Nature of god

• 99 Beautiful Names

  The number of beautiful names for God that Muslims believe are important terms for God, found in the Qur'an and the Hadiths
• Merciful

  The nature of God which depicts his mercy towards humans as reiterated throughout the Qur'an
• Just

  Belief that God will be fair in his judgement, giving punishment and reward where each are due
• Omnipotent

  The all-knowing, all-powerful nature of God
• Adalat

  The Arabic term for God's justice
• Al-Qadeer

  The Arabic term for the power of God
• Transcendent

  The nature of God as being beyond the realm of human physicality and understanding
• Immanent

  The nature of God as being always constantly close to humanity
• Beneficent

  The belief Allah is completely good
• Fair

  Belief in the impartiality of God's judgement and treatment of human beings
• Muslims believe God shows mercy to those who truly repent and forgives them of their sins. He is also seen as being merciful to the whole of mankind as well as individuals.
• The giving of the Qur'an as a guide to humans is also seen as a great display of God's mercy to all of mankind, and his previous revelations are seen as further evidence of his mercy throughout history.
• 'Adalat' is the Arabic term for God's Justice. Expresses the Muslim belief that Allah is just and will judge people according to their actions throughout their lifetime, good or bad. Muslims believe Allah sees/knows all and will make a judgement of a person's action with full knowledge.
• Believe God treats human beings in a just manner today, and this will continue to apply on the Day of Judgement.
• The goodness of God is shown through his just, fair, and merciful nature, as well as the many blessings he bestows upon people. The goodness of God is referred to 57 times throughout the Qur'an.
• Allah's beneficence is shown in the way He sent Prophets as guides to the right path, so He's compassionate and humans have free will to follow His path. It can also be seen in his gift to humans of life on earth.
• The Qur'an states that God is as close to man as his jugular vein – which, if cut, will end their life. This is the idea that God is integral to what it means to be a living human, and that he can't be removed from what it means to be alive.
• If Allah is in this world, then humanity is not alone; Muslims must believe He acts in their lives.
• Allah is outside this world, outside everything that He created. He is outside time, whereas humans are subject to time.
• Transcendence is being separate to the world, beyond it, which allows Allah to control and act in the world, but not be affected by it.
• God is supreme, so God can be anything and everything at once. He is not limited in the way that human beings are.
• God is divine, and our language is that of humans, hence we are unable to see how both qualities can be held because in our concept, language, and dimension they could not be.
• Immanence means being involved in the world and active in it; transcendence is being beyond space and time. These are opposite qualities, so this is impossible by definition.
• People's experience of the world and the God is of him being immanent or transcendent, not both. Suffering and the experience of humans in the world now suggests God is transcendent.
• Muslims believe God is completely and utterly powerful, able to make all things and control all things. This is referred to in the Arabic term 'al-Qadeer' which refers to the power of God. Muslims believe that all that happens takes place because God wills it (inshallah).
• The word Islam means submission and so describing God as all-powerful accords with this belief. God is the most powerful force one could think about.
• All descriptions of God are inadequate, and humans need many different descriptions to try to summarise what God is like (99 Beautiful Names).
• God's omnipotence is a complicated idea because of the presence of evil and suffering. There are certain things that God chooses not to do and is 'unable' to do, such as lie.
• The Qur'an: 'the most excellent names belong to God, use them to call on Him.'
• The Qur'an: 'God is in charge of everything.'
• The Qur'an: 'He is with you wherever you are.'
• The Qur'an: 'Allah commands you towards justice.'
• In their daily prayers, Muslims: 'In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the giver of Mercy.'