Al-Musawwir

﷽

The thirteenth name we will be discussing and learning about is ‘Al-Musawwir’ – The Fashioner, The Bestower of Forms, The Shaper

Al-Musawwir is the One who is the fashioner and former of each and every thing in all of creation. The One who has given everything in creation a special inclination or desire. The One who has given everything a special form and a special manner whereby it is distinguished.

Allah calls Himself Al-Musawwir on one occasion in the Quran. The word ‘Musawwir’ comes from the root ‘saad-waw-raa’, which points to three main meanings.

The first main meaning is to make something incline, lean, or bend
The second is to form, fashion, sculpt, imagine, or picture something
The third main meaning is to have an inclination or desire towards something

So, how can we live by this name?

1) Know that it is Al-Musawwir who shaped you
Whenever you feel as though you don’t look good enough; that you’re too skinny, too fat, too tall, too short, too this or that. Remember. Allah created you. You are the right shape and size, your skin is the right shade, your natural hair perfectly suits you too. You are full of beauty. Remember. Eurocentric beauty standards, the people who find faults in your form, the filters which distort our faces didn’t create you; but Al-Musawwir did. The Shaper of beauty, the One who Creates without faults, the One who is the Source of beauty. He does not make mistakes. If others fail to see and recognise it then remember that you are beautiful in the eyes of Allah and at the end of the day that is enough. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and is down to perspective, everyone finds different things beautiful, someones inability to see the beauty within you does not equate to its absence. You are beautiful. Allah says: ‘He created the heavens and earth in truth and formed you and perfected your forms; and to Him is the [final] destination.’ [Quran, 64:3] In this ayah Allah is literally saying that He has perfectly created you. His word is never incorrect. The same Allah that created all the beauty around you, created you too; the same Allah that creates the beautiful sunsets and sunrises, the same Allah that created the mountains and oceans, the same Allah that created whatever you see as being beautiful too- He created you too. He created your form with perfection, as what is best and most fitting for you. We are all unique beautiful creations of Allah and He has places so much detail in each and every one of us, from how we look to the structure of our organs, from the way we speak to the way in which we walk. If you ever find yourself looking at yourself and are disheartened remember that cameras and mirrors cannot capture the true extent of the beauty of Allahs creation, only to a certain level, e.g.: when you take a picture of the moon it often looks like a white blob but when you see it with your own eyes it’s stunning. You were made by Allah, for Him and will return to Him, and to Him, you are beautiful; to Him, your form is perfect. Al-Musawwir has shaped you by His ultimate wisdom, He always does what is best for us when it is best for us and this also applies to your beauty. When you look at yourself in the mirror, say Alhamdulillah, there is great wisdom in the way in which Allah has uniquely created each and every one of us. But also remember that your beauty isn’t restricted to your physical body, Allah has placed so much beauty and love within your soul as well, so be beautiful in your mannerisms and characteristics, be someone who beautifies the world around them by spreading love and smiles.

2) Reflect on the beauty around you
Everything you see around us is proof of Allah’s existence. To please your senses, He designed flowers, trees, fruits, and even cows and sheep, etc. to be beautiful and gave them appealing shapes. He shapes the world around us in the most beautiful of manners, from the way He paints the skies at sunset and sunrise to the way the colours of the leaves change in autumn. He has filled the Earth with so much beauty for us to appreciate so be thankful towards Al-Musawwir for blessing us by surrounding us with beauty to look at.

3) Live up to your potential!
Know your position. ‘Indeed, We have created the human being upon the best of forms.’ [Quran, 95: 4] Al-Musawwir created and formed you with a particular brain, heart, face, and limbs, which differentiate us from animals. How do you use them? We will all be questioned on the Day of Judgment as to how we use our hearing, our sight, and our hearts. So use these to do as many good deeds as you can and don’t use them to harm yourself or others. You have so much potential inside of you, do as much as you can to be better and do better and improve. Work on yourself daily and use the blessings you’ve been given to push for more good and to benefit others as well as yourself. The blessings of Allah upon us are innumerable, remind yourself of the beauty of life around you and be grateful.

4) Worship Al-Musawwir alone.
Allah ‎ﷻ‬ alone deserves your worship. Remember this ayah when you feel tempted to turn to others for your desires instead of to Al-Musawwir: ‘This is the Creation of Allah. Now show me that which those (you worship) beside Him have created. Nay, but the wrong-doers are in manifest error!’ [Quran, 31:11] Remember that all you see around you is the Creation of Allah, and do not get carried away by them to the point of worship, remember everything was made by Allah. He is the only One we should worship and all praise is for Him.

5) Ask Al-Musawwir.
‘Is not He Who created the heavens and the earth able to create the like of them? Yes Indeed! and He is the Superb Creator (of all), the Ever-Knowing. Surely His Command, when He wills a thing, is only to say to it: ‘Be!’ and it is! Therefore glory be to Him in Whose hand is the Kingdom of all things, and to Him you shall be brought back.’ [Quran, 36:82-83]. Al-Musawwir has perfected everything you see around you; so have firm faith in Him that He can solve all your problems. Remember when you make dua and pray – nothing is impossible for al-Musawwir. Al Musawwir is also the one who creates an inclination or desire towards something, so call upon Him and ask Him to bring you closer to Him, ask Him to increase you in love for Him, the deen, His beloved ﷺ. Ask Him to open our eyes and hearts to the beauty of His creation.

Call upon Allah, Al-Musawwir, knowing that He is the One who forms the whole creation. Ask Him to make us of the grateful ones for our own forms and the beauty around us, ask Him to help us reflect upon and appreciate His creations and ask Him at all times. Call upon Allah to make us of those who use the blessings He gave us for good, and make us witness the beauty within His Jannah someday. May Allah shower His peace upon you all, answer your prayers 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. This name is one of my personal favourites, it’s the one that makes me fall in love with Allah every time I am told of the many ‘faults’ in my physical appearance, whatever people see. This name is the reason why I do not care for peoples opinions on how I look. I pray that learning about this attribute of Allah fills you with strength and love for Him. May He ease your troubles and make you of those He loves. Ameen.

Also! I have an announcement!

With all of your help we have managed to raise enough to build a home in Azad Kashmir and change a families lives forever in shaa Allah (!!) a whole family will now have refuge for life, a place to call home and a roof over their heads along with access to clean water, electricity and free lifetime healthcare. Thank you so much to each and every one of you who donated to the cause and please continue to share and donate to this link as we are trying to maximise the blessings this Ramadan by raising to build deep water wells as well. These wells can provide fresh clean water to 1000-3000 people each and will last for decades as they will be maintained by Salam Charity. Tonight could be Laylatul Qadr– even as much as £1 could go a very long way and would be as though you have given that much for 83 years – please donate as much as is within your means to help these people; your donation will improve the lives of thousands of people in shaa Allah and as always your zakat is applicable to these projects as well. May Allah bless those of you who’ve donated and build for you a home in Paradise. Ameen.

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 all your efforts

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