يُصَلُّوْنَ
they pray, send blessings, praise
يُصَلُّوْنَ : they pray, send blessings, praise
#root verb: صَلَّى: to pray, supplicate, bless, praise
#of times in Qur’an: 12
Sūra al-Aḥzāb 33:43,56
إِنَّ اللَّـهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ ۚ
Indeed Allah and His angels bless the Prophet...
Our word today is very closely related to one that we’re thoroughly familiar with. The word يُصَلُّوْنَ means ‘they pray’ and that’s where the word for prayer ‘ṣalāt’ is derived from. So does that mean that Allah (swt) also performs the prayer?
Not at all, because the verb ṣallā has several meanings in the Qur’an.
Firstly it means to perform the obligatory prayer as a command from Allah. Secondly, to supplicate and do du’a, especially when the Prophet is told to supplicate (ṣalli) for the believers as his supplication is a source of peace for them. And
lastly: to praise, shower with blessings, which is what Allah (swt) does in this ayah - shower His blessings upon His beloved messenger, and commands us believers to do the same straight after:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا
O you who have faith! Invoke blessings on him and invoke Peace upon him in a worthy manner.
So does Allah send blessings on anyone else in the Qur’an? Yes, actually!
In the same Sūra al-Aḥzāb in ayah 43, and in Sūra al-Baqara, ayah 157, Allah says that He showers his blessings upon those who remember and glorify Him a lot, and those who when misfortune befalls them, they remind themselves that they belong to Him and are returning to Him:
الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُم مُّصِيبَةٌ قَالُوا إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ ﴿١٥٦﴾ أُولَٰئِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَلَوَاتٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِمْ وَرَحْمَةٌ ۖ وَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُهْتَدُونَ ﴿١٥٧﴾
—those who, when an affliction visits them, say, ‘Indeed we belong to Allah and to Him do we indeed return.’It is they who receive the blessings of their Lord and [His] mercy, and it is they who are the [rightly] guided.