Rules Related to the Names and Attributes

The Shaykh : And among what is related to the names and attributes is that the attribute is broader than the name; the attributes are broader than the names. How is that? Every name includes an attribute, as you know, and by this principle, the names and attributes are equal, are they not? Every name includes an attribute, and based on this general rule, the names and attributes are equal. However, not every attribute can have a name derived from it, and thus the attributes are broader than the names. For this reason, among the attributes of Allah are that He is a Speaker, a Willer, a Maker, a Doer, a Descender, and so on from the many attributes that cannot be counted. But Allah the Exalted is not named with anything that these attributes indicate, so these attributes are broader than the names for this reason. , it is not possible to derive a name from "He begins and He returns" and say "The Beginner" and "The Returner," but it is permissible to inform, so you say "Allah is the Beginner and the Returner" based on His saying: . Are "The Restrainer" and "The Expander" among the names of Allah? If it were not for the hadith, we would have been certain that they are not among the names of Allah, because in the Qur'an it only came in the form of the verb "He expands" and "He restrains." But it came in the hadith: Do we say that "The Restrainer" and "The Expander" are among the names of Allah based on his saying: Or do we say that the hadith came regarding a specific issue, which is price control, when the Companions asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to set prices when prices rose, and he said: In that case, "The Restrainer" and "The Expander" in sustenance, which is the One who restrains and expands, and the One who determines high prices and low prices, would be from the category of attribute, not from the category of name. The matter is possible, but what is the rule we understood now? That the attributes are broader than the names, and the aspect of this is that every name includes an attribute, but not every attribute includes a name, or not every attribute can have a name derived from it. This is what is related to the names that came to my mind now, and there may be other things that will come later.

The questioner : May Allah reward you. What is the difference between the report (khabar) and the attribute?

The Shaykh : Between the report and the name: the report is the attribute, yes, meaning what is reported about Allah is His attribute.

The questioner : Ibn al-Qayyim in *Al-Fawa'id* distinguishes between the report and the attribute.

The Shaykh : What appears to me is that the difference between them is only if he means by attribute the necessary attribute that indicates the name, such as hearing and sight.

The questioner : Regarding "The Healer," why don't we say ...?

The Shaykh : And "Healer," you are the Healer, so we derived an attribute from "The Healer" based on His saying: Because no one heals except the One who has the attribute of healing, or the act of healing. The doctor also, if he comes with such a formulation, we call him a doctor.

The questioner : ...

The Shaykh : If the doctor comes with this attribute, which is "The Healer," we say it is a name, because absolute healing belongs to Allah (Mighty and Majestic).