✦ Steps for Getting Closer to Ar-Rahman: 3. Get to know Allah through His 99 Beautiful Names ✦

How can you love Allah (glorified and exalted be He) and want to get closer to Him if you don’t know Him that well?

We fall in love with people as we get to know them more and realize that they have a lot of beautiful qualities and characteristics. Of course Allah (glorified and exalted be He) is above any analogy, but you need know Him more.

Wanting to get closer alone won’t do you any good without falling in love with your Creator. Start with the name of Al-Wadud, the Ever-Loving. Allah’s (glorified and exalted be He) love for you is unconditional. He does not need or want anything from you in return. He loves you so He keeps giving you even if you disobey Him. Ask Allah (glorified and exalted be He) with His 99 Names.

If you want to get closer to Him, pray with His name Al-Qareeb (The Close One) and ask Him to bring you closer to Him. And with Al-Wadud ask Him to love you more and make you love Him more. It’s as simple as that. We tend to overthink stuff and forget that if we seek refuge in Allah (glorified and exalted be He), He will make everything easier on us.

Abu Huraira (RadiyAllaahu 'Anhu) narrates that the Prophet [SallAllaahu 'Alayhi Wa Sallam] said, “If Allah loves a person, He calls Gabriel saying, ‘Allah loves so and-so; O Gabriel! Love him.’ Gabriel would love him and make an announcement amongst the inhabitants of the Heaven. ‘Allah loves so-and-so, therefore you should love him also,’ and so all the inhabitants of the Heaven would love him, and then he is granted the pleasure of the people on the earth.” [Sahih Al-Bukhari: Hadith Qudsi #24]