Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah

OVERVIEW : Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah

Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah is one of the three categories of Tawheed. It explains the fact that Allah ﷻ is the Creator of all things and it is only He who brought all things into existence. It encompasses the aspect that He maintains and sustains all the creation and provides for all the needs of the entire creation. It includes the facts that Allah ﷻ is the One who takes and gives life and that the entire creation is dependent on Allah ﷻ , and He is not in need of any of them, while nothing happens except through the knowledge and permission of Allah ﷻ .
The term ar-Ruboobiyyah is derived from the word Rabb which is commonly translated as ‘Lord’ in English. However, the word Rabb has a much broader meaning and includes a description of Allah that cannot be translated into English by a single word. Instead, the correct meaning of Rabb is as discussed above that Allah Creates, Owns, and Manages.
There are many aayaat in the Qur’aan which make reference to Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah.
One such aayah is the example taken from the discussion that Ibraaheem had with his father and his people. In this instance, Ibraaheem described Allah ﷻ in the following way:

ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَنِى فَهُوَ يَهْدِينِ (٧٨) وَٱلَّذِى هُوَ يُطْعِمُنِى وَيَسْقِينِ (٧٩) وَإِذَا مَرِضْتُ فَهُوَ يَشْفِينِ (٨٠) وَٱلَّذِى يُمِيتُنِى ثُمَّ يُحْيِينِ(٨١) (سورة الشعراء: ۷۸-۸۱)

Who created me and He (it is who) guides me. And it is He who feeds me and gives me drink. And when I am ill, it is He who cures me. And Who will cause me to die and bring me to life. [Soorat ash-Shu’araa: 78-81]

Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah also means to recognize that Allah is the only real power that stands behind everything that happens in the universe. Allah declares in the Qur’aan that surely it is only He who has power over everything.
Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah incorporates the fact that everything that takes place, occurs under the instruction and with the permission of Allah ﷻ . Whether good or bad, difficult or easy, it is all from the qadr of Allah ﷻ . No one can harm another person except if Allah ﷻ wants it to happen. At the same time, no one can help someone except if Allah wants it. This concept is expounded upon in a hadeeth of the Prophet ﷺ wherein he addresses ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Ab- baas in a most kind and gentle manner. The Prophet says to Abdullaah ibn ‘Abbaas:

يَا غُلَامُ إِنِّي أُعَلِّمُكَ كَلِمَاتِ إذا سَأَلْتَ فَاسْأَل الله وَإِذَا اسْتَعَنْتَ فَاسْتَعِنْ بِالله وَاعْلَم أَنَّ الْأُمَّةَ لَوْ اجْتَمَعَتْ عَلَى أَنْ يَنْفَعُوكَ

بِشَيء لَمْ يَنْفَعُوكَ إِلَّا بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ اللَّهُ لَكَ وَلَوْ اجْتَمَعُوا عَلَى أَنْ يَضُرُّوكَ بِشَيْءٍ لَم يَضُرُّوكَ إِلَّا بِشَيْءٍ قَدْ كَتَبَهُ الله عَلَي

(الترمذي) رُفْعَتْ الْأَقْلَامُ وَجَفَّتْ الصُّحُفُ

“O young man, I shall teach you some words …

If you ask, ask Allah. If you seek help, seek help from Allah.

Know that if the nation were to gather together to benefit you with something, they would not benefit you with anything except that which Allah has already written for you.

And if they gather to harm you with something, they would not harm you with anything except that which Allah has already written for you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried”. [at-Tirmidhi]

This hadeeth clarifies various aspects related to the concept of Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyyah. Among the points mentioned in the hadeeth are the following:

The Prophet ﷺ told ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Abbaas to ask and seek help from only Allah. This clearly tells us that only Allah ﷻ is the Provider, Sustainer and it is only He who sees to the needs of the creation. The essence of the statement is that only Allah ﷻ should be relied upon since people are unable to do things on their own. When people turn to Allah ﷻ and ask for help, then demonstrates the fact that they recognize the fact that they are in total need of Allah’s ﷻ assistance.
The hadeeth also refers to the concept that no-one has the ability or power to harm or benefit any or all person/s. Everything is under the control of Allah ﷻ , and if Allah ﷻ wants something to happen, then it will, while if Allah ﷻ does not want for something to take place then it never will. If Allah wants to provide someone with food, then the person will get food, while if Allah has not decreed any food to be part of the sustenance of a person then he will definitely not have any part of it. It does not matter if all the people in the world try to feed a person or try to stop food getting to a person, since this takes place under the Order of Allah and the creation cannot change what is decreed by Allah ﷻ .

Learning from the lesson