227. 1. Imam Ali ar-Reza (p), in the presence of some people, said: He (God) is the Subtle, All-Aware, All-Hearing, All-Seeing, the One, the Unique, the Absolutely Independent, He begetteth not, nor is He begotten and there is none like unto Him. If God were such as the anthropomorphists have thought, then neither the Creator can be distinguished from the created, nor the Originator from the originated. But He is the Originator and distinction between Him and the things to which He has given body and form and which He originated is a must, since there is nothing like Him nor is He like anything.
One of the audience: You have called Him Unique, the Independent and you also said that nothing resembles Him. But God is one and an individual is one. Is it not a resemblance in Oneness?
Imam Ali ar-Reza (p): Not at all. May God keep you steadfast. Resemblance relates to essence (not in names). As for the names, every object is one and the names signify the objects that bear those names. When we talk of an individual as ‘one’ we mean that the individual is one body and not two because he is made up of several limbs and colours. And what is composed of different parts cannot be regarded as one. He consists of separate parts, diverse and divisible. His blood is not his flesh and his flesh is not his blood. His nervous system is different from his veins (and arteries) and his hair is not his skin. His blackness is different from his whiteness. The same holds good for the other creations. Therefore, person is one in name and not in essence. God, Exalted be His Majesty, is One and Unique and none else is One and Unique. There is no incongruity and diversion in Him nor is there any excess or deficit. But person is a creation composed of different parts and essences and primary elements, and in this state of composition is regarded as one.
One of the audience: You have provided solace to us. May God comfort you. Kindly explain to us your observation that He is the Subtle, All-Aware as you have explained the Oneness of God. I do understand that God is Subtle in a sense different from that in which any of His creations is subtle and there must be a difference. But I would like that you explain it to us.
The Imam (p): Our statement that He is Subtle means that He has created subtle things and has full awareness of those subtle things. May God favour you and keep you steadfast. Do you not see the signs of His creation in vegetation which is subtle and not subtle and also in very subtle creations and in the tiny birds, insects, mosquitoes and in the tiny flies and also things infinitesimal to the extent that they are not visible to the eye and they are so small that you cannot tell the male from the female and the young from the old. We see the infinite smallness of these and how they are guided in coming near the female of the species and running away from what is deadly and in the gathering of what is essential for their survival. We see the creatures dwelling in the depth of the seas and under the bark of the trees and in valleys and deserts. We see them communicating messages to one another and with their offspring and also their bringing food for them. We also see their matching of colours, the red with the yellow and the white with red. Also we see that due to their smallness they are not visible to the eye. Our eyes do not perceive them. Our hands do not touch them. Having seen all this, we conclude that the Creator of such subtle creatures must have used a very subtle art in the creation of what we have mentioned. We also know that those who make things do so out of other things. But God alone, the only One, the Subtle, the Great, has created things out of nothing.