Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah. To proceed:
Allah تعالى says:
“And He is the Subjugator above His servants, and He is the All-Wise, the All-Aware.” [Al-An‘ām 6:18]
And He says:
“Say: Allah is the Creator of all things, and He is the One, the Subjugator.” [Ar-Ra‘d 13:16]
And He says:
“Say: I am only a warner, and there is no deity except Allah, the One, the Subjugator.” [Ṣād 38:65]
“Al-Qahhār” is an intensive form of “Al-Qāhir.” It means the One who subjugates and overcomes all things, manages them and directs them as He wills. Nothing can overcome Him, and nothing can escape His authority.
Imam At-Tabari, may Allah have mercy on him, explained “Al-Qahhār” as the One who subjugates everything, overcomes it, and directs it according to His will. He gives life to whom He wills and causes death to whom He wills; nothing can overcome or subdue Him.
Allah سبحانه وتعالى is therefore dominant over all His creation. All created beings are subject to His power and authority, and none can escape His will and decree.
This is why the connection between subjugation and Tawhid is evident: the One who subjugates all creation and is Himself never subjugated is the One who has no partner.
Al-Bayhaqi, may Allah have mercy on him, stated that “Al-Qahhār” means the One who subjugates in an intensive sense, and that He is the Powerful One who subdues creation according to what He wills.
Al-Halimi, may Allah have mercy on him, said: He is the One who subdues and can never be subdued.
Al-Khattabi, may Allah have mercy on him, said: He is the One who subdued the tyrants among His creation through punishment and subdued all creation through death.
Ibn Manzur, may Allah have mercy on him, stated that Allah subjugated His creation through His authority and power and directed them according to His will, willingly or unwillingly; “Al-Qahhār” is an intensive form.
It is incorrect to understand the Name Al-Qāhir as meaning that Allah only subjugates the unjust, arrogant, or deviant.
Allah’s subjugation is broader than that. He is the Subjugator of all His creation: those who obey Him and those who disobey Him, believers and disbelievers, because all of them are under His power and authority. No one can escape His dominion and management.
Allah تعالى says:
“And He is the Subjugator above His servants.”
Imam At-Tabari explained that the verse means that Allah is dominant over His servants, humbling them, and elevated above them through His subjugation, management, and creation of them.
Ibn al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, stated that Al-Qahhār can only be One, and that subjugation and oneness are interconnected. Dominion, power, strength, and might all belong to Allah, the One, the Subjugator, while everything besides Him is His created servant and subject to His authority.
As-Sa‘di, may Allah have mercy on him, said:
Every created being has another created being above it who subjugates it; above that subjugator is another subjugator, until subjugation ultimately belongs to the One, the Subjugator.
Thus, Allah’s subjugation is part of the perfection of His dominion and authority. It does not necessarily mean vengeance or punishment.
No.
Not everything that befalls a person—illness, poverty, death, or hardship—is evidence that he is being punished because of injustice or deviation.
Affliction may be punishment in some circumstances, while in others it may be a test, a means of raising one’s rank, and an expiation for sins.
Therefore, it is not correct to say about everyone who becomes ill or poor that they were afflicted because they were unjust, arrogant, or deviant.
This becomes even clearer when considering children. A child’s illness or hardship does not mean that the child committed a sin deserving punishment. Rather, such events occur within Allah’s decree and wisdom concerning His creation.
Allah تعالى says:
“He is not questioned about what He does, but they will be questioned.” [Al-Anbiyā’ 21:23]
Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, explained that Allah’s actions are not merely manifestations of power and subjugation. Rather, they proceed from perfect knowledge, power, mercy, and wisdom. He is the Wisest of judges and the Most Merciful of those who show mercy.
It is important to understand that affliction does not necessarily mean humiliation or vengeance.
Allah may test His servant with illness to raise his rank. He may test him with poverty for a wisdom known to Him, and an affliction may be a means of expiating sins and increasing reward.
The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was asked:
“Which people are tested most severely?”
He said:
“The prophets, then those nearest to them in righteousness, then those nearest to them...”
A person is tested according to his religion... The trials continue to affect the servant until he walks upon the earth having no sin.
Reported by At-Tirmidhi and authenticated by Al-Albani.
In another hadith, he صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
“The prophets, then the righteous.”
This demonstrates that the severity of affliction is not evidence of a person’s bad condition, since the prophets and righteous were among those most severely tested.
There is no contradiction between Allah being the One, the Subjugator and being the Most Merciful, the Compassionate, the Most Merciful of those who show mercy, the All-Wise, the Most Kind, and the Forgiving.
He is powerful and dominant over all His creation, yet He is Forbearing and does not hasten punishment. He gives His servants respite and opens for them the doors of repentance and forgiveness.
Allah تعالى says:
“Inform My servants that I am indeed the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful; and that My punishment is the painful punishment.” [Al-Ḥijr 15:49–50]
Thus, He combined the mention of forgiveness and mercy with the mention of punishment, so that the servant remains between hope and fear.
As-Sa‘di, may Allah have mercy on him, explained that knowing the perfection of Allah’s mercy and forgiveness motivates the servant to seek His mercy and repent from sins, while knowing the severity of His punishment prevents him from persisting in disobedience. Thus, his heart remains between hope and fear.
This is part of the perfection of Allah’s attributes. His subjugation is not the subjugation of one who is helpless or acts without wisdom, and His mercy is not a mercy arising from weakness or inability. Rather, He is the Powerful Subjugator, the Merciful and Compassionate, the Wise in His actions and decrees.
The Names “Al-Qāhir” and “Al-Qahhār” indicate the perfection of Allah’s dominion, power, and mastery over all His creation. He cannot be overcome or subdued, and all creation is under His ownership and management.
Allah’s subjugation does not mean that everyone afflicted by illness, poverty, or death has been punished because of injustice or deviation. Affliction may occur for a wisdom, as an expiation for sins, as a means of raising ranks, or it may affect someone who does not deserve punishment at all, such as a child.
Nor is there any contradiction between Allah’s subjugation and His mercy. He is the One, the Subjugator, while at the same time He is the Most Merciful, the Compassionate, the Most Merciful of those who show mercy, and the All-Wise, the All-Aware.
These attributes are all manifestations of His perfection. They do not contradict one another; rather, their combination demonstrates the perfection of His dominion, power, wisdom, and mercy.
And Allah knows best.