Allah is God in Arabic. It is the name by which Muslims call their Creator. Allah is a unique name in Arabic. The word Allah cannot be made masculine, feminine, plural or altered in any way. The English word God on the other hand has many forms, Goddess, Godling, Gods and so forth.

The best source to find out more about Allah is His Word - The Qur�an. Let us take a look at what Allah Almighty says about himself in the Holy Qur�an.
�Declare: He is One God; Allah the Eternal, the Absolute. He neither begets nor was He begotten, and there is none comparable to Him.� (Chapter 112; Verses 1-4)

From this verse we learn that Allah is alone, He has no Partner, neither does he have any sons or daughters, parents and so on. We also learn that there is nothing else like Allah, so unlike the Christians, Muslims do not believe that they are made in God�s image.

In Islam, it is an unpardonable sin to associate partners with Allah, to believe that He has a son or partner or helper. Over and over again in the Qur�an we are reminded that Allah is One and He is Alone, and that he has no partner.

�Allah! There is no god but He - the Living, the Eternal, the Self-Subsisting. No slumber takes Him nor does He rest. Everything in space and on Earth belongs to Him. Who can intercede in His presence without His permission? He knows what happens before, after and behind them. No one can gain anything of His Knowledge except as He wills. His throne extends over space and the Earth. He does not tire in guarding and protecting them. He is the most High, The Supreme.� (2:225)



From this verse we learn that Allah is not in need of anything. He has existed forever and will continue to exist forever and He is the creator of everything. We also come to understand that Allah is All-Knowing, that He even knows about what will happen in the future as well as the deepest thoughts in the inner recesses of our minds and hearts.

Allah is also often called �Rabb� which when translated means �Lord of the Universe�. But the word Rabb encompasses more than that. It also means �one who takes care of, watches over and lovingly preserves His Creation�.

Another distinguishing characteristic of Allah is that He is omnipresent. That means that He is present everywhere, all the time. Allah does not have any physical shape or form as we know it, and is neither male nor female.

So why then, does Allah refer to Himself as �He� in the Holy Qur�an? That is because in the Arabic language, there is no pronoun for �it� , so Allah uses �He� because it is generic (just as we do in English)

There are also times when Allah refers to Himself as �We� or �Us� - In Arabic, the pronouns �we� and �us� can be used by a single being to emphasize power and majesty. So using these plural pronouns in no way suggests that Allah has a partner or is part of any Trinity.

Allah tells us in the Qur�an that �He is not like anything you can imagine.� (42:11) So how can we, with our limited understanding of Allah come to know and understand Him? We come to know and understand Him through His Names and Attributes.

Allah has 99 names, which are called the Asma Ul Husna. These are a group of adjectives that describe what Allah is like. A few of the names are - The Merciful, The Just, The Sustainer.

�Declare: �Call upon Allah, Call upon The Merciful. By whatever name you call upon Him (it is well), for to Him belong the most beautiful names.� (17:110)

After reading about Allah, we may be tempted to think of him as some distant being who is far removed from the trivial concerns we humans are faced with on a daily basis. But this is not so.

Allah tells the Prophet Mohamed (S.A.W) in the Holy Qur�an � When my servants ask you (O Mohamed ,) about Me, I am indeed close. I listen to the prayer of everyone who calls on Me. Let whoever wants to, then, listen to my call and believe in Me so they can walk in the right way.� (2:186)

Words, especially a brief article, cannot do justice to the grandeur and might of Almighty Allah, nor can they show His Love and Mercy toward His Creation. However it is my humble and sincere hope that this article has in some way made your understanding of Allah clearer and lit a spark in your heart to learn more about Him.