ربط

Core meaning

To bind and hold tight, so that nothing gives way: the core God binds so that it does not yield, horses kept tied and ready, a community that stands ready.

Uses

1. رَبَطَ عَلَىٰ (+ قَلْب) → "to bind" : to bind the core: to hold it back so that it yields neither to fear nor to disclosure.

   • «وَرَبَطْنَا عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ» — "We bound their cores" (18:14)
   • «لَوْلَآ أَن رَّبَطْنَا عَلَىٰ قَلْبِهَا» — "had We not bound her core" (28:10)

2. رِبَاط → "held ready for battle" : what one keeps tied and ready: horses kept for battle.

   • «وَمِن رِّبَاطِ ٱلْخَيْلِ» — "of horses held ready for battle" (8:60)

3. رَابَطَ → "to stand ready with firmness" : the reciprocal form: to hold together, bound and ready, over time.

   • «وَصَابِرُوا۟ وَرَابِطُوا۟» — "surpass in patience, stand ready with firmness" (3:200)

Evidence from the text

The same gesture runs through the three uses: to hold tight what could give way. In 8:11, God sends down water "to purify you with it, to remove from you the defilement of the Diverter, to bind your cores" (8:11): the core is bound before the steps hold. In 18:14, the bond comes before the young men speak to their people; in 28:10, it holds back the mother of Moussa, who "nearly made it appear".

Concretely, رِبَاط ٱلْخَيْل names horses kept tied and ready (8:60); among many, رَابِطُوا۟ asks them to hold together in this way, after patience and patience vying with patience (3:200).

Distinctions

• ثبت — to make firm: to make stable what must stand, whereas ربط binds and holds back what could give way

See also

قلب (the core) · صبر (patience)