 ٧ـ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ أَبِي عَبْدِ الله رَفَعَهُ إِلَى أَبِي هَاشِمٍ الْجَعْفَرِيِّ قَالَ كُنْتُ عِنْدَ أَبِي جَعْفَرٍ الثَّانِي (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) فَسَأَلَهُ رَجُلٌ فَقَالَ أَخْبِرْنِي عَنِ الرَّبِّ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى لَهُ أَسْمَاءٌ وَصِفَاتٌ فِي كِتَابِهِ وَأَسْمَاؤُهُ وَصِفَاتُهُ هِيَ هُوَ فَقَالَ أَبُو جَعْفَرٍ (عَلَيْهِ السَّلام) إِنَّ لِهَذَا الْكَلامِ وَجْهَيْنِ إِنْ كُنْتَ تَقُولُ هِيَ هُوَ أَيْ إِنَّهُ ذُو عَدَدٍ وَكَثْرَةٍ فَتَعَالَى الله عَنْ ذَلِكَ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَقُولُ هَذِهِ الصِّفَاتُ وَالاسْمَاءُ لَمْ تَزَلْ فَإِنَّ لَمْ تَزَلْ مُحْتَمِلٌ مَعْنَيَيْنِ فَإِنْ قُلْتَ لَمْ تَزَلْ عِنْدَهُ فِي عِلْمِهِ وَهُوَ مُسْتَحِقُّهَا فَنَعَمْ وَإِنْ كُنْتَ تَقُولُ لَمْ يَزَلْ تَصْوِيرُهَا وَهِجَاؤُهَا وَتَقْطِيعُ حُرُوفِهَا فَمَعَاذَ الله أَنْ يَكُونَ مَعَهُ شَيْ‏ءٌ غَيْرُهُ بَلْ كَانَ الله وَلا خَلْقَ ثُمَّ خَلَقَهَا وَسِيلَةً بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ خَلْقِهِ يَتَضَرَّعُونَ بِهَا إِلَيْهِ وَيَعْبُدُونَهُ وَهِيَ ذِكْرُهُ وَكَانَ الله وَلا ذِكْرَ وَالْمَذْكُورُ بِالذِّكْرِ هُوَ الله الْقَدِيمُ الَّذِي لَمْ يَزَلْ وَالاسْمَاءُ وَالصِّفَاتُ مَخْلُوقَاتٌ وَالْمَعَانِي وَالْمَعْنِيُّ بِهَا هُوَ الله الَّذِي لا يَلِيقُ بِهِ الاخْتِلافُ وَلا الائْتِلافُ وَإِنَّمَا يَخْتَلِفُ وَيَأْتَلِفُ الْمُتَجَزِّئُ فَلا يُقَالُ الله مُؤْتَلِفٌ وَلا الله قَلِيلٌ وَلا كَثِيرٌ وَلَكِنَّهُ الْقَدِيمُ فِي ذَاتِهِ لانَّ مَا سِوَى الْوَاحِدِ مُتَجَزِّئٌ وَالله وَاحِدٌ لا مُتَجَزِّئٌ وَلا مُتَوَهَّمٌ بِالْقِلَّةِ وَالْكَثْرَةِ وَكُلُّ مُتَجَزِّئٍ أَوْ مُتَوَهَّمٍ بِالْقِلَّةِ وَالْكَثْرَةِ فَهُوَ مَخْلُوقٌ دَالُّ عَلَى خَالِقٍ لَهُ فَقَوْلُكَ إِنَّ الله قَدِيرٌ خَبَّرْتَ أَنَّهُ لا يُعْجِزُهُ شَيْ‏ءٌ فَنَفَيْتَ بِالْكَلِمَةِ الْعَجْزَ وَجَعَلْتَ الْعَجْزَ سِوَاهُ وَكَذَلِكَ قَوْلُكَ عَالِمٌ إِنَّمَا نَفَيْتَ بِالْكَلِمَةِ الْجَهْلَ وَجَعَلْتَ الْجَهْلَ سِوَاهُ وَإِذَا أَفْنَى الله الاشْيَاءَ أَفْنَى الصُّورَةَ وَالْهِجَاءَ وَالتَّقْطِيعَ وَلا يَزَالُ مَنْ لَمْ يَزَلْ عَالِماً فَقَالَ الرَّجُلُ فَكَيْفَ سَمَّيْنَا رَبَّنَا سَمِيعاً فَقَالَ لانَّهُ لا يَخْفَى عَلَيْهِ مَا يُدْرَكُ بِالاسْمَاعِ وَلَمْ نَصِفْهُ بِالسَّمْعِ الْمَعْقُولِ فِي الرَّأْسِ وَكَذَلِكَ سَمَّيْنَاهُ بَصِيراً لانَّهُ لا يَخْفَى عَلَيْهِ مَا يُدْرَكُ بِالابْصَارِ مِنْ لَوْنٍ أَوْ شَخْصٍ أَوْ غَيْرِ ذَلِكَ وَلَمْ نَصِفْهُ بِبَصَرِ لَحْظَةِ الْعَيْنِ وَكَذَلِكَ سَمَّيْنَاهُ لَطِيفاً لِعِلْمِهِ بِالشَّيْ‏ءِ اللَّطِيفِ مِثْلِ الْبَعُوضَةِ وَأَخْفَى مِنْ ذَلِكَ وَمَوْضِعِ النُّشُوءِ مِنْهَا وَالْعَقْلِ وَالشَّهْوَةِ لِلسَّفَادِ وَالْحَدَبِ عَلَى نَسْلِهَا وَإِقَامِ بَعْضِهَا عَلَى بَعْضٍ وَنَقْلِهَا الطَّعَامَ وَالشَّرَابَ إِلَى أَوْلادِهَا فِي الْجِبَالِ وَالْمَفَاوِزِ وَالاوْدِيَةِ وَالْقِفَارِ فَعَلِمْنَا أَنَّ خَالِقَهَا لَطِيفٌ بِلا كَيْفٍ وَإِنَّمَا الْكَيْفِيَّةُ لِلْمَخْلُوقِ الْمُكَيَّفِ وَكَذَلِكَ سَمَّيْنَا رَبَّنَا قَوِيّاً لا بِقُوَّةِ الْبَطْشِ الْمَعْرُوفِ مِنَ الْمَخْلُوقِ وَلَوْ كَانَتْ قُوَّتُهُ قُوَّةَ الْبَطْشِ الْمَعْرُوفِ مِنَ الْمَخْلُوقِ لَوَقَعَ التَّشْبِيهُ وَلاحْتَمَلَ الزِّيَادَةَ وَمَا احْتَمَلَ الزِّيَادَةَ احْتَمَلَ النُّقْصَانَ وَمَا كَانَ نَاقِصاً كَانَ غَيْرَ قَدِيمٍ وَمَا كَانَ غَيْرَ قَدِيمٍ كَانَ عَاجِزاً فَرَبُّنَا تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى لا شِبْهَ لَهُ وَلا ضِدَّ وَلا نِدَّ وَلا كَيْفَ وَلا نِهَايَةَ وَلا تَبْصَارَ بَصَرٍ وَمُحَرَّمٌ عَلَى الْقُلُوبِ أَنْ تُمَثِّلَهُ وَعَلَى الاوْهَامِ أَنْ تَحُدَّهُ وَعَلَى الضَّمَائِرِ أَنْ تُكَوِّنَهُ جَلَّ وَعَزَّ عَنْ أَدَاةِ خَلْقِهِ وَسِمَاتِ بَرِيَّتِهِ وَتَعَالَى عَنْ ذَلِكَ عُلُوّاً كَبِيراً.
 7. Muhammad ibn abu ‘Abdallah in a marfu‘ manner, has narrated from abu Hashim al-Ja‘fari who has said the following. “I was in the company of abu Ja’far al-Thani, the 2nd , when a person asked him, “The names and attributes of the Lord, the Most Holy, the Most High, mentioned in His book (the Holy Quran) are they He Himself?” The Imam replied, “Your question has two aspects. If you say that they are His Own Self, meaning that He has plurality and multiplicity, then Allah is far exalted from being as suCh If you mean that names and attributes of Allah had eternally been there, this also has a double meaning. (Firstly) if you mean, that names and attributes have eternally been in the knowledge of Allah and He eternally deserved them, it is true and quite right. If you mean that the letters, pictures, spellings and syllables of names and attributes were eternal, then we seek refuge from Him against such belief. Allah existed but there were no creatures. He created names and attributes as a means between His Own-self and the creatures. Through these means they pray to Him and ask Him for help and names are the means to speak of Him. Allah existed without being mentioned. The One mentioned through names is Allah the eternal, Who will be there eternally. Names and attributes are created their meaning and what they indicate is Allah, Who is far above plurality and combination, which happens only to the moving things. You can not say that Allah is compiled. He is a great deal or very little. He His Own-self is eternal. What is other than the Only One, it is divisible. Allah is not divisible. Not even in one’s imaginations He can be though of as more or less. Every divisible or being thought of as less or more, in one’s imagination, is created which is the sign of the existence of the Creator. When you say Allah has power you in reality say that He does not become frustrated due to weakness. In this way you negate weakness from Him and consider it other than Him. The same is the meaning of your saying that He is all knowing. With this, you negate ignorance from Him and have considered it other than Him. When Allah will destroy all things the form, spelling and syllables will all be destroyed. Allah is and will eternally be there.” The man then said, “Why do we call our Lord All-hearing? The Imam said, “Because every thing that can be heard is not hidden from Him. We do not ascribe to Him the hearing ability that exists in the heads. In the same way we call Him All-seeing. It is because every thing that can be seen like colors or individuals etc., are not hidden from Him. We do not call Him All-seeing because of blinking eye. In the same way we call Him Subtle because of His knowledge of delicate things such as insects, etc., or even more delicate things. (It is because of His knowledge of) that, wherefrom such things emerge and of the intelligence, desires for reproduction, compassion for their offspring, their guarding each other, their carrying food and drink to their offspring in the mountains, wilderness, valleys and desolate places. From this we know that their Creator is Subtle but without the condition of subtlety. Such conditions are for the creatures, who are conditioned with conditions. We also call our Lord powerful but not because of the aggressiveness that the creatures display. If so, there a similarity would have existed as well as degrees of decrease that would involve increases. Whatever would decrease is not eternal and is weak. To our Lord, the Most Holy, the Most High, no one is similar, no contrary, no resemblance, no conditions, no end and no seeing of eyes. It is unlawful for the hearts to analogize Him. It is unlawful for the Awham (intuitive power) to limit Him. It is unlawful for one’s consciousness to contain Him. He is far Glorious and Majestic and above coming within the reach of the means of His creatures or have the sings of His servants. He is High and Great and far above such matters.”