Al-Razzaq - The Provider
Understanding Allah as the sole provider of all sustenance to all creation.
Al-Razzaq (الرزاق) means the Provider who gives sustenance (rizq) to all creation. Rizq includes not only food and wealth but knowledge, relationships, opportunities, and spiritual gifts. Allah provides for the believer and disbeliever, the grateful and ungrateful. The bird leaves its nest hungry and returns full—trust in Al-Razzaq does not mean abandoning effort but recognizing the true source of provision. This attribute reduces anxiety about livelihood, encourages honest earning, and inspires gratitude for all we receive.
Indeed, Allah is the Provider, the Firm Possessor of Strength.
Umar ibn al-Khattab said: 'I heard the Prophet say that if you trusted in Allah as He should be trusted, He would provide for you as He provides for the birds.'
Quran
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- What Islam says about gratitude
Sustenance is attributed to God rather than to one's own competence. That attribution is what makes thanks the fitting response to an ordinary meal.