It is the source from which all revelation emanates directly to the hearts of the prophets. The Mother of the Book ( Umm-ul Kitab): This profoundly mystical term is used in the Quran to refer to the source of divine wisdom, and is closest to God’s unknowable essence. We can look further into some of the symbolism in the Quran to explore how feminine symbols are presented to help guide our spiritual development and integration of our souls. If we contemplate and reflect upon the Divine Names without our deeply ingrained gender bias, we may open up to understanding the feminine aspects of many of Allah’s Divine Qualities. Yet, if we recall that the feminine embodies such qualities as receptivity, subtlety, surrender, empathy, gentleness, peacefulness, healing, sharing, flowing, reconciliation, loving, tenderness, forgiveness, nurturing, patience, origin and mystery, we will see there are many other divine qualities that are feminine in nature among these are, Peace (Salaam), Faith ( Mu’min), Creator ( Khaleq), Subtle ( Lateef), Gentle ( Halim), Wise ( Hakim), Inner ( Baatin), Living ( Hayy), Bestower ( Wahhab), Loving ( Wadud), Tender ( Ra’uf), Forgiving ( Ghafur) as well as many others. It’s difficult for us to shift our habitual perspective of God as a He, or male, especially with the limitation of a gendered language like Arabic that defaults to the masculine for indeterminate gender. God is the Divine Womb that encompasses all things and from which all existence comes into being or is birthed.
This name comes from the root verb R-H-M and it means womb and this of course is a uniquely feminine quality. God’s best known, and most often used name among Muslims is Rahman. So what are examples of the Divine Feminine in Islam? We begin with the most basic and well-known divine quality of Rahmah, which is unconditional love, and is the preeminent divine quality that is accepted universally by Muslims. Islam in its original form is rich with symbolism that brings forth the feminine aspect of the Divine to help guide our knowing of God, who is without gender, yet whose qualities are manifest in existence in a symbiotic balance of both the masculine and feminine. This integration is not possible as long as our paradigm of the Divine is rooted in mostly masculine symbols, language, and meanings. Such a state cannot be attained if the feminine aspect of life is not properly integrated and honored in our selves and in society. On the human plane it is the act of realizing God’s oneness in ourselves.
It is actually a verb meaning to make one, that is, to integrate, to bring to unity that which is fragmented.
This concept of Tawheed, which is so central to Islam, does not mean a theological principle that there is one god. In Islamic terminology, this is the state of the soul at peace, Nafs Al Mutma’inah, where our inner conflicts and contradictions are resolved, our hearts are healed and we come to experience our existence as wholesome beings reflecting the Divine Unity. In its original revelation and manifestation, Islam was, and remains, a guidance system that brings the human being into balance and integrates our masculine and feminine aspects into a unified whole.