1.4 How to Understand the Meaning of al-ʿĀlamīn (الْعَالَمِين)

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

All praise is due to Allah, the Most High and Most Glorious, and endless blessings be upon our Seal of the Prophets, Muḥammad ﷺ. May Allah be pleased with all of his noble Companions.

Understanding الْعَالَمِين and رَبِّ الْعَالَمِين

Today the topic we want to share is: understanding الْعَالَمِين (al-ʿālamīn), focusing mainly on analysing رَبِّ الْعَالَمِين (Lord of all the worlds), which is mentioned 41 times in the Qur’an.

As for الْعَالَمِين, translated as “all the worlds,” it is the plural of عَالَم (ʿālam). Scholars explain it as the whole universe and everything in it apart from Allah, the Most High and the Most Great. ʿĀlam means “world,” and it is derived from العَلامَة (ʿalāmah), which means “sign.” Scholars understand this as: the world is a sign of the existence and oneness of the Creator. From the perspective of Arabic, العَلامَة itself is a plural and has no singular form, so its other plural عوالم (ʿawālim), explained linguistically, refers to all created beings in the heavens, on land, and in the seas. Each century and each era is called a ʿalāmah. Regarding this ʿalāmah, scholars differ over what it specifically refers to. Some scholars believe it refers only to those who have intellect and reason, such as human beings, jinn, angels, devils, and so on. Other scholars, however, believe that it refers to the entire universe, including everything in this world and the Hereafter that Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, has created.

To have a clear understanding of the word الْعَالَمِين, we need to understand it together with the verse from Sūrat al-Fātiḥah: “All praise is for Allah—Lord of all the worlds” — رَبِّ الْعَالَمِين.

The Qur’an mentions “Lord of all the worlds” a total of 41 times. This secret must be reflected upon in order to have a slightly more complete understanding of what “all the worlds” is, what it includes, and to understand that our Nurturing Lord created all the worlds. We must clearly understand “all the worlds,” because all the worlds are His manifestations and signs, proving His existence and His oneness.

Rabb: The Creator, Decree, and Testimony of the Worlds

Before recognising the worlds, we recognise our رَبّ (Rabb)—our Nurturing Lord. When we speak of the Nurturing Lord, we must immediately understand that He is the Creator of all the worlds, so we need to look at what He has created. Second, how does the Nurturing Lord create? He creates these worlds with truth, in accordance with His decree, which includes cause-and-effect recompense and reward-and-punishment for good and evil. Furthermore, He is the Lord of all the worlds, and the worlds must testify to His oneness—this includes the testimony of knowledge and the testimony of worship in action. So the created worlds are all worshipping Him, and through this He is affirmed to be the True God.

We can understand “all the worlds” الْعَالَمِين from three aspects.

First: He is the Creator of all the worlds; we look at what He created in order to know Him. In Sūrat Fuṣṣilat, He clearly tells us that He created the earth and the heavens in six days—He used four days to create the earth, and two days to create the heavens and what they contain. In the last verse of Sūrat at-Ṭalāq, He tells us:

{اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ وَمِنَ الأَرْضِ مِثْلَهُنَّ يَتَنَزَّلُ الأَمْرُ بَيْنَهُنَّ لِتَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ أَحَاطَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عِلْمًا} [الطلاق:12]

12. Allah is the One Who created seven heavens ˹in layers˺, and likewise for the earth. The ˹divine˺ command descends between them so you may know that Allah is Most Capable of everything and that Allah certainly encompasses all things in ˹His˺ knowledge (Translation: Dr. Mustafa Khattab, The Clear Quran).

From these verses we know that He created the heavens and the earth. The heavens and the earth are specifically divided into seven heavens and seven earths, which together add up to fourteen. Let us keep this number here.

The Earth: Blessing and Provision

The Creator created the heavens and the earth with truth. In verse 10 of Sūrat Fuṣṣilat, we can read:

{وَجَعَلَ فِيهَا رَوَاسِيَ مِن فَوْقِهَا وَبَارَكَ فِيهَا وَقَدَّرَ فِيهَا أَقْوَاتَهَا فِي أَرْبَعَةِ أَيَّامٍ سَوَاء لِّلسَّائِلِين} [فصلت:10]

10. He placed on the earth firm mountains, standing high, showered His blessings upon it, and ordained ˹all˺ its means of sustenance—totaling four Days exactly1—for all who ask (Translation: Dr. Mustafa Khattab, The Clear Quran).

After He created the earth, He blessed it and determined the provisions for all living beings on it, which shows that within the earth He has apportioned His creation and decree.

The Heavens: Mandates and Decree

When speaking of His creating the seven heavens in two days, He says:

{فَقَضَاهُنَّ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ فِي يَوْمَيْنِ وَأَوْحَى فِي كُلِّ سَمَاء أَمْرَهَا وَزَيَّنَّا السَّمَاء الدُّنْيَا بِمَصَابِيحَ وَحِفْظًا ذَلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيم} [فصلت:12]

12. So He formed the heaven into seven heavens in two Days, assigning to each its mandate. And We adorned the lowest heaven with ˹stars like˺ lamps ˹for beauty˺ and for protection. That is the design of the Almighty, All-Knowing (Translation: Dr. Mustafa Khattab, The Clear Quran).

In this verse, it explicitly says “That is the decree of the Almighty.” Everything in this world is being governed by His decreed laws.

Aspect Two: Recompense and Final Destinations

When His detailed decrees become manifest, they involve responsibility, cause-and-effect recompense, and reward-and-punishment for good and evil. Human beings and jinn are specifically chosen to freely seek the blessings contained within this decree; for example, they can seek the general mercy of this world, and they can also seek the special mercy of the Hereafter. But if they follow their own desires and do not accept guidance, they will only be subject to the limits of cause-and-effect and good-and-evil recompense in this world, and will not consider the good-and-evil recompense of the Hereafter. Yet this worldly life is going to vanish, while the Hereafter is what is eternal and everlasting. On the Day of Recompense in the Hereafter, the Lord will judge all the worlds and bring them to their final destination. All creation—especially human beings and jinn in the Hereafter—will then manifest their destination: the seven levels of Hell, the eight levels of Paradise, and the Heights (al-Aʿrāf) between Hell and Paradise. These 16 realities will become apparent. From this we know that الْعَالَمِين, “all the worlds,” includes the past, the present, and the future. As for الْعَالَمِين, “all the worlds,” it has a final destination. When speaking about this aspect, some scholars believe it refers only to created beings with intellect and responsibility, and does not include animals that are not morally accountable. So here again we see a number: seven levels of Hell + eight levels of Paradise + the Heights = 16, and we keep this number here.

Aspect Three: Worship and Categories of Creation

We must also understand that the Lord of all the worlds created them with truth, so this necessarily involves the responsibilities that come with His Lordship. Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, tells us through our Messenger ﷺ in the Qur’an that if we worship Him and do not associate partners with Him, He will not punish us. This, of course, includes the true faith He has given us, and the content of His true religion. How do we understand who is worshipping Him, who is responsible and who is not? Whether they are responsible or not, all must worship Him. There are two major categories: one category worships Him without having to make a choice; the other category—jinn and human beings—are given the freedom to choose whether or not to worship the Creator and Nurturing Lord. At this point, we must classify all created beings in detail. Each one proves that it is worshipping the Creator, praising Him as God, as One without partner. All words of praise praise Him as God without partner, such as:

سُبْحَانَ اللَّهِ، وَالْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ، وَلَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ، وَاللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ

Glorified is Allah, and all praise is for Allah. There is no deity except Allah, and Allah is the Greatest.

All these words of praise are praising Him by His noble Name Allah.

Let us first look at, among all the worlds He created, which created beings are glorifying and worshipping Him.

The Eleven Categories of الْعَالَمِين

First, in the material world there are three major categories: the world of animals, the world of plants, and the non-living entities—wind, fire, water, earth, electricity, and magnetic fields. All three of these categories are glorifying Him; this can be read in Sūrat al-Isrā’.

Then there is the world of spirits, the spiritual world: the jinn, the youths and maidens of Paradise who are a reward for humans in the Hereafter, and the angels. These three categories are all subtle spiritual beings. Only the jinn can choose whether or not to accept guidance and to praise and worship their Nurturing Lord, whereas the other two categories do so willingly and naturally.

Then there is the unseen world, with four major categories: the heavenly Pen and Tablet that record the decreed matters; the Scale and the Bridge, which will be brought forth at the time of reckoning; Hell, Paradise, and the Heights; and the Throne and the celestial realm. These four categories of the unseen world are perfectly glorifying their Nurturing Lord, Creator, and the True God of all the worlds.

These ten categories, together with human beings—who are themselves chosen to be the most noble of creation, but if they ultimately fail to worship the Lord, they become the lowest of creation—together form eleven categories. All eleven are glorifying Him. Among human beings in this world, some choose not to glorify Him, so they will testify in the Fire of the Hereafter that the True God has no partner; the same applies to the jinn. These eleven categories were created to bear witness: to testify that His Essence is real, and that His many attributes, noble Names, and virtues cannot be associated with any partner. This manifests His divinity. From this angle, we then understand رَبِّ الْعَالَمِين (Lord of all the worlds). So الْعَالَمِين, all the worlds, consists of eleven major categories.

The 41 Mentions: 14 + 16 + 11

Now we add the three numbers: Seven heavens + seven earths = 14. Then, as the One who owns sovereignty, the Most High and the Most Great gives all the worlds cause-and-effect recompense and their final eternal destination. The existence of all the worlds—eight levels of Paradise + seven levels of Hell + one Heights = 16; and then we add the last 11 categories that testify that the God of all the worlds is One without partner, all of them glorifying Him. Those that did not glorify Him will, after the reckoning in the Hereafter, also come to affirm and bear witness—for example those called العبيد (slaves), who will bear witness in the Fire. Now we add: 14 + 16 + 11 = 41. Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, in 41 verses of the Qur’an, mentions that He is the Nurturing Lord of all the worlds. So by understanding الْعَالَمِين from these three aspects, we gain a more complete understanding of the different scholarly views about “all the worlds.”

The Eight Syllables and the Eight Meanings

Now, combining this with الْعَالَمِين: when reciting the Qur’an, this word has eight syllables in its recitation. Now we read these eight contained meanings in order to understand “all the worlds.” Previously we mentioned that الْعَالَمِين is the plural of ʿālam, and ʿālam, meaning “world,” is derived from ʿalāmah, meaning “sign.” It is a derivative. Scholars understand that the worlds, as signs, are signs of the Creator and of His unique existence. That is to say, the worlds, in their very existence as creation, are signs of Allah, the Most High and the Most Great; they serve as specific signs that testify to His reality and His oneness.

So contained within this is the science of recognising the Lord (ʿilm at-taʿrīf bi-r-Rabb): to know that Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, created all these worlds. From them we can know what belongs to Him that is not created.

Eight Aspects of Recognising the Lord

First, we know His speech: the verses in His speech set out signs, and the specific signs are His creation. This speech itself comes from the guidance He gives us, so the Qur’an is uncreated; it belongs to Him as His speech. Only when specific signs are expressed can they prove that He possesses this inner attribute of speech.

Second, He possesses a spirit (rūḥ) that belongs to Him. The Qur’an mentions many times that He created the first human, Adam (peace be upon him), and breathed into him a spirit from Him, so that humans can know Him and seek the eternal Hereafter in order to witness Him. Adam (peace be upon him) is a sign testifying that Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, possesses a spirit that belongs to Him—ever-living, self-sufficient, and One. So creation, as the existence of all the worlds, is witnessing that the Nurturing Lord possesses His spirit.

Third, we all know that Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, is the King and Controller of all the worlds. In His control there is His command (amr) and the laws He sets for all the worlds. His command is uncreated and belongs to Him. How is His command carried out? It must be followed in seeking good. At this point, created beings—as the existence of all the worlds—bear witness that He possesses His command and that He is free (in will), and that only by obeying Him can beings have relative freedom in the Hereafter.

Fourth, as the Nurturing Lord, He has His will and permission (idh’n). His will must be obeyed. He created all kinds of ease and difficulty, blessings and trials, all so that the created worlds—and particularly the humans and jinn, who have the power of choice—will obey His will in seeking the eternal reward of good. When a person, in order to seek blessings in this world and the Hereafter, manifests obedience to His will, that person becomes a sign clearly proving that the will of Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, must be followed; otherwise that person will have no good outcome. From this we can see that the existence of all the worlds is bearing witness that Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, possesses His free will.

Fifth, the Nurturing Lord tells us in the Qur’an that He is All-Knowing, which shows that He possesses knowledge; He also tells us that He is All-Powerful, possessing His power, His free ability to act, and that He comprehensively possesses knowledge and wisdom. He also grants creation the opportunity to seek good. He is the Lord of all virtue and great goodness, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful; He possesses all noble attributes. How do all created beings know that our Nurturing Lord possesses complete knowledge and wisdom? By observing His perfect creation. And how do they know that He is Mighty and All-Powerful? By recognising these signs in His creation. How do they know that He is complete in goodness and virtue? Through His signs as well. All these created worlds become clear proofs by which we can witness that He possesses these three aspects.

Combining these three with the four mentioned before, we now have seven.

And there is yet an eighth: the existence of all the worlds in the Hereafter will testify that we can obtain His pleasure and see Him. He possesses the attribute of being seen; nothing resembles Him, yet He can allow His servants to see Him and thereby grant them the highest joy as a reward. The fact that He can be seen belongs to Him; He is absolutely eternal and uncreated. But the created worlds that seek His pleasure become part of the entire world bearing witness that this is real—serving as proof that He can let us see Him in reality. These eight aspects comprise the science of recognising the Lord. Through this knowledge of the Lord, we again understand the meaning contained in “all the worlds” الْعَالَمِين.

Recitation, Reflection, and Closing

Therefore, every time we recite this word with its eight syllables, we should remember that one of the important meanings of the Qur’an is that it must be recited. Through recitation we obtain reward, as the Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ told us: for each letter, ten rewards. Of course, there are many modes of recitation—slow recitation, or reciting with beautiful melody that inspires reflection. Whenever we listen to others reciting or recite ourselves, we can reflect on the many worlds that Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, has created, and how all these things are bearing witness to these eight inner meanings belonging to Him. We then say with praise and gratitude: الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِين — All praise is for Allah, Lord of all the worlds.

We will end our sharing here today. For any slips of the tongue or unclear explanations, I ask Allah, the Most High and the Most Great, for forgiveness, and I ask the members of the group for your understanding. Thank you all for sharing!

السلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته

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