The name As-Samad has only been mentioned once in the Quran. Other names of Allah Almighty have been repeated as many as 20, 30 and even 50 times, but interestingly, As-Samad only appears once, in Surat al-Ikhlas, which is among the shortest surahs in the Quran. It begins: قُلْ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ أَحَدٌ ١ Say He…
A fresh start Alhamdulillah every day is a new opportunity to excel, a new opportunity to improve ourselves, a new opportunity to rectify what we have done, and certainly we have plenty of shortcomings. We, at the end of the day, are humans so we have weaknesses as Allah Almighty stated in the Quran: وَخُلِقَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنُ…
It’s good to reflect on the names of Allah Almighty and His attributes in order to improve our practice and increase our knowledge and our closeness to Him. Al-Wakeel, from a linguistic point of view, means the Trustee, the One to whom all matters are entrusted. The linguistic root also gives another meaning, which is…
Al-Muqaddim and Al-Mu’akhkhir mean the Promoter and the Postponer. They go together as other pairs, such Al-Awal wal-Akhir, Az-Zaahir wal-Baatin. Not all the names of Allah Almighty are pairs, but in the sunnah, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), mentioned these two names together in the beautiful hadith which Abu Musa (may Allah be pleased with…
There’s a confusion in people’s mind about the beautiful names of Allah Almighty. To cut a long story short, in Tirmidhi and others: Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ) said, عَنْ أَبِي هُرَيْرَةَ، أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ “ إِنَّ لِلَّهِ تِسْعَةً وَتِسْعِينَ اسْمًا…
Every name of Allah has its own unique reflection and divine light. The name Al Latif has been mentioned in the Quran seven times. It has been translated variously as Benevolent, The Kind One and The Subtle One depending on the context. In Surat al Anam, Allah says: لَّا تُدْرِكُهُ ٱلْأَبْصَـٰرُ وَهُوَ يُدْرِكُ ٱلْأَبْصَـٰرَ ۖ…
Pairs of names Two of the beautiful names of Allah Almighty are Al-Mu’izz and Al-Mudhill. Al-Mu’izz is the One who gives honour while it’s opposite, Al-Mudhill is the One who humiliates. As we have seen with other names, they sometimes come in pairs such as Ar-Rafi, the One who elevates and Al-Khafid, the One who…
Among the beautiful names of Allah Almighty is Al Khafid, the Abaser, and Ar Rafi’, the Exalter. Literally, khafada in Arabic is to lower something down, while rafa’a is to raise something. The One who abases infidels is Allah Almighty and He is the One who raises up the faithful by salvation, so you can…
It’s a pleasure to reflect upon the names and attributes of Allah Almighty, to delve into the meanings and to try our best to live by His names and attributes and to fulfil our roles and responsibilities as His servants. There is a very famous narration that circulates in some Sufi books which says ‘Emulate…
Allah’s names bring us close to Him Just as you need do an MOT for your car every year, you need an MOT for your understanding of Allah so you can be safe and roadworthy in your journey through life. You need to know the basics of Islam in your relationship with Allah Almighty or…
Bringing Allah’s names into our lives Anything related to Allah Almighty is beautiful. When talking about His attributes and His names, we should reflect on how we can live by His names, and activate His names in our lives. Bringing Allah’s names into our lives is transformative. It gives us a new dimension to our…
The vital role of understanding Allah in our lives Our foremost obligation is to know Allah Almighty, and reflecting on His beautiful names helps us to do this. Before any other duty, gaining knowledge of Allah Almighty is incumbent upon us. The Quran emphasises this by stating, فَاعْلَمْ أَنَّهُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ “Know that…
The interconnected meanings of Al-Fattah Al-Fattah is one of Allah Almighty’s names. It has different meanings, but its primary meaning is the Opener, or the One who opens things for you. It also has other meanings which we will look at. For instance, in the only ayah that Al-Fattah has been mentioned in the Quran,…
Allah’s beautiful name Ar-Razzaaq has been translated in various ways, but they are all connected to rizq, which is provision. So accordingly, you see the translation of Ar-Razzaq as the Total Provider or the Provider or the Sustainer. Also as the One who creates the sustenance for all His creation. And it is one of…
Ad Dhahir wal Batin, the Evident and the Hidden Know Allah Almighty through the manifestation of His creation Ad Dhahir in Arabic comes from dhahara which means to appear, to be very clear, very obvious, and dhahir i.e. evident. In Arabic dhara means obvious and so this is why Dhuhr prayer is when the sun…