Tawhid Ar-Rububiyyah

Tawhid Ar-Rububiyyah can be roughly translated as “Unity/Oneness of Lordship”. It pertains to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى), and His lordship.

Rububiyyah is from rabb (ربّ), which has three linguistic meanings:

1. Owner: The rabb is the true and complete owner. In one hadith, the Prophet (صلي الله عليه وسلم) said: “if you find a camel in the desert, leave it till it meets its rabb (owner)”.
2. Obediance: The rabb is the one who is to be obeyed. In Surah Yusuf, Yusuf (عليه سلام) said to one of the prisoners: “you’re going to give your rabb khamar (the king) …”
3. Nourisher: The rabb is the one who nourishes and takes care of everything.

We combine these to get the Islamic definition of rabb: Allah is the one who creates, sustains, and owns the entire creation. He alone is the Master, the Controller, the Nourisher, the one who creates from nothing. He has the right to each and every atom of creation.

In Surah Baqarah, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) says:

Translation: To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and on earth: everything renders worship to Him. (Surah Baqarah, verse 116)¹

Each and every creation must bow down to Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) . No atom escapes Him.

1. Survival: None of us can survive on our own. Therefore, we are not rabbs.
2. Fate: No object can escape its fate.
3. Death: All humans call out to Allah when death comes near them.

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) creates, sustains, nourishes, and owns everything, without exception. When Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) mentions himself as “Lord of the Worlds”, that is an example of general rububiyyah.

Additionally, Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) provides spiritual sustance to Muslims.

The majority of du’as in the Qur’an start with rabb. Why rabb? To make us acknowledge our special relationship, our dependance. For this exact reason, one of the best names to use when you make du’a is rabb.

When Allah (سبحانه وتعالى) mentions himself as the Lord of Musa or the Lord of Harun, or something similar, that is an example of specific rububiyyah.

(1) Muhammad, Pickthall M., trans. “Al-Baqarah (The Cow).” Al-Qur’an Al-Kareem: Parallel Arabic Text with English Translation. One Ummah Network. 27 Apr. 2006 <http://www.oneummah.net/quran/02.htm>.