المعنى الاصطلاحي :

Allah's attributes of perfection, beauty, and glory that are established in the Qur’an and the Sunnah. They distinguish Allah, the Exalted, from other beings.

الشرح المختصر :

"Sifāt" (attributes): Allah, the Exalted and Glorified, described Himself with several "sifāt" to introduce Himself to His servants: 1. Physical "sifāt", like the Hands and the Face. 2. Abstract "sifāt", such as knowledge, power, and life. 3. "Sifāt" of action, such as descending and rising over the Throne. These "sifāt" distinguish Allah, the Almighty, from everything else, and they show people the perfection, glory, and power of their Lord. Besides, they increase people's knowledge of Allah, the Exalted. A "sifah" can be ascribed to Allah, the Exalted, only if it cannot exist by itself; therefore, it does not exist before it is used as a description. Furthermore, Allah, the Almighty, can be described only with His own "sifāt", not with the ones He created in His creation. In essence, every being can be described only with those "sifāt" that belong to him, not with those that are separate from him or belong to others. The "sifāt" of Allah are of several types: 1. Confirmatory "sifāt". These are the attributes which Allah confirmed for Himself in His Book or through His Messenger, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him. All of these are "sifāt" of full perfection. Examples of these are Allah's "sifāt" of life, knowledge, power, rising over the Throne, His Hands, and His Face. These "sifāt" must be acknowledged to Allah in a manner that befits Him. 2. Negated or negative "sifāt". These are the "sifāt" that Allah, the Exalted, negated from Himself in His Book or through His Messenger, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him. These "sifāt" of imperfection must be completely negated from Allah, the Exalted. Examples of these negative "sifāt" include deafness, sleeping, etc. 3. Self "sifāt". These are the inseparable, intrinsic "sifāt" of Allah that cannot be detached from Him at any time. Examples of these are the "sifāt" of knowledge, power, hearing, sight, mightiness, wisdom, His Face, and His Hands. 4. "Sifāt" of action. They are also called "sifāt" of choice, as they are related to Allah's will. He may and may not observe them, as He wishes; and they are determined based on His will. Examples of "sifāt" of action include rising over the Throne and descending to the lowest heaven. A "sifah" can be both a self "sifah" as well as a "sifah" of action, based on two different considerations. For example, Allah's "sifah" of speech is principally classified as a self "sifah", for Allah has always been and will continue to be speaking. Equally, it is classified as a "sifah" of action given that speaking is dependent on Allah's will: He says whatever He wishes whenever He wills. 5. Rationally established "sifāt". These are the "sifāt" that are proven by rational evidence and the recognition of sound disposition in addition to the textual evidence. Most of Allah's "sifāt", like hearing, sight, might, power, etc., are included in this category. 6. Revealed "sifāt": these are the "sifāt" that are exclusively known through revelation (textual proof), and sound reason does not object to them. Examples of these include the "sifāt" of Hands and descending to the lowest heaven.

التعريف اللغوي المختصر :

"Sifāt" (sing. sifah): a description of something. It is an inseparable quality of someone or something.