Ahmadiyyat or The True Islam — Page 39
39 The First Object of Religion The Islamic Conception of God As I have stated above, the first object of religion relates to four questions, and I shall, therefore, state what Islam teaches concerning each of these questions. The first question is, what does Islam teach con- cerning the person and attributes of God? Islam de- scribes God as a Perfect Being, possessing every excel- lence. The opening verse of the Holy Quran runs. 'All praise is due to Allah, the Creator and Sustainer of all the worlds. ' 13 As God has created all things, and all things depend on Him for their sustenance, He alone deserves all praise for the beauties and excellences to be found in different things, for all these beauties and excellences are derived from God. The beauty of a scene, the charm of a voice, the fragrance of a flower, the softness of a bed, the daintiness of a dish, in short the beauty and charm of all that pleases and appeals to the senses of man, is created and bestowed by God. The verse then proceeds: al-Ra h m a n al-Ra hi m i. e. , God has, out of His pure grace and bounty, created all those things the need of which was to be felt by man; for instance, light and air; fire and water; different kinds of food and medicines; timber; iron, stones, etc. He has 13 Al-F a ti h ah, 1: 2.