Al-Qarib

The Ever Near

Exalted and Glorious

When my slaves ask you (Oh Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) concerning Me, then answer them, I am indeed Near to them by My Knowledge.  I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me.  (2:186)

He brought you forth from the earth and settled you therein.  Then ask forgiveness of Him and turn to Him is repentance.  Certainly, my Lord is Near, Responsive.  (11:61)

Say: “If I go astray, I shall stray only to my own loss.  But if I remain guided, it is because of the Revelation of my Lord to me.  Truly, He is All-Hearer, Ever Near to all things.”  (34:50)

The meaning of this name of the 99 names of Allah is that He is near at hand.  We need no mediator between Allah and us.  He is so near to every bondsman that we can invoke Him and place our requests before Him wherever we may be.  So much so that He hears and answers those requests, which are not expressed in words, but are made only in the innermost heart.  He who recites this name 101 times will draw nearer to Allah.

Allah Allah Allah

From: The Meanings of the Names of Our Lord by Shaykh Muhammad Sa’id al-Jamal ar-Rifa’i Head of the Higher Sufi Council in Jerusalem and the Holy Land Teacher at the Dome of the Rock (al-Aqsa)