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Unity of Divine Essence
The multiplicity which is indicated by these names is related to attributes and not to the Being or Essence of God, for He is unique in every respect. God’s Attribute are of two kinds: True and additional.
True attributes are those applied to Him if we consider the very essence of God as the Living, the Eternal, and the Everlasting.
However, additional attributes are those applied to God if we take others into consideration as the Creator Which is against the created and Merciful which is against one who receives mercy. Therefore the multiplicity of God’s names is not related to His Essence or Being but related to the affairs outside it.
Ali Ibne Ra-ab has reported on the authority of Imam Sadeq (AS):
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834- “Whoever worships God in his own illusion is an unbeliever. Whoever worships name without meaning, he is an unbeliever too. Whoever worships both the name and the meaning, he is polytheist. Whoever worships the meaning and the applies names to it, that too, through attributes by which God has described Himself, ties his heart to it and makes his tongue expressive of it in secret and public, such men are the companions of Amiralmomenin (AS).”
In a Hadith, we read that they are true believers.
In another Hadith, the Imam said to Hesham Ibne Hakam:
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835- “There are 99 names for God. If the name is the same as meaning, then every name is a god but to say it correctly Allah is a unique meaning and these names are its attributes.”
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