All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
The Attribute of laughter is authentically established for Allah Almighty through sound texts of the Sunnah. It is among His action-related Attributes that befit His Majesty and perfection, and His laughter does not resemble the laughter of created beings. Allah Almighty laughs whenever He wills, and the Sunnah mentions certain situations in which the Prophet ﷺ informed us that Allah laughs or laughs toward those involved.
The Attribute of laughter is established for Allah Almighty in authentic hadiths. Among them is the hadith of Abu Hurayrah, may Allah be pleased with him, in which the Prophet ﷺ said:
“Allah laughs at two men, one of whom kills the other, yet both enter Paradise: one fights in the cause of Allah and is killed, then Allah accepts the repentance of the killer, and he too is martyred.”
Narrated by Al-Bukhari (2826) and Muslim (1890).
It is also established in another hadith concerning the last person to leave the Fire and the last to enter Paradise that the man continues asking Allah Almighty and persistently supplicating until he says:
“O my Lord, do not make me the most wretched of Your creation.”
The Prophet ﷺ then said:
“He will continue supplicating until Allah laughs at him. When Allah laughs at him, He will say to him: ‘Enter Paradise.’”
Narrated by Al-Bukhari (7437) and Muslim (182).
These texts authentically establish the Attribute of laughter for Allah Almighty.
Affirming the Attribute of laughter for Allah Almighty does not mean likening Him to His creation. Allah Almighty says:
“There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”
[Ash-Shura 42:11]
What is required is to affirm whatever Allah Almighty affirmed for Himself or His Messenger ﷺ affirmed for Him, while believing that His Attributes befit His Majesty and do not resemble the attributes of created beings.
Al-Ajurri, may Allah have mercy on him, said in Al-Shari‘ah:
“It should not be asked concerning it: ‘How?’ Rather, one submits to it and believes that Allah Almighty laughs.”
Therefore, it is not permissible to ask about the modality of Allah’s laughter or to compare His laughter to human laughter.
Laughter is among the action-related Attributes, meaning those Attributes connected to Allah Almighty’s will. He performs them whenever He wills, according to His wisdom.
Examples of action-related Attributes include anger, pleasure, joy, laughter, descent, and rising over the Throne.
As for essential Attributes, such as knowledge, power, hearing, and sight, they are permanently established for Allah Almighty. It is not said regarding them that He performs them whenever He wills, because Allah has always been and will always remain All-Knowing, All-Powerful, All-Hearing, and All-Seeing.
There is nothing in the revealed texts restricting Allah Almighty’s laughter to a single situation. Rather, He does whatever He wills whenever He wills, and created beings cannot encompass Him in knowledge or fully comprehend His Attributes.
Allah Almighty says:
“But they do not encompass Him in knowledge.”
[Ta-Ha 20:110]
However, the Sunnah mentions particular situations in which the Prophet ﷺ informed us that Allah Almighty laughs. Among the most notable are:
The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Allah laughs at two men, one of whom kills the other, yet both enter Paradise: one fights in the cause of Allah and is killed, then Allah accepts the repentance of the killer, and he too is martyred.”
Narrated by Al-Bukhari (2826) and Muslim (1890).
It is narrated in the hadith of Abu al-Darda’, may Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet ﷺ said:
“There are three whom Allah loves, laughs toward, and rejoices over...”
Among them is a man who leaves his desire and his bed and gets up during the night to pray, even though he is able to sleep and rest.
Al-Albani, may Allah have mercy on him, graded it hasan in Al-Silsilah al-Sahihah (3478).
Also mentioned in the same hadith is a man who is traveling. His companions stay awake for some time and then sleep, while he gets up during the latter part of the night to pray despite the hardship of travel.
This is among the deeds for whose performers it is reported that Allah Almighty laughs.
Another example is the story of the Ansari man who gave preference to the guest of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ by giving him the food, even though there was not enough food for himself and his family. He extinguished the lamp, and he and his wife made the guest think they were eating with him, while they themselves spent the night hungry.
The next morning, when the man met the Prophet ﷺ, the Prophet ﷺ said to him:
“Allah laughed last night—or was amazed—at what you two did.”
Then Allah Almighty revealed:
“They give preference to others over themselves even though they are in need. And whoever is protected from the greed of his own soul—it is they who are successful.”
[Al-Hashr 59:9]
Narrated by Al-Bukhari (3798) and Muslim (2054).
The Attribute of laughter is established for Allah Almighty through authentic hadiths. It is an Attribute befitting His Majesty and perfection and does not resemble the laughter of created beings. It is among the action-related Attributes connected to His will.
It has been reported that Allah Almighty laughs in various situations, including the case of two men, one of whom kills the other and yet both enter Paradise; a servant getting up for the night prayer and leaving his desire and comfort; a traveler getting up for the night prayer; and remarkable acts of selflessness performed by a servant despite his own need.
What is required is to affirm whatever is authentically established from Allah and His Messenger ﷺ without asking how, drawing comparisons, or likening Him to creation, while believing that Allah Almighty knows Himself and His Attributes best.
And Allah knows best.