The 365 · Verses · Day 130 · Family
Family joy + community leadership. The single duʿāʾ that asks for both.
Qur'an Quran 25:74
وَٱلَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَٰجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّـٰتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَٱجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَامًا
“Those who pray, 'Our Lord, give us joy in our spouses and offspring. Make us good examples to those who are aware of You.' (Abdel Haleem)”
Svenska: Och de som ber: 'Herre! Låt våra hustrur och barn skänka oss glädje och gör oss till föredöme för de gudfruktiga!' (Knut Bernström)
The story
Ibn ʿAbbās said qurrat aʿyun means 'spouses and offspring who strive in obedience to Allah.' Ibn Kathīr cites the Prophetic hadith (Muslim 1631): 'When the son of Adam dies, his deeds cease except for three: a continuing charity, beneficial knowledge, or a righteous child who prays for him.' The third is the operational fruit of Q 25:74.
In the language
Qurrat aʿyun (cooling of the eye) is a Quranic phrase for the deepest joy. Imāman (leader) is singular though referring to community-imāmate; the singular form indicates structural unity of the believing community.
Why this verse
Q 25:74 is the last in the famous list of attributes of the ˻ibād ar-Raḥmān (Q 25:63-77). Two structural moves: (1) ask for qurrat aʿyun (the cooling/joy of the eyes) from spouses and children; (2) ask to be made imāman li-l-muttaqīn (a leader/example for those who have taqwā). The pairing is structurally severe: the believer's family-petition is integrated with the broader request to lead the righteous.
Bring it into today
Recite this duʿāʾ daily, especially in sajdah and during the last third of the night. Make it specific: name your spouse, name each child, ask for each by name.
A reflection to carry
Two parallel requests: family-joy (qurrat aʿyun) and community-leadership (imāman li-l-muttaqīn). The Quran does not separate them. The believer who asks for righteous family must also ask to be made worthy of leading the righteous.
Read the longer reflection
The classical scholars note that the duʿāʾ comes at the end of the ˻ibād ar-Raḥmān list as the structural climax: after listing the inner attributes (humility, response to fools, night-prayer, fear of Hell, balanced spending, avoiding shirk and zinā and falsehood), the climax is the family-and-community petition. Modern marriage-and-parenting literature offers techniques; Q 25:74 offers the duʿāʾ. Techniques without the duʿāʾ produce dunya-results without barakah; the duʿāʾ with techniques produces both.
Sources: Ibn Kathir. The Qur'an and its translation are verified; the scholarship is retold faithfully in our own words and credited to its sources, never reproduced verbatim.
A verse, a healing, and a Sunnah, every morning.
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