Abraham's Lifestyle

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Extract below is from Chapter 2 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir, on a reference to Abraham in the divine Book:

131. Ith qala lahu rabbuhu aslim qala aslamtu lirabbi alAAalameena
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131. When his Lord told him, "Submit", he obeyed: "I submit to the Lord of the worlds!" [Please see note 194 below]

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194. And that, in essence, was Abraham's lifestyle! It is indeed the essence of the Allah-approved Religion of Islam. Complete submission to His Will! Let us take note particularly of the Name, Allah made Abraham choose here, from among His Various Names: Rabbil aalameen. Lord of the worlds! (Please refer to Note 1:5* above to understand the comprehensive Qur'aanic meaning of the term aalameen.) Every person is a khalifa (representative) of Allah to his/her individual world, where he/she has to take his/her own decisions. It is the nature of these decisions that make or mar that person. If he/she is deluded into thinking that he/she is the lord of all he/she surveys and makes his/her decisions accordingly, then he/she is doomed. If, on the other hand, he/she realises that Allah is the real Rabb (see Note 1:4**) of his own world as well as of all other individual worlds, makes his/her decisions fearing Allah, and submits completely to the results that follow as being from Allah, he/she would be the one to get befitting reward from the Lord.

*Note 1:5: This is the dictionary meaning of the Arabic word aalameen. It is in plural: worlds, and not world. In most of the places where this word has been used in the Qur'aan, it is accompanied by the word Rabb, as in this place. But there are a few places where it isn't, as in Verses 2:47, 3:97, 6:86, 6:90, 21:107 and 29:6. A close study of these latter Verses would show that the word is used in the same sense as in the sentence, "My world is different from yours." Every individual life is one's own individual world in the sense that his/her environment, conditions of living, circle of contacts etc. are different from others'. One's own world is, in other words, one's own individual life. It is to these millions of individual worlds that the Qur'aan refers to as aalameen. Allah thus declares that He is the Rabb of every individual life. If every individual would but submit completely to His will and obey His commands as given in the Qur'aan, the Lord will surely nourish and lead the individual's life to Success and Salvation! In the phrase Rabbulaalameen, however, Aalameen would include jinns, angels, all living things (besides human) and all inanimate things in the entire universe as well. Refer in this context Moses’ reply to Pharaoh in Verses 24, 26 and 28 of Chapter 32 (Manzil V). Rabbulaalameen could as well be translated as the Lord of the Universe. 

**Note 1:4: The original Arabic word is Rabb. It is a very comprehensive word, covering the meanings of Master, Owner, Nourisher, Developer, Guide, Provider et al. For want of a befitting corresponding word in English, the word "Lord" is used, although it does not convey the same comprehensive meaning. For the purpose of this translation, therefore, "Lord" is redefined to have the comprehensive meaning of the Arabic word Rabb.

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Mohammad Shafi
Friday, the 19th of May 2017.