the two hadiths. He did not prohibit the use of the name ‘atamah altogether; rather, he prohibited abandoning the name ‘Ishā’—the name Allah gave it (1) (2) in His Book—and allowing ‘atamah to prevail over it. Thus, if it is called ‘Ishā’ and occasionally referred to as ‘atamah, there is no harm. And Allah knows best.

In this way, he, peace and blessings be upon him, safeguarded the names Allah gave to acts of worship, so that they would not be abandoned in favour of others. Later generations, however, abandoned the wording of the scriptural texts and preferred newly coined terminology, giving rise to corruption whose extent Allah knows. Likewise, he consistently placed first what Allah placed first and placed last what He placed last. He began with al-Safā, saying: “I begin (3) with what Allah began with” (4). On Eid, he began with the prayer and then slaughtered his sacrifice, explaining that whoever slaughtered before the prayer had offered no valid ritual sacrifice (5). Thus, he gave precedence to what Allah mentioned first (6) in His words:

“So pray to your Lord and sacrifice.” [al-Kawthar: 2]

Likewise, when washing the parts of the body in ablution, he began with the face, then the hands and arms, then the head, and then the feet, placing first what Allah placed first, last what He placed last, and in between what He placed in between. He also placed zakāt al-fitr (the alms due at the end of Ramadan) before the Eid prayer, giving precedence to what Allah placed first (7) in His words:

“(13) He has certainly succeeded who purifies himself (14) and mentions the name of his Lord.” [al-A‘lā: 14]

There are many similar examples.