What is the meaning of “Man Rabbuka” (Who is your Lord?) in the Grave realm?

What is the meaning of “Man Rabbuka” (Who is your Lord?) in the Grave realm?

Question:

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullah wabarakatuh.

 Ustadz, all praises be to Allah, I am blessed to follow the guidance of the salafiyya after I lived in the United States. I beg for your help to answer my question, which often becomes rebuttal for the concept of tawheed rububiyya of the ahl sunna wal jama’a. It is said,

“If the disbelievers were considered to believe in tawheed rububiyya, then why does the questions of the grave contains, “who is your Lord?”

I’m grateful for your kind answer.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullah.

Regards,

Arif Hakim

Answer:

Wa’alaikumsalam warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.

All praises be to Allah, Who has gathered us upon the path of Islam and sunnah.

Among the principles hold by the Ahlussunnah wal jamaah concerning the tawheed rububiyya (believing in Oneness of Allah in creation, bestowing of sustenance, and regulation of the universe), is that this kind of tawheed is not enough to enter a person in Islam, since the polytheists of Quraish also acknowledged the rububiyya of Allah, but they were still fought by the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- . As revealed in Allah’s decree:

قُلْ مَنْ يَرْزُقُكُمْ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ أَمَّنْ يَمْلِكُ السَّمْعَ وَالْأَبْصَارَ وَمَنْ يُخْرِجُ الْحَيَّ مِنَ الْمَيِّتِ وَيُخْرِجُ الْمَيِّتَ مِنَ الْحَيِّ وَمَنْ يُدَبِّرُ الْأَمْرَ فَسَيَقُولُونَ اللَّهُ فَقُلْ أَفَلا تَتَّقُونَ) (يونس:31)

“Ask them: “Who provides you with sustenance out of the heavens and the earth? Who holds mastery over your hearing and sight? Who brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living? Who governs all affairs of the Universe?” They will surely say: “Allah.” Tell them: “Will you, then, not shun (going against reality)?”(Qs. 10:31)

Allah also decreed:

(وَلَئِنْ سَأَلْتَهُمْ مَنْ خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ لَيَقُولُنَّ اللَّهُ فَأَنَّى يُؤْفَكُونَ) (العنكبوت:61)

“If you  were to ask them: “Who created the heavens and the earth and Who has kept the sun and the moon in subjection?” they will certainly say: “Allah.” How come, then, they are being deluded from the Truth?”(Qs. 29:61)

As for the questions of the two angels inside the grave (of “man rabbuka/who is your Lord?), it doesn’t indicate that the disbelievers didn’t acknowledge the rububiyya of Allah.

The scholars explained that the word “Rabb/Lord” here means “ilah/the worshipped one”, because the relation between rububiyya and uluhiyya of Allah is very close, in which the acknowledgment of rububiyya of something necessitated the person to worship that thing, and vice versa, a person who worshipped something, means that he believed in the rububiyya of that thing.

Therefore, the scholars stated that the words Rabb and ilah in Arabic language is included in the kind of words that if they united, they separated, and if they separated, they united, which means that if they are used in one context, then they have different meanings, but if they are used in separated context, they have one single meaning.” (Refer to: At-Tamhid Syarh Kitabit Tauhid, Sheikh Shalih Alu Syeikh, page: 415-416)

Another examples are:

First: The words “faqir” (the poor) and “miskin” (the needy). According to some scholars, “faqir” means a person who doesn’t have any income at all, whereas “miskin” means a person who has some income but it isn’t enough to fulfill his main necessities.

If the word “faqir” is mentioned in a verse, or in a hadith, and it is mentioned without the word “miskin”, then it means both the meanings of faqir and miskin, as in the hadith:

فإن هم أطاعوه لذلك فأعلمهم أن الله افترض عليهم صدقة في أموالهم تؤخذ من أغنيائهم وترد على فقرائهم

“If they obeyed you to perform the prayer, then tell them that Allah has obliged them to give alms from their wealth (zakat), taken from the wealthy of them and given to the poor (fuqara, plural form of faqir, -ed) of them.” (Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim)

Likewise, if the word “miskin” is mentioned without “faqir”, then it comprises both words. But if those words are mentioned together, then each has different meanings, as in Allah’s decree:

إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ )(التوبة: من الآية60

“The alms are meant only for the poor and the needy…” (chapter At Taubah/The Repentance:60)

Second: The words “Islam” and “Faith”. Islam is related to the matters that could be seen (such as the testimonies, prayer, zakat, fast, hajj) whereas faith is related to unseen matters (such as believing in Allah, the angels, the messengers, etc).

If only one of them is mentioned in a verse or a hadith, such as Islam only, or faith only, then one word comprises the meanings of both words. But if both are mentioned altogether, then each word has distinct meaning.

Likewise, the words “Rabb/Lord” and “ilah”. Rabb is the one who created, maintained, and bestowed sustenances, whereas ilah is the one that is worshipped.

If only one of them is mentioned in a hadith, or in a verse, such as the word “rabb” only, then it also comprises the meaning if ilah, just as in the question:

“Man rabbuka?” Thus, it actually means: “Who is your Lord and the One that you worship?”

Among indications that supported this understanding is a hadith from ‘Ady Ibn Hatim -may Allah be pleased with him-, he said:

أَتَيْتُ النَّبِىَّ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- وَفِى عُنُقِى صَلِيبٌ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ قَالَ فَسَمِعْتُهُ يَقُولُ (اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَابًا مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ) قَالَ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّهُمْ لَمْ يَكُونُوا يَعْبُدُونَهُمْ. قَالَ :« أَجَلْ وَلَكِنْ يُحِلُّونَ لَهُمْ مَا حَرَّمَ اللَّهُ فَيَسْتَحِلُّونَهُ وَيُحَرِّمُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ فَيُحَرِّمُونَهُ فَتِلْكَ عِبَادَتُهُمْ لَهُمْ

“I came to the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- whereas a golden cross was hung on my neck, then I heard he recited the verse:

اتَّخَذُوا أَحْبَارَهُمْ وَرُهْبَانَهُمْ أَرْبَاباً مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ)(التوبة: من الآية31

“They take their rabbis and their monks for their lords apart from Allah, ” (chapter At Taubah/The Repentance: 31)

Then I said, “O Messenger of Allah, they (the christians) do not worship them! Then the Messenger of Allah -peace and prayer of Allah be upon him- said:

“True, but those scholars and monks legalized for them matter that Allah has prohibited for them, then they legalized it too, and they prohibited matter that Allah has made legal for them, then they prohibited it too, this is the form of their worship.” (Narrated by At-Tirmidzy 5/278, Al-Baihaqy 10/116 and Ath-Thabrany in “Al-Mu’jamul Kabir” 17/92 , and classed as a good hadith by Sheikh Al-Albany)

In this hadith, ‘Ady Ibn Hatim thought the saying of the Messenger of Allah that they took their rabbis and monks as rabb (lord) meant that they took them as their deity/the one that they worshipped.

And Allah knows best.

Answered by: Ustadz Abdullah Roy, MA