Rabbana La Tuzigh Quloobana: Meaning, Tafsir & Hadith (Quran 3:8)

Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana is a short, three-part Quranic dua placed by Allah on the tongue of the believers in Surah Ali Imran, ayah 8. The reciter asks Allah not to let the heart deviate after guidance, to grant mercy from His own presence, and closes by praising Allah as Al-Wahhab, the One who bestows without limit. It is one of the most frequently quoted “Rabbana” supplications in tahajjud, in sujood, and after the fard prayers, and the verse it comes from is paired by the classical commentators with the Prophet’s ﷺ own most-repeated dua for a firm heart.

This guide gives the full Arabic with and without diacritics, accurate transliteration, the established English meaning, a word-by-word breakdown that pays special attention to the verb zāgha and the divine name Al-Wahhab, the position of the dua inside the Surah Ali Imran 3:7-9 sequence, classical tafsir from Ibn Kathir, the companion hadith of Ya Muqallib al-Quloob from Jami’ at-Tirmidhi and Sahih Muslim, hadith-grounded recitation times, and a comparison with the other Quranic Rabbana duas that ask for a steadfast heart.

Rabbana La Tuzigh Quloobana: Arabic, Transliteration & English Meaning

The dua is short enough to memorize in a single sitting, yet it carries one of the most weighted theological requests in the Quran: protection from the inner drift of the heart after Allah has already opened it to truth. Below is the verse in its Uthmanic form with and without diacritical marks, the standard transliteration, and the established English meaning that anchors the rest of this guide.

In Arabic

With diacritics, for accurate pronunciation in salah or memorization:

رَبَّنَا لَا تُزِغْ قُلُوبَنَا بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا وَهَبْ لَنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ

And without diacritics, as it commonly appears in print and online:

ربنا لا تزغ قلوبنا بعد إذ هديتنا وهب لنا من لدنك رحمة إنك أنت الوهاب

Transliteration

Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana ba’da idh hadaytana wa hab lana min ladunka rahmatan innaka anta al-Wahhab

Common spelling variants searchers also use include “Rabbana la tuzigh qulubana,” “Rabbana la tuzugh quloobana,” and the Malay/Indonesian phrasing “Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana maksud” (where maksud means “meaning”). All refer to the same Quranic ayah at Surah Ali Imran 3:8; the differences come from regional transliteration habits, not from any variation in the Uthmanic text itself.

English Meaning

“Our Lord, let not our hearts deviate after You have guided us, and grant us from Yourself mercy. Indeed, You are the Bestower.”

Audio: Word-by-Word Pronunciation

The short video below walks through the dua word by word so the pronunciation, the place of every shadda, and the rhythm of the closing innaka anta al-Wahhab are clear before you commit it to memory:

The Verse in Context: Surah Ali Imran 3:7-9 and the Speakers

To read Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana as the standalone supplication it has become in everyday adhkar is to miss the structural beauty Allah built into Surah Ali Imran. The ayah sits inside a tight three-verse unit — 3:7, 3:8, and 3:9 — that begins with a theological statement, moves into a believer’s dua, and closes with their certainty about the Day of Gathering. The commentators read these three verses as a single passage spoken by one group of believers, and that group is named explicitly.

In verse 3:7, Allah distinguishes between muhkamat (verses of clear, decisive meaning) and mutashabihat (verses whose deeper meaning is known fully only to Allah). He warns that “those in whose hearts is deviation” — fi quloobihim zaygh, using the very root from which tuzigh is derived — pursue the ambiguous verses chasing controversy and an interpretation that suits their desires. Then He turns to a second group: ar-rasikhuna fil-’ilm, those firm and deeply rooted in knowledge, who say, “We believe in it; all of it is from our Lord.” It is from the mouths of this second group that verse 3:8 — the dua of this guide — emerges. Tafsir Ibn Kathir treats 3:8 as the inner speech of the rasikhun: the moment their tongues moisten with belief in the mutashabihat, they immediately turn back to Allah and ask Him not to let their hearts later swerve from that belief.

Verse 3:9 completes the unit. After the dua for steadfastness in 3:8, the rasikhun affirm: “Our Lord, indeed You will gather the people for a Day about which there is no doubt. Indeed, Allah does not fail in His promise.” The shape of the passage is therefore deliberate: a warning about hearts that swerve (3:7), a dua against ever joining that group (3:8), and an affirmation of where the firm-hearted are heading (3:9). When this dua is recited in isolation, the believer is implicitly stepping into the position of the rasikhun and re-saying their words.

Word-by-Word Breakdown

The dua contains eight grammatical units, and each one carries a load of meaning that is easy to miss when the phrase is recited fast. Breaking it apart reveals why the classical commentators treated this verse as one of the densest theological supplications in the Quran.

• رَبَّنَا (Rabbana) — “Our Lord.” Not Allahumma, not Ya Rabbi. The collective Rabbana binds the speaker to the wider community of believers; the rasikhun do not pray for themselves alone.
• لَا تُزِغْ (la tuzigh) — “do not let deviate.” The verb is from the root z-y-gh, which in classical Arabic describes a subtle, almost imperceptible swerve from a straight path. It is not the verb of open kufr or rebellion; it is the verb of drift — the kind of inner movement a person may not notice in themselves until they have already moved.
• قُلُوبَنَا (quloobana) — “our hearts.” Plural — the heart of every believer in the group. The Quran consistently locates faith in the qalb, not in the tongue or the limbs; if the heart swerves, the body follows in time.
• بَعْدَ إِذْ هَدَيْتَنَا (ba’da idh hadaytana) — “after You have guided us.” A timestamp built into the request. The dua is not asking for guidance to be granted; it is asking for guidance, already given, to be preserved. This is the supplication of someone who has already entered the door.
• وَهَبْ لَنَا (wa hab lana) — “and grant us.” The verb wahaba means to give as a free gift, not as payment. It is the same root from which the divine name Al-Wahhab — the closing word of the verse — is built. The choice of verb pre-figures the divine name.
• مِن لَّدُنكَ (min ladunka) — “from Yourself.” A construction that signals mercy unmediated — mercy that comes directly from Allah’s presence, not through any cause or means the believer can claim. The same phrase opens another famous Quranic dua: Rabbana atina min ladunka rahmatan in Surah Al-Kahf 18:10.
• رَحْمَةً (rahmatan) — “mercy.” Indefinite, unbounded. Not “Your mercy” or “the mercy” — just rahmatan, an open container for whatever mercy Allah chooses to pour in. The grammar leaves the size of the gift entirely to Allah.
• إِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْوَهَّابُ (innaka anta al-Wahhab) — “Indeed, You are the Bestower.” The closing affirmation. Al-Wahhab is one of the names of Allah and is built on an intensive form — the One who gives, gives constantly, gives without expecting return, and gives more than the receiver can ask for. The verse closes by naming Allah by exactly the attribute the dua is appealing to.

Translation Comparison: Five English Renderings

Different English Qurans translate the verse with different emphases, and reading several side by side helps the meaning settle. Below are five established English renderings of Surah Ali Imran 3:8, lifted directly from their published mushaf editions:

The differences are instructive. Pickthall’s “cause not our hearts to stray” and Asad’s “let not our hearts swerve from the truth” both reach for the z-y-gh sense of a quiet curving away that “deviate” can flatten. Yusuf Ali’s “Grantor of bounties without measure” stretches al-Wahhab into an explanatory gloss, while Sahih International and Khattab keep it terse with “the Bestower.” Each rendering is internally consistent; together they widen the English reader’s sense of the verse.

The Companion Hadith: Ya Muqallib al-Quloob

Surah Ali Imran 3:8 does not stand alone in the believer’s practice. The classical hadith literature records a Prophetic dua so closely related that the commentators routinely treat the ayah and the hadith as two halves of one supplication.

Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her) reported that the dua the Prophet ﷺ recited most often was: “Ya Muqallib al-Quloob, thabbit qalbi ‘ala dinik” — “O Turner of Hearts, make my heart firm upon Your religion.” The narration is recorded in Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 3522, in the Book of Supplications, and was graded Hasan Sahih by Imam at-Tirmidhi himself. When Umm Salamah asked why he supplicated this so frequently, the Prophet ﷺ explained that there is not a single human heart that is not held between two of the Fingers of Ar-Rahman, and if He wills He keeps it firm, and if He wills He causes it to swerve.

The same image is preserved with even greater force in Sahih Muslim 2655, in the Book of Destiny (Qadar), narrated by Abdullah b. ’Amr b. al-’As: “The hearts of all the children of Adam are between two of the Fingers of the Most Merciful as one heart; He turns them however He wills.” The Prophet ﷺ then supplicated: “O Allah, the Turner of Hearts, turn our hearts to Your obedience.”

Read alongside Surah Ali Imran 3:8, the connection is unmistakable. The Quran teaches the believer to ask Allah not to let the heart deviate (la tuzigh quloobana); the Prophet ﷺ teaches the believer to address Allah by the very attribute that responds to that request — Muqallib al-Quloob, the One who turns hearts. The ayah supplies the dua; the hadith supplies the divine name to invoke. The classical commentators, including Ibn Kathir, explicitly cross-reference the two when explaining 3:8.

When and How to Recite Rabbana La Tuzigh Quloobana

The dua is not tied to a single liturgical moment, but the Sunnah and the practice of the early generations highlight several settings where it lands with particular weight. Each of the following is grounded either in a hadith on the value of dua at that time, or in the established adhkar tradition:

• In sujood. The Prophet ﷺ said the servant is closest to his Lord while prostrating, and instructed the believers to “make abundant dua in it” (Sahih Muslim, Book of Prayer, hadith 482). Surah Ali Imran 3:8 fits perfectly between two Subhana Rabbiyal A’la.
• In the last third of the night, during tahajjud. The hadith of Allah descending to the lowest heaven in the last third of every night, asking who will call upon Him so He may answer (Sahih al-Bukhari 1145, Sahih Muslim 758), makes this the highest-stakes window for any heart-related supplication.
• After the fard salah, before standing up. The Companions are reported to have lingered briefly after each obligatory prayer for personal duas; this short three-clause ayah is well suited to that pause.
• In the morning and evening adhkar. Many compilations of the Sunnah-based morning and evening remembrances include Quranic Rabbana duas as voluntary additions; this dua belongs naturally among them.
• In moments of doubt, temptation, or visible fitnah. The verb tuzigh — the quiet swerve — describes precisely the kind of inner movement that begins in moments of social pressure or intellectual challenge. The dua is most needed exactly when the heart begins to wobble.
• In qunoot in witr. The classical witr-qunoot tradition is open to additional Quranic duas after the fixed text; 3:8 is among the supplications recommended by several scholars for this slot.

There is no fixed number of repetitions, no specific count, and no condition that the dua be recited in Arabic alone — though the Quranic Arabic preserves the precise verbs tuzigh and al-Wahhab that no English rendering can fully replace. The Prophet ﷺ taught that dua is itself worship (Sunan Abi Dawud 1479, Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 2969); the act of asking is already answered before the answer arrives.

Related Quranic Duas for a Steadfast Heart

Surah Ali Imran 3:8 is one of about forty “Rabbana” duas the Quran preserves on the tongues of believers, prophets, and angels. Several of them ask, in different language, for the same gift: a heart that does not waver after Allah has set it on the path. Reading them together strengthens the supplication and broadens the believer’s vocabulary in conversation with Allah:

• Rabbana atina min ladunka rahmatan (Surah Al-Kahf 18:10) — the dua of the People of the Cave; uses the exact same min ladunka rahmatan phrase as 3:8 and asks for guidance in the believer’s affair.
• Rabbana afrigh alaina sabran wa thabbit aqdamana (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:250) — the dua of Talut’s small army before facing Jalut; asks Allah to plant the feet firmly, the bodily counterpart to 3:8’s request for a heart that does not deviate.
• Rabbana atmim lana nurana (Surah At-Tahrim 66:8) — “Our Lord, perfect for us our light.” The believers on the Day of Judgment, asking that the light of guidance not dim before they cross the Sirat.
• Rabbana innana amanna fa-ghfir lana (Surah Ali Imran 3:16) — immediately downstream in the same surah; the believers identifying themselves before asking forgiveness and protection from the fire.
• Rabbana atina fid-dunya hasanah (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:201) — the most-recited Rabbana dua; the believer asking for good in this life, good in the next, and protection from the Fire. The Hajj-stations dua that the Prophet ﷺ favored.
• Rabbana la tu’akhidhna in nasina (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:286) — the closing dua of Surah Al-Baqarah, the longest Rabbana dua in the Quran, taught by the Prophet ﷺ as a complete night protection.

Benefits of Reciting This Dua

The benefits of Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana are the very things the supplication is asking for. Read against the wider Surah Ali Imran context, five benefits stand out:

• Protection from inner drift after guidance. The dua specifically targets the z-y-gh swerve — the slow inner curving away that does not look like apostasy from the outside but begins the journey toward it. Asking against it is a recognition that guidance is a gift Allah preserves, not a possession the believer secures.
• Anchoring in the company of ar-rasikhun fil-’ilm. Every recitation places the believer in the linguistic position of those firm in knowledge described in 3:7. The dua is a self-aligning prayer.
• Opening the door to min ladunka rahmah — mercy unmediated. The dua does not ask for mercy through any cause or means; it asks Allah to give from His own presence, which is the type of mercy the Quran reserves for prophets, the People of the Cave, and the firm-hearted.
• Invocation of the divine name Al-Wahhab. The dua closes by naming Allah by exactly the attribute that responds to its request — one of the surest forms of supplication, since the Prophet ﷺ taught: “Allah has ninety-nine names; whoever calls upon Him by them will enter Paradise” (Sahih al-Bukhari 2736, Sahih Muslim 2677).
• Pairing with the Prophet’s ﷺ most-frequent hadith dua. Reciting 3:8 alongside Ya Muqallib al-Quloob, thabbit qalbi ‘ala dinik brings the believer onto two reinforcing supplications — the Quranic ayah and the Prophetic dua — both pointing to the same gift.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana mean in English?

The full meaning, in the established Sahih International rendering, is: “Our Lord, let not our hearts deviate after You have guided us, and grant us from Yourself mercy. Indeed, You are the Bestower.” The dua is composed of three movements — a request that the heart not deviate after guidance, a request for mercy that comes directly from Allah’s presence, and a closing affirmation of Allah as Al-Wahhab, the One who gives freely without expecting return.

Which surah and verse is Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana from?

The dua is recorded in Surah Ali Imran, ayah 8 — chapter 3 of the Quran, the second-longest surah after Al-Baqarah. It sits inside a three-verse unit (3:7-9) that the classical commentators read as a single passage: a warning about hearts that swerve (3:7), the dua against ever joining that group (3:8), and an affirmation of belief in the Day of Gathering (3:9).

Who is reciting Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana in the Quran?

The dua is spoken by ar-rasikhuna fil-’ilm — “those firm in knowledge” — named in the preceding ayah (3:7). The verse opens with their affirmation that all of the Quran, both the clear verses and the verses of deeper meaning, is from Allah, and the dua of 3:8 follows immediately as their response to that knowledge. When a believer recites it today, they are stepping into the linguistic position of the rasikhun and re-saying their words.

When should I recite Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana?

The dua fits naturally in sujood (where the Prophet ﷺ said the servant is closest to his Lord), in the last third of the night during tahajjud, after each of the five fard prayers, in the morning and evening adhkar, and in any moment of doubt, intellectual challenge, or visible fitnah where the heart is most exposed to the quiet swerve the verb tuzigh describes. It can also be added to the witr qunoot.

Can I recite Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana in sajdah or tahajjud?

Yes. Quranic duas may be recited in any part of salah where personal supplication is permitted — principally sujood and the final tashahhud before the salam, and freely in qiyam al-layl and tahajjud. The Prophet ﷺ instructed believers to make abundant dua in sujood (Sahih Muslim 482), and the Quranic phrasing of Rabbana la tuzigh quloobana makes it an ideal short, structured supplication for that moment.

How is this dua related to Ya Muqallib al-Quloob?

The classical commentators — including Ibn Kathir in his tafsir on Surah Ali Imran 3:8 — pair the verse with the Prophet’s ﷺ most-repeated dua: “Ya Muqallib al-Quloob, thabbit qalbi ‘ala dinik” (“O Turner of Hearts, make my heart firm upon Your religion”), narrated by Umm Salamah in Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 3522 and graded Hasan Sahih. A parallel narration in Sahih Muslim 2655 teaches that every human heart is held between two Fingers of Ar-Rahman, turned as He wills. The ayah supplies the dua; the hadith supplies the divine name — Muqallib al-Quloob — to invoke when reciting it.