Aytul Kursi - Masjid Hamza

February 16, 2014
Praise be to Allah, we thank Him, seek His Help and His Forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah
from the evils of ourselves and that of our bad deeds. He whom Allah guides, is truly guided,
and he who Allah leaves to stray, none can guide him. I bear witness that there is no god but
Allah, who has no partner and I bear witness that our Prophet Muhammad is His slave and
Messenger.
February 16, 2014
"{In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Allah! There is no God but He,
the Living, the Self-subsisting, the Eternal. No slumber can seize Him, nor sleep.
All things in heaven and earth are His. Who could intercede in His presence without His
permission? He knows what appears in front of and behind His creatures. Nor can they
encompass any knowledge of Him except what he wills. His throne extends over the heavens and
the earth, and He feels no fatigue in guarding and preserving them, for He is the Highest and
Most Exalted." Quran 2:255
1. The Exalted status of the verse - Ahmad with the wording in Muslim, Abu Dawud, Ibn Durays, al-Hakim
and al-Harawi have reported regarding the excellence [of Ayat al-Kursi] from Ubay Ibn Ka`b that the
Prophet ‫ و س لم ع ل يه هللا ص لى‬was asked about which verse of the Holy Qur'an was the most exalted and
he ‫ و س لم ع ل يه هللا ص لى‬replied: "Ayat al-Kursi "Allah. There is no deity except Allah the Living and
Everlasting..." By Him in whose Hand is my soul; [this verse] has a tongue and two lips with which it
sanctifies the King at the foot of the Throne."[1]
‫أخرج أحمد واللفظ له ومسلم وأبو داود وابن‬
‫الضريس والحاكم والهروي في فضائله عن‬
‫ أن النبي صلى هللا عليه وسلم سأله‬:‫أبي كعب‬
‫ آية الكرسي‬:‫أي آية في كتاب هللا أعظم؟ قال‬
‫{ هللا ال إله إال هو الحي القيوم } قال ليهنك‬
‫ والذي نفسي بيده إن لها‬،‫العلم أبا المنذر‬
‫لسانا ً وشفتين تقدس الملك عند ساق‬
…‫العرش‬
‫وأخرج البخاري في تاريخه والطبراني وأبو‬
‫نعيم في المعرفة بسند رجاله ثقات عن ابن‬
‫أن النبي صلى هللا عليه‬: ‫األسقع البكري‬
‫ فسأله‬،‫وسلم جاءهم في صفة المهاجرين‬
{ ‫إنسان أي آية في القرآن أعظم؟ فقال النبي‬
‫هللا ال إله إال هو الحي القيوم ال تأخذه سنة‬
.‫وال نوم } حتى انقضت اآلية‬
In another version: "Bukhari narrates in his Ta'rikh, al-Tabarani as well as Abu Nu`aym in al-Ma`rifa with
his chain of transmission (isnad) who are all upright from Ibn al-Asqa` al-Bakri that the Prophet ‫هللا ص لى‬
‫ و س لم ع ل يه‬was asked which verse of the Qur'an was the most exalted and he replied: {Allah! There is no
God but He the Living, the Self-subsisting, the Eternal. No slumber can seize nor can sleep...} until he
finished the verse."[2]
In another Hadith: Bukhari Book 6 Volume 61 Hadith 530 - Narrated Abu
Mas'ud:
February 16, 2014
The Prophet said, "If somebody recited the last two Verses of Surat Al-Baqara at night, that will be
sufficient for him." Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah 's Prophet ‫ ص لى هللا ع ل يه و س لم‬ordered me to guard the
Zakat revenue of Ramadan. Then somebody came to me and started stealing of the foodstuff. I caught
him and said, "I will take you to Allah's Apostle!" Then Abu Huraira described the whole narration and
said:) That person said (to me), "(Please don't take me to Allah's Apostle and I will tell you a few words
by which Allah will benefit you.) When you go to your bed, recite Ayat-al-Kursi, (2.255) for then there will
be a guard from Allah who will protect you all night long, and Satan will not be able to come near you till
dawn." (When the Prophet ‫ ص لى هللا ع ل يه و س لم‬heard the story) he said (to me), "He (who came to you at
night) told you the truth although he is a liar; and it was Satan." [A]
2. Its protective power - al-Bayhaqi narrates in his Shu`ab al-Ima[3] from Anas who said: The Messenger
of Allah ‫ و س لم ع ل يه هللا ص لى‬said: "Whoever recites the Ayat al-Kursi after every obligatory salah, he will
be protected until the next salah and none but the Prophets, Siddiq or martyrs were firm on it..."[4]
Ibn al-Najjar narrates in his Ta'rikh Baghdad from Ibn `Abbas who said: The Messenger of Allah ‫هللا ص لى‬
‫ و س لم ع ل يه‬said: "Whoever recites Ayat al-Kursi after every obligatory salah, Allah will grant him the heart
of those who are thankful, the deeds of the siddiqun, the rewards of the Prophets and will extend his right
hand with Mercy and will not prevent him from entering Paradise until he dies whereupon he will be made
to enter it."[5]
3. The Exalted name of God is contained within it - Ibn Abi 'l-Dunya in his al-Du`a', al-Tabarani, Ibn
Mardawayh, al-Harawi in his Fada'il as well as al-Bayhaqi in [Kitab] al-Asma` wa'l-Sifat all report from
Abu Umama that the Prophet ‫ و س لم ع ل يه هللا ص لى‬said:
"The Exalted Name of Allah is in three chapters of the Qur'an which if one calls Him by it He responds. alBaqara, Ali `Imran and Ta-Ha." Abu Umama said: "I looked for them and found that in al-Baqara: 255
there was the Ayat al-Kursi "Allah. There is no deity except Allah the Living and Everlasting"; in Al `Imran:2
there was "Allah. There is no deity except Allah the Living and Everlasting" and in Ta-Ha:111 "And [all]
faces shall be humbled before (Allah), the Ever Living..."[6]
Imam al-Qurtubi mentioned in his tafsir the following in his tafsir of that when Ayat al-Kursi was
revealed:
"From Muhammad al-Hanafiyya who narrates that: when Ayat al-Kursi was revealed, every idol and
every king in the world fell in prostration and the crowns of kings fell off their heads. Devils fled (harabat),
colliding in one another in confusion until they came to their [chief] Iblis and they told him of this [event]
and he sent them to find out what had happened so when they came to Medina they were told that Ayat
al-Kursi had been revealed."[7]
There are also many relevant practical implications for any person serious about the deen, da`wa and
developing themselves to become better committed believers. The verse has 16 occurrences of
ascriptions to Allah ‫وت عال ى س بحان ه‬, 7 being of a direct divine name or nominal term:
Allah
‫هللا‬
The Greatest
Name
Ilah
‫له‬
The Most
High
Huwa
Al-Hayy
‫لح‬
The Ever Living
One
Al-Qayyum
Al-`Ali
‫ل ق ي م‬
‫لعلى‬
The Self-Existing
The Highest
Al-`Azim
‫لع يم‬
The Magnificent
Basic Commentary - "Allah" / [‫] هللا‬: Allah's exalted name (ism jalala) that he has reserved for
himself and is not derived from any base.[8]
"There is no deity but He The Eternal and Everlasting"
February 16, 2014
‫ال إل ه إال هو‬
Here there is a negation (la nafiyat al-jins) i.e. Allah's emphatic and total negation of anything
resembling a deity that can be compared to Him. Nothing is comparable to him.[9] "The second
point: Some say ‘al-ilah' means ‘the one worshipped' (al-ma'bud) but this is incorrect from two
aspects. The first aspect is that The Most High was an ilah from all eternity but was not
someone who was a ma`bud (‘a being worshipped' [S. meaning he did not have the
property of ‘being worshipped']). The second aspect is that the Most high has affirmed and
mentioned other beings who are worshipped aside from himself as in "you and what you all
worship besides Allah." [al-Anbiya':98]. Rather, an Ilah is a being that when it does something, is
worthy of total religious worship...]."[10]
Thus, a deity must be a kind of being that is worthy of devotion, total submission and
obedience. Allah ‫ وت عال ى س بحان ه‬is a perfect being and the nature and attributes that he has
require rationally that he be worshipped. Such a being cannot be deficient or lacking in any
sense. It must also be free from limitations.
‫ال حي ال ق يوم‬
"The Living and Everlasting"
Allah ‫ وت عال ى س بحان ه‬is living and real - not an abstract inert and disinterested Creator who has
set up the world on clockwork and let it run. No. He intervenes in history and acts for the
believers. He can change plans, stop who he wants to and realize whatever he wishes in his
eternal providential plan.
Allah is al-qayyum (‘Everlasting'). The word has connotations of Allah being self-subsistent, Selfexisting as well as that Being which holds everything in existence:
"{al-Qayyum} existing by governing the creation or sustaining every person and rewarding with
His knowledge from what each has earned. It can also mean holding all things in being;
knowledge of all matters..."[11]
Allah ‫ وت عال ى س بحان ه‬being al'qayyum affirms the attribute of eternality, everlastingness, selfsubsistence, Divine aseity doctrine, etc.
‫ال‬
"Slumber does not seize him nor does fatigue"
February 16, 2014
‫ال وم‬
Allah ‫ وت عال ى س بحان ه‬is not overcome with any difficulty or deficiencies. He also faces no
hindrance in doing whatever He wishes. He can sustain anything in being without any difficulty.
This affirms His attribute of Eternal and everlastingness and infinite independent nature.
‫له‬
‫ي‬
‫وا‬
‫ل‬
‫ي‬
"All things in heaven and earth belong to Him"
"As for the Most High saying {everything in the Heavens and the earth belongs to Him...} it is
referring to the creation and dominion and what is implied in this is what we mentioned earlier
namely that if a necessarily existent being can only be one, then anything other than it possibly
existent being and anything that is merely possible is brought into being and anything that is
brought into being is originated and so anything else other than [the necessary being] is
originated and contingent.."[12]
The logic is that contingently existing entities (dependent objects) do not have the power
intrinsically to effect change or produce anything. They depend for their existence on
something else. Allah owns the universe. He governs the Universe. He controls the universe. He
is the sovereign Lord and King.
‫ه إال‬
‫ي‬
‫ال حي و‬
‫ي‬
"He knows what appears in front of and behind [all] of His creatures.
Nor can they encompass any knowledge of Him except of what he wills"
Allah knows everything: the past, future and present (as well as ‘counterfactuals' [what
someone would have done but did not actually do it]). This affirms the Divine Omniscience.
‫ا‬
‫وا‬
‫يه ال‬
"And His Throne extends over the heavens and the earth"
There is much written about the word ‘kursi' and what it means with divided opinion. Imam alMawardi succinctly summarizes the various opinions:
(1) it is Allah's knowledge which was the view of Ibn `Abbas;
(2) it is Allah's power;
(3) Allah's dominion and
(4) Allah's planned decree.
February 16, 2014
"Regarding the Kursi, there are two opinions: the first: it is one of Allah's attributes and the
second: that it is attributes pertaining to something created [by Allah]. Those who hold the first
opinion have four interpretations:
If it is said [the Kursi] is attributes pertaining to something created [by Allah] then it has three
interpretations:
(1) it is the Throne itself which was the view of al-Hasan;
(2) it is a footstool and not the throne and
(3) it is a chair below the throne which is above the water..."[13]
Imam al-Razi's preference or approval for the opinion of al-Qaffal is instructive here:
"[...] these words are meant to describe Allah's greatness and exaltation through images. This
means that Allah addressed His creatures in ways familiar to them through their own kings in
order that He might make known His essence and attributes to them. He therefore made the
Ka`ba a house for Himself and people perform tawaf around it as they do the houses of their
kings. It is also mentioned that the Black Stone is the right hand of Allah on this earth thus He
made it an object of reverent kissing as men would kiss the hands of their kings [...] hence by
analogy He declared a throne for Himself... "[14]
Imam al-Mawardi explains the different nuances of the term ‘al-`aliy' (Most High):
"the first opinion is that the word ‘al-`aaliy' (‘The High') would be referring to something that
resides in an exalted place whereas the word ‘al-`aliy' (‘The Highest') is something that is
absolutely entitled to the loftiest and exalted place and so may not have anything that shares
with it in rank so on this view it would be permitted to describe Allah as ‘The Highest' but not
‘The High' whereas on the first view one may describe Allah with both terms..."[15]
Implications -
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The magnificence and special status of this verse makes the chapter it occurs in special
too because the topic is about Allah's unity as well as Allah's nature and attributes. This
makes the doctrine lofty and extremely important.
We should be on full guard in preserving and maintaining Allah's transcendence (tanzih)
and sovereignty. In other words, we should be pondering about tawhid and its
implications. Do we for example do anything that might compromise Allah's sovereignty
or are we engaging in anything that might border on or infringe upon His right to be
Legislator or Lawgiver.
Pondering over Ayat al-Kursi should make us feel humbled before the Majesty and Glory
of Allah ‫وت عال ى س بحان ه‬. It should remind us of the sheer insignificant standing we have
in comparison to Him and how this alerts us to the unjustified character of our
haughtiness, arrogance and pride in making ourselves the standard in all things whereas
only He has the right to set standards.
February 16, 2014
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Allah ‫ وت عال ى س بحان ه‬is the sovereign King. The Universe is His ranch. He owns the
Universe. He controls the forces/causes in this world, He can contravene the laws of
nature, He decides what happens or not. This should make us understand that our term
has been fixed by Allah and our rizq (sustenance) is fixed (we will get it). We submit to
Him on this understanding that when we are enjoined to do a task like carry this call of
re-establishing Islam as a way of life through the
February 16, 2014
Allah knowing everything, i.e. being Omniscient means He sees and knows everything we do.
We cannot hide from Allah so the only thing to do is to flee to Allah. We must also submit to
Him and his tadbir (providential organization of the world and its events). We must rely on Him
totally and listen to His commands without question Allah's foretelling and promises that will
come to pass.

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


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Holy prophet (SAWW) said: whoever recites the first 4 ayaats of Surah Baqarah, then Ayatul Kursi
and then the last 3 ayaats of Surah e Baqarah, will not be inflicted with any kind of difficulty in his
wealth or himself, Satan will not come near him and he will not forget the Qur'an.
Holy Prophet (SAWW) said: Qur'an is a great word, and Surah Baqarah is the leader of the Qur'an
and Ayatul Kursi is the leader of Surah Baqarah. In Ayatul Kursi there are 50 words and for each
word there are 50 blessings and good in it.
One who recites Ayatul Kursi every morning will be in the protection, safety of Allah until the
night.
If one ties this to ones wealth or children, they will be safe from Satan
Our Holy Prophet (SAW) has said: These things increase ones memory: sweets, meat of an animal
near the neck, Adas (Lentils), cold bread and recitation of Ayatul Kursi.
For those of our dear ones who have passed away, recitation of Ayatul Kursi and giving it as
Hadiya to them, gives them light (noor) in the grave. Frequent recitation makes one's own death
easy.
When leaving home, if one recites it once, the Almighty has one group of Angels to come and
protect you. If recited twice, 2 groups of Angels are assigned to do this. If recited 3 times Allah
tells the Angels not to worry as the Almighty himself takes care of him.
The Holy Prophet has said: If one recites Ayatul Kursi before going to sleep, Allah will send an
Angel to come and look after you and protect
When one is alone in the house, recitation of Ayatul Kursi and asking Allah for help will make you
remain calm and you will not fear.
The Holy Prophet has said: When leaving home, if one recites Ayatul Kursi, then Allah will send
70,000 Angels to do Istighfaar for him until he returns home, and upon his return Poverty will be
removed from him.
If one recites this after performing Wudhoo, the 5th Imam Hazrat Imam Muhammad Baqir (AS)
has said: Allah will give him a reward of 40 years of Ibadaat, his position will be raised in the
Heavens 40 times (levels) and will marry him to 40 Horains.
One who recites it after every prayer, their Salaat will be accepted, they will remain in the safety
of the Almighty and He will protect them.
Allah told Prophet Musa (AS): If one recites it after every Salaat, the Almighty will make his heart a
thankful one (Shakireen), will give him a reward of the prophets, and his deeds will be like those
of the truthful (Siddiqeen).
To increase light or vision (noor) in the eyes, recite Surae Alhamd once, then Ayatul Kursi and
then once the following dua:- "U-eedhu nora basaree binuril lahi alladhi la yutfaa", "I seek refuge
for the light of my eyes by the light of Allah(SWT), which does not become extinguished".
February 16, 2014
More benefits of reciting the Ayat Al-Kursi [16]
references
[1] See Muslim, Sahih, 1:556 (#810); al-Hakim, al-Mustadrak ala'l-Sahihayn, 1:561; Abu Dawud,
Sunan, 2:27 (#1460) and Ahmad in his Musnad, 5/141 (#21315). See also al-Suyuti, al-Durr alManthur, 2:6.
[2] al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur, 2:6.
[3] al-Bayhaqi, Shu`ab al-Iman, 2:458 (#2395-6).
[4] al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur, 2:6; al-Tabarani, al-Mu`jam al-Kabir, 3:38 (#2732) and alHaythami, Majma` al-Zawa'id, 2:148.
[5] al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur, 2:6. Cf. al-Nasa'i, al-Sunan al-Kubra, 6:30 (#9928) and alTabarani, al-Mu`jam al-Awsat, 8:93 (#8068).
[6] al-Suyuti, al-Durr al-Manthur, 2:9.
[7] See al-Jami` li-Ahkam al-Qur'an, 2:268.
[8] al-Zajjaj, Ishtiqaq Asma' Allah, pp.26-42.
[9] See al-Darwish, I`rab al-Qur'an and Karim wa Bayanuhu, 1:283.
[10] al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 7:2-14.
[11] al-`Izz ibn `Abd al-Salam, Tafsir al-Qur'an, s.v. 2:255.
[12] al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 7:11.
[13] al-Mawardi, al-Nukat wa'l-`Uyun, 1:270-271.
[14] al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 7:12.
[16] Replications from different websites
[17] Quranic Explorer ( Hadith )
February 16, 2014
[15] al-Mawardi, al-Nukat wa'l-`Uyun, 1:271.