Kamil Ahmad – The Beautiful Names of Allah – Class #15
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AI: Transcript ©
Now, Al-Hakam, as we said, it means
the judge, the one who judges.
And that is clear from the Hadith.
Abu Shuraikh, he said, I'm a judge between
the people, so I was the judge, so
that's why they called me Abu Al-Hakam.
And so the Prophet ﷺ said, Allah is
Al-Hakam.
And as for Al-Hakim, then it has
that same meaning of Allah being the judge,
the one who decides.
As for Al-Fattah, then, again, it also
includes the meaning of judging, but it also
means, it also comes from the root word
of Fattahah, which means to open.
So, it also means that Allah is the
one who opens what is closed.
Allah opens what is otherwise closed.
And so He is the one whose guidance,
He is the one who, by His guidance,
that which was closed, it is opened.
That which is unclear, it is made clear.
And so sometimes we may not understand something.
Or you're having difficulty understanding something.
And then finally one day you get it.
It's like this concept was closed for you.
And then all of a sudden it opens
up before your eyes.
This is what we call Allah opening it
for you.
And that's why we make that Dua.
Fattahallahu alayk.
May Allah open it for you.
Meaning, something is difficult for you, you're not
understanding something, may Allah make you to understand
it by opening it for you.
So Allah is the one who also lifts
the veils, and the one who opens the
hearts.
Allah is the one who opens the hearts.
We can also mention this as being one
of the meanings of Al-Fattah.
Someone, his heart is closed to guidance, to
Iman.
And Allah opens it.
Allah explains how the one who is guided
to Islam, his heart or his chest is
open, vast.
And also it refers to the victory of
Allah.
It refers to the victory of Allah.
And that's why in the Arabic language a
conquest is called a Fath.
A conquest is called a Fath.
Like Fath Makkah, the conquest of Makkah.
A conquest is not just a victory, but
it is where a certain land, a certain
town, a certain city was closed.
And you lay siege to it.
It was closed, there's no way to enter
it, to conquer it, because it has fortified
walls and its gates are closed.
So when you gain victory over these people,
we say it is a Fath.
Because you've opened what was closed.
So Allah is the one who gives that
victory.
So he is Al-Fatah in that sense
as well.
And he is the one who opens the
door to success as well.
And so Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A
'la is the one who opens what is
closed.
As Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la
says, مَا يَفْتَحُ اللَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِن رَحْمَةٍ فَلَا
مُمْسِكَ لَهَا Whatever mercy Allah opens up for
the people, none can withhold it.
وَمَا يُمْسِكَ فَلَا مُرْسِلَ لَهُ مِن بَعْدِهِ And
whatever He withholds, no one except Him can
release it.
And then look at how Allah ends the
ayah, وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزَ الْحَكِيمُ For Allah is the
Almighty, Al-Aziz, and Al-Hakim, the Wise.
Alright, we move on to what we learn
from these four names of Allah.
The first lesson that we learn is, as
we mentioned earlier, submitting to the judgments of
Allah, the Ahkam of Allah.
And this is both, as we mentioned, الْأَحْكَامَ
الْقَدَرِيَّة That which is related to the Qadr
of Allah, His decrees.
And الْأَحْكَامَ الشَّرْعِيَّة The legislations of Allah, that
which He has commanded.
And how a sign of your Iman depends
on the level of this submission in your
heart.
A sign of your Iman depends on, or
a sign of the level of your Iman
depends on, this submission to Allah's Ahkam in
your heart.
What is the evidence for that?
فَلَا وَرَبِّكَ إِن سُورَى النِّسَاءِ This ayah is
very powerful.
Because here in this ayah Allah Azzawajal does
not only talk about submitting, but He mentions
it in so many different ways.
فَلَا وَرَبِّكَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ Allah makes an oath
and says to the Prophet ﷺ, No, by
your Lord, Allah is saying to the Prophet
ﷺ, by your Lord they will never be
believers.
And here who are we talking about?
The Sahaba, the Muslims.
Allah says, they will never be believers حَتَّى
Until حَتَّى يُحَكِّمُوكَ فِي مَا شَجَرَ بَيْنَهُمْ Until
they accept you as the judge in their
disputes.
Is that it?
No.
Allah continues.
So this is number one.
Until these believers and these Muslims who claim
to be people of Iman, they have made
you, O Muhammad, the judge in their disputes.
But then Allah continues.
ثُمَّ لَا يَجِدُوا فِي أَنفُسِهِمْ حَرَجًا مِنَّا قَضَيًّا
And then, after they have accepted you as
the judge for their disputes, whatever you have
judged, they don't find any resistance within themselves
against your decision.
So first they accept you as a judge,
then when you have judged, they don't feel
any ill feelings in their hearts regarding what
you have judged.
Does it end there?
No.
Then Allah says, وَيُسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيلًا And they submit
wholeheartedly.
They submit completely.
And so, a sign of your Iman is
that you submit to whatever Allah has decided
and His Messenger ﷺ.
Again, this is both with regards to the
judgments of Allah regarding His Qadr, whatever He
has decided, and regarding His Ahkam, whatever He
has legislated for us.
And so you shouldn't feel any resistance in
your heart.
Oh, why is this Haram?
Why is this obligatory?
Why do I have to do this?
Why do I have to do that?
This is common nowadays among many Muslims.
This objection, not submitting wholeheartedly.
And so they need to understand that it
is a sign of your Iman that you
submit.
Also with regards to the Prophet ﷺ as
we can see in this ayah.
So whatever the Prophet ﷺ judges, whatever he
teaches us, that this is obligatory on us,
or that is Haram for us.
We shouldn't say, oh well it's not in
the Qur'an.
So why do I have to follow it?
And they make all kinds of excuses to
find a way out.
This ayah right here refutes such people.
The second lesson that we learn, believing in
these names of Allah should make us to
fear Allah and His punishment.
And not take His decisions and His judgments
lightly.
Because it is unlike that of any other
judge or court of law in this world
where you could find loopholes in the justice
system.
Or you could hire a lawyer and you
can appeal decisions and verdicts and rulings.
But that is not the case with Allah
subhanahu wa ta'ala.
And so what we need to do is
we need to fear Allah.
And whatever He has decided, we need to
understand that His decision is final.
His decision is final.
So we shouldn't take His Ahkam lightly.
That's the point here.
Allah has said this is Haram, that's it.
Don't do it thinking it's not a big
deal.
Don't do it thinking, well I'll find a
way to excuse myself.
Or find a way out from the punishment
of Allah.
As the kuffar of Quraysh used to say,
and as Allah mentioned in the Qur'an,
some of them have said, Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala says in Surah As-Sajdah, وَيَقُولُونَ
مَتَى هَذَا الْفَتْحُ إِن كُنْتُمْ صَدِقِينَ They ask,
meaning the kuffar, they ask mockingly, when is
this day of decision, يوم الفتح, meaning the
day of judgment, if what you're saying is
true, O Muhammad.
So Allah Azzawajal tells him to say, قُلْ
يَوْمَ الْفَتْحِ لَا يَنْفَعُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا إِيمَانُهُمْ وَلَا
هُمْ يُنظَرُونَ Say on the day of decision,
it will not benefit the disbelievers to believe
then at that time, nor will they be
delayed even a bit from the punishment.
So we need to fear Allah and understand
that His judgments and His ahkam and His
deen is something to take seriously and not
something to joke around with or take lightly.
These names also teach us that the only
valid hukm, the only valid judgment is that
of Allah and that all other forms of
judgment that are not based on the deen
of Allah or the sharia of the Prophet
ﷺ, they are invalid.
And that ruling by man-made laws is
kufr.
That ruling by man-made laws is kufr.
Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la says,
وَمَا اخْتَلَتْتُمْ فِيهِ مِنْ شَيْءٍ فَحُكْمُهُ إِلَى اللَّهِ
Whatever you differ about, then it's hukm, it's
judgment, rests with Allah.
Right?
أَفَحُكْمَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ يَبْغُونَ Is it the judgment of
the days of Jahiliyyah that they seek?
وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ مِنَ اللَّهِ حُكْمًا لِّقَوْمٍ يُوقِنُونَ Who
could be a better judge than Allah for
a people who have yaqeen.
And also in Surah Al-Ma'idah Allah
Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la says three
times.
And in each time Allah refers to these
people with three different attributes, three different names.
Those who do not rule by His hukm,
by His law, the law of Allah.
Allah Subh'anaHu Wa Ta-A'la says
وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُم بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللَّهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ
الْفَاسِقُونَ Whoever does not rule by the law
of Allah, they are fasiqoon, defiantly disobedient.
And in the next ayah وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُم
بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللَّهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ They are
wrongdoers and zalimoon.
And in the final ayah وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُم
بِمَا أَنزَلَ اللَّهِ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ They are
disbelievers.
And so Allah being al-hakam and ahsan
al-hakimin and khayr al-hakimin means that
whatever He has decreed of laws for us
to abide by, those are the laws that
we have to follow.
And so when Allah sent the Prophet ﷺ,
He didn't send him to simply teach people
ritual and what to believe in and how
to worship Allah and that's it.
No.
Allah sent him with a sharia to be
followed, with a complete way of life where
Islam would even govern the lives of the
people and the society.
So it's not just you practice Islam as
an individual, but you are going to apply
the laws of Allah for the society.
And those laws are outlined in the Quran
and in the sunnah.
And that is the sharia that we have.
So whoever governs by other than that sharia
of Allah and that law that Allah has
sent, what's he going to govern by?
He's going to govern by man-made laws.
Because either you have the law of Allah
or you have the laws invented and created
by lawmakers and people.
So whoever prefers man-made laws over the
law of Allah and governs by that, then
as we can see in these ayat, it's
crystal clear that this is kufr.
It's an act of kufr.
And such people are kuffar.
But obviously there are details regarding when does
such a person become a kafir and there
are exceptions to this rule.
Not everyone who rules by the law of
Allah is necessarily a kafir.
But this is the general idea.
The fourth lesson that we learn is that
all of Allah's decisions and actions are based
on His full knowledge and wisdom.
And so this includes Allah's creation.
He does not create anything without purpose or
without an objective.
So why did Allah create the world?
Why did Allah create us?
There is a wisdom behind that.
There is a purpose behind that.
Likewise, everything that Allah has created, you know,
the sun, the moon, the stars, the earth,
every single thing, big or small, humans or
animals or whatever it is, there is a
purpose and a wisdom behind their creation.
Now, if we say we have advanced so
much scientifically and there are things out there
that they don't really have a purpose behind
their existence, then here we say that just
because we don't know the purpose or the
wisdom behind it, yet it doesn't mean that
there is no wisdom.
It simply means that we have not learned
the purpose or the wisdom yet.
Right?
So this is with respect to Allah's creation
and also with respect to Allah's judgments.
As we said, both Al-Qadiriya and Al
-Sharia.
So whatever Allah judges, so whatever He decrees,
part of His Qadr, and whatever He legislates,
it is with purpose and with wisdom.
Whether we see the wisdom and the purpose
in it or not.
And so your belief in Allah being Al
-Hakeem means that you trust His decisions and
His judgments and that you do not ask
and you do not object.
In fact, it is impossible for us to
discover all of Allah's wisdom in His creating
and also in His judging.
This is because Allah SubhanaHu Wa Ta'ala,
His perfection is something beyond our finite and
limited minds to comprehend.
This is something important for us to understand.
That we human beings by nature, we have
a mind, an intellect, but it's finite.
Even the smartest genius on the face of
the earth, there is a limit to his
intelligence.
So when there is something we find to
be, let's say, objectionable with regards to what
Allah has decided, we leave it.
We leave it and we put our trust
in Allah.
We say Allah decreed it or He legislated
it.
Based on His ultimate wisdom.
And we leave it at that.
Finally, one last point that we'll mention here
is an example in how important it is
for us to understand the meanings of the
names of Allah.
Now, I mention this because of a story
that is related to Allah's name, Al-Hakeem.
Al-Asma'i was one of the leading
scholars of Arabic, of the Arabic language, of
Arabic grammar and poetry.
He was a linguistic.
And he says, once I was sitting down
and I was reciting Surah Al-Ma'idah.
And there was a Bedouin, he was next
to me.
Until I recited the ayah, وَالسَّارِقُ وَالسَّارِقَةُ فَقُطَعُوا
أَيْدِيَهُمَا جَزَاءً لِمَا كَسَبَ نَكَالًا مِنَ اللَّهِ Allah
says, the thief, male or female, cut off
their hands for what they have done as
a deterrent from Allah.
But then I mistakenly ended the ayah by
saying, وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ He made this mistake.
That's not how the ayah ends.
So, the Bedouin who was sitting next to
me.
Now, the Bedouins in the past are different
than the Bedouins today.
The Bedouins in the past, from the time
of the Prophet ﷺ, their Arabic language was
on point.
Their Arabic language was at a very high
level.
Because they did not mix with the cities
where other people would come and go, and
so the language would change as a result.
Their language was pure.
And that's why, that's why, one of the
reasons why, the people of Mecca would send
their children at a young age to go
and live out with the Bedouins in the
desert.
For many reasons, right?
To make sure that they're getting good nutrition,
and also, you know, so that they become
strong away from the city.
But also for this reason, so that their
tongues become straight in the language.
So anyways, this Bedouin who was sitting next
to al-Asma'i, he says, whose words
are these?
I said, these are the words of Allah.
He said, repeat.
al-Asma'i says, I repeated the same
thing, and then I realized my mistake.
That it should have been, والله عزيز الحكيم
والله عزيز الحكيم So the Bedouin, he said
to me, now you got it right.
So I asked him, al-Asma'i says,
I asked him, and how did you know?
So the man, he said, Allah سبحانه وتعالى
is العزيز والحكيم فأمر
بالقبر He said, Allah is al-Aziz, the
Almighty, and He is the All-Wise.
And that is why He commanded to have
the hand of the thief to be chopped
off.
Meaning that it doesn't make sense for you
to end the ayah by saying Allah is
the Most Merciful and the Most Forgiving.
It doesn't match with what Allah is saying.
Right?
But rather, if Allah is talking about forgiveness,
etc., then it makes sense.
But here, he says that Allah is al
-Aziz, the Almighty, and He is al-Hakim,
the All-Wise.
And that is why He legislated to have
the hand of the thief to be chopped
off.
Similar to this is what Ibn Qayyim mentions
about where Allah سبحانه وتعالى says about Isa
عليه السلام at the end of Surah Al
-Ma'idah.
After that dialogue between Allah and Isa عليه
السلام, when he asks them, did you command
the people to worship you and your mother
besides Allah?
After that whole dialogue and Isa عليه السلام
freeing himself from the worship of the Christians,
Isa عليه السلام says to Allah, إِن تُعَدِّبْهُمْ
فَإِنَّهُمْ عِبَالُكُ If you punish them, then they
are your servants.
They belong to you, O Allah.
وَإِن تَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ فَإِنَّكَ أَنْتَ الْعَزِيزُ الْحَكِيمُ But
if you are going to punish them, then
they are your slaves.
They are your servants, you can do whatever
you want to them.
But if you are to forgive them, then
you are al-'Aziz al-Hakim.
Now here, doesn't Allah talk about forgiveness?
So why did he end with al-'Aziz and
al-Hakim?
Ibn Qayyim explains, he says, Allah did not
end it with al-Ghafoor and al-Rahim
because it was at a time when Allah
is angry with these people.
So if you forgive them, it's as if
Isa Alayhi Salaam is saying, O Allah, if
you are to forgive them, it is because
of your might and your knowledge and your
wisdom, not because of being incapable of punishing
them, or lacking knowledge of the degree of
the crimes that they committed.
So it made sense to use these particular
names, al-'Aziz and al-Hakim.
The point here is, what we learn from
all of this, the importance of learning the
meanings of Allah's names and attributes.
Many times we read the Qur'an, we
memorize the Qur'an, and we'll get confused
because we only have a surface level of
understanding, or maybe no understanding at all.
But when you contemplate over the meanings, you
realize that everything makes sense, and how certain
names should be in certain places with certain
attributes.
Alright, we move on to another three names
of Allah.
And these three names of Allah refer to
Allah's perfection, and why He has the qualities
of perfection that He has.
So here we're talking about Allah's very essence,
who He is.
And all of Allah's names and attributes fall
under this meaning of Allah's perfection.
These three names are al-Quddus, al-Subuh,
and al-Salam.
al-Quddus, al-Subuh, and al-Salam.
As for al-Quddus, it has been mentioned
twice in the Qur'an.
In Surah al-Hashr, Allah says, among those
names that Allah has listed at the end
of Surah al-Hashr, هو الله الذي لا
إله إلا هو الملك القدوس.
الملك القدوس.
And the other place it's mentioned is in
the beginning of Surah al-Jumu'ah, يسبح
لله ما في السماوات وما في الأرض الملك
القدوس.
As for al-Subuh, then it has not
been mentioned in the Qur'an, al-Subuh,
but it was mentioned by the Prophet ﷺ
along with his name al-Quddus.
In Sahih Muslim, Aisha r.a. mentions that
the Prophet ﷺ would say in his ruku'
and in his sujud, سبوح قدوس رب الملائكة
والروح.
So this is where it's mentioned in the
Sunnah.
But it has been mentioned in the Qur
'an as an action of the creation.
As an action, a verb of the creation.
How?
سبح يسبح تسبح له السماوات والأرض.
يسبح لله ما في السماوات وما في الأرض.
سبح لله ما في السماوات وما في الأرض.
What that means is, سبح means that they
glorify Allah.
And we're going to talk more about the
meaning of تسبح and سبح.
As for al-Salam, it has only been
mentioned once in the Qur'an, and that
is in the same ayah that we mentioned.
هُوَ اللَّهُ الَّذِي لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الْمَلِكُ
الْقُدُّسُ السَّلَامُ But it's also been mentioned explicitly
by the Prophet ﷺ in the dhikr that
he taught us to say when?
After Salah.
What is it?
اللَّهُ الَّذِي لَا إِلَّا هُوَ الْمَلِكُ الْقُدُّسُ السَّلَامُ
Oh Allah, you are al-Salam and from
you is Salam.
So explicitly the Prophet ﷺ says that Allah
is al-Salam.
So what do these names mean?
All of these names reflect on Allah's perfection
in and of Himself and how He is
free of imperfection.
How Allah is free of all kinds of
imperfection.
So al-Quddus is the one who is
the most pure.
Meaning he is pure from all imperfections and
faults and deficiencies and defects.
Likewise, al-Subuh is the one who is
glorified and exalted.
Meaning that he is free from any deficiency
or any defect or any imperfection.
Likewise, al-Salam is the one who is
flawless.
Meaning he is free from imperfection.
From Salamah, from Salimah.
He is free from imperfection in and of
himself and also in his actions and also
in his names and his attributes.
Now, when we talk about the perfection of
Allah, or when we talk about the names
and attributes of Allah, the scholars mention that
Iman in Allah's names and attributes rests upon
two foundations.
Our Iman in Allah's names and attributes rests
on two foundations.
The first is establishing perfection in the names,
attributes and actions of Allah.
To prove the perfection of Allah.
And that is basically Ithbaat.
Ithbaat al-Kamal.
To establish and affirm the perfection of Allah.
How do we do that?
By citing all of Allah's names and attributes.
That's called affirmation of perfection.
The second foundation is to
exalt Allah, to declare Him far above and
free from any deficiency or defect that contradicts
His perfect essence, attributes and actions.
So here we have Nafi al-Naqs.
To negate any imperfection from Allah Subhanahu wa
ta'ala.
Both, both names and attributes.
So what do we learn from this?
What we learn from this is, you cannot
only praise Allah with qualities of perfection, right?
So you can't just say Allah is, you
know, such and such.
And mentioning His names and attributes and that's
it.
But you also have to declare Allah as
being free of qualities of imperfection.
Of imperfection.
And that's what Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala
does in the Qur'an.
However, the difference is that when it comes
to talking about His perfection, He does this
in detail.
By mentioning all the names that He has
mentioned and the attributes that He has mentioned.
Which are so many.
But when it comes to negating imperfection, He
does that in general.
And not in specific except with specific attributes.
So for example, لَيْسَكَ مِثْلِهِ شَيْءٍ Allah says,
there is nothing like Him.
Meaning, everything else is imperfect.
But Allah, there is nothing like Him.
Meaning, He is perfect.
This is in general.
And what else?
لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ كُفُواً أَحَدٌ In general, there
is nothing equal to Allah.
Right?
So what do we free Allah from?
What do we free Allah from?
Because here we are talking about these names,
Al-Quddus, Al-Subuh, and Al-Salam.
All three names are freeing Allah of imperfection.
Right?
We free Allah from two things.
Number one, everything that goes contrary to His
attributes of perfection.
So each of Allah's attributes are at the
peak of perfection.
Which is why Ibn Al-Qayyim states, If
you looked at each of Allah's attributes of
perfection, you find that each one is free
of what opposes its perfection.
So His life is free of death.
And free of fatigue and sleep.
So this one attribute, the hayat of Allah,
Him being Al-Hayy, is free of death
and fatigue and sleep.
Right?
Likewise, you have the justice of Allah.
It is free of Zulm.
Injustice and so on and so forth.
And the second thing that we free Allah
from, is any resemblance with His creation or
having an equal.
So all of the creation, no matter how
great or noble they are, they don't come
near to resemble Allah in His names and
attributes of perfection.
So these are the two things that we
free Allah from.
We'll conclude with some of the lessons that
we learn from these names.
The first thing that these names teach us,
is that Allah is perfect in every sense,
with no imperfection, with no deficiency in His
very being, in His actions, and in His
names and attributes.
On the other hand, everyone besides Allah has
imperfections, has deficiencies.
Which is why the creation can never be
compared to the Creator in any way whatsoever.
وَلَمْ يَكُلْ لَهُ كُفُوًا أَحَدٌ There is none
comparable to Him.
And so whoever compares Allah to His creation,
what has he done?
He has actually insulted Allah.
The Prophet ﷺ says, Allah, the Mighty and
Majestic says, so this is a Hadith Qudsi,
Allah says, the son of Adam denies Me,
and he has no right to do so.
And he insults Me, and he has no
right to do so.
Him denying Me, is when he says that
Allah will never recreate Me like He created
Me before.
And him insulting Me, is when he says
that Allah has taken a son.
And then Allah says, فَآْيَمْ أَلْأَحَدُ الصَّمَدُ لَمْ
أَلِذْ وَلَمْ أُولَدْ وَلَمْ يَكُلْ لِكُفُوًا أَحَدٌ فَآْيَمْ
أَلْأَحَدُ الصَّمَدُ And I do not beget, nor
was I born, and there is none comparable
to Me.
The second lesson that we learned is that
part of our Iman in Allah is to
declare Allah free and innocent, of what He
is accused of, by those who label Him
with qualities of imperfection.
Which is what Allah does throughout the Qur
'an.
Whenever Allah mentions what they say about Allah,
as we mentioned the Hadith says, that when
they say Allah has a son, they are
insulting Allah.
Right?
So whenever Allah mentions it in the Qur
'an, that the Christians say that He had
a son, what does Allah usually do?
Exactly.
سُبْحَانَةَ تَسْبِيحَ Right?
Because the very meaning of تَسْبِيح is that
you are freeing Allah.
When you say سُبْحَانَةَ you are saying I
declare Allah free of that imperfection.
I declare Allah free and far beyond what
they say about Him.
وَقَالُوا اتَّخَذَا الرَّحْمَٰنُ وَلَدَهُ سُبْحَانَهُ بَلْ عِبَادٌ مُكْرَمُونَ
They say that Allah has taken a son.
Allah says سُبْحَانَهُ قُلْ لَوْ كَانَ مَعَهُ آلِهَةٌ
كَمَا يَقُونُونَ إِذَا لَبْتَغَوْا إِلَىٰ ذِي الْعَرْشِ سَبِيلَهُ
سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَ عَمَّا يَقُولُونَ عَلُوًّا كَبِيرًا Allah says,
say O Muhammad, if there were, if there
had been gods besides Allah as they claim,
then they would have certainly sought a way
to challenge the Lord of the Arsh, the
throne.
And then Allah says سُبْحَانَهُ عَمَّا يَقُولُونَ Glorified
and exalted is Allah above what they claim.
And then Allah doesn't end it there.
Again تُسَبِّحُ Right after that Allah says تُسَبِّحُ
لَهُ السَّمَاوَاتُ السَّبْعُ وَالْأَرْضُ وَمَنْ فِيهِمْ وَإِن مِّنْ
شَيْءٍ إِلَّا يُسَبِّحُ بِحَمْدِهِ وَلَكِنْ لَا تَفْقَعُونَ تَسْبِيحَهُمْ
Allah goes on to say the seven heavens
and the earth and everything in them do
tasbih of Allah.
They glorify Allah.
There is not a single thing that does
not glorify His praises.
But we simply cannot understand their tasbih.
How they are doing tasbih.
So the entire creation even that which doesn't
have a soul in it the rocks and
the trees and they all do tasbih of
Allah.
As Allah says in this ayah there is
nothing in the heavens and the earth except
that they do tasbih of Allah.
But Allah says وَلَكِنْ لَا تَفْقَعُونَ تَسْبِيحَهُمْ But
you don't understand how they are doing tasbih.
The third lesson that we learn is the
importance of declaring Allah free from faults.
It is seen in this dhikr that we
say subhanAllah and how many different times we
say it.
Right?
So many different occasions we are taught to
say subhanAllah and so Allah has made it
an act of ibadah.
Right?
To say alhamdulillah this is you praising Allah
with perfection.
But when you say subhanAllah you are declaring
Allah free of imperfection.
Right?
And so we say سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْعَظِيمِ in
our salah and سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْأَعْلَى We are
declaring Allah of being free from imperfection.
And the Prophet ﷺ says كَلِمَتَانِ خَفِيفَتَانِ عَلَى
اللِّسَانِ That there are two phrases that are
light on the tongue.
تَقِيلَتَانِ فِي الْمِيزَانِ But heavy on the scale.
حَبِيبَتَانِ إِلَى الرَّحْمَنِ And beloved to Ar-Rahman
Allah.
سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِي حَمْدِهِ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ الْعَظِيمِ This
phrase which is full of tasbih.
Twice.
سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِي حَمْدِهِ سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ الْعَظِيمِ So,
that's why this phrase is so, as Prophet
ﷺ said, so beloved to Allah, so heavy
on the scale, because you're doing both.
سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ وَبِي حَمْدِهِ You're declaring Allah free
of imperfection and you're affirming His perfection.
The next lesson that we learn is the
importance of only attributing good to Allah and
only thinking good of Allah, having khusnul dhan
of Allah ﷻ.
So, every negative thought about Allah concerning His
perfection, His wisdom, His mercy, His knowledge, His
justice, it goes against what these names teach
us.
Whenever you think negatively about Allah, oh, why
did Allah do such and such?
Or, you know, why is He causing me
to suffer?
Or why is He causing people to suffer?
Or why has He legislated such and such?
As we mentioned with regards to the other
names that we covered tonight.
Whenever these negative thoughts come to your mind,
what you're doing is you're attributing to Allah
imperfection.
So, these names teach us the importance of
only thinking good of Allah ﷻ.
The next lesson is that Allah ﷻ is
a salam and from Him comes salam.
We mentioned the meaning of that, one of
the meanings, and that is that Allah ﷻ
is free of imperfection.
But it also means that it also means
freedom from all kinds of harms and insecurities.
Being free from all kinds of harms and
insecurities.
What does that basically translate to?
Peace, right?
But we understand where that word comes from.
Why is salam?
Why does it mean peace?
Because it is being free from harm and
insecurities.
So salimah means being free from something.
And that's why Jannah is referred to as
daar salam.
Why is it referred to as daar salam?
Because it is free of harm and insecurities.
And this is why the Prophet ﷺ also
taught us to spread salam among the believers.
Because that is one of the ways that
we'll enter Jannah.
فَتَدْخُلُونَ الْجَنَّةَ حَتَّى تُؤْمِنُوا۟ You will not enter
Jannah until you believe.
وَلَا تُؤْمِنُوا۟ حَتَّى تَحَبُّوا۟ And you will not
believe until you love one another.
And then he said, shall I not guide
you, teach you something that if you were
to do, you would love one another?
أَخْشُوا السَّلَامَ بَيْنَكُمْ Spread salam among yourselves.
Finally, the last lesson that we'll mention, again
regarding Allah's name as salam, is that the
only source of peace and security in this
world is through Allah.
And what Allah has sent us of guidance.
And so unfortunately, most people today, they search
for that internal peace elsewhere.
They live troubled lives, and they're looking for
a solution, but they turn elsewhere.
And so, if they do find some form
of peace within themselves, that is something temporary
and not everlasting.
Whereas the peace that comes from Allah, it
is something that lasts on forever.
As long as one follows the path that
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has outlined.
And so this is something we learn from
Allah's name as salam.
As the Prophet ﷺ said, أَنْتَ السَّلَامُ وَمِنْكَ
السَّلَامُ You are as salam, and from you
comes as salam.
So this is one of the meanings of
that.
If you want that peace in your life,
then it will only come from Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala.
And with that we conclude for tonight insha
'Allah.
سُبْحَانَكَ اللَّهُمَّ وَبِحَمْدِكَ أَشْهَدُ أَن لا إِلهَ إِلَّا
أَنتَ أَسْتَغْفِرُكَ وَاتُوبُ إِلَيْكُ وَصَلِّيْنَا وَنَسَلِّمْ عَلَىٰ
نَبِيِّنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَىٰ أَهْلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ وَالسَّلَامُ
عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَةً