Why Letting Go Takes Strength | Allah’s Names | Dr. Omar Suleiman | Ep. 22

Finding True Strength Through Allah's Names

You need to be stronger. But maybe not in the way that you think. Strength isn't just about you being okay. It's about being made stable enough to help someone else stand.

Because the ummah doesn't just need sincere believers, but strong believers who can uplift others. But first, just like we decoupled rizq from money, we have to decouple quwwah, strength from mere muscles. Yes, quwwah can mean physical strength.

But in our deen, it's also the strength of mind, the strength of heart, the strength of character, and so many other things: financial stability, social leverage, mental toughness, strength under pressure, and the list goes on and on. The scholars summarized strength in Islam as three things: al-istidad, which is internal willpower; al-irada, which is the willingness to do things with it; and al-asbaab, the means by which you can do it. And since I shouted out the Malaysians, my favorite du'a that I learned from the brothers and sisters in South Africa: may Allah take you from strength to strength.

The Prophet's Definition of Strength

(Sahih Muslim, Book 46, Hadith 2664)

The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer, though there is good in both. But he qualified strength by saying:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Book 73, Hadith 135)

That the strong one is not the one who can overcome others physically. The strong one is the one who controls himself in a fit of anger.

So true strength is when you're able to spiritually overcome yourself even when your temper is triggered. And the Prophet ﷺ also said: shall I not teach you a word from beneath the throne that's a treasure of paradise? He said:

There is no power or strength except by Allah. Now think about that.

Above the throne is written: إنَّ رَحْمَتِي غَلَبَتْ غَضَبِي - My mercy overcomes my anger. Beneath it lies: لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ - There is no power and no strength except through Allah. Between the mercy above and the strength beneath, you learn what true power is.

You draw strength not by being overpowering but by yielding to the one who holds the throne itself.

Quranic Foundations of Strength

And this is the first mention of strength that we come across in the Quran when Allah says to Bani Israel:

Take what we have given you with strength. Meaning hold on to the covenant and hold it with seriousness and make sure that you follow through.

And the Prophet ﷺ was introduced to the Quran through a strong embrace that partially was to strengthen him for the revelation to come. And Allah told this ummah:

Prepare against them whatever you can of strength. Show your enemies you're unafraid because you have the Lord of the throne and that you're ready for whatever they throw at you because you seek refuge in the Lord of the throne.

مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ - Whatever you can - means that we all need to plug into our ummah's strength. Some of us need to develop critical skill sets. Some of us need to work on tools of defense.

Some of us need to fortify our intellects. Some need to protect the bodies of our physically vulnerable ones. Others need to protect the hearts of our spiritually vulnerable ones.

The strong Muslim is the one who positions his or herself to be of the most benefit to change yourself and then to change the world around you only by the power of Allah because لَا حَوْلَ وَلَا قُوَّةَ إِلَّا بِاللَّهِ - I can neither change a situation nor garner any strength except through Him.

Allah's Name: القوي (The All-Strong)

That source is Allah's name القوي - the One who possesses all strength - because anyone trying to draw strength from anything or anyone but Him is just one decree away from collapse. What does it look like to draw strength and distribute strength through القوي? Look at how the Prophet ﷺ described Umar in a dream.

He said: I saw in a dream that the people had gathered and then Abu Bakr stood up and he pulled out one or two buckets full of water from a well and there was a weakness in his pulling - may Allah forgive him. And then Umar stood up and the bucket turned into a very large one and I have never seen any strong man among the people doing such a hard job. He pulled out so much water that the people drank to their satisfaction and even watered their camels to their fill.

And then after quenching their thirst they sat beside the water. You see Umar was so afraid of the mule testifying about him for not paving the road in Baghdad that Allah gave him the strength due to his sincerity to be able to pave roads all over the world. But even Umar with all of his قوة, with all of his strength, if you mentioned to him to fear Allah القوي he would tremble in awe of Allah like a child.

So who is القوي, the all strong?

Indeed Allah is the provider, possessor of strength, the firm. Notice Allah introduces his strength in the same breath as his sustenance. He provides, then he empowers and then he stabilizes what he gave.

Allah's Name: المتين (The Firm)

Because what good is today's power if tomorrow it crumbles? What good is a strong moment if it can't become a strong movement? And that's where the second name comes in: المتين, the unshakable, the unbreakable. Every human being has a breaking point. Even the most disciplined person can buckle at some point.

And when our strength fails, we might feel like we're weak people. But Allah is المتين, unconquerable, undefeatable. Nothing ever spins out of control for him even if it feels that way for us.

He even describes his plan that way:

I give them time. Indeed my plan is firm. Meaning it's intact even if they think that they've broken through. Where people see it all falling apart, He sees it all coming together. المتين is similar to البر compared to البحر. Stable land versus tossing waves. So you plant your feet in His strength and you speak through His strength and you become a strong shore for others without pretending to be their savior. He feeds you, then He fortifies you, then He keeps you from falling apart.

The Nature of True Strength

And notice how قوة, strength, is never praiseworthy in and of itself. Allah pairs His own قوة with benefit. And this is also true for His creation.

Allah calls Jibreel عليه السلام شديد القوة, severe in strength. So Jibreel descends with the revelation that could crush mountains. And with the tip of a single one of his 600 wings, he could destroy an entire nation like he did with the people of Lut.

But Allah also calls him الروح الأمين. He's trustworthy. He has integrity. His strength is not just for the sake of it. And for human beings, the same thing holds true as well. What do you pair your strength with?

I want you to think of the daughters of Shu'ayb when they introduced Musa عليه السلام to their father. And they described him as قوي، أمين, strong and trustworthy. Because what did Musa do with his strength? He fought for the vulnerable that he didn't even know, even though he was most vulnerable at that moment. Allah didn't just give him physical strength.

Musa عليه السلام was strong-minded and trustworthy, while the weakest man in the world in Fir'aun was pursuing him in every corner.

Allah's Name: العزيز (The Almighty)

But then Allah crowns his might with a dignity that only belongs to him. He's also العزيز, the Almighty, whose might is absolute and whose position is beyond contest. The one through whom all honor is defined and bestowed.

He is the Almighty, whether you like it or not, and the praiseworthy, whether you praise him or not. And the only عزة, the only honor you will ever find in life is through him.

So he tells you to take from his عزة, not away from him, but through him:

Whoever seeks honor, then know that to Allah belongs all honor. And just like true strength isn't defined by big empty muscles, true عزة isn't defined by big crowns or gaudy cars and palaces or glamorous gowns or even by titles or trends.

Umar's Example of True Honor

So when Umar رضي الله تعالى عنه fulfilled the dream of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم by taking that strength to Jerusalem, he entered into Al-Quds with strength and honor, but not in the way that they knew honor before. He was in patchy clothes and he let his servant ride on his camel. He wasn't interested in the red carpet.

And even in that glorious moment, he wasn't deluded by the praise that was being lavished on him or interested in pandering to anyone else's sense of power. He says then:

We are a people whom Allah honored through Islam. And if we seek honor through anything else, then Allah will surely humiliate us.

And that عزة wasn't just found after they liberated Al-Quds, even under the boots of oppressors before the Ka'bah was liberated. Ibn Mas'ud رضي الله تعالى عنه says:

We have remained dignified since the day that Umar became Muslim. From the moment that they walked out in protest in Mecca to the moment of the opening of Al-Aqsa, they carried a different type of power, عزة, rooted in Al-Aziz.

And the people of Gaza are a people of عزة, even in the midst of their destruction. They're still the most honorable people on earth. And they will be honored with the liberation of Palestine بإذن الله تعالى because their dignity is otherworldly and ours has to be as well.

Real Power vs. False Power

People seek power for the position. And sometimes they abandon the power of values and integrity for the appearance of strength. They become slaves to position and pompous displays because they're actually insecure and weak.

They need the crown on their head or the crowd to clap so that they can feel big. There's no عزة in that. Real power isn't in what you own, it's in who owns you. And for us, that's Al-Aziz and we're honored only through him. And just like we're not slaves to our enemies because of our عزة, we're also not slaves to our own egos. And that's when you know it's for Allah.

When the same عزة that allows you to stand tall allows you to stand down. The Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih Muslim, Book 45, Hadith 23)

And Allah does not increase a servant in humility or pardon or forgiveness, except that He increases him in honor. Your عزة grows when you choose forgiveness over vengeance.

Your rank only rises when your head bows only to Him and you shed your ego for His sake, in the exact same way that your strength expands when you use it for His sake. And if the world has convinced you that you must be loud and make a scene to be strong, flip that script. The Qur'an preserves عزة for the believer even when materially weak because honor is in spiritual gravity. Not in social status.

And honor belongs to Allah and His Messenger and the believers. You don't have to bark like a dog to be seen and heard by people as weak as you. You just have to bear truth to a noble mission, to be seen and heard by the only one who gives true strength and honor.

Conclusion: Drawing from Divine Strength

القوي is strong enough to sustain you. المتين is firm enough to depend on. And العزيز is high enough to honor you with beyond what any human could ever bestow upon you. So honor yourself with the qualities He loves and He will grant you what you love.

So ask Him to make you قوي without being harsh. متين without being rigid. عزيز without being arrogant. But instead a refuge that people can lean on, not a boulder they hope not to crash into. Because even the strongest and proudest die and we all return back to Him.

Du'a

Strengthen me where I am weak and make me firm where I bend too easily. Lift me so that I can lift others without ever believing I lifted myself. When the weight of the world feels heavier than my faith, remind me that your strength is the only way to see through it. Let me draw strength from your power but never be weakened by my pride.

Make me steady when everything else shakes. Root me in conviction that does not sway with opinion or fear. Let my faith be anchored deep enough so that no loss can uproot it. Keep my footing secure in moments that test my balance.

Grant me the honor that comes only from you. Let my dignity rest in humility before you. My worth be measured only in worship of you. Protect me from chasing validation from those as fragile as I and make my highest victory the achievement of your pleasure.