what “self” denotes is the very entity that possesses the attributes. Neither in Allah’s Book nor in the Sunnah of His Messenger is the word “self” used to mean an attribute of an entity, whether referring to the Creator or to a created being. Thus, Allah Most High says:

“Allah takes the souls at the time of their death, and those that have not died He takes during their sleep.” [al-Zumar 42]

He also says:

“Every soul will taste death.” [Āl ‘Imrān 185]

And He says:

“Indeed, the soul constantly urges one to evil.” [Yūsuf 53]

And He says:

“And I swear by the self-reproaching soul.” (2) [al-Qiyāmah 2]

And He says:

“O tranquil soul!” (27) [al-Fajr 27]

And He says:

“So repent to your Creator and kill yourselves.” [al-Baqarah 54]

And He says:

“Why, when you heard it, did the believing men and women not think well of one another?” [al-Nūr 12]

Such instances are many times more numerous in the hadith. None of these expressions means that a thing’s self is an attribute of it. Thus, whoever interprets His words “upon Himself” as referring to one of His attributes has interpreted them in a way foreign to the Arabic language in which Allah revealed His Book. This contradicts both the Quran’s explicit wording and its apparent meaning, much less can it be called its apparent meaning.

Moreover, they use it for emphasis, saying: “I saw Zayd himself.” Admittedly, in the speech of some later Arabic speakers one finds