There are many attributes which are a must for God...

There are many attributes which are a must for God, while there are others which are beneath His dignity and, therefore, cannot be found in Him. The attributes of God, therefore, have been grouped into "positive" and "negative": the former reflects the attributes that exist in Him, where as the latter reflect the attributes that cannot be found in Him.

The positive attributes of God are known as as-sifat ath-thubutiyyah; whereas the attributes that cannot be found in God are known as as-sifat as-salbiyyah. (A) THE POSITIVE ATTRIBUTES (AS-SIFAT ATH-THUBUTIYYAH): There are many attributes which are befitting Allah, but only eight are usually mentioned because of their importance. The eight as-sifat ath-thubutiyyah are as follows: Eternal (al-Qadim): God has neither a beginning nor an end.

Omnipotent (al-Qadir): God is Omnipotent; He has power over every thing and every affair. Omniscient (al-‘Alim): God is Omniscient; He knows every thing. Even our unspoken intentions and unexpressed desires are not hidden from Him. Living (al-Hayy): God is always Alive and will remain Alive for ever. Will Power (al-Murid): God has His own will and discretion in all affairs. He does not do anything under compulsion.

All-Perceiving (al-Mudrik): God is All-Hearing and All-Seeing; He can see and hear everything without any need of eyes and ears. Master of Speech (al-Mutakallim): God can create speech in anything, as He did in a tree for Prophet Musa (a.s.) and in the curtain of light for our holy Prophet (a.s.). Truthful (as-Sadiq): God is always true in His words and promises. It is impossible to fix any limit to the attributes of God.

This list is not exhaustive but is essential to understand the glory of Allah. These attributes are not acquired but are inherent in the concept of Divinity. (B) THE NEGATIVE ATTRIBUTES (As-SiFAr AS-SALBIYYAH) The term "negative attributes" means those attributes which cannot be found in God because they are incompatible with the concept of Divinity. Similar to the positive attributes, the negatives attributes are also many but only eight are normally listed because of their importance.

The eight as-sifdt as-salbiyyah are as follows: Partner (as-Sharik): God has no partner or colleague. Compound (al-Murakkab): God is neither made nor composed of any material. He cannot be divided even in imagination.