Chapter On Attribute Of Essence (Sifat al-DhDhat) Of Allah

سَمِعْتُ أَبَا عَبْدِ اللَّهِ ع يَقُولُ‌ لَمْ يَزَلِ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ رَبَّنَا وَ الْعِلْمُ ذَاتُهُ وَ لَا مَعْلُومَ وَ السَّمْعُ ذَاتُهُ وَ لَا مَسْمُوعَ وَ الْبَصَرُ ذَاتُهُ وَ لَا مُبْصَرَ وَ الْقُدْرَةُ ذَاتُهُ وَ لَا مَقْدُورَ فَلَمَّا أَحْدَثَ الْأَشْيَاءَ وَ كَانَ الْمَعْلُومُ‌[1] وَقَعَ الْعِلْمُ مِنْهُ عَلَى الْمَعْلُومِ وَ السَّمْعُ عَلَى الْمَسْمُوعِ وَ الْبَصَرُ عَلَى الْمُبْصَرِ وَ الْقُدْرَةُ عَلَ

"Allah (azwj) has always been our Lord. Knowledge was His essence without anything known, hearing was His essence without anything heard, sight was His essence without anything seen, and power was His essence without anything within His power. Then, when He created things and there were things to be known, His knowledg

سَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ‌ كَانَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ وَ لَا شَيْ‌ءَ غَيْرُهُ وَ لَمْ يَزَلْ عَالِماً بِمَا يَكُونُ فَعِلْمُهُ بِهِ قَبْلَ كَوْنِهِ كَعِلْمِهِ بِهِ بَعْدَ كَوْنِهِ.

"Allah (azwj) existed when nothing else existed. He eternally knows whatever comes into being. His knowledge of things before their coming into existence and afterwards is exactly the same."

كَتَبْتُ إِلَى أَبِي الْحَسَنِ ع فِي دُعَاءٍ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ مُنْتَهَى عِلْمِهِ فَكَتَبَ إِلَيَّ لَا تَقُولَنَّ مُنْتَهَى عِلْمِهِ فَلَيْسَ لِعِلْمِهِ مُنْتَهًى وَ لَكِنْ قُلْ مُنْتَهَى رِضَاهُ.

Do not say 'the extent of His knowledge,' for His knowledge has no end. Rather, say, 'the extent of His pleasure.'"

أَنَّهُ كَتَبَ إِلَى أَبِي الْحَسَنِ ع يَسْأَلُهُ عَنِ اللَّهِ عَزَّ وَ جَلَّ أَ كَانَ يَعْلَمُ الْأَشْيَاءَ قَبْلَ أَنْ خَلَقَ الْأَشْيَاءَ وَ كَوَّنَهَا أَوْ لَمْ يَعْلَمْ ذَلِكَ حَتَّى خَلَقَهَا وَ أَرَادَ خَلْقَهَا وَ تَكْوِينَهَا فَعَلِمَ مَا خَلَقَ عِنْدَ مَا خَلَقَ وَ مَا كَوَّنَ عِنْدَ مَا كَوَّنَ فَوَقَّعَ بِخَطِّهِ لَمْ يَزَلِ اللَّهُ عَالِماً بِالْأَشْيَاءِ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ الْأَشْيَاءَ كَعِلْمِهِ بِال

"Allah has always known things before creating them, just as He knows them after creating them."

كَتَبْتُ إِلَى‌ الرَّجُلِ ع أَسْأَلُهُ أَنَّ مَوَالِيَكَ اخْتَلَفُوا فِي الْعِلْمِ فَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ لَمْ يَزَلِ اللَّهُ عَالِماً قَبْلَ فِعْلِ الْأَشْيَاءِ وَ قَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ لَا نَقُولُ لَمْ يَزَلِ اللَّهُ عَالِماً لِأَنَّ مَعْنَى يَعْلَمُ يَفْعَلُ فَإِنْ أَثْبَتْنَا الْعِلْمَ فَقَدْ أَثْبَتْنَا فِي الْأَزَلِ مَعَهُ شَيْئاً فَإِنْ رَأَيْتَ جَعَلَنِيَ اللَّهُ فِدَاكَ أَنْ تُعَلِّمَنِي مِنْ ذَلِكَ مَا أَقِفُ عَلَيْ

“I wrote to the man (the Imam) (as) saying: "Some of your followers have disagreed about the nature of knowledge. Some of them say that Allah has always been knowing before the creation of things, while others say that we should not say that Allah has always been knowing because "knows" implies "acts," and if we affirm

قُلْتُ لِأَبِي جَعْفَرٍ ع جُعِلْتُ فِدَاكَ إِنْ رَأَيْتَ أَنْ تُعَلِّمَنِي هَلْ كَانَ اللَّهُ جَلَّ وَجْهُهُ يَعْلَمُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ الْخَلْقَ أَنَّهُ وَحْدَهُ فَقَدِ اخْتَلَفَ مَوَالِيكَ فَقَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ قَدْ كَانَ يَعْلَمُ قَبْلَ أَنْ يَخْلُقَ شَيْئاً مِنْ خَلْقِهِ وَ قَالَ بَعْضُهُمْ إِنَّمَا مَعْنَى يَعْلَمُ يَفْعَلُ فَهُوَ الْيَوْمَ يَعْلَمُ أَنَّهُ لَا غَيْرُهُ قَبْلَ فِعْلِ الْأَشْيَاءِ فَقَالُوا إِنْ

“I asked abu Ja‘far (a.s.), ‘May Allah take my soul in service for your cause, if you would consider it proper please enlighten me about whether Allah, Majestic is Whose face, had knowledge of His Oneness before He brought the creation into existence? Your followers differ on this issue. There are those who believe tha