Abu Dawud

Hadith Commentary: Benefits and Issues: From this hadith, it is understood that the most beloved name to Allah is that in which there is an expression and acknowledgment of His servitude and worship by the servant. And the more a person advances in servitude (‘ubudiyyah), the higher his rank and status becomes.

Explanation:
1:
That is:
The names in which the word "Abd" (servant) is attached to the names of Allah are more beloved to Allah.

Benefits and Issues

Question: In Surah An-Nur it is stated: «وَأَنْكِحُوا الْأَيَامَى مِنْكُمْ وَالصَّالِحِينَ مِنْ عِبَادِكُمْ وَإِمَائِكُمْ» [24-النور:32] and in Surah Az-Zumar: «قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِنْ رَحْمَةِ اللَّـهِ» [39-الزمر:53]. In both these verses, the word «عباد» is used in the meaning of slave and servant, not in the sense of a worshipper. Therefore, in light of these verses, what is the objection to naming someone Abd al-Mustafa, Abd al-Rasul, or Abd al-Nabi, etc.? Please clarify.

Answer: The word «عبد» is a polysemous word whose meaning includes “worshipper” as well as “servant” and “slave.” When the word “abd” is attributed to other than Allah, it means servant or slave, as in Surah An-Nur where the attribution of «عباد» is to the pronoun «كم». However, in the context of names and naming, this word is generally used in the sense of worship, and therefore, its use in such contexts is not correct, because it contains a suspicion of shirk (associating partners with Allah).

There are several authentic ahadith in which, when determining names, the attribution of “abd” is to Allah the Exalted, as in the Prophetic statement:

❀ Sayyiduna Abdullah ibn Umar radi Allahu anhuma narrates that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
«احب الاسماء الي الله عزوجل عبدالله وعبدالرحمن»
“The most beloved names to Allah are Abdullah and Abdur-Rahman.” [ابن ماجه، كتاب الادب، باب ما يستحب من الاسماء 3728، مسلم 2132]

In both these names, the attribution of “abd” is, respectively, to the words “Allah” and “Ar-Rahman,” and both are names of the Exalted Lord. As for those names in which “abd” was attributed to other than Allah, the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam changed them, as in:

◈ Imam Ibn Abdil Barr writes in Al-Isti’ab:
«عبدالله بن ابي قحافة ابوبكر الصديق رضى الله عنه كان اسمه فى الجاهلية عبدالكعبة فسماه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عبدالله .»
“Sayyiduna Abu Bakr as-Siddiq radi Allahu anhu’s name in the time of ignorance was Abd al-Ka’bah, then the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam named him Abdullah.” Similarly, Sayyiduna Abdur-Rahman ibn Awf’s name in the time of ignorance was Abd Amr. Some say: Abd al-Ka’bah. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam named him Abdur-Rahman. [الاستيعاب : 2/ 387]

◈ It is narrated about Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu that his name in the time of ignorance was Abd Shams. The Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam changed it to Abdur-Rahman. [الاصابه : 4 / 200، الاستيعاب : 4/ 200۔ 207]

❀ In Ibn Abi Shaybah, there is a hadith: Shurayh ibn Hani narrates:
«وفد النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم في قومه فسمعهم يسمون رجلا عبد الحجر، فقال له : ما اسمك ؟ قال : عبد الحجر، فقال له رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم : إنما أنت عبد الله»
“A delegation came to the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and he heard them calling a man by the name Abd al-Hajar. The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam asked him: ‘What is your name?’ He said: ‘Abd al-Hajar.’ The Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said: ‘(From now on) your name is Abdullah.’” [ابن ابي شيبة، كتاب الادب، باب تفسير الاسماء 25892]

❀ In another hadith, the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
«تعس عبدالدينار وعبدالدرهم وعبد القطيفة»
“Destroyed is the slave of the dirham, the dinar, and the cloak.” [ابن ماجه، كتاب الزهد، باب فى المكثرين 4135، بخاري الجهاد و السير، باب الحراسته فى الغزو فى سبيل الله 2886]

↰ From these ahadith, it is clear that when the attribution of “abd” in names is to other than Allah, it is used in the sense of worship, and the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam changed such names because they are names of shirk. Even if they are not considered outright shirk, they certainly carry the scent of shirk.

◈ Shah Waliullah rahimahullah writes:
«ومنها انهم كانوا يسمعون ابناءهم عبدالعزي وعبد شمس ونحو ذلك وقد ثبت فى احاديث لا تحصي ان النبى صلى الله عليه وسلم غير اسماء الصهابة عبدالعزي وعبد شمس ونحوهما الي عبدالله وعبدالرحمن وما اشبههما فهذه اتباح وقوالب للشرك نهي الشارع عنها لكونها وقالب له والله اعلم»
“One of the types of shirk among the polytheists was that they would name their children Abd al-Uzza and Abd Shams, etc. It is established from numerous ahadith that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam changed the names of his companions from Abd al-Uzza and Abd Shams to Abdullah and Abdur-Rahman, etc. These are doors and molds of shirk. The Shari’ah has prohibited such names for this very reason: they are molds of shirk. And Allah knows best.”

Similarly, among the Hanafi scholars:
◈ Mulla Ali al-Qari writes in Mirqat, his commentary on Mishkat:
«ولا يجوز عبدالحارث ولا عبدالنبي ولا عبرة بما شاع فيما بين الناس»
“It is not permissible to name someone Abd al-Harith or Abd al-Nabi, etc., and the fact that such names are common among people is of no consequence.” [مرقاة شرح مشكوة :513/8 تحت جديد رقم 4752]

↰ From this explicit statement of Mulla Ali al-Qari, it is clear that naming someone Abd al-Harith or Abd al-Nabi, etc., is not permissible.

SA: Some people use the verse «قل يا عبادي الذين اسرفوا علي انفسهم» as evidence, arguing that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam was commanded to say, “O My servants!” EA: This argument is entirely baseless and contrary to the Noble Qur’an. As Allah the Exalted says:

«مَا كَانَ لِبَشَرٍ أَنْ يُؤْتِيَهُ اللَّـهُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْحُكْمَ وَالنُّبُوَّةَ ثُمَّ يَقُولَ لِلنَّاسِ كُونُوا عِبَادًا لِي مِنْ دُونِ اللَّـهِ وَلَـكِنْ كُونُوا رَبَّانِيِّينَ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تُعَلِّمُونَ الْكِتَابَ وَبِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَدْرُسُونَ»
“It is not befitting for a human being that Allah should give him the Book, authority, and prophethood, and then he would say to the people: ‘Be my servants instead of Allah’s.’ Rather, he would say: ‘Be devoted to the Lord, as you have been taught the Book and as you have studied it.’” [3-آل عمران:79]

↰ In this noble verse, it is clearly stated that it is not befitting for the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam to say to people: “Become my servants.” This is further supported by the statement of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, as narrated from Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah radi Allahu anhu:

«لا يقولن احدكم : عبدي وامتي كلكم عبيد الله وكل نسائكم إماء الله ولكن ليقل غلامي وجاريتي وفتاي وفتاتي ولا يقل العبد : ربي ولكن ليقل : سيدي»
“None of you should say: ‘My slave (abdī) and my slave-girl (amatī).’ All men are Allah’s slaves and all women are Allah’s slave-girls. Rather, say: ‘My boy and my girl, my servant and my maid.’ And a slave should not call his master ‘my lord (rabbī),’ but should say ‘my master (sayyidī).’” [مسلم، كتاب الالفاظ من الادب وغيرها، باب حكم اطلاق لفظة العبد والامة والمواليٰ والسيد 5875،5874]

↰ From this hadith, it is clear that no person is permitted to call another person «عبدى» (“my slave”), and can anyone commit an act that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam himself forbade? It is also clear that the word «عبد» is used in the sense of servant and slave, as in this hadith: «لا يقل العبد ربي», but even then, no one is permitted to say «عبدی» and attribute servitude to themselves. This attribution is only correct to Allah the Exalted. Attributing it to other than Allah in names is not permissible; at the very least, it is not free from the scent of shirk.

↰ In «قل يا عبادي الذين», the phrase «قل», i.e., “you (O Prophet) say,” means that what follows, «يا عبادي», is attributed to the command of Allah, not that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam is attributing servitude to himself. Its prohibition is also found in the verse of Surah Aal Imran [79] mentioned above, and in the aforementioned hadith of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and it is also against the spirit of the Qur’an, because the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam spent his entire life forbidding servitude to other than Allah and changing names like Abd al-Uzza and Abd Shams. How could it be possible that he would attribute “abd” to himself and say Abd al-Nabi or Abd al-Mustafa?

↰ And in the verse of Surah An-Nur [32], by «عبادكم» is meant “servant,” as it is used in contrast to the word «اماء», and this is clarified in the aforementioned hadith in which a servant is called “abd,” but no one is permitted to call a servant by attributing him to himself; rather, by saying «لا يقولن احدكم عبدي», it is prohibited. Therefore, naming someone Abd al-Mustafa, Abd al-Nabi, Abd al-Rasul, etc., is impermissible and unlawful. It is not correct in any way.

Benefits and Issues:
(1)
The reason for these names being preferred is that they express servitude to Allah.

(2)
It is also permissible to use “Abd” or “Ubayd” with other names of Allah to form a name. Naming after the names of the noble Prophets (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) is also correct.