HAND Arabic yad يد
pl. ayadi. Heb.
(1)It is a rule with the Muslims to honor the right hand above the left; to use the right hand for all honorable purposes, and the left for actions which, though necessary, are unclean. The hands must be washed before prayers [ABLUTIONS] and before meals.
(2) the expression yadu’llah, the “hand of God,” occurs in the Qur’an:-
Surah v. 69. “He Jews say, ‘God’s hand is fettered’; their hands are fettered, for they are cursed.”
Surah xlviii. 10: “God’s hand is above their hands.”
There is a controversy between the orthodox Sunnis and the Wahhabis regarding the expression, “God’s hand.” The former maintaining that it is a figurative expression for the power of God, the latter holding that it is literal; but that it is impossible to say in what sense or manner God has a hand; for as the essence of God is not known, how can the manner of His existence be understood?
pl. ayadi. Heb.
(1)It is a rule with the Muslims to honor the right hand above the left; to use the right hand for all honorable purposes, and the left for actions which, though necessary, are unclean. The hands must be washed before prayers [ABLUTIONS] and before meals.
(2) the expression yadu’llah, the “hand of God,” occurs in the Qur’an:-
Surah v. 69. “He Jews say, ‘God’s hand is fettered’; their hands are fettered, for they are cursed.”
Surah xlviii. 10: “God’s hand is above their hands.”
There is a controversy between the orthodox Sunnis and the Wahhabis regarding the expression, “God’s hand.” The former maintaining that it is a figurative expression for the power of God, the latter holding that it is literal; but that it is impossible to say in what sense or manner God has a hand; for as the essence of God is not known, how can the manner of His existence be understood?
Based on Hughes, Dictionary of Islam
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