الهادي
al-Hādī
Topic
A divine name meaning the ultimate Guide to truth and value.
What it means
Al-Hādī is one of the ninety-nine names of God. It means the One Who guides. The Quran uses the term of Him: “Your Lord suffices as a guide and helper” (25:31), and “God is the guide of those who believe to a straight path” (22:54). Every human guide who points to the truth does so by what God has revealed.
The name is the basis of the believer’s daily request in the Fātiḥa: “Guide us to the straight path” (1:6). Faruqi calls God the ultimate Guide to truth and value, which means that He gives the revelation and the capacity to receive it. People are named ʿAbd al-Hādī, “servant of the Guide”. Many Muslims recall the name when they seek direction in a decision.
Often misunderstood as
Rendered “the Leader”, which suggests command; the name speaks of God showing the way and granting the ability to follow it.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 47, listed as AL HĀDĪ. The definition is restated here.