Second: The range of expressions that may be used simply to report about Allah, exalted is He, is wider than the range that may be used as His Names and Attributes. Thus one may speak of Him as a “thing,” as “existent,” or as “self-subsistent,” yet none of these belongs to the circle of His Most Beautiful Names or His Sublime Attributes.
Third: If a verb is mentioned about Him in a restricted, contextualized way, that does not justify deriving from it an unrestricted Name. Some later scholars erred in this regard and counted among His Most Beautiful Names “the Misleader,” “the Tempter,” and “the Schemer” (far exalted is Allah above what they say). In reality, such words occur only as specific actions in particular contexts; it is therefore impermissible to adopt their absolute nominal forms as divine Names.
Fourth: Every one of His Names carries three levels of indication:
(a) a direct indication of both the Essence and the attribute—that is correspondence;
(b) an indication of either one of them—that is implication;
(c) an indication of another attribute that it necessarily entails—that is entailment.
Fifth: Allah’s Most Beautiful Names function both as proper Names and as descriptive Attributes, and describing Him with them in no way conflicts with their status as proper Names.
Sixth: The divine Names are considered from two angles: with respect to the Essence and with respect to the attributes. Viewed from the first angle they are synonymous; viewed from the second they are distinct.
Seventh: Whatever is applied to Him in the category of Names and Attributes must rest on revealed authority. By contrast, descriptive statements such as “eternal,” “thing,” “existent,” or “self-subsistent” do not necessarily require such authority.
Eighth: When a Name is affirmed for Him, it is permissible to derive from it the related verbal noun or verb, and to speak of Him accordingly in nominal or verbal form. From al-Samīʿ (the All-Hearing), al-Baṣīr (the All-Seeing), and al-Qadīr (the All-Powerful) one derives hearing, sight, and power, and He is addressed with verbs such as: “Allah has indeed heard” (58:1) and “So how excellent are the Powerful!” (77:23).
Ninth: All of His Names are most beautiful; none falls short of that description at all, for whoever