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The Spirit (ar-Ruh) الرُّوح

In review — pending scholar verification

A Quranic term used in several distinct senses — for the human soul, for revelation, for the angel Jibril, and for an angelic being mentioned alongside the angels at moments of cosmic significance.

Overview

Ar-Rūḥ (Arabic: الرُّوح) is one of the Quran's most multilayered terms. It is used in several distinct senses:

  1. The human soul — the principle of life breathed into Adam (Surah Al-Hijr 15:29; As-Sajdah 32:9) and into every human (Surah Al-Mu'minun 23:14).
  2. Revelation itself — the Quran as rūḥ, divine inspiration that gives spiritual life (Surah Ash-Shūrā 42:52: "And thus We have revealed to you a Spirit by Our command").
  3. Jibril, the angel of revelation — referred to as Rūḥ al-Qudus ("the Holy Spirit") in Surah Al-Baqarah 2:87, 2:253; Al-Mā'idah 5:110; An-Nahl 16:102.
  4. An angelic being distinct from the other angels, mentioned alongside them at moments of cosmic significance — Surah An-Naba 78:38; Al-Qadr 97:4; Al-Maʿārij 70:4. Classical commentators (Ibn Kathir, al-Ṭabari) record several views: that this is Jibrīl in another role, or a distinct great angel, or a category of angels.

The Quran on the Spirit's nature

"And they ask you about the Rūḥ. Say: The Rūḥ is of the affair of my Lord, and you have not been given of knowledge except a little." — Surah Al-Israʾ 17:85

Classical exegetes universally interpret this verse as a divine reservation: the precise nature of the Spirit is among the realities Allah has not disclosed in detail; the believer affirms what is revealed and refrains from speculation beyond it.

Quranic references

  • Surah Al-Hijr 15:29; Sad 38:72 — Allah breathing of His Spirit into Adam.
  • Surah Al-Mu'minun 23:14 — the embryonic stages, then "We made him another creation."
  • Surah Al-Baqarah 2:87, 2:253 — Isa supported by Rūḥ al-Qudus.
  • Surah An-Nahl 16:102 — "Say: Rūḥ al-Qudus has brought it down from your Lord in truth."
  • Surah Ash-Shūrā 42:52 — revelation as rūḥ.
  • Surah Al-Qadr 97:4 — "The angels and the Rūḥ descend therein by permission of their Lord."
  • Surah An-Naba 78:38 — "The Day the Rūḥ and the angels will stand in rows."
  • Surah Al-Maʿārij 70:4 — "The angels and the Rūḥ ascend to Him in a Day."
  • Surah At-Tahrim 66:12 — Maryam, "We breathed into her of Our Spirit."
  • Surah Al-Israʾ 17:85 — divine reservation on the Spirit's nature.

Hadith

Ibn Masʿud reported the Prophet ﷺ said: "Each one of you is gathered in his mother's womb for forty days as a drop, then a clinging clot for the same period, then a chewed lump of flesh for the same period; then the angel is sent who breathes the rūḥ into him…" — Sahih al-Bukhari 3208; Sahih Muslim 2643

Significance

The polysemy of rūḥ across the Quran is intentional: revelation, the angel of revelation, the human soul, and a great unseen reality all share the term, indicating their common origin in Allah's creative command. Surah Al-Israʾ 17:85 is the canonical bound on speculation: the believer affirms what is revealed and lets the rest rest.

See also

References

  1. The Quran (Sahih International translation): Surahs Al-Baqarah 2:87, 2:253; Al-Hijr 15:29; Al-Israʾ 17:85; An-Nahl 16:102; Al-Mu'minun 23:14; As-Sajdah 32:9; Sad 38:72; Ash-Shūrā 42:52; Al-Maʿārij 70:4; An-Naba 78:38; Al-Qadr 97:4; At-Tahrim 66:12.
  2. Sahih al-Bukhari 3208; Sahih Muslim 2643.
  3. Ibn Kathir, Tafsīr, on Surah Al-Israʾ 17:85.
  4. al-Ṭabari, Jamiʿ al-Bayān, on the same verse.