Asalaam alaikum

I was attending a Tafseer class recently that talked about one of the 99 names for Allah, Ar-RaHman and some interesting things about it that I thought I would share.

The name Ar-RaHman is most often translated to The Most Merciful, although most of the Surat the name is mentioned in talk about punishment. And as someone asked in the discussion, “How is it different than Ar-RaHeem?” RaHeem is only referring to mercy and compassion, while RaHman includes the power and authority of Allah. True mercy is only possible if punishment is also possible. This really resonates with me that truly fearing and respecting Ar-RaHman comes from knowing that punishment is possible, as well as knowing the unlimited mercifulness.

It is also very freeing not to fear worldly things that often get too much attention, like “What if I don’t get that class I need?” Or “What happens if this person doesn’t like me and make my life worse?” Fearing Ar-RaHman makes everything else so much easier to approach. I know it’s a weird concept for non-religious folks to conceptualize; “If this being is so amazing, why would you fear them?”

The discussion also pointed out that the root word of RaHman is RaHim, which is womb. A way to think about mercy and compassion is how a mother shows compassion for their baby, as the baby is helpless and could easily be harmed by the mother, but the mother chooses to love and provide for it.

Insha’allah I hope you find this to be helpful or thought provoking. Let me know what your thoughts are or anything else to share.

Asallamu-alaikum everyone. My name is Loopy and I am by no means an expert in Islam, but insha’allah hope to discuss interesting things, seek truths to questions through the Quran, and how to better practice being a muslim.

Full disclosure, I learn many aspects of Islam through the podcasts of Nouman Ali Khan. I really like how he applies what he has learned to explain concepts and terms found in the Quran into clearer context. I understand reading and understanding Allah’s words in original transcript will be the best way to learn, and insha’allah I will keep learning Arabic to do so.

One recent topic discussed was al-Sabiqoon mentioned in (56) Al-Waaqia (الواقِىَة). The Sabiqoon are the first and foremost, in this life and the next. Nouman discusses how most of us follow someone for a lot of what we do in our daily lives, which I mostly agree with. He points out that the Sabiqoon are not people that simply follow others’ paths. They seek their own path in throughout life. This really encourages me to practice taking those first steps with things in life that I want to do. That was part of the inspiration of creating this Fediverse community, as well as continue learning Arabic. May Allah give us all courage to take those first uncomfortable steps to bettering ourselves.

What are your thoughts about the Sabiqoon mentioned in Al-Waaqia? What are things you want to take first steps in?