Surah Al-Baqarah (البقرة) • The Cow

The "I am near" verseAllah answers the one who calls on Him · Quran 2:186

Also written Wa idha sa’alaka ibadi anni fa inni qarib · وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِي عَنِّي فَإِنِّي قَرِيبٌ

2:186

وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِى عَنِّى فَإِنِّى قَرِيبٌ ۖ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ ٱلدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ ۖ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا۟ لِى وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِى لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ

wa-idhā sa-alaka ʿibādī ʿannī fa-innī qarībun ujību daʿwata l-dāʿi idhā daʿāni falyastajībū lī walyu'minū bī laʿallahum yarshudūna

And when My servants ask you, [O Muḥammad], concerning Me - indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided.

— Saheeh International

[Prophet], if My servants ask you about Me, I am near. I respond to those who call Me, so let them respond to Me, and believe in Me, so that they may be guided.

— M. A. S. Abdel Haleem

And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me (without any mediator or intercessor). So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.

— Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali

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What is The "I am near" verse about?

Verse 186 of Surah Al-Baqarah sits in the middle of the verses on fasting in Ramadan, and it is the Quran’s clearest statement on dua. When the servants ask about Allah, the answer is immediate and personal: "I am near. I respond to the call of the caller when he calls upon Me." Unusually, the verse does not say "tell them", as other answers in the Quran do; the reply comes directly. The verse ends with the condition for a dua that is answered: respond to Allah and believe in Him. Because of its placement, it is read as a reminder that the fasting month is a month of supplication.

When is it recited?

  • Read and reflected on during Ramadan, especially before iftar, a time when dua is encouraged.

Sources: Quran 2:186. Reviewed by Ummatey editorial, October 2026.

Word by Word

وَإِذَاwa-idhāAnd when
سَأَلَكَsa-alakaask you
عِبَادِىʿibādīMy servants
عَنِّىʿannīabout Me
فَإِنِّىfa-innīthen indeed I am
قَرِيبٌۖqarībunnear
أُجِيبُujībuI respond
دَعْوَةَdaʿwata(to the) invocation
ٱلدَّاعِl-dāʿi(of) the supplicant
إِذَاidhāwhen
دَعَانِۖdaʿānihe calls Me
فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُوا۟falyastajībūSo let them respond
لِىlīto Me
وَلْيُؤْمِنُوا۟walyu'minūand let them believe
بِىbīin Me
لَعَلَّهُمْlaʿallahumso that they may
يَرْشُدُونَyarshudūna(be) led aright
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