Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) said in Surah Al-Qasas;
“Ta Seen Meem. These are Verses of the Book that makes (things) clear. We rehearse to you some of the story of Musa and Fir’awn (Pharaoh) in Truth for people who believe. Truly Fir’awn exalted himself in the land and broke up its people into sections depressing a small group among them; their sons he slew but he kept alive their females, for he was indeed a maker of mischief. And We wished to be gracious to those who were being depressed in the land to make them leaders and make them inheritors. To establish a firm place for them in the land and We let Fir’awn and Haman and their hosts receive from them that which they feared.” [TMQ Al-Qasas: 1-6]
These words of Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) are remembered as the blessed month of Muharram has approached us once again. Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) has blessed the Muslims with experiencing these months so that we may remember the former generations who called to the worship and submission to Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) and how they succeeded in their struggles against the batil (falsehood).
For Muslims the reference point for undertaking all actions and deriving laws is from the Qur’an and Sunnah of the final Messenger Muhammad (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam). In addition to this Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) related many stories of the previous Prophets during the struggle and sacrifice in Makkah that the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) and the Sahabah (ra) went through. These Surahs were a great lesson for the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) and the Sahabah (ra). It motivated their souls; they carried the call of Islam, conveyed the da’wah and they learned to endure the struggle and sacrifice and worked with tawakkul (trust) and sabr (patience) for the victory as Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) had granted it to the previous Prophets.
The story of Musa (as) and his struggle against the tyrant Fir’awn is one of these stories in the Glorious Qur’an. It carries significance to the month of Muharram because this is a blessed month and it is also when Fir’awn was defeated.
The excellence of Muharram
The month of Muharram marks the beginning of the year 1424 Hijri, meaning 1424 years after Hijra (AH). Muharram was declared the first month of Hijri calendar by ‘Umar bin Al-Khattab (ra) at the suggestion of ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan (ra) in the year 16 AH.
The merits and significance of the month of Muharram are unparalleled. Ibn ‘Abbaas (ra) narrated,
The Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) arrived in Madinah and found the Jews observing fast on the day of ‘Ashura. He said to them: ‘What is this?’ They said: ‘A great day. Allah saved Musa and the tribes of Israel from their enemies on this day and therefore, Musa fasted on this day.’ The Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: ‘We have more of a right to Musa than you.’ So he fasted on that day and also ordered the people to fast on that day.” [Al-Bukhari, Muslim, An-Nasai and Ibn Majah]
Abu Hurairah (ra) reported:
“I asked the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam): ‘Which prayer is the best after the obligatory prayers?’ He said: ‘Prayer during the middle of the night.’ I asked: ‘Which fast is the best after the fast of Ramadhan?’ He said, ‘The month of Allah that you call Muharram.’” [Ahmad, Muslim and Abu Dawud]
Indeed the fasting of ‘Ashura is of great excellence because Abu Qatada (ra) relates that the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) said, “Fasting on the day of ‘Arafah is an expiation for two years, the year preceding it and the year following it. Fasting on the day of ‘Ashurah is an expiation for the year preceding it.” [Sahih Muslim]
The story of Musa (as)
Today the Muslims witness tyranny and oppression over the Islamic lands by the successor of Fir’awn, the U.S. and her servants, the rulers in the Muslim world. Musa (as) came to face similar tyranny and oppression by the Fir’awn of that time. It is on the day of ‘Ashurah that Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) gave the victory to Musa (as).
Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) raised Musa (as) to liberate the people from this tyranny and oppression. Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) mentioned in Surah al-Qasas how he protected Musa (as) from his campaign of killing the male children. The Qur’an relates to us when Musa (as) was born, Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) inspired his mother to cast him into the river.
“And We inspired the mother of Musa, (saying): “Suckle him (Musa), but when you fear for him, then cast him into the river and fear not, nor grieve. Verily! We shall bring him back to you, and shall make him one of (Our) Messengers.” [TMQ Al-Qasas: 7]
The mother of Musa (as) obeyed the command of Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) with no resistance. Imagine casting your child into the river, this is the meaning of having Tawakkal (trust) in Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala).
And when Musa (as) came into the hands of Fir’awn, upon seeing Musa (as) Fir’awn’s wife felt joy and convinced Fir’awn not to slay him. Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) reunited Musa (as) with his mother when he would not take the milk from others, so Fir’awn’s wife employed Musa’s (as) mother as a maid to look after him and raise him. And a few ayat later Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) said,
“So did We restore him to his mother, that she might be delighted, and that she might not grieve, and that she might know that the Promise of Allah is true. But most of them know not.” [TMQ Al-Qasas: 13]
This is a reminder that Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) will always fulfil his promise. Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) has promised the Ummah that victory will be ours,
“Allah has promised those of you who believe and do righteous deeds, that He will certainly grant them succession to (the present rulers) in the earth…” [TMQ An-Nur: 55]
The role of the Ummah is to work with full sincerity and effort and to have complete Tawakkul (trust) in Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) and at the same time by following the method of the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) to revive the Muslim Ummah. Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) said about Musa (as),
“And when he attained full strength, and was perfect (in manhood), We bestowed on him Hukman (Prophethood, right judgement of the affairs) and knowledge…” [TMQ Al-Qasas: 14]
Fir’awn’s arrogance and fall
When Musa (as) grew up he stood against Fir’awn and challenged his corruption and tyranny, he led the Children of Israel (Bani Israel) against Fir’awn and made them disbelieve in him and his tyranny. Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) said to Musa (as) and Harun (as),
“Go, both of you, to Fir’awn, verily, he has transgressed (all bounds), and speak to him firmly, perhaps he may accept admonition or fear Allah” [TMQ Ta-Ha: 43-44]
Musa (as) and Harun (as) went to Fir’awn and discussed with him to convince him of the truth that Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) sent. But Fir’awn was arrogant and proud of his power and wealth.
“But non Believed in Musa except the offspring of his people, because of the fear of Fir’awn and his chiefs, lest they should persecute them; and verily, Fir’awn was an arrogant tyrant on the earth indeed he was one of the Musrifeen (transgressors) ” [TMQ Yunus: 83]
In reality Fir’awn’s power and wealth was but an illusion. His power could not extend to match the power of Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) and the power of the promised victory the believers carried in their hearts and minds. Just as today when the successor of Fir’awn the USA seems to be all powerful and invincible. The USA cannot match the power of Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) nor the power of the promised victory which the Muslims carry in their hearts and minds.
Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) said in Surah Yusuf,
“We relate unto you (O Muhammad) the best of stories through Our revelations unto you, of this Qur’an. And before this (i.e. the revelation), you were among those who knew nothing about it (the Qur’an).” [TMQ Yusuf: 3]
Hence the story of Musa (as) is of the best stories and Muslims must look positively at these stories in the Qur’an and learn from them that the Ummah will one day defeat the modern day Fir’awn. This will happen by accomplishing what is fard on us today by following the method of the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam).
USA’s arrogance and fall
“I want to be the bully on the block…” “…there is no future in trying to challenge the armed forces of the United States…” [Bush doctrine]. These were the testifying words of Colin Powell, the current US Secretary of State, before the House Armed Services Committee documented in the history of the Bush doctrine.
Today the U.S. is the modern day Fir’awn, roaming around the earth with arrogance and pride as if they are the Gods of the Earth. Like Fir’awn the USA is arrogant, oppresses the weak, whether they be the peoples or nations of the world, it breaks the very rules and legislation that it laid down such as UN resolutions and International Law. The Qur’an describes the nature of Fir’awn’s arrogance and the similarities are clear;
“And he and his hosts were arrogant in the land, without right, and they thought they would never return to us.” [TMQ Al-Qasas: 39]
The U.S. claims that Saddam will use ‘weapons of mass destruction’ (WMD) against the West, Israel and other neighbouring countries whom Bush calls ‘friends’. Yet it is this very colonialist nation who is behind the impending war on Iraq that is the chief supplier of these weapons, and it is the only nation that has ever used nuclear weapons in the entire history of human existence.
This arrogant superpower lies as it wishes hoping for people to accept what she says without question. For example, Colin Powell a few weeks ago ‘confidently’ described a compound in north-eastern Iraq – run by the group Ansar al-Islam – as a ‘terrorist chemicals and poisons factory.’ However the Observer newspaper described it as nothing more than a, “… dilapidated collection of concrete outbuildings at the foot of a grassy sloping hill. Behind the barbed wire, and a courtyard strewn with broken rocket parts, are a few empty concrete houses. There is a bakery. There is no sign of chemical weapons anywhere – only the smell of paraffin and vegetable ghee used for cooking.”
It was 58 years ago that a fleet of American B-29 bombers dropped 1,665 tons of napalm-filled bombs on Tokyo, leaving almost nothing standing over 16 square miles. In one horrific night, the firebombing of Tokyo killed an estimated 100,000 people.
The U.S. has bombed Afghanistan as she pleased, she has squeezed Iraq of basic necessities such as foodstuff and medicine. She aids her henchmen (the rulers in the Islamic lands) in oppressing those Muslims who she considers as a threat to her forced domination in the Islamic lands.
Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) tells us about what Fir’awn said when Musa (as) came to him inviting him to worship only Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala),
“O chiefs! I know not that you have an Ilah other than me, so kindle for me (a fire), O Haman, to bake (bricks out of clay), and set up for me a Sarhan (a lofty tower, or palace) in order that I may look at (or look for) the Ilah of Musa, and verily I think that he (Musa) is one of the liars.” [TMQ Al-Qasas: 38]
The U.S. supplies nations with weapons to kill the Muslims. Israel is one of the biggest buyers of U.S. arms, and much of the trade is financed with the $US2 billion a year it gets from Washington in military aid. Israel’s arsenal includes dozens of US helicopters (AH 64As, AH 1Fs, AH 1Gs); hundreds of tanks (M-60s) and armoured personnel carriers; and the biggest fleet of American fighter aircraft outside the US (F-15s, F-16s, F-4s and A-4s).
In all arrogance Fir’awn considered himself to be a god. Today the Americans carry the same arrogance, as was made so clear in an article in Time magazine titled, ‘America Rules: Thank God.’ An extract from the article says: “American dominance brings the world something more, the American creed, we are a uniquely ideological nation, we do not define ourselves by race or blood, but by adherence to a proposition, a proposition so humane and attractive, that it has independently of American power, one near universal adherence, from Prague’s velvet revolution to Tiananmen square, whose declaration of independence whose statue of liberty, do demonstrate us for freedom turned to for inspiration. Individual rights, government by consent, protection from arbitrary power, the free exchange of goods and ideas, we did not invent these ideas, we inherited them, we codified them and now we propagate them.” [Time Magazine, 4 August 1997]
However, despite the power and dominance the US carries today, it is a weak and crumbling nation. It is nothing other than an illusion at face value. The US is the most indebted nation in the world, has soaring crime rates, it has record family break-ups, it has recently admitted its fuel reserves have fallen to their lowest levels since the 1970s Arab oil embargo and most of the world hates her. Without the betrayal of the rulers in the Muslim countries the US armies would not have been able to step one foot in the Islamic lands from where she now bombs neighbouring countries.
David McArthur writes, “The US has been living off the savings of the rest of the world for years, now absorbing some three-quarters of the world’s debt finance. The US government, corporations and people are now the most indebted in the world. Altogether, the US has borrowed nearly $40 trillion, and needs $2 billion a day in debt finance to support its huge trade deficit.” [rense.com]
Any number of surveys do not need to prove the following point, however, in Germany a poll by the Forsa institute, published in the Financial Times Deutschland newspaper found that 57 percent agreed with the statement; “The United States is a nation of warmongers.”
If the rulers in the Islamic lands had not allowed the US to establish her military, air and naval bases in the Muslim world, could the US ever have been able strike a war on the Muslims of Iraq or Afghanistan? Never. As we will see insh’allah these traitors will be removed from their positions as the Muslim Ummah increases in her awareness of their treachery and betrayal. Once they are removed every colonialist base will be ejected from the Islamic lands. Where will the US strike her wars from then? Hence the idea of an unshakable and unbeatable America needs to be re-examined to understand with conviction the fall of this arrogant power.
Having Tawakkul (trust) in Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala)
Verily the Muslim Ummah is up against the Fir’awn of today and his assistants. We must learn from the seerah of our Messenger (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam) and stories of the previous Prophets such as Musa (as) and how he struggled against the tyrant Fir’awn and today we must do the same.
Having tawakkul in Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) means to work and fulfil the fard actions to the highest level and at the same time have tawakkul that Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) will very soon grant the Ummah the success. Our beloved Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam), Musa (as) and the other Prophets put their trust in Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) and this is the same trust we as Muslims must carry.
As the Qur’an tells us,
“And Musa said, “O my people! If you have believed in Allah, then put your trust in Him if you are Muslims”. They said, “In Allah we put our trust. Our Lord! Make us not a trial for the folk who are Dhalimun (oppressors).” [TMQ Yunus: 84-85]
Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) ordered Muhammad (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam),
“So put your trust in Allah, surely, you (O Muhammad) are on manifest truth”. [TMQ An-Naml: 79]
Our stance regarding the current status quo should not be one of defeatism and should not be one of despair and should not be one of just having patience. Rather we should understand Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) has promised the Muslim Ummah His victory, and the defeat of today’s Fir’awn is not far insh’allah and we must work now to bring this defeat very soon. Our role today is to work on the method of the Prophethood to re-establish the Islamic Khilafah state.
This victory will only be materialised once the Muslim Ummah has united under the banner of one Khalifah under one Khilafah State and as one unified force against the Fir’awn and his assistants. We should have the same attitude that the Prophet (Sall Allahu Alaihi Wasallam), the Sahabah (ra) and the previous Prophets had. As Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) orders that the believers put their trust in Him alone,
“Say, nothing shall ever happen to us except what Allah has ordained for us. He is our Maula (Lord, Helper and Protector). And in Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) let the believers put their trust.” [TMQ At-Tauba: 51]
The Promise of Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala)
Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) said,
“O Mankind! Verily, the Promise of Allah is true” [TMQ Al-Faatir: 5]
Verily the promise of Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) is the best of promises and it brings delight to the hearts and souls of the believers that Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) is behind the Muslims every step of the way with the struggle against the Fir’awn of today. Whenever a struggle between the Haqq (truth) and the Batil (falsehood) has taken place, Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) has made the Haqq triumphant at the hands of the believers. Whether the believers have been weak, disheartened or strong in number, the Haqq always remains.
“(It is) a Promise of Allah, and Allah fails not in His Promise, but most of men know not.” [TMQ Ar-Rum: 6]
Therefore, Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) will insh’allah give the Ummah the nusrah (victory) when we have expended all our efforts in working to revive the Ummah and re-establish the Islamic Khilafah state. The US, her assistants and the enemies of the Ummah around the world will insh’allah be another piece of history just as the former generations that Allah (Subhanhu Wa Ta’aala) has informed us about.
“Did you (O Muhammad) not see how your Lord dealt with ‘Ad (people) of Iram Who were very tall like lofty pillars? The like of which were not created in the land? And (with) Thamud (people), who cut (hewed) out rocks in the valley (to make dwellings)? And Fir’awn who had pegs (who used to torture men by binding them to pegs)? Who did transgress beyond bounds in the lands (in the disobedience to Allah). And multiplied iniquity therein. So your Lord poured on them different kinds of sever torment. Verily your Lord is ever watchful” [TMQ A-Fajr: 6-14]
Asad Ali
Source: Khilafah Magazine March 2003 Edition
