Al-Ḥasīb
The Reckoner, The Sufficient
Root ح س ب (ḥ-s-b). Lane gives ḥasabahu as ‘he counted, numbered, reckoned it’. Lisān al-ʿArab explains Al-Ḥasīb as al-Kāfī, meaning the Sufficient, derived from aḥsabanī ash-shayʾ, ‘the thing sufficed me’. The word ḥisāb refers to reckoning or account, while ḥasb means sufficient, as in Qur'an 3:173 (‘ḥasbunā Allāh’). Ḥusbān means exact calculation and is found in Qur'an 55:5. Of Allah it occurs indefinite, ḥasīban, as in 4:6, 4:86 and 33:39. ‘Indeed, Allah is ever, over all things, an Accountant.’ (4:86)
The root
ح س بḥ-s-b
Reckoning and sufficiency. Lane gives ḥasabahu as 'he counted, numbered, reckoned it'. Lisān al-ʿArab explains al-Ḥasīb as al-Kāfī, the Sufficient, from aḥsabanī ash-shayʾ, 'the thing sufficed me'.
- حِسَابḥisābreckoning, account
- حَسْبḥasbsufficient (3:173, ḥasbunā Allāh)
- حُسْبَانḥusbānexact calculation (55:5)
Pronunciation
الْحَسِيبُ
al-ha-SEEB
In the Qur'an
وَإِذَا حُيِّيتُمْ بِتَحِيَّةٍ فَحَيُّوا بِأَحْسَنَ مِنْهَا أَوْ رُدُّوهَا ۗ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ حَسِيبًا
And when you are greeted with a greeting, greet [in return] with one better than it or [at least] return it [in a like manner]. Indeed, Allah is ever, over all things, an Accountant.
4:86 · Sahih International