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Is Allah God? Is that a silly question??

U

Unveiled Artist

Veteran Member
firedragon said:
Its not comparing anything mate. It is clarifying its just language.

The Christian in Egypt says Allah. The Arabic Bible says Allah. The Quran says Allah. Simply because it is the same language.

Taking your mother analogy, there is only one mother in the entire universe then because you are making it an analogy to God. Thus, its one God. Different languages will have different words to refer to this one God. Thats it. Their socio construct or the theological narrative of God maybe different. But in a sentence, it will still be the word "God" because its just language.

Hope you understand.
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Yes. The language is limited to one god or mother that share similar characteristics. How loose is the term god that it can apply any mono and poly theist religion?

One couldn't use Jehovah for more specific reference if using god more universal rather than in abrahamic circles?
 
firedragon

firedragon

Veteran Member
Unveiled Artist said:
Yes. The language is limited to one god or mother that share similar characteristics. How loose is the term god that it can apply any mono and poly theist religion?

One couldn't use Jehovah for more specific reference if using god more universal rather than in abrahamic circles?
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I honestly did not understand your point.
 
Piculet

Piculet

Active Member
Amanaki said:
I had a feeling it was the name yes :) but I am happy to get it confirmed by a Muslim :)
Thank you @Piculet
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My pleasure. If you or someone cares to look at a source for that — I certainly didn't come up with it myself — here's a couple articles from scholars.
(...) As for translating the name "Allaah" with 'God' while translating the meaning of the Quran or Hadeeth or books of Islamic knowledge, we do not think that this is permissible. Rather, it is an obligation to leave the name of Allaah in its original form as it is pronounced "Allaah". This is because, the name Allaah is the proper name of our Lord, Allaah. Besides, the Name Allaah demonstrates all His other Beautiful Names. Allaah Says (what means): {And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allaah, so call on Him by them, and leave the company of those who belie or deny (or utter impious speech against) His Names. They will be requited for what they used to do.}[Quran 7:180].

Moreover, the Prophet
icon--1.gif
said: "Indeed, Allaah has ninety-nine names, one hundred less one; and he who memorizes them all by heart (and acts upon their implications) will enter Paradise." [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

The name "Allaah" is different from the word "God" which only means a deity and does not in any way indicate deeming Allaah far from being likened to false deities that are worshipped besides Him. The proper meaning of Laa Ilaaha Illa Allaah, is: "There is no deity worthy of being worshipped except Allaah".

Allaah Knows best.
Translating Allah as God - Islamweb - Fatwas
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And
Perhaps the view that is most likely of all of them to be correct is the view that the greatest name is “Allah,” because this is the one name which encompasses all the other names and attributes of Allah, may He be exalted, and it is a name that was never given to anyone other than Allah, may He be exalted. This is the view of most scholars.
The “greatest name of Allah” in the hadith texts and the scholars’ views - Islam Question & Answer
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Samantha Rinne

Samantha Rinne

Resident Genderfluid Writer/Artist
The tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.
The name that can be named is not the eternal Name.
The Nameless is the beginning of heaven and earth.
The named is the mother of ten thousand things.
Ever desireless, one can see the mystery.
Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations.
These two spring from the same source but differ in name;
this appears as darkness.
Darkness within darkness.
The gate to all mystery.
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The "ten thousand things" are the physical world. This world is neither eternal nor fully real. What is real is something that cannot be explained. If something can be named, it is part of the ten thousand things, not the Eternal.

God is simply God.

Allah is a name.
 
U

Unveiled Artist

Veteran Member
firedragon said:
Its not comparing anything mate. It is clarifying its just language.

The Christian in Egypt says Allah. The Arabic Bible says Allah. The Quran says Allah. Simply because it is the same language.

Taking your mother analogy, there is only one mother in the entire universe then because you are making it an analogy to God. Thus, its one God. Different languages will have different words to refer to this one God. Thats it. Their socio construct or the theological narrative of God maybe different. But in a sentence, it will still be the word "God" because its just language.

Hope you understand.
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Yes (re-answering). I'm trying to see if there is a deeper point. It does make sense one god has many names per culture etc.

To answer your title question, yes it would be redundant to say is Allah god. But I'm sure there is more to this obvious fact that meets the eye?
 
firedragon

firedragon

Veteran Member
Piculet said:
My pleasure. If you or someone cares to look at a source for that — I certainly didn't come up with it myself — here's a couple articles from scholars.

And
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Go deeper.

Allah is a conjunction of Al and Ilah. Al = the, and Ilah = God, Divinity or Deity. Thus the word Allah simply means The God or The Deity that defines monotheism in one word. It is equaling the use of the words “THE MOTHER”, because a person will have one mother. When you say “The Deity” it explicitly means you have one deity or one God. Thus Allah is not completely a representation of the word god but rather, “THE GOD”.


I noticed some people have a problem with the words “ilah” and “Allah”. Questions are asked that ilah is God, Allah is also God, so what’s the meaning of this?


“ilah” means “a thing that is divine” and people are requested not to make anything divine, but Allah or God himself.


One must understand from the natural meaning of the word ilah rather than looking at it from the English language perspective. There are some who insists that the word “ilah” or اله can only mean “God”. The irony is that most who insist this are not Muslim. Well, its true you don’t have to be a Muslim to know this of course. But this is the language, and most of those who insist this are those who have little or no knowledge in Arabic. Yet we can all be humble enough to learn one or two words.


So simply one could answer to the insistence that ilah HAS TO MEAN GOD is “not necessarily”.


“Have you seen the one who took his desire as his “ilah” “ - Quran 45:23.


Clearly above the Quran verse is speaking of one who took his own desire as his god, his divinity, his deity. Which means he has placed his desire above all. Thus the Quran is rejecting all kinds of divinities, including your own havah, or desire.


Same goes with 25:43. Have you seen the one who has taken his desire/ego/wishful thinking as his “ilah”.


So is a statue not to be taken as ilah. 6:74 And Abraham said to his father, Azar: “Will you take statues as ilah?


So does the Quran tell you not to take your wealth as ilah. Not even your children.


La ilaaha illallah the phrase eradicates all kinds of divinities. There is only “The God”. The Arabic word for this as I already cited above is Allah.


This is only the understanding of the language as stated in the Quran. Not faith. Faith is a separate topic. ال or Al is the article. In the word Allah, the article is not divisible of the measure فِعَالٌ in the sense of the measure مَفْعُولٌ , meaning مَأْلُوهٌ , with [the article] ال prefixed to it, so that it becomes الإِلَاهُ , then the vowel of the hamzah is transferred to the ل and the hamzah is suppressed, so that there remains للهُ.


So bottomline is to answer your question directly, the word Allah means "the divinity" which is the arabic word that simply means "THE GOD".
 
firedragon

firedragon

Veteran Member
icehorse said:
Doesn't this depend ENTIRELY on semantics?
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I am not an expert on the subject of semantics mate. Many people use this word "Semantics" to dismiss everything when they dont have a valid argument. Yet if you are actually referring to the in-depth study of semantics one could say that this is an attempt to understand external and internal linguistics as Noam Chomsky said. I believe saying "semantics" is just too vast a brush that all of this would eventually fall into semantics. The issue with interpreting theological terms has both signatures of internal and external. Rather than taking this route, I would like to say that this is plain and simple language.
 
Thief

Thief

Rogue Theologian
firedragon said:
If you translate the word Allah which is Arabic, this question would be "Is God God?"!

If one is unaware, one can be corrected but if you insist....
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Allah?.....aka.....Almighty?

yes

I don't really care what Name you use

I don't think He as one
 
Piculet

Piculet

Active Member
firedragon said:
So bottomline is to answer your question directly, the word Allah means "the divinity" which is the arabic word that simply means "THE GOD".
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My question? I try not to ask unnecessary questions and I follow Islam, not your — or my own — reasoning.
One of the supplications that the Prophet (saw) used to say was: 'Allahumma, inni a'udhu bika min 'ilmin la yanfa'u, wa min du'a'in la yusma'u, wa min qalbin la yakhsha'u, wa min nafsin la tahba'u [O Allah, I seek refuge with You from knowledge that is of no benefit, from a supplication that is not heard, from a heart that does not fear (You) and from a soul that is not satisfied].'" (Sahih)
Hadith No. 250, The Book of the Sunnah Sunan Ibn Majah
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The Prophet (saw) said: “Do not seek knowledge in order to show off in front of the scholars, or to argue with the foolish, and do not choose the back seat in a gathering, due to it (i.e. the knowledge which you have learned) for whoever does that, the Fire, the Fire (awaits him).” Ibn Majah
Hadith No. 254, The Book of the Sunnah Sunan Ibn Majah
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icehorse

icehorse

......unaffiliated...... anti-dogmatist
Premium Member
firedragon said:
I am not an expert on the subject of semantics mate. Many people use this word "Semantics" to dismiss everything when they dont have a valid argument. Yet if you are actually referring to the in-depth study of semantics one could say that this is an attempt to understand external and internal linguistics as Noam Chomsky said. I believe saying "semantics" is just too vast a brush that all of this would eventually fall into semantics. The issue with interpreting theological terms has both signatures of internal and external. Rather than taking this route, I would like to say that this is plain and simple language.
Click to expand...

I'm not talking about being an expert in linguistics. Instead, it seems to me that the nature of the OP is ABOUT the meaning of a few important words, correct?
 
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