Foundations of Islamic Belief · Lesson 1 of 3
Who Is Allah? Names, Nearness, and Awe
Before we can speak about belief, we need a clear picture of the One believed in — as He described Himself.
A God who described Himself
Much of what people believe about God is inherited from arguments, culture, or fear. The Qur'an takes a different route: it lets Allah describe Himself, and then asks the reader to sit with the description.
The most concentrated passage on this is Ayat al-Kursi, which speaks of the Ever-Living, the Sustainer, the One who neither dozes nor sleeps. 2:255 It is a description of attention without fatigue — the opposite of everything we know about ourselves.
Nearness without similarity
The Qur'an says Allah is closer to a person than their own jugular vein. 50:16 At the same time, it insists that nothing is comparable to Him. Holding both truths together is the discipline of sound belief: nearness without imagining that Allah is contained in space, and transcendence without imagining that He is distant from concern.
Names are not slogans
The names of Allah 7:180 are not decorative. Each one is a way of relating to Him in a specific situation: ar-Raḥmān when you are ashamed, al-ʿAzīz when you are powerless, as-Samīʿ when no one else is listening. Learn a few names deeply rather than many superficially.
Reflection
Before moving on, write down one sentence describing who Allah is to you. Keep it. At the end of the course, read it again and see whether the words have changed.
Sources and references
- Qur'an 2:255; 57:3; 50:16; 7:180.
- Al-Ghazālī, al-Maqṣad al-Asnā, on the meanings of the divine names.
- Hadith: "Allah has ninety-nine names; whoever preserves them will enter Paradise." — Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2736; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2677.
Reflection questions
- Which name or attribute of Allah do you find most comforting
- and why?
- How does the idea of Allah's nearness change the way you make decisions when no one is watching?
- Where in your life have you treated something created as though it had the power of the Creator?
Write your answers in a notebook, or discuss them in a study circle.