MASHRAB – مشرب
Literally: A drinking place. A drink, especially water. A person's natural disposition.
As an Islamic term: A place and path where ma’nawî pleasure and faydh are obtained. It refers to differences in temperament and nature among people who share the same religion or life philosophy.
When the sons of Israel were crossing the Red Sea with Mûsâ (as), they became thirsty in the desert. They asked Mûsâ (as) for water. Allah said to Mûsâ (as), "Strike your staff on the stone." When Mûsâ (as) struck the stone with his staff, water gushed forth from twelve places, corresponding to the number of tribes of the sons of Israel. Thus, each tribe drank water from its allocated section without any dispute.
The source of the word mashrab is the word مَّشْرَبَهُمْ in the 60th. âyah of surah al-Baqara, which describes the above event, the phrase قَدْ عَلِمَ كُلُّ أُنَاسٍ مَّشْرَبَهُمْ meaning “each of them knew their drinking place.”
Fakhraddîn Râzî mentions the following event in his book to explain the differences in mashrab:
When Muhammad (asm) was consulting with his sahabah about how to treat the prisoners of Badr, Abu Bakr suggested, "Let's release them in exchange for ransom," while ‘Umar proposed, "Let's kill them all." The Prophet (asm) likened Abu Bakr to Ibrâhîm (as) and ‘Îsâ (as), and ‘Umar to Nûh (as) and Mûsâ (as).
In his du‘â, Ibrâhîm (as) said to Allah,
رَبِّ إِنَّهُنَّ أَضْلَلْنَ كَثِيرًا مِّنَ ٱلنَّاسِ ۖ فَمَن تَبِعَنِى فَإِنَّهُۥ مِنِّى ۖ وَمَنْ عَصَانِى فَإِنَّكَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
"O my Rabb! They have indeed led many people astray. Therefore, only those who follow my ways belong to me, and I leave those to You who disobey me; surely You are Ghafûr and Rahîm.”
He said that he has entrusted his ummah to the forgiving and merciful names of Allah.
Regarding his ummah, who had abandoned tawhîd and fallen into the error of the trinity, ‘Îsâ (as) said to Allah,
إِن تُعَذِّبْهُمْ فَإِنَّهُمْ عِبَادُكَ ۖ وَإِن تَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ فَإِنَّكَ أَنتَ ٱلْعَزِيزُ ٱلْحَكِيمُ
"If You punish them, they surely are Your ‘abds, and if You forgive them, You are ‘Azîz and Hakîm.”
He did not directly ask for their destruction.
In contrast, regarding his ummah who insisted on their kufr, Nûh (as) said,
رَّبِّ لَا تَذَرْ عَلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ مِنَ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ دَيَّارًا
"O Rabb! Do not leave a single kâfir on the surface of the earth.”
And Mûsâ (as) cursed his people and said,
رَبَّنَا ٱطْمِسْ عَلَىٰٓ أَمْوَٰلِهِمْ وَٱشْدُدْ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِمْ فَلَا يُؤْمِنُوا۟ حَتَّىٰ يَرَوُا۟ ٱلْعَذَابَ ٱلْأَلِيمَ
"Our Rabb, destroy their wealth and harden their hearts, so that they may not believe until they see the painful punishment."
And for example, the mashrab of Hasan al-Basri and ‘Uways al-Qarâni, who are considered among the most prominent of the Tabi'în, were certainly not the same. Hasan al-Basri was very close to the people of his time and trained many students. ‘Uways al-Qarâni, who was abundantly blessed with ‘ilm and faydh, lived a reclusive life.
Since Allah created every human being differently, and each individual is a place of manifestation of different names of Allah in various ways, the differences in mashrab are inevitable. However, this difference should not be a cause for conflict. Just as the âyah describing the order of celestial bodies like the sun and moon states,
لَا ٱلشَّمْسُ يَنۢبَغِى لَهَآ أَن تُدْرِكَ ٱلْقَمَرَ وَلَا ٱلَّيْلُ سَابِقُ ٱلنَّهَارِ ۚ وَكُلٌّ فِى فَلَكٍ يَسْبَحُونَ
“Neither is it possible for the sun to overtake the moon, nor for the night to outstrip the day: each floats along in its own orbit.”
So too should individuals having different mashrab continue on their paths without entering the orbit of another, that is, without colliding or clashing.