Jibril (Gabriel)

Jibril (Gabriel) is the greatest of the angels and the one responsible for carrying divine revelation from Allah to the prophets. He is mentioned by name in the Quran in Surah al-Baqarah (2:97-98) and Surah al-Tahrim (66:4), and is referred to elsewhere as Ruh al-Qudus (the Holy Spirit), Ruh al-Amin (the Trustworthy Spirit), and al-Namus al-Akbar (the Greatest Secret). He is described in Surah al-Najm (53:5-10) as having taught the Prophet ﷺ and as appearing in his true form — with 600 wings, so enormous that they covered the horizon. His role spans the entire history of prophethood: he brought revelation to Ibrahim, to Musa, to Isa, and ultimately delivered the entire Quran to Muhammad ﷺ over 23 years. The Prophet ﷺ said Jibril used to come to him every night in Ramadan to review the Quran. Jibril appeared to the Prophet ﷺ in human form on multiple occasions — most notably as the stranger who came to teach the companions about Islam, Iman, and Ihsan in the famous hadith of Umar ibn al-Khattab. He accompanied the Prophet ﷺ on the Night Journey (al-Isra wal-Miraj). He was present at key moments of Islamic history — the Battle of Badr, the Hijra. In the story of Isa AS, he is the angel who appeared to Maryam to announce the birth of Isa and through whose breath (by Allah's command) Isa was conceived. In Islam, Jibril is not divine and is not worshipped — he is a creation of Allah who serves as the supreme channel of divine communication to humanity.