left hand does not know what his right hand gives away, and a man who mentions the Name
of Allah for the sake of remembering Him while his tears overflow." This tradition is
recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim and is quoted on pp. 164-165, Vol. 3, of Al Targheeb wal
tarheeb, and on p. 30 of Qabasat min hadi al nubuwwah.
- "Al-Lateef"
Allah has said, "... surely my Lord is benignant to whomsoever He pleases; surely He is the
Knowing, the Wise" (Qura'n, 12:100).
"Al-Lateef" is one of Allah's Attributes derived from extreme kindness and compassion in a
way which no human faculty can ever fathom. Al-Lateef continuously pours His blessings
unto His servants; His actions are good and beautiful. This Attribute also means: the One
Who cannot be sensed by human senses or those of all other beings, Who knows hidden and
minute matters. Al-Lateef has combined in Him terse and wise compassion as well as minute
and detailed knowledge of all affairs and of the means to make them reach whomsoever He
pleases from among His creation.
Al-Lateef pleases His servants when He removes the clouds of His wrath away from them, the
One Who is compassionate towards His servants even in matters related to His decree; He
knows all hidden matters. He is the One Whose knowledge encompasses everything minute
regarding all facts. His will is carried out, the will whereby He protects His creatures. He
knows the most intricate of details relevant to interests and their obscurities; He gently makes
them reach their destinations. He is Most Kind and Compassionate to His servants even when
they are not aware of it; He manages their affairs and wishes everything good for His
servants. He desires their ease and makes for them the means of righteousness and goodness
attainable. He eases everything difficult, Who joins everything broken. Allah has said, "Does
He not know, being the One Who created (everything and everyone)?! He knows the
subtleties, the One Who is ever-Aware (of everything)" (Qura'n, 67:14).
One of the signs of His kindness towards His servants is that He has given them more than
enough and required them to do less than what they can, thus making the achievement of
eternal happiness attainable by easy endeavor during a short period of time, i.e. one's life-
span, which is too short to be compared with the eternity of the hereafter.
Al-Lateef has conceived everything within the framework of its own antithesis. Allah, for
example, hid for prophet Joseph the prominence of authority in the garb of slavery till he
himself eventually came to say: "... surely my Lord is benignant to whomsoever He pleases;
surely He is the Knowing, the Wise" (Qura'n, 12:100). A man was taken once to prison
although he was innocent of the charge, so he kept repeating Joseph's invocation saying, "...
surely my Lord is benignant to whomsoever He pleases; surely He is the Knowing, the
Wise" (Qura'n, 12:100). A young man came to him during one night and said to him, "Stand