Al-‘Azeez

﷽

The eighth name we will be discussing and learning about is Al-‘Azeez – The Mighty, The Strong, Dignified and Powerful, The Eminent

Al-‘Azeez is the One who is the most Powerful and most Cherished; the victorious One whose strength, glory and power are overwhelming. He is the One whose dignity, majesty and power are unique, precious and unattainable by mankind; the One whose respectability and nobility are above all others; the One who is the ultimate in honour and nobility. Allah is the One who has complete mastery over all of creation; the One who overcomes everything; the One who is incomparable and unparalleled; the One who is the cherished source of all strength, power and potency.

Allah calls Himself Al-‘Azeez on 92 occassions in the Quran. The word ‘Azeez comes from the root ‘ayn-zay-zay, which points to four main meanings.

The first main meaning is to be mighty and powerful
The second is to be noble and elevated
The third main meaning is to be invincible
The fourth is to be rare and unattainable.

So, how can we live by this name?

1) Seek your strength from Al-‘Azeez
Having faith in Al-‘Azeez gives you courage because you know Your Lord is unbeatable. Whatever He wills will happen, and whatever He wills not to happen won’t, even if the people will it to be otherwise. So only work to please Him and be confident He will help you. Allah has power over all things, show sabr (patience/perseverance) and shukr (gratefulness) for whatever befalls on you. Allah can get you out of any situation you are in, He is the source of all strength so ask Him to strengthen you and turn to Al-‘Azeez for strength, especially when you find yourself in a situation of weakness and vulnerability. He is always there for us and will answer our prayers.

2) Know that your ‘izzah is in Islam
Know that our honour is in Islam and that it does not lie in money, power, or looks. Al-‘Azeez said: ‘Verily, then to Allah belongs all honour, power and glory.’ [Quran, 4: 139] These wordly creations are not going to be with us on the Day of Qiyamah, they are temporary within this life itself and true honour can only be given by Allah. Strive to be good people, speak well, honour others and take care of what is around you. Seek your honour in this life and the next from Al-‘Azeez only, by obeying Him and following His Messenger ﷺ.

3) There’s no hiding from Al-‘Azeez
Let Al-‘Azeez make you recognise that no matter who you are, how pious or “high-positioned” you are, you can never hide from His might and power. The repetition of Al-‘Azeez in the Quran can teach you that you constantly have to remind yourself that you cannot go against His Will, and He is mighty against those who disobey Him. Be careful with your actions and think twice about your intentions when doing anything, ask yourself if its going against the teachings sent down by Allah and seek forgiveness as well. He is always watching and nothing happens without His will.

4) Power doesn’t mean honour
Always use your own authority in an honourable way, over your children or spouse for example. Train yourself to have strength and sabr towards others by reminding yourself of the wisdom Al-‘Azeez, who uses His power with wisdom, and always try to strengthen others with your advice, skills, or company. The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘Whoever a believer is humiliated before him and he does not help him when he is able to do so, Allah will humiliate him before the creation on the day of judgment.’ [Ahmad] Stand up for people when you witness injustice and support them wherever you can, be honourable when you find yourself in a position of power.

5) Honor trusts
The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘All of a Muslim is inviolable to another Muslim: his blood, his wealth and his honour’ [Muslim]. Never break the trust of another person, don’t harm others by your tongue or hand; don’t backbite, slander, or misuse their belongings or even expose their faults. You can even earn Allah’s protection from the Fire by defending someone’s honour. The Prophet ﷺ said: ‘Whoever defends the honour of his brother, then Allah will protect his face from the Hellfire on the Day of Resurrection.’ [At-Tirmidhee] An example is to rebut backbiting in a company and to mention something good about the person in his or her absence. Your relationships with others are a trust (amaanah) from Al-‘Azeez and you should honour each trust you are given— in your dealings with others, as well as your own body and imaan— by looking after them according to the guidelines of Al-‘Azeez. Be good towards others and treat them with kindness and love and stand up for them.

6) Use the Quran, al-’azeez
Allah ﷻ‬ called the Quran azeez because it is His speech: ‘And verily, it is an honourable respected Book. Falsehood cannot come to it from before it or behind it (it is) sent down by the All-Wise, Worthy of all praise.’ [Quran, 41:41-42] Stop and reflect; this means the Quran contains what we need to succeed in life, because it comes from our Creator. It is your manual in a sense, the Book of truth which has been sent down to us so we my learn and adopt a lifestyle from it. So try your best to understand and implement the Quran as much as you can.

Call upon Allah, Al ‘Azeez, knowing that all might belongs to Him. Ask Him to adorn us with the honour of Islam, protect us from misusing our powers, and make us of those who rely upon His power only. Ask Him to make us benefit from the Quran and protect us from those who overpower us. Ask Him to make us of those who honour our relationships with others and give us the strength to face the testing times within our lives. May Allah shower His peace upon you all and may He guide our every step. May He protect us and our loved ones and allow us to enter His kingdom of Jannah with them. May He purify our intentions and increase us in imaan. Ameen.

JazakAllah khayr for taking the time to read this, I pray it has benefitted you – please share this with anyone who you think may benefit as well – and as mentioned in previous posts, I am raising funds this Ramadan for much-needed permanent homes in Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, if possible please share and donate to this link.

We often forget and take for granted our blessings, something as little as a roof over our heads, clean drinking water and warm food, others can only dream about. This Ramadan we’re doing our bit to help change that, by building homes for those less fortunate in the impoverished villages of Azad Kashmir. Each home will have 2 Rooms, a Kitchen, bathroom, enough to house 6 people, clean drinking water, electricity and best of all, the residents will have free healthcare for life! Zakat is applicable.

You can also donate via PayPal to: Info@salamcharity.org.uk
Please note down the amount transferred and write a note to the supporting cause: Rimsha’sHomeAppeal – MUSPakSoc

Don’t forget to share this with any friends and family you think might be interested in supporting as well and feel free to ask any questions you have via Instagram as well @muspaksoc @salamcharityuk

JazakAllah Khair for your efforts

References: information in this post was collated from understandquran.com and the beautiful names of Allah series on wahiduddin.net.