A good name imparts a good feeling. It is well received by people. When a name suits a particular occasion, it makes for optimism and expectation of success. Al-Tirmithi relates that the Prophet felt optimistic if he heard someone calling another whose name may be Najeeh, or Rashid. The first name means successful, while the second means rightly guided. If he wanted to assign a job to someone and found out that his name has a good meaning, the Prophet would be seen to feel pleased. If the man’s name indicated the opposite, displeasure would be clearly seen in the Prophet’s face.
A Hadith related by Al-Bukhari in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad mentions that the Prophet asked for a volunteer to drive certain camels to a particular place. One man offered to do that. The Prophet asked what was his name, and when he mentioned it, the Prophet told him to sit down. The same happened with another man who offered himself. A third volunteer said that his name was Najiyah. The Prophet said: “You are the man for this task. Drive the camels.”
To start with we should mention that the name Najiyah has connotations of fast traveling and going through a difficult mission safely. His name made him the right choice as it indicated successful completion of the task in hand. Apparently this was at the time when the Prophet and his companions were prevented by the Quraysh from entering Makkah for their first Umrah. They were in the state of consecration, and they had driven with them most of their animals which they intended to sacrifice at the end of their religious duty. Because they were physically prevented from getting into Makkah for their Umrah, they could not release themselves from the state of consecration until after they had slaughtered their sacrificial animals. As the Prophet and his companions were so close to Makkah, he wanted the sacrifice to be offered within the Haram area. Hence, his request for someone to drive them there.
Another version of this Hadith quotes Najiyah ibn Jundub as saying: “I went to the Prophet when he was prevented from visiting Makkah and said: ‘Messenger of God, send me with the sacrificial animals to slaughter inside the Haram area.” He asked: ‘How will you do it?’ I said: ‘I will take a route through difficult valleys which they (i.e. the Makkans) cannot traverse.’ So he gave me the sacrificial animals and I slaughtered them in the Haram.”
Another Hadith quotes the Prophet as saying: “Call your (children) by the names of the prophets. The names God loves best are Abdullah and Abd Al-Rahman. The most truthful names are Harith and Hammam, and the worst are Harb and Murrah.” (Related by Al-Bukhari in Al-Adab Al-Mufrad, Al-Nassaie, and Abu Dawood).
Here the Prophet gives us clear guidance on names, indicating which are liked by God and which are not so sound. First of all he encourages Muslims to call their children after earlier prophets. This is because the prophets were the best human beings. Anyone called after them derives honor from the fact. Hence, Muslims have always used these blessed names. Thus, names like Ibraheem, Ismaeel, Yussuf, Yunus, Moosa, etc. are used by Muslims, generation after generation.
The Prophet then mentions that God loves best the names of Abdullah and Abd Al-Rahman. As mentioned last week, Abd means servant or slave. When it precedes a name or an attribute of God, the name then acknowledges such servitude by the bearer to God. But even then the best of God’s names and attributes to attach to it are Allah and Al-Rahman. The first is God’s own name which refers to none other than God. Al-Rahman attributes all mercy to God. Again this is a name that may not be used, on its own, by anyone. Raheem, which also means merciful, may be used by us independently, but Rahman indicates absolute mercy, which is preserved to God alone. Hence, God loves these two names best.
Then the Prophet tells us which names are most truthful. These are Harith and Hammam. “Harith” means a person who tills the earth for planting. We all strive in this life, and our striving is preparation for what we get in the life to come. As such we are in the same position as one who prepares his land and puts his seeds, hoping for a good harvest. We work in this life as much as we can, hoping that we come in the end with good results to ensure our happiness in the life to come. Hammam, the other truthful name, means a person who intends to do something or embarks on doing it. Needless to say, we all do that all the time. Next the Prophet mentions the worst names, Harb, which means “war”, and Murrah, which means “bitter.” These were names used by the Arabs at the time. Why would anyone call his son with either name may be beyond our comprehension, but they did. The Prophet expresses here his disapproval of such names.
There are several Hadiths which speak about names and how they are received. We will refer to some of these next week, God willing. But we need to mention today a Hadith reported by Jabir, a companion of the Prophet who belonged to the Ansar. He says: “One of us had a son born to him, and he called him Al-Qassim. We said to him, “We will not call you Abu Al-Qassim, and no position of honor you may have (on this account).” He mentioned this to the Prophet who told him: “Call your son Abd Al-Rahman.” (Related by Al-Bukhari)
It should be explained that the Prophet was called Abu Al-Qassim, because his first son was named Al-Qassim. Although all three of the Prophet’s sons died in infancy, he was known by that title. When this companion of his named his son Al-Qassim, he would naturally be called as Abu al-Qassim, but then he would share with the Prophet a distinctive name. The Prophet’s companions felt that they could not allow that. They made it clear to him that he could not be gaining easy honor in this way. Hence, his complaint to the Prophet. The Prophet chose for the name God loves best, Abd Al-Rahman to give to his son.
