The Methodology of the People of the Sunnah and the Community Regarding the Names and Attributes

Question:
This is a questioner from the Arab Republic of Egypt, who says: What is the methodology of the People of the Sunnah and the Community regarding the Names and Attributes? And what is the difference, O Shaykh, between the Names and the Attributes?

Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send blessings and peace upon the Messenger of Allah, upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
So the methodology of the People of the Sunnah and the Community regarding the Names and Attributes of Allah is to affirm them and let them pass as they came, in the manner befitting Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He), without distortion, without denial of the divine attributes, without asking how an attribute is, and without likening Allah to creation, in accordance with the saying of the Exalted: [Al-Shura: 11] and His saying, the Exalted: [Al-A'raf: 180]. He has named Himself with Names and described Himself with Attributes; so it is obligatory to affirm them and let them pass as they came: such as the Most Merciful, the Mighty, the All-Powerful, the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, the Most Compassionate, the All-Forgiving, the All-Knowing, and so on. It is obligatory to affirm them for Allah in the manner befitting Allah, without distorting their wording, without denying their meaning, without asking how an attribute is—saying "its how is such and such" or "its how is such and such"—and without saying that it is like such and such, like such and such. Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Shura: 11]. And a man said to Malik (may Allah have mercy on him), the Imam Malik ibn Anas (may Allah have mercy on him): "O Abu 'Abd Allah, [Ta-Ha: 5], how did He rise above the Throne?" He said to him (may Allah have mercy on him): "The rising above the Throne is known, the how is unknown, belief in it is obligatory, and asking about it is a religious innovation."
And this meaning came from Rabi'ah ibn Abi al-'Abd al-Rahman, the Shaykh of Malik, and its meaning came from Umm Salama (may Allah be pleased with her): the meaning of the rising above the Throne is known, meaning its meaning is known: that it is the elevation above the Throne. This is the rising above the Throne, as the Exalted said: [Ta-Ha: 5]. And the Exalted said: [Al-A'raf: 54] in seven places in the Qur'an, where the Exalted explicitly stated that He rose above the Throne, meaning: He elevated Himself above it and was above it (Exalted and Majestic is He), in a manner of rising above the Throne befitting His Majesty, not resembling the creation in their rising above the Throne, and without asking how an attribute is. It is not said: "its how is such and such, its how is such and such," but rather it is said: "Allah knows best the how." So the rising above the Throne is true and known, and it is the elevation above the Throne, as for the how, no one knows it except He (Glorified and Exalted is He).
And so said all the People of the Sunnah, from the Companions and those after them; they all say this meaning: the rising above the Throne, mercy, knowledge, power, all of it is known, as for the how, it is not known, and belief in this is obligatory. We believe that Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing, Wise, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful, All-Powerful, All-Hearing, All-Seeing, Subtle, and so on of His Names, but we do not ask how an attribute is. Rather, we say: [Al-Shura: 11], its meaning is true.
So al-Rahman: this is a Name, and al-Rahim: is an Attribute. Al-'Alim: is a Name, and al-'Ilm: is an Attribute. Al-Qadir: is a Name, and al-Qudrah: is an Attribute. This is the difference between them. So you say: "O Allah, I ask You by Your power, I ask You by Your knowledge, such and such." This is an Attribute. "O Allah, I ask You by You being al-'Alim, by You being al-Rahman." Seeking nearness to Allah through a means by the Names, as the Exalted said: [Al-A'raf: 180].
So the Attribute is the meaning, and the Name: is the wording that encompasses the Essence and the meaning; it is called a Name. As for the meaning alone, it is called a description. Al-Rahman is called a Name in knowledge; because it indicates the Essence and the Attribute, which is mercy. Al-'Alim: is a Name; because it indicates the Essence and knowledge. Al-Sami': is a Name; because it indicates the Essence and hearing. Al-Basir: is a Name; indicating the Essence and sight. These are called Names. As for the Attributes: knowledge is an Attribute, mercy is an Attribute, power is an Attribute, hearing is an Attribute, and so on. It is obligatory to let all of them pass as they came, and to affirm them for Allah—as the People of the Sunnah and the Community said—in the manner befitting Allah the Exalted, without distortion, without denial of the divine attributes, without asking how an attribute is, and without likening Allah to creation. The Attributes of Allah befit Him, He does not resemble His creation in any of His Attributes (Exalted and Majestic is He), as the Exalted said: [Al-Ikhlas: 4] [An-Nahl: 74]. And the Exalted said: [Al-Shura: 11] (Glorified and Exalted is He), yes.

The presenter: May Allah reward you and reward you with good, Your Eminence.