al-Thamar al-Mujtana Mukhtasar Sharh Asma Allah al-Husna fi Daw al-Kitab wa al-Sunna
- Author died
- 1440 AH
- Editions
- Safir Press
al-Thamar al-Mujtana Mukhtasar Sharh Asma Allah al-Husna fi Daw al-Kitab wa al-Sunna (The Plucked Fruit: An Abridgment of the Explanation of Allah's Most Beautiful Names in Light of the Quran and Sunnah) is a concise treatise on Islamic theology by Saeed bin Wahf al-Qahtani (d. 1440 AH / 2018 CE) explaining the divine names of God based on scriptural evidence.
Composition and Purpose
The book is an abridgment of al-Qahtani's larger original work, Sharh Asma Allah al-Husna fi Daw al-Kitab wa al-Sunna. The author prepared the abridged version at the request of individuals who desired a condensed text accessible to the general public that could also be read aloud to congregants in mosques following the daily prayers. He completed the composition on Wednesday, 12 Rabiʿ al-Awwal 1427 AH (April 2006).
Content and Method
In the introduction, al-Qahtani outlines theological principles concerning the names of God, asserting that they are not limited to a finite number because Allah has reserved knowledge of some names exclusively to Himself in the unseen realm. Based on the supplication أسألك بكل اسم هو لك، سمّيت به نفسك، أو علَّمته أحدًا من خلقك، أو أنزلته في كتابك، أو استأثرت به في علم الغيب عندك ("I ask You by every name that belongs to You, which You named Yourself with, or revealed in Your Book, or taught to any of Your creation, or preserved in the knowledge of the unseen with You"), he divides the divine names into three categories: those revealed in scripture, those taught to certain creatures without being sent down in scripture, and those kept hidden in the unseen. He further clarifies that the hadith mentioning the ninety-nine names highlights a specific virtue—that whoever enumerates and acts upon them will enter Paradise—without negating the existence of additional divine names.
The body of the work systematically presents the individual names of God, omitting extensive digressions found in the unabridged edition. For each name, al-Qahtani cites relevant Quranic verses and authentic prophetic narrations, defining the linguistic and theological implications of the name and categorizing its aspects, such as delineating the levels of divine transcendence (ʿuluww) under al-ʿAli, al-Aʿla, and al-Mutaʿal, or the types of divine hearing under al-Samiʿ.
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