Getting Closer to Allah [SWT] Through His 99 Beautiful Names

 

“The likeness of the one who remembers his Lord and the one who does not remember his Lord is like the living and the dead._(Al-Bukhari)

 

If we love Allah (SWT), we will strive to get closer to Him.

And the more we strive to get close to Him, the closer He (SWT) will get to us as we can see in the following encouraging hadith.

Allah (SWT) says:

“I am near to the thought of My servant as he thinks about Me, and I am with him as he remembers Me.

And if he remembers Me in his heart, I also remember him in My heart, and if he remembers Me in assembly, I remember him in assembly better than his.

And if he draws near Me by the span of a palm, I draw near him by the cubit, and if he draws near me by the cubit, I draw near him by the space (covered by) two hands. And if he walks towards Me, I rush towards him.” [Sahih Muslim]

 

Remembering the Lord (SWT) is a highly rewarding act of worship.

And to chant the remembrance of our Lord (SWT), we have many options as Muslims; nonetheless, a good place to start is with His names.

But, first, think about this: how many of His names have we studied and memorized?

You see, to worship Allah (SWT) properly, we must know what He (SWT) expects from us. Effective worship is preceded by knowledge. And understanding the Names of the Lord (SWT) is one of the ways to learn about His attributes and characteristics.

Yes, He is Allah (SWT), which is the greatest of all His names. But we need to learn more.

So know that He (SWT) is also Ar-Rahman, Ar-Raheem, Al-Malik, Al-Qudus, As-Salam, Al-Mumin, Al-Muhaimeen etc. This list goes on up to the ninety-ninth, As-Sabur.

Though some scholars say there are other names of Allah (SWT) apart from the ninety-nine but for our purpose here, we are starting with the ones on the sacred list.

Finally, understand that knowing these names and using them regularly to remember Allah (SWT) is so great in Reward that the Prophet said anyone who memorizes them will enter Paradise.

That is such a fabulous promise; it is an offer no Muslim can afford to neglect.

May Allah (SWT) grant us His pleasure through our constancy in remembering His names.  Aameen.

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