فلاح
falāḥ
Success in reaching full conviction and realization of the divine will; the lasting success promised to those who obey God.
What it means
Falāḥ is the success that endures, and the Quran reserves it for those who live by God’s guidance. Surah 23 opens: “Successful indeed are the believers” (23:1), and describes them by their humble prayer, their trustworthiness and their care for charity. Another verse says: “He who purifies himself has succeeded” (87:14). The Quran uses the verb form aflaḥa, “has succeeded”, for such people.
The word is heard five times a day in the call to prayer, in the phrase ḥayya ʿalā al-falāḥ, “come to success”. Placed beside “come to prayer”, it tells the listener where real success lies. Faruqi defines it as full conviction and realization of God’s will, which is a larger idea than prosperity or winning. Its opposite is khusrān, loss. Success in this sense is measured by the verdict of God and not by the world.
Often misunderstood as
Usually translated “prosperity” or “success”, which suggests worldly gain; the Quranic term means success before God, in this life and the next.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 43, listed as FALĀḤ. The definition is restated here.