99 Names of God in the Qur'an

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The 99 Names of God, also known as The 99 Attributes of God (Arabic: أسماء الله الحسنى transliteration: Asma’ Allah al-Ḥusná), are the names of God, Muslims believe are revealed in the Qur'an and Sunnah;[1] even though the names (as adjectives, word constructs, or otherwise) exceed ninety-nine in the Qur'an and Sunnah. Muslims believe that there are an elite group of names, or the Best names, which number 99.

Contents

[edit] Origin

In one Islamic tradition, the Islamic prophet Muhammad used to call God by all His names:

"Allahumma inni ad`uka bi asma'ika al-husna kulliha"
"اللهم اني ادعوك باسمائك الحسنى كلها"
"O God, I invoke You with all of Your beautiful names."
(Narrated by Ibn Majah, book of Du`a; and by Imam Malik in his Muwatta', Kitab al-Shi`r)

Muhammad is also reported to have said in a famous Hadith:

"Verily, there are ninety-nine names of God, one hundred minus one. He who enumerates [and believes in them and the one god behind] them would get into Paradise."
(Sahih Muslim, Vol. 4, no. 1410)

Of note is that this hadith does not say that there are only 99 names, but 99 names that are better than the others. This caused people to search them out in the Qur'an and Sunnah, and a list was compiled. Over time it became custom to recite the list in its entirety. While some Muslims believe that this list is mentioned by Muhammad himself, the specialist Muslim scholars argue strongly that the list was just compiled by a Muslim scholar as an addendum to the actual hadith, (Al Waleed ibn Muslim). If it was only an attempt of a scholar, they are not necessarily the names proper, and other attempts may still be made. A recent scholar, Dr. Mahmoud Abdel-Razek, made an attempt [2] of this kind and explained in detail why he differs in opinion with Al Waleed about enlisting some of the names. However, reciting the traditional names has developed into a ritual by some Muslims (a bit like a Catholic litany of Saints) as an attempt to enumerate them, while most other Muslims believe that the "enumeration" is not just the act of recitation, but applying the attributes that the names suggest.

[edit] Palm of the Hand

Some Muslims believe that what could be interpreted as the number 99 written in Hindu-Arabic numeral system is imprinted on human hands. If one looks at his or her palms, thumbs facing upward, the lines in the hands appear as "١٨ ٨١", which are the Hindu-Arabic numerals -commonly used in eastern Arab countries- of 81 and 18, which sum to 99. If you subtract the numbers 81 and 18 you are left with 63 which was the age of which Muhammad along with 3 of his four companions died.[2]

It should be noted however that this has no Islamic or Qu'ranic basis supporting it and, from an Islamic perspective, is irrelevant to the concept of the names of God discussed in the previous section. In Islam nothing can be taken as Beliefs or Aqidah without clear proof which means that the belief should be found in definite source (Quran or mutawatir Ahadith) and its meaning should bring no confusion so that there is no possibility of difference of opinion except if apostates don't want to see it so. This is very likely a novelty of unknown origin that has developed in some Muslim cultures, especially those that use numeral system mentioned above. It also happens to work with a combination of Chinese and Western numerals, appearing as "八1 1八" - "81 18". In general, many Muslims have diverging views however Orthodox Sunni Islam has no documentation of this.

[edit] List of Names

Below is a list of the 99 Names of God according to the tradition of Islam. It should be clearly noted that there is no fixed authentic list of 99 names anywhere; this is only one version which includes many common names and attributes of God. Scholars agree on the majority of the names, however there are a handful that are disputed.

#
 Arabic
 Transliteration
 Translation (can vary based on context)
 Qur'anic Usage
1 ar:الرحمن Ar-Rahman The All Beneficent, The Most Merciful in Essence 57 times
2 ar:الرحيم Ar-Rahim The Most Merciful, The Most Merciful in Actions 114 times
3 ar:الملك Al-Malik The King, The Sovereign, The True and Ultimate King 5 times
4 ar:القدوس Al-Quddus The Most Holy, The Most Pure, The Most Perfect 2 times
5 ar:السلام As-Salaam The Peace and Blessing, The Source of Peace and Safety, The Most Perfect 1 time
6 ar:المؤمن Al-Mu'min The Guarantor, The Self Affirming, The Granter of Security, The Affirmer of Truth 1 time
7 ar:المهيمن Al-Muhaymin The Guardian, The Preserver, The Overseeing Protector 1 time
8 ar:العزيز Al-Aziz The Almighty, The Self Sufficient, The Most Honorable 92 times
9 ar:الجبار Al-Jabbar The Powerful, The Irresistible, The Compeller, The Most Lofty, The Restorer/Improver of Affairs 1 time
10 ar:المتكبر Al-Mutakabbir The Tremendous
11 ar:الخالق Al-Khaliq The Creator
12 ar:البارئ Al-Bari' The Rightful
13 ar:المصور Al-Musawwir The Fashioner of Forms
14 ar:الغفار Al-Ghaffar The Ever Forgiving
15 ar:القهار Al-Qahhar The All Compelling Subduer
16 ar:الوهاب Al-Wahhab The Bestower
17 ar:الرزاق Ar-Razzaq The Ever Providing
18 ar:الفتاح Al-Fattah The Opener, The Victory Giver
19 ar:العليم Al-`Alim The All Knowing, The Omniscient
20 ar:القابض Al-Qabid The Restrainer, The Straightener
21 ar:الباسط Al-Basit The Expander, The Munificent
22 ar:الخافض Al-Khafid The Abaser
23 ar:الرافع Ar-Rafi‘e The Exalter
24 ar:المعز Al-Mu‘ezz The Giver of Honour
25 ar:المذل Al-Mudhell The Giver of Dishonour
26 ar:السميع As-Sami‘e The All Hearing
27 ar:البصير Al-Basir The All Seeing
28 ar:الحكم Al-Hakam The Judge, The Arbitrator
29 ar:العدل Al-`Adl The Utterly Just
30 ar:اللطيف Al-Latif The Subtly Kind
31 ar:الخبير Al-Khabir The All Aware
32 ar:الحليم Al-Halim The Forbearing, The Indulgent
33 ar:العظيم Al-Azeem The Magnificent, The Infinite
34 ar:الغفور Al-Ghafur The All Forgiving
35 ar:الشكور Ash-Shakur The Grateful
36 ar:العلي Al-Aliyy The Sublimely Exalted
37 ar:الكبير Al-Kabir The Great
38 ar:الحفيظ Al-Hafiz The Preserver
39 ar:المقيت Al-Muqit The Nourisher
40 ar:الحسيب Al-Hasib The Reckoner
41 ar:الجليل Al-Jalil The Majestic
42 ar:الكريم Al-Karim The Bountiful, The Generous
43 ar:الرقيب Ar-Raqib The Watchful
44 ar:المجيب Al-Mujib The Responsive, The Answerer
45 ar:الواسع Al-Wasse‘e The Vast, The All Encompassing
46 ar:الحكيم Al-Hakeem The Wise
47 ar:الودود Al-Wadud The Loving, The Kind One
48 ar:المجيد Al-Majid The All Glorious
49 ar:الباعث Al-Ba'ith The Raiser of The Dead
50 ar:الشهيد Ash-Shaheed The Witness
51 ar:الحق Al-Haqq The Truth, The Real
52 ar:الوكيل Al-Wakil The Trustee, The Dependable
53 ar:القوى Al-Qawaie The Strong
54 ar:المتين Al-Matin The Firm, The Steadfast
55 ar:الولى Al-Walaie The Protecting Friend, Patron and Helper
56 ar:الحميد Al-Hamid The All Praiseworthy
57 ar:المحصى Al-Muhsi The Accounter, The Numberer of All
58 ar:المبدئ Al-Mubdi' The Producer, Originator, and Initiator of All
59 ar:المعيد Al-Mu‘id The Reinstater Who Brings Back All
60 ar:المحيى Al-Muhyi The Giver of Life
61 ar:المميت Al-Mumit The Bringer of Death, The Destroyer
62 ar:الحي Al-Hayy The Ever Living
63 ar:القيوم Al-Qayyum The Self Subsisting Sustainer of All
64 ar:الواجد Al-Wajid The Perceiver, The Finder, The Unfailing
65 ar:الماجد Al-Majid The Illustrious, The Magnificent
66 ar:الواحد Al-Wahid The One, The Unique, Manifestation of Unity
67 ar:الاحد Al-Ahad The One, the All Inclusive, The Indivisible
68 ar:الصمد As-Samad The Self Sufficient, The Impregnable,
The Eternally Besought of All, The Everlasting
69 ar:القادر Al-Qadir The All Able
70 ar:المقتدر Al-Muqtadir The All Determiner, The Dominant
71 ar:المقدم Al-Muqaddim The Expediter, He Who Brings Forward
72 ar:المؤخر Al-Mu'akhir The Delayer, He Who Puts Far Away
73 ar:الأول Al-Awwal The First
74 ar:الأخر Al-Akhir The Last
75 ar:الظاهر Az-Zahir The Manifest, The All Victorious
76 ar:الباطن Al-Batin The Hidden, The All Encompassing
77 ar:الوالي Al-Wali The Patron
78 ar:المتعالي Al-Muta'ali The Self Exalted
79 ar:البر Al-Barr The Most Kind and Righteous
80 ar:التواب At-Tawwab The Ever Returning, Ever Relenting
81 ar:المنتقم Al-Muntaqim The Avenger
82 ar:العفو Al-‘Afuww The Pardoner, The Effacer of Sins
83 ar:الرؤوف Ar-Ra'uf The Compassionate, The All Pitying
84 ar:مالك الملك Malik-al-Mulk The Owner of All Sovereignty
85 ذو الجلال
و الإكرام 		Dhu-al-Jalali
wa-al-Ikram		 The Lord of Majesty and Generosity
86 ar:المقسط Al-Muqsit The Equitable, The Requiter
87 ar:الجامع Al-Jami‘e The Gatherer, The Unifier
88 ar:الغنى Al-Ghanaie The All Rich, The Independent
89 ar:المغنى Al-Mughni The Enricher, The Emancipator
90 ar:المانع Al-Mani'e The Withholder, The Shielder, the Defender
91 ar:الضار Ad-Darr The Distressor, The Harmer
This attribute can only be found in hadith
92 ar:النافع An-Nafi‘e The Propitious, The Benefactor
93 ar:النور An-Nur The Light
94 ar:الهادي Al-Hadi The Guide
95 ar:البديع Al-Badi The Incomparable, The Originator
96 ar:الباقي Al-Baqi The Ever Enduring and Immutable
97 ar:الوارث Al-Warith The Heir, The Inheritor of All
98 ar:الرشيد Ar-Rashid The Guide, Infallible Teacher and Knower
99 ar:الصبور As-Sabur The Patient, The Timeless.

[edit] Additional Names

Another epithet found in the Qur'an is Dhul Fadl al Azim (ذو الفضل العظيم) "The Lord of Infinite Grace" (2.105, 3.74, 8.29, 57.21, 57.29, 62.4), but it is not part of the traditional list of the 99 names of God.

The following list contains Names that are not in the traditional list of 99 Names above.

#
 Arabic
 Transliteration
 Translation
 Qur'anic Usage
1 ar:المالك Al-Maalik The True, Complete and Controlling Owner of Everything 2 times
2 ar:المليك Al-Maleek The Constant Owner and Controller of Everything 1 time
3 ar:ذو الفضل العظيم Dhul Fadl al Azim The Lord of Infinite Grace

[edit] Sufism

In Sufism, the idea of the 100th name is most prominent. It has become the elusive object of mystic devotion, the symbol of God's transcendent being[citation needed].

Sufis often describe their discipline as the quest to know the one-hundredth name of God and thus to merge their consciousness with the divine reality.[citation needed] [3]

[edit] Mahdi

Other such Hadiths, which vary according to different Shi'a sects of Islam, suggest that the 100th Name will be revealed by the Mahdi.

[edit] Bahá'í

The Bahá'í Faith has claimed to fulfill the prophecy of the Mahdi, and the 100th name was revealed as "Bahá’" (an Arabic word بهاء meaning "glory, splendor" etc.), and is the root word for Bahá'u'lláh and Bahá'í.[3] The Báb wrote a noted pentagram tablet with 360 derivatives of the word "Bahá'" used in it.[3] While the Bahá'í Faith has roots in Islam and the monotheistic traditions, it is an independent religion, and its followers are not considered Muslims.

[edit] Personal Names

According to Islamic tradition, a Muslim may not be given any of the 99 names of God in the exact same form. For example, nobody may be named Al Malik (The King), but may be named Malik "King".

However the names/attributes of God can be combined with the word "‘Abd -" which means servant (of God) and are commonly used as personal names among Muslims. For example ‘Abd ar-Rahman ("servant of(or slave to) the Most Compassionate/the Beneficent").

Some Muslim people have names resembling those 99 (but without the article "The" which is only used to denote God) as the names could mean attributes people can have. Examples include


[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Fleming, Marrianne; Worden, David (2004). Religious Studies for AQA; Thinking About God and Morality. Oxford: Heinemann Educational Publishers. ISBN 0-435-30713-4. 
  2. ^ Miracles of Islam. "Amazing Marks on Your Hands". 2007. February 19, 2007. [1]
  3. ^ a b Lambden, Stephen (1993). "The Word Bahá': Quintessence of the Greatest Name". Bahá'í Studies Review 3 (1).

[edit] External links

ar:أسماء الله الحسنى bs:99 Allahovih imena de:99 Namen Allahs es:99 nombres de Dios fr:Noms de Dieu en islam gl:Os 99 nomes de Alá hr:99 Alahovih imena id:Asmaaul husna it:Nomi di Dio (Corano) jv:Asmaaulhusna kk:Аллаһтың 99 есімі ms:Asmaaulhusna nl:99 Schone Namen van God pl:99 atrybutów Allaha pt:Noventa e nove nomes de Alá ro:Cele 99 de nume ale lui Allah ru:99 имён Аллаха simple:99 Names of God su:Asma'ul husna sv:Guds 99 namn tr:Allah'ın adları ur:اسماء اللہ الحسنیٰ

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