Praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
Allah تعالى should not be described as “thinking,” nor should thinking be regarded as one of His attributes, because the Names and Attributes of Allah are based solely on revelation. Furthermore, the term “thinking,” in its customary usage, implies examining matters and moving from premises to conclusions in order to arrive at knowledge that was not previously present. These are characteristics of created beings, whereas Allah سبحانه possesses perfect knowledge; His knowledge is not preceded by ignorance nor followed by any deficiency.
The basic principle regarding the Names and Attributes of Allah تعالى is that nothing is affirmed except what is established by the Qur’an and Sunnah. Therefore, we do not give Allah a name or attribute for which there is no evidence from Islamic revelation.
Al-Saffarini رحمه الله transmitted from Imam Ahmad that Allah تعالى is described only with what He described Himself with, or what His Messenger ﷺ described Him with, and that one should not go beyond the Qur’an and Hadith.
This is an important principle in the subject of Allah’s Names and Attributes: we affirm what Allah affirmed for Himself and what His Messenger ﷺ affirmed for Him; we negate from Him what He negated from Himself or what His Messenger ﷺ negated from Him; and we do not go beyond the revealed texts by introducing newly coined expressions.
“Al-Mufakkir” (“The Thinker”) is not among the Names of Allah تعالى, nor has the attribute of thinking been established for Him سبحانه.
Allah سبحانه is described with perfect knowledge. Among His Names are Al-‘Alim (the All-Knowing) and Al-‘Alim in the sense of the One who knows, and His knowledge encompasses everything.
Allah تعالى says:
﴿عَالِمِ الْغَيْبِ لَا يَعْزُبُ عَنْهُ مِثْقَالُ ذَرَّةٍ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَلَا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَلَا أَصْغَرُ مِنْ ذَلِكَ وَلَا أَكْبَرُ إِلَّا فِي كِتَابٍ مُبِينٍ﴾ [Saba’: 3]
“He is the Knower of the unseen. Not even the weight of an atom escapes Him in the heavens or on the earth, nor anything smaller or greater than that, except that it is recorded in a clear Book.”
Thus, Allah’s knowledge is not preceded by ignorance. He does not need to retrieve information after it has been absent from His knowledge, nor does He need to investigate and consider matters in order to reach a conclusion.
A human being, however, may face a matter whose reality he does not know, so he gathers information, considers possibilities, compares them, and then reaches an opinion or decision. This is what is ordinarily meant by thinking.
As for Allah سبحانه, His knowledge is perfect, eternal, and all-encompassing, so He has no need for any of this.
In its original human sense, thinking is a stage in reaching knowledge. A person may contemplate, remember, bring premises to mind, compare them, and then reach a conclusion that was not previously present to him.
Thus, thought involves moving between pieces of information and premises in order to arrive at what is sought.
These meanings do not befit Allah’s knowledge, because Allah does not gain new knowledge through thinking, nor does He move from ignorance to knowledge, or from uncertainty to certainty.
Therefore, saying that Allah “thinks before making a decision” is incorrect, because it suggests that Allah سبحانه needs a stage of examination and recollection in order to know what is most appropriate. Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He, is far above such a notion.
No, and this is a very important point.
Negating thinking from Allah does not mean negating wisdom from His actions.
Allah سبحانه is Wise, and all His actions are based on knowledge, wisdom, ability, and will. However, He does not need human-like thinking for His actions to be wise.
He سبحانه knows what was and what will be, knows where wisdom and benefit lie, and decrees matters with His knowledge and wisdom.
Therefore, we should distinguish between saying:
Allah تعالى is Wise, and His actions occur according to wisdom. This is established.
Allah تعالى thinks in order to reach the correct decision. This should not be attributed to Him.
The subject of informing about Allah is, in principle, broader than the subject of His Names and Attributes. However, not every expression that is linguistically valid may appropriately be used if it contains a corrupt meaning or suggests something that does not befit Allah.
The term “thinking,” in its commonly understood usage, implies a need to examine matters, recall premises, and move from what is known to what is unknown, or from uncertainty to weighing alternatives. Therefore, Allah تعالى should not be described with this term, neither as a Name nor merely as a statement about Him.
It is better to use clear, scripturally established expressions and say:
Allah تعالى is All-Knowing and Wise. He knows everything, nothing is hidden from Him, and all His actions take place according to wisdom.
It is not correct to describe Allah تعالى as “thinking,” nor to affirm the attribute of thinking for Him سبحانه.
The reason is not merely that thinking is deficient in every possible sense, but rather that thinking, in its commonly understood meaning, is a characteristic of a created being who needs examination, reasoning, and recalling information in order to reach a conclusion. Allah تعالى possesses perfect knowledge; His knowledge is not preceded by ignorance, and He does not need to acquire new knowledge.
At the same time, it must be affirmed that Allah سبحانه is Wise in His actions and judgments, and that His decree and determination take place through His knowledge, wisdom, power, and will, without affirming for Him anything that has not been established in the Qur’an and Sunnah.
And Allah knows best.