From being able to feel refreshed from drinking water, to being able to express our emotions through language, to witnessing the sunrise and sunsets and to even being able to have the capability to read and comprehend this very post. Allah (SWT) has placed His bountiful mercy all around us and He is always with us, showing us mercy in ways that we don’t even think of most of the time or can even comprehend. This surah is so beautiful in its reminder to us all. This surah is intense, there’s no doubt about that, but if we look closely, it’s noteworthy to see how the surah evolves and softens up as Allah begins to describe to us what Jannah is like and the people of Jannah, whom also embody a different level of mercy in order to have earned a place there. It’s even interesting to reflect upon the structure of the entire surah from beginning to end. This repeating ayah heightens the power and message of not only the surah, but also the meaning behind Ar-Rahman. Allah repeats the ayah:įabi ayyi aalaaa’i Rabbikumaa tukazzibaan / So which of the favors of your Lord will you deny? What this surah is most known for is its repetition and the intensity it builds through this literary element. From the sun and the moon, to mankind and jinn – Allah has placed mercy in these creations in diverse ways, and has undying mercy for it all. In Surah Ar-Rahman (55), Allah speaks to us about all of His creations. The Qur’an mentions Ar-Rahman 57 times and there is an entire chapter named after it. We can see Allah’s mercy everywhere, starting from our own lives, our very own existence, and then pondering the planet in which He created sustenance for us to live on. However it’s important to remember how all encompassing, ultimate and superior Allah’s mercy is over any other.
For example, you can’t love without having mercy, nor can you help someone if you don’t have mercy. What does this mean to us and why is this significant to our lives on Earth? If you think about it, mercy is a characteristic that enables all other qualities. Many of us have come to know that Ar-Rahman is a name associated with Allah’s great, unmatched and intense mercy. When we do our best to comprehend Allah’s divine attributes, we truly do begin to feel closer to Him in unexplainable ways. So, how much do we really understand the meaning of one of Allah’s most well-known names? How much do we really know about, Ar-Rahman? Or has it been so normalized, so watered down from our daily habits that its divine meaning has gotten a bit blurred? What truly matters is that we actively seek out knowledge and forgiveness any time we catch ourselves slipping and becoming forgetful or stagnant in practicing our deen.
There’s even a whole surah in the Qur’an dedicated to this name. Most Muslims say this name multiple times throughout our daily lives: before we eat, when we pray, when we’re scared or worried, and countless other times.