The benefits of the saying of Allah the Exalted: “Indeed, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful”
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It is derived from this noble verse the affirmation of two of the names of Allah, namely al-Ghafur (the Oft-Forgiving) and al-Rahim (the Most Merciful), as well as the two attributes they encompass, namely forgiveness and mercy, and the rulings and effects related to them, which are that He forgives and shows mercy. These two noble names, al-Ghafur and al-Rahim, are among the transitive names, and faith in them is not complete except through three things. Is that correct?
The student: ...that you believe that it is a name of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He)
The Shaykh : Yes
The student: and that you believe in the attribute it encompasses, and that you believe in the ruling it encompasses, or if you wish, the effect?
The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct. The names of Allah the Exalted are of two types: transitive and intransitive. For the transitive type, your faith in it is not complete except through three things: that you believe it is a name of Allah, that you believe in the attribute it encompasses, and thirdly, that you believe in the ruling and effect it encompasses. For al-Ghafur, you believe that al-Ghafur is a name of Allah, that He the Exalted possesses forgiveness, and thirdly, that He forgives. The same applies to al-Rahim. Yes, very good.
The second type: if it is intransitive, then faith in it is not complete except through two things: believing that it is a name of Allah, and believing in the attribute it encompasses, such as al-Ali (the Most High), al-Azim (the Magnificent), al-Karim (the Most Generous), and the like. We may sometimes say that al-Karim belongs to the first type.
The student: ...that you believe that it is a name of Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He)
The Shaykh : Yes
The student: and that you believe in the attribute it encompasses, and that you believe in the ruling it encompasses, or if you wish, the effect?
The Shaykh : Yes, that is correct. The names of Allah the Exalted are of two types: transitive and intransitive. For the transitive type, your faith in it is not complete except through three things: that you believe it is a name of Allah, that you believe in the attribute it encompasses, and thirdly, that you believe in the ruling and effect it encompasses. For al-Ghafur, you believe that al-Ghafur is a name of Allah, that He the Exalted possesses forgiveness, and thirdly, that He forgives. The same applies to al-Rahim. Yes, very good.
The second type: if it is intransitive, then faith in it is not complete except through two things: believing that it is a name of Allah, and believing in the attribute it encompasses, such as al-Ali (the Most High), al-Azim (the Magnificent), al-Karim (the Most Generous), and the like. We may sometimes say that al-Karim belongs to the first type.