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Rūḥ or The Spirit (, al-rūḥ) is mentioned twenty one times in the Quran, where it is described as issuing from command of God. The spirit acts as an agent of divine action or communication.
The Quran describes the rūḥ in various ways. It refers to ruh as ( al-rūḥ al-qudus), which means 'the holy spirit' and ar-rūḥ al-amin, which means 'the faithful' or 'trustworthy spirit', terms that are commonly understood to be references to the archangel Gabriel. The Quran also refers to ruh as God's own spirit ("My/His Spirit"), which was blown into Adam, and which is considered the source of human life. Most commentators interpret the phrase "My/His (God's) Spirit" in 15:29, 32:9 and 38:72 figuratively as God's power and way of honoring Adam, with some taking a more literal view. This spirit leaves the human body at death, and continues to exist in the akhirah. Further, ruh appears to be a metaphysical being, such as an angel.
The Quran, however, doesn't offer a definitive explanation of the Spirit (al-ruh). It merely says in response to the question about the Spirit, "Say, "The Spirit (al-ruh) is from the Command of my Lord, and you have not been given knowledge, save a little"" (17:85), suggesting the unknowable nature of ruh. According to The Study Quran, the term "Spirit" may refer to the source of human life, as God breathes His Spirit into Adam (32:9). This led some Muslim thinkers to believe that the Spirit is the source of human knowledge, perception, and spiritual ability. Accordingly, the Spirit is also seen as the origin of religious, moral, and spiritual responsibility for human beings. The meaning of the phrase "I...breathed into him of My Spirit" (15:29; cf 38:72, 32:9) is interpreted differently by various commentators. Most commentators believe that "My or His Spirit" refers to God's power and a way of honoring Adam, with some understanding it more literally to refer to the Spirit (al-rūḥ) of God. The latter interpretation explains why Iblīs was commanded to bow before Adam. Rūh al-Qudus (the Holy Spirit), al-Rūh al-Amin (the Trustworthy Spirit) are generally understood as references to the archangel Gabriel.
The phrase rūḥ al-qudus, commonly translated as the 'holy spirit' or the 'spirit of holiness', occurs four times in the Quran, in and 253, Al-Ma'idah verse 110, and An-Nahl verse 102. In three instances, it is described as the means by which God "strengthened" Jesus, and in the fourth it is identified as the one who brought down God's truth to his prophet.
In the two suras in which the Qur'an refers to the angel Gabriel, it does so by name.,
It appears to be indicated by the Quran in sura Maryam, ayat 17–21, that it was the angel Gabriel who gave to Mary the tidings that she was to have a son as a virgin:
It is narrated in hadith that the angel Gabriel accompanied Muhammad during the Mi'raj, an ascension to the heavens in which Muhammad is said to have met other messengers of God and was instructed about the manner of Salah (). It is also held by Muslims that the angel Gabriel descends to Earth on the night of Laylat al-Qadr, a night in the last ten days of the holy month of Ramadan, which is said to be the night on which the Qurʼan was first revealed.
The Arabic phrase al-Qudus (القدس) translates into English as 'Holiness' or 'Sanctity'.Lane's Arabic Dictionary, p. 2497. al-Quddūs, 'the All-Holy', is one of the 99 Names of God in Islam.,
Muslim authors, like Al-Ghazali, Ibn Qayyim and Suyuti wrote in more detail about the life of ghosts. Ibn Qayyim and Suyuti assert, when a soul desires to turn back to earth long enough, it is gradually released from restrictions of Barzakh and able to move freely. Each spirit experiences afterlife in accordance with their deeds and convictions in the earthly life. Evil souls will find the afterlife painful by receiving punishment, and imprisoned until God allows them to interact with other souls. However, good souls are not restricted. They are free to come visit other souls and even come down to lower regions. The higher planes are considered to be broader than the lower ones, the lowest being the most narrow. The spiritual space is not thought as spatial, but reflects the capacity of the spirit. The more pure the spirit gets, the more it is able to interact with other souls and thus reaches a broader degree of freedom.
Sarra Tlili contends that the term "ruh" had a simple meaning of 'blown breath' during the time of the Quran's revelation. However, the Quran's use of the term introduces complexity as it attributes extraordinary agency and manifestations to it, which may have bewildered early Muslims. In order to reconcile their understanding with the Quranic depiction of ruh, they relied on the principles of God's creativity and omnipotence. Consequently, the concept of ruh evolved into a metaphysical entity with immense dimensions and extraordinary features that expressed God's majesty and the limits of human comprehension. Tlili believes that the attempt to define the Quranic ruh in early exegetical traditions as a specific entity already reveals an inclination "to reduce the unknowable to something imaginable", indicating a shift towards a more anthropocentric mode of thought.
According to Sarra Tlili, the exegetes' interpretations of ruh were influenced by anthropocentric factors, such as their belief that God granted ruh to His most favored creatures, rather than their ability to decipher the Quranic term's true meaning. For Tlili, "God's power turned a breath into a supernatural being, but eventually humans managed to bring this being down to earth through (flawed) interpretative strategies, and in so doing they appropriated it in ways that served human ends." However, commentators acknowledged that despite feeling confident about their understanding of ruh, they ultimately did not fully comprehend it.
As interpreted to refer to the Archangel Gabriel
The term Rūḥ al-Qudus is also an epithet referring to the Archangel Gabriel,Tözün Issa Alevis in Europe: Voices of Migration, Culture and Identity Routledge 2016 who is related as the Angel of revelation and was assigned by God to reveal the Qurʼan to the Islamic prophet Muhammad and who delivered the Annunciation to Mary. What is meant by the Holy Spirit in the Qur'an? Islam Awareness
As soul
God is believed to endow humans with rūḥ (رُوح) and nafs (نَفْس), (i.e. ego or psyche). The rūḥ "drives" the nafs, which comprises temporal desires and sensory perceptions. The nafs can assume control of the body if the rūḥ surrenders to bodily urges. The nafs is subject to bodily desire within the sadr ('the chest'), whereas the rūḥ is a person's immaterial essence, beyond the emotions and instincts shared by humans and other animals; rūḥ makes the body alive.Anna-Teresa Tymieniecka (2025). 9789048196128, Springer Science & Business Media. . ISBN 9789048196128 In some accounts, some ('spirits') dwell in the seventh heaven. Unlike the angels, they are supposed to eat and drink. An angel called ar-Rūḥ ('the Spirit') is responsible for them.Stephen Burge Angels in Islam: Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti's al-Haba'ik fi akhbar al-mala'ik Routledge 2015 p. 276
(1981). 9780873955065 ISBN 9780873955065 p. 117-125
Eschatological aspects
In Islamic belief, ruh departs from the human body at the time of death. The Qur'an implies that rūh continues to exist after leaving the body in death. However, it does not provide specific details about the period between burial and resurrection. In Islam, death is not considered to be the final end of life, but rather the termination of the appointed period during which humans are tested on Earth. As such, death is viewed as a "merely transitional phase during which the rūh, the principle of life, provisionally remains separated from the disintegrating body".
As part of Lataif-e-sitta
Sufism teaches that, to attain Tajalli ar-rūḥ, (the ultimate manifestation of divine truth in the human soul) the Salik (Sufi aspirant), must cultivate the following 13 spiritual qualities or virtuous practices, thus facilitating the gradual awakening in order of the various centres or subtle of his/her jism latif (subtle body).
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