The practice of extending divine love equally to all beings, transcending the human tendency to favor certain people, which Rabia exemplified through her radical indifference to status.
Rabia al-Adawiyya taught that true love of the Divine must be free from conditions, calculations, and partiality. She rejected the notion that some souls deserved more of God's affection than others, modeling instead a love that flows equally to rich and poor, master and servant alike. When we practice love without preference, we begin to recognize how favoritism corrupts our authentic connections with others. Every act of favoritism—choosing one child over another, elevating one colleague while ignoring their equal peer—fractures the spiritual principle that all beings possess inherent worth. Rabia's legacy suggests that the cost of favoritism is not merely social injustice but a diminishment of our own capacity for genuine love. By examining where we show preference, we uncover the ego's hunger for control and the heart's fear of scarcity. Her tradition invites us to ask: whom do I withhold love from, and what does that withholding cost me?
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