However, this inability of the describers should not hinder us from thinking deeply on the issue of monotheism. They have not been successful to describe God properly, but this is not a valid excuse for us not to put forward our best trial. Such a program is rejected in the Holy Quran. In the introduction to the fifth volume of Realism, Motahhari, the distinguished philosopher, writes, “They say: According to the Holy Quran the only way to recognize God is to study the nature with our senses. No doubt, the Holy Quran invites us to do so, but does Quran consider the study of nature enough by itself to solve all other problems which it has raised?”
The following problems are raised in the Holy Quran:
●
.ءٌيْ شَ هِلِثْمِكَ سَ
يْلَ
“There is nothing like Him. 42:11”
●
ىلَعْ لَْ ا لُثَمَلْا هِلّلِوَ
.
“And Allah is the loftiest attribute. 16: 60”
●
.ىنَسْ حُ لْا ءُامَسْ لَْ ا هِلّلِوَ
“And Allah’s are the best names. 7:180”
●
.رُابّجَلْا زُيزِعَلْا نُمِيْهَمُلْا نُمِؤْمُلْا مُلَسّ لا سُ
ودّقُلْا كُ لِمَلْا
“The king, the Holy, the Quiver of peace the Granter of security the Guardian over all, the Almighty the supreme, the possessor of every greatness.59:23”
هِلّلا هُجْوَ مّثَفَ اولّوَتُ امَنَيْأَ فَ
.
“[Allah’s is the East and the west], therefore, wither you turn, thither is Allah’s purpose. 2: 115”
مْ تُنْكُ امَ نَيْأَ مْكُعَمَ وَهُوَ
.
“And He is with you wherever you are. 57:4”
These are problems concerning the other side of our borders. How is it possible to know these issues through the study of nature. The tudy of nature will definitely familiarize us with the Might, Power and the Knowledge of the Creator, and permits us to know that He is aware of everything going around us. But the Holy Quran expects more from us: we should know, as well, that He is unexceptionally aware of every thing. How would it be possible for a finite being to know about the infinite?
The truth is that the study of nature leads us up to the border of super– natural. The study of nature will reveal to us that the nature is controlled or guided by the conscious Power and Might. But has this Power come from anywhere? Is it Eternal? Is it single or plural? Does it have all the attributes of perfection? Is it finite or infinite? Is it Holy and without fault? Do we meet with Him anywhere we go? Is He First and the Last? And the like… The answers to these questions which are at issue in the Holy Quran could not be dealt with in the study of the nature. Thus, we come to the conclusion that man could never comprehend these problems and he has to believe blindly. Or if there is a way, it is not attainable through the study of nature, anyhow.
But we should be aware of the fact that all the above issues are indoctrinated to us by the Holy Quran as a series of lessons. And the study of nature is not enough by itself. Rather, there should be another way to know the truth which is confirmed by the Holy Quran.
That way, which is approved by the Holy Quran is through wisdom, reasoning and philosophy, which is more complete than the way based on heart or science. In other words, it is more comprehensive than the natural way”.
The content of Imam Sajjad’s statement is this: However hard the describers try to know God through the ways based on heart, science and wisdom, and gain something in this regard, and taste the monotheism which is discussed in the Holy Quran, but since their wisdom and heart are limited, they may not describe the Sacred Being who is Eternal, Apparent, Hidden, Knowing, Aware and Seeing.
Most scholars of religion, however, have used the above three techniques and have been inspired by the Holy Quran, the Prophet and the Infallible Ones (s) and have in this way understood the content of the above verses and have given us good books on monotheism. However, all these scholars have, in their lofty books, confessed to their inability to recognize God, fully.
Tabarsi, in his Ehtejaj, reports from Imam Ali (s):
هُدُببيحِوْتَ وَ ،هُدُببيحوْتَ هُببتُفَرِعْمَ وَ ،هُتُابببثإ هُدُوببجُوُ و ،هُتُاببيآ هُببلُيلدَ
،ةٍببلَزْعُ هُنَوببنُيْبَ ل ةفَببصِِ هُنَونُيْبَ زِييمْتّلا مُكْ حُ وَ ،هِقِلْخَ نْمِ هُزُييمْتَ
هِفِلخِبِ وَهُفَ رَوّصُ تُ ام لّ كُ ،قٍ ولُخْ مَ بٍ وبُرْمَ رُيْغَ ،قٌ لِاخَ بّ رَ هُنّإ
.
His indicator is his verses; His Existence is His existence. His recognition is to consider Him Unique. When we say He is Unique, we say He is separate from His creatures; this separation rests on the separation of Attributes and not in Entity so that His Being would be finite. This is because He is the Creator, not the created. Whatever you conceive of God, it is not God.
When we consider the last sentence we will realize how weak the describers are in describing Allah. Sentences like the above are frequently found in the statements of the prophets and the Infallible Ones (s), especially in those of Imam Ali (s), statements which no philosopher has ever uttered. The Sacred Being of Allah is loftier than could be described in words.
The great philosopher, Allameh Tabatabaee, adds at the end of this sermon: The signs which indicate the Existence of the Creator are nothing compared with the Creator.
Imam Ali (s), seven day after the demise of the prophet (s), uttered a sermon on the first part of which he talked on monotheism:
بَ ببجَ حَ وَ ،هُدَوجُوُ لإ لَ انْتَ نْ أ مَاهَولا زَجَ عْ أ يذلّا هِلل دُمْحَلا
وَ هِبَببشّ لا نَ ببمِ اببهعِانتِمْا يببف هُببتَاذ لَ ببيّخَتَتَ نْ أ نْ ببعَ لَ وببقُعُلا
ضْ
ببعّبَتَيَ مْببلَ وَ ،هِببتِاذ يببف تْ وَابفتَيَ مْبلَ يذلّا وَهُ لْ بَ ،لِ كْ شّ لا
فِ لتِخْا ىبلَعَ ل ءَايبشْ لا قَ رَابف ،هِلِابمكَ يبف دِدَبعَلْا ةِئَزِبجْتَبِ
ةٍادأبببِ ل اببهمَلِعَ وَ ،ةِجَزَامَمُلْا ىلَعَ ل اهنْمِ نَ كّ مَتَ وَ ،نِكِاملا
مٌ ببلْعِ هِمِوببلُعْمَ نَ ببيبَ وَ هُببنَيْبَ سَ
ببيلَ وَ ،اببهبِ لإ مُببلْعِلا نُوببكُيَ ل
مْ ببلَ) :لَ ببيقِ نْ إ وَ ،دِوجُوُلا ةِيّلِزَأ ىلعَفَ (نَ اك) :لَ يقِ نإ .هُرُيْغَ
لِ وببقَ نْ ببعَ ىلاعتَ وَ هُنَاحبسُ فَ ،مِ دَعَلا يفْنَ لِ يوأتَ ىلعَفَ (لْ زَيَ
.اًريبكَ اًوّلُعُ هُرَيْغَ اًهلإ ذَخَتّا وَ ،هُاوسِ دَبَعَ نْمَ
The whole topic is on Divine philosophy, on reasoning. It is on the path of monotheism with the help of thought and wisdom. A clean heart and a bright thought may grasp the content angle of Allah’s Magnanimity. These sentences are a wavy ocean of knowledge, a treasure of knowledge and insight, and a lamp towards God. In the first and second sentences, Imam Ali (s) says: man’s thought can not reach the depth of the matter.
“Praise be upon the Sacred Being of Allah who has deprived our imagination and wisdom of realizing the truth of Him. This is because He does not fit any shape or associate. He is separate from things not because of the material distance, and has dominated over things. He is the science and
knowledge about Himself. If we say God was, the antecedent is eternal, and if we say He will never vanquish, we have negated the non – existence of Him. Therefore, He is loftier than the one they have worshipped.”1
Allameh Tabatabaee, in describing the above sentences, says: in these sentences three philosophical issues are discussed:
Firstly, in understanding and knowing Allah our mental images are not at work and He is independent of our miages:
نَ يفصِ اوَلا مُاهوْأ هِتِعْنَ نْ عَ تْ زَجَ عَ
.
It is because our mind and images can not deal with Him. There is nothing for us except humbleness to offer.
Secondly, His knowledge on things is based on the entity of things, not on their images.
Thirdly, His antecedence and priority over things is not Time priority; rather, it is Absolute.
The first issue is based on the Absolute Uniqueness of Allah and the second issue is based on the Absolute Existence of Allah and the third issue is based on the Absolute infinity of God.
Ze’leb of Yemen said to Imam Ali (s): Have you seen your God?
Imam Ali (s) answered: Woe be on you. It would be impossible for me to worship Him if I had not seen Him. He asked: How? Imam Ali (s) answered: O Ze’leb, Allah may not be seen through sense eyes, but hearts have seen Him through Faith.
My God has got the most delicate meaning of delicacy; therefore He is not to be described through the ordinary meaning of kindness. He is the Greatest, but He can not be described whith the ordinary meaning of “great” as we conceive it. He is the most Glorious, but he may not be defined by our concept of glory.
Although it is necessary to make use of Nature, observing His signs and sciences and paying attention to the Islamic knowledge, He may not be described through our limited concepts and percepts. The finite concept may not describe an infinite Being.