The reason why ‘in the name of your Rabb’ comes immediately after the command ‘READ’ signifies that this ‘reading’ needs to be done with the supremacy of the compositional qualities denoted by the Names comprising existence (Rububiyyah).

That is, the kind of reading that’s required isn’t from the level of Uluhiyyah or Rahmaniyyah (the quantum potential), but from the level of Rububiyyah.

If it said ‘Bismillah’ after saying ‘read,’ then it would have necessitated the reading happens from the level of Uluhiyyah. Whereas, because the supremacy of Uluhiyyah encompasses the Absolute Essence (dhat), it's impossible to read from this level.

The Rasul of Allah (saw) says, “Do not contemplate upon the Absolute Essence (dhat) of Allah!” to indicate this truth.

It's not possible to read from the level of Rahmaniyyah either, for this is the level at which the Sublime Essence knows Himself with all of His attributes; man’s capacity is insufficient to do so.

As Muhammad (saw) used to pray during the night (tahajjud):

“It’s not possible for me to evaluate and praise You the way You know and evaluate Your self!”

One may ask:

Based on the truth, ‘Rahman created Adam upon his own image,’ if man has been created upon the reality of Rahman, then why can’t man read upon Rahmaniyyah?

It's quite natural for Rahman to have created Adam upon His own image because there is no other existence besides Himself upon which He can create Adam! Obviously, He’s going to create him upon His own attributes!

But, let us not forget that man is essentially a hominid who has been given the good news of being created with the Names of Allah, and thus with grace.

Indeed, His grace has succeeded His wrath!

All states that man has encountered or is to encounter, even if it seems contradictory to him and gives him pain, is upon grace, including the state of hell.

However, the fact that he’s created with grace and upon the Rahman reality does not necessarily mean that a ‘hominid’ or ‘human’ can read upon Rahmaniyyah…

For, though he may be created upon the reality of Rahman, his manifestation is at the level of Rububiyyah as an individual composition of the Names in the dimension of multiplicity…

The dimension of Rububiyyah is the level at which the meanings of the Names of Allah become manifest as infinite compositions… The world of acts (af’al), which comprises the world of forms, including the jinn, angels and humans, derives its existence from the level of Rububiyyah…

The level of Rububiyyah is the level where the Rabbani forces are activated and differentiated from one another. This is the dimension of multiplicity…

It is the area under the Throne!

The area above the Throne is completely abstract, the dimension of Jabarut!

We can also call the dimensional area under the Throne ‘universe’ in the absolute sense, not the universe of humans we talk about today!

All countless living conscious beings outside our perception can be categorized generally as humans, jinn and angels.

But what is of concern to us is the first and the third…

Why are angels important?

Notice that Amantu begins with “Amantu billahi wa malaikatuhu”… Why is faith in angels mentioned before faith in the Book and the Rasul?

The essence and origin of every object comprising the universe is angelic.

Everything that is perceivable and unperceivable to us in the universe is formed with this angelic fabric. They are ‘Nur’ or compositions of Names. Thus, they’re conscious and powerful as necessitated by their form and dimension.

Everything that exists in the universe is a composition of consciousness + energy.

These innumerous beings called angels comprising the universe and all qualities pertaining to them composes the dimension we call the world of acts…

The primary source of power that drives all actions in this dimension is no other than the qualities pertaining to the supremacy of Rububiyyah…

This being the case, one can only read the universal system that manifests these infinite meanings depending on the Rabbani capacity of the person, which is again activated by the Rabbani power of the person.

Muhammad (saw) got to know the system and order of his Rabb by reading the book of the universal system with the power that was revealed to him, as he was asked to.

This act of reading terrified him, he was awed by what he read and thus he felt the need to cover what he knew, so he covered himself… But after a period of internalizing these truths, he had to share it with the people:

 

“O wrapped one (Muddathir); arise and warn![1]

 

And thus he began to warn the people…

I guess by now it has become evident that reading has nothing to do with our classical understanding of literal reading…

 

To READ is to read the secrets of the universal book of the system comprising the qualities of the dimension of Rububiyyah with insight, foresight and introspection!