the Sovereign, Most Kind, Most Merciful; and He has described some of His servants as learned, some as forbearing, some as kind and merciful, some as hearing and seeing, some as kings, some as mighty, and some as tyrannical and arrogant. It is well known that the All-Knowing is not like one who is learned, nor the Forbearing like one who is forbearing, nor the All-Hearing like one who hears. The same applies to all the other names.

He, glorified and exalted is He, says:

“Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.”

And He says:

“They gave him glad tidings of a learned boy.”

And He says:

“Indeed, He is ever Forbearing, All-Forgiving.”

And He says:

“So We gave him glad tidings of a forbearing boy.”

And He says:

“Indeed, Allah is Most Kind and Most Merciful to mankind.”

And He says:

“Kind and merciful to the believers.”

And He says:

“Indeed, Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.”

And He, exalted is He, says:

“Mingled fluids, that We may test him; and We made him hearing and seeing.”

The same applies to everything else mentioned. Yet a person uses what he knows to understand what he does not know. Were it not for this, the paths to knowledge of unseen things would be closed to him.

As for “contrast,” it is said: Whoever recognizes his own servitude recognizes his Lord’s lordship; whoever recognizes his own need recognizes his Lord’s self-sufficiency; whoever recognizes his own incapacity recognizes his Lord’s power; whoever recognizes his own ignorance recognizes his Lord’s knowledge; and whoever recognizes his own lowliness recognizes his Lord’s might. The same applies to similar examples. For the servant has, of himself, nothing but nonexistence, and all attributes of imperfection ultimately amount to nonexistence.

The Lord, exalted is He, however, possesses the attributes of perfection, which are inseparable from His essence. It is impossible for Him ever to be without the attributes of perfection, whether in eternity past or eternity future. Their nonexistence is impossible, for His existence is necessary, without beginning or end. His attributes of perfection are inseparable from His essence, and what is inseparable from something cannot cease to exist unless that thing itself ceases to exist. Thus, none of His attributes of perfection can be considered nonexistent unless His essence is nonexistent.