Al-Ra’uuf (Ar-Ra’uuf)
The Clement, The Compassionate, The All-Pitying
This name is derived from the word ra’fa which means mercy. “Ra’fa bi” means to have mercy upon. Ar-ra’fah is the mercy which in this world is common for all but in the Here-After it is only for some special type of people like al-awliyaa (the friends), al-mu’minoon (the practicing believers) and al-muttaqoon (those who fear Allah All-Mighty a lot and are always obedient to Allah Azza wa jall). Thus Al-Ra’uuf (Ar-Ra’uuf) means the Merciful, the Affectionate the Compassionate and the Clement.
Here is the translation of some of the verses of the Holy Quraan which have this beautiful name of Allah Ta’ala. One of the important principles about the Names of Allah is that: when an aayah (verse) of the Holy Qur’aan ends with a Name of Allah then it means that the Command in the verse is related to the beautiful Name of Allah. So now we will see the verses with this beautiful Name of Allah Azza wa Jall:
Surah Al-Baqarah verse 143:
وما كان الله ليضيع ايمانكم إن الله باالناس لرءوف رحيم ….
The translation of the complete verse is:
143. Thus We have appointed you a middle nation, that ye may be witnesses against mankind, and that the messenger may be a witness against you. And We appointed the qiblah which ye formerly observed only that We might know him who followeth the messenger, from him who turneth on his heels. In truth it was a hard (test) save for those whom Allah guided. But it was not Allah’s purpose that your faith should be in vain, for Allah is Full of Pity, Merciful toward mankind.
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Thus it means that It doesn’t befit Allah azza wa jall to waste your faith. This is great mercy of Allah and in this there is happy news for the practicing believers that Allah Who by HIS Mercy gave us Islam and eemaan (the faith of Islam), will rather protect our eemaan so that it persists and remains strong with the rituals and character of Islam.
And Allah said in surah Al-Baqarah 207:
207. And there is the type of man who gives his life to earn the pleasure of Allah: And Allah is full of kindness to (His) slaves.
Another translation of the same verse is:
207. And of mankind is he who would sell himself, seeking the Pleasure of Allah. And Allah is full of Kindness to (His) slaves.
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Here appears a very beautiful and excellent principle of Allah azza wa Jall. That is when a Muslim sells his nafs to seek Allah’s pleasure, i.e. he forgets about his personal desires; rather he struggles to follow Allah’s Commands, then the ending of this verse by this great Name of Allah (Ar-Ra’uuf) with the words “bil ibaad” is like the Muslim (who sold himself for the pleasure of Allah ) will establish peace and security for the people. He /she will try to give people their rights. As Allah is Ar-Ra’uuf bil ibaad (very Kind to HIS servants) So the Muslim who devotes his life and struggles to please Allah, will do many things for the comfort of the ibaad (members of his society) in this world and for their success in the Here-After (This was my understanding but Allah knows the best). We can see that the Prophets alaihim salaam and their close followers always struggled for the rights of the mankind!!! They expect their reward only from Allah Azza wa Jall in the next world and serve humanity for free.
Surah Aali-Imran verse 30 (English translation):
30. On the Day when every person will be confronted with all the good he has done, and all the evil he has done, he will wish that there were a great distance between him and his evil. And Allah warns you of Himself (His Punishment) and Allah is full of Kindness to (HIS) slaves.
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Although Allah Azza wa Jall is very strict in punishment to the transgressors but along with that Allah Azza wa Jall is Ra’uufun-bil-ibaad. So before that Hard Day of Judgment, Allah informed us all about the horrible punishment so that we, the servants may try to obey Allah’s Commands and thus protect ourselves from Hell.
Surah Al-Tawbah (At-Tawbah) verse 117:
[9:117] Surely Allah has relented towards the Prophet, and towards the Muhajirun (Emigrants) and the Ansar (Helpers) who stood by him in the hour of hardship,115 although the hearts of a party of them had well-nigh swerved.116 (But when they gave up swerving from the Right Course and followed the Prophet), Allah relented towards them.117 Surely to them He is the Most Tender, the Most Merciful.
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Exp. note 115, 116 and 117:
115. Allah forgave the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his companions for those inadvertent lapses that had been made in connection with the Tabuk expedition, in view of their excellent services. The inadvertent lapse made by the Prophet (peace be upon him) was that he had given leave to stay behind to those people who were able to take part in the battle. (Ayat 43).
116. This refers to those sincere companions who were at first somewhat unwilling to go to war on that critical occasion, but at last overcame their weakness, for they had true faith in their hearts and loved the right way.
117. That is, Allah will not take them to account for their wrong inclinations for He does not punish a man for that weakness which he himself has overcome and corrected.
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Surah Al-Nahl (An-Nahl) verses 4—7:
(16:4) He created man out of a mere drop of fluid, and lo! he turned into an open wrangler.7
Another translation of the same verse is:
(16:4). He has created man from a sperm-drop; and behold this same (man) becomes an open disputer!
(16:5) He created the cattle. They are a source of clothing and food and also a variety of other benefits for you.
(16:6) And you find beauty in them as you drive them to pasture in the morning and as you drive them back home in the evening;
(16:7) and they carry your loads to many a place which you would be unable to reach without much hardship. Surely your Lord is Intensely Loving, Most Merciful.
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All of these verses of the surah Al-Nahl (the translation mentioned above) describe the blessings of Allah on mankind who is usually a disputer. Only count the blessings of Allah in the animals that Allah created for our benefits and comfort. Surely Allah is your Lord Ar-Ra’uuf-ur-Raheem!!!
Allah has also given us the blessings in the present era, those blessings which are the sources of transport from place to place like cars, buses trains, ships and air planes etc. So we must be very thankful and obedient to our Kind and Rauuf Lord. Allaho Akbar, wa lillahil hamd.
Some of the other verses with this beautiful Name of Allah Azza wa Jall are:
(Their English translation only)
Surah Al-Nahl (An-Nahl) verses 45—47:
(16:45) Do those who have been devising evil plans (against the mission of the Messenger) feel secure that Allah will not cause the earth to swallow them up or that chastisement will not come upon them from a direction that they will not even be able to imagine;
(16:46) or that He will not suddenly seize them while they are going about to and fro and they will be unable to frustrate His design,
(16:47) or that He will not seize them when they are apprehensive of the impending calamity? Surely your Lord is Most Compassionate, Most Merciful.
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Inspite of the fact that mankind is mostly disobedient and thankless to the Lord Allah Ta’aala and fights against Allah’s Messenger salla Allaho Alaihi wa sallam, but Allah All-Mighty doesn’t catch them at once! Rather Allah gives them long time to think, understand and repent to the very Kind and Unique Lord (Allah). Also gives them all blessings to enjoy. (But mankind must remember that Allah has appointed a Day in the Here-After to pass judgment, therefore they should not consider themselves absolutely free of responsibility. They must fear the Judgment Day).
Surah Al-Hajj verse 65:
(22:65) Have you not seen how Allah has subjected to you all that is in the earth, and the vessels that sail in the sea by His command,113 and it is He Who holds back the sky that it may not fall on earth except by His leave? Surely Allah is Most Gentle, Ever Compassionate to people.
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This verse 65 of surah al-Hajj is very clear to understand. So Allah is Ra’uuf-ur Raheem for all mankind!!!
Surah Al-Noor (An-Noor) 20:
20. And had it not been for the Grace of Allah and His Mercy on you, (Allah would have hastened the punishment upon you). And that Allah is full of kindness, Most Merciful.
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This verse 20 of the surah Al-Noor is in the context of those verses which were sent down to declare the piety of Aa’ishah radiyallaho anha. That means the false accusation on her might have caused the coming of wrath of Allah on the accusers but due to the Ra’uuf and Raheem qualities of Allah Azza wa Jall the punishment (Wrath) was not hastened. (But you must know that all of the accusers were punished with 80 lashes each in front of the people, according to the Law that was sent down in the beginning of the surah Al-Noor).
Surah Al-Hadeed 9:
(57:9) He it is Who sends down Clear Signs to His servant so as to bring you out from darkness into light. Surely Allah is Most Kind and Most Compassionate to you.
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Sending down the Holy Quraan through HIS Messenger Muhammad salla Allaho alaihi wa sallam to take mankind out of the darkness of kufar (unbelief) into the Light of Islam is the greatest of the blessings because it protects us from the ever-lasting burning in Hell!!!
Surah Al-Hashar 10:
(59:10) (And it also belongs to) those who came after them,20 and who pray: “Lord, forgive us and our brethren who have preceded us in faith, and do not put in our hearts any rancor towards those who believe. Lord, You are the Most Tender, the Most Compassionate.”21
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Exp. note 21:
21. In this verse although the real object is only to point out that in faith not only the people of the present generation but the Muslims of the later periods and their future generations also have a share, yet, besides, the Muslims have also been taught an important moral lesson that they should never have any malice against other Muslims in their hearts, and they should continue to pray for the forgiveness of the Muslims who have gone before them instead of cursing and abusing them. The bond that binds the Muslims together is that of a common faith. If a person values his faith as the most important thing in his heart, inevitably he would be a well-wisher of all those people who are his brethren-in faith. He can have ill-will and malice and hatred towards them in his heart only when the value of the faith decreases in his sight and he starts valuing other things more. Therefore, it is the requirement of faith that a believer’s heart should be free from every trace of malice and hatred against the other believers. In this matter the best lesson is given by a Hadith which Nasai has related from Anas. According to him, once it so happened that for three days continuously the Prophet (peace be upon him) declared in his assembly that a person was going to appear before them who belonged to the dwellers of Paradise, and every time it would be a certain person from among the Ansar. At this Abdullah bin Amr bin Aas became curious as to what deeds the person concerned performed on the basis of which the Prophet (peace be upon him) had repeatedly given the good news of his admission to Paradise. Thus, he made an excuse and spent three consecutive nights in his house to see how he performed his worship, but during the night he did not see anything unusual. At last, he asked him directly as to what special acts and devotions he performed on the basis of which the Prophet (peace be upon him) had given the great good news about him. He replied: You have seen how I perform my worship, but there is one thing which might have carved me this reward: I do not harbor any malice or evil design against any Muslim, nor feel jealous of him on account of any good that Allah might have bestowed on him.
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Beautiful Names of Allah 