Chapter 9 — Do Not Turn Attributes into Figures

To understand the difference between Essence, Attributes, Actions, Risalah and the Bearer of the Risalah, take the simplest analogy:

ENTREPRENEUR

The word Entrepreneur is a name that points to the Essence.

The Essence of the Entrepreneur is known through its attributes.

Among the primary attributes of an Entrepreneur are:

SELL ↔️ BUY

When those attributes move into action, they become Actions:

SELLING ↔️ BUYING

Therefore, the structure is:

ESSENCE: Entrepreneur
ATTRIBUTES: Sell ↔️ Buy
ACTIONS: Selling ↔️ Buying

Do not mix the three.

The name points to the Essence.

Selling and buying describe the attributes.

Selling and buying in action are the Actions.

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OPPOSING ATTRIBUTES CANNOT BE DISCARDED

Selling and buying appear to be opposites.

But an Entrepreneur is not complete if he is described only as selling without buying.

He buys materials.

He buys goods.

He buys services.

Then he sells products or services.

Therefore:

SELL does not cancel BUY.

BUY does not cancel SELL.

Both work together in describing the attributes of an Entrepreneur.

The same principle applies when understanding attributes that appear to be opposites:

First ↔️ Last

Manifest ↔️ Hidden

Do not accept one and discard its counterpart merely because the two appear contradictory.

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WHAT IS THE RISALAH OF THE ENTREPRENEUR?

The Risalah of the Entrepreneur should not be imagined as a sheet of paper.

Nor is it a file, book, hard drive or USB drive.

The Risalah is the entire body of descriptions concerning the Entrepreneur:

who the Entrepreneur is,

what his attributes are,

what his character is like,

what his actions are,

how he buys,

how he sells,

how he manages,

and how the attributes of the Entrepreneur are manifested in life.

If all these descriptions are gathered into a single reading, we may call it:

THE READING OF THE ENTREPRENEUR

Suppose the Reading of the Entrepreneur says:

“The Entrepreneur develops the economy of society.”

Do not rush into imagining an invisible entity called “Entrepreneur” entering every home and helping society.

That is a confusion between the reading and a figure.

The reading is describing:

the Essence of the Entrepreneur, the Attributes of the Entrepreneur and the Actions of the Entrepreneur.

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WHO IS THE BEARER OF THE ENTREPRENEUR’S RISALAH?

To know the Entrepreneur, know the bearer of the Entrepreneur’s Risalah.

The Bearer of the Risalah is the person who carries, manifests and brings the descriptions of the Entrepreneur to life within himself.

He does not merely carry a book about business.

He himself demonstrates the character of an Entrepreneur.

He:

buys, sells, manages, strives, bears risks, fulfils trusts and interacts with people.

The Bearer of the Entrepreneur’s Risalah is the servant of the Entrepreneur within this analogy.

This means that he submits himself to the attributes and principles contained within the Entrepreneur’s Risalah.

He does not invent the attributes of the Entrepreneur according to his own wishes.

He follows and manifests what is carried by that Risalah.

Therefore, if someone wishes to become an Entrepreneur, he needs to observe and follow the character of the bearer of the Entrepreneur’s Risalah.

Merely memorising the Reading of the Entrepreneur is not enough.

He needs to follow how the Risalah comes alive through its bearer.

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THE BEARER OF THE RISALAH IS ALWAYS WITH THE RISALAH

The Bearer of the Risalah cannot be separated from what he carries.

If he truly bears the Entrepreneur’s Risalah, then the attributes of the Entrepreneur are always present in his Actions.

When he buys, those attributes can be seen.

When he sells, those attributes can be seen.

When he conducts business, the descriptions of the Entrepreneur become something that can be witnessed.

Therefore, the Bearer of the Risalah is always together with the Risalah that he carries.

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NOW APPLY THE SAME STRUCTURE TO ALLAH

The principle of this analogy helps us understand the structure:

ESSENCE → ATTRIBUTES → ACTIONS → RISALAH → BEARER OF THE RISALAH

In the discussion of Allah:

The name Allah points to the Essence.

Descriptions concerning Allah come through Attributes.

Actions are the actions attributed to Him.

The Risalah gathers the descriptions concerning Essence, Attributes and Actions.

And that Risalah has a bearer.

The Bearer of Allah’s Risalah is always with Allah through the Risalah that he carries.

Do not imagine “with” as two figures sitting beside one another.

What is meant is that the bearer is not separated from the descriptions, trust and Risalah of Allah that he carries.

He carries.

He conveys.

He manifests.

He becomes a witness to that Risalah.

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ENTREPRENEUR ↔️ ALLAH

ENTREPRENEUR

Name: points to the Essence
Attributes: Sell ↔️ Buy
Actions: Selling ↔️ Buying
Risalah: the entire body of descriptions concerning the Entrepreneur
Bearer of the Risalah: the servant who manifests the character of the Entrepreneur
Reading: the collection of descriptions concerning the Entrepreneur

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ALLAH

Name: points to the Essence
Attributes: among them First ↔️ Last, Manifest ↔️ Hidden
Actions: all actions described within the Risalah
Risalah: descriptions concerning Essence, Attributes and Actions
Bearer of the Risalah: the one who carries and conveys Allah’s Risalah
Reading: the collection of descriptions that are read and conveyed

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DO NOT CONFUSE IT WITH THE READING

If the Reading of the Entrepreneur says:

“The Entrepreneur develops the economy of society.”

do not create an unseen figure called Entrepreneur.

Understand the meaning of that reading through:

Essence, Attributes, Actions and the bearer of its Risalah.

The same applies when reading something concerning Allah.

Do not allow statements such as:

Allah gives.

Allah gives life.

Allah causes death.

Allah helps.

to cause the mind to create an invisible entity imagined as a figure acting like a created being.

The Reading is providing descriptions concerning Essence, Attributes and Actions.

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TO KNOW, KNOW THE BEARER OF THE RISALAH

To know the Entrepreneur:

know the bearer of the Entrepreneur’s Risalah.

To learn to become an Entrepreneur:

follow the character of the bearer of the Entrepreneur’s Risalah.

Because it is through the bearer that the attributes become something that can be witnessed.

The same applies to Allah’s Risalah.

Human beings receive the descriptions through the Bearer of Allah’s Risalah.

The bearer is always together with the Risalah that he carries.

That is why the bearer becomes the path through which human beings recognise what is contained within the Risalah:

ESSENCE — ATTRIBUTES — ACTIONS.

THE KEY TO CHAPTER 9

Do not turn a name into a figure.

Do not turn an attribute into a figure.

Do not turn the Risalah into a lifeless object.

Do not turn the Reading into an invisible entity.

Arrange them correctly:

NAME → ESSENCE

ATTRIBUTES → DESCRIPTIONS

ACTIONS → DEEDS

RISALAH → THE ENTIRE BODY OF DESCRIPTIONS

READING → COLLECTION OF DESCRIPTIONS

BEARER OF THE RISALAH → THE ONE WHO MANIFESTS THE RISALAH

And when attributes come in pairs, do not discard either one.

Because the completeness of the description lies in the entirety of the attributes gathered together, not in choosing only one side.