Al-Israa (The Night Journey)
Verse 110
Table of Contents
110. “Say: ‘Call upon Allah, or call upon the Beneficent; whichever you call upon; then the best names belong to Him; and do not utter your prayer too aloud nor be silent with regard to it, and seek a way between that’.”
In some of the commentaries, we have it that once the holy Prophet (S) was praying in Masjid-ul-Haram, and was saying:
“O’ Allah! O’ Rahman!”
Some people thought he was calling two Gods one of whom was ‘Allah’ and the other one was (Rahman’ (Compassionate). The verse was revealed and wiped out that paradox.1
In other words, the pagans and the polytheists used to ask as to why the prophet called the Lord by various names while he was claiming to be monotheist.
The Qur’an, answering them, says:
“Say: ‘Call upon Allah, or call upon the Beneficent; whichever you call upon…”
Whichever you choose, it makes no difference; He has got to have various good names:
“…then the best names belong to Him…”
Those blindfolded individuals, at times, call a person or a place by different names, each of which presents one part or a portion of its existence.
Is it, therefore, surprising that the Lord, whose Essence is infinite in every respect and Who is the source of all perfections, bounties, and goodness, be called by one specific name for whatever He does with respect to that job and whatever virtue His Holy Essence Possesses?
At the end of the holy verse, calling the attention to the discussion of the pagans in Mecca who used to ask with regard to the prayers of the Prophet (S) as to why he used to recite his prayers with a loud voice, disturbing them, He commands the Prophet (S):
“…and do not utter your prayer too aloud nor be silent with regard to it, and seek between, that’.”
The noble verse implies: Neither recite it with a loud voice, shouting it; nor in a state of whispering it, in which case your lips might be moving and no voice heard.
Incidentally, we have it in the Shi‘ah and Sunni quotations that; The Lord has got 99 names, and whoever calls Him by one of them, will succeed and will be saved.2
However, we must know that when speaking of numerating of these names, it does not mean that we utter them so as to enter the Paradise or become the one whose prayers are accepted.
On the contrary, they are intended for us to be inculcated with the values attached to them and implementing of those values relating to the names such as: Wise, Compassionate, Merciful, Generous, and Blissful in ourselves so as to make us both worthy of the Paradise and make our prayers acceptable in all cases.