The Thirteen Attributes of Allah

English Text By Jun 30, 2015

The Thirteen Attributes of Allah

 

It was the norm of the later scholars who authored works in the Creed to say that the personal obligation on every accountable person (meaning the pubescent, sane person) is to know the Thirteen Attributes among the Attributes of Allah:  Existence, Eternality, Dissimilarity to the creation, Oneness, non-neediness of others, Everlastingness, Power, Will, Life, Knowledge, Speech, Hearing, and Sight; and whatever negates these Attributes is impossible to ascribe to Allah.

Since these Attributes were mentioned frequently in the religious texts, the scholars said that knowing them is obligatory as a personal obligation, meaning on every individual accountable person. Some of them said it is obligatory to know 20 Attributes, and so they added seven Attributes called Ma^nawiyyah Attributes.  They said, “…and His being Powerful, Willful, Alive, Knowledgeable, Speaking, Hearing, and Sightful.” The first method is the weightful method.[1]

 


[1] His being Powerful is known by the confirmation of His Attribute of Power, and likewise is the rest.