Shakirah Hunter

We often recite the word “fadhl in the Holy Qur’an and don’t realise the massive impact this word has in our lives and the multiple meanings that one word has. Allah Ta’ala uses one word to highlight the extensive nature of His Grace upon us . He highlights that He is ذو الفضل العظيم “One of Great Grace” and further emphasizes that every single thing that is given to us ,every achievement and every ability is only from His Grace. This lies within His control and He gives it as He so pleases.

What is fadhl?
الفضل هو الزّيادة في الخير او الأجر

Fadhl is the extra bounties in good and reward that is bestowed upon us from Allah Ta’ala.

We often speak about our achievements or the achievements of our children with such pride and happiness , we may say mashallah and alhamdulillah yet we constantly attribute these successes to our own efforts. But this ayah ذالك فضل الله يؤتيه من يشاء “that is the Grace of Allah ” should be the reality of every accomplishment of our lives.

Once we remove our own abilities or qualifications we realise that those achievements are closely tied to Allah’s will and Royal Decision.

The different usage of the word Fadhl in the Qur’an:

1. The greatest joy for a believer – the fadhl of the Qur’an in our lives

  قُلْ بِفَضْلِ اللَّهِ وَبِرَحْمَتِهِ فَبِذَلِكَ فَلْيَفْرَحُوا هُوَ خَيْرٌ مِمَّا يَجْمَعُون

Say! With the Grace of Allah and His mercy – so in that they should find joy , it is better than that which they have gathered.

Explaining this grace of Allah , in Ruhul Ma’ani we see that Anas (ra) narrates a hadith that explains the grace of Allah to be the Holy Qur’an in your life , and His mercy is your ability to recite the Qur’an correctly. The greatest fadhl in our lives in this world is the Holy Qur’an in our lives.

2. The ni’mah of Prophethood upon Nabi (s). “The Grace of Allah was great upon you”.( وَكانَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكَ عَظِيماً )

3. Allah regards your daily rizq – your sustenance a great fadhl. We must understand that all that we earn is in no way attached to our own efforts or our abilities. Rather it is in its entirety a ni’mah from Allah. There are times when He gives more and other times when He gives less. We might focus on the ‘hustle harder mindframe – or you have to work hard ideology – however the reality is that we have to work and try as hard as possible but ultimately we have to place our total understanding that whatever sustenance comes to us is only by His immense Grace. ( فَإِذَا قُضِيَتِ الصَّلَاةُ فَانْتَشِرُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَابْتَغُوا مِنْ فَضْلِ اللَّهِ )10This is mentioned in Surah jumu’ah wherein Allah Ta’ala says: “So when the Salaah comes to an end , so spread in the earth and seek the Grace of Allah.”

4. The Fadhl of Iman and Belief in the oneness of Allah. Allah highlight this is Surah Yusuf when Yusuf (As) makes the statement that the favour of following the Deen of Allah and not being left to Kufr and Shirk.

( ذلِكَ مِنْ فَضْلِ اللَّهِ عَلَيْنا وَعَلَى النَّاسِ  )

يوسف: 38

“That is the Grace of Allah upon us and upon the people”

5. The greatest fadhl of Jannah in the Aakhirah

قال الله تعالى:

( وَبَشِّرِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ بِأَنَّ لَهُمْ مِنَ اللَّهِ فَضْلًا كَبِيراً  )

الأحزاب:47

And give gladtidings to the believers that without a doubt they will be granted from Allah a great Fadhl – Jannah.

6. The fadhl of forgiving our sins and overlooking our sins even when we err and we fall short in our ibadah.

قال الله تعالى:

( سبحانه إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَذُو فَضْلٍ عَلَى النَّاسِ )

Allah Ta’ala says: glory be to Him , Most Certainly Allah is one of Grace upon people

6. Delaying our punishment – even though we sin to such an extent, yet Allah grants us a delay in His Azaab so we are able to make taubah.

 قال الله تعالى:

( وَلَوْلا فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُ فِي الدُّنْيا وَالْآخِرَةِ لَمَسَّكُمْ فِيما أَفَضْتُمْ فِيهِ عَذابٌ عَظِيمٌ )

النور: 14

“And if it were not for the Grace of Allah upon you and His mercy in this world and the Next , you would have been afflicted by a Great punishment”

This word has been highlighted in so many different contexts in the Holy Qur’an. It grounds us to the real grace of Allah and should inspire us towards understanding the ultimate grace and kindness of Allah Ta’ala upon us. As people compliment us and as we find joy in our achievements – we always revert to this statement : “That is the total Grace of Allah upon us.