Praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
The basic principle regarding the Names and Attributes of Allah تعالى is that they are tawqīfī, meaning that they are established only through evidence from the Book of Allah تعالى or the Sunnah of His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم. It is therefore not permissible to assign to Allah سبحانه a name or attribute for which there is no revealed evidence.
For this reason, a Muslim should restrict himself when describing Allah تعالى to what has been established in revelation, while believing that Allah سبحانه possesses every attribute of perfection and is free from every deficiency and imperfection.
It is not correct to describe Allah تعالى with “intellect” or “ʿāqil” (possessing intellect), because the word “intellect” in common linguistic usage refers to a meaning appropriate to created beings.
In human beings, intellect is the faculty by which a person understands things, distinguishes between them, and restrains himself from falling into what is inappropriate.
Linguists have explained that the Arabic word for intellect, ʿaql, is related to the meaning of restraining and preventing its possessor from becoming involved in destructive matters, and through it one distinguishes between different things.
These meanings are connected to the nature of created beings and their need for understanding, discrimination, and self-restraint. They therefore should not be used as a description of Allah تعالى.
Allah سبحانه is completely independent of all such needs. Rather, He has described Himself with attributes of perfection that encompass knowledge, wisdom, and complete awareness. He says:
﴿وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ﴾
“And know that Allah is Knowing of everything.”
[Al-Baqarah: 231]
And He سبحانه says:
﴿إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا﴾
“Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.”
[An-Nisa’: 11]
And He تعالى says:
﴿عَالِمُ الْغَيْبِ وَالشَّهَادَةِ وَهُوَ الْحَكِيمُ الْخَبِيرُ﴾
“He is the Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, and He is the All-Wise, the All-Aware.”
[Al-Anʿām: 73]
Therefore, it is more appropriate and correct to say: Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise, and All-Aware, rather than saying: “Allah possesses intellect”, because knowledge, wisdom, and awareness are established through the revealed texts, whereas intellect in this terminology has not been established as an attribute of Allah تعالى.
Shihab ad-Din ar-Ramli رحمه الله said:
“It is not permissible to describe Allah with intellect, because intellect is knowledge that prevents a person from proceeding toward what is inappropriate; it is derived from the meaning of restraint, and this meaning can only be conceived with regard to one who is prompted toward something inappropriate.”
Al-Hafiz as-Suyuti رحمه الله said:
“The Creator تعالى is described with the attribute of knowledge, but He is not described with the attribute of intellect.”
As for the statement of Allah تعالى:
﴿أَمِ اتَّخَذُوا مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ شُفَعَاءَ قُلْ أَوَلَوْ كَانُوا لَا يَمْلِكُونَ شَيْئًا وَلَا يَعْقِلُونَ﴾
[Az-Zumar: 43]
it has no connection with affirming the attribute of intellect for Allah تعالى.
The verse speaks about the polytheists who took gods and intercessors besides Allah, and explains the falsehood of worshipping them because those objects of worship possess nothing, do not reason, do not hear, and do not see.
Ibn Kathir رحمه الله explained that Allah تعالى condemns the polytheists for taking intercessors besides Allah—idols that possess nothing and have neither an intellect with which they can reason, nor hearing with which they can hear, nor sight with which they can see.
The meaning of Allah’s statement ﴿وَلَا يَعْقِلُونَ﴾ — “and they do not reason” — is that those idols and false objects of worship possess neither intellect nor understanding. How, then, could they be taken as intercessors with Allah or be worshipped besides Him?
Thus, the verse is speaking about false objects of worship. It does not affirm the attribute of intellect for Allah تعالى, and it is not valid to use it as evidence for doing so.
If a person wishes to express Allah’s perfection in knowledge, understanding, and governance, he should use the expressions established in the Qur’an and Sunnah, such as:
These Names and Attributes are established for Allah تعالى and contain meanings of perfection that make it unnecessary to use expressions that have not been established by revelation.
The Permanent Committee was asked about describing Allah تعالى as “the directing intellect” in order to make the meaning easier for ordinary people to understand. They responded that such an expression is not correct, because the Names and Attributes of Allah are established by revelation, and neither the Qur’an nor the Sunnah describes Allah تعالى with intellect. Instead, it is preferable to explain the perfection of His knowledge, wisdom, and management of affairs rather than use this expression.
It is not correct to describe Allah تعالى as “ʿāqil” or to attribute “intellect” to Him, because this expression has not been established in the Qur’an or Sunnah as an attribute of Allah تعالى.
As for His statement:
﴿وَلَا يَعْقِلُونَ﴾
it occurs in the context of condemning idols and false objects of worship that possess nothing, do not reason, do not hear, and do not see. It does not establish the attribute of intellect for Allah تعالى.
The duty concerning the Names and Attributes of Allah is to affirm for Him what He affirmed for Himself or what His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم affirmed for Him, and to describe Him using the expressions of perfection established in revelation. Thus, we say: All-Knowing, All-Wise, All-Aware, All-Powerful, All-Hearing, and All-Seeing, without going beyond what is established in the Qur’an and Sunnah.
And Allah تعالى knows best.