Blessed Names and Attributes of Allah. Abdur Raheem Kidwai

      

      BLESSED NAMES AND ATTRIBUTES

      

of

      Allah

      Abdur Raheem Kidwai

      Blessed Names and Attributes of Allah

      First published in England by

      Kube Publishing Ltd

      Markfield Conference Centre

      Ratby Lane, Markfield,

      Leicestershire LE67 9SY

      United Kingdom

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      Website: www.kubepublishing.com

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      © Abdur Raheem Kidwai, 2016

      All rights reserved.

      The right of Abdur Raheem Kidwai to be

      identified as the author of this work has been

      asserted by him in accordance with the

      Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.

      Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

      is available from the British Library

      ISBN 978 1 84774 087 8 casebound

      ISBN 978 1 84774 092 2 Box set edition

      ISBN 978 1 84774 089 2

      Typeset N.A. Qaddoura

      Design Imtiaze Ahmed

      Printed Imak Offset, Istanbul, Turkey

      CONTENTS

Transliteration table

Preface

Introduction

Blessed Names and Attributes of Allah

       Index

TRANSLITERATION TABLE

       Arabic Consonants

      Initial, unexpressed medial and final:

      With a shaddah, both medial and final consonants are doubled.

      Vowels, diphthongs, etc.

PREFACE

      THIS work represents a compendium, listing and elucidating 99 excellent names of Allah which figure in the Qur’ān and standard Ḥadīth collections. Both the Qur’ān and Aḥādīth (plural) state the importance of learning these beautiful names, and promise reward for those who invoke Allah in their supplications with reference to His excellent names. These names offer a conspectus of the articles of Islamic faith and introduce concisely the being and attributes of Allah.

      With its elucidation of an important facet of Islamic faith, the present work supplements and complements the earlier three volumes of the series Daily Wisdom, brought out by Kube Publishing, which explicate select Qur’ānic passages, Aḥādīth, and Islamic prayers and supplications, respectively. It is hoped this volume too, will enable readers to gain a better understanding of Islamic faith. Written in simple, easy to understand English, the present work seeks to bring out the lesson conveyed to us by each name of Allah. Its study may enable readers to appreciate better the Islamic scheme of things about this world and the next and instruct us how to invoke Allah in our supplications and petitions to Him. This work may facilitate, also, our conceptualization of Allah Whose glory and greatness is limitless.

      I must thank Brothers Yahya Birt and Haris Ahmad of Kube Publishing, UK for having entrusted this valuable assignment to me, notwithstanding my inadequacies. May Allah accept this modest effort (Āmīn).

       Abdur Raheem Kidwai

      Professor, Department of English

      Aligarh Muslim University, India

      Muḥarram 1437 AH

      October 2015 CE

INTRODUCTION

       Allah’s are the names most beautiful. Whatever is in the heavens and the earth extols His glory.

      (al-Ḥashr 59: 24)

       Allah – there is no God but He. His are the most excellent names.

      (Ṭā Hā 20: 8)

       Say to them (O Prophet!): “Call upon Him as Allah or call upon Him as Al-Raḥmān; call Him by whichever name you will, all His names are beautiful”.

      (al-Isrā’ 17: 110)

       Allah has the most excellent names. So call on Him by His names and shun those who distort them.

      (al-Aʿrāf 7: 180)

      Apart from the above Qur’ānic assertions, the excellence of Allah’s name is also pressed home by the following Aḥādīth:

      On the authority of Abū Hurayrah, it is related that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Allah has 99 names. Whoever remembers these, will enter Paradise.” Companions report that they had memorized and counted these names well.

      (Bukhārī, Kitāb Al-Tawḥīd, 2, 1,099)

      Another report recounted by Abū Hurayrah is as follows: “Allah has 99 names. He who remembers these will certainly enter Paradise.”

      (Bukhārī, Kitāb Al-Daʿawāt, 2, 949)

      Abū Hurayrah quotes the Prophet (peace be upon him) saying: “Allah 99 names. He who memorizes these is destined to enter Paradise”.

      (Muslim, Kitāb Al-Dhikr wa Al-Duʿā’, 2, 342)

      According to Tirmidhī, Abū Hurayrah reports that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Allah has 99 names. He who learns these by heart will enter Paradise”. Tirmidhī adds that this Ḥadīth does not specify those 99 names of Allah and that it is a ḥasan ṣaḥīḥ Ḥadīth.

      (Tirmidhī, Abwāb Al-Daʿawāt, 2, 188–9)

      In his gloss over Jāmi‘ Al-Tirmidhī, Qāḍī Abū Bakr ibn ‘Arabī maintains that there are 1,000 names of Allah and the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) each.

      (Maqrīzī, ImtāʿAl-Asmāʿ, 2, 138)

      These