: Shall I take as a helper any other than the Creator of the heavens and the earth? And it is He who feeds but is not fed.” (Al-An'aam : 14) Greatness is often attached to world leaders, footballers, boxers and other famous people. However this is a false notion of greatness that holds neither value nor substance. Although we know that Allah (SWT) is the Greatest, yet this is not properly reflected and recognised in the heart. Once a person begins to realise the Greatness of Allah, any subconscious thoughts of greatness that he may have developed regarding a mortal will disappear and, in times of need and difficulty he will turn towards Allah (SWT). Allah says:
“Say (O Muhammed : Shall I take as a helper any other than the Creator of the heavens and the earth? And it is He who feeds but is not fed.” (Al-An'aam : 14)
Hadhrat Abdullah bin Abbas (RA) narrates:
“One day I was behind the Prophet and he said to me, Young man! I shall teach you some words (of advice): Be mindful of Allah, and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah, and you will find Him in front of you. If you ask, ask Allah; if you seek help, seek help from Allah. Know that if the nation were to gather to benefit you with anything, it would only benefit you with something that Allah has already prescribed for you, and that if they gather to harm you with anything, they would only harm you with something Allah has already prescribed for you. The pen has been lifted and the pages have dried.” (Tirmidhi).
This shows the Power and Might of Allah (SWT). The creation is helpless and totally incapable of anything without the Help and Will of Allah. If He wills something to happen, it will definitely happen and there is none who can prevent it.
“Surely, His is the Creation and Commandment”. (Al-A'raaf : 54).
Allah (SWT) is the One who is Most Perfect, free from all deficiencies, worthy of all Praise, the Most Majestic and the Most High. He is the One and Only Lord for all the universe, its Creator, Owner, Organiser, Provider, Master, Planner, Sustainer, Cherisher and Giver of Security. He Knows, Hears, and Sees all things including an ant on a dark, stormy night. He is the Self-Sufficient Master Who is not in need of anything whilst all are in need of Him. Nothing resembles Him as Allah says:
“There is nothing like Him; and He is the All-Hearer, the All-Seer”. (Ash-Shura : 11)
No effort is expended by Him in carrying any action out as He says:
“Verily, His command when He intends a thing is only that He says to it ‘Be!' – and it is!” (Ya-Seen : 82) and in Ayat-ul-Kursi Allah says :
“…and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them (the heavens and the earth)…” (Al-Baqarah : 255).
Along with this, no decision of Allah is overturned or delayed. Allah (SWT) is alone in all of the above attributes and many more. This is all the principle of Tawheed (the oneness of Allah) which states that Allah is Alone in self, Names, Attributes and Worship. In other words, Allah has no partner or equal, He possesses His Names and Attributes without equal, and He alone should be worshipped. Now that is a real mark of greatness.
“So all the Praises and Thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the heavens and the Lord of the earth and the Lord of the Worlds. And His (Alone) is the Majesty in the heavens and the earth, and He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise”. (Al-Jathiyah : 36-37).
From above it is clear that it is totally incorrect to say that a certain person can cause children to be born, can fulfil our needs or is capable of such action which contradicts the concept of Tawheed. In fact it is also incorrect to believe that our dear Prophet (PBUH), who is undoubtedly the best of creation, is equal in any respect to Allah (SWT). For example our dear Prophet does not have knowledge of the Unseen as Allah says:
“And with Him are the keys of the Ghaib (all that is hidden),none knows them but He”. (Al-An'aam : 59) and this is further corroborated by a number of saheeh Ahaadeeth.
There is a beautiful Hadeethi Qudsi (Sacred Hadith i.e. one in which the Prophet reports what has been revealed to him by Allah) which describes the Greatness of Allah in eloquent terms, part of which is mentioned below:
“O My Servants, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to be the most pious as the most pious heart of any one man of you, that would not increase My Kingdom in anything. O My servants were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and the jinn of you to be as wicked as the wicked heart of any one man of you that would not decrease My Kingdom in anything. O My servants, were the first of you and the last of you, the human of you and jinn of you to rise up in one place and make a request of Me, and I were to give everyone what he requested, that would not decrease what I have, any more than a needle decreases the sea if put into it”. (Muslim).
To recognise the Creator, we must remove all thoughts of greatness that we may be harbouring about an individual which conflicts in our recognition of Allah (SWT). To respect and love someone is one thing, but to transgress the limits is an entirely different matter. To build up the recognition and realisation of the greatness of Allah (SWT), we must constantly look, listen, talk and think about the greatness of Allah. Of course, our feeble minds cannot comprehend the Mighty Being of Allah, therefore we should ponder over the creation to recognise the Creator. In addition to this, we must equip ourselves with the correct beliefs regarding Allah and repeatedly praise and glorify Him. May Allah enable us to do this. Ameen.
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