February 18, 2026

As I was thinking of what name of Allah to begin day 1 of 30 reflective days with, I kept going back and forth between starting with Ar-Rahman because it was the first name in the 99 names of Allah and letting Allah choose what name of His to reveal to me. 

And because I couldn’t decide, after fajr salah this morning, I made a silent du’a to Allah, ya Allah Ya Rahman, I ask for Your guidance throughout the day. Allow me to witness Your mercy in all of my senses. Let me see Your Mercy in sight, in hearing, in speech, in touch and envelop me in whole in Your Mercy. Ya Rabb, allow me to know You through your Mercy and by whichever of Your Beautiful Names You know I need. 

The sun rose and I got ready and set off for work. I had a Tadabbur class, so I joined the class on my way. At the beginning of each class, our teacher asks us to share a few reflections from the previous week’s assignment. Last week’s assignment was for us to write about we practiced Tadabbur and how it impacted us.  

And so, at the beginning of class, a sister shared her reflection on the word Mu’min, and she talked about how in tracing the word in the Qur’an, she found that the triliteral root hamza mīm nūn (أ م ن) occurs 879 times in the Quran, in 17 derived forms subhān’Allah. And the form Mu’min occurred 202 times. As I listened to her share her reflection, I had goosebumps. 

Last night, as I was reciting surah Al-Baqarah, ayah 121 stopped me in my tracks. Allah says:

“Those We have given the Book follow it as it should be followed. It is they who ˹truly˺ believe in it. As for those who reject it, it is they who are the losers.” [2:121]

Subhān’Allah, I kept going back to read the ayah to understand what about the ayah made me pause. What was the message here that Allah wanted me to receive? And what spoke to me was that this Qur’an is supposed to be followed, and I know that may sound obvious but for me it meant more. It wasn’t just to be followed but that there was a way for it to be followed. And I was reminded of the Rasūl pbuh who is described as the walking Qur’an as an example of how we should follow the Qur’an. 

It was also the line right after that had me in deep thought. Allah says, those who received the Book and followed it the way it should, it is they who truly believe in it. And it had me wondering and asking myself, am I doing my best in terms of following this Qur’an in the way it should be followed? Because that  will mean that I am a true believer. What does it mean to be a true believer? And here Allah is giving the answer; to be a true believer I need to follow the Qur’an the way it should be followed. And it brought me back to the ayah that gave me confirmation of my intention to walk with Allah’s Names for this year’s 30 reflective Days, which said, “Always remember the Name of your Lord and devote yourself to him wholeheartedly.” [73:8]. 

To be a true believer, I need to be devoted wholeheartedly to knowing Allah and following His Book. 

As the day went on, I joined my tadarus group later at noon to continue with our recitation of the Qur’an. And lo and behold another ayah stops me and it was ayah 177 of Al-Baqarah. 

“Righteousness is not in turning your faces towards the east or the west. Rather, the righteous are those who believe in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Books, and the prophets; who give charity out of their cherished wealth to relatives, orphans, the poor, ˹needy˺ travelers, beggars, and for freeing captives; who establish prayer, pay alms-tax, and keep the pledges they make; and who are patient in times of suffering, adversity, and in ˹the heat of˺ battle. It is they who are true ˹in faith˺, and it is they who are mindful ˹of Allah˺.” [2:177]

Again, another ayah detailing what it means to be righteous, to have belief and to be true in faith. And so, we this, Allah gave me the answer to His Name I needed to walk with for Day 1. And it was the name Al-Mu’min, The Guarantor, The Giver of Faith, The Giver of Safety and Security. Allah is the One who grants Iman, he is the one who removes fear and places safety and security in the hearts. He is Al-mu’min, the One to be Trusted, Who gives assurance and guarantees the Truth of his promise. 

And so I as I walked with this Name today, I asked Him Ya Rabbī, Ya Mu’min, grant me true belief and increase me in iman. Ya Mu’min just as Ibrahim upon him be peace asked you for reassurance for his heart, I ask You to reassure my heart so my faith can hold firm. Ya Rabb, Ya Mu’min remove from my heart any fear, grant me safety and security to follow Your Book as it should be followed. And raise me on the day of judgment among the righteous. Allahumma Amin ya Rabb. 

With Love,

Ibtisam