رحمa single root denoting tenderness, inclining toward someone, and compassion. (root rhm)

Al-Raḥmān and al-Raḥīm (الرحمن الرحيم): two names derived from al-raḥma (mercy). God's mercy encompasses all things, and He is the most merciful of those who show mercy. It is said: mā aqrabu riḥma fulānin (ما أقرب رحم فلان) — 'how close is so-and-so's compassion,' meaning he possesses mercy and dutifulness. His saying — Exalted and Glorified — 'wa-aqraba ruḥman' (وأقرب رحما) means [the substitute child was] more dutiful to his parents than the boy killed by al-Khiḍr, peace be upon him. [The parents were Muslims and the son was an unbeliever, so afterward a daughter was born to them who [in turn] bore a prophet. And a verse was cited: 'More tender and merciful than a mother over her only child, in compassion, and braver than a maned lion on the prowl.'] Al-marḥama (المرحمة) means al-raḥma. [You say: raḥimtuhu arḥamuhu raḥmatan wa-marḥamatan (رحمته أرحمه رحمة ومرحمة) — 'I showed him mercy'; and tarahḥamtu ʿalayhi (ترحمت عليه) means 'I said: may God's mercy be upon him.' God — Exalted and Glorified — said: 'and enjoined one another to patience and enjoined one another to compassion (al-marḥama المرحمة)' [Qurʾān 90:17], meaning they enjoined one another to have mercy on the weak and to be compassionate toward them.] Al-raḥim (الرحم) is the house in which the child grows and its receptacle in the belly [i.e., the womb]. 'Between them is riḥm' means close kinship. Al-Aʿshā said: 'We are shunned, and the kinship-bond (al-riḥm الرحم) between us is severed.' Its plural is al-arḥām (الأرحام). As for al-riḥm mentioned in the ḥadīth: 'Kinship (al-riḥm الرحم) is suspended from the Throne, saying: O God, connect whoever connects me and cut off whoever cuts me off' — here al-riḥm means kinship uniting the sons of one father. A she-camel described as raḥūm (رحوم) is one afflicted with a disease in her womb so that she cannot conceive; one says: qad raḥimat riḥman (قد رحمت رحما). Likewise a woman is said raḥimat/ruḥimat when she complains of [pain in] her womb.

Al-raḥma (الرحمة): tenderness and compassion. Al-marḥama (المرحمة) is the same. One says raḥimtuhu (رحمته) — 'I showed him mercy' — and tarahḥamtu ʿalayhi (ترحمت عليه) — 'I invoked mercy upon him.' Taraḥama al-qawm (تراحم القوم): the people showed mercy to one another. Al-raḥamūt (الرحموت) is from al-raḥma. It is said: 'rahbūtun khayrun min raḥamūt' (رهبوت خير من رحموت) — 'being feared is better than being shown mercy,' i.e., it is better for you to be feared than to be pitied. A man is called marḥūm (مرحوم) or marraḥam (مرحم), the latter doubled for emphasis. Al-riḥm (الرحم) is the womb of the female, and it is feminine. Al-riḥm also means kinship; al-riḥm with kasra has the same meaning. Al-Aʿshā said: 'Is there [anyone] seeking a favor that I have sought out, and a bond of kinship (waṣāl riḥm وصال رحم) whose warmth has cooled?' Al-Raḥmān and al-Raḥīm (الرحمن والرحيم) are two names derived from al-raḥma; their parallel in the language is nadīm and nadmān (نديم وندمان), which are synonymous. It is permissible to repeat the two names, when their derivations differ, for emphasis, as one says: 'so-and-so is jādun majidun' [generous, noble]. However, al-Raḥmān is a name exclusive to God Almighty; no one else may be named by it. Do you not see that He — Blessed and Exalted — said: 'Say: Call upon Allah or call upon al-Raḥmān' [Qurʾān 17:110], setting it as equivalent to the Name that none else shares with Him? Musaylima the Liar was called 'Raḥmān of al-Yamāma.' Al-Raḥīm may sometimes mean 'the one shown mercy' (marḥūm), just as it may mean 'the one who shows mercy' (rāḥim). ʿAmlas ibn ʿAqīl said: 'But if war bites you with its bite, then you are one upon whom compassion is shown, merciful (raḥīm رحيم).' Al-ruḥm (الرحم), with ḍamma, means al-raḥma. God the Exalted said: 'wa-aqraba ruḥman' (وأقرب رحما) [18:81]. Zuhayr vocalized it [differently], saying: 'And among his innate character is piety, and God and mercy (al-riḥm الرحم) protect him from evil stumblings' — like ʿusr and ʿusur (عسر وعسر) [variant vocalizations of one word]. Umm Riḥm (أم رحم) is also one of the names of Mecca. Al-raḥūm (الرحوم) is the she-camel that complains of [pain in] her womb after giving birth. One says raḥumat, with ḍamma, raḥāmatan (رحمت رحامة), and raḥimat, with kasra, riḥman (رحمت رحما).

The letters rāʾ, ḥāʾ, and mīm form one root indicating tenderness, compassion, and mercy (raʾfa). From this one says raḥimahu yarḥamuhu (رحمه يرحمه) when he feels tenderness for him and is compassionate toward him. Al-riḥm (الرحم), al-marḥama (المرحمة), and al-raḥma (الرحمة) have the same meaning. Al-riḥm (الرحم) [also] denotes the bond of kinship. Then the womb of the female was named riḥm (رحما) from this, because from it comes offspring, which is an object of mercy and tenderness. One says: shāh raḥūm (شاة رحوم) — 'a ewe complaining of [pain in] her womb after giving birth'; it is said raḥimat raḥāma (رحمت رحامة) and raḥimat riḥman (رحمت رحما). Al-Aṣmaʿī said: Abū ʿAmr ibn al-ʿAlāʾ used to recite the verse of Zuhayr: 'And among his innate character is piety, and God and kinship (al-riḥm الرحم) protect him from evil stumblings.' He said: I have not heard this word except in this verse. And he used to read [the Qurʾān]: 'wa-aqraba ruḥman' (وأقرب رحما) [Sūrat al-Kahf 18:81]. It seems that Abū ʿAmr held that al-riḥm (الرحم) means al-raḥma (mercy). It is said that Mecca used to be called Umm Riḥm (أم رحم).

Al-riḥm (الرحم) is the womb of the woman; a woman described as raḥūm (رحوم) is one who complains of [pain in] her womb. From this, al-riḥm was borrowed metaphorically for kinship, because [relatives] emerge from a single womb. One says riḥm and riḥm [with variant vocalization]. God the Exalted said: 'wa-aqraba ruḥman' (وأقرب رحما) [al-Kahf 18:81]. Al-raḥma (الرحمة) is tenderness entailing doing good to the one shown mercy (al-marḥūm المرحوم). It is sometimes used for tenderness alone, and sometimes for doing good alone, apart from tenderness, as in 'raḥima Allāhu fulānan' (رحم الله فلانا) — 'may God have mercy on so-and-so.' When applied as a description of the Creator, nothing is meant by it except doing good alone, without tenderness. Accordingly it is related that mercy from God is bestowal of favor and generosity, whereas from human beings it is tenderness and compassion. In light of this is the saying of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, relating from his Lord: 'When He created al-riḥm [kinship], He said to it: I am al-Raḥmān, and you are al-riḥm; I have derived your name from My Name. Whoever maintains you, I will maintain him, and whoever severs you, I will cut him off.' This alludes to what was said above — that mercy comprises two meanings: tenderness and doing good. God Almighty instilled tenderness in human natures but reserved doing good [in its full sense] for Himself alone. Thus, just as the word al-riḥm derives from al-raḥma, so its meaning among people derives from the meaning found with God Almighty — the correspondence of their meanings paralleling the correspondence of their words. Al-Raḥmān and al-Raḥīm are like nadmān and nadīm [a pattern-pair]. Al-Raḥmān is applied only to God Almighty, since its meaning is valid only for Him, as He is the One whose mercy encompasses all things. Al-Raḥīm is also used of others, meaning one whose mercy is abundant. God the Exalted said: 'Indeed God is Forgiving, Merciful (raḥīm)' [al-Baqara 2:182]. And He said, describing the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: 'There has certainly come to you a Messenger from among yourselves. Grievous to him is what you suffer; he is concerned over you and to the believers is kind and merciful (raʾūfun raḥīmun)' [al-Tawba 9:128]. It has been said: God Almighty is the Raḥmān of this world and the Raḥīm of the Hereafter, because His beneficence in this world encompasses believers and disbelievers alike, whereas in the Hereafter it is specific to believers. In light of this He said: 'And My mercy encompasses all things; so I will decree it for those who fear Me' [al-Aʿrāf 7:156], indicating that in this world it is general for believers and disbelievers, while in the Hereafter it is specific to believers.

Al-raḥma (الرحمة): tenderness and compassion; al-marḥama (المرحمة) is the same. One says raḥimtuhu (رحمته) and tarahḥamtu ʿalayhi (ترحمت عليه). Taraḥama al-qawm (تراحم القوم): the people showed mercy to one another. Al-raḥma also means forgiveness. His saying, Exalted, describing the Qurʾān: 'hudan wa-raḥmatan li-qawmin yuʾminūn' (هدى ورحمة لقوم يؤمنون) — 'guidance and mercy for a people who believe' — meaning We made it detailed, as guidance and possessing mercy. And His saying: 'wa-raḥmatan li-lladhīna āmanū minkum' (ورحمة للذين آمنوا منكم) — 'and a mercy to those who believe among you' — meaning it is a mercy because it was the cause of their faith. [The verbal noun patterns:] raḥimahu raḥman wa-riḥman wa-raḥmatan wa-raḥimatan (رحمه رحما ورحما ورحمة ورحمة) — Sībawayh related the last of these — and marḥamatan (مرحمة). God, Mighty and Exalted, said: 'wa-tawāṣaw bi-l-ṣabri wa-tawāṣaw bi-l-marḥama' (وتواصوا بالصبر وتواصوا بالمرحمة) — 'and enjoined one another to patience and enjoined one another to compassion' — meaning they enjoined one another to have mercy on the weak and be compassionate toward them. Tarahḥamtu ʿalayhi (ترحمت عليه) means 'I said: may God's mercy be upon him.' Concerning His saying, Exalted: 'inna raḥmata Allāhi qarībun min al-muḥsinīn' (إن رحمت الله قريب من المحسنين) — 'indeed the mercy of God is near to the doers of good' — the [masculine] form qarīb is used by attribution, as if the mention of raḥma sufficed without the feminine ending being reflected; and it is said this is because it is a non-genuine feminine, the noun being written al-raḥmat[ā]. Al-Azharī said: the tāʾ in His saying 'inna raḥmata' is originally a hāʾ, even though written as a tāʾ. Al-Azharī [also related]: ʿIkrima said, regarding His saying 'ibtighāʾa raḥmatin min rabbika tarjūhā' (ابتغاء رحمة من ربك ترجوها) — 'seeking a mercy from your Lord which you hope for' — that it means sustenance (rizq); and 'wa-la-in adhaqnā al-insāna minnā raḥmatan thumma nazaʿnāhā minhu' (ولئن أذقنا الإنسان منا رحمة ثم نزعناها منه) — 'and if We give man a taste of mercy from Us, then withdraw it from him' — that it means sustenance; and 'wa-mā arsalnāka illā raḥmatan' (وما أرسلناك إلا رحمة) — 'and We did not send you except as a mercy' — that it means compassion and kindly action; and 'wa-idhā adhaqnā al-nāsa raḥmatan min baʿdi ḍarrāʾ' (وإذا أذقنا الناس رحمة من بعد ضراء) — 'and when We give mankind a taste of mercy after adversity' — that it means rain and fertility after famine, and by 'mankind' here the disbelievers are meant. Al-raḥamūt (الرحموت) is from al-raḥma. In the proverb: 'rahbūtun khayrun min raḥamūt' (رهبوت خير من رحموت) — meaning it is better to be feared than to be shown mercy [pitied]; this form is used only paired [with rahbūt], never alone. Taraḥḥama ʿalayhi (ترحم عليه): he invoked mercy for him. Istarḥamahu (استرحمه): he asked him for mercy. A man is called marḥūm and marraḥam (مرحوم، مرحم), the latter doubled for emphasis. Concerning His saying, Exalted: 'wa-adkhalnāhu fī raḥmatinā' (وأدخلناه في رحمتنا) — 'and We admitted him into Our mercy' — Ibn Jinnī said: this is a metaphor (majāz) containing three rhetorical features: amplitude, comparison, and emphasis. As for amplitude: it is as though He added, among the names of places, a name which is 'mercy' [treating mercy as a place]. As for comparison: He likened mercy — though literal entry into it is not valid — to that which may be [literally] entered, using the expression accordingly. As for emphasis: He described an accident (a non-substantial attribute) in terms normally reserved for a substance; this is an exalting and elevating treatment of the accident, [used] when it is brought into the realm of what can be seen, touched, and directly perceived. Do you not see the saying of some, in encouraging good deeds: 'If you could see maʿrūf [a good deed] as a man, you would see him as handsome and beautiful'? As in the poet's words: 'I have not seen the like of maʿrūf — as for its taste, it is sweet, and as for its face, it is beautiful,' thus attributing to it a taste and a substance — something proper only to substances. Indeed, something is made desirable, drawn attention to, and magnified in worth by portraying it in the mind in its noblest state and most illustrious attributes, and that is done by choosing to represent it as an embodied person rather than as a mere accident [entry continues]