***Assalamu Alaikum WR WB***
***The Beneficent, the Merciful***
Allah is referred to
by His name "The Beneficent" fifty-seven times in the Qur'ân.We
read, for instance: "And your God is One God; there is no god save Him,
the Beneficent, the Merciful." [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 163]
And: "The Beneficent
is established on the Throne." [Sûrah TâHâ: 5]As for "The
Merciful", the Qur'ân refers to Allah by this name 114 times. For
instance: "For Allah is to all people Most surely full of kindness, Most
Merciful." [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 143]
And: "Whoever repents
after his wrongdoing and makes amends, then surely Allah will relent
towards him; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful." [Sûrah al-Mâ'idah:
39]The attribute of mercy – which both of these names are
derived from – is one of out Lord's greatest attributes. A believer's
meets a fellow believer with the greeting: "May peace be upon you and
the mercy of Allah."
We say:"Praise
be to Allah who has prescribed mercy upon Himself.""Praise be
to Allah whose mercy takes precedence over His wrath.""Praise be
to Allah whose mercy encompasses all things."
Allah is described as
having the attribute of "mercy" in the Qur'ân over 160 times.It
is interesting to consider the ways in whcih Allah's mercy appear in the
chapter of the Qur'ân entitled Mary, which opens with the verse: "(This
is) a recital of the mercy of your Lord to His servant Zechariah."
[Sûrah Maryam: 2]
Here we have mention
of Allah's mercy to one of his choicest devotees, Zechariah, when he
beseeched his Lord to bless him with a child in his old age. This shows
us how close Allah's mercy is to those who worship and beseech Him with
sincere devotion and humility.In the middle of the same chapter,
we find an account of Abraham's story. At one point, Abraham says to
his father: "O my father! Do not serve Satan. Surely Satan is
disobedient to the Beneficent." [Sûrah Maryam: 44]
Abraham's words show us the extreme ignorance
that it takes to flagrantly deny Allah and disobey Him. Allah, the Beneficent and Merciful, truly
deserves our obedience. We should thank Him, not deny His favor. We
should cherish Him in our thoughts and never forget Him. We should
respond to His goodness and His favor with our gratitude and devotion.
Abraham then says: "O my father! I fear lest a
punishment overtakes you from the Beneficent, so that you become a
comrade of Satan." [Sûrah Maryam: 45]
Here Abraham warns against the punishment that
awaits those who disobey Allah and who spurn His guidance and His way.
By referring to it as being "a punishment from the Beneficent", Abraham
is emphasizing how base and offensive it is to reject Allah and faith in
Him, so much so that in their rejection ad unbelief they become
deserving of punishment from Allah, in spite of Allah's infinite mercy.The
chapter entitled Mary comes to its conclusion with the verse: "Indeed,
those who believe and do good deeds, the Beneficent will bestow love
upon them." [Sûrah Maryam: 96]
This verse relates to us a meaning of great
significance. Allah blesses those who believe and do good deeds with
love. He loves them and they love Him. He then spreads their love
throughout the Earth, so they feel love for each other.
In this regard,
the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: If Allah loves someone, He
summons Gabriel and says: "I love that person."Then Gabriel
also loves that person and calls out to the heavens: "Indeed Allah loves
this person."
Thereafter, the denizens of Heaven also love that
person. Thereafter it is manifested as acceptance on the Earth." [Sahîh
al-Bukhârî (3209) and Sahîh Muslim (2637)]These are some of the
significant meanings that should enrich a Muslim's faith and practice
from contemplating on Allah's mercy.
***The Beneficent, the Merciful***
Allah is referred to
by His name "The Beneficent" fifty-seven times in the Qur'ân.We
read, for instance: "And your God is One God; there is no god save Him,
the Beneficent, the Merciful." [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 163]
And: "The Beneficent
is established on the Throne." [Sûrah TâHâ: 5]As for "The
Merciful", the Qur'ân refers to Allah by this name 114 times. For
instance: "For Allah is to all people Most surely full of kindness, Most
Merciful." [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 143]
And: "Whoever repents
after his wrongdoing and makes amends, then surely Allah will relent
towards him; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful." [Sûrah al-Mâ'idah:
39]The attribute of mercy – which both of these names are
derived from – is one of out Lord's greatest attributes. A believer's
meets a fellow believer with the greeting: "May peace be upon you and
the mercy of Allah."
We say:"Praise
be to Allah who has prescribed mercy upon Himself.""Praise be
to Allah whose mercy takes precedence over His wrath.""Praise be
to Allah whose mercy encompasses all things."
Allah is described as
having the attribute of "mercy" in the Qur'ân over 160 times.It
is interesting to consider the ways in whcih Allah's mercy appear in the
chapter of the Qur'ân entitled Mary, which opens with the verse: "(This
is) a recital of the mercy of your Lord to His servant Zechariah."
[Sûrah Maryam: 2]
Here we have mention
of Allah's mercy to one of his choicest devotees, Zechariah, when he
beseeched his Lord to bless him with a child in his old age. This shows
us how close Allah's mercy is to those who worship and beseech Him with
sincere devotion and humility.In the middle of the same chapter,
we find an account of Abraham's story. At one point, Abraham says to
his father: "O my father! Do not serve Satan. Surely Satan is
disobedient to the Beneficent." [Sûrah Maryam: 44]
Abraham's words show us the extreme ignorance
that it takes to flagrantly deny Allah and disobey Him. Allah, the Beneficent and Merciful, truly
deserves our obedience. We should thank Him, not deny His favor. We
should cherish Him in our thoughts and never forget Him. We should
respond to His goodness and His favor with our gratitude and devotion.
Abraham then says: "O my father! I fear lest a
punishment overtakes you from the Beneficent, so that you become a
comrade of Satan." [Sûrah Maryam: 45]
Here Abraham warns against the punishment that
awaits those who disobey Allah and who spurn His guidance and His way.
By referring to it as being "a punishment from the Beneficent", Abraham
is emphasizing how base and offensive it is to reject Allah and faith in
Him, so much so that in their rejection ad unbelief they become
deserving of punishment from Allah, in spite of Allah's infinite mercy.The
chapter entitled Mary comes to its conclusion with the verse: "Indeed,
those who believe and do good deeds, the Beneficent will bestow love
upon them." [Sûrah Maryam: 96]
This verse relates to us a meaning of great
significance. Allah blesses those who believe and do good deeds with
love. He loves them and they love Him. He then spreads their love
throughout the Earth, so they feel love for each other.
In this regard,
the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: If Allah loves someone, He
summons Gabriel and says: "I love that person."Then Gabriel
also loves that person and calls out to the heavens: "Indeed Allah loves
this person."
Thereafter, the denizens of Heaven also love that
person. Thereafter it is manifested as acceptance on the Earth." [Sahîh
al-Bukhârî (3209) and Sahîh Muslim (2637)]These are some of the
significant meanings that should enrich a Muslim's faith and practice
from contemplating on Allah's mercy.
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