Is the attribute of light among the attributes of Allah?
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The questioner : Regarding, O Shaykh, may Allah reward you with good, the attribute of light.
The Shaykh : What?
The questioner : Is the attribute of light among the attributes of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He)?
The Shaykh : Sleep?
The questioner : Light.
The Shaykh : Light?
The questioner : Yes, indeed.
The Shaykh : Allah the Exalted said:[An-Nur 24:35].
The questioner : Yes, indeed.
The Shaykh : So say what Allah said about Himself, and do not go beyond that. You have predecessors who are better than you, and the one being asked has predecessors who are better than him. Who are the predecessors who are better than you?
The questioner : The Companions.
The Shaykh : The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), and the one who is better than the one being asked here, meaning in our time, is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). When this verse was revealed, did they say, "O Messenger of Allah, is light among the names and attributes of Allah?" Answer, O questioner?
The questioner : No, they did not ask.
The Shaykh : They did not ask. Is what sufficed them sufficient for us?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Or is it permissible for us to go beyond them?
The questioner : It is not permissible for us to go beyond them.
The Shaykh : It is not permissible for us to go beyond them. What sufficed them suffices us. Therefore, I advise our brothers present now, whether they are students of knowledge or not, to refrain from asking about the names and attributes of Allah what the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) refrained from asking. By Allah, they are better than us, and the one to whom the question was directed in their time is better than us. So we should stop. Why this over-exertion?
We say what Allah said about Himself:[An-Nur 24:35]. If you follow this rule and adopt this methodology, you will be safe. Your creed will be safe from doubts and illusions, and you will be safe from following desires or speaking about Allah without knowledge. So my advice to you and to whoever listens to this speech of mine is to fear Allah in yourself, and to avoid everything the noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) avoided by refraining from asking about the names and attributes of Allah. The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) fulfilled the intended purpose, and Allah (Mighty and Majestic) has completed the religion for us. If there had been anything requiring a question and clarification, Allah the Exalted would have enabled one of the Companions to ask about it. For this reason, the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) in Madinah were too shy to ask the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) about anything until they would wait for a man from the Bedouins to ask about it. Then Allah the Exalted would enable someone to ask about the thing, and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) would answer it. Until a man asked him: Look: to this extent. So the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) answered him. If there had been anything in the religion that people needed, Allah the Exalted would have enabled someone to ask about it. So refrain from what the Companions refrained from. Leave this over-exertion. Someone will come, being pretentious, deep, and over-exerting, saying, "How many fingers does Allah have?" for example?
Glory be to Allah! Are you obligated with this? You must believe in what came in the Book and the Sunnah regarding the attributes of Allah, and be silent. Imam Ahmad said: "We do not go beyond the Qur'an and the Hadith, and we describe Allah with what He described Himself with in His Book, or with what His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described Him with", meaning we do not go beyond the Qur'an and the Hadith. Yes.
The Shaykh : What?
The questioner : Is the attribute of light among the attributes of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He)?
The Shaykh : Sleep?
The questioner : Light.
The Shaykh : Light?
The questioner : Yes, indeed.
The Shaykh : Allah the Exalted said:
Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth
الله نور السّماوات والأرضThe questioner : Yes, indeed.
The Shaykh : So say what Allah said about Himself, and do not go beyond that. You have predecessors who are better than you, and the one being asked has predecessors who are better than him. Who are the predecessors who are better than you?
The questioner : The Companions.
The Shaykh : The Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), and the one who is better than the one being asked here, meaning in our time, is the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). When this verse was revealed, did they say, "O Messenger of Allah, is light among the names and attributes of Allah?" Answer, O questioner?
The questioner : No, they did not ask.
The Shaykh : They did not ask. Is what sufficed them sufficient for us?
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : Or is it permissible for us to go beyond them?
The questioner : It is not permissible for us to go beyond them.
The Shaykh : It is not permissible for us to go beyond them. What sufficed them suffices us. Therefore, I advise our brothers present now, whether they are students of knowledge or not, to refrain from asking about the names and attributes of Allah what the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) refrained from asking. By Allah, they are better than us, and the one to whom the question was directed in their time is better than us. So we should stop. Why this over-exertion?
We say what Allah said about Himself:
Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth
الله نور السّماوات والأرضWhere was Allah before He created the heavens and the earth?
أين كان الله قبل خلق السّماوات والأرض ؟Glory be to Allah! Are you obligated with this? You must believe in what came in the Book and the Sunnah regarding the attributes of Allah, and be silent. Imam Ahmad said: "We do not go beyond the Qur'an and the Hadith, and we describe Allah with what He described Himself with in His Book, or with what His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described Him with", meaning we do not go beyond the Qur'an and the Hadith. Yes.