الرَّحْمـنِ الرَّحِيمِ
The all-beneficent, the all-merciful.
EXEGESIS
See the Exegesis of verse 1.
EXPOSITION
God is a Lord and master who is not cruel or unjust, but He is The all-beneficent, the all-merciful. His lordship, authority, and management of the universe are not painful, but merciful. He is to be praised for showing bounties and blessings upon His servants not because of their desert or entitlement, nor due to expecting any benefit to accrue to Him, and not to protect Himself from their harm or dissatisfaction, but only out of His infinite, everlasting, and all-encompassing mercy. A practical lesson of this verse for us could be that our education, training, and nurture of our children should also be like this: with loving kindness, undeserved, and without expectation.
The repetition of these two qualities here, despite being stated two verses ago, shows the importance and centrality of God’s mercy in His relation to His servants. It also shows that His revelation of the Quran and His sending of the Prophet in order to guide the people are all acts of mercy, and not anything incumbent on Him to do. These two qualities at the beginning of every chapter – where it says In the name of Allah, the all-beneficent, the all-merciful – refer to a universal sense of mercy; that God’s revelation as a whole (the Quran) is sent as a mercy. Their appearance in the body of specific chapters – such as this verse and verse 41:2 – refers to a special mercy described in that chapter.
The inclusion of everyone and everything – even Satan – under God’s all-encompassing and all-enduring mercy is because everything other than God is a contingent being, and a contingent being is in need of the necessary being to grant it existence. Therefore, everything exists by His perpetual bestowal and effusion of existence upon it, and this is God’s most primary and universal mercy upon all His creatures. Otherwise, if He withdraws His attention and favour from the creatures for even a split second, they all disappear into non-existence.
He maintains the world by a single look;
Every form will collapse shall He overlook.
Even afflictions, misfortunes, and tribulations are acts of God’s mercy, for they involve much potential benefit for the afflicted individual and great wisdom from the point of view of the universe, even though we may be ignorant of these benefits or wisdoms (see 2:216, 3:141, 3:154). The creation of everything is good and beautiful (32:7). Even the punishments of hell are referred to as God’s bounties in chapter 55. This could be because: 1. The threat and fear of hell serve as incentives to avoid sin and injustice. 2. Hell contains and restricts evil (8:37), which prevents it from polluting the paradise and plaguing its inhabitants. 3. Perhaps hell is a recycling process to recycle evil into good. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘The Quran is entirely rebuke, but inside it there is proximity.’
The trial of your friend is so that you may grow;
His knowledge is superior to all that you know.
That is why Imam al-Sajjād (a) thanks God in his supplication at the time of illness and calls to Him in humility: ‘I know not, my God, which of the two states is more befitting for thanking Thee and which of the two times is more worthy for praising Thee: the time of health when Thou makest me delight in the agreeable things of thy provision … or the time of illness through which Thou purify me and bestow upon me favours: lightening of the sins that weigh down my back, purification of the evil deeds into which I have plunged, awareness to seek repentance, and reminder of the past blessings in order to erase my misdeeds!’
The troubles that we find unfitting and out of grace,
In the whole system, they are all in their place.
Your vengeance is sweeter than my soul and life;
Better than kingdom is Your bitterness and strife.
If this is Your fire, then what is Your light!?
If this is a tragedy, then what is delight!?
No one can grasp the depth of Your grace;
Even Your oppression is something to embrace.
INSIGHTS FROM HADITH
- It is narrated that Prophet Jesus (a) said: ‘Raḥmān is in this world, and raḥīm is in the hereafter.’
Notes: 1. This is also found in some supplications, where God is called: ‘O raḥmān of this world and raḥīm of the hereafter.’ 2. These narrations suggest that the quality raḥmān is more applicable and present in this world, while the quality raḥīm manifests more fully in the hereafter. Otherwise, God possesses both qualities in both realms. This is confirmed by many supplications narrated from the Infallibles, where God is called: ‘O raḥmān of this world and the hereafter, and raḥīm of them both.’ This expression shows that both titles refer to God’s mercy in both realms.
- According to some of the Followers (tābiʿīn), al-raḥmān refers to God’s mercy on all of His creatures, while al-raḥīm refers to His mercy on the believers in particular.
Note: Given our exegesis of the two terms under verse 1, al-raḥīm involves an element of continuity and subsistence of mercy. Such continuous and eternal mercy would be applicable to those who are felicitous in the hereafter, which are identified here as the believers.
- Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘Al-raḥmān is a particular name that portrays a universal quality, while al-raḥīm is a universal name that portrays a particular quality.’
Note: Al-raḥmān is a particular name in the sense that it exclusively belongs to God, as opposed to al-raḥīm which is sometimes used for other than Him. Al-raḥmān portrays God’s universal mercy which encompasses all beings, while al-raḥīm conveys His particular mercy which applies to only a subset of all beings, as discussed earlier.
- The Prophet said: ‘God has one hundred shares of mercy, of which He has sent down only one among the jinn, mankind, the animals, and the insects. All mercy and compassion among the beings is by this one share [that He has sent down]. It is by this mercy that wild animals take care of their offspring. God has left the other ninety-nine shares for the Day of Resurrection, by which He shall show mercy to His servants.’
- Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘On the Day of Resurrection, God shall extend His mercy to the point that even Satan will be tempted [to have a share of it].’
REVIEW OF TAFSIR LITERATURE
Al-raḥmān is only used for God, whereas al-raḥīm is also used for others – that is, to describe kind human beings. This suggests that the former refers to a greater and higher level of mercy than the latter. Another point is that the verse has added al-raḥīm to al-raḥmān in order to indicate that God is there not only for major wishes and needs, but also for the smallest and simplest requests. This view is based on the idea that al-raḥmān is absolutely inclusive of al-raḥīm, which cannot be proven based on the Quranic usages of the two names. Nevertheless, the conclusion is correct and supported by hadith.
In a sacred tradition (ḥadīth al-qudsī), God revealed to Prophet Moses (a): ‘O Moses! Ask Me everything that you need; even the fodder of your sheep and the salt of your bread.’ Similarly, Prophet Muhammad (s) said: ‘One should ask his Lord for all of his wishes, even for salt and even for the strap of his sandal when it breaks.’ Some versions of this hadith continue by saying: ‘because it will not be achieved if God does not facilitate it.’ Imam Ali (a) said: ‘So ask Him for opening and success! Take your requests to Him and ask Him for [His] bestowal!’ ‘Thus, take your needs to Him; confide to Him what you hold within yourself; complain to Him about your worries; ask Him to remove your distresses; seek help from Him in your affairs; and request Him to grant you from the treasuries of His mercy what no one else can grant: long life, healthy body, and ample sustenance.’
Since these two names were already mentioned in the first verse, the exegetes have discussed a few reasons for their repetition here. Two suggested explanations are: 1. In verse 1 they were meant as essential qualities of God, meaning attributes of His essence, but here they are meant as His attributes of action. 2. The repetition shows that In the name of Allah, the all-beneficent, the all-merciful is not a part of the chapter; otherwise it would not be repeated.
There is no evidence for either of these interpretations, but there is much evidence from hadith against the latter. Instead, it seems that in verse 1 the two qualities pertained to starting something – in this case the Quran – with God’s name, while here they pertain to praising God as the Lord of all nations. In other words, the two qualities in verse 1 justify why we should start everything with God’s name, and here they justify why God is worthy of praise.
Saying these two names here before talking about the Day of Judgement in the next verse serves to soften the hearts and give hope, so that when the next verse reminds them of their difficult day ahead, they may have some hope that the master of that day is the all-beneficent, the all-merciful.
[1] Alusi, 1/85.
[2] Qaraati, 1/28, with some elaboration.
[3] Manar, 1/52.
[4] Razi, 1/151.
[5] Naẓīrī Nayshābūrī, ghazal 8.
[6] Tasnīm, 19/583-584.
[7] Maani, pp. 231-232, h. 1.
[8] Rūmī, Mathnawī, v. 4, line 107.
[9] Sahifah, supplication 15.
[10] Sabzawārī, Sharḥ al-Manẓūmah, 2/422.
[11] Rūmī, Mathnawī, v. 1, lines 1576-1578.
[12] Tibyan 1/29.
[13] Thawab, p. 75; Thalabi, 1/99; Makarim, p. 329.
[14] Sahifah, supplication 54; Kafi, 2/557, h. 6; Tabarani, 20/155; Uyun, 2/16, h. 37; Mustadrak.S, 1/515; Tahdhib, 3/95, h. 257; Amali.T, p. 511, h. 1118; Makarim, p. 409; Iqbal, 1/229; Uddah, p. 63; Suyuti, 1/9; Kanz, 6/227-229.
[15] Tabari, 1/43; Tibyan 1/29.
[16] Tabrisi, 1/94; Kafami, p. 317; Safi, 1/81.
[17] Ahmad, 2/434; Muslim, 8/96; Tabrisi, 1/94; Kanz, 4/249; Safi, 1/82.
[18] Amali.S, p. 205, h. 2.
[19] Razi, 1/202.
[20] Uddah, p. 134.
[21] Abū Yaʿlā al-Mūṣilī, Musnad Abī Yaʿlā, 8/44-45, h. 4560; Haythami, 10/150; Suyūṭī, al-Jāmiʿ al-Ṣaghīr, 2/53, h. 4708; Kanz, 2/65-66.
[22] Nahj, sermon 195.
[23] Nahj, letter 31.
[24] Bursawi, 1/13-14.
[25] Bursawi, 1/14, with some elaboration.
[26] Rahmah, 1/29.