Names of God in Islam
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According to tradition (hadith) there are 99 names of God in Islam, known as the ʾasmāʾu- llāhi l-ḥusnā (Arabic: أسماء الله الحسنى) "Beautiful Names of God" (also أسماء الحسنى asmāʾu-l-ḥusnā "Beautiful Names").[1][2]
According to 9th-century collections of hadith, the tradition of there being "99 names" is sahih (reliable), while the tradition of the actual list of 99 names as given by some collectors, in at least three different variants, is stated to be gharib (scarce, unreliable).[3] Most names in these lists are divine epithets taken from the text of the Quran, with a minority based in oral tradition or Sunnah. The lists of names vary because there are more than 99 such epithets to choose from.
Origin
In the hadith, Muhammad is said to have invoked God by a number of names.[4] The origin of the number 99 specifically is commonly attributed to a hadith considered weak, although there are less-commonly cited hadith that are considered authentic and also support the same point.[5] According to Sahih Muslim, 35:6475:
Abu Hurairah reported Allah's Messenger [Muhammad] (may peace be upon him) as saying: "There are ninety-nine names of Allah; he who commits them to memory would get into Paradise. Verily, Allah is Odd and He loves odd numbers. And in the narration of Ibn 'Umar [the words are]: 'He who enumerated them'."
The Quran refers to God's "most beautiful Names" (al-ʾasmāʾ al-ḥusná).[6] Gerhard Böwering refers to Sura 17:110 as the locus classicus to which explicit lists of 99 names used to be attached in Quranic commentary. A cluster of more than a dozen Divine epithets which are included in such lists is found in Sura 22:22–24. Mystic philosopher Ibn Arabi surmised that the 99 names are "outward signs of the universe's inner mysteries".[5]
Most, though not all, of the traditionally listed 99 names are found somewhere in the Quran itself. The others are taken from the hadith.[5][7][8]
The list is not necessarily fixed, as more than 99 divine epithets can be adduced from Quran and hadith combined,[9] although the list of names given in modern sources is mostly that compiled by al-Walid ibn Muslim.
Lists of names
There is no universal agreement among Muslims as to what exactly counts as a name of Allah, and what does not. Additionally, while some names are only in the Qur'an, and others are only in the hadith, there are some names which appear in both. Different sources give different lists of the 99 names.[5]
The following list is based on the one found in the Jamiʿ at-Tirmidhi (9th century). Other hadith, such as those of al-Bukhari, Muslim, Ibn Majah, al-Hakim or Ibn ʿAsākir, have variant lists. All attribute the original compilation of the list of names to Abu Hurairah.
Al-Tirmidhi comments on his list: "This (version of the) hadith is gharib [unusual, scarce]; it has been narrated from various routes on the authority of Abu Hurairah, but we do not know of the mention of the Names in the numerous narrations, except this one." Various early Muslim exegetes, including Jaʿfar al-Sadiq, Sufyan ibn `Uyaynah, Ibn Hazm, al-Qurtubi, Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, have given their own versions of lists of 99 names.[10]
Arabic | Transliteration | Translationa | Reference | grammatical typeb | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | الرحمن | Ar-Rahman | The Exceedingly Merciful (Compassionate) | Quran: Beginning of every Surah (chapter) except one, and numerous other places. The first verse ('ayat) of Surah ar-Rahman (Surah 55) consists only of this Name. | D |
2 | الرحيم | Ar-Rahim | The Merciful (Compassionate) | Quran: Beginning of every Surah (chapter) except one, and numerous other places (there are a total of 114 Surahs in the Quran.) | D |
3 | الملك | Al-Malik | The King | 59:23, 20:114, 23:116 | D |
4 | القدوس | Al-Quddus | The Holy | 59:23, 62:1 | D |
5 | السلام | As-Salam | The Peace | 59:23 | D |
6 | المؤمن | Al-Muʾmin | The Granter of Security | 59:23 | D |
7 | المهيمن | Al-Muhaymin | The Controller | 59:23 | D |
8 | العزيز | Al-Aziz | The Powerful | 3:6, 4:158, 9:40, 48:7, 59:23 | D |
9 | الجبار | Al-Jabbar | The Strong | 59:23 | D |
10 | المتكبر | Al-Mutakabbir | The Supreme | 59:23 | D mutafaʿʿil |
11 | الخالق | Al-Khaliq | The Creator | 6:102, 13:16,[11] 36:81, 39:62, 40:62, 59:24 | D |
12 | البارئ | Al-Bariʾ | The Evolver, The Maker | 59:24 | D |
13 | المصور | Al-Musawwir | The Fashioner, The Shaper, The Designer | 59:24 | D |
14 | الغفار | Al-Ghaffar | The Repeatedly Forgiving | 20:82, 38:66, 39:5, 40:42, 71:10 | D |
15 | القهار | Al-Qahhar | The Subduer | 12:39, 13:16, 14:48, 38:65, 39:4, 40:16 | D |
16 | الوهاب | Al-Wahhab | The Bestower | 3:18, 38:9, 38:35 | D |
17 | الرزاق | Ar-Razzaq | The Provider, The Sustainer | 51:58 | D |
18 | الفتاح | Al-Fattah | The Opener, The Victory Giver | 34:26 | D |
19 | العليم | Al-ʿAlim | The Knowing | 2:158, 3:92, 4:35, 24:41, 33:40 | D |
20 | القابض | Al-Qabid | The Restrainer, The Straightener | 2:245 | V |
21 | الباسط | Al-Basit | The Extender / Expander | 2:245 | V |
22 | الخَافِض | Al-Khafid | The Abaser, The Humiliator, The Downgrader | 56:3; al-Kafʿamī (1992:38) | O |
23 | الرافع | Ar-Rafiʿ | The Exalter, The Upgrader | 58:11, 6:83 | V |
24 | المعز | Al-Muʿizz | The Giver of Honor | 3:26 | V |
25 | المذل | Al-Muzill | The Giver of Dishonor | 3:26 | V |
26 | السميع | As-Samiʿ | The Hearing | 2:127, 2:256, 8:17, 49:1 | D |
27 | البصير | Al-Basir | The All-Seeing | 4:58, 17:1, 42:11, 42:27 | D |
28 | الحكم | Al-Hakam | The Judge, The Arbitrator | 22:69 | V |
29 | العدل | Al-ʿAdl | The Just | Not Quranic, see al-Kafʿamī (1992:40) | |
30 | اللطيف | Al-Latif | The Gentle, The Subtly Kind | 6:103, 22:63, 31:16, 33:34 | D |
31 | الخبير | Al-Khabir | The All-Aware | 6:18, 17:30, 49:13, 59:18 | D |
32 | الحليم | Al-Halim | The Forbearing, The Indulgent | 2:235, 17:44, 22:59, 35:41 | A |
33 | العظيم | Al-ʿAzim | The Great, The Magnificent | 2:255, 42:4, 56:96 | D |
34 | الغفور | Al-Ghafur | The Much-Forgiving | 2:173, 8:69, 16:110, 41:32 | D |
35 | الشكور | Ash-Shakur | The Grateful | 35:30, 35:34, 42:23, 64:17 | A |
36 | العلي | Al-ʿAlī | The Sublime | 4:34, 31:30, 42:4, 42:51 34:23 | D |
37 | الكبير | Al-Kabir | The Great | 13:9, 22:62, 13:30, 34:23 | D |
38 | الحفيظ | Al-Hafiz | The Preserver | 11:57, 34:21, 42:6 | A |
39 | المقيت | Al-Muqit | The Nourisher | 4:85 | I |
40 | الحسيب | Al-Hasib | The Bringer of Judgment | 4:6, 4:86, 33:39 | I |
41 | الجليل | Al-Jalil | The Majestic, The Exalted | 55:27, 7:143 | A, V |
42 | الكريم | Al-Karim | The Bountiful, The Generous | 27:40, 82:6 | D |
43 | الرقيب | Ar-Raqib | The Watchful | 4:1, 5:117 | D |
44 | المجيب | Al-Mujib | The Responsive, The Answerer | 11:61 | A |
45 | الواسع | Al-Wasiʿ | The Vast, The All-Embracing, The Omnipresent, The Boundless | 2:268, 3:73, 5:54 | A |
46 | الحكيم | Al-Hakim | The Wise | 31:27, 46:2, 57:1, 66:2 | D |
47 | الودود | Al-Wadud | The Loving | 11:90, 85:14 | D |
48 | المجيد | Al-Majid | The All-Glorious, The Majestic | 11:73 | A |
49 | الباعث | Al-Baʿith | The Resurrector | 22:7 | V |
50 | الشهيد | Ash-Shahid | The Witness | 4:166, 22:17, 41:53, 48:28 | A |
51 | الحق | Al-Haqq | The Truth, The Reality | 6:62, 22:6, 23:116, 24:25 | D |
52 | الوكيل | Al-Wakil | The Trustee, The Dependable, The Advocate | 3:173, 4:171, 28:28, 73:9 | A |
53 | القوي | Al-Qawiy | The Strong | 22:40, 22:74, 42:19, 57:25 | D |
54 | المتين | Al-Matin | The Firm, The Steadfast | 51:58 | D |
55 | الولي | Al-Wali | The Friend, Helper | 4:45, 7:196, 42:28, 45:19 | D |
56 | الحميد | Al-Hamid | The All Praiseworthy | 14:8, 31:12, 31:26, 41:42 | D |
57 | المحصي | Al-Muhsi | The Accounter, The Numberer of All | 72:28, 78:29 | V |
58 | المبدئ | Al-Mubdiʾ | The Originator, The Producer, The Initiator | 10:34, 27:64, 29:19, 85:13 | V |
59 | المعيد | Al-Muʿid | The Restorer, The Reinstater Who Brings Back All | 10:34, 27:64, 29:19, 85:13 | V |
60 | المحيي | Al-Muhyi | The Giver of Life | 7:158, 15:23, 30:50, 57:2 | V |
61 | المميت | Al-Mumit | The Bringer of Death | 3:156, 7:158, 15:23, 57:2 | V |
62 | الحي | Al-Hayy | The Living | 2:255, 3:2, 20:111, 25:58, 40:65 | D |
63 | القيوم | Al-Qayyum | The Subsisting, The Independent | 2:255, 3:2, 20:111 | D |
64 | الواجد | Al-Wajid | The Perceiver, The Finder, The Unfailing | 38:44 | V |
65 | الماجد | Al-Majid | The Illustrious, The Magnificent | 85:15, 11:73; al-Kafʿamī (1992:48) | A |
66 | الواحد | Al-Wahid | The Unique, The Single | 13:16, 14:48, 38:65, 39:4 | D |
67 | الاحد | Al-Ahad | The One, The Indivisible | 112:1 | A |
68 | الصمد | As-Samad | The Eternal, The Absolute, The Self-Sufficient | 112:2 | D |
69 | القادر | Al-Qadir | The All-Powerful, He Who is able to do Everything | 6:65, 46:33, 75:40 | D |
70 | المقتدر | Al-Muqtadir | The Determiner, The Dominant | 18:45, 54:42, 6:65 | A |
71 | المقدم | Al-Muqaddim | The Expediter, He Who Brings Forward | 16:61 | V |
72 | المؤخر | Al-Muʾakhkhir | The Delayer, He Who Puts Far Away | 71:4 | V |
73 | الأول | Al-Awwal | The First, The Beginning-less | 57:3 | D |
74 | الأخر | Al-Aakhir | The Last, The Endless | 57:3 | D |
75 | الظاهر | Az-Zahir | The Manifest, The Evident, The Outer | 57:3 | D |
76 | الباطن | Al-Batin | The Hidden, The Unmanifest, The Inner | 57:3 | D |
77 | الوالي | Al-Wali | The Patron, The Protecting Friend, The Friendly Lord | 13:11 | I |
78 | المتعالي | Al-Mutaʿali | The Supremely Exalted, The Most High | 13:9 | D |
79 | البر | Al-Barr | The Good, The Beneficent | 52:28 | D |
80 | التواب | At-Tawwab | The Ever-Returning, Ever-Relenting | 2:128, 4:64, 49:12, 110:3 | D |
81 | المنتقم | Al-Muntaqim | The Avenger | 32:22, 43:41, 44:16 | P |
82 | العفو | Al-ʿAfu | The Pardoner, The Effacer, The Forgiver | 4:43, 4:99, 4:149, 22:60, 58:2 | V, I |
83 | الرؤوف | Ar-Raʾuf | The Kind, The Pitying | 9:117, 57:9, 59:10 | I |
84 | مالك الملك | Malik-ul-Mulk | The Owner of all Sovereignty | 3:26 | D |
85 | ذو الجلال والإكرام | Zul-Jalali wal-Ikram | The Lord of Majesty and Generosity | 55:27, 55:78 | D |
86 | المقسط | Al-Muqsit | The Equitable, The Requiter | 3:18; al-Kafʿamī (1992:58f) | O |
87 | الجامع | Al-Jamiʿ | The Gatherer, The Unifier | 3:9 | I |
88 | الغني | Al-Ghani | The Rich, The Independent | 39:7, 47:38, 57:24 | I, A, D |
89 | المغني | Al-Mughni | The Enricher, The Emancipator | 9:28 | V |
90 | المانع | Al-Maniʿ | The Withholder, The Shielder, The Defender | See al-Kafʿamī (1992:61) | |
91 | الضار | Ad-Darr | The Distressor, The Harmer, The Afflictor | 6:17; al-Kafʿamī (1992:58) | |
92 | النافع | An-Nafiʿ | The Propitious, The Benefactor, The Source of Good | 30:37 | |
93 | النور | An-Nur | The Light | 24:35 | I |
94 | الهادي | Al-Hadi | The Guide, The Way | 22:54 | I |
95 | البديع | Al-Badiʿ | The Incomparable, The Unattainable, The Beautiful | 2:117, 6:101 | I |
96 | الباقي | Al-Baqi | The Immutable, The Infinite, The Everlasting | 55:27; al-Kafʿamī (1992:64) | V |
97 | الوارث | Al-Warith | The Heir, The Inheritor of All | 15:23, 57:10 | P |
98 | الرشيد | Ar-Rashid | The Guide to the Right Path | 2:256, 72:10 | |
99 | الصبور | As-Sabur | The Timeless, The Patient | 2:153, 3:200, 103:3 | I |
a. b D = Direct; V = from Verb; A = from Adjective or Adjectival Phrase; I = from Indefinite noun; P = from Plural noun; O = Other |
Islamic mysticism
In Islamic mysticism there is a tradition to the effect that the 99 names of God point to a mystical "Greatest Name" (Ismul A'dham, الإسم الأعظم).[12] This "Greatest Name of Allah" is said to be "the one which if He [Allah] is called (prayed to) by it, He will Answer."[13]
According to a hadith narrated by Abdullah ibn Masud, some of the names of God have also been hidden from mankind.[14]
Theophoric given names
A Muslim may not be given any of the 99 names of God in exactly the same form.[15] For example, nobody may be named al-Malik "the King", but may be named Malik "King". This is because of the belief that God is almighty, and no human being is the equivalent of God, and no human being will ever be the equivalent of God. Muslims are allowed to use the 99 names of God for themselves but should not put 'Al' at the front of them.[16]
However the names of God can be combined with the word "‘Abd-", which means "slave" (of God) and are commonly used as Arabic name among Muslims, such as Abd al-Rahman. The two parts of the name may be written separately (as above) or combined as one transliterated name; in such a case, the vowel transcribed after "Abd" is often written as u when the two words are transcribed as one: e.g., Abdurrahman, Abdul'aziz, "Abdul Jabbar", or even Abdullah ("Servant of God"). (This has to do with Arabic case vowels, the final u vowel showing the normal "quote" nominative/vocative case form: ʿabdu.)
Some Muslim people have names resembling those 99. Examples include:
- Rahmaan, such as Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais.
- Salaam, such as Salam Fayyad.
- Jabbaar, such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
- Hakeem, such as Sherman "Abdul Hakim" Jackson.
- Ra'oof, such as Ra'ouf Mus'ad.
- Malik, such as Malik Shabazz (Malcolm X).
- Abdul Muqtedar as in M. A. Muqtedar Khan.
Use in Bahá'í
Bahá'í sources state that the 100th name was revealed as "Bahá’" (Arabic: بهاء "glory, splendor"), which appears in the words Bahá'u'lláh and Bahá'í. They also believe that it is the greatest name of God.[17][18] The Báb wrote a noted pentagram-shaped tablet with 360 derivatives of the word "Bahá'" used in it.[17]
According to Bahá'í 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 Aʿmal ʿam Dawūd.[17] In the first verse of the duʿāʾu l-Bahāʾ, the name "Bahāʾ" appears four times.[19]
See also
- Basmala
- List of Arabic theophoric names
- Names of God
- Names of God in Judaism
- Sahasranama, the Hindu lists of 1000 names of God.
- The 99, a comic book based on the 99 names of God in Islam.
- The Nine Billion Names of God, a short story by Arthur C. Clarke.
References
- ↑ Fleming, Marrianne; Worden, David (2004). Religious Studies for AQA; Thinking About God and Morality. Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers. ISBN 0-435-30713-4.
- ↑ Abdullah Saeed, The Qur'an: An Introduction, pg. 63. London: Routledge, 2008. ISBN 9781134102945
- ↑ Al-Tirmidhi says in his Sunan, "This (version of the) hadith is [unusual, scarce]; it has been narrated from various routes on the authority of Abu Hurairah, but we do not know of the mention of the Names in the numerous narrations, except this one." Richard Shelquist (wahiduddin.net)
- ↑ Ibn Majah, Book of Duʿa; Malik ibn Anas, Muwatta Imam Malik.
- 1 2 3 4 Diane Morgan, Essential Islam: A Comprehensive Guide to Belief and Practice, p. 10. Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2010. ISBN 9780313360251
- ↑ See the surahs "al-A'raf" (7:180), "al-Isra" (17:110), "Ta-Ha" (20:8) and "al-Hashr" (59:24).
- ↑ Martin Parsons, Unveiling God, pg. 206. William Carey Library, 2005. ISBN 9780878084548
- ↑ Juan Eduardo Campo, Encyclopedia of Islam, pg. 515. Infobase Publishing, 2009. ISBN 9781438126968
- ↑ Susanne Enderwitz, "The 99: Islamic Superheroes - A New Species." Taken from Transcultural Turbulences: Towards a Multi-Sited Reading of Image Flows, pgs. 84-85. Springer, 2011. ISBN 9783642183935. The 99 names of Allah; the ‘Most Beautiful Names’ at BBC Online. Accessed 8 April 2014.
- ↑ Suhaib Hassan, Introduction to the Science of Hadith Classification (ahya), cited after Richard Shelquist (wahiduddin.net)
- ↑ "Al-Quran (القرآن) :: Online Quran Project :: Translation and Tafsir".
- ↑ Schimmel, Annemarie (1993). The Mystery of Numbers. New York, USA: Oxford University Press. p. 271. ISBN 0-19-508919-7.
- ↑ Momen, Moojan (2000). Islam and the Bahá'í Faith. Oxford, UK: George Ronald. p. 241. ISBN 0-85398-446-8. The endnote states: "Ibn Májah, Sunan, 34. (Kitáb ad-Du'á), ch. 9, no. 3856, vol. 2, p. 1267. See also: Ad-Dárimí, Sunan, 23 (Fada'il al-Qur'án), ch. 15, no. 3296, vol. 2, pp. 324-5. Similar statements in Shi'i tradition include: Majlisí, Bihár al-Anwár, vol. 26. p. 7."
- ↑ Taymiyya, Ibn. The Goodly Word: al-Kalim al-Ṭayyib. Islamic Texts Society. p. 72. ISBN 1-903682-15-0.
- ↑ Archived July 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ Archived July 14, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
- 1 2 3 Lambden, Stephen (1993). "The Word Bahá': Quintessence of the Greatest Name". Bahá'í Studies Review. 3 (1).
- ↑ Smith, Peter (2000). "greatest name". A concise encyclopedia of the Bahá'í Faith. Oxford: Oneworld Publications. pp. 167–8. ISBN 1-85168-184-1.
- ↑ Khadem, Dhikru'llah (March 1976). "Bahá'u'lláh and His Most Holy Shrine". Bahá'í News (540): 4–5.
- ʾIbrahīm bin ʿAlī al-Kafʿamī (1436-1500 CE), al-Maqām al-asnā fī tafsīr al-asmāʼ al-ḥusnā. Beirut: Dār al-Hādī (1992) (WorldCat listing).
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Names of God in Islam. |
- Al-Rahman al-Rahim. Problems of Interpretation and Translation
- Richard Shelquist, The Beautiful Names of Allah (wahiduddin.net)
- 99 Names of Allah (ul.org.au)
- Oil paintings of all the 99 names of Allah.