Al-Azhar Grand Imam, Prof. Ahmad At-Tayyeb, said that the two names Al-Muˁiz (The Honorer) and Al-Mudhill (The Dishonorer, the Humbler) are similar to such names as Al-Khāfiḍ and Ar-Rāfiˁ, which do not refer to the Divine Self, but rather to His action as they occur in the Qur’an only in the verb form. Allah Almighty says, “[O Allah,] You honor whom You will and You humble whom You will” (Qur’an, 3: 26). They also occur in the Prophetic tradition in the verb form. Al-Muˁiz and Al-Mudhill are derived from Iˁzāz (honoring) and Idhlāl (humiliating). This may happen by giving him sovereignty or taking it from him in accordance with Allah’s saying: “[O Allah,] You give sovereignty to whom You will and You take sovereignty away from whom You will” (Qur’an, 3: 26). However, this is not the only meaning, for honoring a person or humiliating him may happen by giving him wealth or making him poor, or by giving him authority or withdrawing it from him. His Eminence added that most scholars see that honor is in being ascetic in this world, and this is the pinnacle of honor for the servant, for asceticism is a higher rank than just ignoring money.

During the twenty-fifth episode of his Ramadan program Grand Imam At-Tayyeb Talk, His Eminence indicated that the more ascetic the person in this world, the more honorable he becomes. Therefore, all Prophets (pbut) were known for their asceticism. Concerning asceticism, Imam Al-Shāfiˁī said these lines of poetry:

Is it possible that a day will come

When I find nothing to eat?

And when I die,

Is it possible that I will have no grave?

My will is as strong as that of kings,

And my soul is a free soul

That sees humiliation as blasphemy.

His words summarize the state of asceticism and its honor, for true honor consists in dispensing with creation and the adornment of the worldly life. His Eminence stressed that asceticism does not contradict the necessity of seeking the means to a livelihood. All we need to do is to adopt the means to earn a livelihood, and then wait for sustenance from Allah Almighty, and we have to be content with the sustenance that Allah Almighty provides for us, for the sustenance is not necessarily an inevitable result of what you did.

Al-Azhar Grand Imam has shown that the relationship between the cause and effect is only a relationship of contiguity. Very often, the mind is deceived because of the senses, thinking that whenever the cause and effect are found, the result is inevitable. In fact, this is not true in terms of intellect; but in terms of the senses, they are just contiguous. For this reason, those who do not believe in this concept, cannot believe in the miracle of Prophet Abraham who was not burnt when he was thrown into the fire. The atheists, for example, whose source of knowledge depends on the senses, do not believe in such miracles because they deny all that cannot be realized by the senses. His Eminence added that the only One who is able to stop the burning of a combustible material when it touches fire is Allah, Exalted be He. He is the only One who can stop fire’s nature of burning. In fact, Allah Almighty is the only One in this universe who is able to do everything.

His Eminence concluded by saying that the Noble Qur’an confirms that the meaning of Al-Muˁiz (The Honorer) is closely related to asceticism. Addressing His Messenger in the Qur’an, Allah Almighty says, “Do not look wishfully at what We have given some of them to enjoy the finery of the present life. We test them through it” (Qur’an, 20: 130). This verse includes a warning against looking at the manifestations of wealth, because refraining from coveting what people possess adorns a person with honor.

The Grand Imam stressed that asceticism does not mean being lazy or abstaining from work. True asceticism means that you own things rather than things owning you. It means that when you seek honor, you seek it from none but Allah, for Allah loves the believer who has dignity, not the one who abases himself. A believer’s share of the name Al-Muˁiz (The Honorer) is to seek honor from Allah by obeying Him, Glory be to Him, and not to humiliate himself by disobeying Allah, for humiliation consists in being one of those whom Allah is angry with.