رابعة العدوية

Rabi'ah al-'Adawiyyah (RH)

Also known as: Rabia al-Adawiyya, Rabi'ah of Basra

c. 99–c. 185 AH · c. 717–c. 801 CE

Sufism & Theology Sufism

The ascetic woman of Basra who taught worship out of pure love of Allah.

Rabi'ah was born poor in Basra and, according to tradition, was sold into slavery as a girl before being freed for her devotion. She lived a life of prayer and renunciation, refusing marriage proposals and gifts.

She is remembered for teaching that Allah should be worshipped out of love alone, not from fear of Hell or desire for Paradise. Her sayings and prayers, preserved by later writers, made her one of the most famous figures of early Islamic spirituality. Much of her biography comes from later sources and is hard to verify.

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