Al-Wasi'

In the verse above we are told that wherever we turn, Allah (swt) is there. He is vast and cannot be contained in space. Al-Ghazali stated that “Al-Waasi` —the Vast—derives from expansiveness, and expansiveness is sometimes linked to knowledge, when it extends to and comprehends a multitude of objects; and at other times it is linked to charity and widespread blessings, extending as far as possible to whatever they descend upon”.

So what does this mean for you and me?

It means there is room for us. There is room for me and you. There is room for us, with all of our struggles and our mistakes and our faults: Allah is vast. No matter how broken we are. No matter where we have been. No matter how many times we have messed up. There is room for everyone. Allah (swt) says in the Qur’an:

“My punishment – I afflict with it whom I will, but My mercy encompasses (wasi`at) all things.” (Qur’an, 7:156)

The word used here for ‘encompasses’ is from the same root of Allah’s Name al-Waasi`. His mercy encompasses everything. Every. single. thing. Allah (swt) also says: “Indeed, your Lord is vast (waasi’) in forgiveness.” (Qur’an, 53:32)

Do you feel so as though your sins are too heavy? Allah’s forgiveness is also all-encompassing. The Prophet ﷺ (peace be upon him) said: “Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, says, ‘O son of Adam, as long as you call on Me, I shall forgive you of what you have done, and think nothing of it. O son of Adam, even if your sins were to reach up to the clouds in the sky, and then you were to ask for My forgiveness, I would forgive you and think nothing of it. O son of Adam, even if you were to come to Me with sins nearly as great as the earth, and then you were to meet Me after death, not worshiping anything besides Me, I would bring you forgiveness nearly as great as the earth.’” [Tirmidhi]

Allah (swt) tells us in Surat at-Tawba:

“And [He also forgave] the three who were left behind [and regretted their error] to the point that the earth closed in on them in spite of its vastness and their souls confined them and they were certain that there is no refuge from Allah except in Him. Then He turned to them so they could repent. Indeed, Allah is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful.” (Qur’an, 9:118)

The description in this verse is so apt. It speaks about the three companions who abandoned the Muslims in their time of need, how they regretted it and how they felt like the earth was closing in on them, and that their souls were confined. But what happened? There is no refuge from God except to Him. And Allah (swt) accepted them. That constriction that they felt was released. They could breathe. Allah’s vastness allows you to breathe.

Allah (swt) is all-encompassing when you ask Him. Sheikh Akram Nadwi once said (paraphrased): “If you were to ask me for a penny, how hard would it be for me to give it you? It would be like giving nothing. When you ask Allah (swt), what you are asking of Him is even less to Him than that one penny is to me.” So do not confine Allah to what you think He can give. Remember that He is limitless.

And there is another meaning here. Allah’s religion is vast. We all have things that are obligatory upon us—such prayer, fasting and good character—but beyond that, we have all been given different talents and passions. We are told of so many different ways to come to Allah (swt): smiling,1 helping others,2 being an honest business person,3 even simply having good intentions.4 This religion is for you. You can contribute in your own way.

Once, Imam Malik was rebuked in a letter for wearing nice clothes. He was told that he should spend his time fasting during the day and praying during the night. Aside from the fact that wearing nice clothes does not preclude one from extra praying and fasting, Imam Malik responded in the most beautiful way. He wrote back to the person that Allah (swt) has apportioned acts of worship like He apportioned sustenance. And Allah may have put a deep love of voluntary fasting and prayers in the heart of the author of the letter, but Allah (swt) had also put love in Imam Malik’s heart for learning and teaching. And in all is good.

So connect to Allah (swt) with the obligatory, and then use what inspires you from the permissible to go deeper into that love. Just remember that He is vast, and so is His religion. He will accept you. In His mercy, there is enough space for you, with all of your mistakes. There is enough space for your talent. We all have things that are required of us, such as prayer. But Allah is all-encompassing and boundless, He accepts our own journey to Him. You do not have to be the scholar, but you can if you want. You can be the honored cleaner of the mosque. You can be the one in your family that always brings people together. You can be the person known for his or her integrity. You can be like Uways al-Qarni, who was “unknown to the people on earth, but well-known to those in the heavens” because of his sincerity. Those are all beautiful paths to God.

So what is your way to Allah (swt)? Breathe. You are with Al-Waasi`. And His Vastness will embrace you.

1. “Your smile for your brother is charity.” Tirmidhi 2. “Allah will aid a servant [of His] so long as the servant aids his brother.” Muslim 3. “May Allah’s mercy be on him who is lenient in his buying, selling, and in demanding back his money.” Bukhari 4. “A person to whom Allah grants knowledge but He does not grant him wealth, but he is sincere in his intention and says: If I had wealth, I would do the same as So and so does. He will be rewarded according to his intention and their reward will be the same.” Ahmad

When The Delivery Is Late: Knower Of The Unseen And The Witnessed

A s human beings, we usually act upon what we know. For the things that we do not know, we try to make educated guesses (or not). But there is also a realm that we do not know at all—the realm of al-ghayb (the unseen).

Previously, we learn about Allah’s Names al-‘Aleem (the All-Knowing) and al-Hakeem (the Most Wise). We learned that Allah knows every single thing—what is, what was and what will be; what could have been and what could be—and acts with the Ultimate Wisdom. Today, it is about Allah’s Attributes of “`aalim al-ghayb wal-shahaadah“—the Knower of the Unseen and the Witnessed. Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala (exalted is He) tells us:

“He is Allah, other than whom there is no deity, Knower of the unseen and the witnessed. He is the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.” (Qur’an, 59:22)

Sheikh Ratib an-Nabulsi teaches us that everything that falls under our senses is the realm of the witnessed; those things that we can touch, hear, see, taste and smell. Other things that fall within this realm are those things whose effects we witness: for example, we cannot see electricity. But when we switch on the lights, we see the effects of that electricity.

As for the world of the unseen, Sheikh Ratib an-Nabulsi says that it is of two types. The first type is only known by Allah (swt). That which is only known by Allah is hidden from us, or He can choose to reveal parts of it; for example, Allah tells us there are Angels. They are in the unseen realm, but we know of their existence because Allah told us. The second type is something that moves from the unseen realm to that of the witnessed. Allah (swt) tells us:

“Allah knows what every female carries and what the wombs lose [prematurely] or exceed. And everything with Him is by due measure. [He is] Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, the Grand, the Ex-alted.” (Qur’an, 13:8-9)

At the beginning of pregnancy, we do not know what a woman carries in her womb. It is in the unseen. But it moves from the unseen world to that of the witnessed. Allah (swt) then tells us:

“It is the same [to Him] concerning you whether one conceals [his] speech or one publicizes it and whether one is hidden by night or conspicuous [among others] by day.” (Qur’an, 13:10)

Imam Suhaib once said, “I got 99 problems, and Allah has Ninety-Nine Names to help me with them”. I truly felt the impact of Allah being the Knower of the Unseen a few weeks ago, when I came home really tired. I was not in the mood to cook, so I decided to order food online.

I had ordered on that website before. Once you pay, a circle appears with 6 boxes that get ticked off as they get done. The order roughly was: “processing payment”, “transferring to restaurant”, “waiting for restaurant to accept order”, “preparing food”, “food on its way”, “delivered!”

WHEN THE DELIVERY IS LATE

After the first two boxes were ticked, it stopped at “waiting for restaurant to accept order”, and it stayed there for a while. This part sometimes takes some time, and as it was Saturday night, I was kind of expecting it. Anyway, I waited and waited, but it did not get ticked off. I started to do things in the meanwhile. I came back and it was still in the same place. Grr. Why did I order food on a Saturday night? Should I just cancel the order?

Suddenly my doorbell rang. When I answered, it was the delivery guy. It actually only took 30 minutes from when I placed the order. The restaurant people had just forgotten to update that page.

This might seem like such a silly example, but I truly felt that Allah is al-Lateef (the Subtle and Kind) and ‘Aalim al-Ghayb wal-Shahaadah.

That 30-minute experience is like a microcosm of life. We focus on the frustrating thing in front of us thinking that because we cannot see it move or change, nothing is happening. So we react out of our impatience, and feel justified in our anger. But in the unseen world, and in places we have no knowledge of, things are happening.

So just because things are moving slow in front of you—or maybe not moving at all—despite your efforts, remember that whatever Allah (swt) has written will pass. If something is written for you, no one can stop it. And if it is not, it will never befall you. You might want to give up, you might want to leave, but remember just because you cannot see the change in front of you, it does not mean that things are not moving forward. And maybe, if you are patient enough, the delivery guy will surprise you by coming at an unexpected time.

Indeed, “That is the Knower of the unseen and the witnessed, the Exalted in Might, the Merciful,” (Qur’an, 32:6).