2. QUALITIES OF THE ANGELS
Allah created the angels different from us. We cannot see them, hear them, touch them, or subject them to any of our human senses.
How then can we learn about the angels? Like other matters of ghayb (This refers to things beyond our human senses.), we learn about them from what Allah tells us in His Book, or what the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) tells us in his hadiths.
The Angels Vary in Status
There are many characteristics common to all angels. But this does not mean that all angels are identical. They vary in power, size, number of wings, and so on.
An important example of the diversity among the angels is that they are of different positions and status. Some of them are nearer to Allah than others. Allah (swt) says:
«(The angels say:) “Each one of us surely has a known place. And we surely are the ones who line up (for prayer before Allah). And we surely are the ones who glorify Allah.”» (As-saffat 37:164-166.)
The best of angels are those who fought with the Muslims in the battle of Badr. Rafi‘ Bin Khadij reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<Jibril came to me and said, “How do you view the Muslims who fought in the battle of Badr?” I replied, “They are the best among us.” He said, “We too recognize the angels who fought in it as the best.”> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (3992, 3994) and Ibn Majah.)
“Physical” Qualities of the Angels
Since the angels are part of ghayb that is beyond our physical world, they are not like
anything we see around us. We have to keep this in mind when we discuss some of their qualities below. For example, we are told that they have wings, but this does not mean that their wings are similar to the wings of birds, bees, or airplanes.
THEY WERE CREATED FROM LIGHT
Allah (swt) created the angels from light. This is an example of how different they are from us and from other things that we know. ‘A’ishah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<The angels were created from light, the jinns were created from dark flames of fire, and Adam was created from that which has been described to you (in the Qur’an).> (This was recorded by Muslim (2996).)
Therefore, unlike the angels, Allah (swt) created the jinns from the smoke of fire. Some of the jinns are good, others are bad. We mentioned earlier(In Chapter 1.) that Shaytan (Satan) is one of the jinns. In this life, we can neither see the angels nor the jinns.
THEY HAVE WINGS
The angels have wings. Some angels have two wings, some three, some four, and some many more. Allah (swt) says:
«All praise is to Allah, Creator of the heavens and Earth, who made the angels messengers with wings, two or three or four. He increases in the creation as He wills. Allah surely has power over all things.» (Fatir 35:1.)
In particular, the Prophet (3) told us that Jibril has six-hundred wings! (The hadith about this will be cited in Chapter 4.)
Do the angels have feathery wings like birds? We cannot say this because Allah did not give us such knowledge.
THEY ARE POWERFUL
Some angels are stronger than anything we know in this world. For example, Allah (swt) tells us that only eight angels bear the greatest of His creation: His Throne:
«The angels will cover all of heaven’s corners. And, on that Day, eight (angels) will carry the Throne of your Lord above them.» (Al-Haqqah 69:17.)
Allah (swt) also tells us that the angels who are in charge of hell are extremely strong:
«In charge of it (hell) are angels who are harsh and powerful. They do not disobey Allah in what He commands them, but do as they are commanded.» (At-Tahrim 66:6.)
THEY ARE LARGE
Some angels are larger than anything that we have seen. For example, the angels that carry Allah’s Throne are large beyond imagination. Jabir, Abu Hurayrah, and Anas reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<I have (Allah’s) permission to tell you about one of the angels who carry the
Throne. His feet are on the lowest ground and he supports the Throne with his forehead. It takes a bird seven hundred years to travel from his earlobe to his shoulder. He (constantly) says, “Exalted are You (O Allah) where you Are.”» (This was recorded by Aba Dawid and at-Tabarani, and was verified to be authentic by al-Albani (as-Sahihah 150-151). See also ad-Da‘ifah 6923 for incorrect versions of this hadith.)
THEY ARE BEAUTIFUL
The guards of hell and other angels of punishment are harsh and stern because this is part of their job.
But angels usually have a good appearance. This truth is commonly known and accepted by people.
For example, the wealthy women at the time of the prophet Yusuf thought that he was so handsome that he must be an angel. Allah (swt) says about them:
In particular, Jibril is a good-looking angel. Allah (swt) says about him:
«It (the Qur’an) is taught to him (to Muhammad) by one (angel) of great might. He had a beautiful form(This is Ibn ‘Abbas’s explanation for the Arabic word ‘mirrah’. ), as he appeared in the upper horizon.» (An-Najm 53:5-7.)
THEIR COLOR
Many ignorant people think that all angels are white in color. However, we learn from the Sunnah that when the angels would appear to some people in this world, they would have colors that fit the occasion. When the Prophet (pbuh) saw Jibril for the first time, Jibril was dressed in green (The hadith about this will be cited in Chapter 4.). Munkar and Nakir are blue-black in color.(The hadith about this will be cited in Chapter 4.) The angels of death come to the believers with white faces, and to the disbelievers with dark faces.(A detailed discussion of this is presented in the Author’s book, Life in al-Barzakh.)
THEY DO NOT BECOME HUNGRY, TIRED, OR BORED
The angels are always busy obeying Allah’s commands. Yet, they never need sleep or rest. They are never tired from worshiping and obeying Allah, as He (swt) says:
«If they refuse (to obey), then those (angels) who are near your Lord glorify Him by night and by day, and they do not become weary.» (Fussilat 41:38.)
THEY DO NOT EAT
Even though we cannot survive without food, Allah (swt) created the angels so that they never have to eat!
For example, Allah (swt) sent angels to tell Ibrahim (as) that his wife will bear a boy called Ishaq. The angels came to him in the form of men. Thinking that they were
ordinary guests, he hurried to honor and feed them, and he quickly cooked a fat calf and placed it before them. They refused to eat, which annoyed Ibrahim(as). But they told him not to worry, because they were angels sent by Allah to him, and also to punish Lut’s people:
«Surely, our messengers to Ibrahim with the good news (of a baby). They said, “Salam,” and he said, “Salam.” He quickly brought a fat calf. When he saw that they did not extend their hands to it (to eat), he disliked that and expected some evil from
them. They said, “Do not worry! We are only sent to (punish) the people of Lut.”» (Hud 11:69-70.)
THEY TRAVEL FAST
The angels travel very fast. They travel between the heavens and Earth in a short time, bringing down Allah’s orders, taking up records of our deeds, and so on.
The angels must then be faster than horses, rockets, sound, light, or anything else that we know. In our physical world, we say that nothing can travel faster than light. But the angels are not controlled by the laws of this world. Allah (swt) is the Creator of the world and its laws. He gives the angels speeds and powers that suit their missions.
THEY TAKE DIFFERENT FORMS
The angels can change their form whenever Allah wants them to do so. For example, Jibril often came to the Prophet (pbuh) and his companions in the form of a man, just as the angels came to Ibrahim (as) as men. And Allah (swt) tells us that Jibril came to Maryam in the form of a man:
«And mention in the Book the story of Maryam, when she stayed away from her family in an eastern place (for worship) and set a curtain between her and them. We sent to her Our Spirit (Jibril) who appeared to her as a perfect human. She said, “I surely ask the Most Merciful to protect me from you—and you should fear Allah.” He said, “Indeed, I am nothing but a Messenger from your Lord to grant you a good son.”» (Maryam 19:16-19.)
THEY DO NOT HAVE GENDER
We talk about the angels using the male gender: “he”, “his”, “him”, and so on. But this does not mean that the angels are male—nor are they female.
The disbelievers during the Prophet’s (pbuh) time said that the angels were the daughters of Allah. It is not right to say that Allah should have a child, whether male or female, because He is the Lord and Owner of everything. He does not have a child, nor does he need one. Allah (swt) says about the disbelievers:
«They say that the angels, who are servants of the Most Merciful, are females. Did they witness their creation? Their saying will be recorded, and they will be questioned about it (on the Day of Judgment)!» (Az-Zukhruf 43:19.)
Furthermore, we cannot say that the angels marry or have children, because nothing like this is mentioned in the Quran or Sunnah.
SOME ANIMALS CAN SEE THEM
The animals can see or hear some things better than the people. Sometimes, the animals can see the angels. Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<When you hear (at night) a rooster’s crowing, ask Allah for His favor, because it saw an angel. And when you hear (at night) a donkey’s braying, ask Allah to protect you from Satan, because it saw a devil.> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (3303) and Muslim (2729). The restriction of (night) is taken from al-Adab-ul-Mufrad 525.)
Character of the Angels
Allah (swt) chose the angels to be among the best of His creation. He gave them the best character and behavior. Allah (swt) says:
«Allah chooses messengers from among the angels and from among the people. Indeed, Allah is Hearing and Seeing.» (Al-Hajj 22:75.)
THEY ARE NOBLE AND GOOD
Allah (swt) made the angels a most noble and good creation. They are obedient and precise in fulfilling His commands. Thus, Allah (swt) entrusted them with the delivery of His messages to the prophets.
He also entrusted them to care for the Quran that is in the heavens.(The Qur’an is preserved in al-Lawh-ul-Mahfiz, which is with the angels in the heavens. This is discussed in Knowing Allah’s Books, the third book of the Iman Made Easy series.) Allah (swt) says:
«It (the Quran) is (carried) in the hands of messengers (angels) who are noble and good.» (‘Abasa 80:15-16.)
A person who is good in reading the Qur’an will be with those righteous angels. Our Mother ‘A’ishah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<A person who is skillful (or good) in reading the Qur’an is with the noble and good messengers (of the angels). And a person who stammers and has difficulty when reading the Quran receives a double reward.> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (4937) and Muslim (798).)
THEY KNOW AS MUCH AS ALLAH TEACHES THEM
The angels receive their knowledge from Allah (swt). They cannot know more than what He teaches them, nor do they know any less than that. Allah (swt) says about them:
«They said, “Glory be to You! We only know what You teach us.”» (Al-Baqarah 2:32.)
THEY LIKE TO LISTEN TO QURAN
The angels like to listen to good things and hate hearing bad things. They like to listen to the Quran and to the praise of Allah. They hate listening to music, lies, and other things taught by Shaytan.
When the Quran is recited nicely and sincerely to please Allah, the angels come close to listen to it. Abt Hurayrah (#) reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<When a group of people meet in one of Allah’s houses (or masjids) to recite Allah’s Book and study it, peace descends over them, mercy flows among them, the angels surround them, and Allah praises them to those (angels) who are close to Him.» (This was recorded by Muslim (2699).)
One of the sahabah called Usayd Bin Hudayr was once reciting Surah al-Baqarah at night while his horse was tied beside him. The horse suddenly became uneasy and started jumping. When he stopped reciting, the horse became quiet. When he resumed
reciting, the horse became uneasy again. After repeating this a few times, he stopped reciting and looked up. He was amazed to see right above him something that looked like a big cloud of bright lamps rising up in the sky. The next morning, he told the Prophet (pbuh) about this, and the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<Those were angels who came to listen to your reading. Had you kept on reciting until morning, they would have remained visible for the people to see them!> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (5018).)
Ali reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<When a person uses siwak(A stick used to brush the teeth and give the mouth a nice
smell.) and then stands for the night prayer, an angel comes and stands behind him. The angel listens to the Qur’anic recitation and slowly moves closer. He continues to listen and move closer until he finally places his mouth against the mouth of the person. Every Ayah that the person recites thereafter would go into the angel. Thus, clean your mouths for reciting the Qur’an.> (This was recorded by al-Bayhaqi and al-Bazzar. It was verified to be authentic by al-Albant (as-Sahihah 1213 and Sahih-ut-
Targhib 215).)
This shows the importance of standing in prayer with nice smelling breath. If we then properly recite the Qur’an, an honorable guest, an angel, would come to us and receive our recitation straight into his mouth so as to take it up to the heavens.
THEY LIKE TO LISTEN TO THIKR
The angels like to go to places where Allah (swt) is mentioned and praised. (Remembering and praising Allah is called dhikr.) Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<On Jumu‘ah (Friday), the angels stand at each of a masjid’s doors, writing the
names of those who come first and those who come next. When the imam arrives
(to start the khutbah), they fold up their sheets and come inside to listen to the dhikr.> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (929, 3211) and Muslim (850).)
Also, Abu Hurayrah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<Other than the angels who record the deeds of people, there is a group of Allah’s angels who travel over the earth. They search for the people who mention Allah (swt). When they find a group of people doing this, they call each other, “Here is what you are looking for.” Then they come and cover that group with their wings until they are stacked up to the lowest heaven.>
<Allah (swt) then asks them—although He knows better than them, “What are My worshipers saying?” They reply, “They exalt You, revere You, praise You, glorify You, and beg of You.”
Allah (swt) then asks, “Have they seen Me?” The angels reply, “No.” Allah (swt)
says, “What would they have done if they could see Me?” The angels reply, “They would then be even busier in their worship, praise, exaltation, and glorification of You.”>
<Then Allah asks, “What do they ask of Me?” The angels reply, “They ask for Jannah.” Allah says, “Have they seen it?” They reply, “No.” Allah says, “What
would they have done it if they had seen it?” The angels reply, “Had they seen it,
they would desire it more eagerly, and would work harder to reach it.”>
<Then Allah asks, “From what thing do they seek My protection?” The angels reply, “They seek protection from the Fire.” Allah says, “Have they seen it?” They reply, “No.” Allah says, “What would they have done if they had seen it?” The angels answer, “Had they seen it, they would have been keener to run away from it and to fear it.”>
Then Allah (swt) says, “Be My witnesses: I forgive them!” The angels say, “But
among them is so-and-so, a sinner who did not wish to be of them. He only came to them for a need of his.” Allah (swt) says, “I forgive him too. He who sits with those people cannot be a loser.”> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (6408) and Muslim (2689).)
This shows how blessed a person would be if he is able to sit and listen to the dhikr so that the angels would encircle him and tell Allah (swt) about him.
THEY ARE SHY
The angels are shy of the righteous believers. They love them, respect them, and show humbleness in their presence. The Prophet (pbuh) explained to his companions how the angels respected ‘Uthman Bin ‘Affan. ‘A’ishah reported that he (pbuh) said:
<Should I not be shy of this man, when even the angels are shy of him?> (This was recorded by Muslim (2401).)
THEY HATE BAD SMELLS
The angels are displeased and offended by ugly things that normal humans dislike, such as bad smells, spit, filth, and so on. Jabir reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<When a person eats garlic, onion, or other bad-smelling food, he should not
come near our masjid. Surely, the angels dislike the same things that human beings dislike.> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (854) and Muslim (564).)
THEY DISLIKE DOGS, PICTURES, AND BELLS
The angels do not enter houses that have dogs, bells, or pictures of human beings or animals. ‘A’ishah, Maymunah, Ibn ‘Umar, and Abu Talhah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<Surely, the angels do not enter into a house that has a dog or a picture.> (This was recorded by al-Bukhari (3224-3227) and Muslim (2105-2106).)
Abi Hurayrah reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<The angels do not accompany travelers who have with them a dog or a bell.> (This was recorded by Muslim (2113), Abt: Dawid, and others. There are similar reports from other sahabah including ‘Mishah, Umm Habibah, Anas, and Ibn ‘Umar.)
‘A’ishah, Umm Habibah, and Ibn ‘Umar reported that the Prophet (pbuh) said:
<The angels do not enter into a house (or accompany travelers) where there is a bell.> (This was recorded by Abt Dawid and an-Nasa’i. It was verified to be authentic by al-Albani (Sahih-ut-Targhib 3117-3121).)
Thus, if we want the angels to remain around us, we should avoid things that offend or displease them.
By Muhammad Al-Jibaly
Comments
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
John Doe
23/3/2019Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.