A study of the word “love” in the Qur’an

Hubb Allah fi al-Qur’an

Farid Mahally

One of the most compact, penetrating discourses on love is found in I John 4:7-21. The word is used 27 times in these verses. The central basis for men to love one another is rooted in the nature of God Himself. “God is love.” What is accepted as commonplace in Christianity is a dim reflection in the Qur’an. While “God is great” [Allahu akbar] is a statement of faith, affirmation and expression, “God is love” [Allahu muhibba] is absent from the attributes of God. Such a profound contrast between the two religions, Islam and Christianity, demands an inquiry as to why. Since Christians are known as “the people of the book” referred to in the Qur’an, it is appropriate for us to look at the Muslim holy book to seek to discern those elements of God’s character described therein. This article seeks to categorize and analyze the various Qur’anic verses that incorporate the word “love.”

The translation of Abdullah Yusuf Ali has been chosen for this study, as it is probably the most popular bi-lingual version used in English speaking countries. The side-by-side English-Arabic allows for a crosscheck on the choice of English words. The translation itself tends to be interpretive and sometimes propagandistic rather than literal so occasionally the English word “love” is used without linguistic warrant. These will be noted in the paper. The writer has included within brackets the Arabic transliteration of the words under consideration so that those acquainted with the language may note the verbal or noun form. For those who do not know Arabic, at least one can note that there are various words that are used.

As noted, Christians are referred to as “the people of the book.” While it would have been interesting to include the references from the large body of Hadith of the word love, it is outside the parameter of this study. While Muslims hold the Hadith in high esteem, there is controversy as to whether they bear equal authority with the Qur’an. Many hadith (traditions) state that God said thus and so. But since the witness is based on the report of a hearer, its authenticity is really a value judgment expressed by the integrity of the collector. Suffice it to say that another investigation could be made into the various uses in the Hadith. Bukhari lists 95 uses of love and 36 of loved. Muslim lists 22 usages of love and 4 for loved. Abu Dawud lists only 10 for love, one for loved. Malik’s Muwatta lists love 12 times and loved 4 times. Considering the substantial amount of material in their texts, even in abbreviated form, this seems rather limited. Most of these have to do with human love or love of things and only a limited number referring to God’s love. This is in distinct contrast with the Bible, which list 409 uses of love. The New Testament alone lists 223 uses.

The word love, hubb in its various grammatical forms, is used 69 times in the Qur’an. The writer has divided these into five categories:

(1) Man’s love of things.

(2) Human love.

(3) Man’s love for God.

(4) God’s love in the negative sense, i.e. “God loveth not …”

(5) God’s love for man.

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