- Names of Allah
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- Names of Allah- 1996
Allâh’s Beautiful Name: As-Salam:
Now, we move on to the third Divine Name of Allah, “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection), which is mentioned in some of the Verses of Allah’s Holy Quran:
“He is Allah. There is no god but Him, the King, the Holy, As-Salam (the Source of Peace, safety and Perfection), the Giver of security, the Watcher over His creatures, the All-Mighty, the Compeller, the Supreme. Glory be to Allah! (High is He) above all that they associate as partners with Him.”
“Allah calls to the Home of Peace (i.e. Paradise) and guides whom He wills to the Straight Path.”
“And if he (the dying person) be of those of the Right Hand, then there is safety and peace for those of the Right Hand.”
and “And peace be on him the day he was born, the day he dies, and the day he will be raised up alive.”
This Divine Name of Allah means that He, All-Mighty, All-Majestic, is the Source of Peace and Safety, which also means that He, Glorified and Exalted, is Free from any kind of defect, His Attributes are free from any kind of imperfection, His Acts are free from any kind of evil. But here we have to elaborate some delicate expressions: He is Free from any kind of defect, His Attributes are fee from any kind of imperfection, and His Acts are free from any kind of evil. But isn’t there evil in this present world? So how come that scholars, when they interpret such a Great Divine Name of Allah, say that His Acts are free from any kind of evil?!
At the outset, and in answer to this question, I give special importance to this point, because if you properly understand it, dear reader, you think well of your Lord, Allah, Most Gracious. And undoubtedly, to think well of Allah is the price of Paradise. In fact this statement has to be understood to mean that Allah’s Acts are Free from any kind of absolute evil. But what is absolute evil?! It is evil that we do just for evil itself. For example, if someone has a serious inflammation in his vermiform appendix, doesn’t the surgeon, whom we wish to carry out such an operation, use a special knife whereby he cuts his flesh? And doesn’t his blood gush out after he has been anesthetized? When he comes round, doesn’t he feel pain? Do we really desire to cut his body just because we like to harm him or save him? Doesn’t such well-experienced surgeon cut open the patient’s body and cut off his inflamed vermiform appendix saving him from danger and bringing him health, safety and comfort? But when someone stabs another just for the sake of killing him without any crime he has committed, we say: This is an absolute evil deed, i.e. doing evil things just for the sake of evil. But when a surgeon cuts open his patient’s abdomen to eradicate his inflamed vermiform appendix and bring him safety and comfort is by no means absolute evil, because it is conducive to good favorable results in the end. In this sense should we understand Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam”, i.e. the One Who provides safety and peace.
Allah’s Acts are, hence, free from any kind of absolute evil; but when man does evil for the sake of evil, this is an absolute evil.
Therefore, in the light of the afore-mentioned, we should believe that there is no absolute evil in Allah’s Acts. Yes, indeed, there is no absolute evil in Allah’s Acts. But there are kinds of evil that Allah, Alone knows; and such kinds of evil are necessary to bring about good desirable results.
Man has been created for eternal happiness. But if he deviates from his target, he must be corrected, he must be treated, he must be pushed forward, and he must be deterred. Something must be done to push him towards his noble target. Hence, he who believes that in Allah’s Acts there is absolute evil, or that Allah, Most Gracious, does evil just for the sake of evil, does not know Allah at all. To this effect, Allah, Most Merciful, says
“Say, ‘O Allah! Possessor of the Kingdom! You give the kingdom to whom You will; and You take the kingdom from whom You will; and You endue with honor whom You will; and You humiliate whom You will. In Your Hand is the Good. Verily, You are Powerful over all things.”
For example, is there in the whole world a real father who sees his son commit a crime or a grievous sin – such as stealing money, robbing sh3er of their possessions, telling big lies, transgressing against the rights of sh3er or killing unlawfully other fellow humans – and yet stands hand-folded and does nothing to deter his son by scolding, advising, beating, warning, reproaching, blaming, …etc.?! And is there in the whole world a real father who intentionally injures or does harm to his dutiful righteous son who does no evil things at all. Such simple human fathers can never do such unfair and unjust evil things as those mentioned above.
Hence, absolute evil does not exist in Allah’s Acts; and whatever disaster befalls humans is due to what their hands have earned. Moreover, the more grievous the deviation, the harder the treatment.
That was the first meaning of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As Salam”, i.e. Allah is Free from all kinds of imperfection, His Attributes are free from all kinds of defects, His Acts are free from absolute evil. Any kind of evil that Allah, Most Gracious, inflicts on his creatures is meant for the near or far benefit of mankind. For example, someone might lose all his wealth, or suffer from an incurable disease that forces him to spend all his money for its treatment. Such total loss of wealth, and such incurable disease both seem to be seriously evil to those who undergo them. But when we remember that man has been created for an eternal happiness, that such disease or loss do serve as a kind of treatment to drive him back to his Lord, Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, and that the ultimate goal of such loss or disease is a noble one, i.e. ultimate good for man.
The second meaning of Allah’s Divine Name, “As-Salam”, is that Allah, Most Gracious, is the Giver of safety to His slaves, i.e. there is no safety in the whole universe except that which is attributed to Him.
Now, we get through a delicate subject, and I really wish to follow a very clear kind of methodology in understanding Allah’s Beautiful Divine Names and Attributes. Let’s shun theoretical definitions. Let’s forget what other scholars have said, although what they have said about Allah’s Name “As-Salam” is so good and valuable. You, as a human being: Can you find in the universe around you events, signs, evidence of the fact that Allah is “As-Salam” (The Source of Peace, safety and Perfection)? I have tried to find out some pieces of evidence derived from our daily life, our bodies, and the things around us in order to prove that the whole universe is but a substantiation of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Names and a feature of His Perfect Divine Attributes.
For example, if someone’s bones have been broken, how do they recover? No one knows exactly how it goes. When a bone-cell is harmed, or, in fact, when bones first grow, they keep growing until they reach a certain degree of growth designed and controlled by Allah, Most Gracious, for He, All-Mighty, is the Creator, Who designs and controls all things.
Due to Allah’s Mercy on us our bodies keep growing until they reach an acceptable and suitable extent where they stop growing. And in this context, there is a very serious disease that makes man keep growing incessantly until one becomes a giant. It is the giant-disease which makes man’s bones grow non-stop. Allah’s Divine Mercy on us stops the growth of our bones at a certain extent pre-designed and controlled by Him, Most Gracious. Medical Scientists hold that the bone-cell hibernates for even forty years. But if a bone is broken, the cells wake up and start to grow up and get cemented with the other bone-cells. Now, the question is: What would happen to us if such bone-cells did not wake up or recover?! Undoubtedly, self-recovery of the cells of broken bones is a clear substantiation of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).
When you walk on your small-sized delicate feet, what guarantees that you do not fall down? There is a balance-apparatus that Allah, Most Gracious, placed in the inner part of your ear, consisting of three channels containing a liquid and fringes. When you bend down on one side, the liquid rises in one part of the channel and goes down in the other, and the fringes move with the liquid and give orders to the brain in order to cause the body to bring them back to their normal balanced position. Without such apparatus, which Allah, All-Mighty, placed in the inner part of our ears, we would need seventy-centimeters-long feet. Hence, for your safety Allah has provided you with such apparatus of balance in your ears.
Allah, Glorified and Exalted, placed inside the bones of human body highly sensitive nerves that seem to have no function. When a certain bone is broken, strong pain, which the nerves inside the bone carry to the brain, helps keep the broken bone in place, which constitutes three quarters of treatment. In other words, Allah, Most Merciful, put inside bones such hyper-sensitive nerves for the safety of man. This is because He, Most Gracious, is “As-Salam” (The Source of Peace, safety and perfection).
The nerves inside your teeth are meant to warn you of decay and drive you to see your dentist to have your teeth treated before you lose them all. Such nerves are a substantiation of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of Peace, safety and perfection).
Immunity system, which is the main concern of the whole world nowadays, is a big army that Allah, Most Gracious, put in the human blood: the white corpuscles, some of which do the job of reconnaissance, probing enemy forces, sh3er make the necessary anti-serum, and sh3er use the anti-serum to fight the enemy germs and viruses, while you are completely unconscious.
For your own safety Allah has put in you an apparatus of immunity: The white corpuscles, some of which are especially made for probing the structure and weak points of the enemy germs and viruses, sh3er are for making the necessary anti-serums, and sh3er for fighting enemy germs and viruses as soon as they enter the body. The AIDS, which is the main interest of the whole world nowadays, is but a kind of weakness in the person’s immunity apparatus. Why did Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful, put such an apparatus in man?! The answer is: for his own safety, which substantiates Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).
The heart: Allah, Most Gracious, has made therein a special electric alarm center of its own. All other muscles of the human body receive direct orders from the brain through sensor and motor nerves. Sensor nerves carry surrounding feelings to the brain, while motor nerves carry brain-orders to muscles. In other words, all muscles of the body move by orders from the brain, except the muscle of the heart, yes indeed, except the heart-muscle, which Allah has provided with a special electric generation center of its own. That is because the heart is very important and dangerous. If anything goes wrong with this electric-generation center, there is another extra generation center, which starts to work immediately and automatically in case of any failure on the part of the first generation center. Some advanced countries have extra man-made generation centers in cases of emergency. Now, if anything goes wrong with the basic generation centers, the extra supplementary ones start working at once. In other words, in the human heart there are three electric generation centers of its own. If the first fails to work, the second starts working automatically; and if the second fails, the third immediately goes off. Why did Allah, Most Gracious, create such generation centers?! The answer is: for your own “safety”.
One day, a kidney-specialist told me: If we amputate both kidneys but leave only one tenth of either, this one tenth of either kidney is enough to purify the blood of man. Therefore, it is for your own safety that Allah, Most Merciful, gave your two kidneys an ability that is twenty times as much as you need. This is only for your own safety, which is a substantiation of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).
Blood vessels: Veins and arteries: Due to Allah’s Infinite Divine Wisdom and Mercy, He has made arteries inside parts of the body while veins in the outer sides. This is because veins are linked directly with the heart; and, hence, if they are cut, man loses all his blood, because they are like a pump. If a vein is opened, do you know what happens? As I have been told by a specialist surgeon, when a vein is opened during a surgical operation, blood gushes out up to the ceiling because of high blood pressure unless it is immediately clipped. This vein, which Allah placed in man for his own safety and survival, is placed inside, while arteries are placed outside. This is another substantiation of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).
When man becomes so hungry that he is about to die of starvation: You, as a human being, have so many nutritional elements. For example, you have herbs, legumes, grains, and fats. No matter how knowledgeable you are, can you change wheat into fat or meat? Such a thing is beyond human ability. But your human body is equipped with a marvelous mechanism whereby it changes starches into fats in case of need. Such flexibility in changing substances is for your own safety. When man is hungry, he consumes the fats stored in his body, then he consumes his muscles, in such cases of starvations and famines; and there remains only his bones and flesh. In this context, when a young man once entered upon Abdul Malik bin Marwan, the Umayad Caliph, the latter addressed his two chamberlains in anger: “Everyone who desires to enter upon me has an access to do so, even young children!” The young man stood up and asked permission to talk. He said: “O Commander of the Faithful! My entrance upon did not derogate from your privilege (as a Cliph), although it was a great honor to me.” Then, he went on to say: “We have been visited by three years of drought and famine. One year consumed the fat (of our bodies); the second devoured the flesh; and the third crushed the bones!” Hence, the first stored thing that is consumed from man’s body in case of famines is his fat, then his muscles, except for that of the heart. Who has designed such a marvelous design? If someone is made to suffer death by starvation, he consumes all his muscles, except for the muscle of his heart. This is for his own safety.
Moreover, some of the food stored in man’s body is not consumed except at times of famines. Man sometimes starves. What does starvation mean? It means that the storage of food in your liver decreases. I say “in your liver and not in your arteries”. In other words, if you test the blood of a hungry person, you find that the rates of nutritional elements in his blood are all normal, but the storage of nutritional elements in his liver decreases. This is all for the safety of man, and certainly is a manifestation of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source o peace, safety and perfection).
Something else: When man sleeps, the weight of his body presses down on his muscles that are under the bones. This pressure causes narrowness to the blood vessels and, hence, weak blood flow, which is very dangerous. Therefore, Allah, Most Gracious, has put in man nerve-centers that sense pressure of the body, narrowness of blood vessels and weakness of blood-flow. They send messages to the brain, which, in turn, orders the body, while you are heavily asleep, to turn over from one side to another. To this effect, Allah, Most Gracious, says
“And you would have thought them awake, whereas they were asleep. And We turned them over on their right and on their left sides, and their dog stretching forth his two forelegs at the entrance (to the Cave). Had you looked at them, you would certainly have turned back from them in flight, and would certainly have been filled with awe of them.”
Turning you in your sleep from one side to another, every now and then, so that you may not fall off your bed, is for your own safety, and is definitely a manifestation of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).
While you are asleep, there is saliva in your mouth. Once this saliva becomes excessive, it gives a warning to the brain, which, in turn, gives orders to the pharynx to close the way to the trachea and opens that to the stomach, which causes the saliva to go straight to the stomach, while you are soundly asleep. This is a manifestation of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of Peace, safety and Perfection).
Another example, where did Allah, most Gracious, put your brain, the most dangerous part of your body? In your skull. What did He make in it? layers one above another. And what did He put between the brain and the skull? He put a liquid. What is the function of this liquid? It has been especially designed to absorb all shocks. If someone receives a blow on his head or if he falls down on his head, the liquid inside his skull disperses the pressure of the shock all over the skull, protecting the brain from harm or injury. It is Allah, Most Merciful, Who has placed the brain inside, as it were, a protection box with fixed joints, which also absorb some shocks. Without such bent and jig-saw joints, the skull would be broken by the weakest blow or shock. These jig-saw joints absorb the shocks, just like springs, and protect the brain. This is for your own safety; and this is another manifestation of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).
Where is the spinal cord, the most dangerous thing in man, placed? Inside the vertebral column! Where is the heart placed? In the chest! Where is the womb placed? In the pelvis:
“Thereafter, We made him (the offspring of Adam) a sperm in a safe lodging (womb of the woman).”
The womb is located right in the geometrical center of the body of the woman.
Where are factories of the red corpuscles, which are the most dangerous factories in the human body, located? Inside the bones! Do you see what safety is like?!
Where is the eye located?! Inside the eye-socket! Allah has made for the eye a special safe socket for its own safety and protection. If a person receives a blow or shock on his face, the blow does not reach the eye, because it is protected inside its own socket!
Hence, the eye is inside the socket, the brain inside the skull, the spinal cord inside vertebral column, the heart inside the chest, the factory of making the red corpuscles inside the bones, and the womb inside the pelvis. What is this fascinating accuracy?! It is certainly the work of Allah, the All-Mighty, Whose Divine Power and Wisdom are Infinite.
Why did Allah, Most Gracious, make the nose of the newborn baby cartilaginous and hard? In order not to bend and close, smothering the baby while suckling. The older the baby grows, the softer its nose becomes. This is Allah’s Infinite Divine Wisdom.
When a woman’s womb contracts at a child-birth, it so does for her own safety. But what happens? While delivering, the mother’s womb contracts gently, which is called “At-Talq” (i.e. labor); but when the baby is pushed out of the womb, the womb contracts strongly. Why? It is said: Because when the baby is pushed out of the womb, tens of thousands of blood capillaries are cut off. If it contracted gently, the mother would die of bleeding. The doctor or midwife probes the womb: if it is hard, the delivery is safe and normal. If both kinds of contraction were reversed, both mother and child would die. If contraction were too strong, the baby would be smothered; if it were too lenient, the mother would die. Hence, for safety of both mother and child, the first contraction is mild while the second is strong, all for safety of mother and child.
I swear by Allah! Even if we spent long hours, days, months, years, contemplating Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of Peace, safety and perfection), only in the world of plants, animals and humans, we would never be able to cover all its manifestations.
The seminal animalcules: A few days ago, one of our brother doctors, may Allah generously reward him, told me that the seminal animalcule, which Allah, All-Mighty, creates inside testicles, needs eighteen days to be fully grown. It is stored inside testicles and made to hibernate until it enters a woman’s womb, where it starts working. In other words, the moment it is emitted from its place it starts to work. Without this quality all men would be futile, as futility comes from the fact that a seminal animalcule has a definite life-p of only ten hours. And if it were made inside the testicles and weren’t used within that short time, it would die. The fact is that it is made, stored and made to hibernate inside the testicle. As soon as it enters the womb, it starts working and lives for ten hours during which it is able to settle inside the woman’s ovule. Whose design is this ?! It is Allah’s Design, Whose Divine Name is “As-Salam” (The Source of Peace, safety and perfection)!
I do really wish, dear reader, after we have set out to elaborate the Beautiful Divine Names of Allah, that you follow, in understanding these Names, a way that comprises both theoretical definitions and practical substantial evidence, and that you deliberate freely some features of the creation of man, animal and plant.
When it lacks water, a tree starts consuming the water of its leaves, which makes them wilted and dry. If it is not watered, the tree consumes the water of its twigs. If it is still not watered, it consumes the water of its branches. If it still needs water, it uses the water of its trunk. If it still lacks water, it consumes the water of its roots, which is the last thing a tree can consume before it turns into mere wood for burning.
If the process were reversed, the tree would die if it were left without water for only two weeks. This is because it would start consuming the water of its roots, which would cause them to fade and dry out and the tree to die. Who gave the tree such a marvelous design, which makes it consume the water of its leaves first so that you may hasten to water it?! Such is the Design of Allah, “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection)!
The rising sap of a plant: In a tree there are vessels for rising sap and sh3er for falling sap. A tree grows horizontally, which causes narrowness in its vessels. That is why such vessels, which are very vital for the tree, are supported with spiral fibers so that the tree’s crust and bast do not over-grow. Who designed this?! Allah, Glorified and Exalted.
The plant-seed, which Allah, Most Gracious, has made one of His Marvelous Signs, resists death for years and years. For, example, seeds of wheat were found in the pyramids of Egypt. They have been lying there for thousands of years. But when they were recently planted, they grew up normally. In other words, the seed of wheat is a living creature that has a core that remains alive for nearly six thousand years; and whenever it is planted, it grows up. To my knowledge and faith, all things in existence: plants, animals and humans are designed and disposed with by Allah, As-Salam, the Source of peace, safety, and perfection.
Water is another crystal clear Sign of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name, “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection). If water contracted when it froze, and, therefore, it sank low into the depth of oceans, life would be impossible on earth. But it does not contract. When it freezes, water expands, which is an amazing exception, and, thus, floats. If it didn’t, all the seas and oceans would be solid blocks of ice, evaporation would stop, and so would rain. Plants would die, and so would animals and humans. But due to Allah’s Infinite Divine Mercy, this does not happen, which is a crystal clear manifestation of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name: “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection)!
This same odd property of water also plays a vital role in making soil on earth. When water gets colder, it expands and, therefore, it causes rocks to be broken off into tiny pieces of soil. In other words, it is well-known that soil comes from broken rocks, which the freezing of water plays a vital role in breaking off. Let’s contemplate Allah’s Words:
“By the sky which gives rain again and again, and the earth which splits again and again!”
Hence, the increase in the volume of water when it gets colder or freezes is one of the forces that make soil out of hard rocks. This is for the safety of life. And if we desire to deliberate Allah’s Beautiful Divine Names from this way, it is really a wonderful vast way and within the reach of everyone. Everyone can deliberate Allah’s Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection) on the basis of contemplation on things starting with a glass of water, through a dough of bread, to man’s own parts of body, organ, cells, and tissues, and even his food and drink. In this context, Allah, All-Mighty, All-Majestic, says
“…Who has created the seven heavens one above another; you can see no fault in the creation of the Most Gracious. Then look again: Can you see any rifts?”
Hence, His Creation is perfect and faultless:
“Verily, We have created all things in (perfect) measure.” [LIV; 49] He, Most Gracious, also says, “He (Pharaoh) said: ‘Who then, O Moses, is the Lord of you two?’ He (Moses) said: ‘Our Lord is He Who gave all things their form and nature, then guided them aright.’”
The yearly migration of birds is made for their own safety. The birds migrate seven thousand kilometers, and some fly eighty-six hours non-stop. Is there in the whole world a plane that can fly eighty-six hours non-stop without being supplied with fuel? It is impossible: “He gave all things their form and nature, then guided them aright”.
I have mentioned examples, some of which about man’s creation, some about plant creation, and some about animal creation. A fish has been endued by Allah, Most Gracious, with a special apparatus whereby it knows where it is from the surface of the water. In its upper third part and under the scales there is a pipe that is empty from air. When it goes deeper into the water, the pressure on this pipe increases. This is similar to pressure-apparatus in submarines. Allah, the Source of peace, safety and perfection, has endued each and every fish with this apparatus of pressure, whereby it knows where it is from the surface of the water. If it goes down, it knows the depth of the place it has reached. This is for its own safety.
Look at all domestic animals around us! You will certainly notice how wonderful their systems of safety are. This is a clear manifestation of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety, and perfection)!
Therefore, Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” may be taken to mean that He, All-Mighty, is Free from any defect, His Attributes are free from any kind of imperfection, His Acts are free from any kind of evil, He is the Source of safety to His creatures (i.e. there is no safety in the whole universe except that which is attributed to Him), or He is the One from Whose Punishment true believers in Him and His friends are safe:
“Say: ‘Praise and thanks are to Allah, and peace be on His slaves whom He has chosen.”
Scholars said: Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” in the sense that He is Free from all kinds of defects or imperfection belongs to attributes of deanthropomorphism (i.e. elimination of anthropomorphic elements from the conception of deity). If His Name “As-Salam” is taken to mean that He confers His peace upon His friends, then, it belongs to Names of Allah’s Divine Self. If it is taken to mean that He is The Provider of safety to believers, then, it is a Name that belongs to Allah’s Acts. In other words, Allah’s Name “As-Salam” belongs to His Names of deanthropomorphism, Attributes of His Divine Self, or Qualities of His Acts.
Of the meanings of this Divine Name is that remembering Allah, Most Gracious, conduces to feelings of security, tranquility and safety. To this effect, Allah’s Words go
“Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest.”
In man’s heart there may dwell feelings of loneliness, fear, anxiety, and worry. Such feelings are not removed or minimized except by remembering Allah, Most Gracious and being conscious of Him. Here I whisper these words to my dear readers: search everywhere and in everything. There is nothing in the whole world to give you happiness except in remembering Allah, Most Merciful, and being conscious of Him.
Verily, the hearts do suffer rustiness, just like iron. But how can they be cleared up?! By the remembrance of Allah and reading His Holy Quran!
One of the meanings of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam”, therefore, is that if you remember Him, you feel peaceful. If you remember Him, fear is removed from you. If you remember Him, loneliness is removed from you. If you remember Him, you feel secure with Him. And if you remember Him, you feel tranquil with Him.
Those who are unconscious of Allah, Most Gracious, or turn away from Him, fear devours their hearts and they never feel balanced. In fact, they feel crushed because they associate with Allah other gods to which He gave no authority. That is why Allah, All-Mighty, casts fear into their hearts. Tranquility is the token of a true believer.
I reiterate that “As-Salam’ (The Source of peace, safety and perfection) is one of Allah’s Beautiful Divine Names. If you remember Him, He grants you peace. If you remember Him, He bestows tranquility on you. If you remember Him, you feel so near to Him. If you remember Him, you feel that He defends you, that you are in His Care, Protection, Help and Grace.
One of the meanings of Allah’s Name “As-Salam” is that if you get connected to Allah, Most Gracious, you have all your defects and faults purified. Here we get into delicate meanings, first of which is that He, All-Mighty, All-Majestic, is Free from all kinds of defects; His Attributes are all free from all kinds of imperfection, and His Acts are free from all kinds of evil, I mean, absolute evil, because purposeful evil is a kind of treatment and medicament. And medicament is usually of bitter taste. Another meaning is that He is the Source of safety, i.e. He grants safety to His slaves, either in their creation, as we have already mentioned, or in themselves as remembrance of Allah brings security, tranquility and safety to them.
Once again, connection with Allah purifies man from all defects, from avarice, from meanness, from malice, grudge, from feud, from envy, from arrogance, and from a great many other defects and faults, which are the main source of human misery and wretchedness. If you get connected with Allah, the Source of peace, safety and perfection, you get purified from all such defects and faults. Allah, Glorified and Exalted, grants you safety in your body. He gave you organs and apparatuses. He gave you cells and tissues, marvelous accuracy of your digestive, nervous, muscular, and circulatory systems. If you are afraid, remember Him, and He fills your heart with peace. If you get connected with Him, He purifies you from all defects and faults, He purifies your soul, thanks to His Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety, and perfection).
In your business, He guides you to peaceful ways; in your marriage He guides you to peaceful ways; and in your relationships with your neighbors He guides you to peaceful ways. If you adhere to His Divine Commands and Enjoinments in His Holy Quran, He guides you, in everything and every issue, to peaceful ways. And He, Allah, invites you to the Home of Peace, i.e. Paradise. Hence, Allah’s Beautiful Divine Name “As-Salam” brings comfort, because with it you live in peace, you live in tranquility, you live in comfort. You feel that He, the Creator of the universe, is always with you. He, All-Mighty, never lets you down or leaves you unprotected in the face of your enemies. He, Glory to Him, defends you, protects you, helps you, gives you victory; and you reap the ripe fruits after you have paid the price. To this effect, Allah, Most Gracious, says,
“Indeed Allah took the covenant from the children of Israel, and We appointed twelve leaders among them. And Allah said: ‘I am with you if you perform prayer and give Zakat (Alms) and believe in My Messengers, honor and assist them, and lend a good loan to Allah, verily, I will expiate your sins and admit you to Gardens under which rivers flow (in Paradise). But if any of you, after this, disbelieves, he has indeed gone astray from the Straight Path”
One of the meanings of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam” is, therefore, that remembrance of Allah conduces to security and peace, that connection with Allah, All-Mighty, All-High, conduces to freedom from defects, faults and impurities, and rids of sins, grudge, envy, feud, and arrogance. All such grievous deadly evil qualities are purified and removed from you if you get connected with Allah, Most Gracious.
Another meaning of this Divine Name, “As-Salam”, is that if you adhere to His Religion, Allah guides you to peaceful ways. To this effect, Allah, Most Merciful, says
“Verily, this Quran guides to that which is most just and right.”
In other words, if you stick to Allah’s Divine Law and Legislation, He grants you safety in the life of the present world; if you turn to Him with love, He gives you security and safety; if you obey Him in all aspects of your life, He grants you safety in the world to come. Allah, All-High, says
“He is Allah: There is no god but Him, the King, the Holy, “As-Salam” (The Source of peace, safety and perfection).”
Sometimes, you befriend someone evil or have a partnership with him in some of your works, and he destroys your life. A man may marry an evil woman who destroys him. In this context, someone told me that he met a woman in a casino. He was fond of her and got married to her. After some time, they didn’t get on well with each other because she wasn’t committed. I asked him, “Where did you get her from?!”, “Where did you marry her?!” Then she left him and went to live with her family. He tried to please her and reconcile things with her, but she refused unless he had one thousand Pounds registered for her. She accepted to return to him but only in order to plot against him. She brought an action against him at court, and plotted with the notification clerk, hid the court’s notification from him, and won a non-revocable verdict of imprisonment against him upon charges of non-payment of advance-dowry. When he was informed of the court’s verdict, he shot her together with her mother and sister; and then he shot himself. They were all taken to hospital and rescued from death except him, for he could not be saved. No safety is to be sought with a woman of evil birth and breeding, although she might be very beautiful. That story happened in Damascus a short time ago.
However, if we abide by Allah’s Religion, Allah, All-Mighty, Most Gracious, will certainly bless our marriage, work, provision, health, and children. He will also guide us to ways of peace and safety. To this effect, He, Most Merciful, says
“Verily, this Quran guides to that which is more just and right.”
and
“Then if there comes to you guidance from Me, then whosoever follows My guidance will neither go astray nor shall be distressed.”
You have to know that safety, all safety, is to be with Allah. Safety, all safety, is to obey Him. Safety, all safety, is to know Him. Safety, all safety, is to worship Him. Safety, all safety, is to understand His Book, the Holy Quran. Safety, all safety, is to be committed to His Religion of Islamic Monotheism. And safety, all safety, is to adhere to His Commands and Enjoinments.
Now, the word, “As-Salam” bears another meaning in the Holy Quran. Allah, Most Gracious, says
“And Allah invites to Dar As-Salam (The Home of Peace).”
But what is “Dar As-Salam” (The Home of Peace)? It is Paradise, wherein there is no distress or envy, wherein you are not chased by illness of worry, wherein you are not visited by fear or are transgressed against by anyone else, no wars, no persecution, nothing of the like of this at all:
“And Allah invites to Dar As-Salam (The Home of Peace) and guides whom He wills to the Straight Path.”
Such is Dar “As-Salam” (The Home of Peace, Paradise); what a good recompense and dwelling!
Also, the word “As-Salam” is mentioned in another Quranic Verse:
“And if he (the dying person) be of those of the Right Hand, then there is Salam (safety and peace) for those of the Right Hand.”
In this Verse Allah, Glory to Him, tells you about “As-Salam” (i.e. safety and peace) that He grants to people of the Right Hand on the Day of Judgment. They say: “Our health is good, and our joy is great!”, for they are in safety and peace in Paradise of never-ending Bliss.
The word “As-Salam” also comes in Allah’s Words:
“And Salam (peace) be on him (Jesus) the day he was born, the day he dies, and the day he will be raised up to life.”
In interpretation of the above Quranic Verse Sufian Bin ‘Uyaynah, a venerable Islamic Scholar, said: “Man is most lonely in three positions: the day he is born, when he comes out of his mother’s womb, in which he used to be in comfort and safety away from troubles and problems of life to which he comes, i.e. he moves from a narrow peaceful place to an unfamiliar one that is much larger and more dangerous. The second station in which man feels most lonely is when he dies leaving everything (his wife, children and family, house, shop, work, friends, desires, hobbies, …etc.) on a no-return trip to the Hereafter.
He who decorates and ornaments his home, in which he has his own book-case and study, in which he puts his personal things, presents and gifts that have been given to him. His family wish to open his personal drawer, but he never permits them to do so all his life. But when he passes away, they open the drawer, which has always been impermissible for them to touch, and they take his car, shop, factory and even all his other things and possessions. They sell and buy of his things and then forget him after some time.
The third station in which man feels most lonely is the day he is raised up to life again, on the Day of Resurrection. Concerning that day
‘A’ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, asked her husband, the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad, (PBUH), “O Messenger of Allah! Shall we know one another on the Day of Resurrection?” He (PBUH) said, “Yes, o Mother of the Faithful! Except for three positions: at As-Sirat (The Path), upon the Mustering, and when the Scrolls are spread out.”
On that Day, when a mother sees her son, she will address him, “O my son! Didn’t I make my abdomen a vessel for you, my breast a drinking pot for you, my lap a ground for you?! Have you got any good deed (of yours you can give me) whose goodness returns to me?” He (the son) will say, “O Mother! I actually suffer from that which you suffer from!” As for Jesus, (PBUH), Allah, Most Gracious, says
“And Salam (peace) be on him (Jesus) the day he was born, the day he dies, and the day he will be raised up to life.”
Now, what is the duty of a true believer towards this Divine Name? We know that a true believer is someone who is free from any secret or public violations of Allah’s Commands and Enjoinments, someone who is free from covert and overt defects and faults, someone whose duty is to be peaceful towards other creatures. Allah, All-Mighty, says
“Leave (O mankind!) open and secret sins!”
He who is free from sins and misdeeds, defects and faults, attains utmost peace and safety. So, let our relationship with this Divine Name of Allah, “As-Salam” be like that if we really desire to enjoy the advantages of this Quranic Verse:
“The Day (The Resurrection Day) whereon neither wealth nor sons will avail, except him who comes to Allah with a clean (pure) heart.”
A clean pure heart is that which is free from polytheism and lack of firm belief in Allah; and he whose heart fluctuates between belief and disbelief will be inevitably a great loser.
The fortuneteller and doctor both claimed
That the dead will not be raised up to life. I said: Listen!
If that which you say is true, I shall not be a loser.
But if my words are true, great loss shall be yours.
We do pray to Allah, Most Merciful, to make all our deeds and affairs rightly guided. As for the above verses, they reflect no true belief but rather mere suspicion and uncertainty:
“Verily, true believers are those who believe in Allah and His Messenger, and afterwards doubt not…”
A healthy person is someone whose heart is free from doubt and polytheism, from disputation and hypocrisy, untruthfulness and dissimulation, eye-service and lip-service, someone whose self is free from desires and caprices, and whose mind is free from dubieties and doubt.
Such is a believer’s duty towards his Lord from the perspective of Allah’s Divine Name “As-Salam”. But what is his right on Allah?! This is the most important point of the whole lecture.
You have believed in Allah, you have contemplated the universe, you have known Him and adhered to His Commands and Enjoinments, you have attended lectures on His Religion of Islamic Monotheism, you have controlled your desires and caprices, you have guarded your deeds and lowered your gazes from unlawful things, you have kept your ears away from listening to indecent things, you have not mingled with women that are unlawful for you, and you have not breached Allah’s Religion. So what rights do you have on Allah? Listen to what knowledgeable scholars have said in this concern. They have said:
Allah undertakes to protect those who adhere to His Commands and Enjoinments and turn to Him with true love and sincere devotion. What does He protect them from? They said: He protects them from the dangers of the present world and grants them the good things thereof.
A true believer’s wife is usually righteous; his children are dutiful; his provision and sustenance are available in his own homeland, his reputation is pure and clean, his character is noble, his manners are good, and he is popular and loved by everybody. Such are the fruits of piety and good righteous work. Moreover, Allah, Whose Divine Name is “As-Salam” (The Source of peace safety and perfection), protects him from all dangers of this present world and grants him all the good things thereof. Such is safety of the present world.
But what is safety of religion? Your mind is freed from all kinds of religious heresies, innovations and dubieties; and your heart is freed from desires, caprices, and love except for Allah. Even more, a true Muslim is someone from whose tongue and hand Muslims are safe.
Some scholars said: How can people be safe from man’s tongue and hand while he himself is not safe from his own tongue and hand, and while he is dominated by his own desires and caprices?! Thus, it is a crystal clear invitation, for you and me, to overcome our desires and caprices and not to allow them to dominate over us.
![Al-Fattah [The opener(Of The gates of profit and sustenance)]](https://nabulsicdn.fra1.digitaloceanspaces.com/thumbnail/3437.jpg)
