سورة الإسراء

The Messenger (peace be upon him and his family): O Ali! This divine statement: قُلِ ادْعُوا اللهَ أَوِ ادْعُوا الرَّحْمنَ أَیًّا ما تَدْعُوا فَلَهُ الْأَسْماءُ الْحُسْنی [Say: Call upon Allah or call upon the Beneficent; whichever you call upon, He has the best names] ...to the end of the surah, is a means of safety from thieves for my Ummah.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): The word 'Allah', whose Persian is 'Khuda', is one of His names. He is the end and ultimate limit of the one who has made it a bounded, limited thing, and the one that is set as an end — meaning His holy Essence — is not itself a limit. He is unique in Lordship and Rububiyyah (divine sovereignty), and He described Himself as being without limitation or measure. So the one who remembers Allah is other than Allah, and Allah is other than His names, and everything upon which the name of a thing falls, other than Allah, is created and originated. Do you not look at His saying: 'Might belongs to Allah' (Nisa 4:139) — meaning dominance and honour belong exclusively to Allah — and 'al-'azamatu lillah' [greatness belongs to Allah]; and He said: 'And to Allah belong the best names, so call upon Him by them!' (A'raf 7:180); and He said: قُلِ ادْعُوا اللهَ أَوِ ادْعُوا الرَّحْمنَ أَیًّا ما تَدْعُوا فَلَهُ الْأَسْماءُ الحُسْنی [Say: Call upon Allah or call upon the Most Merciful; whichever you call upon, to Him belong the best names]. And when calling Allah 'al-Rahman', it is permissible to call upon Him by either of these two names and to name Him by it, because His are the beautiful, or the most beautiful, names, and the meaning of all of them is one thing, and that is the holy Essence. The remainder of the hadith: and the names are attributed and ascribed to Him, and this is pure tawhid (monotheism) in which there is no trace of multiplicity.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah the Blessed and Exalted created a name from letters, and that Noble One, the Mighty and Majestic, was not qualified by letters, and without uttering it with a spoken word, or having a body, and not described by likeness, nor coloured with any colour; corners and sides were removed from Him and measures were far from Him, and the sense and perception of every possessor of imagination was veiled from Him, without Allah having any [outward] veil. Then He made that name a complete word and a perfect utterance which comprised four parts, each of which is a name together, none of them preceding the other. Then He manifested three of those names because of the creation's need for them, and He veiled and concealed one of those names — and that is the name that is hidden and stored away by these three names which He manifested. And the manifested names are 'Allah', 'Tabaraka' and 'Subhan'. For each of these names He subjected four pillars, so what has been mentioned amounts to twelve pillars. After that, for each pillar of these twelve pillars He created thirty names, each of which indicates one of His acts that are ascribed to those pillars, and the total is 360 names. And they are: al-Rahman, al-Rahim, al-Malik, al-Quddus, al-Khaliq, al-Bari', al-Musawwir, al-Hayy, al-Qayyum — whom neither slumber nor sleep overtakes — al-Alim, al-Khabir, al-Sami', al-Basir, al-Hakim, al-Aziz, al-Jabbar, al-Mutakabbir, al-Ali, al-Azim, al-Muqtadir, al-Qadir, al-Salam, al-Mu'min, al-Muhaymin, al-Bari', al-Munshi', al-Badi', al-Rafi', al-Jalil, al-Karim, al-Raziq, al-Muhyi, al-Mumit, al-Ba'ith, al-Warith. So these names and the other beautiful names of Allah, until the 360 names are completed, are all ascribed to these three names, and these three names are pillars, and that one name — hidden and stored — has been veiled by means of these three names and their manifestation and sufficiency. And this is the meaning of the saying of Allah the Exalted: قُلِ ادْعُوا اللهَ أَوِ ادْعُوا الرَّحْمنَ أَیًّا ما تَدْعُوا فَلَهُ الْأَسْماءُ الْحُسْنی [Say: Call upon Allah or call upon al-Rahman; whichever you call upon, to Him belong the best names].

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): Ibn Sinan said: I asked Imam Rida (peace be upon him): "Did Allah the Mighty and Majestic have knowledge of His own Essence before He created the creation?" He said: "Yes." I said: "Did He see it and hear it?" [Did He Himself pronounce His name and Himself hear it?] He said: "He had no need of that, for He neither had any question of it nor any request from it; He was Himself and Himself alone. His power was penetrating, so He had no need to name His own Essence. But He chose for Himself names by which others would call upon Him, because if He were not called by His name He would not be known. The first name He chose for Himself was al-Aliyy al-Azim (the Most High, the Great), because He is higher than all things; its meaning is Allah [that is, the word 'Allah' is the signifier and the Essence of Allah is the signified], and His name is al-Aliyy al-Azim, which is the first of His names, and He is above all things [so the word 'Allah' is with regard to His Essence and the other names are with regard to His attributes]."

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): It is narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) used to order his special scribe to write [at the beginning of letters] بِاسْمِکَ اللّهُمَّ [In Your name, O Allah]. When the verse بِسْمِ اللهِ مَجْراهَا [In the name of Allah be its sailing] (Hud/41) was revealed, he ordered that بِسْمِ اللهِ [In the name of Allah] be written. When the verse قُلِ ادْعُوا اللهَ أَوِ ادْعُوا الرَّحْمنَ [Say: Call upon Allah or call upon the Beneficent] was revealed, he ordered that بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ [In the name of Allah, the Beneficent] be written. And when the verse إِنَّهُ مِنْ سُلَیْمانَ وَ إِنَّهُ بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِیمِ [Surely it is from Sulayman, and it is: In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful] (Naml/30) was revealed, he ordered that بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِیمِ be written in full.

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): We [the Imams] are the hidden, concealed Name of Allah. We are al-Asma al-Husna (the most beautiful names) by which, when Allah the Mighty and Majestic is called, He answers. We are the names written upon the Divine Throne, and for our sake Allah the Mighty and Majestic created the heavens, the earth, the Throne, the Seat of sovereignty, Paradise and Hellfire. The angels learned tasbih (glorification), taqdis (sanctification), tawhid (declaration of oneness), tahlil (declaration of 'there is no god but Allah') and takbir (declaration of Allah's greatness) from us. And we are the words which Adam (peace be upon him) received from his Lord, and through [those words] Allah accepted his repentance.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Samaʿah said: I asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) about the words of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [and do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it]. He said: "al-Mukhafatah (being silent) means below the level of being heard, and al-Jahr (raising the voice) means that you raise your voice very loudly."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abdullah ibn Sinan said: I said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "Must the imam of the congregational prayer recite so loudly that everyone standing behind him hears his voice, even if they are many in number?" He said: "His voice should be at a moderate level. Allah the Blessed and Exalted has said: وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [and do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Sulayman narrates: Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) said regarding the verse وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it]: "Jahr means to recite with a very loud voice, and al-Mukhafatah (being silent) means that even your own ear does not hear it; so recite in between these two states, such that your own ear hears you."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Jahr means raising the voice very loud, and mukhafata means [reciting so softly] that you yourself do not hear it with your ear.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it]. Jahr means raising the voice, and takhafut means so quietly that it cannot be heard with the ear; so one must recite at the level between these two.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Jahr is that you raise your voice so much that someone standing behind you can hear it, and mukhafata is that the person standing next to you can hardly hear your voice.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) prayed in Mecca, he would recite in a loud voice; the polytheists would learn of his location and harass him, so Allah revealed this verse concerning that.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): It is narrated from Imam Muhammad Baqir (peace be upon him) that he said: The verse وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it] was abrogated by the verse فَاصْدَعْ بِمَا تُؤْمَرُ [Therefore declare openly what you are bidden].

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Al-Halabi narrates from some of the Shia: Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "My son! You must perform a good deed and a hasana between two sins, for it will wipe away the effects of those two sins." [Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him)] asked: "Dear father! How is this possible?" He said: "Like the saying of Allah the Mighty and Majestic: وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it]. لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ [Do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice] — this is a sayyi'a (evil deed) and a sin. وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [nor be silent with regard to it] — this is also a sayyi'a and a sin. وَ ابْتَغِ بَیْنَ ذَلِکَ سَبِیلًا [and seek a way between these] — this is the hasana (good deed)."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Muhammad ibn Imran asked Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "For what reason is the recitation in the Friday prayer, the Maghrib, Isha and Fajr prayers said aloud, while in the other prayers it is said quietly? And for what reason are the four tasbihs (glorifications) in the last rak'ats more meritorious than the recitation?" His Holiness (peace be upon him) said: "Because when the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) was taken on the Mi'raj (ascension), the first prayer that Allah made obligatory upon him was the Zuhr prayer, and Allah made the angels partners with him in that prayer, so they prayed the congregational prayer with him and the angels followed his lead, and Allah commanded His Messenger to recite aloud so that his excellence would be manifest to them. Then the time of the Asr prayer came, and no one was with him, so he prayed individually, and Allah commanded him to recite quietly because no one had followed his lead. Then He appointed the Maghrib prayer upon him and commanded the angels to follow his lead, and commanded His Holiness to recite aloud, and likewise the Isha prayer. Then when it was near the rising of the true dawn (fajr sadiq), he returned to the earth and stood for the Fajr prayer with the people, and Allah commanded him to recite aloud so that His greatness and excellence would be clear to everyone, just as it had been made clear to the angels. And for this reason those prayers are recited aloud. And the four tasbihs in the third and fourth rak'ats are more meritorious for this reason: that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) in the last two rak'ats witnessed the greatness and grandeur of his Lord, and his heart trembled, and his tongue opened to the glorification of his Lord and he said: 'سبحان الله و الحمد لله و لا إله إلّا الله و الله اکبر [Glory be to Allah, and praise be to Allah, and there is no god but Allah, and Allah is the Greatest]', and hence the glorification of the Lord in the last rak'ats became more meritorious than the recitation."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Zurara narrates from Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): concerning a man who recites aloud in a prayer where it is proper to recite quietly, or recites quietly where it is not proper to recite quietly, he said: "If it is from forgetfulness, inadvertence or not knowing, there is no blame upon him and the prayer is without doubt correct and complete."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Jabir said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about the interpretation of this verse: وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا وَ ابْتَغِ بَیْنَ ذَلِکَ سَبِیلًا [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it, and seek a way between these]. He said: "That is, do not make manifest the wilayah (guardianship) of Ali (peace be upon him) — and that is the prayer — and likewise do not make manifest that honour which I have ordained for him, until I tell you its time. This is the meaning of the word of Allah, where He says: وَ لاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاَتِکَ [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice]. But as for His saying: وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [nor be silent with regard to it], it means: do not conceal this honour from Ali (peace be upon him), but tell him of the honour I have ordained for him and inform him of it. As for His saying: وَ ابْتَغِ بَیْنَ ذَلِکَ سَبِیلًا [and seek a way between these], it means: ask Me to permit you to make manifest the matter of the wilayah of Ali (peace be upon him)." And on the day of Ghadir Khumm, Allah gave this permission to the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family), and on that day he said [to Allah the Exalted]: "O Allah! Whoever I am the master of, this Ali (peace be upon him) is his master. O Allah! Whoever loves him, love him, and be the enemy of his enemies."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Abu Hamzah al-Thumali said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about [this] verse: وَ لاتَجْهَرْ بِصَلاتِکَ وَ لا تُخافِتْ بِها وَ ابْتَغِ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ سَبِیلًا [And do not utter your prayer with a very raised voice nor be silent with regard to it, and seek a way between these]. He said: "Its interpretation is this: do not make manifest the wilayah of Ali (peace be upon him) and the honour which I have granted him, before We command you to do so. وَ لاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا [nor be silent with regard to it]; that is, do not conceal it from Ali (peace be upon him), but inform him of the honour I have granted him. As for وَ ابْتَغِ بَیْنَ ذلِکَ سَبِیلًا [and seek a way between these], it means: ask Me to permit you to make manifest the wilayah of Ali (peace be upon him), then call the people to it. So on the day of Ghadir Khumm He gave him this permission."