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It may be
appropriate to first examine various notions and concepts
of different people through the history.
False Notions of
Different People About Rubuubiyah
People of Nuh (Peace be upon him): The earliest of such people
dealt with in the Quran, did not deny the existence of God,
e.g.: 23-24. Nor did they deny that Allah is the Creator of
the worlds. Therefore, it was argued and explained to convince
them about `Rubuubiyat’ of Allah Alone, e.g.: 11-34.
They, simultaneously, believed that there were gods besides
Allah, e.g., 71-23. They violently violated Allah’s
Code, e.g., 26-116.
The
Aad:Their beliefs, transgressions and points
of dispute with Huud (Peace be upon him) were the same as
those of the earlier disbelievers, e.g., 7-65 & 70, 41-15,
11-59.
The Thamuud:In
their case also the position was the same, e.g., 11-61&62,
26-141 to 155.
The
people in the times of Ibrahim (Peace be upon him):
Along with other similarities of Shirk and Kufr like those
of the Aad and the Thamud, they worshiped heavenly bodies
as gods. Ibrahim (Peace be upon him)’s search for the
Truth portrays the perspective, e.g., 6-74 to 81. In this
connection, some of the discourses of Ibrahim (Peace be upon
him) have been mentioned in the Quran, e.g., 19-41 to48, 60-4,
2-258.
The
people of Lot (Peace be upon him):Like people,
mentioned earlier, they neither denied the existence of God
nor His being the Creator. However, they did not believe in
the Absolute Authority of His Oneness and refused to correct
their conduct according to the Laws revealed, e.g., 26-161
to 167, 29-28 & 29.
The
people of Shuaib (Peace be upon him):The people
of Madyan and of Aikaa, to whom Prophet Shuaib (Peace be upon
him) was sent, although believed in God but associated others
in worship and did not obey the Law prescribed by Him, as
mentioned in earlier cases also, e.g., 7-85 to 88, 11-84 to
91.
The
Pharaoh and his people:The teachings of Prophet
Yusuf (Peace be upon him) had not disappeared completely when
Musa (Peace be upon him) appeared. There were still some people
who believed in the Oneness of Uluuhiyah and Rubuubiyah, as
is evident from the speech of one of the “faithful”:
40-28 to 32, 40-42. The study of the Quran, the Bible, history
and archeology show that Pharaoh claimed ‘Rububbiyah’
and he and his people associated different gods with the One
God e.g., 28-38, 43-51
It is important to note that, all along, misconceptions
about Oneness of Uluuhiyah and Rubuubiyah were the same, among
all these people. And the theme of the Message also remained
the same, every time. In fact it was the same Message in continuity.
It is, therefore, important to understand the spirit of the
Message that remained unaltered, throughout the history of
revelation, in correcting the misconceptions about Oneness
of `Uluuhiyah' and `Rubuubiyah’ of Allah Alone One as
Collective good of society and perfection of human personality
always remained the main objective in the Message. For example,
examine the Message of following Prophets (Peace be upon them):
Lot (Peace be upon him): 21-74, Dawuud and Sulaiman (Peace
be upon them): 21- 78 to 82, Dhun-Nuun (Peace be upon him):
21-87, and Zakariyyaa (Peace be upon him): 21-89 & 90.
Jews
and Christians:They ‘of course’
acknowledged Allah as the ‘Rabb’ also, but they
fell into error and went astray (1-7) because of Exaggeration
(5-77), Kufr and Shirk (9-30, 5-72 & 73, 5-116, 3-79 &
80). The society was disrupted and mischief increased, because
of Kufr and Shirk, e.g. of the priests themselves: 9-31
The
Pagans of Mecca:They not only acknowledged
the existence of God but also believed that He was the Creator
and Master of the universe. But at the same time they conceived
for themselves, other gods too. They addressed their prayers
to Allah as the last resort, but they worshiped other gods
besides Him e.g., 23-84 to 90, 10-22 & 23, 17-67. Although,
they knew, in fact, that their gods were not capable of providing
guidance in the social domain and other matters of life, (e.g.,
10-35), but still they held many misconceptions about their
gods, e.g., 39-3,10-18. In practice Kufr and Shirk was ingrained
in their life, e.g., 22-11 to 13, 10-17 & 18, 5-76, 39-8,
16-53 to 56, 6-136 to 139.
The polytheists always committed the error of
splitting the All-Encompassing Oneness of "Uluuhiyah"
and “Rubuubiyah”. They further went deep into
darkness due to abject ignorance by further splitting "Rubuubiyah"
into different divisions, hierarchy and functions, assigned
separately to different objects, idols or even mere ideas,
which continues even today. This was not only because of ignorance
about the true religion but also due to lack of knowledge
about scientific facts of nature.
Scientific
Enquiry and Reasoning:Karen Armstrong in ‘A
History of God’, (p.168) identifies reasoning into Signs
of God as the enabling strength of Muslims for developing
natural sciences. “The Koran constantly stresses the
need for intelligence in deciphering the `Signs’ or
`Messages’ of God. Muslims are not to abdicate their
reason but to look at the world attentively and with curiosity.
It was this attitude that later enabled Muslims to
build a fine tradition of natural science, which has never
been seen as such a danger to religion as in Christianity..
But the greatest `Sign’ of all was the Koran itself;
Indeed its individual verses are called ‘Aayaat’
(Signs).” The Quran does not depend on miracles
for convincing, although it makes mention of the miracles
which were given to the Prophets (Peace be upon them) and
as they appeared in the past. Furthermore, the religious doctrine
of Unity of God, once presented by logic, takes stand on Quranic
reasoning into facts, now highlighted by scientific enquiry,
particularly its progress towards the Unification Theory.
“But
none pays heed, except people of intelligence.” 2-269
It is very
important to make one clarification at this point. Critical
analysis of religious beliefs, particularly about God, shows
that neither seeing with one’s own eyes nor deduction
through intellectual and scientific approaches and discourses
is the basic requirement of faith in the Unseen. In fact the
first demand is neither possible in the present physical frame
nor desirable, while the other one has never been helpful
as the starting point. An explanation as an admonition and
a lesson is available in the demand of the ignorant folk of
Musa (Peace be upon him) for seeing God with their own eyes.
In previous pages, quite in detail, we have seen that argument
and reasoning without faith have led many people, scholars
and philosophers into mere conjecture and confusion. They
never found truth, without Guidance from God. Ibrahim (Peace
be upon him) pondered over different facts of nature, but
pinned hope in the Guidance from his Lord-Master-Sustainer.
The processes of reasoning and enquiry can only strengthen
faith in the existence of the Unseen but they can not be the
basis of the faith itself. That is why verse 2-3 prescribes
the requirement of `faith’ in the Unseen and not an
argument, first, for the same. This fact is further reflected
from another Quranic verse:
“And
in the earth are many indications, for those whose faith is
firm.
And (also) in your selves. Can you then not see?”
51- 20 & 21
The above
verse emphasizes that (i) there are many signs in the earth
as well as in ourselves providing enough proof about the Existence
and Unity of Allah, and (ii) these signs are for those who
have firm faith in that. It means that the faith as such,
comes first and pondering over various signs as a proof of
that comes later. The only way to have faith in ‘Uluuhiyat’
and ‘Rubuubiyat’ of Allah, even before pondering
over the signs, could be to accept the Message conveyed by
the Prophets (Peace be upon them). There is no other way.
The faith is further strengthened when one ponders over various
signs in the universe. When Ibrahim (Peace be upon him) wanted
to be sure about the phenomenon of `resurrection’, it
was first clarified in reply to the question from Allah, that
it was not the requirement for entering faith, but to put
the seeker’s inquisitive mind at ease. The `Unseen’
has revealed Himself through the Message and in the manifestations
in His creations. Reflection and reasoning in the `Diin’,
(the religious doctrine) and phenomena of nature clarify and
strengthen the faith.
For further clarity, see Appendix-9.
For lexicography of the term “Rabb”
see Appendix-10.
Important Note: Because of its
greater importance and impact on the basic concept of Kufr
and Shirk, the lexicography (Appendix-10) must be examined
carefully.
Wider
Connotations of ‘Rubuubiyah’:There
is an inherent difficulty in explaining fully and appreciating
properly, the term ‘Rubuubiyat’ in particular,
and the scientific processes demonstrated in manifestations
of God in general. In this regard terminology available in
human articulation usually is that which is used for defining
physical and human qualities. It should be clearly understood
that phenomena and signs, can only be explained as manifestations
of the Most Beautiful High Exalted Attributes, as disclosed
by Allah Himself. Difficulties in human explanations will
always remain there because of limitations of language, understanding,
expression and experience of man. A.K.Azad in ‘Tarjumanul
Quran’ (Pp.19-20) explains some processes and connotations
of ‘Rubuubiyat’. "Anyway, in Arabic, ‘Rubuubiyat’
means nourishing. But the term is to be conceived here in
its widest sense, for in the opinion of some of the leading
lexicographers , the term means, `to develop a thing
from stage to stage in accordance with its inherent aptitudes,
needs and its different aspects of existence, and also in
a manner affording the requisite freedom to it to attain its
full stature'. If a person should feed the hungry
or give alms to the indigent, it will be an expression of
kindness, benevolence or favour on his part. But this will
not amount to what is styled `Rubuubiyat’. Rubuubiyat
is a process of tender or careful nourishment providing from
moment to moment and from stage to stage, that entire one
needs to gain the fullest possible development. And this process
is always to be marked with touch of tenderness; for, no activity
which is not actuated by this can claim to be regarded as
Rubuubiyat."
When Adam was directed to leave the "Janat"
(the Garden), Allah informed that economic resources, for
the entire term appointed, had been kept in the planet for
sustenance. They in fact cater to all requirements of mankind
for its existence, sustenance, development, progress, enjoyment,
entertainment, etc. They have been adequately arranged in
advance, for meeting man’s multifarious needs and wants
and for fulfilling its wishes, desires and aspirations.
“..On earth will be your dwelling-place,and
your means of livelihood –for a time” 7-24
“It
is We (Allah) Who have placed you with authority on earth,
And provided you therein with means for the fulfillment
of your life:
Small are the thanks that you give”.7-10
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