wise even if his share of all other secular branches of knowledge is most modest. The ratio of
the wisdom of any of Allah's servants to that of Allah is like the ratio of such servant's
knowledge to that of Allah, and what a vast difference it is! And what a vast distance it is
between both norms of knowledge! Yet despite the huge gap between both matters, wisdom is
regarded as the most precious of all types of knowledge and the most fruitful, and anyone
who is endowed with wisdom is surely granted a great deal of good.
To derive a good conduct from the attribute al-Hakeem requires a servant of Allah to be wise,
that is, to do his best in whatever good deeds he does, and that his condition is pleasing to
others, that is, based on following the commandments of Allah and distancing himself from
whatever He has enjoined us to be distant from. He takes extreme care in performing his
religious obligations, distancing himself from following his own whims and desires, staying
away from any doubtful matter.
The Messenger of Allah has said, "The apex of wisdom is fearing Allah." A wise person is
one who indicts his own self and who learns about what will come after death. A feeble
person is one who follows his own desires and still wants even more from Allah. The
Messenger of Allah has made many wise statements in this regard. A bedouin once came to
the Messenger of Allah and asked him to teach him something good to say. He told him to
say, "There is no god except Allah, the One and only God Who has no partner; Allah is Great,
Greater than everything; Praise, a great deal indeed of Praise, is due to Allah; Glory to Allah,
Lord of the Worlds; there is no power nor might except in Allah, the Honoured One, the
Wise." The bedouin said, "All this is for my Lord; what about something for my own self?!"
The Messenger of Allah taught him to say, "Lord! I invoke You to forgive me, to have mercy
on me, to grant me guidance, to grant me good health, and to grant me an increase in
sustenance." [8]
As regarding what some people consider as having "wisdom," anyone who knows
"everything" without knowing Allah is not worthy of being called wise because he has missed
the knowledge of the best and the most significant of everything. One who knows Allah is a
wise person even if his share of all other branches of knowledge is very shallow, even if he
stutters or is unable to absorb them. One who knows Allah is one whose speech will sound
different from that of anyone else, one who seldom indulges in frivolous matters. On the
contrary, his speech will be inclusive, and he does not seek any vanishing interest.
- "Al-Wadood"
The Most Glorified and Exalted One has said, "And He is the Forgiving, the Loving" (Qura'n,
85:14).
"Al-Wadood" is an Attribute derived from the Arabic word "wudd" which conveys the
meaning of love and friendship, and it applies to all avenues of goodness. Allah is "al-