mighty and Majestic). Then he raised his head and said: "O this one! The rising above the Throne is not unknown, the how is not comprehensible, belief in it is obligatory, and asking about it is a religious innovation. I do not think you are anything but an innovator. Then he ordered that he be taken out, so he was taken out of the mosque".
The issues, O my brothers, O young men, regarding the attributes: do not strive to go deep into them so that you do not fall into destruction. Say: We heard and we believed and we affirmed, and there is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. As long as we work, Allah the Exalted rewards us and does not get weary until we get weary. And if you see that weariness is a deficiency in you, do not attribute to Allah an attribute of deficiency. Rather, it is a weariness befitting Him, and we know that it does not necessitate a deficiency in the right of Allah if it is established for Him. Do you understand?
And I warn you and the listeners against excessive strictness and going deep into this. The matter is serious. You must stick to the deeds you are obligated to do, and leave what you are not obligated to do. Search for how to pray, how to perform the ablution, how to fast, how to give charity, and leave the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Take them as they came and do not dig into them, because before you are people who are more important than you, more eager than you to know Allah, and more loving of good and knowledge than you, and they did not discuss the Messenger about them.
The Shaykh : And upon you be peace, and Allah's mercy and blessings.
The questioner : In the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
for Allah does not get tired (of giving reward) but you get tired.
إن الله لا يمل حتى تملواThe Shaykh : I answer you with the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
The excessively strict ones are ruined, the excessively strict ones are ruined, the excessively strict ones are ruined
هلك المتنطعون، هلك المتنطعون، هلك المتنطعونYou know that the Messenger addressed the Companions with this, and you know that the Companions were more eager than all of us to know the attributes of Allah the Exalted. Did they ask the Messenger: Does He get weary or not? Or did they say: We heard and we believed, and we believe that Allah does not get weary until we get weary?
So whatever deficiency there is in weariness is for us, not for Allah, for Allah the Exalted is perfect in His attributes.
Therefore, we must stop searching and discussing this matter. I say to you, to others, and to whoever hears my words: The attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic) require the utmost caution from a person. Do not go beyond what has been revealed. If one goes beyond what has been revealed, he is destroyed, because he will fall into one of two things: either likening Allah to creation and necessitating deficiency in the attributes of Allah, or denial of the divine attributes. One of the two. I mean, glory to Allah the Great, the Companions were one hundred and twenty-four thousand, and the Tabi'un were more and more, and the Imams of the Muslims remained silent about this and did not go searching for it. Then later scholars come, and the young brothers who are students who want to go deep—so they claim—into the attributes of Allah, digging into such issues: How many fingers does Allah have? How is His eye? How is His face? Do you not know that Imam Malik (may Allah have mercy on him), when a person said to him: O Abu 'Abdullah!
The Most Merciful [who is] above the Throne established.
الرَّحْمَنُ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ اسْتَوَىHe lowered his head until he was sweating from the shame of this question and its gravity, and from magnifying the Lord (Mighty and Majestic). Then he raised his head and said: "O this one! The rising above the Throne is not unknown, the how is not comprehensible, belief in it is obligatory, and asking about it is a religious innovation. I do not think you are anything but an innovator. Then he ordered that he be taken out, so he was taken out of the mosque".
The issues, O my brothers, O young men, regarding the attributes: do not strive to go deep into them so that you do not fall into destruction. Say: We heard and we believed and we affirmed, and there is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing. As long as we work, Allah the Exalted rewards us and does not get weary until we get weary. And if you see that weariness is a deficiency in you, do not attribute to Allah an attribute of deficiency. Rather, it is a weariness befitting Him, and we know that it does not necessitate a deficiency in the right of Allah if it is established for Him. Do you understand?
And I warn you and the listeners against excessive strictness and going deep into this. The matter is serious. You must stick to the deeds you are obligated to do, and leave what you are not obligated to do. Search for how to pray, how to perform the ablution, how to fast, how to give charity, and leave the attributes of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). Take them as they came and do not dig into them, because before you are people who are more important than you, more eager than you to know Allah, and more loving of good and knowledge than you, and they did not discuss the Messenger about them.