Riyad as-Salihin, 1724
Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) said:
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The most disgraceful man near Allah is a man who calls himself (or likes others to call him) Malikul-Amlak (i.e., king of kings)." <b>[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]</b>.
وعن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال:
إن أخنع اسم عند الله عز وجل رجل تسمى ملك الأملاك
((متفق عليه)). قال سُفيانُ بن عُيَيْنَةَ: «مَلِكُ الأَمْلاَكِ» مِثْلُ: شَاهِن شَاهِ.
References1 variant
- In-Book Reference
- Book 17, Hadith 214
Sharh · explanationclick to expand
<b>Guidance from the Hadith:</b><br>
1) It is prohibited to call anyone by a name that exclusively befits Allah Almighty. Whoever transgresses the Shariah limit and calls himself by such a name becomes the most disgraceful and lowly of all people in the sight of Allah.<br>
2) It is prohibited to describe creatures by attributes of majesty or address them using titles of pride that belong exclusively to Allah Almighty.<br>
<br>
<b>Benefit:</b><br>
Another example of such prohibited names is “the judge of judges”.<br>
Words carry meanings; that is why the Shariah pays great attention to words and regulates them so as to preserve monotheism, which is due to Allah Almighty. The greatest thing we should guard in our lives - which gives life to our hearts and leads us to success - is monotheism. So, where are the guardians of monotheism, those who succeeded the Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) in his Ummah?! The Prophet (may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him) missed no opportunity without stressing the importance of monotheism and he did so on a frequent basis until it became clear how the monotheistic belief is the core of the religion. So, pay attention to monotheism, O servants of Allah.