You have probably heard your Muslim friend saying Subhan Allah when they see something spectacular and beautiful and wonder what it is word. What is the meaning of Subhanallah, and why are they saying it?
You have also heard Arabic singers praising Allah with their songs, and Subhanallah has been added in a few Indian songs as well.
In this blog, we will take a deeper look at the meaning of Subhan Allah, why Muslims say it, and what are the hidden benefits of saying Subhanallah.
The meaning of Subhanallah and its definition
We did our research and are unable to find the exact work for Subhanallah in English. That is because there is none, but you can translate the meaning of it.
The meaning of Subhanallah or its definition can be interpreted as Allah is perfect or Glory to Allah. However, the emotions of saying Subhanallah can be different.
When a Muslim witnesses something spectral, he is immediately stunned and says Subhanallah. The emotion of happiness and the greatness of Allah is associated with saying Subhanallah.
Example
Consider yourself landing on the Moon and seeing Earth from there. Wouldn’t it be an amazing view? If you are a Muslim, you would say Subhanallah while looking at the beauty that Allah has created.
The meaning of Subhanallah in the Quran
We have gone through several verses of the Quran and found Subhanallah as a way to glorify Allah from every defect. This can be clubbed with our statement above of praising Allah when you see something spectacular.
Here are a few references to Subhanallah from the Quran.
In Surah, At-Tur, Allah describes his blessings and orders the non-believers to repent or face the consequences. In Verse 43 of Surah At-Tur, the word Subhanallah is used in Arabic, where Allah is warning the disbelievers not to compare their gods with him and repent. The word Subhanallah is used as an instrument to praise God.
In Surah Ar-Rum, the Quran talks about the Roman defeat and how they will rise again in a short period. Allah says those who believed in our signs will rejoice on the day of judgment, and those who turned their back on us will suffer. So glorify Allah in the evening and the morning. (Surah Ar-Rum Verse 17)
The Quran talks about the importance of Subhanallah (praising God) in Surah As-Saffat Verse 139 by describing the incident with Prophet Jonah (Yunus), who was swallowed by a whale because he was kept alive because he was constantly praising Allah.
The Holy Quran asks its readers and believers to glorify Allah in several Verses, including Surah Taha Verse 130, Surah Al-Isra Verse 44, Surah An-Nur Verse 36, etc., which suggests that Allah loves being praised and glorified.
Meaning of Subhanallah in Hadiths
The Holy Prophet (PBUH) has emphasized saying severe tasbih, but a few of them are at the pinnacle. According to a Hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari 6406, The Prophet (PBUH) said, “There are two expressions which are very easy for the tongue to say, but they are very heavy in the balance and are very dear to The Beneficent (Allah), and they are, ‘Subhan Allah Al- `Azim and ‘Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi.’”
According to Ibn Majah 3879, Rabi’ah bin Ka’b Al-Aslami narrated that he used to spend the night outside the door of the Messenger of Allah (PBUH), and he used to hear the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) saying at night:
“Subhan Allahi Rabbil-‘alamin (Glory is to Allah, the Lord of the worlds),” repeating that for a while, then he said: Subhan Allahi wa bihamdihi (Glory and praise is to Allah).” —The same hadith is written in Sunan an-Nasa’i Volume 2, Book 20, Hadith 1619.
Subhan Allah can be used as a way of forgiveness, if you want to wash out all your sins, keep repeating Subnahallah. Abu Huraira narrated that Allah’s Messenger (PBUH) said, “Whoever says, ‘Subhan Allah wa bihamdihi,’ one hundred times a day, will be forgiven all his sins even if they were as much as the foam of the sea.” (Sahih al-Bukhari 6405).
The conclusion from the Quran and Hadith
We have mentioned several verses from the Quran and used various Hadiths to prove the meaning and power of saying Subhanallah. You can read the complete story of Prophet Jonas (PBUH) in the Quran, where he was kept alive for days in the belly of a whale. And the Quran clearly says that he would have been kept there till the day of judgment if he hadn’t praised God.
The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) has also instead said and repeated Subhanallah and mentioned how powerful it is. Therefore we should add this in our daily routines and make it a habit. A majority of Muslims practices saying Bismillah before starting a job or work and say Alhamdulillah at the end.
We should also add saying Subhanallah after anything that makes us happy or leaves us in bliss.
When and how to use Subhanallah in your daily life?
Subhanallah can be inserted into our daily lives whenever we are pleased by the blessings of Allah. It can be anything like rain in a hot summer or when you have glanced at a beautiful thing.
You can also recite Subhanallah after the completion of your daily prayers (Farz).
When to say Subhanallah?
Subhanallah can be used after seeing or feeling the biggest and smallest thing in the world. Its is considered the best way to thank Allah upon his creation.
Following are some of my personal experiences where I said Subhanallah.
- When I see the first light of the rising sun.
- The cool breeze of early morning
- When I see mountains and meadows which are green and have pine trees
- When I see a whale in the sea
- When someone hears the name of my firstborn (Dawood), they say Subhanallah or Mashallah.
- When I see beautiful flowers at a flower exhibition
- When gazing at the stars at night
- Others
Wrap Up
So far we have discussed the actually meaning of Subhanallah in detail. We have pulled the relevant Quranic verses and quoted Hadiths to prove our point, so you get the true meaning of it.
We believe we have covered every aspect of this topic but will keep this blog update with new information if there is any.
FAQs
Subhanalalh meaning| Defination of Subhanallah?
You wont find the literal meaning of Subhanallah in English or Urdu, because it does not exist. Subhanlalah can be defined as a feeling of praisng Allah for what he has created and is present around us.
How to pronounce Subhanallah?
The word can be broken into three steps.
- Soob
- Haan
- Allah
You have to combine the three words to make a perfect sound of Subhanallah.
What is the meaning of Subhanallah in English?
The word Subhan has hundreds of meanings in Arabic and none in English. The actual meaning of Subhanallah in English is “Glory be to Allah.”
Extended versions of Subhanallah
There are a few extended versions of Subahan mentioned and advised by our Holy Prophe (PBUH).
It is mentioned in Sunan an-Nasa’i that The Prophet (PBUH) passed by her while she was in the masjid, supplicating, then he passed by her again when it was almost midday. He said to her: “Are you still here?” She said: “Yes.” He said: “Shall I not teach you some words which you can say? Subhan Allah adada khalqihi, subhan Allah adada khalqihi, subhan Allah adada khalqihi; subhan Allah rida nafsihi, subhan Allah rida nafsihi, subhan Allah rida nafsihi; Subhan Allah zinata ‘arshihi, Subhan Allah zinata ‘arshihi, Subhan Allah zinata ‘arshihi; Subhan Allah midada Kalamatihi, Subhan Allah midada Kalamatihi, Subhan Allah midada Kalamatihi (Glory be to Allah the number of His creation, glory be to Allah the number of His creation, glory be to Allah the number of His creation; glory be to Allah as much as pleases Him, glory be to Allah as much as pleases Him, glory be to Allah as much as pleases Him; glory be to Allah the weight of His throne, glory be to Allah the weight of His throne, glory be to Allah the weight of His throne; glory be to Allah the number of His words, glory be to Allah the number of His words, glory be to Allah the number of His words).’ (Sunan an-Nasa’i Hadith 1352)
We can extract the following extensions of Subhanallah from this Hadith.
- Subhan Allah adada khalqihi
- Subhan Allah rida nafsihi
- Subhan Allah zinata ‘arshihi
- Subhan Allah midada Kalamatihi
A few more extensions,
- Subhanallah Wa Bihamdihi Subhanallahil Adzim
- Subhanallah Wa Bihamdihi
- Subhan Rabbial-azim (In Namaz— when you bow)
- Subhan Rabbial-A’la (In Namaz— when you prostration)
- Subhan-Allahi Rabbil-‘Arshil-‘Azim
- Subhan-Allahi Rabbil-samawatis-sab’i wa Rabbil-‘Arshil-Azim
- Subhanal-Malikil-Quddus (Glory be to the Sovereign, the Most Holy)
Narrated from Samurah bin Jundab in (Sunan Ibn Majah 3811), the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “(There are) four that are the best of words, and it does not matter with which you begin: Subhan-Allah, wal-Hamdu-Lillah, wa la ilaha illallah, wa Allahu Akbar (Glory is to Allah, praise is to Allah, none has the right to be worshiped but Allah and Allah is the Most Great).”
Subhanallah in songs
Subhanallah has been a part of songs and melodies for a long time. The Lebanese-Swedish singer Maher Zain sang “Subhanallah” in 2012. Another popular Arabic song is by Ayisha Abdul Basith, an Indian living in the UAE. Her song “Tasbih — Subhan Allah Wal Hamdulillah” has received more than 69 million views on YouTube.
The word has been added to Indian songs as well. The popular song “Subhanallah” from the movie Fanaa still resonates in our ears. Recently, “Subhanallah” was used in a song by the same name in the movie “Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.”
