a child, nor is there alongside Him any deity’ (Q. 23:91).
- To dispel any notion that His perfection could be marred by deficiency, as in His words: ‘We certainly created the heavens and the earth and all that lies between them in six days, and no weariness touched Us’ (Q. 50:38).
Examples of detailed affirmation are exceedingly numerous. Among them are:
• His words in Sūrat al-Hashr: ‘He is Allah—there is no deity except Him—the Knower of the unseen and the seen…’ to the end of the sūrah (Q. 59:22-24). These verses contain more than fifteen Divine Names, each of which embraces one, two, or even more attributes.
• His words in Sūrat al-Ḥajj: ‘He will surely admit them to an entrance with which they will be pleased, for Allah is All-Knowing, Forbearing’ … up to His words: ‘Indeed Allah is, toward mankind, Most Kind, Most Merciful’ (Q. 22:59-65). These are seven consecutive verses, each concluding with two of Allah’s Names, and every Name embodies one or two attributes, or more.
As for concise negation, its examples include His statement: ‘There is nothing like unto Him’ (Q. 42:11); His statement: ‘Do you know of any namesake for Him?’ (Q. 19:65); and His statement: ‘Nor is there anyone comparable to Him’ (Q. 112:4).
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Know that sharing the same names and attributes does not imply that the entities so named and described are identical. This is borne out by revelation, reason, and sensory perception.
• Regarding revelation (al-samʿ): Allah said about Himself, ‘Indeed, Allah commands you to render trusts to whom they are due… Truly Allah has always been All-Hearing, All-Seeing’ (Q. 4:58). And He said about the human being: ‘Indeed We created man from…’