Al-Malik
The Sovereign
Exalted and Glorious
He could not take his brother by the law of the king, except that Allah willed it. (12:76)
There was a king behind them who seized every ship by force. (18:79)
Then high above all be Allah, the True Kind. (20:114)
Exalted be Allah, the True King. The Lord of the Supreme Throne! (23:116)
He is Allah beside Whom none has the right to be worshipped but He, the King, the Holy, the One Free from All Defects, the Giver of Security, the Watcher over His creatures, the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. (62:1)
The King of Mankind. (114:2)
Then high above all be Allah, the True King. (20:114)
The king is he who has power and domination over people. The Supreme King is Allah, the Exalted and the Glorious. He reigns with no one after Him.
The Sovereign is the King and the Ruler of all creations. Allah is the Sole Sovereign of the whole human race. He is the Maker and the Master of all created things. Allah is the One and Only Real King who will remain forever, and Who rules not merely over the bodies of all beings, but even over their hearts and spirits.
He who repeats this name, Allah will bestow on him respect by others.
He is Allah, King of kings, and the Kingdom belongs to Him. He is the King of the Day of Judgment; He is the King of His creation; he is the Absolute King. Let us fill our hearts with all of His Majesty. Our obedience to Him is the way to have nearness to Him, and to have Him pleased with us.
Allah Allah Allah
From: The Meanings of the Names of Our Lord by Shaykh Muhammad Sa’id al-Jamal ar-Rifa’i Head of the Higher Sufi Council in Jerusalem and the Holy Land Teacher at the Dome of the Rock (al-Aqsa)
AL-MALIK
He is the Owner of the universe, of the whole creation the absolute Ruler. Allah is the only Ruler of the entire universe, visible and invisible, and of all creation, from before the beginning and after the end. There is none like Him because He is the Creator of His kingdom, which He created from nothing. Only He knows the size of His kingdom, the number of its population, and the strength of its armies. Only His will, His rule, and His justice exist. What happens is what He wills; and what He does not will, will never happen. He does not need His kingdom, His kingdom needs Him. He rules by Himself; He does not need any help to rule. He has created the universe as a workplace for His creation, and He has created the Day of Judgment as a great court of justice. In this world, we plant our deeds. On the Day of Judgment, we reap their rewards. Everyone will receive the result of his or her doings. There is none other than He in whom to take refuge.
Servants of Allah who come to know their Master, finding the meaning of that Divine Name in themselves, will become sober from the drunkenness of believing their fortunes, their high positions, and their fame to be their own. Those who have served worldly kings as gods will wish instead for the Master of their masters. All will know that they are not left on their own in this divine kingdom, but that there is an absolute Ruler who sees “a black and crawling on a black rock on the darkest of night,” as well as the most secret thoughts and feelings passing through minds and hearts. Everything that we are, and everything that we do, is watched and recorded; all will be accounted for on the Day of Judgment.
A person who knows al-Malik, even if he is a king, will know that at best he is a shepherd charged for a short time to care for a flock that is not his. To the extent of his conscientiousness, hard work, and devotion, he may expect to be rewarded by his master. If he is a bad shepherd, killing and roasting the lambs, drinking all their milk, letting the wolves ravage the flock, he certainly will be punished. When his duty as a shepherd ends, he will have to give an accounting. It is better to put one’s accounts in order before the day that they must be submitted.
‘Abd al-Malik is the one for whom his Lord is enough. He does not need anything from anyone except from his Lord. People who reach such a state are given power and control over their own life and actions. Their Lord appoints them as His deputies, rulers in their own realms, for the kingdom of man is his own being. Our subjects are our tongue, our eyes, our hands, and our other members. Our armies are our ambitions, our desires, our lust, our anger. If we can control them, and if they obey us, Allah will let us control the lives of others as well. Thus, ‘Abd al-Malik is a servant who has been given the power and control over his own life and actions as well as the lives of others to the extent of the orders and will of Allah. The manifestation of the name ya Malik, the absolute King of the universe, upon a servant of Allah is the hardest to bear and the most powerful of the attributes manifested in human beings.
If someone truly comes to a state where his Lord is sufficient for him and keeps remembering this Name, he will appear to everyone as awesome and be respected by all.
According to tradition, Khidr (pbuh) taught the following prayer to be recited 100 times over a sick person: “Allahumma antal-Malik ul-Haqq ulladhi la ilaha illa anta. Ya Allahu, ya Salamu, ya Shafi” and thrice “ya Shifa al-qulub.” (“Our Allah, you are the True King, other than whom there is no other god. Oh Allah, O Source of Peace, O Healer; O medicine of hearts!”) If Allah so wills, a cure will follow.
From: The Name & the Named by Shaykh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti