AL-MUSTAPHA INSTITUTE OF BRISBANE

Compiled by Br. Abdul-Halm Khall (03-04-14)

Bismillahir-Rahmanir-Rahm

He is God, other than Whom there is no god: Knower of the Unseen and the Manifest. He is the All-Merciful, Bestower of Special Mercy. He is God, other than Whom there is no god: The King, the Holy One, the Perfect Peace, Granter of Security, Giver of Protection, the Omnipotent, the Overwhelming, the Imperious: Glory be to God, against whatever is (falsely) associated (with Him). He is God: the Creator, the Originator (of all things from nothing), Giver of Forms. His are the Most Beautiful Names. All that is in the heavens and earth proclaims His Glory, and He is the All-Powerful, the All-Wise. i

The Remembrance of Allh, The True Lord of Many Beautiful Names

Learning, Contemplating, and Earnestly Reciting His Every Delightful Name:

And (all) the Most Beautiful Names belong to Allh, so call upon Him by them, and leave the company of those who deny (or utter impious speech deriding), His Names. They shall be requited for what they used to do. 1

It is reported on the authority of Abu Huraira the Blessed Prophet (

) said, Allh has ninety-nine Names (viz., one hundred minus

one), and whoever believes in their meanings and acts accordingly, shall enter Paradise; and Allh is Witr (one) and loves the Witr (i.e., odd numbers).2

In this way, one may appreciate that the virtue of Memorising such Beautiful Names, understanding (and, therefore, believing in) their meanings, and ultimately acting in accordance with those meanings is an immensely beautiful form of dhikr and ibadah. Indeed, our most Beautiful Habib ( ) has said of the remembrance of Allh Dhikrullah and

of those who frequently attune their consciousness to the Omnipotence, Omniscience, and Omnipresence of our Lord His Endearing Friends (the Awaliyyah), that: The example of the person who remembers [their] Lord, and the person who does not remember Him, is that of the living and the dead.3

Refer to the Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-'A`rf (The Chapter of the Elevations) 7:180. Reported in Sahh Al-Bukhari (volume 8, book 75, hadth number 419). Cf. Volume 3, book 50, hadth number 894, and volume 9, book 93, hadth number 489. 3 Reported on the authority of Abu Msa Al-Ashari (radi Allhu anhu), in the texts of Bukhari (6407) and Muslim (779).
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Yet, the mere accumulation of such Beautiful Names is not, of itself, the primary purpose illuminated through these ahadth. Nay! Allh Al-Alm,4 Al-Khabr,5 Al-Was,6 Al-Hakm7 through Surat Al-Jum`ah, Revealed:

The example of those who were entrusted with the Torah, and then did not take it on, is like that of a donkey who carries volumes [of books]. Wretched is the example of the people who deny the signs of Allh. And Allh does not guide the wrongdoing people.
(viz., regardless of the knowledge such books contain, the donkey cannot make use of, nor implement, that knowledge in its life, the heedless beast simply carries such burden as dead weight]).8 Thus, is our knowledge (of whatever subject, the Quran, ahadth, the Beautiful Names of God) meaningful? Do we understand the basic nature of Dn, in terms appropriate to the level of our capacity, so that the reception of such knowledge is meaningful , not meaningless ? The more one remembers Allh, Subhanahu Wa-tala, the greater the intimacy one may cultivate with Allh, Al-Wadd,9 the greater the Blessings, Forgiveness, and Nourishment that

The Knower of All. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat As-Sajdah (The Chapter of Prostration) 32:6-7. 5 The All-Aware; the Well-Acquainted. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Mulk (The Chapter of Dominion) 67:14. 6 The All-Comprehending. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-'A`rf (The Chapter of the Elevations) 7:89. 7 The Perfectly Wise. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat An-Naml (The Chapter of the Ant) 27:6. 8 The Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Jumah (The Chapter of the Friday Congregation) 62:5. 9 The Loving One. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Burj (The Chapter of the Great Stars) 85:14.
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one may access from Allh, Ar-Rahmn,10 Ar-Rahm,11 Al-Ghaffar,12 Al-Ghafur,13 Al-Af,14 At-Tawwab,15 Al-Wahhab,16 Al-Muqit,17 Al-Ghani.18 To conclude upon this most important pursuit, the Beloved Prophet ( to Rasl-Allh [ ) said (in a Qudsee hadith viz., a narration Revealed

], yet which is not found within the Qurn): Remembrance of Allh).19

I am with my servant, as long as they remember Me, and as long as their lips move (with the

So, let [our] tongues remains moist with the remembrance of Allh,20 for the Beautiful Names of Ar-Rashid21 provide the most perfect pathway to His Love.

Relevant Links: Mount Hira http://everybreatheverysecond.com/ (or http://www.mounthira.com/) The Threshold Society http://sufism.org/foundations/ninety-nine-names

The Most Merciful. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Ar-Rahmn (The Chapter of the Most Merciful) 55:1-13. 11 The Most Beneficent. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Ftiah (The Chapter of the Opening) 1:1. 12 The Perpetually Forgiving. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Burj (The Chapter of the Great Stars) 85:14-16. Cf. Jalauddin Rumi, Mathnawi, Book II: 1366-1367. 13 The Forgiver and Hider of Faults. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Baqarah (The Chapter of the Cow) 2:58. Also, see Hadrat Jalauddin Rumi, Mathnawi, Book II: 3-34-3035. 14 The Forgiver. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat An-Najm (That Chapter of the Stars) 53:32. Also, see Hadrat Jalauddin Rumi, Mathnawi Book I: 3252-3. 15 The Guide to Repentance. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat At-Tawbah (The Chapter of Repentance) 9:104. Also, see Hadrat Jalauddin Rumi, Mathnawi, Book II: 1652-1656. 16 The Giver of All. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Ash-Shuara (The Chapter of the Poets) 26:21. 17 The Nourisher. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Fuilat (The Chapter Explained in Detail) 41:10. 18 The Rich One. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Hajj (The Chapter of the Pilgrimage) 22:64. 19 Imam Al-Bukhari related this hadth as a mullaq narration, in the Book of Tauhd. This narration is also reported in the authentic texts of Imam Ahmad (10,585 and 10,592) and Ibn Mjah (3,792), on the authority of Abu Hurairah (radi Allhu anhu). NOTE: according to Ibn al-Salh (in alMuqaddimah f `Ulm al-Hadth), a hadth narration shall be described as a mullaq narration or a hanging or suspended narration if the original narrator is (and any subsequent narrators are) omitted (by the subject muhadth: e.g. Imam al-Bukhari) from the beginning of the chain of transmission of the subject narration (viz., the isnd is left suspended, without the ascription to the original narrator). This is also the opinion of Imam ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani (May Allh Bestow His Mercy upon him), in Nuzhat al-Nadhr (108-109). 20 This hadith is related in the authentic texts of Imam Ahmad (17,227 and 17,245), Tirmidhi (3,375), and Ibn Mjah (3,793). Furthermore, refer to Mishkt al-Masbh (2,279). 21 The Righteous Teacher. Refer to the he Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-Ala (The Chapter of the Most High) 87:7-8.
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Refer to the Glorious Qurn, Surat Al-ashr (The Chapter of the Exile), 59:22-24.