QUWWA - قوة

Literally & Etymologically:

Derived from the root qawiya (قَوِيَ - to be strong, robust, firm), quwwa denotes strength, power, vigour and firmness. In its literal sense, it signifies: A faculty. A quality. A possibility. A potency. Powers, faculties.

As an Islamic term:

Quwwa refers to the ma’nawî potentials and faculties bestowed by Allah upon man. He has been given these quwwas to preserve his rûh, which is placed in a changing, needy physical body exposed to perils, and to accomplish his duties of ‘ubûdiyyah.

Unlike animals whose quwwas are restricted by limits in their fitrah, man has been entrusted with three primary quwwas without pre-determined boundaries. This requires him to maintain the balance of wasat through the guidance of the Sharî'ah against the extremes of ifrât and tafrît:

An excerpt from the Risale-i Nur that explains this haqiqah:

When Allah 'Azza wa Jalla housed the rûh in the changing, needy body exposed to perils, He entrusted three powers (quwwa) to it to maintain its existence therein.

• The First: Al-quwwa ash-shahawiyyah al-bahîmiyyah — the power of animal appetite that attracts benefits.

• The Second: Al-quwwa al-ghadhabiyyah as-sabui’yyah — the predacious power of anger that repulses harmful and destructive things.

• The Third: Al-quwwa al-aqliyyah al-malakiyyah — the intellectual power of the malâikah that distinguishes between benefit and harm.

However, in accordance with His hikmah that necessitates mankind achieving perfection through the mystery of competition, Allah did not determine limits on these powers in man’s fitrah as He did on the powers of animals. Rather, He determined limits on them through the Sharî'ah, which prohibits ifrât and tafrît and commands the wasat. This is what is declared by the âyah

فَاسْتَقِمْ كَمَٓا اُمِرْتَ 1

And due to this lack of limitation in fitrah, three degrees arise in each: the degree of deficiency, which is tafrît; the degree of excess, which is ifrât; and the degree of wasat, which is justice (‘adl).

The Sign of Miraculousness-52-55

(Please also refer to the Compilation on As-Sirât Al-Mustaqîm.)

The Other Quwwas Mentioned in the Risale-i Nur Collection:

• Quwwa Al-Wâhimah (القوة الواهمة): The power of estimation and illusion — the faculty entrusted to man to assess perceived meanings and potential risks in specific, concrete matters. However, when this faculty is not guided by the nûr of îmân, the Sharî'ah and an intellect ('aql) following istiqâmah, it ceases to function as a protective power and instead becomes a source of groundless fears, debilitating despair and unfounded illusions, which constitute the very essence of wahm and waswasa, the ifrât degree of this quwwa.

• Quwwa Al-Khayaliyyah (القوة الخيالية): The faculty of imagination. Operating as the smallest, humblest and most modest servant, artist and painter of the human essence that serves to mind as a shaper of forms and depictor, it is a wondrous faculty that reflects and preserves the images of external things. Serving as a versatile mirror for the heart and the mind, it can produce lofty ma’nawî reflections or illusory and misleading scenes depending on how it is channelled.

This faculty is a luminous window opening from man’s inner ‘âlam to al-‘âlam al-mithâl. It has been bestowed upon man as a miniature sample and a comprehensive index of that vast ‘âlam. Through this subtle quwwa, man’s rûh can journey beyond the limits of space and time, functioning as a living proof of the haqiqah of al-‘âlam al-mithâl and demonstrating that man is far more than a mere creature imprisoned within the constraints of dense matter.

• Quwwa Al-Hafidhah (القوة الحافظة): The power of memory. The faculty that stores and retains knowledge, life experiences, emotions and meanings. It has been bestowed upon man as a comprehensive index and a miniature sample of al-lawh al-mahfûdh. Through this subtle quwwa man preserves the records of his life for the day of rising from the dead and assembling for judgment, functioning as a living proof of the preservation of all things in eternal tablets.

• Quwwa Al-Mufakkirah (القوة المفكرة): The power of thought and tafakkur. The faculty of intellectual processing and analysis by which the mind combines and compares concepts to deduce haqiqahs and recognise the Creator through the mirror of the universe. Serving as a bridge to al-‘âlam al-ma'nâ, it transforms outward observations of physical creation into haqiqahs where the names of Allah manifest, thereby yielding the ultimate fruit of ma’rifatullah in the heart.

• Quwwa Al-Bâsirah (القوة الباصرة): The faculty of sight. Serving as the key to the ‘âlam of visible things (al-‘âlam al-mubsirât) as a sample from that ‘âlam placed in man’s essence, it is the external sense of vision bestowed upon man to witness the wondrously crafted creations of the Creator, read the âyahs written in the book of the universe and observe the signs of His dominion.

• Quwwa As-Sâmi'ah (القوة السامعة): The faculty of hearing. Serving as the key to the ‘âlam of audible things (al-‘âlam al-masmû‘ât) as a sample from that ‘âlam placed in man’s essence, it is the external sense through which man listens to the word of Allah, His instructions and the voices of beings, which are their tasbîhât, testifying to the wahdah of the Creator.

• Quwwa Ash-Shâmmah (القوة الشامة): The faculty of smell. The external sense that perceives scents and fragrances, serving as a means to perceive the vast treasuries of rahmah, appreciate the wondrous arts of the Creator and read the subtle pages of ni'mahs bestowed by Ar-Rahmân.

• Quwwa Az-Zâiqah (القوة الذائقة): The faculty of taste. The external sense that discerns flavours, making man realise the infinite rahmah and art in the diverse provisions and ni'mahs prepared for his rizq.

• Quwwa Al-Jâdhibah (القوة الجاذبة): The attractive power. The manifestation of the Qoudrah of Allah in the fitrah of every being, from particles and elements to living beings, in the form of a force and inclination to draw beneficial things toward themselves. Distinct from quwwa ash-shahawiyyah, which operates as a specific urge bound to the desires and needs of the physical bodies of mankind and animals, quwwa al-jâdhibah is a broader decree of creation operating across the universe to gravitate toward the degree of perfection and the purpose decreed for each being by the Creator.

Regarding human faculties and moral aspect, it is the capacity of attraction bestowed upon man. When quwwa ash-shahawiyyah is cultivated under the hidâyah of Allah through 'ubûdiyyah, it blossoms into the lofty fruits of virtuous character, dignity, true beauty and boundless generosity, which constitute an attractive haqiqah rooted in human essence as a mirror to the names of Allah. These sublime qualities draw the people of hidâyah toward themselves with the magnetic quwwa al-jâdhibah, while serving as a deterrent and a repelling force against the kâfirs.

• Quwwa Al-Dâfi'ah (القوة الدافعة): The repelling power. The manifestation of the name Hafîdh, in the fitrah of every being, from particles and elements to living beings, in the form of a force to push away harmful, destructive, or adversarial elements from the organism or system.

Regarding human faculties and the moral aspect, it is the capacity of executing true justice. When quwwa al-ghadhabiyyah is cultivated under the hidâyah of Allah, in the sphere of the Sharî’ah, it yields the lofty fruits of just rulers and authorities, reflecting the justice of Allah as a haqiqah rooted in human essence as a mirror to His Names. While this sublime quality instils awe and dread within the hearts of the kâfirs through a repelling force arising from quwwa al-dâfi'ah, it exerts a magnetic attraction and reassurance for the people of hidâyah.