02. Remembrance Of God

God says -

….who remember God when they stand, when they sit, and when they lie down to sleep… Q.3:191

And never say about anything, “Behold I shall do this tomorrow,” without [adding], “if God so wills,” And if though shouldst forget [thyself at the time, and become aware of it later], call thy Sustainer to mind and say: “I pray that my Sustainer guide me, even closer than this, to a consciousness of what is right!” Q.18:23/24

But as for anyone who chooses to remain blind to the remembrance of the Most Gracious, to him We assign an [enduring] evil impulse, to become his other self: whereupon, behold, these [evil impulses] bar all such from the path [of truth], making them think that they are guided aright! Q.43:36/37


Prophet said -

1. “Phrases most liked by God are four : SUBHANALLAHI (glory be to God), WALHAMDU LIL LAHI (all praise is for God), WALA ILAHA ILLALLAHU (there is no deity except God), WALLAAHU AKBAR (God is the greatest).” -- Hadis: Bukhari and Muslim. Narrator: Samorah-b-Jandab.

2. “Two phrases are light on tongue but will carry much weight on the Day of Judgment (and) are dear to the Merciful : SUBHANAL LAHI WA BIHAMDIHI (glory be to God and I begin with His praise), WA SUBHANAL LAHIL AZEEM (and glory be to Almighty God).” -- Hadis: Bukhari and Muslim. Narrator: Abu Hurairah.

3. “Let me direct you to a treasure out of the treasures of paradise. Recite : LA HAULA WALA QUWWATA ILLA BILLAH (there is no might and no power but that of God).” -- Hadis: Bukhari and Muslim. Narrator: Abu Musa Al Ash’ari.

01. The Beginning

God says -

Bismillaa hir rahmaa nir raheem
In the name of God, the Most Graceful [rahmaan], the Most Gracious [raheem] (Q1:1)

Both the divine epithets rahmaan and raheem are derived from the noun rahmah, which signifies “mercy”, “compassion”, “loving tenderness” and more comprehensively, “grace”. From the very earliest times, Islamic scholars have endeavored to define the exact shades of meanings which differentiate the two terms. The best and simplest of these explanations is undoubtedly the one advanced by Ibn al-Qayyim (as quoted in Manar I, 48): the term rahmaan circumscribes the quality of abounding grace inherited in, and inseparable from, the concept of God’s Being, whereas raheem expresses the manifestation of that grace in, and its effect upon, His creation – in other words, an aspect of His activity.

Muslims recite this meritorious verse in the beginning of doing any activity daily. Indeed, it becomes a source of remembrance of God if recited consciously of His presence “Whatever work you may do–(remember that) We are your witness (from the moment) when you enter upon it.” Q.10:61(part)


Prophet said -

“An activity is severed (from its blessings) if not begun with the words: Bismillaa hir rahmaa nir raheem [In the name of God, the Most Graceful, the Most Gracious] “ – Hadith: Abu Daud. Narrator: Abu Hurairah.

Note: “Q” is short for Qur’an. The first number after the “Q” represents the number of the chapter (surah), the second stands for its verse. The translations and commentary are based on Muhammad Asad The Message of The Qur’an (Gibraltar: Dar Al-Andalus 1980). My own words occur in green like these notes.

Reminder:. Please use honorifics. After the name or the title of the Prophet say “Sual-lal lahu ‘Alaihi wa Sal-lam”; (peace and blessings upon him); after the name or the title of every prophet (nabi) and apostle (rasul) say “ ‘Alai his salaam” (peace be upon him/ them); and after the name of their family member, as well as, companion, say “Radi Allahu ‘Anhu” (may God be pleased with him / her).

INTRODUCTION: The Makers of Tomorrow

Knowledge leads to belief and belief to action. Do you realize that, all of us, men and women, irrespective of cast, creed and colour, are representatives of God here on Earth? Believe in this truth and see that your whole outlook for life will change. You will realize your status and would feel like living up to it. You have been provided with faculties, intelligence, freedom of decision and, in addition, the Book of knowledge and wisdom for guidance. That’s not all. You have also ‘hot-line’ with God who said “-- I am near; I respond to the call of him who calls, whenever he calls unto Me: let them, then, respond unto Me, and believe in Me, so that they might follow the right way.”- Q.2:186. Great! (Do you really think that you understand what it is to ‘respond unto Him’ and ‘to believe in Him’? Don’t rush to say yes because you may not. See the next Friday Post. You will know why).

Knowledge is power which can be misused too. An earlier example is of dropping the atom bomb and killing millions of innocent civilians!

But look at the example of what man’s constructive effort can do.Here is a glimpse of Muslim’s gigantic leap in knowledge which resulted in historical contribution to the good of mankind:-

“Their accomplishments were staggering, including the development of modern medicine, chemistry, and algebra. Muslim scientists correctly calculated the circumference of the globe in the tenth century. Muslim musicians introduced the guitar and musical notation to Europe. And Muslim philosophers invented the scientific method and paved way for the Enlightenment…. At the dawn of Renaissance, Christian Europe was wearing Persian clothes, singing Arab songs, reading Spanish Muslim philosophy and eating off Mamluk Turkish brassware.” (How Islam Created the Modern world by Mark Graham).
This development continued for nearly a thousand years, a period which ironically Eurocentric history refers to as the Dark Ages.

You, the young members of Ummah, the decision makers and pace-setters of tomorrow, you know what useful knowledge can do to you and to the society. Opportunity lies before you. Whichever field of knowledge you are pursuing keep your aims high and be good to other human beings. "The Mercy of God is near to those who do good" (Q 7:56). Being a representative, be always in touch with the Message of God in order to follow the right way. That’s where Your Friday Post comes in.

Eid Mubarak!