Name 82 of 99
الْعَفُوُّ
Al-'Afuww – The Pardoner, the Effacer of sins
- Transliteration
- Al-'Afuww
- Meaning
- The Pardoner, the Effacer of sins
- Arabic root
- ع ف و
- Theme
- Forgiveness
Meaning of Al-'Afuww
Al-'Afuww is the One who pardons and wipes away sins completely, as though they never happened. Scholars describe 'afw as going beyond forgiveness, since it erases the trace of the sin. This name is well known through the dua the Prophet taught for Laylat al-Qadr: "O Allah, You are Pardoning and love to pardon, so pardon me" (Sunan Ibn Majah 3850; Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3513).
Al-'Afuww in the Quran
Al-'Afuww appears in the Quran as a name or description of Allah. Two of the verses where it occurs:
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَقْرَبُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَأَنتُمْ سُكَٰرَىٰ حَتَّىٰ تَعْلَمُوا۟ مَا تَقُولُونَ وَلَا جُنُبًا إِلَّا عَابِرِى سَبِيلٍ حَتَّىٰ تَغْتَسِلُوا۟ ۚ وَإِن كُنتُم مَّرْضَىٰٓ أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ أَوْ جَآءَ أَحَدٌۭ مِّنكُم مِّنَ ٱلْغَآئِطِ أَوْ لَٰمَسْتُمُ ٱلنِّسَآءَ فَلَمْ تَجِدُوا۟ مَآءًۭ فَتَيَمَّمُوا۟ صَعِيدًۭا طَيِّبًۭا فَٱمْسَحُوا۟ بِوُجُوهِكُمْ وَأَيْدِيكُمْ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَفُوًّا غَفُورًا
O ye who believe! Draw not near unto prayer when ye are drunken, till ye know that which ye utter, nor when ye are polluted, save when journeying upon the road, till ye have bathed. And if ye be ill, or on a journey, or one of you cometh from the closet, or ye have touched women, and ye find not water, then go to high clean soil and rub your faces and your hands (therewith). Lo! Allah is Benign, Forgiving.
۞ ذَٰلِكَ وَمَنْ عَاقَبَ بِمِثْلِ مَا عُوقِبَ بِهِۦ ثُمَّ بُغِىَ عَلَيْهِ لَيَنصُرَنَّهُ ٱللَّهُ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَعَفُوٌّ غَفُورٌۭ
That (is so). And whoso hath retaliated with the like of that which he was made to suffer and then hath (again) been wronged, Allah will succour him. Lo! Allah verily is Mild, Forgiving.
Reflection
Pardoning people who wronged us is a way of hoping for Allah's pardon.
Related names: forgiveness
Frequently asked questions
What does Al-'Afuww mean?
Al-'Afuww (الْعَفُوُّ) means "The Pardoner, the Effacer of sins". Al-'Afuww is the One who pardons and wipes away sins completely, as though they never happened. Scholars describe 'afw as going beyond forgiveness, since it erases the trace of the sin. This name is well known through the dua the Prophet taught for Laylat al-Qadr: "O Allah, You are Pardoning and love to pardon, so pardon me" (Sunan Ibn Majah 3850; Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3513).
Is Al-'Afuww mentioned in the Quran?
Yes. Al-'Afuww is mentioned as a name or description of Allah in Surah An-Nisa 4:43 and Surah Al-Hajj 22:60.
The list of 99 names follows the order of the narration in Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3507, without the name “Allah”, and adds Al-Ahad from Sunan Ibn Majah 3861. The hadith that Allah has ninety-nine names is in Sahih al-Bukhari 2736 and Sahih Muslim 2677. Quran text: Tanzil (Uthmani); translation: Marmaduke Pickthall (1930, public domain).