About the Meaning
Allah calls Himself Al-Mutakabbir— The
Supreme, The Majestic— once in the Quran, in ayah 23 of Surah Al Hashr.
Al-Mutakabbir reveals His Greatness and power at every moment and in
every incident!
Mutakabbir comes
from the root kaf-baa-raa which points out to different
meanings. The first main meaning is to be grea; to be great in size, rank
or dignity. But also to be great in learning, most knowing. It as well points
out to actively using rights, privileges, rank and attributes that are above
and beyond the rights of everyone else. Only Allah is Al-Mutakabbir!
“Kibriya’” means greatness and
sovereignty, and it encompasses the meanings of the perfection of one’s self
and existence; nobody can be described as such except Allah. Allahu Akbar –
Allah is the Greatest - comes from the same root, as well as the Name of
Allah, Al-Kabeer.
Al-Mutakabbir is the One Who possesses
all greatness, who is above having any of the qualities of His creatures, who
cannot be harmed by the oppressors among His creation, Whose greatness and
pride are the supermost!
Allah Al-Mutakabbir
Versus the ‘mutakabbir’ People
On many places in the Quran Allah ‘azza
wajal describes people as ‘mutakabbireen’ (the arrogant). It refers to the fact
they have arrogance in their hearts and actions towards Allah ‘azza wajal by
disbelieving in His Signs. Further, they are arrogant to other people by
looking down on them. Only Allaah is al-Mutakabbir, in a positive sense.
Allah is the Supreme to whom every oppressor, tyrant or arrogant person on Earth must ultimately bow.
A lesson on how to
battle pride!
What is the opposite of kibr
(arrogance)? It is humility; the adornment of a believer.
Abu Hurayrah radiyallaahu ‘anhu narrated that the Prophet salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: “…and no one will exercise humility for Allah’s sake, except that Allah will raise him up“. [Muslim]
Abu Hurayrah radiyallaahu ‘anhu narrated that the Prophet salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam: “…and no one will exercise humility for Allah’s sake, except that Allah will raise him up“. [Muslim]
Urwah ibn Zubair radiyallaahu ‘anhu
said: ‘I saw Umar carrying a large leather water canteen on his shoulder. I
said to him, ‘Oh Amir-ul-Mu’mineen, you shouldn’t be carrying that’. Umar
replied by saying, ‘A delegation came to Medina and I saw their obedience to
me, and some ‘nakwah’ entered into my heart and I wanted to destroy it’. We
all know of the strong personality of Umar radiyallaahu ‘anhu and
yet when a small amount of pride (nakwah) entered into his heart, he
hurried in an attempt to destroy it before it destroyed him.
How Can You Live by
This Name?
1. Be great by being
humble!
The greatest strength that you can
attain is to place your reliance in Allah ‘azza wajal and seek His support. The
highest level of greatness you can attain is to show humility to your Lord.
Allah al-Mutakabbir says in Surah Maidah ayah 54, which can be translated
as: “Oh you who believe, whoever of you should revert from his
religion, Allah will bring forth a people He will love, and who will love Him,
(who are) humble towards the believers, and powerful (I’zzah) against the
disbelievers…”
2. Respect others for
the sake of Allah al-Mutakabbir
As a believers we should respect others, even though they may possess less knowledge, wealth, fame or status. Some people even look down on people because they have a different skin colour! The Prophet salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam said: “Whoever possesses an atom’s weight of ‘kibr’ will not enter into the paradise “. Muslim
Abu Bakr radiyallaahu ‘anhu said: “Let not any Muslim belittle another Muslim, for the lowest of the Muslims is great in the Sight of Allah.”
3. Remind yourself of
al-Mutakabbir to battle arrogance
Allah ‘azza wajal is the Only True King and we are His Slaves. But He is also the Most Merciful to His Slaves. Let’s not forget this. It’s easy to fall into arrogance, thinking we ‘know’ better and transgressing the limits set by Allah al -Mutakabbir. So keep checking your heart for feelings of arrogance creeping in and deal with them straight away by reminding yourself of the Greatness of Allah. Al-Hasan al-Basri said: “I wonder at the son of Adam! He uses his hand to wash himself from his waste once or twice a day, yet he seeks to compete with the All-Mighty?”
4. Be humble to
increase your knowledge
Abdullah ibn Mu’tazz radiyallahu ‘anhu said: ‘The humble student is the one who gets the most knowledge, just as the lowest places on earth collect the most water‘. So always be humble towards your teachers!
5. Ask al-Mutakabbir
to protect you
Every day ask Allah al-Mutakabbir to save you from the evil of pride!
Wallahu ta’alaa ‘alem.
O Allah,
Al-Mutakabbir, guide our hearts and actions to humility, protect us
from arrogance and looking down on others, and make us of those
who are blessed to witnessYour Grandeur in Paradise, ameen!
