The Chosen Names

Many of us have grown up glorifying these names, loving these names and pledging allegiance to these names in one form or another. In fact, many of these names have become our names and our children's names. But who are these divine individuals and why are their names such powerful reminders? The Chosen Names is a poetic exploration of sixteen unassailable personalities from the Household of Mohammed, from the Prophet himself to the awaited Saviour. It is an etymological deep dive into the virtues and divine characteristics of a progeny that is like no other in human history. Each name tells a story, a wound, a revelation and a prophecy that can be a book in itself but my job as a poet has been to distill their meaning and sentiment into beautiful verses of poetry that can act as reminders for us all. Most of these personalities have more titles and names than what it is included in this book of poetry and certainly there are other personalities from the extended household that could have been explored in a similar light but I have personally selected the sixteen that have helped inspire my poetic journey from a fledgling poet to one that has become obsessed with each letter of their names.