Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah.
The basic principle concerning the Names and Attributes of Allah is that a Muslim affirms for Allah what He has affirmed for Himself in His Book and what His Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, affirmed for Him in the authentic Sunnah, while firmly believing that Allah says: “There is nothing whatsoever like Him.”
Whatever is affirmed for Allah does not resemble what is affirmed for created beings. The fact that words are shared does not necessitate that their realities or meanings are identical.
The word “Self” (an-Nafs) has been mentioned in the Qur’an and authentic Sunnah in a form attributed to Allah. Examples include:
The intended meaning of “Self” (an-Nafs) in these contexts is the sacred Essence of Allah—that is, Allah Himself. It does not mean a self separate from His Essence and Attributes, nor is it an independent attribute like hearing, sight, knowledge, and power.
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, stated that what is meant by the Self here is Allah’s Essence: “His Self is His sacred Essence.”
He explained that the word “self” may be used in Arabic to mean a person’s very essence or person, as when one says, “I saw Zayd himself.” Thus, the texts that attribute the Self to Allah refer to Allah Himself, with His Attributes; they do not mean an essence stripped of attributes, nor an attribute separate from the Essence.
Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-ʿUthaymin, may Allah have mercy on him, explained regarding the hadith “I have forbidden oppression for Myself” that “the Self” here refers to the Essence. Thus, “upon Myself” means “upon My Essence, Mighty and Majestic.” He also explained that the Self in this sense is not an independent attribute like knowledge, power, and hearing.
No. The texts cannot be understood in this way.
Allah’s saying “Every soul will taste death” does not mean that Allah’s Essence dies, because Allah is Ever-Living and never dies. Allah says:
“Allah—there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of all.”
And He says:
“And rely upon the Ever-Living who does not die.”
Thus, the meaning of a word may differ according to its context. The word “self” used concerning Allah cannot be understood as the created soul, which is characterized by weakness, perishability, and death.
Likewise, attributing the Self to Allah does not mean that it resembles human souls. Allah says:
“There is nothing whatsoever like Him, and He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing.”
Therefore, what is obligatory is to affirm what has been stated in the Qur’an and Sunnah in a manner befitting Allah, while believing that there is nothing whatsoever like Him.
The Qur’an and Sunnah establish the attribution of “the Self” (an-Nafs) to Allah. In these texts, it means Allah’s sacred Essence, not a self independent of His Essence and not a self resembling the selves of created beings.
As for Allah’s saying “Every soul will taste death,” it does not conflict with this, because Allah is the Ever-Living who never dies. Texts concerning created beings must not be applied to Allah in a manner that contradicts His perfection and majesty.
We ask Allah to grant us beneficial knowledge, to show us the truth, and to grant us the ability to follow it.
And Allah knows best.