Question on Essence and Attributes

Wa `alayum as-Salam:

The question is how "God's Attributes are neither identical with nor different from His Essence."

The reply is that if they were identical it would divest them of meaning and if they were different it would follow that there are a multiplicity of pre-eternal entities, neither of which is true. There is no difference between Ash`aris and Maturidis on this.

This has nothing to do with the Christian methodology concerning Trinitarian doctrine, on the contrary, it is the strictest yet simplest tawhid ever spelled out for humankind. Nor does it contradict reason but rather it takes it to witness and calls upon it to put to rest the quandary of "if not this, then that" when it comes to its Creator.

To put it bluntly, don't try to pin Him down by agitating the specters of "blind faith" and heresy. Try, rather, to follow Shaykh `Abd al- Qadir al-Gilani's advice to al-Suhrawardi that to delve in kalam and usul al-din is not a good preparation for the grave. Al-Suhrawardi narrates that he ignored this advice at first and found himself in difficulty later. Finally he got the message. May Allah be well-pleased with them! (This was related by al-Dhahabi in Siyar A`lam al-Nubala' who, incidentally, followed the Suhrawardi Tariqa as he himself stated in the same work.)

As for the question whether it is possible for reason and revelation to contradict each other, it is the excuse of rationalism -- a man-made religion. However, the Glorious Qur'an does not leave the shadow of a doubt that reason is conducive to faith and illustrates revelation.

May Allah bless you and us to see this through worship and repentance.   

Hajj Gibril