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What is the ruling on saying "passions aligned with passions" when describing the passions of Allah and His Messenger, and what is the ruling on describing Allah as having a "transparent taste"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The statement "Allah's desire" (Hawa Allah) could mean that the Prophet's desire aligned with Allah's will, or vice versa, and one should not think ill of him. However, he must be cautioned about the necessity of using the divinely prescribed terms found in the Quran and Sunnah, as the divinely prescribed terms are stronger and deeper. The term "hawa" (desire/inclination) has only been used in the context of blameworthy desire, as in His (Allah's) saying: "And do not follow their inclinations away from the truth which has come to you." (Quran 5:48). Similarly, scholars have prohibited the use of the terms "ishq" (passionate love) or "hawa" (desire) for Allah Almighty and for His servants, and instead prefer the term "hubb" (love) as it is found in the Quran and Sunnah, as in His (Allah's) saying: "Allah will bring forth [in place of them] a people whom He will love and who will love Him." (Quran 5:54). The majority of scholars have unanimously agreed on the impermissibility of using the term "ishq" (passionate love) in reference to Allah Almighty for several reasons, including the absence of a divine text to that effect, and because "ishq" denotes excessive love, and Allah is not described by excessiveness, and because it is derived from changeability.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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