The Attribute of Pre-Eternity (Qidam) of Allah, the Exalted

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

   One of the fundamental principles of Islamic creed (‘Aqīdah) is that Allah, the Exalted, is eternal and everlasting. The attribute of Qidam (Pre-Eternity) is among the dhātī (essential) attributes, and it means that Allah has no beginning — that His existence has always been from eternity. In other words, for Allah, Who is beyond time, the concept of “before” cannot be conceived. This attribute can also be considered as a manifestation of Allah’s Name al-Awwal (“The First”).

Definition of the Attribute of Qidam

   Qidam (قِدَم) literally means “precedence” or “having no beginning.”In theological terminology, it is defined as:“Allah the Exalted has no beginning to His existence; His being is eternal; He did not come into existence from non-existence.”That is, for Allah, there has never been a state of non-existence. He has always existed.

   This meaning shows that Allah is completely free from being created or coming into existence after non-existence. The attribute of Qidam expresses that He is not bound by time or space; rather, He is the Creator of both time and space.

Qur’anic Verses Indicating the Attribute of Qidam

a. Sūrah al-Ḥadīd, Verse 3

هُوَ الْأَوَّلُ وَالْآخِرُ وَالظَّاهِرُ وَالْبَاطِنُ ۖ وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ

“He is the First and the Last, the Manifest and the Hidden; and He has perfect knowledge of all things.” (Al-Ḥadīd, 57:3)

This verse clearly states that Allah is without beginning and without end. The Name al-Awwal (“The First”) is the Qur’anic expression of Allah’s attribute of Qidam.

b. Sūrah al-An‘ām, Verse 101

بَدِيعُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۖ أَنَّىٰ يَكُونُ لَهُ وَلَدٌ وَلَمْ تَكُن لَّهُ صَاحِبَةٌ ۖ وَخَلَقَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ ۖ

وَهُوَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ

“He is the Originator of the heavens and the earth. How could He have a son when He has no consort? He created all things, and He has full knowledge of all things.” (Al-An‘ām, 6:101)

This verse implies that for Allah to be the Creator of the heavens and the earth, He must be beginningless and eternal. Indeed, the One who brought all contingent beings into existence must necessarily have already existed.

c. Sūrah al-Qaṣaṣ, Verse 88

كُلُّ شَيْءٍ هَالِكٌ إِلَّا وَجْهَهُ ۚ لَهُ الْحُكْمُ وَإِلَيْهِ تُرْجَعُونَ

“Everything will perish except His Face. His is the dominion, and to Him you shall all be returned.” (Al-Qasas, 28:88)

   Here, it is stated that the Essence of Allah is everlasting, while eternity (Abadiyyah) implicitly entails pre-eternity (Qidam). That which is everlasting must also be pre-eternal. All created things are perishable and have a time of non-existence, but for the Creator of all things, there can never be such a period — neither in what we call the past nor in the future.

d. Sūrah al-Ikhlāṣ, Verses 1–2

قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ۝ اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ

“Say He is Allah, the One. Allah, the Eternal Refuge.” (Al-Ikhlās,112:1–2)

The Name As-Ṣamad means “the One who needs nothing, while everything is in need of Him; the Perfect and Complete One.” Having a beginning is incompatible with perfection and independence, for to come into existence afterward implies dependence upon another cause. Certainly, such a notion cannot be entertained concerning Allah, the Exalted.

Hadiths on the Attribute of Qidam

a. “Allah existed, and nothing else existed with Him.”

كَانَ اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ شَيْءٌ غَيْرُهُ

“Allah existed, and there was nothing else besides Him.”(Al-Bukhārī, Bad’ al-Khalq, 1; At-Tirmidhī, Tafsīr Sūrat al-Ḥadīd, 57)

This ḥadīth explicitly states that Allah existed before all created things, affirming that His existence is pre-eternal.

b. “You are the First; there is nothing before You.”

اللَّهُمَّ أَنْتَ الْأَوَّلُ فَلَيْسَ قَبْلَكَ شَيْءٌ، وَأَنْتَ الْآخِرُ فَلَيْسَ بَعْدَكَ شَيْءٌ...

“O Allah! You are the First; there is nothing before You. You are the Last; there is nothing after You...”(Muslim, Dhikr, 2713)

This supplication is an explanation of the verse (Al-Ḥadīd 57:3). Allah’s being al-Awwal (“The First”) is the clearest expression of His attribute of Qidam.

Views of Theologians on the Attribute of Qidam

Imam al-Māturīdī:“The pre-eternity of Allah does not mean that He is at the beginning of time, for time itself is created. Allah is the Creator of time. His eternality lies in His existence beyond time.”(Imam al-Māturīdī, Kitāb al-Tawḥīd)

Imam al-Ash‘arī:“Qidam means that the Essence of Allah has no relation to non-existence. His existence did not occur after anything.”(Imam al-Ash‘arī, al-Ibānah ‘an Uṣūl al-Diyānah)

Rational Proof for Qidam

   Reason accepts that nothing can create itself. Since an infinite regress of causes is impossible, there must be a necessary first being — the Wājib al-Wujūd (Necessary Being), who has no beginning. Everything that has a beginning is created. Allah, however, is not created; He is the Creator.

The Spiritual Aspect of the Attribute of Qidam

   The attribute of Qidam teaches that man is a transient being bound by time, whereas Allah is beyond and before all time. This awareness:• Leads the servant to humility before his Creator,• Strengthens trust and submission to Allah,• Makes one realize that all created things are temporary.

The believer, by contemplating Allah’s attribute of Qidam, grasps His absolute power and immutability.

Conclusion

   The attribute of Qidam expresses that Allah has no beginning — that He is the eternal, necessary being.The Qur’anic verse “هُوَ الْأَوَّلُ (He is the First)” and the ḥadīth “كَانَ اللَّهُ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ شَيْءٌ غَيْرُهُ (Allah existed, and nothing else existed with Him)” are the clearest evidences for this attribute.

   This attribute is one of the most important foundations of tawḥīd (the doctrine of divine unity). For before everything created, there exists a Creator whose existence is from Himself — and that is Allah, the Exalted.

                            When nothing existed, He was...                   

            Neither the earth nor the heavens were there.                          

He brought all existence into being from nothingness.        

When the universe had no name or worth,                         

He, the Eternal One, bestowed existence upon them.