Ar-Raqib (الرَّقِيْبُ) means The Watchful. It is name 43 in the well-known list of the 99 Names of Allah. Ar-Raqīb watches over everything at every moment. Ihsan, the highest level of faith, is to worship Allah as if you see Him, knowing He sees you.
The root and its meaning
Ar-Raqib comes from the Arabic root ر ق ب (r-q-b), which carries the sense of watching closely.
Where it is in the Quran
Ar-Raqīb comes three times in the Quran.
Surah An-Nisaa 4:1
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ ٱتَّقُوا۟ رَبَّكُمُ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَكُم مِّن نَّفْسٍۢ وَٰحِدَةٍۢ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًۭا كَثِيرًۭا وَنِسَآءًۭ ۚ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ٱلَّذِى تَسَآءَلُونَ بِهِۦ وَٱلْأَرْحَامَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًۭا
Yaaa aiyuhan naasut taqoo Rabbakumul lazee khalaqakum min nafsinw waahidatinw wa khalaqa minhaa zawjahaa wa bas sa minhumaa rijaalan kaseeranw wa nisaaa'aa; wattaqul laahallazee tasaaa 'aloona bihee wal arhaam; innal laaha kaana 'alaikum Raqeeba
O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. And fear Allah, through whom you ask one another, and the wombs. Indeed Allah is ever, over you, an Observer.
Quran 4:1. Arabic: Uthmani text (Tanzil). English: Sahih International.
Surah Al-Ahzaab 33:52
لَّا يَحِلُّ لَكَ ٱلنِّسَآءُ مِنۢ بَعْدُ وَلَآ أَن تَبَدَّلَ بِهِنَّ مِنْ أَزْوَٰجٍۢ وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ حُسْنُهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا مَلَكَتْ يَمِينُكَ ۗ وَكَانَ ٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍۢ رَّقِيبًۭا
Laa yahillu lakan nisaaa'u mim ba'du wa laaa an tabaddala bihinna min azwaajinw wa law ajabaka husnuhunna illaa maa malakat yameenukk; wa kaanal laahu 'alaa kulli shai'ir Raqeeba
Not lawful to you, [O Muhammad], are [any additional] women after [this], nor [is it] for you to exchange them for [other] wives, even if their beauty were to please you, except what your right hand possesses. And ever is Allah, over all things, an Observer.
Quran 33:52. Arabic: Uthmani text (Tanzil). English: Sahih International.
Calling on Allah by this Name
Allah says: "And to Allah belong the best names, so invoke Him by them" (7:180). Begin your dua with يَا رَقِيْبُ (Yā Raqīb) and ask for what fits its meaning. For example: "Yā Raqīb, make me remember that You see me."
Ihsan is to worship Allah as if you see Him, and if you do not see Him, He sees you.
Sahih al-Bukhari 50; Sahih Muslim 8
- Quran 4:1, translation by Sahih International.
- Quran 33:52, translation by Sahih International.
- Sahih al-Bukhari 50; Sahih Muslim 8.
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