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Names of God in Islam
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Names of God in Islam (Arabic: أَسْمَاءُ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ, romanized: ʾasmāʾu llāhi l-ḥusnā, lit. 'Allah's Beautiful Names') are 99 names that each contain Attributes of God in Islam,[1][2][3][4][5][6] which are implied by the respective names.[7]
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These names usually denote his praise, gratitude, commendation, glorification, magnification, perfect attributes, majestic qualities, and acts of wisdom, mercy, benefit, and justice from Allah, as believed by Muslims. These names are commonly called upon by Muslims during prayers, supplications, and remembrance, as they hold significant spiritual and theological importance, serving as a means for Muslims to connect with God. Each name reflects a specific attribute of Allah and serves as a means for believers to understand and relate to the Divine.
Some names are known from either the Qur’an or the hadith, while others can be found in both sources, although most are found in the Qur’an.[8] Additionally, Muslims also believe that there are more names of God besides those found in the Qur'an and hadith and that God has kept knowledge of these names hidden with himself, and no one else knows them completely and fully except him.
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List of names
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Different sources give different lists of the 99 names. The most commonly known list is based on the one found in the Jamiʿ at-Tirmidhi (9th century) that was narrated by al-Walid ibn Muslim, which is the most commonly known.[9] However, al-Tirmidhi comments on his list: "This (version of the) hadith is gharib [unusual]; it has been narrated from various routes on the authority of Abu Hurayrah, but we do not know of the mention of the Names in the numerous narrations, except this one." Other hadiths, such as those of al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim, Ibn Majah, al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi or Ibn ʿAsākir, have variant lists. Various early Muslim exegetes, including Jaʿfar al-Sadiq, Sufyan ibn `Uyaynah, Ibn Hazm, al-Qurtubi, and Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, have given their own versions of lists of 99 names.
al-Tirmidhi's list
Based on al-Tirmidhi's list above, the names for which there is no evidence, as specified by Sheikh Abd al-Muhsin al-Abbad, Sheikh Ibn Uthaymeen, and others, are as follows:
الخافضُ، المعزُّ، المذِل، العَدْلُ، الجَلِيلُ، البَاعِثُ، المُحْصِي، المُبْدِئُ، المُعِيدُ، المُمِيتُ، الوَاجِدُ، المَاجِدُ، الوَالِي، المُقْسِط، المُغْنِي، المَانِعُ، الضَّارُّ، النَّافِعُ، البَاقِي، الرَّشِيدُ، الصَّبُور.
Comparisons of other lists
Hidden names
There is no universal agreement among Islamic exegesis scholars about the number of names of God, since it was only Ibn Hazm who argued a limitation of 99 names. Instead, Islamic scholars such as al-Khattabi, al-Qurtubi, Abi Bakr bin Thayyib, Ibn al-'Arabi (not Ibn Arabi),[a] Abu Abdillah ar-Razi, Ibn Taymiyya, Al-Nawawi, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani,[14] Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya[15] and Ibn Rajab,[16] have stated that Allah has an infinite number of names. While there are rulings that only a few names and their attributes are revealed and known in the Qur'an and Hadiths, the uncountably unrevealed names and their attributes are only known by Allah Himself.[17][18] The basis of these rulings was the Hadith, which contains a supplication as narrated in Hisn al-Muslim:
أَسْأَلُكَ بِكُلِّ اسْمٍ هُوَ لَكَ سَمَّيْتَ بِهِ نَفْسَكَ أَوْ أَنْزَلْتَهُ فِي كِتَابِكَ أَوْ عَلَّمْتَهُ أَحَدًا مِنْ خَلْقِكَ أَوْ اسْتَأْثَرْتَ بِهِ فِي عِلْمِ الْغَيْبِ عِنْدَكَ
"I beg You by every Names that is Yours, which You have named Yourself with, or revealed in Your Book, or taught to any of Your creation, or (which you) kept them secret to Yourself in the mysterious knowledge of Yours."
Another Hadith contains a supplication, with multiple chains of transmitters:
اَللَّهُمَّ إِنِّيْ أَعُوْذُ بِرِضَاكَ مِنْ سَخَطِكَ، وَبِمُعَافَاتِكَ مِنْ عُقُوْبَتِكَ، وَأَعُوْذُ بِكَ مِنْكَ، لاَ أُحْصِيْ ثَنَاءً عَلَيْكَ أَنْتَ كَمَا أَثْنَيْتَ عَلَى نَفْسِكَ
“O Allah, indeed I seek refuge in Your blessing from Your wrath, and I seek refuge in Your salvation from Your torment, and I seek refuge in You from You. I cannot limit the amount of praise to You. You are as You praise Yourself."
In the established Islamic creed about the unrevealed names of Allah, the majority of fatwas say it is obligatory for a Muslim to believe in the existence of the unrevealed names and their attributes, but it is forbidden for Muslims to try to search for them without literal evidences from the Qur'an and authentic Hadiths.[14][16][17][15] In the creed of Islamic eschatology, the hidden names are believed to be hidden from anyone but Allah, and will only be revealed personally to Muhammad during Judgement Day.[15]
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In textual sources
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According to Muslims, the names of God must be established by evidence and direct reference in the Qur'an and hadiths (the concept of tawqif). Thus, it is impermissible (haram) for Muslims to give Allah names except with what He has named Himself in the Qur'an or in authentic Hadiths.
The Quran
The Quran refers to God's Most Beautiful Names (al-ʾasmāʾ al-ḥusná) in several Surahs. Gerhard Böwering refers to Surah 17 (17:110) as the locus classicus to which explicit lists of 99 names used to be attached in tafsir.
قُلِ ٱدْعُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ أَوِ ٱدْعُوا۟ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنَ ۖ أَيًّۭا مَّا تَدْعُوا۟ فَلَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ وَلَا تَجْهَرْ بِصَلَاتِكَ وَلَا تُخَافِتْ بِهَا وَٱبْتَغِ بَيْنَ ذَٰلِكَ سَبِيلًۭا
Say, ˹O Prophet,˺ “Call upon Allah or call upon the Most Compassionate—whichever you call, He has the Most Beautiful Names.” Do not recite your prayers too loudly or silently, but seek a way between.
— Surah al-Isra (17), verse 110
Another verse references the Most Beautiful Names:
وَلِلَّهِ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ فَٱدْعُوهُ بِهَا ۖ وَذَرُوا۟ ٱلَّذِينَ يُلْحِدُونَ فِىٓ أَسْمَـٰٓئِهِۦ ۚ سَيُجْزَوْنَ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
Allah has the Most Beautiful Names. So call upon Him by them, and keep away from those who abuse His Names.1 They will be punished for what they used to do.
— Surat al-Aaraf (7), verse 110
A cluster of more than a dozen Divine epithets which are included in such lists is found in Surah 59.
هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ عَـٰلِمُ ٱلْغَيْبِ وَٱلشَّهَـٰدَةِ ۖ هُوَ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ٢٢ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلَّذِى لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْمَلِكُ ٱلْقُدُّوسُ ٱلسَّلَـٰمُ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُ ٱلْمُهَيْمِنُ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْجَبَّارُ ٱلْمُتَكَبِّرُ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ ٢٣ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْخَـٰلِقُ ٱلْبَارِئُ ٱلْمُصَوِّرُ ۖ لَهُ ٱلْأَسْمَآءُ ٱلْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ وَهُوَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ ٢٤
He is Allāh—there is no god ˹worthy of worship˺ except Him: 'Ālim al-ghayb wa'l-shāhadah (Knower of the seen and unseen). He is ar-Raḥmān (the Most Compassionate), ar-Raḥīm (the Most Merciful). He is Allāh—there is no god except Him: al-Malik (the King), al-Quddūs (the Most Holy), as-Salām (the All-Perfect), al-Muʾmin (the Source of Serenity), al-Muhaymin (the Watcher), al-ʿAzīz (the Almighty), al-Jabbār (the Supreme in Might), al-Mutakabbir (the Majestic). Glorified is Allāh far above what they associate with Him. He is Allāh: al-Khāliq (the Creator), al-Bāriʾ (the Inventor), al-Muṣawwir (the Shaper). He ˹alone˺ has the Most Beautiful Names. Whatever is in the heavens and the earth ˹constantly˺ glorifies Him. And He is al-ʿAzīz (the Almighty), al-Ḥakīm (All-Wise).
— Surah al-Hashr (59), verses 22–24
Hadith
In a hadith narrated by Sahih al-Bukhari, it is mentioned that Allah has 99 names.
Abu Hurairah reported that God has ninety-nine Names, i.e., one hundred minus one, and whoever believes in their meanings and acts accordingly, will enter Paradise; and God is witr (one) and loves 'the witr' (i.e., odd numbers).
— Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 8, Book 75, Hadith 419
In another hadith, this fact is also mentioned again.
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "God has ninety-nine Names, one-hundred less one; and he who memorized them all by heart will enter Paradise." To count something means to know it by heart.
— Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 9, Book 93, Hadith 489
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Attributes
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Islamic tenets has detailed descriptions about to differentiate names with attributes (Arabic: صِفَة, romanized: ṣifāh plural of sˤi.faːt), which has literal abilities of their owns. Examples of the attributes are the name of "ar-Rahman" contains the attributes "mercifulness in general",[3] or "fundamental mercy".[21] According to Sahih Bukhari and Muslim, God has 100 kinds of rahmah (grace/godsend), whereas only one of them already revealed to this world, while the other 99 still withheld for the afterlife. One of the rahmah which was sent to the world are sufficient to fulfil the needs of all creatures until the Judgement Day; including humans, Jinns, and even non-sentients such as animals, so the parents of animals would not trample their babies under their foots or wasting.[22] Another example is name of al-ʿAliyy contains several attributes, such as "heightness" and "above all".[3]
This ruling is because the naming of God are limited by the evidences from Qur'an and Hadith in Sunni Islam.[4] Thus, postulating the tenet in Islam's creed that essentially, the name-bearing of God are different from attributes of God.[5] Nevertheless, Salafi scholar al-Uthaymin stated the principal ruling of giving attributes to God is similar with the verdict about giving name to God; that is forbidden to gave attributes without evidence from Qur'an and Sunnah.[23] One of the disputed name of God among the Islamic academic is "al-Hannan",[4] Since it is considered as one of the attribute of "ar-Rahman" name in Maryam 19:13, not because al-Hannan is a name itself.[24]
Both Ibn Taymiyya in his work, The Treaty of Tadmur, and Ibn al-Qayyim have published their statements claiming to be refuting Jahmiyya,[4] and al-Juwayni respectively; as Jahmiyya scholars and al-Juwayni rejected the existence of the attributes of God and consider that the names of God are just semantics without any substances in them.[3] The statements of both Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn al-Qayyim became the ruling which was established by Saudi Council of Senior Scholars, as they stated that each of God's name contains multiple attributes.[3] Salafi scholars such as Ibn Baz did not consent to the interpretation of the attributes of God.[25] Moreover, Walid Muhammad Abdullah Muhammad al-'Ali, an exegesis professor of Islamic University of Madinah, has quoted Ibn al-Qayyim's concern regarding the importance of names and attributes of God as part of the Tawhid (oneness of God) which is the first article of The Six Articles of Faith.[26]
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Sufi and Shia mysticism
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There is a tradition in Sufism to the effect the 99 names of God point to a mystical "Most Supreme and Superior Name" (ismu l-ʾAʿẓam (الاسْمُ ٱلْأَعْظَم).[27] This "Greatest Name of God" is said to be "the one which if He is called (prayed to) by it, He will answer."[28] More than 1000 names of God are listed in the Jawshan Kabir (جَوْشَنُ ٱلْكَبِير—literally "the Great Cuirass") invocations.[citation needed] Sufi mystic Ibn Arabi surmised that the 99 names are "outward signs of the universe's inner mysteries".[8]
Ibn Arabi (26 July 1165 – 16 November 1240) did not interpret the names of God as mere epithets, but as actual attributes paring the universe both in created and possible forms. By these names, the divine traits disclose for humans, whose divine potential is hidden, can learn to become a reflection of such names. However, such reflections are limited; the divine traits do not equal the divine essence of the names.[29] Influenced by the metaphysical teachings of Ibn Arabi, Haydar Amuli assigned angels to the different names of God. Accordingly, the good angels as a whole are a manifestation of God's Names of Beauty. Shaitan (shayatin) on the other hand are a manifestation of God's Names of majesty, such as "The Haughty".[30]
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Theophoric given names
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 | This section needs additional citations for verification. (August 2024) |
The Arabic names of God are used to form theophoric given names commonly used in Muslim cultures throughout the world, mostly in Arabic speaking societies.
Because the names of God themselves are reserved to God and their use as a person's given name is considered religiously inappropriate, theophoric names are formed by prefixing the term ˁabd (عَبْدُ: "slave/servant of") to the name in the case of male names;
This distinction is established out of respect for the sanctity of Divine names, which denote attributes (of love, kindness, mercy, compassion, justice, power, etc.) that are believed to be possessed in a full and absolute sense only by God, while human beings, being limited creatures, are viewed by Muslims as being endowed with the Divine attributes only in a limited and relative capacity. The prefixing of the definite article would indicate that the bearer possesses the corresponding attribute in an exclusive sense, a trait reserved to God.
Quranic verse 3:26 is cited as evidence against the validity of using Divine names for persons, with the example of Mālik ul-Mulk (مَـٰلِكُ ٱلْمُلْكُ: "Lord of Power" or "Owner of all Sovereignty"):
Say: "O God! Lord of Power, You give power to whom You please, and You strip off power from whom You please. You endue with honour whom You please, and You bring low whom You please. In Your hand is all Good." Verily, over all things You have power.
The two parts of the name starting with ˁabd may be written separately (as in the previous example) or combined as one in the transliterated form; in such a case, the vowel transcribed after ˁabdu is often written as u when the two words are transcribed as one: e.g., Abdur-Rahman, Abdul-Aziz, Abdul-Jabbar, or even Abdullah (عَبْدُ ٱللّٰه: "Servant of God"). (This has to do with Arabic case vowels, the final u vowel showing the normal "quote" nominative case form.)
Examples of Muslim theophoric names include:
- Raḥmān, such as Abdul-Raḥman Al-Sudais (عَبْدُ ٱلْرَّحْمَان ٱلْسُّدَيْس): Imam of the Grand Mosque of Makkah, KSA
- Salām, such as Salam Fayyaḍ (سَلَام فَيَّاض): Palestinian politician
- Jabbār, such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (كَرِيم عَبْدُ ٱلْجَبَّار): American basketball player
- Ḥakīm, such as Sherman "Abdul Ḥakim" Jackson (عَبْدُ ٱلْحَكِيم—ˁabdu ʼl-Ḥakiym): American Islamic Studies scholar
- Ra'ūf, such as Ra'ouf Mus'ad (رَؤُوف مُسَعد): Egyptian-Sudanese novelist
- Abdul Muqtedar as in Muḥammad Abdul Muqtedar Khan (مُحَمَّد عَبْدُ ٱلمُقْتَدِر خَان): Indian-American academic
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Use in Baháʼí sources
Baháʼí sources state that the 100th name was revealed as "Baháʼ" (Arabic: بهاء "glory, splendor"), which appears in the words Bahá'u'lláh and Baháʼí. They also believe that it is the greatest name of God.[31][32] The Báb wrote a noted pentagram-shaped tablet with 360 morphological derivation of the word "Baháʼ" used in it.[31]
According to Baháʼí scholar ‘Abdu’l-Hamíd Ishráq-Khávari, Bahāʾ al-dīn al-ʿĀmilī adopted the Persian poetic pen name "Bahāʾ" after being inspired by the words of the fifth Twelver Imam, Muhammad al-Baqir, and the sixth Imam, Ja'far al-Sadiq, who stated that the greatest name of God was included in either the Duʿāʾu l-Bahāʾ, a dawn prayer for Ramadan, or the ʾAʿmal ʿam Dawūd.[31] In the first verse of the duʿāʾu l-Bahāʾ, the name "Bahāʾ" appears four times.[33]
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See also
- The 99, a comic book based on the 99 names of God in Islam
- Basmala
- List of Arabic theophoric names
- Names of God
- Names of God in Zoroastrianism
- Names of God in Christianity
- Names of God in Judaism
- Names of God in Sikhism
- Sahasranama, the Hindu lists of 1000 names of God
- "The Nine Billion Names of God", a short story by Arthur C. Clarke
Appendix
External links
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