The Beautiful Names of Allah

  

'Allah has the most beautiful names. Call Him by those names. So call upon Him by them, and keep away from those who abuse His Names. They will pay (i.e. be punished) for what they do.' (Al-Arraf, 7: 181)

Allah says in the Quran that He is One. He is the only God, the sole Creator of everything He has created, and there are no other gods besides Him, nor does anyone have the power to create like He does. He exists, and no one created Him. He is unique, the Originator of all. And Allah says that He has many names, attributes that describe what He is like – Asma’ul-Husna – the most beautiful names.

'Duah-e-Ganjul Arsh'

 

Hazrat Ummul Mu’mineen Fazli Amena Varsally Saheba, the International Sadr of the Siraj Makin (-women’s wing of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam) has, over the last two decades, witnessed countless Divine Signs, Blessings and Revelations from Allah (swt) that testify to the profound truth of the spiritual claims of Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam Hazrat Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (aba) of Mauritius, Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah. 

The sublime spiritual experiences- pious dreams, mystical visions and Divine revelations- of this mother of all believers [“Ummul Mu’mineen”- a Divinely-bestowed title on her] will also appeal to our believing hearts- strengthening our Imaan (faith); reassuring every devoted soul to keep faith in the existence and vital presence of Allah (swt) as our ultimate help in this era of this grand Divine manifestation, Insha- Allah, Aameen. 

The Attributes of Allah-XI

By the grace of Allah and the Tawfiq bestowed by Him, I have yet again the opportunity to continue to expound on the attributes of Allah (twa).

Hazrat Abu Huraira (ra) reported Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) as saying: “There are ninety-nine names of Allah; he who commits them to memory would get into paradise. Verily, Allah is odd [He is one, and it is an odd number] and He loves odd numbers.” (Muslim).

In the Hadith compilation, Sahih Al-Bukhari, it has been recorded concerning the beautiful names of Allah that they are ninety-nine, i.e. one hundred minus one, and whoever believes in their meanings and acts accordingly, will enter paradise; and Allah is Witr (One, which is an odd number) and loves ‘the witr’ (i.e. odd numbers).

Allah is the Creator (Al-Khaliq); the Formidable Creator. This attribute points to the complex and astonishingly beautiful organization of constituent parts of the universe with their complete dependence on an underlying order [that is fundamental and very precise] that is found both in the cosmic universe and each atom or microscopic element.

Man’s part in this lies in acquiring in his soul not only knowledge of the whole and the minutiae of the parts of the physical universe but in knowing generically, and in detail, the arrangements of the spiritual universe – things such as the role and rank of the different angels, as well as the advent of the messengers and prophets of Allah and their ranks in the divine order.

Asma’ul Husna: Names of Allah

The Attributes of Allah- Part X

Wa lillaahil Asma’ul Husna, fad’uhu biha’.

The most beautiful names belong to Allah, so call on Him by them. (7:181)

Asma’ul Husna, means the most beautiful names, and the most beautiful names indeed belong to Allah (twa).

In a Hadith compiled by Imam Bukhari (ra), it has been narrated that the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said: 

“There are 99 names that are Allah’s alone, one hundred less one. Whoever (learns, understand, and) enumerates them, enters Paradise.” 

The Attributes of Allah- IX

The 'Fall' of Hazrat Adam (as)

Alhamdulillah, Summa Alhamdulillah we continue today on the subject of the attributes of Allah, and man’s thanksgiving to Allah for the sublime favours which He has done to him. We thank Him by mentioning Him by His most beautiful names.

Through the favours that Hazrat Adam (as) benefited from Allah during his creation and also afterwards, it appears to us that the elite has with God states [stages, emotions & connections] that they do not share with any other, and that it is through them, excluding ordinary beings, that God executes His plan.

The fact of having eaten the [forbidden] fruit, and the fall on earth which followed, had indeed many happy effects. But how could this disobedience to Allah have had good repercussions, you may ask? Well, in paradise, Adam and his wife knew God only under His attributes of Provider (Al Razzaq), Donor (Al Mu’ti), and Benefactor (Al Muhsin), but in His Secret Benevolence (Lutfihi Al-Khafi) which presides over the divine plan, it pleased God to reveal Himself to them as The Magnanimous (Al Halim), The One Who conceals [faults] (Al Sattar), The Forgiver (Al Ghafur), The Indulgent (Al Tawwab), and the One Who chooses [His elect] (Al-Mujtabi) among many other attributes. His magnanimity in fact meant that He did not hasten to punish them for their act, which is indeed the characteristic of this attribute, which leaves a delay to the sinner (whether to forgive him afterwards and have mercy on him, or to better exercise His power over him by making him suffer a painful revenge).

The Attributes of Allah- VIII

“He is God: there is no god other than Him, the Sovereign, the Supreme-In-Holiness, Source of Peace, Granter of Security, Guardian over all, the Almighty, the Compeller, the Majestic (Al-Mutakabbir) …” (Al-Hashar 59 : 24).

Al-Mutakabbir is The Majestic, Conscious of His greatness. Allah alone has the right to know and to proclaim His greatness and omnipotence over everything and everyone. He magnifies Himself and sees grandeur and superbness only for Him. All greatness belongs to Him. This attitude is completely justified because it is true.

Allah is distinguished by an exclusive greatness just for Him and by an absolute Royalty. He controls everything. He is the one who shows His greatness in all things and by all means.

Know well [what will follow], O my brothers and sisters! Do not be fooled by the simple verbal intention that you give to the meaning of your life, because God hopes to see a radical transformation [in you which] change this.

He demands that you inflict a kind of death on yourselves, after which He will breathe new life into you. Make haste to promote peace among yourselves, to forgive your brothers and sisters their weaknesses, because the one who is not inclined to make peace with his brother is mean, and he risks being excluded [from the proximity of Allah] because he is a source of dissension.

Give up your base desires and don’t cultivate resentment. Even if you are right, behave humbly as if you were wrong, so that forgiveness is reserved for you. Eliminate obesity from your ego, because narrow is the door you have to go through. So eliminate your ego and pride so that you can go through that door.

The Attributes of Allah- VII

It is essential that you know with certainty that you have a God, Creator, and Support of all existence Who is Almighty, and whose attributes are eternal and immutable. He is distant, yet close. He is close, yet distant. He is One, but His manifestations are manifold. God cannot undergo any change, for He is eternally unchanging and Perfect in His attributes. Do not prefer the world, its resources or your loved ones to Him, but prefer Him to everything else so that in heaven you will be among those registered in His community. 

The Omnipotent God has always shown His mercy. If you want to enjoy it, make sure that nothing separates you from Him, that your will submits entirely to His, and that your pleasures and desires are identified completely with His. Whatever the circumstances, whether successful or unsuccessful, always bow down before the threshold of His Throne, that He may accomplish what He wishes. Deploy whatever is in your power to establish His Oneness on earth. Show kindness and mercy to His creatures; do not harm them, be it with your tongue, hands or any other means, and work to promote their well-being [to improve their plight].

Do not act proudly with anyone, even if he is your subordinate or servant, and do not swear at anyone even if you are insulted. Be humble and kind, and have real sympathy for your fellow human beings so that God accepts you. There are many who are only humble in appearance, but deep down, they are real hungry wolves. Externally, they seem to have a pure nature, but internally, they are real vipers. God will only accept you if your tongue and your actions conform to your heart. If you have a high rank, show consideration for those who are below you, and do not despise them. If you are learned, do not boast about it, and do not conceivably disdain the ignorant, but enlighten them with your good advice. If you are rich, don’t boast about it, and don’t flaunt your pride before the poor, but serve them and help them.

The Attributes of Allah- VI

Al-Hafeez

It is purely by the grace of Allah that I continue my series of sermons on the attributes of Allah [Part 6] and to quote some attributes of Allah with certain explanations.

Al-Hafeez is an attribute of Allah which is derived from the word Hifz which means protection. So Al-Hafeez means The Protector. There is nothing in existence that can protect [us] all the time and in all situations because it requires knowledge that covers and encompasses every atom that exists and an absolute capacity.

No one except Allah the Almighty possess this. Therefore, He is the only one who has all knowledge. His knowledge covers everything. Nothing escapes His knowledge. And it’s Allah Almighty alone Who has the capacity [power] over everything. Nothing and no one can make Allah the Almighty incapable, powerless or helpless. So it’s He alone Who is Al-Hafeez. Allah the Almighty knows each creature and He knows where and in what situation it is. He knows what everyone needs and how much he needs. And He has the ability to grant him what he needs. Nothing can hinder [becoming an obstacle in] the work of Allah the Almighty. Reciting this attribute in abundance and invoking Him through this is a very effective way to develop trust in Allah the Almighty. It is a way for someone who is in distress and in pain to feel protected in regard to his life, his family, his property, his dignity and his honour.

Al-Hakeem: Hakeem is derived from Hikmah. Hikmah means wisdom, mastery and perfection. Nothing is perfect except Allah the Almighty. His work exceeds all skill and He is beyond all expertise. This is why in the truest sense of the word, it is Almighty Allah alone Who is Al-Hakeem. It is because of the fact that the knowledge of Allah Almighty is perfect. His work is perfect. It was Him who shaped each atom of the universe into a balanced and appropriate shape and dimension.

If we examine this from the verb Hakama which means to govern, then at that moment it will mean that all authority is in the hand of Allah the Almighty. His decision is final. No one can object or overturn His decision. And no one can even surpass Allah the Almighty in His power and authority.

When the word Hakeem is attributed to someone other than Allah the Almighty, then it means someone who has knowledge of the Deen and whose behaviour is based on the knowledge he has. That is to say someone whose behaviour does not betray his knowledge which is based and founded on established and solid principles.

If a person meditates on this attribute, he will completely submit to the decision of Allah the Almighty. Note that this submission does not prevent us from invoking Allah the Almighty, but what is essential is that we leave the final decision to Him and that we are satisfied with what happens to us after having invoked Him in prayers (duahs).

The Attributes of Allah- V

By the grace of Allah I continue the 5th part of my Friday Sermon on the subject of the attributes of Allah. So Allah tells us that He is Supreme over His servants. He has all the control and has absolute power. He has the power to destroy everything, He has the power to punish. It is He Who gives death and it is He Who gives life. And it’s Him Who made all of the arrangements for your protections so that you don’t destroy yourselves by His decree. And this is the subject that the Quran mentions in other places, that you have committed so many sins; so many sins that it would have then been completely appropriate that Allah eliminates you completely. It will be within His right to do so, not only you, but all forms of life.

In another place in the Quran, it is mentioned as a result that for every person, even if he is visible or hidden, even if he goes out in the evening or in broad daylight, Allah has placed watchers [guardians] upon him to protect him. To protect him from what? To protect him from the decrees of Allah.

So here we are dealing with what subject? In fact it is the very divine decree which gives life and it is the very divine decree which gives death. No one has the capacity to die without the divine decree. So if Allah’s decree calls you to your death, then Allah tells us that it’s His very Taqdir (decree) that protects us for a time and protects us from His other decree as well. Otherwise Allah is completely Supreme. He has so much power and ability that He can eliminate and destroy everything, but in fact it is His very decree that protects you from His other Taqdirs.

The Attributes of Allah- IV

By the grace of Allah I continue after a month (4 weeks) the 4th part of my Friday Sermon on the attributes of Allah. As I told you, Allah has no need to lie. He Himself is Malik, Rahman and Rahim. He is also Al-Haqq. He made the truth clear when people use tricks and all kinds of illusions to deceive people. We have this clearly in the example of Hazrat Musa (as).

So when we read the Holy Quran, it also mentions the example of Hazrat Dawud (as). Allah (swt) says that two people climbed the walls and entered the castle of Hazrat Dawud (as) and they said to him: O Dawud, do not be afraid; don’t think we are thieves or burglars; it won’t do you any good to make noises. In fact, we came to present a case [a concern] to you. I have a ewe, but he (my friend present here) has 99. He tells me to give him my eve, so that will make a number of 100 (i.e. 100 ewes). But I told him I only have one and I can’t give it to you. So tell us what to do.

So Hazrat Dawud (as) gave his judgment, but immediately after he turned to Allah (swt) in prostration and thought that Allah was in fact testing him. Allah certainly tested him and warned him against greediness to acquire small kingdoms to add to his own kingdom. Allah (swt) made him understand that he should not put pressure on the kingdoms that were nearby (in the vicinity), to be careful not to commit excesses.

The Attributes of Allah- III

By the grace of Allah I continue my 3^rd part of the Friday Sermon on the attributes of Allah and it is only Allah (swt) Who can give me the grace, the opportunity and the knowledge to elaborate this subject in depth. Without His help and His divine grace it will not be possible for me, weak creature that I am to speak on such an important subject. And this subject is important in the lives of all believers so that they know Allah (swt) through His attributes, and we must make it our duty to read His attributes every day [especially in these difficult times that we are living today]. Insha-Allah.

I continue the subject where someone lies to receive praise, to accomplish his greed, to receive honour, greatness, and grab property that does not belong to him. He does nothing to get it all; he does not work hard to earn it all honestly, but he acts dishonestly, and lies in order to steal the property of his neighbour or brother or the property of his sister. He is greedy; he likes that he alone wins all that and so, in order to reach to this end, he tricks his brothers or sisters, and makes them sign documents to grab their wealth and then he turns his back on them and pushes them away in order to enjoy alone these riches.

If we look at the example that the Qur’an gives us, we will find that there are people who lie and use flattery to gain praise because of greed and you see these situations also in religion. 

The Attributes of Allah- II

By the grace of Allah, last week I started my sermon on the attributes of Allah and I thank Allah (swt) very much for giving me the Tawfiq to continue on the same subject today too. When you follow last Friday’s Sermon, you will understand better that in concrete terms there is no mention of Allah as Haqq, but in fact when you analyze His attributes, but then the truth is included. From the point of view of praise, one cannot even conceive a lie about Allah and from Allah [in connection to Allah].

The second reason that people lie a lot is because of greed. There are a lot of lawsuits going on [in court] regarding wealth and property matters or loan and repayment cases, debt cases etc. Much of this business is the result of the lies that people tell due to their greed.

Let’s [now] look at country level. You see that because of the thirst for power, because of a greed for power, politicians make all kinds of promises in order to come to power, and in this quest, there are a lot of lies going on during the electoral campaign, where one party criticizes the other party, throws mud on it [i.e. dishonouring] it [and all people involved in it], and makes all kinds of shenanigans where very often there are even elections which are held in a country where there are mischief and frauds and all this opens the way for a fight and disorder: the political parties throw mud on their opponents, they make such electoral campaigns where they meet the other parties and watch them carefully lest their opponents come to power. In this quest for power, there are promises made with the electorate, and there are also many lies that are spoken. All this is the result of greed, the desire to grab power, to stay in power, to have fun [with the people’s money] as we say and in all this it is the people who still suffer a lot during the five years [to come] when these politicians deceive people, and lie to them because of their greed.

Now a Being Who owns everything and Who does not depend on anyone and Who, on the contrary, everyone depends on Him, so what is the use for Him to lie? He is already the Master of the universe and therefore the very aspect/ notion of greed is completely removed.

The Attributes of Allah

Alhamdulillah, like I told you last week I shall deliver a series of sermons on the attributes of Allah. Before starting to prepare this sermon several weeks before, like usual I pray to Allah for guidance and Allah at once made me understand that I should talk a bit on His attributes and this is indeed a divine grace that each time when Friday comes and I have to deliver the sermon (Khutba Jumu’ah), Allah (swt) guides me on a particular subject. All these of manifestations and signs of Allah and show how Allah directs His Chosen Servant. Alhamdulillah.

So, as per what Allah (swt) has made me understand, and maybe before my time also, Allah may have guided His other prophets, His chosen ones and showed them the same explanations. That is why we say that the Messengers of Allah are like a chain, whereby each link is attached to another link and all links form a chain, and to enhance that chain, to make it more beautiful and attractive, and to give it its real value and splendour, a medallion is needed. So, without the medallion, the chain does not have its true value and it loses all its splendour. So all of us prophets of Allah are one family who speak the same word, revive the true value of each prophet that Allah (swt) sent to earth and all prophets [indeed] revive the true value of each prophet that Allah (swt) sent to earth and all the prophets, we all gather behind our chief master. And the chief master of all prophets is Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).

This is why with his coming and before also, the prophets who came before him had praised him and prophesied about his coming, so that we know his value and greatness, whereby his advent encompasses all the divine teachings which were brought or existed before through the prophets (as) before him. That’s why the Quran told us that Hazrat Muhammad (saws) is the Rahmat-ul-lil-Aalameen; a blessing for all the universe, for all people and his message and the religion he brought are for all of humanity. And to give true value to this medallion whereby all the time it will remain shiny, pretty, attractive, then every time there is a need for someone who comes from Allah to revive His pure and truthful teachings whereby there is no innovation; such teachings which shall lead [the people] directly to one God and win His love.

'ALLAH': God in Islam

The Conception of God in Islam

Islam likes to contemplate the attributes of Allah through His different and adorable names by which He is invoked. The Holy Quran says: “To God belong the most beautiful names; So call on Him by them.” (Al-Arraf 7: 181).

A whole mass of theological literature exists to explain and classify His names. We often speak of ninety-nine (99) names of Allah, but these names are called differently by different writers so that there are hundreds of names that we can assign to Allah for Allah has any quality under which we want to worship Him. While we humans are limited, He is infinite. While we can only think in part, He is The Whole and He understands much more than we can imagine. We think of His mercy, His love, His wisdom, His glory and His majesty, His justice, His truth and His righteousness, His uniqueness, etc. but in doing so our minds are limited because our knowledge is limited while He knows, understands, hears and exceeds everything. Nothing is equal to Him. 

We always think in relative terms such as the first and the last; the visible and the invisible. But in Allah, these opposite qualities meet and we give these same pairs of names to Allah: The First and The Last, The Visible and The Invisible. For us, the contemplation of eternity implies the rejection of two limits; the beginning and the end. Only Allah is eternal and He has neither beginning nor end. We think of Allah in relation to time and space: but time and space are the creations of our mind. Allah is independent of time and space. In reality, He is the Absolute, the Independent and everything depends on Him.

It is generally believed that the emphasis of Islam is on the oneness of Allah, but it must also be said that the emphasis is also on His mercy, kindness and love. The Holy Quran contains 114 Surahs and all except one [i.e. At-Taubah] begins with “In the name of God, The Most Gracious, The Most Merciful.”

The attributes of Allah ‘Rahman’ and ‘Rahim’ are names that have no equivalence in any other language and therefore cannot be properly translated [as they are really and truly vast in meaning]. ‘Rahim’ emphasizes the pity that we seek from Allah and that will not be denied from us.

“Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim” is the sentence that a Muslim most often says: at the beginning of prayer [be it Salat & duahs], before reading the Holy Quran, before eating, before travelling, before starting anything of some consequence - sacred [spiritual] or secular [mundane].

So the actions of a Muslim are intimately linked with these sacred words. The insistence on the oneness of Allah is not only a protest against the Trinity or Duality or Polytheism. Islam believes that Allah is one, unique and without equal. A young student of religion once defined God as being all of the abstract qualities of kindness and beauty combined in one abstraction. Some may accept this definition, but for Islam it is a cold and worthless abstraction. Life is always a mystery whether for science, art, poetry and religion.

Let’s see what the Holy Quran says: “Say: He is Allah, the One, Allah, the Eternal, Absolute. He neither begets nor was He begotten. And no one is equal to Him.” (Al-Ikhlaas,  Chapter 112)

A Divine Message for the 'Jamaat'-II

[These are extraordinary times in the history of Islam-of the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam. Like providential rain on a parched earth, Allah (swt) is pouring down His messages and revelations on His chosen servant at a time when the world is desperately looking for Divine guidance. 

Reproduced below are extracts from the Friday Sermon of 29 June 2018 (14 Shawwal 1439 AH) delivered by Muhyi-ud-Din Al Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Saheb (atba) of Mauritius. Like the previous posts in the series,  in the present post also, Hadhrat Khalifatullah (atba) continues to present before the world, especially to his disciples and followers in the Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam, the most recent of Divine revelations the Lord Almighty has descended on his blessed heart. These Divine messages contain a gist of the Qur'anic wisdom for the spiritual illumination of all human souls, reminding everyone about the consequences of their choices including through contemporary illustrations, urging in the strongest of terms to tread the path of purity and obedience to God and His Messenger and His Khalifa of this era, Alhamdulillah, Soumma Alhamdulillah].   

'...O you who have believed, follow the path of Allah, obey His Messenger and seek a means to come closer to your Rab. Strive to tread on His path so that you may prosper and seek to please Allah, and Allah shall remove you from darkness and lead you towards light. Through His grace He guides you to a righteous path. Recall the favour of Allah upon you when He removed you from obscurity and made you take the Bai’at in the hand of My servant and it is (verily) with Allah that you have taken the Bai’at.

Therefore follow the command of Allah. Allah verily knows what is in your hearts. Keep firm with Allah and His Messenger and always attest to the truth. Do not let the hatred of those who do not believe affect you and hinder you from establishing justice between truth and falsehood. This makes you come closer to the path of Allah. Follow Allah’s order because Allah is aware of all that you do. Allah makes this promise to those who have believed sincerely that they shall gain (His) forgiveness and a great reward. On the other hand, those who reject Our signs shall become the in-dwellers of the great fire (hellfire). I, Allah, I am Al-Jaleel.

God's Perfect Attributes

Islam describes God as a Perfect Being, possessing every excellence. The opening verse of the Holy Quran states: "All praise is due to Allah, the Creator and Sustainer of all the worlds."

As God has created all things, and all things depend on Him for their sustenance, He alone deserves all praise for the beauties and excellences to be found in different things, for all these beauties and excellences are derived from God. God has been called 'Rahman' in the Holy Quran, i.e. God has, out of His pure Grace and Bounty, created all those things the need of which was to be felt by man; for instance, parents to care for him, light and air, fire and water, different kinds of food and medicines, timber, iron, stone, etc. 

In fact, man cannot possibly feel any need which has not been met and provided for even before his birth! All this has been done under God's attribute of 'Rahmaniyyat'. God has also been called 'Rahim' in the Holy Quran, that is to say, He rewards all labour and effort according to its quality and merit. Man's effort is never wasted, and he is ever rewarded in true proportion to his merit.

He is called 'Malik-i-Yawm-id-Din', He is the Master of the Day of Judgement. In other words, apart from the operation of the laws of Nature, and the rewards or punishments which are meted out in this world, He has fixed the limits of every action, and as soon as those limits are reached, final judgement is passed on each action whereby the good are rewarded, and the evil ones are punished - subject always to this, that under His attribute of 'Malikiyyat' it is always open to Him to forgive and to remit the punishment.