al-Ṣaffāt

وَجَعَلُوا بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ الْجِنَّةِ نَسَباً وَلَقَدْ عَلِمَتِ الْجِنَّةُ إِنَّهُمْ لَمُـحْضَرُونَ

سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ

إِلاَّ عِبَادَ اللَّهِ الْمُـخْلَصِينَ

158. “And they have set up a kinship between Him and the jinn, while the jinn know (quite well) that they shall surely be brought up (to account).”

159. “Glory be to Allah! (He is free) from what they ascribe (to Him)!”

160. “Except for Allah’s sincere servants.”

The beliefs of polytheists are artificial and false. Beliefs should be based on intellect, nature, and tradition. This verse refers to another superstition of polytheists. They believed in a kinship between Allah and the jinn. The Qur’an changes the form of the statement from the kind of ‘address’ to the form of absent one, as if they were so worthless that they had not the eligibility of being spoken to face in face. It says:

What kind of kinship was it that they believed between Allah and the jinn? In answer to this question it has been said that the purpose of it is any kind of kinship and relation although they have no relationship. And we know that a group of pagan Arabs used to worship the jinn and considered them as partners of Allah and thus they believed in a communication between them and Allah. However, the Qur’an seriously rejected this superstitious idea and implies that the jinn whom the superstitious idol worshippers imagine as their objects of worship, or they believe in a kinship relation between Allah and them, themselves know well that these superstitious idol worshippers will be brought up to the court of justice of Allah for reckoning and punishment.

It continues saying:

In the next verse, the Qur’an says:

And in the third verse, it implicitly says: except for the explanation that the sincere servants of Allah have about Him knowingly, there is no other explanation suitable for the Pure Essence of Allah. It says:

Thus, every qualification that man may have about Allah from himself is incorrect and Allah is free from it, except for that which the sincere servants have about him. These are the true servants who are quit of any kind of polytheism, low desire, ignorance, and aberration. They do not qualify Allah save that which He Himself has allowed them to explain. For obtaining more knowledge in this regard, we must refer to the words of the Prophet (S), the sermons of Ali (as) in Nahj-ul-Balaqah, and the comprehensive supplications of Imam Sajjad (as) in Sahifah Sajjadiyyah, and know Allah under the light of the explanations of these servants of Allah.

Imam Amir-ul-Mu’mineen Ali (as) says:

“…He has not informed (human) wit about the limits of His qualities. Nevertheless, He has not prevented it from securing essential knowledge of Him…” ⁶

In another place, upon qualifying Allah, he (as) says:

“…Imagination cannot reach Him so as to assign Him quantity. Understanding cannot think of Him so as to give him shape. Senses do not perceive Him so as to feel Him. Hands cannot touch Him so as to rub against Him.

He does not change into any condition. He does not pass from one state to another. Nights and days do not turn Him old. Light and darkness do not alter him. He is not qualified by anything of the limbs, nor by the parts of the body, nor by the length and width.

It cannot be said that He has a limit, extremity, or end, or termination, nor do things control him so as to raise Him or lower Him, nor anything carry Him…” ⁷

Ali-ibn-il-Hussayn (as) in Sahifah Sajjadiyyah says:

“Praise belongs only to Allah Whose Existence is the source of creation, an Essence that the eyes of the lookers cannot see Him and the understanding and thought of the explainers are not able to explain His qualities…” ⁸

The cognition and knowledge of Allah must be learnt from the school of the leaders of the religion.

Footnotes

1. 6. Nahj-ul-Balaqah, sermon 49
2. 7. Nahj-ul-Balaqah, sermon 186
3. 8. Sahifah Sajjadiyyah, Supplication One