Discover the meaning of the term Tashbih (تشبيه) in Islamic vocabulary.
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Updated on 11 April 2026 at 1:05 AM
📖 3 min readLexically: indicating one thing’s sharing with another in a meaning: the first the compared, the second the comparer, that meaning being the comparison’s face; needing besides the comparison’s tool, its aim and the compared. In the rhetoricians’ terminology: indicating two things’ sharing in a description of the thing in itself, as courage in the lion, light in the sun; a simple comparison, as the Prophet’s word: « the likeness of what Allah sent me with of guidance and knowledge is like abundant rain striking a land », where he likened knowledge to rain, its beneficiary to good earth, its non-beneficiary to dead flats: combined comparisons; or a compound comparison, as his word: « my likeness and the prophets’ before me is a man who built an edifice and beautified it, save the place of a brick »: the comparison of composite to composite, the likeness’ face rational, drawn of several things, prophethood set against the edifice.
Lexically: indicating one thing’s sharing with another in a meaning; the first the compared…
Describing a thing by its sharing with another in a meaning.
Establishing a thing in another’s stead for an attribute shared between them, substantial or moral: substantial as this dirham like that dirham, this blackness like that blackness; moral as Zayd like a lion or like a donkey, in his strength or dullness, and Zayd like ’Amr in his might and generosity. It may be figurative, as the absent likened to the nonexistent, and cloth like a dirham, its value equalling its measure, mentioned in al-Misbah. Ibn Kamil said: lexically, indicating a thing’s sharing with another in a meaning, the first the compared, the second the comparer, that meaning the comparison’s face, needing the tool, aim and compared. Among rhetoricians: indicating two things’ sharing in a description of the thing in itself, as courage in the lion, light in the sun; a simple comparison as the hadith « the likeness of what Allah sent me with of guidance and knowledge is like abundant rain striking a land », knowledge likened to rain, its beneficiary to good earth, its non-beneficiary to dead flats: combined comparisons; or compound comparison as his word « my likeness and the prophets’ before me is a man who built an edifice and beautified it, save the place of a brick »: composite to composite, the likeness’ face rational, drawn of several things, prophethood facing the edifice.