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قQuranicpediaEncyclopedia of the Glorious Qur’an

Lord (Rabb) الرَّبّ

In review — pending scholar verification

A central name of Allah — denoting Lord, Master, Sustainer, and Owner — used in the very first verse of the Quran (Rabb al-ʿalamīn) and across more than 900 verses.

Overview

Ar-Rabb (Arabic: الرَّبّ; "Lord, Master, Sustainer") is one of the most central names of Allah. It appears in the second verse of the Quran — Surah Al-Fatihah 1:2: "All praise belongs to Allah, Rabb al-ʿālamīn" ("Lord of all the worlds") — and is used over 900 times across the Quran. The Arabic rabb conveys the integrated meanings of Master, Owner, Educator-Cultivator, Sustainer, and One-who-perfects.

It is the first dimension of Tawhid al-Rububiyyah — Oneness of Lordship: that Allah alone creates, sustains, gives life and death, and disposes of all affairs. Even the polytheists of Mecca affirmed this dimension — Surah Yunus 10:31, Surah Az-Zumar 39:38 — making it the natural starting point of Islamic theology.

Quranic references

  • Surah Al-Fatihah 1:2 — "Praise belongs to Allah, Lord of the worlds."
  • Surah An-Naba 78:36–37 — "As reward from your Lord, an account computed — Lord of the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them, the Most Merciful…"
  • Surah Yunus 10:31 — polytheists' acknowledgement of Allah as Rabb.
  • Surah Az-Zumar 39:38 — same.
  • Surah Aal Imran 3:191 — believers' invocation: "Our Lord, You did not create this aimlessly."
  • Surah Al-Fatihah 1:5 — "You alone we worship, and You alone we ask for help" — addressed to ar-Rabb.

See also

References

  1. The Quran: Surahs Al-Fatihah 1:2, 1:5; Aal Imran 3:191; Yunus 10:31; Az-Zumar 39:38; An-Naba 78:36–37.
  2. Ibn Kathir, Tafsīr, on Surah Al-Fatihah.
  3. Ibn al-Qayyim, Madārij as-Sālikīn, sections on the divine names.