Lets understand this verse in two parts: Ar-Rabb and ‘Aalameen
- Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) chose the name Rabb to begin the Quran with.
- It was reported that Ar-Rabb is the greatest name of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala).
Linguistic meaning of Rabb:
Linguistically Rabb means the master or the one who has the authority to lead. Hence if we are to translate Rabb to one word, the closest translation is master. But actually Rabb is the one that has the following qualities:
Al-Malik
Al-Malik translates to the owner. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is our ultimate owner and this ultimate ownership is unconditional i.e. it is created and not transferred. Human ownerships are all conditional and transferred to humans in some form. Since Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) created everything he is the only ultimate owner, the only Rabb.
Understanding of the name Rabb:
The name Rabb says Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is the owner.
Al-Sayyid
Al-Sayyid translates to the one who is in-charge. It is different from Al-Malik because the one who is the owner may not necessarily be the one who is in-charge.
Understanding of the name Rabb (combining the previous ones):
Rabb is the owner who has full authority over his property.
Al-Murabbi
Al-Murabbi translates to the one who takes care. Al-Murabbi is someone who takes care and ensures that it constantly improves. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) grows us in knowledge, in tarbiyah etc. This is important because generally the one who is in-charge may not necessarily take care of his property.
Understanding of the name Rabb (combining the previous ones):
Rabb is the owner, who is in-charge and takes care of his property.
Al-Qayyim
Al-Qayyim is someone who maintains i.e. who makes sure that things remain intact. Without Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) being Al-Qayyim we humans cannot even stand in one place because our bodies couldn’t remain intact.
This also highlights the fact that we are never independent. We are always in need of a Rabb.
Understanding of the name Rabb (combining the previous ones):
Rabb is the owner who has full authority over his property. He is the one who takes care of, the one who nourishes, the one who sustains.
Al-Mun’im
Muni’m translates to the giver of gifts. Anything that Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) gives is a gift. We have neither earned it nor are entitled to it. A gift is not something we deserve. It is something we do not deserve and it is also something we cannot complain about.
Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is the most generous giver of gifts. All his gifts are priceless. To understand this, consider your fingers or a leg and try to put a price on it.
Understanding of the name Rabb (combining the previous ones):
Hence, Rabb is the owner who has full authority over his property, the one who takes care of and ensures development and growth, the one who holds together, the most generous giver of gifts.
Finding true freedom through submission to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala):
Human beings have an innate quality where they hate authority. Human beings hate it when they are told what to do. For example, we hate our teachers when they give homework, we hate our bosses because they give work etc. Human beings desire freedom. But when humans get freedom they get enslaved to other things like reputation, money, throwing parties, social groups etc. So, what appears freedom is actually slavery to something else. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is truly granting us freedom from all these things. If a human becomes a slave of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) then he isn’t enslaved to anything else.
Often slavery to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is misunderstood as worship to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). But doesn’t worship happen at fixed times and a slave remains a slave at all times i.e. 24×7?
The point to understand here is that we need to submit ourselves to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) as slaves. This will grant us freedom from everything else. We will also realize the purpose of worship which is to actually remind ourselves every few hours that we are slaves of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). If we internalize this, we will experience the sweetness of worship.