Sifat

Sifat is an Arabic term that literally means attribute, quality, or trait. In Islamic contexts, the phrase “asma' wa sifat” (the Names and Attributes of God) refers to how God is described in the Qur’an and the hadith, including both God’s names and the qualities attributed to Him. Beyond theological usage, sifat in everyday Malay and Indonesian means the character or disposition of a person or the properties of things.

In Islamic theology, sifat has been a central topic of debate among different schools. Traditionalists (often described as Athari) emphasize that God’s attributes are to be accepted as they are stated in revelation, without philosophical interpretation, while maintaining reverence for divine transcendence. The Kalam schools (notably the Ash’ari and Maturidi traditions) acknowledge the authenticity of God’s attributes but argue they are real without being comparable to human or created properties; they stress that God’s essence remains utterly beyond our comprehension. A common line of discussion is whether attributes are inherently part of God’s essence (zati attributes) or meanings connected to His actions, and how to speak about them without attributing likeness to creation. Across these approaches, theologians seek to preserve unity of God while avoiding anthropomorphism.

In broader usage, sifat describes observable traits and properties. People refer to sifat manusia (human qualities), sifat benda (properties of objects), or sifat kimia (chemical properties), among other contexts. The term thus functions as a general linguistic category for distinguishing characteristics, whether in religious doctrine or everyday description.