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The Defection of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab and the Saud Clan from the Ottoman Caliphate
Dear Administration of the site: Islamqa.info
Assalamu Alaykum wa Rahmat Allahu wa Barakatu,You published on your site an answer to the question titled, “Did the Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab defect from the Ottoman Caliphate, and was he a cause of its downfall?” and the answer quoted from the book: How the Khilafah was Destroyed by the Scholar Sheikh Abdul-Qadeem Zalloum. We found a number of important points that need to be clarified, and we hope you will kindly publish our comments regarding the answer on your site…
May Allah award you a great reward on our behalf.
Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem
The Defection of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab and the Saud Clan from the Ottoman Caliphate
Alhamdulillah, the Lord of the Worlds, a very good, blessed thanks, that fills the Heavens and the Earth and beyond, and may Allah’s peace and blessings be on the one who was sent as a Mercy to the Worlds, Muhammad bin Abdullah, and on his family and companions, and those who supported him and followed him beneficently until the day of Judgment, having said that…
It is reported on the website Islam Question and Answer, under the supervision of Sheikh Muhammad Saleh al-Munjid an answer to the question:
Question: Did the Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab defect from the Ottoman Caliphate and was he a cause of its downfall?
Some people slander Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab, may Allah have mercy on his soul, and accuse him of warring against the Ottoman Islamic Caliphate and against the Khaleefah of the Muslims; therefore, he is an enemy against Muslims. And controversy revolves around this issue, so is this true? How can anyone fight the Amir of the Muslims, even though the Khaleefah prays, implements Zakat and such? They also claim that he colluded with the British army, and fought with them against the Muslims. Please give me a detailed answer about this historical issue, and that you clarify the truth for me. Who can we believe? End of Question.
We will present the answer paragraph by paragraph, and then examine it and comment with what Allah commended us, asking that Allah Almighty present the truth by our words and make us see the truth as truth and false as false and let us steer clear of the false, O Allah, Ameen.
The first paragraph of the answer:
Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Abed al-Lateef said, “Some of the opponents of the Salafi claim Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab had defected the Ottoman Caliphate and in this had split the Muslims and violated the obligation of obedience.” [Claims of the Opponents of the Call of Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab, p. 233]
And he said, Abdul Qadeem Zalloum claims that “the Wahhabis, by the emergence of their message, was a cause of the downfall of the Caliphate,” saying, “the Wahhabis created an entity in the Islamic State headed by Muhammad bin Saud and then by Abdul Aziz, thus the British provided them with weapons and funding and they were motivated on a doctrinal (Math’hab) basis to seize the Islamic lands under the control of the Khilafah; that is, they took up arms against the Khaleefah and fought the Islamic army; the army of the Amir of the Muslims, instigated and supported by the British.” [How the Caliphate was Destroyed, p. 10]
Before we deliver the answer about Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab’s suspected defection from the Caliphate state, it is appropriate that we remember how the Imam Sheikh believed in the obligatory nature of hearing and obeying the Muslim’s leaders, be they righteous or immoral, as long as they did not order a sin because obedience is only for what is good.
The Imam Sheikh said in a letter to the people of al-Qassim: “I see that it is obligatory to hear and obey the leaders of the Muslims, the righteous and the immoral, as long as they do not order a sin, and whoever has been designated the Khilafah, after the people agreed on him and were satisfied with him and were defeated by his sword until he became the Khaleefah, then it becomes obligatory to obey him and it becomes forbidden to oppose him.” [Compiled Publications of the Sheikh, 5/11]
He also says, “The third origin: It is of good compilation is to hear and obey who rules us even if he were a black Abyssinian.” [The Compiled Publications of the Sheikh (394/1) via The Opponents’ Claims, p. 233-4].
End of the first paragraph
We shall address the following issues of the fatwa analytically, namely:
First: The obligatory nature of hearing and obeying the Khaleefah.
Second: The forbidden nature of opposing the Khaleefah and the examination of the Sheikh’s opinion in the case the Khaleefah commands a sinful act, compared to the text of the hadith not to oppose the Khaleefah except in the case of blatant disbelief (Kufr).
Third: The failure of the fatwa to address the issue of the unity of the Islamic State and the forbidden nature of bayah to more than one Khaleefah at the same time.
This paragraph contains an opinion about the obligatory nature of hearing and obeying the leaders of the Muslims, the righteous and the immoral, as long as they do not order a sin, and it is without a doubt that this is an argument against Sheikh ibn Abdul Wahhab not an argument for him; from your own mouth, I condemn you. He had issued a fatwa stating the forbidden nature of defecting from the Khaleefah, and then he defected against him. Details will demonstrate that he defected from him until he reached Homs and Aleppo, and he rebelled against him in Iraq, Kuwait and other places that were under direct control of the Khaleefah via his governors, just as every Amir had entrusted governors.
The second issue of that we read in the fatwa is what deals with the lack of obedience when ordered to carry out a sin, and the absence of explanation about the forbidden nature of opposing when ordered to carry out a sin, but only if he shows blatant disbelief.
What obligates the opposition of the Khaleefah is not simply him ordering a sin, for if he orders a sin then there is no obedience to him because of the Prophet’s ﷺ saying,
“لا طاعةَ لمخلوقٍ في معصيةِ الخالقِ”
“There is no obedience to the created in disobedience to the Creator.” [al-Albani]
However, opposing him is forbidden except if he shows blatant Kufr, with clear proof from Allah, narrated by Muslim on the authority of ‘Auf bin Malik that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,
«خيار أئمتكم الذين تحبونهم ويحبونكم، ويصلّون عليكم وتُصلّون عليهم، وشرار أئمتكم الذين تبغضونهم ويبغضونكم، وتلعنونهم ويلعنونكم، قيل: يا رسول الله أفلا ننابذهم بالسيف؟ فقال: لا، ما أقاموا فيكم الصلاة، وإذا رأيتم من ولاتكم شيئاً تكرهونه فاكرهوا عمله ولا تنـزعوا يداً من طاعة».
“The best of your rulers are those whom you love and who love you, who invoke God’s blessings upon you and you invoke His blessings upon them. And the worst of your rulers are those whom you hate and who hate you and whom you curse and who curse you. It was asked (by those present): Shouldn’t we overthrow them with the help of the sword? He said: No, as long as they establish prayer among you. If you find anything detestable in them, you should hate their administration, but do not withdraw ourselves from their obedience.”
This is explicit in describing the good Imams and the evil Imams, and also explicit in forbidding fighting them as long as they implement the Deen, because implementing Salah is a reference for implementing the Deen and ruling by it; narrated by Bukhari on the authority of Junada bin Abi Umaiya,
دخلنا على عبادة بن الصامت وهو مريض قلنا أصلحك الله حدث بحديث ينفعك الله به سمعته من النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: دعانا النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فبايعناه. فقال فيما أخذ علينا أن بايعنا على السمع والطاعة في منشطنا ومكرهنا وعسرنا ويسرنا وأَثَرَةً علينا وأن لا ننازع الأمر أهله قال إلاّ أن تروا كفراً بواحاً عندكم من الله فيه برهان
“We entered upon ‘Ubada bin As-Samit while he was sick. We said, “May Allah make you healthy. Will you tell us a Hadith you heard from the Prophet by which Allah may make you benefit?” He said, “The Prophet called us and we gave him the Pledge of allegiance for Islam, and among the conditions on which we took the Pledge from us, was that we were to listen and obey (the orders) both at the time when we were active and at the time when we were tired, and at our difficult time and at our ease and to be obedient to the ruler and give him his right even if he did not give us our right, and not to fight against him unless we noticed him having open Kufr (disbelief) for which we would have a proof with us from Allah.”
It is necessary to say that the aforementioned fatwas mention another greatly important related issue; the obligation for the unification of the Muslims under the entity of an Islamic State, and the forbiddance that there be two Khaleefahs in the Ummah, and not defect from it, and every chief of a tribe not separate from the Islamic State and war against it.
There is the opinion of Sheikh bin Abdul Wahhab about hearing and obeying whoever the people have agreed upon and are satisfied with and have been defeated with the sword, and the problem deals with the sentiment of dominated by the sword with the people’s satisfaction of him, as if it was a requirement for the obligation of obedience and the forbiddance of defection. This issue is not a requirement for the conditions of bayah of the Khilafah, and it is not mentioned in the Hadeeths of the Mustafa ﷺ. Therefore, the relationship between the ruler and the ruled is not a relationship of domination by the sword or of dominating them until they are subjugated; to the contrary, the allegiance is a contract of goodwill between the Ummah and the ruler based on consent and choice. It is reported on Omar bin Khattab (ra) saying, as it is reported in The Book of the Major Classes by ibn Sa’ad,
ألا إن الإسلام حائط منيع وباب وثيق فحائط الإسلام العدل وبابه الحق، ولا يزال الإسلام منيعاً ما اشتد السلطان، وليس شدة السلطان قتلاً بالسيف ولا ضرباً بالسوط ولكن قضاء بالحق وأخذاً بالعدل
“Abdullah bin Omar said when they went to discuss the matter: Othman called me {once may be twice} to make me part of their discussion, and by Allah I wouldn’t like to be part in it as I knew it was going to be what my father told me, and by Allah he always told the truth, and when Othman insisted, I said: Oh people don’t you realize that you are electing an Amir while Amir al- Mu’mineen is still alive among you, and after saying that, it felt like I had woken Omar up from the grave, then he [Omar] said: Be patient ,and if some thing happens to me, let Suhaib lead you in your salah for three nights, then agree on this matter among you, and whoever puts him self a leader on you without your consultation then cut off his head.”
‘Classes’ by bin Sa’ad also reports that Umayr bin Sa’ad (ra) who Omar bin Khattab (ra) had entrusted Homs to, used to say,
“ألا إن الإسلام حائط منيع وباب وثيق فحائط الإسلام العدل وبابه الحق، ولا يزال الإسلام منيعاً ما اشتد السلطان، وليس شدة السلطان قتلاً بالسيف ولا ضرباً بالسوط ولكن قضاء بالحق وأخذاً بالعدل”
“Islam is indeed an impervious wall and a closed door, for the wall of Islam is justice and its door is truth, and Islam will continue to be an impervious wall as long as authority is intensified, and the intensification of authority is not in fighting with the sword or beating with the whip, but in judging by truth and implementing in justice.”
With regards to the unity of the Muslims under one Khaleefah, Muslim reported in The Book of Principality and the narration is by him, Nisa’ai, Abu Dawood, Ibn Majah, and Ahmad, on the authority of Abdul Rahman bin Abdul Rab al-Ka’aba,
عَنْ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ عَبْدِ رَبِّ الْكَعْبَةِ قَالَ دَخَلْتُ الْمَسْجِدَ فَإِذَا عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ عَمْرِو بْنِ الْعَاصِ جَالِسٌ فِي ظِلِّ الْكَعْبَةِ وَالنَّاسُ مُجْتَمِعُونَ عَلَيْهِ فَأَتَيْتُهُمْ فَجَلَسْتُ إِلَيْهِ فَقَالَ: كُنَّا مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فِي سَفَرٍ… إلى أن قال: مَنْ أَحَبَّ أَنْ يُزَحْزَحَ عَنْ النَّارِ وَيُدْخَلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَلْتَأْتِهِ مَنِيَّتُهُ وَهُوَ يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَلْيَأْتِ إِلَى النَّاسِ الَّذِي يُحِبُّ أَنْ يُؤْتَى إِلَيْهِ وَمَنْ بَايَعَ إِمَامًا فَأَعْطَاهُ صَفْقَةَ يَدِهِ وَثَمَرَةَ قَلْبِهِ فَلْيُطِعْهُ إِنْ اسْتَطَاعَ فَإِنْ جَاءَ آخَرُ يُنَازِعُهُ فَاضْرِبُوا عُنُقَ الْآخَر”ِ
“I entered the masjid and Abdullah bin Amru bin al-As was sitting in the shade of the Ka’aba and the people were gathered around him, so I approached and sat with him and he said: ‘We were with the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, traveling … and he said: ‘Whoever would like to slide past the fire and enter the Jannah then let him die while he is a believer in Allah and the Last Day, and he should bring to the people what he would like to be brought to him, and whoever pledges allegiance to an Imam and obeyed him with the deal of his hand and the fruit of his heart, then he should obey him if he can and if someone else comes to challenge him then strike the neck of the latter.’”
And Muslim narrated on the authority of Arfajeh who said,
“من أتاكم وأمركم جميع على رجل واحد يريد أن يشق عصاكم، أو يفرق جماعتكم فاقتلوه “
“I heard the Prophet ﷺ say: “Whoever comes to you and your command is under one man who wants to split your stick, or separate your group, then kill him.”
And Muslim narrated in The Book of Principality on the authority of Abi Saidin al-Khudriji who said,
إِذَا بُويِعَ لِخَلِيفَتَيْنِ فَاقْتُلُوا الْآخَرَ مِنْهُمَا
The Prophet ﷺ said, ‘If allegiance is pledged to two Khaleefahs, then kill the latter.’” and here the statement is directed to all Muslims there can not be more than one Khaleefah over them, and this is textual evidence for the forbidden nature of there being more than one Khaleefah, and the obligation for there to be one Khaleefah.
And the reality of someone who disputes the Khaleefah on an area of land announcing that he will not subject to the authority of the Khaleefah, and that he will establish rule on that area; his situation is that he has placed himself an Imam over the Muslims, and is in the place of the Khaleefah even if he does not name himself a Khaleefah. The appointment of governors and workers over regions is the work of the Khaleefah, and his responsibility entrusted upon by the Shara’, and the Prophet ﷺ used to appoint the workers and governors, and that continued throughout the years of the rightly guided Khulafah ar-Rashideen after him. Therefore, it is not acceptable for a tribe to separate from the Islamic State and appoint itself its guardian, and then this guardian secedes the land from the Khaleefah, taking land under his authority; tearing it out from the authority of the Khaleefah, for this is without a doubt the actions of someone who sees himself as the Khaleefah of the Muslims.
Refer to the confirmation found in Saudi records:
The relationship of the Saudi state with ash-Sham:
The sources of the Najd suggest that the Iman Abdul Aziz bin Muhammad ordered some of his forces in the year 1208 AH/1793 CE to go to Dumat al- Jandal, at the outskirts of ash-Sham, and to fight its inhabitants, and that may have been to test the power of Ottomans in ash-Sham. In the year 1212 AH/1797 CE, Hajilan bin Hamd, the Amir of Qassim, headed an army from the Qassim family attacking the Valley of Shararat. Several men were killed and their property and monies were looted.
These campaigns were able to spread the principles of the calls for reform in the area and collect Zakah from the inhabitants. Six camels loaded with riyals arrived in the year 1218 AH from the people of ash-Sham. It is understood from that that the people of valleys in ash-Sham were under the political and religious authority of Dari’a (a city near Riyad), and not to the governors of ash-Sham.
End quote from Desert Warrior EncyclopediaSo as we see, the Zakat that used to be paid to the governors of ash-Sham on behalf of the Khaleefah, had been given to Dari’a, so is that anything other than the actions of someone who sees himself as the Khaleefah of the Muslims? And is there any clearer evidence that he had defied the Khaleefah for his work and responsibility, and defied him over the lands that were torn from him and subjected to his authority instead of the Khaleefah’s authority?
On the authority of Arfajah on the Prophet ﷺ said,
“إنه ستكون هَناتٌ وهنات، فمن أراد أن يفرق أمر هذه الأمة وهي جميع، فاضربوه بالسيف كائنا من كان ” رواه مسلم
“I have heard the Messenger of Allah say: ‘Different evils will make their appearance in the near future. Anyone who tries to disrupt the affairs of this Ummah while they are united you should strike him with the sword whoever he be,’” [narrated by Muslim]
Imam Nawawi in the Sahih Muslim commentary said,
إذا بويع لخليفة بعد خليفة، فبيعة الأول صحيحة ويجب الوفاء بها، وبيعة الثاني باطلة، ويحرم الوفاء بها، ويحرم عليه طلبها وسواء عقدوا للثاني عالمين بعقد الأول، أم جاهلين، وسواء كانا في بلدين أو بلد، أو أحدهما في بلد الإمام المنفصل والآخر في غيره…. واتفق العلماء على أنه لا يجوز أن يعقد لخليفتين في عصر واحد سواء اتسعت دار الإسلام أم لا
“If allegiance has been pledged to two Khaleefahs, then the allegiance to the first is correct and has to be kept, and the allegiance to second is null and it is forbidden to keep it, and it is forbidden to request it even if the persons who made the contract with the first were two scholars or two ignorant people, or in one land or the same land, or if the first was in the land of the separated Imam and the second was in a different land… and the scholars have agreed that it is not permissible to make a pact for two Khaleefahs at the same time whether the Dar al-Islam was expanded or not.”
Contemplate his statement: “If they were in two lands or one land,” meaning that even if we accept for the sake of debate that those lands were not under the direct control of the Caliphate state, then it is still forbidden to pledge allegiance to a Khaleefah in that land. Also contemplate the consensus of the scholars about this, but despite that we still find those who try to justify the Wahhabi’s defection from the Khilafah.
With regard to the obligation that the Muslims gather under the authority of one Amir al Mu’mineen,
فقد روى الإمام مسلم في كتاب الجهاد والسير واللفظ له والترمذي وأبو داود وابن ماجه وأحمد والدارمي: «عَنْ سُلَيْمَانَ بْنِ بُرَيْدَةَ عَنْ أَبِيهِ قَالَ: كَانَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا أَمَّرَ أَمِيرًا عَلَى جَيْشٍ أَوْ سَرِيَّةٍ أَوْصَاهُ فِي خَاصَّتِهِ بِتَقْوَى اللَّهِ وَمَنْ مَعَهُ مِنْ الْمُسْلِمِينَ خَيْرًا ثُمَّ قَالَ اغْزُوا بِاسْمِ اللَّهِ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ قَاتِلُوا مَنْ كَفَرَ بِاللَّهِ اغْزُوا وَلَا تَغُلُّوا وَلَا تَغْدِرُوا وَلَا تَمْثُلُوا وَلَا تَقْتُلُوا وَلِيدًا وَإِذَا لَقِيتَ عَدُوَّكَ مِنْ الْمُشْرِكِينَ فَادْعُهُمْ إِلَى ثَلَاثِ خِصَالٍ أَوْ خِلَالٍ فَأَيَّتُهُنَّ مَا أَجَابُوكَ فَاقْبَلْ مِنْهُمْ وَكُفَّ عَنْهُمْ ثُمَّ ادْعُهُمْ إِلَى الْإِسْلَامِ فَإِنْ أَجَابُوكَ فَاقْبَلْ مِنْهُمْ وَكُفَّ عَنْهُمْ ثُمَّ ادْعُهُمْ إِلَى التَّحَوُّلِ مِنْ دَارِهِمْ إِلَى دَارِ الْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَأَخْبِرْهُمْ أَنَّهُمْ إِنْ فَعَلُوا ذَلِكَ فَلَهُمْ مَا لِلْمُهَاجِرِينَ وَعَلَيْهِمْ مَا عَلَى الْمُهَاجِرِينَ فَإِنْ أَبَوْا أَنْ يَتَحَوَّلُوا مِنْهَا فَأَخْبِرْهُمْ أَنَّهُمْ يَكُونُونَ كَأَعْرَابِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ يَجْرِي عَلَيْهِمْ حُكْمُ اللَّهِ الَّذِي يَجْرِي عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَلَا يَكُونُ لَهُمْ فِي الْغَنِيمَةِ وَالْفَيْءِ شَيْءٌ إِلَّا أَنْ يُجَاهِدُوا مَعَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ فَإِنْ هُمْ أَبَوْا فَسَلْهُمْ الْجِزْيَةَ فَإِنْ هُمْ أَجَابُوكَ فَاقْبَلْ مِنْهُمْ وَكُفَّ عَنْهُمْ فَإِنْ هُمْ أَبَوْا فَاسْتَعِنْ بِاللَّهِ وَقَاتِلْهُمْ وَإِذَا حَاصَرْتَ أَهْلَ حِصْنٍ فَأَرَادُوكَ أَنْ تَجْعَلَ لَهُمْ ذِمَّةَ اللَّهِ وَذِمَّةَ نَبِيِّهِ فَلَا تَجْعَلْ لَهُمْ ذِمَّةَ اللَّهِ وَلَا ذِمَّةَ نَبِيِّهِ وَلَكِنْ اجْعَلْ لَهُمْ ذِمَّتَكَ وَذِمَّةَ أَصْحَابِكَ فَإِنَّكُمْ أَنْ تُخْفِرُوا ذِمَمَكُمْ وَذِمَمَ أَصْحَابِكُمْ أَهْوَنُ مِنْ أَنْ تُخْفِرُوا ذِمَّةَ اللَّهِ وَذِمَّةَ رَسُولِهِ وَإِذَا حَاصَرْتَ أَهْلَ حِصْنٍ فَأَرَادُوكَ أَنْ تُنْزِلَهُمْ عَلَى حُكْمِ اللَّهِ فَلَا تُنْزِلْهُمْ عَلَى حُكْمِ اللَّهِ وَلَكِنْ أَنْزِلْهُمْ عَلَى حُكْمِكَ فَإِنَّكَ لَا تَدْرِي أَتُصِيبُ حُكْمَ اللَّهِ فِيهِمْ أَمْ لَا”
Muslim has narrated in the book Jihad was-Sayr and the narration is his and for Turmidhi, Abu Dawud, Ibn Sajah, Ahmad and al-Darmi, “It has been reported from Sulaiman b. Buraid through his father that when the Messenger of Allah appointed anyone as leader of an army or detachment he would especially exhort him to fear Allah and to be good to the Muslims who were with him. He would say: Fight in the name of Allah and in the way of Allah. Fight against those who disbelieve in Allah. Make a holy war, do not embezzle the spoils; do not break your pledge; and do not mutilate (the dead) bodies; do not kill the children. When you meet your enemies who are polytheists, invite them to three courses of action. If they respond to any one of these, you also accept it and withhold yourself from doing them any harm. Invite them to (accept) Islam; if they respond to you, accept it from them and desist from fighting against them. Then invite them to migrate from their lands to the land of Muhairs and tell them that, if they do so, they shall have all the privileges and obligations of the Muhajirs. If they refuse to migrate, tell them that they will have the status of Bedouin Muslims and will be subjected to the Commands of Allah like other Muslims, but they will not get any share from the spoils of war or Fai’ except when they actually fight with the Muslims (against the disbelievers). If they refuse to accept Islam, demand from them the Jizya. If they agree to pay, accept it from them and hold off your hands. If they refuse to pay the tax, seek Allah’s help and fight them. When you lay siege to a fort and the besieged appeal to you for protection in the name of Allah and His Prophet, do not accord to them the guarantee of Allah and His Prophet, but accord to them your own guarantee and the guarantee of your companions for it is a lesser sin that the security given by you or your companions be disregarded than that the security granted in the name of Allah and His Prophet be violated When you besiege a fort and the besieged want you to let them out in accordance with Allah’s Command, do not let them come out in accordance with His Command, but do so at your (own) command, for you do not know whether or not you will be able to carry out Allah’s behest with regard to them.”
And in the narration Abu Dawud and Ahmad, “Then invite them to migrate from their lands to the land of the Muhajireen and inform them that, if they do so, they shall have all the privileges and obligations of the Muhajireen. If they refuse to migrate, tell them that they will have the status of Bedouin Muslims.”
Because the Prophet ﷺ ordered the attack of every land that refused to submit to authority of the Muslims, and he warred them, whether the inhabitants were Muslims or non- Muslims, with the evidence that he prohibited the killing of the inhabitants if they were Muslims,
روى الإمام البخاري في كتاب الأذان: «عَنْ حُمَيْدٍ عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مَالِكٍ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كَانَ إِذَا غَزَا بِنَا قَوْمًا لَمْ يَكُنْ يَغْزُو بِنَا حَتَّى يُصْبِحَ وَيَنْظُرَ فَإِنْ سَمِعَ أَذَانًا كَفَّ عَنْهُمْ وَإِنْ لَمْ يَسْمَعْ أَذَانًا أَغَارَ عَلَيْهِمْ»… وروى الإمام أحمد في مسند المكيين: «عَنْ رَجُلٍ مِنْ مُزَيْنَةَ يُقَالُ لَهُ ابْنُ عِصَامٍ عَنْ أَبِيهِ وَكَانَ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ: كَانَ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ إِذَا بَعَثَ السَّرِيَّةَ يَقُولُ إِذَا رَأَيْتُمْ مَسْجِدًا أَوْ سَمِعْتُمْ مُنَادِيًا فَلَا تَقْتُلُوا أَحَدًا»
Narrated by Imam Bukhari in his book The Adhan, narrated Humaid, Anas bin Malik said, “Whenever the Prophet went out with us to fight (in Allah’s cause) against any nation, he never allowed us to attack till morning and he would wait and see: if he heard Adhan he would postpone the attack and if he did not hear Adhan he would attack them”
…and Imam Ahmad narrated in his Musnad al Makkiyeen, “On the authority of a man from Muzayna that is called Ibn Esam on the authority of his father, and he was a companion of the Prophet, peace be upon him, said: The Prophet ﷺ if he sent a detachment would say, ‘if you see a Masjid or hear the Adhan calling then do not kill anyone.’”
The Adhan and Masjid are signs of Islam, and indicate that the land being inhabited by Muslims does not prohibit the land being attacked and warred. This means that the lands were considered Dar al-Harb, or Dar al-Kufr, because even if it showed some Islamic rituals, it was still not under the control of the Prophet; in other words not under the authority and security of Islam, so it was considered Dar al-Harb, and was attacked like any other Dar Harb, until it was under the control of Islam and secured by the security of Islam, and was incorporated to the body of the Islamic State.
In conclusion: Therefore, the issue is deeper than the defecting of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab from the State, because he was not eager to be a part of the body of the Islamic State, and disputed the Khaleefah for his authority on Allah’s earth that obligates the submission under the authority of one Khaleefah, and he was determined to fragment the word of the Muslims and their lands, and to install another president who was Abdul Aziz bin Muhammad bin Saud and then his son Saud, who did not submit to the authority of the Khaleefah, and instead disputed his ruling on a section from the Islamic lands, and revolted against him to the point that his revolt reached Homs and Aleppo. They were not content with giving bayah to another Khaleefah that ruled over an area of the Islamic lands, but they also dejected from the Khaleefah in the midst of his land! We will come to the details shortly, Allah Almighty willing.
According to the Shariah, Abdul Aziz’s position before the Ottoman Khilafah that he placed a Wilayah (province) that did not submit to the authority of the Khilafah; it was the Ottoman Khilafah’s right, based on the Shariah, to oppose him and seize authority over him. In accordance with what Suleiman bin Bareedah (ra) said above, if Abdul Aziz and his son, Saud, do not abide by the Khilafah, and instead institute a new regime in the Muslim lands, then they apply to Rasulallah’s ﷺ Hadith narrated by Muslim in the Imarah book:
عَنْ عَرْفَجَةَ قَالَ سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ مَنْ أَتَاكُمْ وَأَمْرُكُمْ جَمِيعٌ عَلَى رَجُلٍ وَاحِدٍ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَشُقَّ عَصَاكُمْ أَوْ يُفَرِّقَ جَمَاعَتَكُمْ فَاقْتُلُوهُ
It has also been narrated by Muslim that Arfajah said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘Whoever comes to you while your affair has been united over one man, intending to divide your power or dissolve your unity, kill him.’”
And Rasulallah’s ﷺ Hadith, as previously mentioned:“إذا بويع لخليفتين فاقتلوا الآخر منهما”
“If the bayah is given to two Khaleefahs, then kill the latter.”
Based on what has been told by Sunan Bayhaqi, Abu-Baker al-Sideeq (ra) said,
لا يحل أن يكون للمسلمين أميران، فإنه مهما يكن ذلك، يختلف أمرهم وأحكامهم وتتفرق جماعتهم ويتنازعوا فيما بينهم هنالك تترك السنة وتظهر البدعة وتعظم الفتنة، وليس لأحد على ذلك صلاح
“There can never be two governors over the Muslims; for however they may be, they will always have differences in their rule and insights, leading to separations and disputes between their parties, and ending with leaving the ways of the Sunnah and allowing Bida’ah and Fitnah to appear.”
This brings attention to the texts prohibiting the presence of two rulers is absolute, including all situations, including representing distant lands in the Islamic world that are hard for the authority to reach and others. The texts are complete in containing the prohibition and the prevention of accepting any second baya’ah in Islam, and demands the perpetrator be killed wherever he may be!
Section 2 of the answer from the website: Islam Question and Answer
Sheikh Abdel Aziz Alabd Al-Latif says, After this short review that revealed the truth about the Sheikh about the duty of obedience to the Muslim leaders, the gracious ones, as well as the ungracious ones as long as they don’t rule in sin: for we point to an important question here in response to that claim: Was Najd not the original land of this call and the place of its foundation under the control of the Ottoman Khilafah State?
Dr. Saleh Al-Abood responds, overall Najd did not experience any type of authority under the Ottoman Khilafah, nor did it have any Ottoman laws applied on it, nor have the presence of an Ottoman governor (wali). It also did have the protection of the Ottoman Khilafah preceding the call of Sheikh Mohammad bin Abed Al-Wahaab, may Allah rest his soul, which shows the historical fact of the administrative divisions of the Ottoman Khilafah which includes a Turkish letter titled, “Laws of the Ottomans in the content of the Dewan Journal,” meaning: “The laws of the Ottomans which is included in the Dewan Journal,” written by Yameen Ali Afandi, Secretary of the Khaqani counsel in 1018 Hijri [1609 CE], it was revealed that the State of the Ottomans was divided into thirty-two wilayahs since the beginning of the eleventh century, including fourteen Arab wilayahs in which Najd was not included except for census if we considered it from Najd.” [Ideology of Sheikh Mohammad Bin Abdel Wahaab and Its Effects in the Islamic World, unpublished, (27/1)]
Dr. Abdullah Al-A’thmeen says, “Whatever the case Najd was never regarded as being under the direct influence of the Ottomans prior to the call of Sheikh Mohammad bin Abdel Wahaab. It also has never experienced any strong influence on its internal affairs from the Ottomans, not even under control of Bani Jabr or Bani Khaled either, nor control from any other superior tribe trying to make some kind of political stability. For wars between Najd lands have remained constant and ongoing between its different tribes in a brutal manner.” [Mohammad Bin Abed Al-Wahaab His Life and Philosophy p. 11 via “Protestor Claims” (pg. 234-5)]
In continuation of this subject, we mention the response of the honorable Sheikh Abed Al-Aziz bin Abdullah bin Baz where he rejects this matter, “The Sheikh Mohammad bin Abed Al-Wahaab did not defect against the Khilafah State as many thought and believed. There was no presidency or Imarah (authority) for the Turks in Najd but had miniature Imarahs and scattered villages with an autonomous Amir (ruler) for each village or city, however small it was…And these were small Imarat with battles and wars among them. Sheikh Mohammad Bin Abed Al-Wahaab did not defect against the Khilafah state, but defected against the corrupt conditions in his land; and striving in the name of Allah with patience and goodness will until he finally reached prosperity in his calling to the other lands.” [from a recorded assembly via Opponent Claims p. 237]
Also, Dr. Ajeel Al-Nashmy said: “…… The Khilafah State did not move silently, nor did it put forth any initiative or supposed rejections, even with its four consecutive Ottoman sultans during the lifetime of the Sheikh.” [Periodical No. 510]
The second section from the Islam website Answers in Question and Answer is complete, and we respond to it as follows:
Once again, we find the answer ignoring the Shariah evidence that any Islamic scholar or Mujtahid must understand in regards to the conduct before the Islamic Khilafah State. We also notice complete ignorance of the Wahhabis and the Sauds’ dissension against the Khilafah state in its center, and even their campaigns reached Homs, as will be discussed shortly, Inshallah.
When the Arab tribes defected against the Khilafah State in the time of the first Khalifah Rashidah, Abu Bakr Al-Siddeq (radiya Allahu anhu) where they refused to submit to his authority and refused to pay Zakat in his position as the Khaleefah of Rasulallah, Abu-Bakr battled them and sent out an army to them until they surrendered to his rule, it was not recognized that they defected against the authority of the Islamic State, and forming a state with the State.
Should we say then the respondents are above this issue, represented by Saleh Al-Abood, Sheikh Al-A’themeen, and others, believe that the Shariah law if it is far from the administrative divisions of the Khilafah State that this justifies them to secede themselves and establish another authority that this is self-justified as the expansion of authority spreads to subjected wilayahs like Ash-Sham, Iraq, Makkah, and Madinah to establish a state within a State? Or do we not call this clash an exchange to attain the power?
Then let us presume the controversy arose that the people of Najd did not receive the protection of the Khilafah State, does this indicate that the submission to authority is defined by State protection and the receiving of welfare allowances, in the major or minor incidents, even though the Islamic state was suffering from weakness, yet this is not a Sharii’ justification to defect. Rather the correct duty is to strengthen its pillars, and educating people in the outskirts and small villages of their submission to the existing State, or do we justify the dissidents null, like their defection from the Umayyad State in Morocco due to poor communication with tribes near Ash-Sham, and justify the defection of each statelet secession from their ruler thereby dissolving the Ummah’s unity and weakening its power?
It is not necessarily relevant to encompass the Khaleefah’s authority and his Ummah in remote areas in a direct manner for it to be considered under his authority. Rather it is considered under its rule even if it simply communicates with it indirectly, that is through its Walis and mayors whom were appointed by the Khaleefah and sent by him to the designated areas by the Khalifah himself, where the governors are given the authority to rule their provinces in looking after the people’s affairs in accordance with the State’s system. Omar bin al-Khattab (ra) even refused the idea that his governors and mayors come to review every major and minor issue with him; he mentioned to them that the All-Seeing witnesses what the absent one may not see.
Actually, the authority of the State prevailed throughout all regions surrounding Najd, even though it may have not directly reached all of the tribes in its remote provinces, the State reached their surrounding villages. Even though it is supposed be that the scattered tribes refer to the nearest province with a governor or prince that has been instated by the Khalifah to care for their well-being. It is incumbent upon them to join the Dar Al-Muhajireen as Rasulallah ﷺ said in the Hadith mentioned above.The matter is fixed that the Saud clan and the people behind the Wahhabis have defected despite being the nearest to those who submitted to authority of the Islamic State. It is mentioned in the book, How the Khilafah was Destroyed, by the honorable Sheikh Abdul Qadeem Zallum (May Allah Shower him with Mercy), “The Wahhabis by then had managed to establish an entity within the Islamic State, led by Muhammad ibn Saud and later by his son Abdul-Aziz. Britain supplied them with weapons and money and they moved on a sectarian basis to seize the Islamic lands which were under the authority of the Khilafah. They took up arms against the Khaleefah and fought the Islamic armed forces (the army of the Amir ul-Mumineen), all the time goaded and supplied by the British. The Wahhabis wanted to seize the lands ruled by the Khaleefah in order to rule these lands according to their Mathhab (school of thought), and suppress all the other Islamic Mathahib that differed from theirs by force. Hence, they raided Kuwait and occupied it in 1788, then marched northwards until they besieged Baghdad. They wanted to seize Karbalaa and the tomb of Al-Hussein (may Allah be pleased with him) to destroy it and ban the visiting of it. Then in 1803, they launched an attack on Makkah and occupied it. In the spring of 1804, Madinah fell under their control. They destroyed the huge domes which used to shade the grave of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and stripped them of all the gems and precious ornaments. Having completed their seizure of the whole of Al-Hijaz, they marched on towards Al-Sham. Nearing Hims in 1810, they attacked Damascus for a second time and they also attacked Al-Najaf. Damascus defended itself bravely and gloriously. However while besieging Damascus, the Wahhabis moved at the same time to the north and spread their authority over most of the Syrian lands as far as Aleppo.” [End]
Can it be said that Damascus, Baghdad, Aleppo, and other territories were not submissive to the Islamic State, and this is not dissidence from the Khilafah State and destruction, undermining its basis and fragmentation of its structure?
The main question here is what is the Shariah ruling for those who commit actions of this sort?
Rasulallah ﷺ says, narrated by Muslim in the Ruling book:“عَنْ عَرْفَجَةَ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَقُولُ مَنْ أَتَاكُمْ وَأَمْرُكُمْ جَمِيعٌ عَلَى رَجُلٍ وَاحِدٍ يُرِيدُ أَنْ يَشُقَّ عَصَاكُمْ أَوْ يُفَرِّقَ جَمَاعَتَكُمْ فَاقْتُلُوهُ”
It has also been narrated by Muslim that Arfajah said: “I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: ‘Whoever comes to you while your affair has been united over one man, intending to divide your power or dissolve your unity, kill him.’”
Allah does not have mercy on campaigns that have defected from the Sultan, fragmented the groups, those who removed their hand from obedience.
Therefore, the portrayal that the Wahhabis and Saudis established a State that did not defect from the Khilafah, and established a state in a territory not subject to the Khilafah’s authority, this depiction distorts the reality and reverses the truth. This idea has sabotaged the truth, turning it into hostility. They have covered their real truth about their military actions that have torn the State into pieces, dismembering it, and separating groups of Muslims.
Section three on the Islam website answers in Question and Answer:
If what was previously mentioned reflects the Sheikh’s description on the Khilafah State, how was the description of the Sheikh Mohammad bin Abed Al-Wahaab regarding the Khilafah State?Dr. Al-Nashmi said in response to this question, The image of Sheikh Mohammad bin Abdel Wahaab’s movement for the Khilafah State has had much confusion and misperception to the extent that the Khilafah cannot be clearly seen unless seen as an opposing side of Sheikh Mohammad bin Abdel Wahaab’s movement, by either through reports sent by the governors in the Hijaz, Baghdad, or from other areas… or by messengers who carry news across the provinces.
[The Society, Periodical No. 504 via Protest Claims p. 238-9]
End of Section Three.This also is a sabotage of the truth. Was the Khilafah State unaware of the campaigns happening in Baghdad, Damascus, and Aleppo, and was anticipating for the messengers to deliver faulty news?
The fourth and final section from the Islam website answers in Question and Answer:
As for Zallum’s claim that the Sheikh’s call is one of the reasons that lead to the fall of the Khilafah State, and England aided the Wahhabis in its collapse: Mahmoud Mahdi Al-Istanbuli says in response to this general claim: It was the book’s purpose to support its opinions with evidence and proof. An ancient poet said,
And if claims are not based evidence from [Quran and Sunnah], then it is foolish evidence.It is worth mentioning that history mentions that the English stood against this for fear of an Islamic World revival. [Sheikh Mohammad Abdel Wahab’s The Mirror of the East and the West p. 240]
He stated, how strange and ironical they accuse Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdel Wahab of being a factor in destroying the Ottoman Caliphate with the knowledge that this movement started in 1811 CE, but in reality the Khilafah was destroyed around 1922 CE; [see previous reference, p.64]
It proves the British were against the Wahhabi movement in which they sent Captain Forester Sadler to praise Ibrahim on the triumph attained against the Wahhabis during the War of Ibrahim of Diraah. He also assured that he would cooperate with the British movement to reduce what they called piracy of Wahhabi in the Arabian Gulf.
This letter declared its desire to establish an agreement with the British government and Ibrahim in order to terminate the influence of the Wahhabis.
Sheikh Muhammad bin Munthur al-Nameh stated, the British have benefitted from the opposite situation in India for Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdel Wahhab and they tossed all those who opposed or stood in their way; who was perceived as a threat in which they allege he is a Wahhabi. The British also claimed Deoband scholars in India as Wahhabis because they openly opposed the British and restrained them. [Intensive Claims against Sheikh Muhammad Abdel Wahhab p. 105-6]
These various reports have exposed the falsehood of this doubt before the clear scholarly evidence, which was clear from the Sheikh’s message and writings showing the falsehood before the historical facts written by the just people. [Protest Claims p. 239-240]
Finally we recommend for each individual who used his tongue against the Sheikh to regret and to fear Allah سبحانه وتعالى in all matters that angers Allah سبحانه وتعالى and to repent to Him to be guided upon the right path.
End of paragraph and end of answer on the site.The scholar, Imam Sheikh Abdul Qadeem Zalum, rahamahu Allah with his sophisticated book, How the Khilafah was Destroyed, it was known the Wahhabi campaign was the work of the British because the Saud clan are British agents who took advantage of the Wahhabi Math’hab which is an Islamic Math’hab (school of thought) whose founder is Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdel Wahhab, a Mujtahid amongst Mujtahideen. They took advantage of this doctrine in political actions to strike the Islamic State and to clash with other Math’habs to incite Mathahib wars within the Ottoman State without the followers of these doctrines realizing this, whereas the Saudi Prince and other Saudis were well aware of this. Because the relationship was not between the British and the founder of the Math’hab Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab, rather between the British and Abdel Aziz bin Muhammad bin Saud, and afterwards between them and his son Saud.
He says, in the year of 1788, Abdel Aziz was preparing a large military to invade, conquer and seize Kuwait. The British were trying to seize control over Kuwait from the Ottoman State, but were unable. Other countries such as Germany, Russia, and France stood in their way; which the Khilafah State would fight them. Since the separation of Kuwait from the Ottoman State and the procession to the north for protection which would have been obvious to the major countries like Russia, Germany, and France, and to the Ottoman State.
The Saudi clan’s agency and loyalty to the British was known to the Khilafah State and to other countries like Germany, France, and Russia. It was known that they were in agreement with the British. The British did not conceal their siding with the Saudi State including supplying them with many weapons and large equipment that arrived through India. And also money that was needed for war and preparation of an army was solely with British weapons and funding. For this reason, European countries especially France opposed the Wahhabi campaign, as it was considered a British campaign. The Khilafah State attempted to strike the Wahhabis but was unable to repel them. The Walis struggled in Medina, Baghdad, and Damascus to oppose them. They requested the Wali of Egypt Muhammad Ali to mobilize the army against them but was initially delayed. However he was an agent for France because it was the one who aided him in his coup and seizing power in Egypt; then coerced the Khilafah in officially recognizing him. Based on France’s approval and its incitement, the Sultan accepted the command in the year 1811. He sent his son, Tusun to fight them where many battles took place between them and the army of Egypt. Egypt’s army was established in 1812 when it conquered the city. In August 1816, his son Ibrahim was sent from Cairo to destroy the Wahhabis who were completely stunned eventually retreating back to the capital Diriyah where they were protected. Ibrahim surrounded them April 1818 throughout the entire summer. September 9, 1818 the Wahhabis surrendered in which Ibrahim’s armies annihilated them. It was said that it was destroyed beyond recognition, and with this ended Britain’s efforts.
It was cited in the Encyclopedia of Desert Warrior, “Saudi State Relations with ash-Sham.”
Najdi sources indicated that Imam Abdul Aziz bin Muhammad ordered some of his forces in 1793 CE/1208 AH towards Jandal in the outskirts of Damascus where they fought its people. It might have been a type of surveillance of the Ottoman State’s forces in Syria. The year of 1797 CE/1212 AH, the Prince of Qassim, Hajilan bin Hamad, led an army from the people of Qassim, and attacked the Valley of Al-Shararat where many of their men were killed and many were robbed of their money and belongings.These operations managed to increase the call for reforms in the region, and to collect Zakat from its people. People arrived from Syria through the valleys in the year 1218 AH with six caravans carrying Riyals. It can be understood that the Bedouins of Syria political and religious allegiance was to Dirayah, not to the Wilayah Sham.
When the Saudi influence enveloped Hijaz, became in a position to instigate direct friction with the Ottoman State. It was when they prevented the Imam Saud bin Abdel Aziz, beginning the Saudi State challenge to the Wali in Sham in the year 1806 CE/ 1221 AH. Prince Alhajj Al-Shami, Abduallah Basha Alathm, upon arrival to the Holy Pilgrimage for Hajj with his load, drums and pipes were sounded. The battle encountered between the Saudi army and Abdallah’s army. Clashes almost broke out between the Saudi army and Abduallah Basha Athim army, who was not in a military position, but allowed him to meet with the Saudis. As a result, Sultan Saleem III removed Abdallah Basha Alathm from his post due to his negligent confrontation of the Saudi force and his return of the Hajj pilgrims based on the commands of Imam Saud. Yousef Basha Keng was appointed as his replacement and the Sultan gave strict orders to Yousef Basha Keng of the necessity to fight the Saudis since they do not do any positive actions. He left to raise funds for himself and to stall the State. He settled for replying to the Sultan sending him war plans, which were seen as capable of achieving the Sultan’s wishes. It was proposed to Yousef Keng that he join the states of Egypt and Baghdad to collaborate in the number of campaigns that was entrusted to him.
Meanwhile, Imam Saud conducted a military operation against Ash-Sham. They were able to reach them from behind Mount Hermon (Jabal ash-Sheikh). The Saudi forces moved to the Hauran Plains and attacked Fort Al-Mazirab and Bosra.
Imam Saud wrote to Wali Sham calling the people to submit to his obedience and adopt the principles of the Salafi. [Refer to appendix from Letters from Imam Saud bin Abdul Aziz bin Mohammad bin Saud and his reply]. He withdrew his forces from Sham loaded with booty (Ghanaim). Sultan Mahmoud II issued orders to terminate Yousef Keng due to incompetence. Suleiman Basha was appointed to be Wali of Syria. He was asked to contact the Wali of Egypt, Mohammad Ali Basha, to coordinate their efforts against Diriya.
However, Suleiman Basha and Mohammad Ali Basha were not on good terms; the State turned to the Wali of Egypt to achieve its goal. [End]
The question we want to direct to the viewers of the site: where did these desert tribes receive their money and equipment whose campaigns are able to reach remote parts of their location in Najd where the Bedouins occupy Najd where powerful countries fought over; in which it was difficult for the Walis of the Ottoman State where it was forced to seek the help of the Wali of Egypt for its forces to attack and destroy its front, which they violated the allegiance of the Sultan, divided the Muslims and their message. Oil not discovered yet to fund their campaigns and factories did not exist to create swords and shields in Najd to supply their armies, so how were they able to wage strong campaigns in the east, west, north, and south? No doubt the British had hand in this!
Ameen Alrihani wrote in his book, Muluk Al Arab on page 56, about Abdul Aziz Al Saud, “People think we took large sums of money from the British, but truth is the British only paid us minimally for our deserving work done during and after the war. We have an agreement that must be abided even though it may bring harm upon ourselves and our interests. The British are in debt to us and we do not ask but what was for our grandfathers and fathers before us. So our British friends are aware of this.” Ameer Talal bin Abdel Aziz acknowledged the assistances in an AlJazeera interview in a program called “Shahid ala alAsr.” (Witness of the Century).
Our last duaa is Hamdulillahi Rab Alalameen.
Othman Bakhash
Director of the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir
17 Rabi’ II 1434
2013/02/27
No: 1434 AH /23
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Conversation with an Atheist, Regarding the “Problem of Evil”
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيمSome atheists raise an argument that those who believe in God, must believe that He causes evil, on the basis of causality.
Perhaps the best way to address this question is to first identify its origins. No question in philosophy or religion comes about ex nihilo (i.e. out of nothing). Rather, every question that has ever been posed by a philosopher is a product of a certain system of thought and a certain outlook on life. The word we may use here for both of these things is “concepts” (mafaheem). When a person carries certain concepts in their mind, they naturally try to apply those concepts to the reality they live in. The process of doing so is what generates the question.
Understanding this is what helps us to contextualize questions in philosophy, which in turn helps us to answer them in a proper manner. If you do not understand exactly what is meant by this, insha’Allah, it will become clearer as we proceed with our discussion.
To the best of our knowledge, the first thinker to ever articulate the “problem of evil” – that is, why does evil exist and why would God allow for it – was Epicurus, the ancient Greek philosopher who lived from 341 to 270 BC. The “problem” he posed regarding evil was phrased by the Scottish philosopher David Hume as follows, in his “Dialogues Concerning Natural Religion”, when he stated, “Is [God] willing to prevent evil, but not able? then is he impotent. Is he able, but not willing? then is he malevolent. Is he both able and willing? whence then is evil?”
Now, let’s try to answer this question using the method that was described previously. That is, let’s try and understand what concepts Epicurus had in his mind.
Epicurus believed in (and is also regarded as the father of) a certain philosophy known as “atomism”. According to this philosophy, the world that we live in came about when certain material particles called “atoms” (and these are not the same as the atoms we know today in science) combined together, by mere chance. Humans and living things are too the product of these atoms coming together.
The world we occupy, according to Epicurus, as well as ourselves, are only material and when we die, the atoms we are made of disperse. Nothing remains of ourselves. We have no souls and hence, there is no afterlife.
Epicurus, believing that there was no afterlife, formulated his own theory on what he believed to be the best way to live life. Because we cease to exist upon death, the best way to live is in fulfilling our own pleasures. This was what was “good”. And because pleasure was good, pain was evil.
This is what Epicurus meant when he formulated the “problem of evil”. He differed from the other Greek schools of thought, such as the Stoics and the Aristotelians, in their views on pain, seeing it only as an unqualified evil.
Epicurus believed in the existence of many gods. That was his understanding of reality. And when he applied his concept of evil to the reality in which many gods exist, that was when he produced “the problem of evil.” And in response to his own question, Epicurus came to the conclusion that the gods allowed for evil in the world, simply because they did not care for humans and their affairs.
In order to correct Epicurus’s views, however, we must first start by asking a question: is pain really evil?
As Muslims, we have conviction in the existence of the Creator (swt), the miracle of the Quran and the Message of Muhammad (saw). We understand that everything that befalls us (whether it’s pain or pleasure, fortune or misfortune), is from Allah (swt). This is confirmed in Surah al-Nisa, verse 78, when He (swt) says,
[قُلْ كُلٌّ مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ] “…Say (O Prophet): “All things are from Allah”..”.
To say, however, that the pain we feel in this life (as per the decree of Allah (swt) is evil is to misunderstand the reason for pain. In Epicurus’s worldview, pain was evil because for him, the purpose of life was to pursue pleasure.
Understanding the relationship between purpose and what we consider to be good and evil is important. Purpose is what gives us our criteria for good and evil.
A simple example would be the following: if I were to go to a car dealer and ask him for “a good car,” he will first ask me what exactly I am looking for i.e. for what purpose am I buying a car? Is it to go driving off-road? In that case, a land rover would be good for me. Am I looking for something that will help me commute to work? For that, a sedan would be good for me. Or maybe my purpose for buying a car is just to own something that is aesthetic and can be shown off (and I include this example because for some philosophers, the purpose of life is the pursuit of aesthetics).
In that case, something flashier like a sportscar would be good for me.
In each case, the goodness of the car is determined in reference to the purpose it will be fulfilling.
Unlike Epicurus, we know from our Deen that there are not several gods, but only one God and that is Allah (swt). Furthermore, we understand that Allah (swt) created us for a singular purpose: to worship Him and attain His pleasure. In Surah Ad-Dhariyat, verse 56, Allah (swt) affirms,
[وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالإِنسَ إِلاَّ لِيَعْبُدُونِ] “I did not create jinn and humans except to worship Me.”
Whether or not pain is good or bad must therefore be determined not according to Epicurus’s view of what human purpose is, but what Allah (swt) has chosen for us as our purpose.
Numerous ahadith and verses from the Qur’an speak of the trials and pains Allah (swt) decrees for His servants and how they serve us in fulfilling our purpose (that is, to worship Allah (swt) and attain His pleasure).
For one, pain is good for us is that it expiates us of our sins. The Prophet (saw) said,
«ما يُصِيبُ المُسْلِمَ، مِن نَصَبٍ ولَا وصَبٍ، ولَا هَمٍّ ولَا حُزْنٍ ولَا أذًى ولَا غَمٍّ، حتَّى الشَّوْكَةِ يُشَاكُهَا، إلَّا كَفَّرَ اللَّهُ بهَا مِن خَطَايَاهُ»
“No fatigue, nor disease, nor sorrow, nor sadness, nor hurt, nor distress befalls a Muslim, even if it were the prick he receives from a thorn, but that Allah expiates some of his sins for that.” (al-Bukhari).
Second, pain teaches us sabr (patience). In Surah al-Baqarah, verse 155 and verse 156, Allah (swt) says,
[وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِنْ الأَمْوالِ وَالأَنفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَاتِ وَبَشِّرْ الصَّابِرِينَ * الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُمْ مُصِيبَةٌ قَالُوا إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ]
“We will certainly test you with a touch of fear and famine and loss of property, life, and crops. Give good news to those who patiently endure. (155) They say, when struck by a disaster, “Surely, to Allah we belong and to Him we will (all) return.””
Such is Allah (swt)’s mercy that on the Day of Judgement, those who patiently endured through their suffering and pain will find their rank in Paradise elevated. The Prophet (saw) said,
«إِنَّ الرَّجُلَ لِتَكُونُ لَهُ عِنْدَ اللهِ الْمَنْزِلَةُ فَمَا يَبْلُغُهَا بِعَمَلٍ فَلَا يَزَالُ اللهُ يَبْتَلِيهِ بِمَا يَكْرَهُ حَتَّى يُبَلِّغَهُ إِيَّاهَا»
“Verily, a man may have a rank with Allah that he does not achieve by his good deeds. Thus, Allah continues to put him to trial with what he hates until he reaches the rank destined for him.” [Ibn Hibban]
These are but only a few ways in which we find pain to be good for us and not the “evil” that Epicurus saw it as.
It is not a coincidence that “the problem of evil” has once again surfaced in contemporary discussions of religion and philosophy. The revival of the Epicurean school of thought took place in Europe in the 17th-century and became the basis for much of the philosophy, sciences, and institutions that developed under the banner of modernity (for more on this, there is Catherine Wilson’s book Epicureanism at the Origins of Modernity).
This is why today we live in a world where many people, like Epicurus, see pain as evil.
The only way to dispel this belief is to change the worldview and concepts of the people. That is, reminding them of their true purpose in this life. Only then can people recognize the hikmah (wisdom) of Allah (swt) in ordaining for us pain and hardship. Allah (swt) said,
[كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمْ الْقِتَالُ وَهُوَ كُرْهٌ لَكُمْ وَعَسى أَنْ تَكْرَهُوا شَيْئًا وَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ وَعَسَى أَنْ تُحِبُّوا شَيْئًا وَهُوَ شَرٌّ لَكُمْ وَاللَّهُ ييَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتُمْ لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ]
“But perhaps you hate a thing and it is good for you; and perhaps you love a thing and it is bad for you. And Allah Knows, while you know not.” [Al Baqarah 2:216].
It is the Khilafah (Caliphate) on the Method of Prophethood that will carry Dawah to the entire world, generating a great change in the worldview of humanity, by using all the means that are available to it. May that be soon, inshaaAllah.
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Q&A: Zakat on Joint Money
Question:
Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuhu,
Topic: Is Zakat an individual ‘Ibadah?
Our honorable Ameer, noble sheikh…
May Allah help you, grant you success, and aid you with Ansar (supporters) like the Aws and Khazraj…
With reference to the above topic I would like to ask:
Is Zakat an individual ‘Ibadah that is obliged upon individuals only or is it obliged for companies as well?
To clarify my question, I will give an example:
Khalil and Zaid have a company at a rate of 50% each, and the company’s capital was 3000 Jordanian dinars, Khalil did not have anything else Zakat worthy, and he had a personal debt of 1000 dinars, and Zaid had 4000 dinars in his house and a year had passed…
How do both Khalil and Zaid calculate their zakat? Does each person calculate his percentage in the company separately from the other person, or is zakat paid on the company’s total capital as a company?
From Ahmad Saleh Ajoli
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuhu,
May Allah reward you for this kind Du’a, and I ask Allah (swt) to answer this Du’a and reward you…
Joint money zakat:
With regard to zakat on money in gold and silver, and the current cash that takes place in their place, zakat on it is obligatory for the individual on his money if he reaches the nisaab (amount) and one year has passed…
As for the example that you mentioned in the question, its answer is as follows:
- As for Khalil, his share of the company’s capital is “1500 dinars”, and he owes a debt of “1000 dinars,” meaning that what he has left to calculate zakat is “500 dinars” because the debt he owes is reduced from his money and zakat is on the money that remains after paying the debt, and we have explained the evidence for that in the adopted book – Al Amwal fee Dawlatil Khilafah – Funds in the Khilafah State under the topic of Zakat on debt, page 165, in which it says:
(If someone has money that has reached the nisaab, and a year has passed, and he owes a debt that reaches the nisaab, or the remaining money after the debt is paid, is less than the nisaab, then he does not pay zakat, and that is like he who owns a thousand dinars, and he owes one thousand dinars in debt, or if he owns forty gold dinars, and he owes thirty gold dinars, then in these two cases no zakat is due on him, because he does not own the nisaab. It was narrated by Nafi’, by ibn ‘Umar who said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: «إذا كان لرجل ألف درهم، وعليه ألف درهم، فلا زكاة عليه» “If a man owned one thousand dirhams, and he owed one thousand dirhams, then zakat is not obliged for him” mentioned by ibn Qudamah in Al-Mughni.
But if the money left over from the debt reaches the nisaab, then he must pay zakat on it…) Ends.
The calculation that we have mentioned before the quotation are based on the assumption that there are no capital profits for the company, but if there are profits for the company, they are considered capital growth and thus take its hukm, i.e. it is added to the capital of each partner by the amount of his share in the profit and is taken into account when calculating zakat…
Accordingly, if the amount remaining with Khalil according to the accounts above is “500 dinars”, if this amount exceeds the nisaab and one year has passed, then zakat is calculated at the amount of 2.5%, which Khalil shall pay from his money… and if the aforementioned amount is not very high or a year has not yet passed, then he does not have to pay zakat until it reaches the nisaab and the year has passed… As mentioned above, if there are profits, then they are added to the capital.
- With regards to Zaid, his share of the company’s capital is “1500 dinars”, and he has “4000 dinars” in his house and there is no debt on him, meaning he owns a total of “5500 dinars”, and this account is of course at the assumption that the company has no capital profits, if there are profits for the company, they are considered capital growth and thus take its hukm, i.e. it is added to the capital of each partner by the amount of his share in the profit and is taken into account when calculating zakat…
And it is clear to Zaid that the money he has reached the nisaab because it is a large amount of “5500 dinars.” If a year has passed, then zakat is due on it at the amount of 2.5% on the whole amount, that is, on “5500 dinars”, and the year begins as of reaching the nisaab.
I hope this answer is sufficient, and Allah Knows Best and is the Most Wise.
Your brother,
Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
19 Dhul Hijjah 1441 AH
Corresponding to 09/08/2020 CE
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Q&A: Zakat and Paper Currency
Questions from:
Hisham Jaawan: If I have an amount of money, do I have to compare it to the Nisab of gold or Nisab of silver … i.e., what is the Nisab of the local currency???
Mohammad Alissa: Is there Zakat on the real estate business?
Said Ghorzi: There is another problem; is it permissible to deal with the banknotes in circulation? The Salaf scholars did not permit dealing with them because they do not conform to Abu Bakr’s definition of the currency. Its risk has manifested to us in inflation which arose as a result of the paper currencies which disappear with the demise of the sponsoring state contrary to gold and silver. And the best proof of that is despite the fall of the Ottoman State in the 20th century, the colonizers took over its entire currencies in countries such as Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Morocco. And a Spanish researcher confirmed that the Islamic Ummah would not stand up except by following a successful economic method. And the nation’s economy would not succeed except by reviving the Islamic golden and silver dinar.
Abu Ahmad: Assalamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh, do you pay (zakat) when it (money) reaches the Nisab of gold or silver? The latter is valued at one thousand Jordanian dinars and the Nisab of gold is 2.5 thousand dinars? wassalam.
Ayman Mahmood Hamdi: The price characteristic is a rational ‘Illah: Is it proper to mention it in the shar’i rulings?
Ashraf Majid Khalil Ibrahim: If you have two hundred dirhams and a year passes over them, then five dirhams are due on them. Is it meant here the Sadaqa of Riqqah or the Nisab of Zakat to be 200 Dirhams?
Answer to the six questions since they are related to the same subject:
Wa Alaikum Assalam wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
1 – The Nisab (quorum) of gold is twenty dinars, which is equivalent to “85 grams gold”, because the dinar is equal to 4.25 grams of gold, so if it were multiplied by 20 Dinars, then the Nisab would be 85 grams of gold. The Nisab for the silver is 200 Dirhams which is equal to 595 grams of silver since one Dirham weighs 2.975 grams of silver, so if it was multiplied by 200 Dirhams, the Nisab would be 595 grams of silver. The evidence for that is what has been narrated by Abu Obeid in his book, Funds, from Abdullah bin Amr, may Allah be pleased with them, he said: The Prophet of Allah ﷺ said: «لَيْسَ فِي أَقَلَّ مِنْ عِشْرِينَ مِثْقَالا مِنَ الذَّهَبِ، وَلَا فِي أَقَلَّ مِنْ مِائَتَيْ دِرْهَمٍ صَدَقَةٌ» “It is neither nothing less than 20 Mithqal of gold, nor nothing less than 200 silver Dirhams as Sadaqa.”
Also what was narrated by Bukhari upon the report of Yehya bin Umara bin Abu Al-Hassan: He heard from Abu Saeed, may Allah be pleased with him, saying: The Prophet ﷺ said:«لَيْسَ فِيمَا دُونَ خَمْسِ أَوَاقٍ صَدَقَةٌ» “There is no Sadaqah in what is less than five ounces.” and its amount is valued to be equal to 200 Dirhams; since each ounce is 40 Dirhams.
2- If the gold reached the Nisab of 85 grams or the silver reached the Nisab of 595 grams, paying Zakat for them is not obligatory until it reaches the Nisab where a year has passed over it; that, is from the day the gold or silver has reached the Nisab then the counting of a year over it begins, meaning the Hijri year. So, if the money reached the Nisab, in the 10th of Muharram for example, then Zakat becomes obligatory for it when the 10th of Muharram of the next Hijri year arrives… that is according to what At-Tirmidhi has narrated on the account of Ibn Umar, he said: “Whoever receives money is not obliged to pay Zakat for it until a year has passed over it at His Lord”. The amount of the obligatory Zakat in the gold and silver is the quarter of the tenth, that is from the Nisab of the silver it is 5 Dirhams, meaning 14.875 grams of silver, and from the Nisab of the gold it is half a Dinar, meaning 2.2125 grams of gold, and that is according to what has been narrated by Ibn Majah on the account of Abdullah bin Waqid, on the authority of Ibn Umar, and Aisha, that the Prophet ﷺ: «كَانَ يَأْخُذُ مِنْ كُلِّ عِشْرِينَ دِينَارًا فَصَاعِدًا نِصْفَ دِينَارٍ، وَمِنَ الْأَرْبَعِينَ دِينَارًا دِينَارًا» “Used to take from every 20 Dinars and more a half of a Dinar, and from 40 Dinars a whole Dinar”. Still, when At-Tirmidhi narrated it on the account of Ali, he said: The Prophet of Allah ﷺ said: «فَهَاتُوا صَدَقَةَ الرِّقَةِ: مِنْ كُلِّ أَرْبَعِينَ دِرْهَمًا دِرْهَمًا، وَلَيْسَ فِي تِسْعِينَ وَمِائَةٍ شَيْءٌ، فَإِذَا بَلَغَتْ مِائَتَيْنِ فَفِيهَا خَمْسَةُ دَرَاهِمَ» “Bring the Sadaqa with tenderness: from every 40 Dirhams a whole Dirham, and there is nothing upon the 190 Dirhams, but if it reached 200 Dirhams, then there should be 5 Dirhams”.
3 – As we have mentioned earlier, Zakat is obligatory on the gold and silver if they have reached the Nisab and this Nisab passed a year over them, and the Zakat is paid from the whole amount and not only what has surpassed the Nisab. So, whoever owns for example 170 grams of gold and a year has passed over them, then he will need to pay the Zakat of the 170 grams which is the quarter of the tenth of the amount. That is: 4.25 grams of gold or pay a whole Dinar, and he doesn’t pay only for the 85 grams surpassing the Nisab, meaning that he doesn’t bring out only 2.2125 grams of gold or half a Dinar. The situation is the same for the silver, as it is obligatory to pay the quarter of the tenth on the whole amount as long as it has reached the Nisab and a year has passed over it.
4 – The Hukm (rule) of the Zakat on gold is specified for pure gold of 24 karats, as well as the Hukm of the Zakat on the silver is specified for pure silver. If the gold was mixed with other substances or the silver was mixed with other substances, the weight of those other substances is subtracted according to its amount, where whatever has remained after the subtraction has reached the Nisab. So, if a person owned 85 grams of 18 karat gold, it would not have reached the Nisab because the amount of pure gold in it is less than 85 grams. The Zakat on a block of gold of 24 karats is different from a block of the same weight and of 18 karats, and the pure gold, when accounting for the Nisab, would make the Nisab of the gold of 24 karats 85 grams, but the Nisab of the gold of 18 karats would be more than that because it is mixed with materials other than gold being a quarter of the amount. Therefore, the gold of 18 karats has pure gold in it equal to ¾ of the gold of 24 karats, and upon that the Nisab of the gold of 18 karats is 1 and 1/3 of the Nisab of the pure gold which is 113.33 grams. Upon that, whoever owns 85 grams of pure gold of 24 karats would have reached the Nisab, so if a year has passed over them, he will need to pay the Zakat of 2.5% of their weight, but the one who owns 85 grams of gold of 18 karats has not reached the Nisab until what he owns reaches 113.33 grams, and if a year has passed over them, then he has to pay the Zakat of 2.5% of their weight, and it is clear here that the meaning behind the Zakat is on pure gold.
5 – The Zakat is an individual ritual (Ibada) which is not obligatory on the money of the Muslim until it has reached the Nisab, so if a man owns 60 grams of gold and his wife owns, for example, 60 grams of gold, then there is no Zakat on neither his money or her money, even if the total of which they have together has surpassed the Nisab. It is only when the money of either one of them only has reached the Nisab, then the Zakat becomes obligatory on the money that has reached the Nisab. So, if the money of the husband has reached for example and he came to own 120 grams of gold, then he is obliged to pay the Zakat on his money, and he doesn’t combine his wife’s money; the 60 grams of gold.
6 – If the money qualified for Zakat is paper currency, or trading merchandise, it is considered either Nisabs that is either the Nisab of the gold or the Nisab of the silver. However, if both Nisabs differ such as what is happening nowadays where the Nisab of the silver is very less in value than the Nisab of the gold, what I see is that the estimation shall happen with the least of the Nisabs, meaning the Nisab of the silver and not the gold. I say the least of the Nisabs because if the Nisab reached the lowest then it became qualified for Zakat and it is prohibited to bypass it in order to wait for the higher Nisab. He shall rather record the date when he owned the Nisab of Zakat, then after one year passing, he should pay the Zakat, as the Zakat is a right for the poor and the needy… إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ… “Zakat are only for the poor and the needy…” [At-Tawba: 60], وَالَّذِينَ فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ مَعْلُومٌ * لِلسَّائِلِ وَالْمَحْرُومِ “And those in whose wealth there is a known right * For the needy and the deprived” [Al-Ma’arij: 23-24], and the Prophet ﷺ said:«فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَدَقَةً فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ تُؤْخَذُ مِنْ أَغْنِيَائِهِمْ وَتُرَدُّ عَلَى فُقَرَائِهِمْ» “And inform them that Allah has mandated upon them a Sadaqa (charity) from their money which is taken from their rich and given back to the poor.” (Narrated by Bukhari). Upon this, it is the benefit of the rightful owner that is taken into consideration, and based on that the Nisab is calculated based on the lesser amount, meaning that it is calculated for the Nisab of the silver. This is what I see, Allah knows best.
7 – As for why Zakat is payable on the banknotes, this is because of the legal reason (‘illah) that is derived from the texts. The legal reason is of four types as mentioned in The Islamic Personality Volume 3 under “The Evidences of the ‘Illah”:
(It is clear from the extrapolation of the shar’i texts in the Quran and Sunnah that the shar’i text indicates the ‘illah: either Saraahatan (explicitly), or by denotation (Dalalatan), Istinbatan (deduction) or Qiyasan (by analogy). There is no indication of the legal ‘illah from the shar’i, i.e. from the texts considered to be legal texts, except in those four conditions.
The shar’i text either indicates the ‘Illah (reason) explicitly (sarahatan) in the text, or it indicates the ‘Illah implicitly (dalaalatan), that is, the words of the text, its composition or its structure indicate it. Or the ‘Illah is derived by way of inference (istinbaatan) from a single text or multiple specific texts that can be understood from their particular denoted meaning – not from their sum – the fact that the thing is a ‘Illah. Or by way of analogy (qiyasan) where a ‘Illah (reason) that is not mentioned in the text or in the consensus of the Companions is compared to another ‘Illah mentioned in the Book or Sunnah, i.e., in the text or in the consensus of the Companions, due to its inclusion of what was a cause for the Shari’ to consider the ‘Illah (a reason) for it. That is, the ‘Illah which is not mentioned in the text contains the same thing that the legislator considered to be a baa’ith (cause) for the ‘Illah, i.e., the cause for reasoning (wajhu al-‘illiyah) in it is the same wajhu al-‘illiyah in the ‘Illah which has been mentioned in the text.) End.
- For example: the explicit ‘Illah (sarahatan): i.e., stated in the text such as: «كُنْتُ نَهَيْتُكُمْ عَنِ ادِّخارِ لُحُومِ الأَضاحِي لأَجْلِ الدّافَّةِ فَادَّخِرُوها». “I used to forbid you from storing away the sacrificial meat because of the large crowds. Now you may store it as you wish.”
«إِنَّمَا جُعِلَ الاِسْتِئْذَانُ مِنْ أَجْلِ الْبَصَرِ» “Indeed, permission has been made obligatory because of (min ajl) sight”
Here, the reason (‘Illah) is explicitly pronounced in the text by saying ‘because of’ (min ajl).
- An example of the implicit ‘Illah (dalaalatan) can be:
A – through the indication of notification (dalaatul imaa wat tanbeeh) such as:
The Prophet ﷺ said: «مَنْ أَحْيَا أَرْضًا مَيِّتَةً فَهِيَ لَهُ». “Whoever revives a barren land then it belongs to him,” By using the particle (adaat) faa’ (فَ) of consequence or causation.
The Prophet ﷺ said: «مَلَكْتِ نَفْسَكِ فَاخْتَارِي» “you own yourself so choose”
B – by using a causal attribute (wasf mufhim) that denotes reasoning (al-‘illiyah), such as:
«الْقَاتِلُ لاَ يَرِثُ» “The murderer does not inherit.” He took the murderer out of the heirs, because he was a – murderer – the causal attribute.
«فِيْ الْغَنَمِ السّائِمَةِ زَكَاةٌ» “On the grazing sheep zakat is payable.”. The obligation of Zakat is linked to the animal that is not fed by his owner, but grazes from the open pastures; ‘grazing’ – the causal attribute.
And like: «أَيَنْقُصُ الرُّطَبُ إِذَا يَبِسَ؟» قَالُوا: نَعَمْ، قَالَ: «فَلا إِذًا». “Do rutab decrease (become lighter) when they dry?” They said: yes. He ﷺ said: “then no.” It was understood that the decrease is a ‘Illah for the forbiddance of selling the rutab for dates, etc.
- The example of the ‘Illah mentioned in the text Istinbaatan (by way of inference)
The structure of the text helps in the inference of a ‘Illah for the rule, and this ‘Illah is not mentioned explicitly nor is it taken from the indication (dalaalah):
– It was narrated that Omar asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ if kissing breaks the fast? Then he ﷺ said:«أَرَأَيْتَ لَوْ تَمَضْمَضْتَ أَكَانَ ذَلِكَ يُفْسِدُ الصَّوْمَ؟» “If you had gargled would your fast had been broken?” He (‘Umar) said: ‘No’. Based on this, it was deduced that kissing does not break fast similar to gargling which does not break the fast unless it leads to inzaal i.e. water goes through the body cavity. Thus, kissing does not break fasting unless it leads to inzaal i.e. when semen goes through. So, it was deduced from this that the ‘Illah of breaking fast by kissing is inzaal – this ‘Illah “inzaal” is called a derived ‘Illah (‘Illah Mustanbatah).
– يَٰٓأَ أيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوٓاْ إِذَا نُودِيَ لِلصَّلَوٰةِ مِن يَوۡمِ ٱلۡجُمُعَةِ فَٱسۡعَوۡاْ إِلَىٰ ذِكۡرِ ٱللَّهِ وَذَرُواْ ٱلۡبَيۡعَ “When the call is proclaimed for the Salah (prayer) on the Day of Friday (Jumu’ah prayer) come to the remembrance of Allah and leave the trade.” [Al-Jumu’ah: 9].
This verse is intended to indicate the provisions of Jumu’ah, not to state the provisions of trading. If the prohibition of trading was not a ‘Illah for preventing the obligatory hasten to Jumu’ah prayer, it would not have been related to the provisions of Jumu’ah. And He (swt) saying: وَذَرُواْ ٱلۡبَيۡعَ “leave the trade.” though in the form of a request to leave, i.e. forbiddance, but is a decisive forbiddance because of the indication (qarinah) of linking the request with the prevention of something which is Mubah in addition to the subject of the speech, namely hastening to Jumu’ah prayer, which is obligatory (Fardh). Thus, the prohibition of trading at the time of the call is a decisive prohibition.
It is from this verse that the ‘Illah to forbid trading at the time of the call was deduced, which is the distraction from the Salat. This is called a derived ‘Illah (‘Illah Mustanbatah); the rule revolves around it wherever it exists. So, trading (Bayi’), leasing (Ijara), and any action that distracts from prayer are prohibited at the time of the call by analogy (Qiyas).
- The ‘Illah of analogy (‘Illah Qiyasiyyah)
If the text has an implicit ‘Illah (‘Illahtu dalaalah) and there is an effective link between the implicit ‘Illah and the ruling of the original case (hukm al-asl), this relationship can be used to make an analogy for a new ‘Illah based on the implicit ‘Illah, which is found in the text. This new ‘Illah is called ‘Illah of analogy (‘Illah Qiyasiyyah). It is used to make analogy (Qiyas) to produce new rules, like how other reasons (‘Illah) are used. It is worth mentioning that the effective link between the ‘Illah and the rule (Hukm) is not found unless the implicit ‘Illah is a causal attribute (wasf mufhim) for both the causality (Ta’leel) and the cause of reasoning (wajh alIlliah), i.e., it implies (mufhim) that this attribute is a ‘Illah and also it implies the reason for which this attribute is considered a ‘Illah, because this reason is what determines the effective link between the ‘Illah and the rule.
– The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: «لَا يَقْضِي الْقَاضِي وَهُوَ غَضْبَانُ» “A judge must not sit to pass judgement between two disputing parties when he’s in a state of anger.” (Anger) is a causal attribute (wasf mufhim) that was mentioned in the Hukm reasoned with anger.
However, this Illah that was mentioned implicitly (Dalalatan), which is (anger), is a causal attribute for the effect of anger on the judgment. And there is an effective link between the implicit ‘Illah (the attribute of anger) and the ruling of the original case (hukm al-asl) which is the prevention of passing judgment. This effective link is the confusion of mind and the disorder of status. Any new causal attribute (wasf mufhim) that contains the same effective link, like hunger, can be made compared to the implicit ‘Illah in the text based on sharing this link, and the new causal attribute (hunger) is called ‘Illah of analogy (‘Illah Qiyasiyyah). Thus, anger is an implicit ‘Illah (‘Illahtu dalaalah) and hunger is ‘Illah of analogy (‘Illah Qiyasiyyah) due to the existence of an effective link in the two ‘Illah (reasons) of anger and hunger.
And all these ‘Illah (reasons) are Shar’ai ‘Illah because they are all based on the legal text explicitly or implicitly or by deduction or through analogy (Qyias), and none of them is called a rational ‘Illah. Thus, when the ‘Illah (reason) of ‘An-Naqdiyah’, the currency characteristic, was derived from the legal texts on the zakat of paper currency and the prohibition of usury in it; it is a Shar’ai ‘Illah deduced in the manner shown in the book ‘Funds of the Khilafah State’:
(However, since this compulsory currency has been adopted as money, payments for benefits and services and gold and silver as well as all other merchandise and goods are bought by it. Therefore, it has fulfilled the currency and price characteristics verified in gold and silver.
This is because the texts mentioned Zakat on gold and silver are of two types:
The first are evidences about Zakat that mention gold and silver as generic nouns/names, i.e., items of gold and silver, which are Jamid (non-derived/rigid) nouns that are not reasoned (i.e., no ‘illah is sought for them), so no Qiyas (analogy) can be established upon them. Hence, there is no Zakat obliged on other metals such as iron, copper, and others. Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said: «… وما من صاحب ذهب ولا فضة، لا يؤدي عنها حقها، إلا إذا كان يوم القيامة صفحت له صفائح من نار..» “… “No owner of gold or silver who fails to give their due right except that he will have sheets of fire made for him on the Day of Judgement…” [Narrated by the five except al-Tirmidhi]. In this hadeeth, the word “gold” and “silver” are mentioned as Jamid nouns/names that are not reasoned.
The second type are evidences about Zakat that mention gold and silver as currency which is taken as prices for goods and wages for labor. From these texts, the ‘illah (reason) is deduced; which is the currency characteristic. So, an analogy is established upon it for the compulsory (Ilzamiyya) paper currency since the Illah (reason) is fulfilled in it. Therefore, the rulings of the zakat are applied to it by calculating its equivalent of gold or silver in the market Ali ibn Abi Talib narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said: «إذا كانت لك مئتا درهم، وحال عليها الحول، ففيها خمسة دراهم، وليس عليك شيء – يعني في الذهب – حتى يكون ذلك عشرون ديناراً، فإذا كانت لك عشرون ديناراً، وحال عليها الحول، ففيها نصف دينار» “If you have two hundred dirhams and one full year has passed, then five dirhams are due on them. You do not have to pay anything – i.e. on gold — unless you have twenty dinars; if you have twenty dinars and one full year has passed, then half a dinar is due on them.” [Narrated by Abu Dawood] And as reported by Ali (ra) saying: «في كل عشرين ديناراً نصف دينار، وفي كل أربعين ديناراً دينار» “One half Dinar (i.e., zakah) is in every twenty, and from forty Dinars is one Dinar.” Also, it was narrated that Ali (ra) said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: «.. فهاتوا صدقة الرقّة، في كل أربعين درهماً، درهماً وليس في تسعين ومائة شيء، فإذا بلغت مائتين ففيها خمسة دراهم» “Bring the Sadaqah of the Riqqa as a Dirham for every forty, and there is nothing due on one hundred and ninety. Once it reaches two hundred Dirhams then five Dirhams are taken from it”, reported by Al-Bukhari and Ahmad. And as narrated from Abdur Rahman al-Ansari who said that in the book of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the book of Umar on Sadaqah, there is the following: «… والورِق لا يؤخذ منه شيء حتى يبلغ مئتي درهم» “Nothing is taken from silver until it reaches two hundred Dirhams.” [Reported by Abu Ubaid]
All these Ahadith indicate the currency and price characteristics because the terms Riqqa with the the indication (qreenah) of «في كل أربعين درهماً» “a Dirham for every forty”, and the words Wariq, Dirhams and Dinars; all of which are used to mean minted and coined gold and silver i.e., currency and price. The use of these terms indicates that it is the currency and the price that are meant in the Ahadith. Thus, the rules of Zakat, blood-monies, atonements (Kaffarat), cutting for theft and other rules are linked to these two characteristics.
Since compulsory currency verifies these currency and price characteristics, then it is included by the Ahadith obliging Zakat in the two currencies, gold and silver. So Zakat is obliged on it as it is obliged on gold and silver and it is valued in gold and silver. Whoever owns compulsory currency equivalent to the value of 20 Dinars of gold-i.e. 85 grams of gold-which is the Nisab of gold, or 200 Dirhams of silver-i.e. 595 grams of silver-over which a year passes, then Zakat is obliged upon it and he must give quarter-tithe.) End.
Therefore, it is not said that currency and price characteristics are a rational ‘Illah, but they are a Shar’ai ‘Illah derived from the Shar’ai evidences. It is one of the types of reasons (‘Illah) mentioned above in the classification of the ‘Illah into explicit, implicit, derived ‘Illah or ‘Illah of analogy, and they are all Shar’i ‘Illah because they are all based on the Shar’i text.
8 – Zakat is obliged on trade merchandise, whether they are real estate, fabrics, grain or sheep, etc., and we have shown the evidences for that in the book Funds of the Khilafah State as follows:
(Trade merchandise is everything other than currency which is used for trading, buying and selling, for the sake of profit e.g. foodstuffs, clothing, furniture, manufactured goods, animals, minerals, land, buildings and other goods that are bought and sold.
Zakat is obliged on merchandise taken for trade by the agreement of the early and latter scholars. From Samura b. Jundub who said: «أما بعد، فإن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كان يأمرنا أن نخرج الصدقة من الذي نعد للبيع» “See! Verily the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to command us to give Sadaqah on what we prepared for sale” (narrated by Abu Dawud). Abu Dharr narrated from the Prophet ﷺ who said:«وفي البَزِّ صدقته» “There is Sadaqah in Bazz.” Al-Bazz are clothes and woven material used for trading. Abu ‘Amra b. Hamas narrated from his father who said: “‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab passed by and said: ‘O Hamas, pay the Zakat on your property’. I said: ‘I don’t have any property except for Ji’b (quivers) and leather’. He said: ‘Estimate them, then pay their Zakat.’” AbdurRahman b. Abdul-Qari said: “I was appointed over Bait ul-Mal in the time of ‘Umar ibn Al-Khattab. When the gifts were given out, the wealth of the traders was collected and counted, of what was present or absent. Zakat was then taken from the present wealth for what was present and absent.” From ibn ‘Umar who said: “There is Zakat on Raqeeq (slaves) and Bazz suits upon which trade is intended.” The obligation of Zakat on trade has been narrated from ‘Umar and his son, ibn Abbas, the seven jurists, Al-Hassan, Jabir, Tawus, Al-Nakhai, Ath-Thawri, Al-Awzai, Ashl-Shafii, Ahmad, Abu Ubaid, the people of the opinion (Ashab ar-Rai), Abu Hanifah and others.
Zakat on trading merchandise is obliged when it reaches the Nisab value of gold and silver, and a year has passed over it. If the trader begins his trade with property less than the Nisab then it reaches the Nisab at the end of the year, there is no Zakat upon it because a year has not passed over it. Zakat will be obliged on its Nisab after a full year has passed over it.
If the trader begins his trade with property above the Nisab such that he begins his trade with 1,000 Dinars then his trade grows and profits by the end of the year so that its value becomes 3,000 Dinars, it is obligatory upon him to pay Zakat on 3,000 Dinars not the 1,000 Dinars he started with. This is because its profit follows it. Accordingly, Zakat is obligatory on properties intended for trade as described above.
9 – If you have a Nisab, you can do the following to your money regarding the Zakat
- Jot down the Hijri date when your money reaches the Nisab.
- After a whole Hijri year has passed, calculate how much money you have to see if it reaches the Nisab or not.
- Pay the Zakat of all this money that you have and not only of that which surpassed the Nisab, but rather the whole amount, meaning the Nisab and whatever surpassed it.
- After that, you calculate your money every year in this date and pay Zakat on them all if it has reached the Nisab or more.
10 – If a person forgets the date of his money reaching Nisab, then he should estimate and take into consideration when making the estimate the interest of the beneficiaries of the Zakat because they have a right in receiving this money which has more priority over his right even though he is the owner of this money. Therefore, if his estimation is somewhere between the months of Muharram and Shabaan, let him make the beginning of the year at the beginning of the month of Muharram and not the month of Shabaan, as this is better for him in his Deen, bi’thinallah.
We ask Allah that the answer is clear and adequate.
Your brother,
Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah
27th Jumada II 1439 AH
15/03/2018 CE
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Taqwa
“O you who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared and die not except in a state of Islam.” [TMQ 3:102]
Allah (swt) in the Quran emphasizes the concept of Taqwa to us many times in the Quran.
Taqwa is one of the most profound concepts in Islam. Taqwa is an avenue by which Muslims relate to one another in society and a means to channel their actions. Because of the great importance of taqwa, it has been referred to numerous times in the Qur’an and Sunnah in order to emphasize its relevance and significance to the Muslims.
Allah (swt) strongly emphasizes the rewards of people with taqwa in this life and the Hereafter. It is these muttaqeen that Allah (swt) grants assistance, victory and provides for. Thus, understanding the concept of taqwa is vital and mandatory for every Muslim.
Unfortunately, this is the very concept which some of us have left behind, as a result of intellectual decline. The disbelievers in the distant past, as well as in present times, have understood the importance of taqwa and the Islamic creed, and how it could jeopardize their interests. They realized how taqwa and the Islamic creed (‘aqeedah) were the roots of power to the Muslims. Today we see a campaign to destroy the concept of Taqwa by making us divide the Deen from the Dunya, to secularize our understanding of Islam such that we limit it to personal Ibadat and akhlaq (morals) and detach from any other aspect of life such as economics, politics or social affairs. Allah (swt) warned us in the Quran about their continuous attempts to extinguish his light i.e. Islam, He (swt) said:
“They wish to extinguish Allah’s Light with their mouths, but Allah will not allow but that His Light is perfected even though the kuffar may detest it.” [TMQ 9:32]
Unfortunately due to the influence of the idea of separating the Deen and Dunya, we can see many misunderstandings amongst us as to who is defined as the Mutaqqi. A picture of a person who over emphasizes prayer, fasting, and things such as donating to the masjid, while living a secluded and isolated life would be the one with taqwa, even though the same person would deal with usury, lie and do nothing towards reviving the Ummah.
Due to this idea, people look to Islam as a religion like the other religions who are not complete Deen’s that have come with solutions to every aspect of life. So if I were to ask anyone from amongst the general population of Muslims, ‘what are the rules of Salah?’ I am sure most people would be able to answer this question. But if I was to ask ‘what is the ruling or economic system of Islam?’, ‘what are the Shariah rules relating to contracts and company structures’ or ‘what is our Shariah responsibility towards the Muslims around the world who are being attacked such as in Iraq and Palestine?’ then I think many people would not know the answers to these questions, we must ask why? Didn’t Allah (swt) reveal to us a complete Deen covering all aspects of life? Didn’t Allah (swt) say in the Quran:
“And We have sent down to you the Book as an explanation of everything, a guidance, a mercy and glad-tidings for those who submitted themselves to Islam.” [TMQ 16:89]
So let us understand the true meaning of Taqwa. In contrast to the distorted picture that people have today, the Qur’an and Sunnah defines the idea of taqwa as protecting oneself from the Hellfire by following the orders of Allah (swt) by doing what He (swt) has commanded and avoiding what He (swt) has forbidden. Many ayat in the Qur’an point to this:
“And unto Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth. And, verily, We have recommended to the people of the Scripture before you, and to you (O Muslims) that you (all) fear Allah, and keep your duty to Him, But if you disbelieve, then unto Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth, and Allah is Ever Rich, Worthy of all praise.” [TMQ An-Nisa’ 4: 131]
Taqwa comes from the word ‘waqiya’, which means to protect. It is protection from the Anger of Allah (swt) and His (swt) punishment. This is why Taqwa is used to describe the performing of actions, which pleases Allah (swt) and abstaining from all actions that displeases Him (swt).
Taqwa in essence means god consciousness, being conscious of Allah (swt) in all our actions and affairs.
Also, in the Prophet’s (saw) last khutbah he said, “I ask you to fear Him (swt), listen to Him (swt), and obey.” Both the ayah, as well as the hadith, is commanding Muslims to have taqwa. A person should have taqwa as a barrier between himself and the Anger and Displeasure of Allah (swt). Through taqwa, the Muslim strives to obey Allah (swt) and abstains from His prohibitions.
The son of ‘Ali (ra), Al-Hasan (ra) once said, “The people who have taqwa (al-muttaqoon) are the people who avoided whatever Allah (swt) has prohibited and have done whatever Allah (swt) has ordained.”
‘Umar ibn Abdul Aziz (ra) once said, “Taqwa is not by fasting the day and not by praying the night. And its not by mixing between the two of them. But taqwa is leaving what Allah (swt) has made Haram and by doing what Allah (swt) has made Fard. After one has done this, Allah (swt) will provide good things for that person.”
Ibn Juzayy said in his dictionary of terms from the introduction to his tafsir: “Taqwa’s meaning is fear, clinging to obedience to Allah and abandoning disobedience to Him. It is the sum of all good.”
A true muttaqoon is a person who strives to possess a solid understanding and knowledge of the rulings of Allah (swt) through the Qur’an and Sunnah. Without proper knowledge of the Islamic rulings, a person would not know what is asked of him/her. Therefore, it is a must to understand Islam properly as well as to have the proper intention of pleasing Allah (swt) in carrying out these actions.
Imam Ahmad mentions a hadith, narrated by a Sahabi, whereby a person once asked, “Oh Messenger of Allah, give me some advice.” The Prophet (saw) responded, “I advise you to fear Allah (swt) because it is the head of everything.” In another occasion the Prophet (saw) replied, “Fear Allah (swt) because it is the collection of all goodness.” Allah (swt) also promises to be with those who have taqwa. Allah (swt) says,
“Truly, Allah is with those who fear Him, keep their duty unto Him, and those who are muhsinun (doers of good for Allah’s sake only).” [TMQ An-Nahl 16:128]
Also taqwa constitutes a reason, which Allah (swt) has provided, in order to help one who is experiencing hardship and distress. Allah (swt) promises,
“Whoever fears Allah, Allah will grant him a way out of hardship.” [TMQ At-Talaq 65:2]
Allah (swt) had also promised forgiveness of sins to those people who are muttaqoon.
“And whoever fears Allah, and keeps his duty to Him, He will forgive his sins from him and will enlarge his reward.” [TMQ At-Talaq 65:5]
Allah (swt) has given the glad tidings for those who have taqwa. The news of paradise is assured to such people, giving hints at the vast rewards to those who take Allah (swt) as their Lord in their actions.
“Verily those who are fearful of Allah (have taqwa) are the people who, when an evil thought comes to them from Shaitan, they remember Allah and indeed they then see aright.” [TMQ Al-A‘raf 7:201]
“And he (Muhammad) who has brought the truth and those who believe therein, those are al-muttaqoon (the pious and the righteous).” [TMQ Az-Zumar 39:33]
Hence, from what Allah (swt) has outlined through the wahi, we can see that a person who possesses taqwa is not one who lives an isolated life, only praying, fasting and maintaining good character alone. Instead, the muttaqoon are those who fear Allah (swt) and look to what Allah (swt) has ordained in carrying out his actions to avoid His (swt) displeasure and anger. These people are involved with the Ummah, active in his/her life, concerned with the affairs of the Muslims, while at the same time praying, fasting, spending in Allah’s cause, having good morals and are forgiving. All these descriptions can be attributed to a person who has taqwa.
The Deen has come to regulate the Dunya, not be separated from it. There is no concept of monasticism in Islam i.e. being like a monk. The Prophet (saw) said, “There is no monasticism in Islam.”
Umar ibn al Khattab once looked at those praying and said, “The great number of times any of you raises and lowers his head does not deceive me. The [real] Deen is being cautious and meticulous in the deen of Allah, and refraining from what Allah has forbidden, and acting according to what Allah permits and forbids.”
Narrated Abu Huraira, the Prophet (saw) said, “The dunya is a prison for the believer and Paradise for the kafir (disbeliever),” [Sahih Muslim, vol.4, #7058]
This means that we live within the prison of the Shariah, that every single action we undertake is based upon the revelation of Allah (swt). This means we must accept Islam completely and all of its rules including the rules relating to society, economics and Khilafah. This does not mean that we deny the world and that seeking material development and advancement according to the rules of Shariah is wrong.
In fact once when Imam Ibn Hajar al Asqalani, a famous scholar in the past who died in 852 AH, who wrote the commentary of Sahih al Bukhar entitled ‘Fath al Bari’, was walking with his grand entourage through the town, they came upon a miserable, poor and dejected Jew. When the Jew recognized Ibn Hajar, he called out to him, “O scholar of Islam! Is it not true that your Prophet has said that this life is a prison for the believer and Paradise for the kafir? How is it that you are living in lavish wealth being a so-called believer, and yet I live this meagre and miserable existence?” Ibn Hajar responded, “What you say of the Prophet (saw) of what he has said is true. You should know that this opulence you see me living in is a prison compared to what awaits for me in the Hereafter. And, you should know that what you are living is Paradise compared to what Allah has prepared for you in the akhirah.”
We must realise that that every Muslim is obliged to believe in the Islamic Shari’ah as a whole otherwise we would be Kafir. Therefore the concept of secularism i.e. to separate the Deen from the Dunya is a Kufr concept. It is Kufr to deny the AHkam Shari’ah as a whole, or any definite (qaT’ai) detailed hukm of them. This is the case whether these ahkam (rules)are connected with worships (ibadaat), transactions (mu’amalaat), punishments (uqoobaat), foodstuffs, etc. So the rejection of the verse:
“So establish regular prayer”[Al-Baraqah:43]
Is the same as rejecting the verses:
“But Allah has permitted trade and forbidden usury,”[Al-Baraqah:275]
“As to the thief, male or female, cut of f his or her hands,”[Al-Ma’idah:38]
And is the same as rejecting the following verse calling the believers brothers regardless of their colour, language or ethnic origin – thus prohibiting nationalism i.e. to believe that we are better than others based upon our ethnic origin. So the Muslims in Iraq, Palestine and Iraq are our brothers just as the Muslims in Delhi, Bangkok or Jakarta:
“The believers are nothing else but brothers” [TMQ Al-Hujurat: 10]
Or the verses to do with ruling by what Allah has revealed, which we see the rulers in the Muslim world today ignoring, such as:
“And whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed, such are the Zaalimun (unjust, oppressors).” [TMQ 5:45]
“And rule between them by that which Allah revealed to you, and do not follow their vain desires away from the truth which came to you.” [TMQ 5:48]
In fact Allah (swt) has explicitly told us in the Quran that we are not believers unless we accept all of the rules of Islam. He (swt) said:
“But no, I swear by your lord (Allah), they will have no Iman, until they make you, (o prophet) rule between them in whatever they dispute amongst themselves, and then they find no resistance in their souls from what you have decided, instead they submit with absolute submission”. [TMQ An Nisa: 65]
Allah (swt) warned us of only taking Islam partially, He (swt) has condemned us if we think that politics is not part of Islam or that economics is not part of Islam, or that Islam has nothing to say about the current world situation. We must accept Islam as an Aqeeda and a system. Allah (swt) said:
“So do you believe in some part of the Book and disbelieve in some. The penalty awaiting those who do this is nothing but humiliation in this life and the severest of punishment on the Day of Judgment.” [2:85]
Allah (swt) has revealed to us the best system to regulate the affairs of the Dunya so why are many of us even unaware of it?
Let us look at some examples of Taqwa from the Sahaba:
Al-Bukhari reported on the authority of Ibn Abi Awfa (may Allah be pleased with them both) who said:
“We were struck by extreme hunger on the nights of Khaybar. On the day of Khaybar we found some domestic Asses so we slaughtered them. When the pots began to boil the caller of the Messenger of Allah called out to us and said: overturn your pots and do not eat anything of the meat of donkeys. ‘Abd Allah said: we said that the Prophet forbade them because the Khumus (i.e. a fifth of the spoils) had not been taken out of it. He said others said that he has prohibited them completely. I asked Sa’eed b. Jubayr who said, he has prohibited them completely.”
Al-Bukhari reported on the authority of Anas b. Malik, he said: “I was serving drinks to Abu Talha al-Ansari, ‘Ubaidah b. al-Jarrrah and Ubayy b. Ka’b prepared from unripe dates and fresh dates when a visitor came and he said: Verily liquor has been prohibited. Thereupon, Abu Talha said: O Anas! Stand up and break this pitcher. I stood up and (took hold) of a pointed stone and struck the pitcher with its lower part until it broke into pieces.”
Al-Bukhari reported on the authority of ‘Ayisha (may Allah be Pleased with her) who said: “We have been told also that when Allah revealed the order that the Muslims should return to the pagans what they had spent on their wives who emigrated (after embracing Islam) and that the Muslims should not keep unbelieving women as their wives, ‘Umar divorced two of his wives.”
Al-Bukhari reported on the authority of ‘Ayisha (may Allah be pleased with her) who said:
“May Allah have mercy on the Muhajir women. When Allah revealed the verse: “And let them draw their headscarfs all over necks and bosoms” [TMQ An-Nur: 31] they tore their wrappers and concealed themselves with them.”
Abu Dawud reported on the authority of Safiyyah bint Shaybah who reported on the authority of ‘Ayisha (may Allah be pleased her) that:
She (‘Ayisha) mentioned the women of Ansar, praised them and said good words about them. She then said: “When Surat an-Nur came down, they took the curtains, tore them and made head covers of them.”
Ibn Ishaq said: “…Al-Ash’ath b. Qays came to the Messenger of Allah (saw) as part of the Kindah delegation. Az-Zuhri informed to me that he came with eighty riders from Kindah. They entered the mosque of the Messenger of Allah (saw). They had long hair and put kohl (in their eyes). They wore Jubbahs with silk hems. When they entered the presence of Allah’s Messenger he said to them: did not you embrace Islam? They said: Yes. He asked: ‘then what is this silk put around your necks? So they tore the silk and threw it away.”
Hanzalah b. Abi ‘Aamir (may Allah be pleased with him) who was bathed by the angels heard the call to the battle of Uhud. He hurriedly responded to the call. He was martyred on the day of Uhud. Ibn Ishaq said: The Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
“Your companion is being bathed by the angels, ask his family what happened to him?” His wife was asked. She had been a bride on that night. She said he went out in a state of impurity when he heard the call. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, “That is why the angels have bathed him”.
So let us be the ones who have Taqwa in its true meaning. Let us take Islam completely. Let us take heed from the words of Allah (swt) and may He (swt) strengthen us so that we can follow what He has said.
“O you who Believe! Enter into the Fold of Islam completely. And follow not the footsteps of Satan, for he is to you a clear enemy” [TMQ 2: 208] -
The Western World’s Double Standard: the ICJ Ruling on ‘Israel’ and the UNRWA-Hamas Allegations
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
The international arena often witnesses the manifestation of double standards, particularly when it comes to the actions of Western powers in addressing conflicts in the Muslim World. Two recent events have, once again, brought this phenomenon into sharp focus: the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on ‘Israel’ that was initiated by South Africa on December 29, 2023, and the baseless claims made by ‘Israel’ regarding the UNRWA (United Nations of Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) allegedly having ties to Hamas. The disparity in the responses and actions taken by Western nations in these situations exposes, bluntly and shamelessly, the inconsistency in their approach to their so-called justice and way of accountability.
On December 2023, South Africa submitted a request to the ICJ seeking an advisory opinion on the legal consequences of the Jewish entity’s genocide on the Gaza Strip, as well as the 75-year apartheid, 56-year occupation and 16-year blockade of the Strip (according to South Africa). Despite the mounting evidence of the Jewish entity’s violations of international law, including the Genocide Convention, Western powers have been hesitant to take actions and completely ignoring the ruling of the ICJ. With some countries, such as Germany, even supporting and backing up the Jewish entity.
In contrast, ‘Israel’s recent allegations against UNRWA, accusing the agency of maintaining links with Hamas and even being accomplice to the 7th of October events, have been met with swift condemnation and concrete actions from Western nations. The Jewish entity’s claims, though lacking of any evidence, have led to quick and direct sanctions against UNRWA. France, Germany, Italy and The Netherlands have suspended their UNRWA payments and the UK wanting absolute guarantee that UNRWA won’t employ ‘terrorists’ before resuming funding. Even the European Commission has published an official statement in which it announces that the upcoming funding decisions for the UNRWA will be reviewed and that a thorough investigation should be launched to make sure that the organization or its staff has not participated in the attacks.
The disparity in responses and the selective application of these cruel Western principles when examining the actions taken by the West in each scenario, have opened the eyes of not only Muslims, but many non-Muslims as well. It has undermined the credibility of Western nations and shifted the global narrative against the Jewish entity and other tyrannical Western leaders.
However, this behaviour and reaction should not come as a surprise for us Muslims. The so-called international community, including the ICJ and UNRWA and many other organisations, are the result of the two peace treaties signed in 1648 in Westphalia, also known as Peace of Westphalia. This treaty established a new European political order and laid the groundwork for modern diplomacy and international relations, in favour of the West and in order to protect the Western sovereignty over the Islamic world. So, every organisation that is an outcome of this treaty is automatically and without any doubt working for and used by the Western agenda against the Ummah of the Prophet Mohammed (saw).
And while the Ummah has made it clear where it stands, voicing and marching on a large scale for concrete actions to be taken in order to save our brothers and sisters in Palestine and to put an end to the cruel Zionist settlement, the so-called Muslim leaders have been silently watching all of this unfold. It is now, more than ever, that we need the Khilafah (Caliphate) upon the method of the Prophethood to bring back justice and peace for the Muslim world and beyond, to remove the barbaric and hypocritical leaders of our lands and to put an end to the disbelievers’ agenda.
[وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرواْ وَكَذَّبُواْ بِآيَاتِنَا أُولَـئِكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ]
“As for those who disbelieve, and deny Our signs, they are the people of the Fire. They shall dwell in it forever.” [Al-Baqarah 2:39]
Sumaya Bint Khayyat
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Q&A: Speaking the Word of Truth Aloud
Answer to Question
Speaking the Word of Truth Aloud
To Mustafa Ali Ibrahim
(Translated)Question:
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh
I have a question:
Surah Yunus verse 90: [فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ وَجُنُودُهُ] “Then Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them” and Surat Taha verse 78: [فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ بِجُنُودِهِ] “Then Pharaoh pursued them with his soldiers”
Does this mean that the ruler’s order and the ruler’s action are the same thing, so that we say that standing against his orders is the same as standing against his actions, meaning that we say a word of truth in front of his police or his assistants, like speaking in front of him? «أَفْضَلُ الْجِهَادِ كَلِمَةُ حَقٍّ عِنْدَ سُلْطَانٍ جَائِرٍ» “a word of truth spoken before an unjust rulers”. Thank you.
You have the right to change the wording of the question, and may Allah reward you.
Answer:
Wa Alaikum Assalam Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh
First: With regard to the two verses mentioned in the question, which are what Allah Almighty says in Surah Yunus, verse 90:
[وَجَاوَزْنَا بِبَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ الْبَحْرَ فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ وَجُنُودُهُ بَغْياً وَعَدْواً]
“We brought the Children of Israel across the sea. Then Pharaoh and his soldiers pursued them unjustly and oppressively”, and the Almighty said in Surat Taha, verse 78:
[فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ بِجُنُودِهِ فَغَشِيَهُمْ مِنَ الْيَمِّ مَا غَشِيَهُمْ]“Then Pharaoh pursued them with his soldiers—but how overwhelming were the waters that submerged them!” It is as if you are pointing out the difference in the meaning derived from the use of the letter الواو and the letter الباء in the words (his soldiers), as Allah Almighty says in the first verse: [فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ وَجُنُودُهُ] “Then Pharaoh and his soldiers”, while Allah Almighty says in the second verse:
[فَأَتْبَعَهُمْ فِرْعَوْنُ بِجُنُودِهِ] “Then Pharaoh pursued them with his soldiers”. The meaning of “follow them” is that he followed them and caught up with them, according to what is mentioned in the books of Tafseer.
But the first verse [فِرْعَوْنُ وَجُنُودُهُ] “Pharaoh and his soldiers”, According to the language, it is understood that Pharaoh was among those who pursued them, meaning that the pursuit of Moses, peace be upon him, and the Children of Israel (Bani Israel) involved Pharaoh, may Allah curse him, and he was among those who followed them and caught up with them. This is because the الواو in the word (and his soldiers) here indicates participation, that is, the participation of Pharaoh and his soldiers in the pursuit of the Children of Israel (Bani Israel).
As for the second verse:[فِرْعَوْنُ بِجُنُودِهِ] “Pharaoh with his soldiers”. It can be understood from it according to the language that Pharaoh participated with his soldiers and their companion in the pursuit, but it can also be understood from it according to the language that Pharaoh did not participate with his soldiers and did not go out with them, but rather only sought help from them in the pursuit, and that is because the “ba” in the language indicates companionship and assistance. So the word (with his soldiers) in the verse can be used as a language of accompaniment, meaning that Pharaoh was accompanied by his soldiers in pursuing Bani Israel, and it can also be taken to mean seeking help, meaning he could be with them, and he could have sought help from his soldiers to pursue them without participating with them, meaning that the ones who pursued them were Pharaoh’s soldiers without Pharaoh himself.
The identification of one of the two meanings (accompaniment or assistance) is evident from the combination of the two verses:
The first verse has one meaning in language. And it is that Pharaoh, may Allah curse him, joined them, i.e., his companion, in catching up with Moses (as). The meaning of the second verse is likely in the language of accompanying, meaning he accompanied them in catching up with Moses, peace be upon him, and it is also possible that he sought help, meaning he sought help from his soldiers to catch up with Moses (as) without Pharaoh accompanying them, may Allah curse him in that. Because the meaning of the two verses does not contradict each other, the meaning of combining the two verses is that Pharaoh was with his army in pursuing Moses (as). That is, theالباء in “with his soldiers” here indicates the meaning of accompanying, meaning that he was with his army in pursuing Moses, peace be upon him. This is with regard to the meaning of the two verses.
Secondly: As for the noble hadith mentioned in the question, it was narrated by Al-Tirmidhi in his Sunan on the authority of Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri that the Prophet (saw) said:
«إِنَّ مِنْ أَعْظَمِ الْجِهَادِ كَلِمَةَ عَدْلٍ عِنْدَ سُلْطَانٍ جَائِرٍ» “Indeed, among the greatest types of Jihad is a just statement before a tyrannical ruler”. Abu Issa said, and in this chapter on the authority of Abu Umamah, and this is a hasan ghareeb hadith from this perspective. It was mentioned in Al-Mu’jam Al-Kabir by Al-Tabarani on the authority of Abu Umamah that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
«أَحَبُّ الْجِهَادِ إِلَى اللهِ كَلِمَةُ حَقٍّ تُقَالُ لإِمَامٍ جَائِرٍ» “The best Jihad for the sake of Allah, a word of truth spoken to an unjust imam”. In another narration by Al-Tabarani on the authority of Abu Umamah, that a man said at the Jamarat: O Messenger of Allah, which jihad is best? He said:
«أَفْضَلُ الْجِهَادِ كَلِمَةُ حَقٍّ عِنْدَ سُلْطَانٍ جَائِرٍ» “The best jihad is a word of truth before an unjust ruler.” The following was mentioned in the book of Aoun Al-Ma’boud in explaining this hadith: [… On the authority of Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri, who said: The Messenger of Allah (saw) said: The best jihad is a word of justice with an unjust ruler or an unjust prince. The companion of Awn al-Ma’boud said:
(The best jihad): That is, one of the best, as evidenced by the narration of Al-Tirmidhi: Indeed, one of the greatest jihads (The word justice) And in a narration by Ibn Majah there is the word truth, and what is meant by the word is that which enjoins what is right or forbids what is wrong, whether a word or whatever it means, writing and the like.
(With an unjust ruler): That is, an oppressor. Indeed, this has become the best jihad, because whoever strives against the enemy is hesitating between hope and fear, not knowing whether he will conquer or be defeated.
The holder of authority is oppressed in his hand, so if he speaks the truth and enjoins M’aruf (good), he has been exposed to damage and is aiming for his own destruction. This becomes the best type of jihad for the sake of conquering fear, as Al-Khattābī and others said. (Or an unjust ruler (Ameer)): It seems that it is doubt from the narrator.].
From this honorable hadith it can be understood that the best jihad is to speak the word of truth before an unjust sultan, not before his followers. What is meant by an unjust sultan is an unjust prince, whether he is a president, a king, a prime minister, or a governor. He must have authority and rule in order for this preference to be given in speaking the truth before him.
But this does not mean that there is no virtue in speaking the word of truth before the followers of the unjust ruler. Speaking the word of truth is always good and virtuous. However, the special advantage that the Prophet (saw) mentioned in the hadith that we are considering is a preference related to the one who has authority, i.e., the ruler himself. Because of the importance of speaking the word of truth before him and the risk, courage, and strength it entails, as some commentators of the hadith mentioned:
[… Al-Khattabi said: Indeed, that became the best jihad; Because whoever strives against the enemy hesitates between hope and fear, not knowing whether he will prevail or be defeated. The holder of authority is oppressed in his hand, so if he speaks the truth and enjoins M’aruf (good), he has been exposed to damage, and he has set himself on destruction, and this has become a The superior types of jihad for the sake of conquering fear. Al-Muzher said: But it was better because the Sultan’s injustice applies to everyone under his rule, and it is a great multitude. So, if he forbids injustice, then He brought benefit to many people other than killing an infidel (kaffir)…].
The whole talk is about the unjust ruler himself, not about his followers, assistants, and soldiers.
Your brother,
Ata Bin Khalil Abu Al-Rashtah17 Rajab Al-Khair 1445 AH
Corresponding to 29/01/2024 CEThe link to the answer from the Ameer’s Facebook page
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Q&A: The Conflict in Sudan Between the Army and the Rapid Support Forces is Focused on Specific Areas
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيمAnswer to Question
The Conflict in Sudan Between the Army and the Rapid Support Forces is Focused on Specific Areas
(Translated)Question:
It is observed in the last two months, October and November 2023, that the conflict between the [Sudan] army and the Rapid Support Forces, each of them is focusing on specific areas. The army focuses on Khartoum and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Darfur. The conflict in other regions is a secondary conflict linked to these two regions, as happened with the RSF attack on 15/12/2023 on Wad Madani, the capital of Al Jazirah, when the army’s pressure on them intensified in Khartoum. Does this herald a new division in Sudan, separating Darfur for the RSF just as South Sudan was separated? Thank you.
Answer:
To get a clear answer, we will review the following matters:
First: We stated in the Answer to Question of 25/4/2023 (“Sudden violent clashes erupted on Saturday,15/4/2023, between the army and the Rapid Support Forces, which represent a new blow to hopes for the transfer of power to civilians, i.e. the pro-British civilian forces” …) and we explained that there are three possibilities that America wants from this war among its agents:
* A new agreement was concluded between its agents, Al-Burhan and Hemedti… and then it pushes back the framework agreement with the powers affiliated with the Europeans.
* If it is not possible to push back the pro-European forces, then America does not care about dividing Sudan as it did in the south, so it will leave Darfur to Hemedti…
* If these forces (affiliated with the Europeans) line up behind one of America’s agents as a matter of maneuver… then America will ask this agent to retreat and the other to take control…
Second: In light of this, we review the developments in order to arrive at the most likely opinion regarding the outcome of the situation:
1- Since that date, 15/4/2023, the conflict and what is related to it, including the declaration of truces, the resumption of clashes, negotiations, and communications, have all become confined between the two parties affiliated with America: The Army leadership and the Rapid Support Forces leadership, under the supervision of America and its Saudi agent, which plays the role of implementing American dictates. So, the so-called Jeddah platform was formed to manage this conflict. Muhammad Hamdan Dagalo “Hemedti” confirmed his compliance with American dictates, saying: [“He is in contact with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to prevent the escalation of the war.” (Al-Sharq Al-Awsat, 2/5/2023)]. Thus, America was able to keep Britain and its agent, the Emirates, out of playing a role in the conflict management and related matters. There was what was called the Quartet, consisting of America and its agent, Saudi Arabia, and Britain and its agent, the Emirates. America also made the conflict between its agents Al-Burhan and Hemedti in order to eliminate the role of the political opposition formed by British agents in the Forces of Freedom and Change and others.
2- That is why the Sudanese army delegation in Addis Ababa did not participate in the summit because it was headed by Kenyan President William Ruto, who is affiliated with Britain. [Addis Ababa hosts the Intergovernmental Authority for Development in East Africa (IGAD) summit to discuss the Sudanese crisis… The Sudanese army delegation, despite its presence in Addis Ababa, did not participate in the summit sessions in protest against Kenya’s presidency of the Quartet. (Sky News Arabia, 10/7/2023)]. Ruto, the Kenyan president, had proposed sending peace forces from abroad to Sudan, as well as involving the Forces of Freedom and Change under the name of civil forces before they fade away and weaken completely, as the fighting between the American agents Al-Burhan and Hemedti has paralyzed their movement and thinking. Al-Burhan expresses support for American-Saudi mediation and rejects British mediation and intervention through its agent, the Kenyan president, or others. Lieutenant General Yasser Al-Atta pointed this out, addressing his soldiers (“Any foreign peace forces are enemy forces.” He threatened Kenya, saying: “Leave the East African forces in their place… (you want) to bring the Kenyan army, Come.” He swore that no one would return of these forces, “safely to their country.” He stated that “a third country, without naming it, was the one that pushed Kenya to put forward this initiative.” (Reuters, 24/7/2023). By the third country, he means Britain. Kenya’s Foreign Minister Sing Aoi rejected the Sudanese military officer’s statement, he said: “The accusations are baseless,” he also said, “Permanent peace will only be achieved through the involvement of civilian parties in any mediation process.”
3- Thus, Al-Burhan was reassured that the internal situation was proceeding according to the American plan drawn up, so he began his foreign visits for the first time since the outbreak of fighting between the army and the Rapid Support Forces. He left Khartoum for Port Sudan to use it as the center of his movements. On 30/8/2023 he made his first foreign visit to Egypt, this visit is considered a confirmation of the Egyptian regime’s support for the army and Al-Burhan at this stage. The Cairo News Channel published statements by Al-Burhan during his visit, in which he said: (We intended “from the visit” to put the Egyptian leadership in the right picture, and to inform it of the developments in the situation), both Al-Sisi and Al-Burhan are American men. Other visits followed… It appears that Al-Burhan is seeking to imbue legitimacy as a permanent president of the state of Sudan with all powers, and not the head of a temporary sovereign council.
4- The conflict will not be resolved quickly, and it may also take some time, because the intention is to limit the conflict between the two sides of America there: The Army Command and the Rapid Support Command, and the outcome of the conflict is controlled by America by dividing the roles between them, to keep the opposition loyal to Britain and Europe paralyzed as it has been since the conflict erupted in mid-April 2023, and then to weaken it to a minimum. To clarify this, we explain the following:
a- On 21/11/2023, the Rapid Support Forces seized the city of El Daein, the capital of East Darfur State. They also seized the headquarters of the Army Command of the 20th Division there without a fight when the Army forces withdrew from it under the pretext of avoiding the danger of confrontations between them and harm to civilians! The Rapid Support Forces claimed in a statement: [“Their victories open a wide door to true peace… and that the state of East Darfur, along with El Daein, will remain safe under its protection.” (Al Jazeera, 22/11/2023)].
Note that El Daein is the stronghold of the Rizeigat tribe, to which Dagalo belongs, the commander of the Rapid Support Forces and most of his commanders and members. Before that, these forces seized the city of Nyala, the capital of South Darfur State, the city of Zalingei, the capital of Central Darfur State, and the city of El Geneina, the capital of West Darfur State. It only remains for them to seize the city of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur State and the political and administrative capital of the Darfur region. If the RSF capture El Fasher, it would have directed a devastating blow to the pro-English and European movements, especially the Sudan Liberation Movement and the Justice and Equality Movement. These two movements had taken a neutral position in the conflict, knowing that this conflict was artificial between American agents, the Army Command and the Rapid Support Command.
b- This is what made the armed movements in the region sense the danger, and they are the movements that signed the Juba Peace Agreement for Sudan – Darfur Track. This made them announce in a press conference on 16/11/2023 (their departure from the position of “neutrality” and their standing against what they called “the project to fragment the country and its division,” which was carried out by “the Rapid Support Militia and its other foreign militias and mercenaries.” It also announced its participation in military operations on all fronts “without the slightest hesitation.” (French newspaper Le Monde, November 16). These movements were determined to defend El Fasher, otherwise it will disappear… especially since the city of El Fasher occupies a strategic location, as its borders are connected to the borders of Libya, Chad, and the western cities of the Darfur region, it is considered the capital of the opposition armed movements that signed the Juba Peace Agreement, reconciled with the regime, and participated in the government. Reports indicate that it withdrew the majority of the capital of those belonging to the Zaghawa tribe from Omdurman to it. Seizing El Fasher would ignite strife between the Arab tribes that support the Rapid Support Forces and the Zaghawa tribe that supports the armed movements.
c- As for the army leadership – Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, in addition to the army’s control over northern and eastern Sudan, the army’s recent and strong campaigns inside Khartoum indicate a trend towards resolving military matters in Khartoum over time in favour of the army [the Sudanese army launched a series of attacks, air strikes, and artillery bombing operations on Rapid Support Forces sites and gatherings in and around the capital, which included the vicinity of the Armoured Corps, the central market, the vicinity of the Sports City, Al Arada Street, the vicinity of the radio and television in Omdurman, and sites in Khartoum North. (Independent Arabia, 24/11/2023)], and this means that the army wants decisiveness and to be the stronger party in these areas.
d- On 10/12/2023, IGAD held an extraordinary meeting of its leaders in Djibouti, which is chairing its current session, with broad participation from representatives of the African Union, the United Nations, and neighbouring countries of Sudan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the Emirates, the United States of America, and Britain. [The Chairman of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Lieutenant-General Al-Burhan, participated in the summit’s work after he was absent from the previous summit, which was held less than two months after the start of the bloody war. The Commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Lieutenant-General Daglo, also discussed with the Summit Chairman, President of Djibouti, Ismail Ismail Guelleh via phone, its results and the vision of Rapid Support to resolve the crisis. According to the final statement, IGAD leaders were able to convince Al-Burhan and Hemedti to meet directly, in addition to committing to an immediate and unconditional ceasefire. According to informed sources who told the BBC, the regional organization set a maximum period of two weeks for the meeting to be held in Addis Ababa. (BBC, 10/12/2023)].
5- Reviewing the above, it becomes clear that there are three striking aspects that have happened recently:
First: is the quick Rapid Support Forces control over most of Darfur, only El Fasher remained, and the state’s lack of serious resistance to their control… This was evident in the control of the RSF over the 20th Division of the army, which is stationed in the city of El Daein, as well as the 16th Division in Nyala – South Darfur.
Second: the recent strong army campaigns inside Khartoum, Omdurman, and Khartoum North, described above [the Sudanese army launched a series of attacks, air strikes, and artillery shelling operations on RSF gatherings in the capital. etc. (Independent Arabia, 24/11/2023)]. The RSF felt pressure on it in Khartoum, so it headed to Wad Madani to relieve the pressure, and the conflict intensified there. [For the fourth day in a row, battles continued today, Monday, between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces east of the city of Wad Madani, the capital of Al-Jazira State in the center of the country. The official spokesman for the Sudanese Armed Forces, Nabil Abdullah, reassured the citizens that the situation in the city of Wad Madani is stable. (Al-Arabiya, 18/12/2023)] and before that [the American embassy urged, in a statement at dawn on Sunday, the Rapid Support Forces to “immediately stop their advance in Al-Jazira State and refrain from attacking Wad Madani.” (Al-Arabiya, 17/12/2023)], which confirms the embassy’s influence on the combatants!
Third: Al-Burhan’s attendance at the recent IGAD summit [The Chairman of the Sovereignty Council, Lieutenant-General Al-Burhan, participated in the summit’s work after he was absent from the previous summit, which was held less than two months after the start of the bloody war. The Commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Lieutenant General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also discussed with the Chairman of the Summit, President of Djibouti, Ismail Guelleh, via phone, its results and the Rapid Support’s vision for resolving the crisis. (BBC Arabic, 10/12/2023)].
All of this shows that America is preparing the atmosphere for division. However, despite the fact that the danger of division becomes present with all these actions in Sudan, and that this division is also on the lips of the Americans: [The United States representative to the United Nations, Linda Thomas Greenfield, confirmed that she stands by Sudan in its current crisis in order to deliver aid to defenseless civilians there, she remarked when addressing the conference “the immediate focus must be on protecting civilians, providing humanitarian assistance to those in dire need, and negotiating an end to the conflict. (USUN; Independent Arabia, 20/11/2023)], despite all that, it is unlikely that America today is following the partition plan, but is only preparing the atmosphere for it when America’s interests require it.
6- Therefore, what is most likely, according to current situations, is that the Darfur region will not be separated from Sudan now, but that the RSF will head a strong political opposition against the regime, and will work to contain or eliminate the political opposition loyal to Britain and the Europeans under its leadership. Therefore, the RSF becomes the main party in the Sudanese political opposition instead of the other current political forces. It appears that things are moving towards this… the RSF headed to Darfur in front of the army, becoming the main opposition in the country. Perhaps America in Sudan will have two wings: a political wing of the RSF, but with weapons, to lead the opposition, and a military wing of the army… so that the two wings will serve America’s interests. As for why the RSF opposition is not demilitarized, this is most likely due to two reasons:
The first: to contain the European opposition, which is made up of British agents, because eliminating it politically is not easy, but rather it has to be done militarily.
The second: The Rapid Support Forces in Darfur becomes a political opposition with an armed force, so that if America’s interest requires another secession after South Sudan, it will bring to effect this secession in Darfur. It seems that the time has not come for this secession, but preparing the atmosphere for it is currently underway.
7- This fighting is what America and its agents are working for now… and this is what they are preparing the atmosphere for, if it continues towards a new division. O our people in Sudan, especially the army and the fighters. How can you fight among yourselves for the benefit of the colonialist kuffar? You kill yourselves, destroy your homes, and violate your sanctities?! How can you forget the words of the Messenger of Allah (saw) which is narrated by Al-Bukhari, on the authority of Al-Ahnaf ibn Qays, who said: For I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw) say:
«إذَا الْتَقَى الْمُسْلِمَانِ بِسَيْفَيْهِمَا فَالْقَاتِلُ وَالْمَقْتُولُ فِي النَّارِ» قُلْتُ: يَا رَسُولَ اللهِ، هَذَا الْقَاتِلُ، فَمَا بَالُ الْمَقْتُولِ؟ قَالَ: «إِنَّهُ كَانَ حَرِيصاً عَلَى قَتْلِ صَاحِبِهِ»
“If two Muslims meet with their swords, then the killer and the one being killed are in the Hellfire.” I said: O Messenger of Allah, this is the killer, so what about the one who is killed? He said: “He was keen to kill his opponent”?!
So, what if this fighting is in the interest of America and its agents?! It is therefore more wretched and more bitter.
O our People in the Sudan of the great Islam… The Sudan of Dongola Mosque, the first mosque built by the first Muslims in Sudan… The Sudan of the great Islamic conquest during the era of Caliph Othman, may Allah be pleased with him, where he ordered the governor of Egypt to bring the light of Islam to Sudan, so he sent the soldiers of Islam led by Abdullah Ibn Abi Al-Sarh, and the conquest took place in the year 31 AH. And so Islam spread rapidly, with Allah’s favour, until it filled all of Sudan: from its north to its south and from its east to its west… Then it continued during the era of the Muslim caliphs… until the fighting (Mujahid) Sudan has been fighting against the British since the year 1896 until the middle of World War I, in 1916, when the strong, pious hero, Ali bin Dinar, the governor of Darfur, was martyred, that scholar and Mujahid who was credited with repairing the meeqat of Medinah and the people of Ash-Sham, Dhul-Hulaifa, and constructing wells of water for the pilgrims, which are called after him to this day, Abyar Ali.
Thus, direct English colonialism remained in Sudan for sixty years. Since the English aggression in 1896 CE until 1956 CE, and after that came indirect political and cultural colonialism, the spread of rotten capitalist values, and the struggle of old and new colonialism, England and America, over Sudan. Until Sudan the good pure country ended up with its body torn apart, and its south is separated from its north by the false and deadly Naivasha Agreement, under the sponsorship of colonial America. And now America is preparing the atmosphere for a new division when its interest requires it!
O People of Sudan: Hizb ut Tahrir, the leader who does not lie to his people, calls on you to do your best to stop this fighting between members of the army and members of the Rapid Support Forces, as they are your sons, brothers, relatives, neighbours, or acquaintances… and you undoubtedly hear and see the tragedy of this fighting… so remedy the matter before regrets becomes of no use.
[إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لَذِكْرَى لِمَنْ كَانَ لَهُ قَلْبٌ أَوْ أَلْقَى السَّمْعَ وَهُوَ شَهِيدٌ]
“Indeed in that is a reminder for whoever has a heart or who listens while he is present [in mind]” [Qaf: 37]
6 Jumada Al-Akhira 1445 AH
19/12/2023 CE -
Western Empiricism and the Separation of Religion from Life
The West has obscured and misrepresented their history. They claim that their adoption of Western Empiricism and all that followed from it was simply a consequence of their desire for progress and enlightenment. But the ugly truth about the Western civilisation is that it has been built on a reckless compromise between the brutally opposed forces of Christianity and materialism. It was the Empiricist thinking method that enabled this misguided compromise to be forged by separating religion from life. This unstable compromise then became the imprudent foundation upon which the entire of the present Western civilisation was then established.
The West does not explain all this. The West has not been able to present an accurate picture of its Christian past, as this would require acknowledging its deep links to Islam.
Those ties, which were intensified in the period from the eleventh to the thirteenth century CE, can be discerned from cultural and scientific contact points in Sicily, Malta and Andalusia, along with the role of universities. Among the most prominent students were Leonardo Fibonacci, Adelard of Bath, Constantine the African and other European students, who moved to Islamic science institutes, to study medicine, philosophy, mathematics and other sciences. The influence was also through translations such as the works of Gerardo of Cremona’s translation of the Islamic heritage in Toledo, after its occupation by the Spaniards, and heritage translations in Sicily, after the Muslims annexed the island in 965 CE, then the Normans regained it in 1091 CE.
A Norman-Arab culture was born, sponsored by rulers like Roger II of Sicily, who had Muslim soldiers, poets, and scholars in his court. The book “The Book of Pleasant Journeys into Faraway Lands” (نزهة المشتاق في اختراق الآفاق), also known as Tabula Rogeriana, written by al-Idrisi al-Marrakshi for King Roger II, is considered one of the greatest geographical manuscripts of the Middle Ages. In 1127 CE, Stephen Al-Bayzi translated an Arabic booklet on medical theory into Latin. Al-Khwarizmi developed a way to perform arithmetic operations using Arabic numerals in the ninth century CE, which Leonardo Fibonacci brought to Europe.
Robert from Chester also translated Al-Khwarizmi’s “Compendious Book on Calculation by Completion and Balancing” (Arabic: كتاب المختصر في حساب الجبر والمقابلة Latin: Liber Algebræ et Almucabola) around the year 1145 CE amongst many others. The impact continued even in subsequent ages, as the French historian Gustave Le Bon says in his book “La Civilisation des Arabes (The Civilization of the Arabs)” that the most famous French general, Napoleon Bonaparte, upon his return to his country, France, returning from Egypt in the year 1801 CE, took with him a jurisprudential book from the Mazhab of Imam Malik bin Anas, called “Sharh al-Dardir on the Matan of Khalil شرح الدردير على متن خليل.” Maliki jurisprudence is considered the first Islamic jurisprudence that accompanied the Europeans.
Consequently, the French law was one of the most important reasons for the renaissance of the state, especially in the matter of provisions, contracts and obligations. Thus, Islamic jurisprudence, especially Maliki, would have a great impact on French legislation, especially the code of civil jurisprudence known as the Napoleonic Code (French: Code Napoléon).
The similarity between the Maliki jurisprudence and the French law reached 90%, according to the results of studies and comparisons carried out by Muslim ‘ulema and jurists, including Makhlouf Al-Minawi, the judge during the reign of Khedive Ismail in Egypt, who made a comparison between the French law and the Maliki jurisprudence, Qadri Pasha, the Egyptian Minister of Justice in the late nineteenth century, and the al-Azhar ‘aalim Sayyid Abdullah Ali Hussein, an expert in legislative comparisons. This is whilst the member of the Academy of International Law in The Hague, Professor Mikhail Alexandrovich Taube (Michel de Taube) pointed to the influence upon the human and moral spirit that Islam brought. It was embodied in Islam’s jurisprudential philosophy, which prevailed over Europe in the Middle Ages, of which he said, was a time humanity suffered misery and despair. He mentioned the influence of Islamic legislative principles on that, as well as their impact on the International Law.
Some historical sources say that Alphonse IX, King of Castile, wrote the first legal code in Europe, which was published with Latin comments in three volumes. He derived it in particular from the “Law of the Wilayaat (Provinces)” in Muslim Andalusia dating back to the year 679 AH corresponding to the year 1289 CE. In addition, Frederick II, King of Sicily and Emperor of Germania, derived his laws in the year 1250 CE from Islamic jurisprudence. From that, he laid down direct and indirect taxes, military structures, customs duties, and the state’s monopoly on minerals and some goods, which were known in Islamic law, since the Ninth and Tenth centuries. However, it became a model for all of Europe to follow.
Thus, the West have not been able to present an accurate picture of their Christian past, as this would require acknowledging their deep links to Islam. Similarly, the West was not able to truthfully explain the severity of the materialist challenge they have faced for fear of giving materialism further importance. Nevertheless, this dark history needs to be exposed in order to be able to fully appreciate the significance of Western Empiricism and the reason for the West’s separation of religion from life.
Europe’s Christian Civilisation and Struggle with Materialist Thought
The only way to properly comprehend Europe’s Christian civilisation is to recognise that it developed in the shadow of Islamic civilisation; Europe developed as a Christian copy of Islam. The West falsely portray their rise as a continuation of the legacy of ancient Greece and Rome. The Islamic Khilafah (Caliphate) State was the dominant global power for more than a thousand years; its civilisation represented the summit of human achievement in its age, and the practical manifestation of high erudition, sophistication, luxury, and virtue. The unparalleled civilizational success of Islam was a consequence of the comprehensive implementation of the unique Islamic ideology that provides solutions for the entire of life’s affairs. The fruits of Islamic civilisation were not confined to Muslims only but were enjoyed to some extent by the entire world during that period. The West in particular modelled the totality of their Christian civilisation on Islam, copying not only our mathematics, science and technology, and our arts, crafts, commerce and literature but also our systems and thoughts about life.
Italian-American philosopher, Giorgio Diaz de Santillana, Professor of the History of Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), spoke of how Arab law guided the West to details in commercial law, such as limited liability companies. He gives many examples of commercial laws taken from Islamic legislation. And the English writer and critique of Islam, HG Wells, wrote in “The Outline of History” that, “At Cordoba in particular there were great numbers of Christian students, and the influence of Arab philosophy -coming by way of Spain upon the universities of Paris, Oxford, and North Italy and upon Western European thought generally, was very considerable indeed.”
Here it is necessary to draw attention to an important issue regarding the issue of Napoleon taking the Maliki jurisprudence and drafting French laws on its basis. We are against promoting Western laws, so it is not to be understood that we say to the West, “Bring your laws. These are our goods that are returned to us.” So attention should be drawn here to the difference between constitutional jurisprudence and the constitution. The West did not take anything from Islam in the strict constitutional aspect. Instead, their system is a secular liberal democratic system. The constitution determines the form of the state and its institutions, including the choice of the ruler and so on. All this, they did not take from Islam. As for the private laws that regulate the lives of individuals, the stances on trade, social relations, and others, this is what Napoleon took from what is related to trade and companies, especially in the matter of rulings, contracts, obligations and ownership, from the Maliki jurisprudence. All this does not change the form of the secular state, but only some of its detailed laws!
It is also necessary to draw attention to the fact that what is important is to link the laws with Revelation in order for them to become Islamic. France’s adoption of legal laws does not mean that they govern by Shariah. Instead, it means that France approved laws that regulate trade. So, when France adopted them, separated from Revelation, and thus from the origin from which they emanated, they became laws like other secular laws. It is not permissible for us to take laws separate from the Revelation and its sources. So, Muslims must take the legislation from the Revelation directly. Muslims must look at the West with a look of superiority over it because they could not organize their own laws. So the West was compelled to take them from Muslims and build their laws upon them. Indeed, the legislation of our Lord, Allah (swt), is the only guarantor for us Muslims are to revive, arise, obey our Lord, and excel over all other peoples.
Europe was fully Christian; its rulers derived their authority and their legitimacy from their role as Christian princes, governing over Europe in conjunction with the Roman Church. But Christianity was a narrow and fractured religion that lacked intrinsic ideological power and could not organically develop a mature indigenous civilisation entirely of its own making. So instead they imitated Islam, modifying and transforming what they took from us to accord with their Christian basis, thus creating a Christian replica of Islamic civilisation in Europe. The present West has denigrated this history, referring to these centuries as their dark ages. Yet, in truth the harmonious way of life that Europe enjoyed then was superior to present conditions in the West. Yes, the West today has superior technology but scientific advancement is not a useful measure for comparing civilisations from different historical ages. Western life today is a non-stop pursuit of selfish material interests to the near exclusion of all else. The Christian civilisation was able to much better balance material endeavours with ethical, humanitarian and spiritual concerns; honour, dignity, family and community still had meaning and significance. However, at the same time, nascent traits of material exploitation can be seen in the Christian ruling classes even before the advent of Capitalism. Popes and Kings collaborated in vastly enriching themselves at the expense of their oppressed peoples, monopolising wealth, power and even knowledge for themselves. This same exploitative mentality can then also be seen in Christian Europe’s early imperialist engagements abroad, such as in the Crusades or on the American continent. Capitalism only further nurtured the evil seeds germinating within the Christian elite. Capitalism’s ideological power propelled the Western ruling classes into domination of the entire world.
The introduction of materialist thought into the West was also a consequence of contact with the Islamic civilisation. Muslims first came into contact with materialist thinking when Islam expanded into lands previously dominated by Hellenic culture and some individuals did became affected by alien thoughts. Philosophers, like Ibn Sina, came to believe in false ideas such as the eternity of the world, in clear contradiction to the Islamic creed, which is explicit in affirming that only the Creator is eternal and that the world is simply temporal creation that Allah (swt) chose to originate. The Islamic scholarship in the third and fourth centuries Hijri was still in its golden age, and the ulema moved forcefully to refute this foreign thinking. Finally, at the end of the fifth century Hijri, Imam Ghazali (r.a.) comprehensively disproved their arguments in his book, ‘The Incoherence of the Philosophers’. Ibn Rushd came after him and tried to counter the book of Imam Ghazali. Ibn Rushd was from a prestigious family of Andalusian scholars and he followed his father and grandfather in becoming chief qadi in Cordoba. But when the Ummah discovered the degeneracy of Ibn Rushd’s thinking, he was tried in court and exiled, and this was a powerful indication of the victory of the Islamic ulema over the philosophers. Materialist thinking was vanquished in the Muslim World but escaped into Europe through Latin translations of the works of Ibn Rushd. There, in the seventh century Hijri, a section of the Christian clergy became attracted to materialist thought and came to be known as Averroists, named after Ibn Rushd who was known as Averroes in the Latin language. Materialist thinking is as much repugnant to Christianity as it is to Islam; the Roman Church fought against the Averroists just as the ulema had fought the philosophers. Yet, the Church was only able to do this by employing arguments taken from Imam Ghazali (r.a.), known in Latin as Algazel. It can be seen even from this episode how much Europe lived within the shadow of the Islamic civilisation and how deeply Europe was affected by the intellectual currents within Muslims. Despite these efforts, however, materialism did not end here. It seems that the Church had depended more upon its political power than its ability to convince intellectually. Some of the later Christian ruling elite even played with fire, dabbling in elements of materialist thought to support their authority and provide a counterweight in their infighting against the Church. Materialist thought had not been convincingly defeated but merely driven underground.
In contrast to Islam, European Christianity had two basic flaws, a political and an intellectual, and it was these that materialism exploited. Christian Europe’s foremost political flaw was the lack of unity in its ruling, resulting in persistent infighting and conflict. Governance was divided between church and state; this was a legacy of the later Roman Emperors who had adopted Christianity but continued to implement Roman Law, restricting the clergy to supervising only narrow ‘religious’ affairs. The Christians on their part also readily accepted this division.
The honourable Messenger of Allah Isa (a.s.) brought the revelation in truth to the Bani Israeel. But Christians argued that the detailed rules regarding life’s affairs conveyed by Isa (a.s.) only applied to Jews, and that non-Jews were free to obey worldly kings instead. Furthermore, Christian doctrine became affected by the prevalent philosophy of the separation of matter from spirit. Christians came to consider it the purpose of the clergy only to supervise the religious and the spiritual, leaving the rulers to govern the temporal and the material. When Europe rebuilt itself after the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, then the Roman Church continued on the same model, limiting itself to spiritual affairs and abandoning responsibility for material affairs to Europe’s kings. Furthermore, although the clergy had a single pope as head during Europe’s early history, Europe’s lands remained divided amongst a number of rival ambitious kings who were almost constantly at war with each other.
Moreover, although the clergy had a single “Pope as head during Europe’s early history, the lands of Europe remained divided between a number of ambitious, struggling monarchs who were constantly at war with each other. As for the Church, it confiscated the entire human mind, forcing man to derive his conception of existence through its monopolistic interpretations of the Bible. The Church focused on the “outward man,” who confessed his guilt, made atonement for it, volunteered his body, gave alms, and revered the Church, so it granted him the instrument of forgiveness. However, it did not pay attention to his spirituality and the “inward man,” which prompted Martin Luther (1483-1546 CE), the founder of the Protestant Reform movement, to search for the “inward man” with his moral depth, so that his progress would be the one that determines the status of the social person. Then, Luther theorized that within the dual nature for man, the inner, spiritual, is more important than the outer, the bodily. He postulated that the purification of the inner soul is what expresses free choice, through which a deed wins divine love. And with this Martin Luther undermined, in one stroke, the raison d’etre of the Catholic Church, asserting that is no longer needed. Instead, the Church stands as a barrier between a person who desires the satisfaction of his Lord, in harmony with the world around him, and his endeavor to do so. Therefore, there is no authority for the clergy over a person and his inwardness, his purification of himself, his vision of the world around him, or his connection with his Lord.
This intellectual transformation was revolutionary, opening the minds of thinkers to ideas that had not occurred to them. So they proceeded from distinguishing between the inward and outward of man as two separate domains. The strength of the inner space is its liberation, focusing on its individuality, and striving to achieve the transcendent, pragmatic and rational self. The external world is the sensory world that carries all its secrets, concepts and mechanisms of understanding within itself, without the need for any overriding unseen metaphysical construct.
Then, in the tenth century Hijri, the kings of northern Europe rebelled against the authority of Rome in the name of newly-founded Protestant sects, while the kings of southern Europe continued to remain Catholic, loyal to the Roman Church. The subsequent settlements that became known as the Peace of Westphalia prompted Europe’s devolution into different countries and sects. By the twelfth century Hijri, Christian Europe wholly lacked a powerful central authority that could counter the materialist uprising. Moreover, the hypocrisy of the Christian ruling elite had become fully exposed, pointing to their corruption, rapaciousness, oppression and exploitation, in complete contradiction to their professed Christianity. The political agenda of the materialist insurgency resonated deeply with Europe’s peoples.
Meanwhile, Christian Europe’s key intellectual flaw was to adopt the erroneous thinking method of Greek Rationalism and to falsely employ its method of syllogistic logic to provide intellectual justification for the Christian creed. Syllogistic logic is a valid style of thinking but not in creedal matters as it is only capable of producing speculative (Arabic: dhanni) results in regards to thoughts about life. The creed must be established firmly, only on what is definitive (Arabic: qat’i), as it must form a permanent, indisputable and unchanging basis on which to build culture, lifestyle and civilisation. Using syllogistic logic, Christians developed a number of so-called ‘proofs’ for their most fundamental creedal issue, the existence of the Creator.
Meanwhile, using the same technique of syllogistic logic, materialist thinkers issued their own ‘proofs’ of the world as self-sustaining and eternal and not in need of a Creator. They took, for example, arguments developed by the rejected philosophers amongst Muslims who alleged that creation of something temporal by something eternal is a logical impossibility. It did not occur to them that such a claim only really made sense within the framework of a Greek pantheistic notion of divinity as a mechanical first mover in a deterministic universe. Materialists try to portray themselves as ‘atheists’, far above religious belief. But in fact, they follow the worst of religions, the most vulgar polytheism that attributes the divine qualities of eternity and self-subsistence to this earthly material creation. The polytheists of Makkah who falsely associated gods with Allah (swt) were superior to these pagan materialists; at least the disbelievers of Makkah believed in a Creator.
The Western Compromise with Materialism
Unable to intellectually defeat the materialist threat, Christian thinkers turned instead to a defensive approach that would function as a compromise between Christianity and materialism. In the Twelfth Century Hijri, Christian thinkers replaced Greek Rationalism with Western Empiricism, which rigidly limits what can be known with certainty to sense perception alone. This eliminated religious discussion from the intellectual domain.
Christian thinkers did this not to bring any harm to their religion but to only secure it from intellectual attacks by the materialists. They considered belief in the Creator to be an obvious and intuitive matter that the intellectualisations of the materialists had needlessly confused. Western Empiricism did succeed in ending the public debate over the existence of the Creator. But the further consequence of this compromise was that it also resulted in the separation of religion from life. The West had effectively replaced Christianity with a new creed. According to this new Western creed, only the life of this world can be known with certainty; that which is beyond this world should not be given any consideration when organising man’s affairs in this world. The understanding of what lies beyond this world is left to every person to determine for themselves individually.
Amongst the Westerners, there are those who elaborate upon the stages that Western thought passed through, such as Will Durant in his “The Story of Civilization,” and Roland N. Stromberg in his book “European Intellectual History Since 1789,” in which Stromberg divided the stages into the Middle Ages, the renaissance period, the reformation period and the Baroque period. According to Stromberg, the philosophy of the Baroque period is that of the post-renaissance era, or from another perspective, it is the era of the post-religious reformation movement, beginning in approximately on the year 1570 CE and continued beyond 1650 CE. Stromberg then highlights the Seventeenth Century as an age of reasoning, “Battered by the terrific crisis of the Reformation, Europe came up with the scientific and intellectual renaissance of the seventeenth century.” Stromberg cites Galileo, Newton, Descartes, Spinoza, Hobbes, Locke and Leibniz to assert that the Seventeenth Century CE was the age of reasoning. Stromberg enthuses then of “that extraordinary chapter of intellectual history, the eighteenth century Enlightenment,” before speaking of the ideological character of the Nineteenth Century CE.
Europe began to sense the path of its renaissance by its emancipation from the Church’s control over life and knowledge since the sixteenth and seventeenth Centuries CE. Thinkers and philosophers, who were characterized by “the Enlightenment,” laid intellectual foundations for this renaissance, based on the secular principle of separating the state, as well as life in all its details, from religion and moral values. In many cases, these thinkers were themselves the ones laying the foundations of the experimental scientific method, such as Francis Bacon (died 1626 CE), René Descartes (died 1650 CE) and Blaise Pascal (died 1662 CE), amongst others. Therefore, it was natural to see a confluence between the scientific method and secularism, which directed the compass of science in a certain direction. At the same time, the West took science as a single tool and method of knowledge, so that it dominated all other sciences and human knowledge. So there was a mutual exchange of service between science and secularism, that generated a situation where are great question marks and doubts about the scientific value of many scientific postulate, such as Darwin’s theory. They also directed the compass of science to become confined to the worldly materialistic aspect, as its only field, nature, as the domain of human knowledge. Its method of interaction with it is the sensory empirical approach. The declared goal is what benefits man. Therefore, it was necessary to discard the “ancient” philosophical knowledge and ideas that they saw as non-utilitarian, like formal logic and analogy that does nothing but reach outcomes. Moreover, it rejects the unseen, both as a whole and in detail. It has complete estrangement with everything that sense does not fall on. So utilitarianism has become a goal of science and philosophy together, whilst materialism is science’s field. This is a stark convergence with the secular ideology. It is a clear management of science within the process of utilitarianism. So what scientific theorists see as worldly materialistic utilitarian ideas can be harnessed and seized upon. Thus, science was captive to the spirit of the era and its intellectual tendencies, and secularism as a whole, whilst secularism used science for its purposes. This is the mutual exchange of services between secularism and the experimental, sensory scientific method.
The rapid adoption of this new compromise was facilitated by Christianity itself. The notion of a division between religious matters and worldly matters, between the spiritual and the material, already existed within Christianity since Roman times, as has been explained in the section above. Because of the innate division within Christianity itself in regards to religious and worldly affairs, the separation of religion from life brought little practical change at first. Europe was Christian. Its people believed in the Christian creed and followed Christian teachings. They would continue to follow their religion in their personal lives. Also, the European ruling class was Christian, and would continue to rule in accordance with whatever guidance their religion provided for life’s affairs. Over centuries of Christian civilisation, the peoples of Europe followed a theory of natural law by which they came to view their thoughts about life’s affairs as valid both religiously as well as rationally. Even if religion were separated, they would continue to practice the same solutions for rational reasons. Christians were rationally convinced, on the basis of natural law, that authority must be delegated to a single ruler, that adultery was a crime, and that lands designated as the ‘commons’ must be supervised by the state as public property for all people to use. These thoughts did not change immediately after religion was separated. However, later, over decades and centuries, most of their thoughts about life did change. The Christian creed was no longer available to anchor public Western thinking about life, and, of course, the Islamic civilisation ceased to provide a model for the West to continue to copy. With public life stripped of the spiritual, the West’s materialist drive only intensified. The theory of natural law came to be overshadowed by the theory of utilitarianism that had its roots in materialist philosophy. Man’s goal in life was reduced to the seeking of material pleasures in this world alone.
Meanwhile, the compromise solution had left materialism undefeated. Materialists were only blocked from creedal discussions and so instead pressed on with non-creedal thoughts, such as the pagan political ideals of freedom and democracy. The French Revolution of the twelfth century Hijri was in fact a materialist-backed insurgency in which only freedom and democracy were publicly apparent. The revolution failed politically due to sabotage by Britain but the new political thoughts it introduced gained widespread intellectual acceptance in France and across the West. And, in the thirteenth century Hijri, after Greek Rationalism had been completely buried, materialists returned once more to the subject of their creed. Karl Marx presented his scientific materialism within the Empiricist framework and even defined thinking itself in Empiricist terms by stating that it was no more than the reflection of reality on the brain. Fearful of revolutions sweeping across Europe, the West undertook their second compromise. The West devised modified individualist and voluntarist versions of freedom and democracy that accorded with the Western creed and did not constitute a threat to the established Western order. By adding these political thoughts to the creed of the separation of religion from life, the Western Capitalist ideology was now complete and Christian civilisation fully ended. The compromises that the West undertook saved them from the totalitarian horrors of materialist thought; the collectivist and determinist Communist ideology with its original materialist versions of freedom and democracy came to dominate a large part of the world in the fourteenth century Hijri. But it is the Western Capitalist ideology that has remained supreme in the world and is responsible for most of the evil that exists today. The new Capitalist ideology elevated thinking in the West, turning them from imitators and emulators to innovators and leaders. But they became innovators and leaders shaped by a false ideology that only exploits mankind both within Western society as well as across the world. Freedom and democracy, even in their softened forms, are disasters for all of humanity. Capitalism has fully unleashed the sinister rapacious excesses of the former Christian princes of the West. Truly it is now that the dark ages are upon us.
Both Greek Rationalism and Western Empiricism must be Rejected
Christian thinkers were correct to finally reject the deeply flawed philosophy of Greek Rationalism. Syllogistic logic is simply a formal technique for derivation from basic premises. For abstract ideas, as in mathematics, logic or grammar, the premises are self-evident. The ignorant Greeks assumed that premises about the real world would be self-evident also. They conjured up vast systems of thought about the world without providing any evidence from reality. Syllogistic logic has two further limitations. Firstly, if a premise is speculative, then its derived result can also only be speculative. Secondly, it’s easy to make mistakes in derivation; so even definitive premises give speculative results. The Greeks however were so confident of their syllogistic logic that they considered it superior to direct experience. If syllogistic logic produced a result that differed from reality, the Greeks assumed that it was their perception of reality that had deceived them.
The ancient Greeks resorted to philosophical contemplation even in the empirical sciences; they had little need or patience for careful empirical observation and experimentation. Of course, initially, the Christians found syllogistic logic to be a wonderous tool for substantiating some of the more irrational aspects of the Christian creed. But syllogistic logic was even more useful in the hands of the materialists, who needed to justify their nonsensical claim that the material universe could exist without being created. Finally, Christian thinkers saw in Empiricism a way out from Greek Rationalism. By isolating religion from intellectual debate, Christians not only checked materialist attacks but also saved themselves from having to intellectually defend the irrational aspects of the Christian creed. Like most other developments, Empiricism was also inspired by earlier discussions in the Muslim world, in this case debate about the ‘tabula rasa’ theory of the mind as a blank slate that develops only through contact with reality. Christian thinkers seized on Empiricism as a timely alternate to Greek Rationalism.
The Christian West had already begun to embrace the empirical method in what is called the West’s ‘scientific revolution’ of the Eleventh Century Hijri through repetition of observations and experimentation carried out centuries earlier by Muslim scientists. It is this empirical method that the Empiricists then falsely extended to all thoughts about the world. The empirical method is a valid style of thinking; but its purpose is only to study the nature of things as they exist, in the here and now. It requires repeatedly subjecting things to controlled predetermined conditions to study their response. The application of the empirical method can tell us with certainty that, under one atmosphere of pressure, water boils at 100C, or that light travels at a constant velocity of 299,792,458 metres per second in a vacuum. But the empirical method can tell us nothing about phenomena that cannot be repeated under controlled conditions, such as historical events, or the non-mechanical responses of living creatures. It is not possible for subjects such as politics and psychology to be studied empirically, no matter how popular ‘data driven’ approaches are today. Even within the empirical sciences themselves, it is necessary to move beyond the empirical method in order to theorise scientific explanations. The empirical method alone cannot give us Boyle’s Law or Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Scientific hypotheses, theories, and even laws are speculative generalisations that extrapolate from and expand upon finite sets of data. Newtonian mechanics was good theory for its time and benefitted mankind, but when it failed to explain newly available empirical data it was superseded by Einsteinian relativity. Today it is known that relativity too is deficient; it is inadequate in explaining quantum effects but physicists have yet to agree on a theory that can surpass it. Scientific theories employ induction, which moves from the specific to the general, as opposed to deduction, which moves from the general to the specific. Induction is necessarily speculative, since assumptions inevitably have to be made when generalising from limited data. The empirical method can give us definitive results but the scope of the empirical method is very narrow indeed.
Western Empiricism responds to the concern about its limitations by asking man to content himself with definitive knowledge of only his immediate sense perception. But routine daily experience shows that we can be certain of much more than simply that which we can see for ourselves. I can be certain about conclusions that I arrive at as long as they are specific and no generalisation is involved. If I find a hot cup of tea on the table in my room, then I know without any doubt that someone placed this there, even if I hadn’t seen anyone doing that. I can be certain because I am moving from a specific known reality to a specific sound conclusion without generalisation. I am not advocating a general theory about all possible cups of tea in all possible rooms in all conceivable ages. I am only discussing this specific hot cup of tea that I find in front of me at this particular time, and regarding this, fully aware as I am of the circumstances at hand, it is possible for me to reach a definitive specific intellectual conclusion, free of any doubt. I can know something with complete certainty even if I have not directly seen it. The existence of the Creator can also be known with full confidence, as long as we move from specific sensed reality to specific conclusion without the intermediation of any generalisations about the world; in other words, without using either induction or deduction in thought concerning reality. It is, in fact, exactly this approach that man intuitively follows when he observes something magnificent in creation and realises that it could not make itself and nor could anything else in this world have made it. We must come to recognise this intuitive approach as legitimate intellectual reasoning.
Greek Rationalism and Western Empiricism were both wrong about the acquisition of knowledge because they failed to correctly define the thinking process in man. Thinking about the world requires four elements: the reality, the senses, the mind and previous information. If any of these four is absent then thinking cannot occur. Man cannot originate previous information but if some initial information is communicated to him, then he is able to develop and extend it; this increases his capacity for interpretation and he is able to in turn communicate a greater body of information to others. The thinking process in man is as follows: the sensation of reality is transferred through the senses to the mind where it is interpreted in accordance with relevant previous information. This is the rational method of thinking. It is necessary to distinguish style from method; syllogistic logic and the empirical method are both valid styles of thinking, but their application is limited. The rational method of thinking is general to all thinking about the world because it describes thinking itself.
The ancient disbelieving Greeks and the present disbelieving West both sought the origin of knowledge in other than Allah (swt). The Greeks considered the mind itself to be the source of knowledge; they imagined that the truth about any subject could be known simply through mental contemplation. Judgements just needed to be internally consistent; no external evidence was required. The philosophy of Rationalism gave the foolish Greeks license to deliberate upon anything and everything that caught their interest or captivated their imagination and led them to construct fantastical intellectual paradigms exhibiting the most astonishing delusions about the reality of the world. They concocted solutions to life’s affairs that have fomented untold misery for mankind, such as the idea of the abolishment of the family that materialists even today strive for. But in seeking to reign in the intellect, Western Empiricism went to the opposite extreme. Whereas for the Greeks the source of knowledge was the mind, for the Empiricists the source of knowledge became reality. Only that which was directly perceived could be known with certainty. The empirical sciences gained an exaggerated position in their culture and were stretched to judge upon matters far beyond their legitimate scope, such as in regards to the creation of man. The methodology of the empirical sciences was erroneously deployed through the philosophy of positivism into the so-called ‘social sciences’ to develop detailed solutions about life. In doing so, Western Empiricism confused the positive with the normative; it confused what is with what should be. It used the study of man’s existing circumstances to extract solutions for those same circumstances, providing no higher thought by which man can navigate his way out of present predicaments. The Empiricists failed to realise that reality on its own is incapable of generating thought; it must be interpreted, and such interpretation requires that the mind combine the sense perception transferred to it from reality with previous information that is relative to the matter at hand. In truth, the source of knowledge is neither the mind nor the reality of this world. The source of knowledge is Allah, subhanahu wa ta’ala. It is Allah (swt) that has placed before us this world and equipped us with senses and the mind; it is also Allah (swt) who provided the initial previous information that enabled the first man to begin interpreting what he perceived of the world, enabling him to accumulate knowledge that he could then transfer to the rest of mankind.
Life cannot be Separated from Religion
The separation of religion from life must end. Goals in public life need to be aligned with goals in private life. The correct philosophy for life is not the separation of spirit from matter but the mixture of the spiritual with the material. Man must engage fully in life’s affairs not for a material goal but for a transcendent spiritual goal giving due importance not only to the material but also the ethical, humanitarian and spiritual value in life. Man’s true destiny is not in this world but in the next.
Man must build his life and civilisation on a sound and comprehensive intellectual basis that solves his greatest questions regarding the life of this world and what lies beyond. The question of the existence of the Creator pertains to the very essence of man’s being and purpose in the life of this world. It is a question that cannot be relegated to the private life of the individual; upon its answer must depend the entire basis and structure of man’s society, state and civilisation. Furthermore, it is a matter that most definitely can be known with complete intellectual certainty. Everything I perceive directly in this world exists, and yet it is clear that none of this is capable of existence in itself; everything is limited and dependent. When the mind is applied to interpret this reality, then the only possible explanation it can devise is that all this was created by a Creator who is beyond man’s immediate perception. This conclusion is definitive because it employs definite sensed reality to reach a specific intellectual result without the intermediation of any generalised assumptions about the world. The reason that this conclusion has been obscured is not because man is incapable of reaching it but because he has been misled into supposing that his natural and intuitive thinking is somehow not rationally valid.
The Islamic creed provides a comprehensive intellectual solution to the question of man’s existence and purpose in life, built on the correct and pure understanding of this world and what lies beyond. Man must take his goal in life and his solutions to life’s problems from his Creator, through the revelation conveyed by His last Messenger Muhammad (saw) in the form of the Qur’an and the Sunnah. It is this that life and civilisation must be established upon. The Khilafah State achieved this in the past, and it shall soon achieve this again. The West has failed. With the permission of Allah (swt), the re-establishment of Islam is near at hand.
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Fatherhood in Islam
Introduction: The Muslim Father Lays Firm Foundations for the Next Generation
Fatherhood is of such importance in Islam that it is the fundamental basis of the identity of all Muslims. Allah (swt) said, ﴿ادْعُوهُمْ لِآبَائِهِمْ هُوَ أَقْسَطُ عِندَ اللَّهِ﴾ “Let children be called in the name of their fathers. That is more just in the sight of Allah.” [TMQ Surah al-Ahzab 33:5]. It establishes paternity which is the basis for the obligations of the father towards raising his children. They include providing companionship, financial maintenance, Islamic culturing, building conviction in their Iman and disciplining them. Indeed, the role of the father extends well beyond the naming of the sons and daughters.
The Messenger of Allah (saw) likened his teaching of the Islamic Ummah to that of a father, saying,«إِنَّمَا أَنَا لَكُمْ بِمَنْزِلَةِ الْوَالِدِ أُعَلِّمُكُمْ» “Verily, I am only like a father to you in the way that I teach you.” [Sunan Abi Dawud]. Our master, the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad (saw) raised an entire generation of men and women, establishing pillars for the Deen that have shaped the Ummah until now. He (saw) raised four blessed daughters (ra) who have towered as examples for the Islamic Ummah throughout its ages. He (saw) raised Ali ibn Abi Talib (ra), the fourth Khaleefah Rashid, the son of his older, poorer uncle. He (saw) raised Zayd ibn Haritha (ra) and his son Usama (ra) in goodness. For youth under his care, he (saw) was the attentive companion and the patient teacher. The Messenger of Allah (saw) cultured the youth in Islam, he established their conviction in Iman and he disciplined them with wisdom and compassion. It was the believing men and women that he (saw) raised that established the ruling by all that Allah (swt) has revealed, in time becoming pillars of the first Khilafah (Caliphate) on the Method of Prophethood. In turn, the Companions (ra) became the dutiful fathers who raised pious progeny, such as the four Abdullahs (ra) who stood against Yazid in his tyranny. Indeed, as in every role in life, from ruler to military commander, from husband to neighbour, we turn to his (saw) example to secure our Dunya and Aakhira as fathers. So, let the fathers of today consider carefully their responsibility before Allah (swt) regarding their children, as the current generation of Muslims prepare themselves for the glad tidings of the Messenger of Allah (saw), regarding the return of the Khilafah on the Method of Prophethood. Let them prepare in their households the strong personalities who will resume Islam as a way of life and carry Islam as a Dawah to the entire world.
The Father is an Attentive Companion to His Child
Whilst the father is a teacher, mentor and discipliner, he is also the gentle, attentive companion to his child. The Messenger of Allah (saw) was gentle, respectful and nurturing of his daughters. ‘A’isha (ra), the Umm al-Mu’minin, said, «مَا رَأَيْتُ أَحَدًا مِنَ النَّاسِ كَانَ أَشْبَهَ بِالنَّبِيِّ ﷺ كَلاَمًا وَلاَ حَدِيثًا وَلاَ جِلْسَةً مِنْ فَاطِمَةَ. وَكَانَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ إِذَا رَآهَا قَدْ أَقْبَلَتْ رَحَّبَ بِهَا، ثُمَّ قَامَ إِلَيْهَا فَقَبَّلَهَا، ثُمَّ أَخَذَ بِيَدِهَا فَجَاءَ بِهَا حَتَّى يُجْلِسَهَا فِي مَكَانِهِ، وَكَانَتْ إِذَا أَتَاهَا النَّبِيُّ ﷺ رَحَّبَتْ بِهِ، ثُمَّ قَامَتْ إِلَيْهِ فَقَبَّلَتْهُ» “I have not seen anyone who more resembled the Prophet (saw) in words or speech or manner of sitting than Fatima (ra). When the Prophet (saw) saw that she had come, he (saw) would greet her and then he stood up for her, kissed her, took her hand and brought her forward and made her sit in his place. When the Prophet (saw) visited her, she greeted him, stood up for him, and kissed him.” [Al-Adab Al-Mufrad]
A’isha (ra) reported that there came a few desert Arabs to the Messenger of Allah (saw) and said, “Do you kiss your children?” He (saw) said, «نعم»“Yes.” Thereupon, they said, “By Allah but we do not kiss our children.” Thereupon the Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «وَأَمْلِكُ إِنْ كَانَ اللَّهُ نَزَعَ مِنْكُمُ الرَّحْمَةَ» “Then what can I do if Allah has deprived you of mercy?” [Muslim]. Abu Huraira reported that al-Aqra’ b. Habis saw the Messenger of Allah (saw) kissing Hasan (ra). He said, “I have ten children, but I have never kissed any one of them,” whereupon the Messenger of Allah (saw) said,«إِنَّهُ مَنْ لاَ يَرْحَمْ لاَ يُرْحَمْ» “He who does not show mercy (towards his children), no mercy would be shown to him.” [Muslim].
Moreover, the father in Islam in his affection and favours to his children, is mindful of being equal to them, so that there is no favouritism. An-Nu’man bin Bashir (ra) narrated, «ذَهَبَ بِي أَبِي إِلَى النَّبِيِّ ﷺ يُشْهِدُهُ عَلَى شَىْءٍ أَعْطَانِيهِ فَقَالَ: أَلَكَ وَلَدٌ غَيْرُهُ. قَالَ نَعَمْ. وَصَفَّ بِيَدِهِ بِكَفِّهِ أَجْمَعَ كَذَا أَلاَ سَوَّيْتَ بَيْنَهُمْ» “My father took me to the Prophet to ask him to bear witness to something that he had given to me. He said: ‘Do you have any other children?’ He said: ‘Yes.’ He gestured with his hand held horizontally like this, (saying): ‘Why don’t you treat them all equally?’” [An-Nisa’i].
Despite carrying the huge burden of establishing the Deen of Islam on the earth, the Messenger of Allah (saw) was attentive to the needs of the children that he taught, like a father. Anas ibn Malik (ra) narrated, “The Messenger of Allah (saw) used to come to visit us. I had a younger brother who was called Abu ‘Umair by Kunyah (surname). He had a sparrow with which he played, but it died. So one day the Prophet (saw) came to see him and saw him grieved. He (saw) asked: «مَا شَأْنُهُ؟» ‘What is the matter with him?’ The people replied: His sparrow has died. He (saw) then said: «يَا أَبَا عُمَيْرٍ مَا فَعَلَ النُّغَيْرُ؟» ‘Abu ‘Umair! What has happened to the little sparrow?’” [Abu Dawood]
The Muslim father is both childlike in the company of children, whilst he is a strong man when the occasion demands. The Second Khaleefah Rashid, Umar bin al-Khattab (ra), said, لَيُعْجِبُنِي الرَّجُلُ أَنْ يَكُونَ فِي أَهْلِ بَيْتِهِ كَالصَّبِيِّ فَإِذَا ابْتُغِيَ مِنْهُ وُجِدَ رَجُلًا “I am certainly amazed that a man can be with his family like a child, but if he is called forth, he is found to be a true man.” [Source: Shu’ab al-Imān 7851]. The father’s manhood is from the strength of his Islamic character, whilst he is honoured by the Deen. Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) said,أَصْلُ الرَّجُلِ عَقْلُهُ وَحَسَبُهُ دِينُهُ وَمُرُوءَتُهُ خُلُقُهُ “The foundation of a man is his intellect, his honour is in his Deen, and his manhood is in his character.” [Source: Adab al-Dunyā wal-Dīn 1/17]. The pious Muslim father replaces bad friendship, destructive influence and negative peer pressure, by being the good friend to his child. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said: «الرَّجُلُ عَلَى دِينِ خَلِيلِهِ فَلْيَنْظُرْ أَحَدُكُمْ مَنْ يُخَالِلُ» “A man follows the Deen of his friend; so each one should consider whom he makes his friend.” [Abu Dawud]
The Father is the Patient and Empowering Teacher
Whilst teaching, the Muslim father does not taunt, curse, abuse, belittle or undermine his children, for any shortcoming. He patiently maintains their honour during their teaching, making them honourable and zealous of their honour. He elevates them in confidence and establishes their self-esteem on a firm footing. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «لَيْسَ الْمُؤْمِنُ بِالطَّعَّانِ وَلَا اللَّعَّانِ وَلَا الْفَاحِشِ وَلَا الْبَذِيءِ» “The believer does not taunt others, he does not curse others, he does not use profanity, and he does not abuse others.” [Tirmidhi]. Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) said, لا يُعْجِبَنَّكُمْ مِنَ الرَّجُلِ طَنْطَنَتُهُ وَلَكِنَّهُ مَنْ أَدَّى الأمَانَةَ وَكَفَّ عَنْ أَعْرَاضِ النَّاسِ فَهُوَ الرَّجُلُ “Do not let yourselves be impressed by the roar of a man. Instead, if he fulfils the trust and restrains himself from harming the honour of people, then he will truly be a man.” [Source: al-Zuhd wal-Raqā’iq 681].
Indeed, the ‘Ulema in the Islamic era commented on the characteristic of manhood as one who does not insult, criticize and belittle. Imam Ayyub al-Sakhtiyani (rh) said, لَا يَنْبُلُ الْمَرْءُ وَلَا تَتِمُّ مُرُوءَتُهُ حَتَّى تَكُونَ فِيهِ خَصْلَتَانِ الْعَفْوُ عَنِ النَّاسِ وَالتَّجَاوُزُ عَنْهُمْ “A man will neither hit the mark nor fulfil his manhood, until he has two characteristics: Forgiving people and overlooking their faults.” [Source: al-Murū’ah 106]. Imam ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Mubārak (rh) said, مَنِ اسْتَخَفَّ بِالْإِخْوَانِ ذَهَبَتْ مُرُوءَتُهُ “Whoever belittles his brothers will lose his manhood.” [Siyar A’lām al-Nubalā’ 17/251]. Sa’id ibn al-‘As (rh), the Wali of Madinah, declared, مَا شَتَمْتُ رَجُلا مُنْذُ كُنْتُ رَجُلا “I have not insulted a man ever since I became a man.” [Source: al-Ḥilm li-Ibn Abī Dunyā 119].
Whilst teaching the young Companions (ra), the Messenger of Allah (saw) demonstrated patience, preserving their confidence, whilst tolerating their inevitable mistakes. Anas (ra) narrated, «خَدَمْتُ النَّبِيَّ ﷺ عَشْرَ سِنِينَ، فَمَا قَالَ لِي أُفٍّ وَلاَ لِمَ صَنَعْتَ وَلاَ أَلاَّ صَنَعْتَ» “I served the Prophet (saw) for ten years, and he never said to me, “Uf” (a rebuke of impatience) and never blamed me by saying, “Why did you do so or why didn’t you do so?” [Bukhari]. Whilst teaching the young Companions (ra), the Messenger of Allah (saw), stimulated their minds. Abdullah Ibn `Umar (ra) narrated, كُنَّا عِنْدَ النَّبِيِّ ﷺ فَأُتِيَ بِجُمَّارٍ فَقَالَ «إِنَّ مِنَ الشَّجَرِ شَجَرَةً مَثَلُهَا كَمَثَلِ الْمُسْلِمِ». فَأَرَدْتُ أَنْ أَقُولَ هِيَ النَّخْلَةُ، فَإِذَا أَنَا أَصْغَرُ الْقَوْمِ فَسَكَتُّ، قَالَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ «هِيَ النَّخْلَةُ» “We were with the Prophet (saw) and fresh dates of a palm tree were brought to him. On that he said, “Amongst the trees, there is a tree which resembles a Muslim.” I wanted to say that it was the date-palm tree but as I was the youngest of all (of them) I kept quiet. And then the Prophet (saw) said, “It is the date-palm tree.”” [Bukhari]. The Messenger of Allah (saw) positively encouraged the children that he taught like a father. Abdullah Ibn `Umar was told by his sister Hafsa (ra), the wife of the Messenger of Allah (saw), that he (saw) told her, «إِنَّ عَبْدَ اللَّهِ رَجُلٌ صَالِحٌ لَوْ كَانَ يُكْثِرُ الصَّلاَةَ مِنَ اللَّيْلِ» “Abdullah is a righteous man, if he only prays more at night.” [Bukhar] Az-Zuhri said, وَكَانَ عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ يُكْثِرُ الصَّلاَةَ مِنَ اللَّيْلِ “After that, `Abdullah used to pray more at night.”
Far from being overbearing, the Messenger of Allah (saw) entrusted the young with great and critical responsibilities, having prepared them thoroughly. The Messenger of Allah (saw) sent an army under the command of Usama bin Zaid (ra), who was but twenty years old. When some people criticized Usama’s leadership, the Messenger of Allah (saw) declared,«إِنْ تَطْعُنُوا فِي إِمَارَتِهِ فَقَدْ كُنْتُمْ تَطْعُنُونَ فِي إِمَارَةِ أَبِيهِ مِنْ قَبْلُ، وَايْمُ اللَّهِ، إِنْ كَانَ لَخَلِيقًا لِلإِمَارَةِ» “If you are criticizing Usama’s leadership, you used to criticize his father’s leadership before. By Allah! He was worthy of leadership.” [Bukhari]
The Father Cultures His Children in Deen
It is a duty upon the Muslim father to secure his children in their Deen. Allah (swt) said, ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُ﴾ “O believers! Protect yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is people and stones.” [TMQ Surah at-Tahreem 66:6]. Ibn Abbas (ra) said, اعملوا بطاعة الله واتقوا معاصي الله وأمروا أهليكم بالذكر ينجيكم الله من النار “Work in the obedience of Allah, avoid disobedience of Allah and order your families to remember Allah, then Allah will save you all from the Fire.” Imam Ali (ra) said, اعملوا أنفسكم وأهليكم الخير وأدبوهم “You and your families must do good actions and you must discipline them.” Mujahid said, اتقوا الله وأوصوا أهليكم بتقوى الله “Have Taqwa of Allah and order your family to have Taqwa of Him.” Qatadah said, تأمرهم بطاعة الله وتنهاهم عن معصية الله وأن تقوم عليهم بأمر الله وتأمرهم به وتساعدهم عليه فإذا رأيت لله معصية قذعتهم عنها وزجرتهم عنها “He commands obedience to Allah, to not disobey Allah, he orders his family to obey His orders and helps them to act upon His orders. When one sees disobedience, he stops them and forbids them from doing it.”
The father is the teacher who teaches his children regarding the obligated and prohibited. Regarding Surah at-Tahreem 66:6, Ad-Dahhak and Muqatil said; حق المسلم أن يعلم أهله من قرابته ما فرض الله عليهم وما نهاهم الله عنه “It is an obligation for the Muslim to teach his near family members what Allah has made obligatory for them and what Allah has forbidden for them.” The Muslim father is responsible for teaching his children Islam, whether he does so himself or ensures another does competently and under his personal supervision. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «طَلَبُ الْعِلْمِ فَرِيضَةٌ عَلَى كُلِّ مُسْلِمٍ» “The search for knowledge is an obligation laid on every Muslim.” [Tirmidhi]. The obligation is to know all the rulings necessary for the life of the Muslims, whether it is to do with Salah, Fasting, financial transactions, conduct with the opposite gender or enjoining the good and forbidding the evil.
The Second Khaleefah Rashid, Umar al-Farooq (ra), once addressed a man who complained to Umar (ra) about the disrespect of his son. So Umar (ra) summoned the son and asked him, لماذا تعق والدك؟ “Why do you disdain your father?” The son said, “O Amir ul Mu’mineen, does a son not have right on his father.” Umar affirmed, “Of course.” So the son asked, “So what are they.” Umar (ra) replied, أن ينتقي أمه، ويحسن اسمه، ويعلِّمه الكتاب “He selects his mother, names him beautifully and teaches him the Book (Quran).” The son replied, “Indeed my father has done none of that. As for my mother, she was a Magian (fire worshipper). He gave me the name of Julalaan (dung beetle) and he did not teach me a single letter of the Quran.” Upon this Umar (ra) addressed the father, أيها الرجل أجئت إليَّ تشكو عقوق ابنك وقد عققته قبل أن يعقك، وأسأت إليه قبل أن يسيء إليك “O Sir! You have come to me to complain about the disdain of your son. You have failed in your duty to him before he has failed in his duty to you. You have done wrong to him before he has wronged you.”
As for the son of Umar (ra) Al-Khattab himself, ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar (ra), his father fulfilled the right upon him. ‘Abdulllah ibn Umar (ra) was a Companion of the Messenger (saw), he was a narrator of the Sunnah, he was a jurist and he was a strong guide to the Muslim community. Indeed, as one of the four ‘Abdullahs, it was ibn ‘Umar (ra) who accounted Amir Mu’awiyah over his intent to pass on the Khilafah to his son, Yazid. ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar said, فإن هذه الخلافة ليست بهرقلية، ولا قيصرية، ولا كسروية، يتوارثها الأبناء عن الآباء، ولو كانت كذلك كنت القائم بها بعد أبي، فوالله ما أدخلني مع السنة من أصحاب اشورى إلا على أن الخلافة ليست شرطا مشروطا “This Khilafah is neither Byzantine, nor Caesarean nor Kosraean, where the children inherit from the fathers. Had it been so, then I would have been the one who undertook it after my father. By Allah, he did not even include me within the six people of Shura, except on the condition that Khilafah is not stipulated.”
The Maliki Imam, Abu ʾl-Ḥasan ʿAli ibn Khalaf al-Ḳaabiṣee, stated, فمن رغب إلى الله أن يجعل له من ذريته قرة أعين، لم يبخل على ولده بما ينفقه عليه في تعليمه القرآن، فلعل الوالد إذا أنفق ماله في تعليمه القرآن أن يكون من السابقين بالخيرات – بإذن الله – والذي يعلِّم ولده فيحسن تعليمه، ويؤدبه فيحسن تأديبه، قد عمل عملاً يُرجَى له من تضعيف الأجر فيه “Whoever desires that Allah (swt) make his children a cooling for his eyes, he will not be miserly with his son in what he spends on him for teaching the Qur’an. Perhaps the father, if he spends his money in teaching the Qur’an, will be one of the foremost in good deeds, inshaaAllah, whilst the one who teaches his child well, improves his education and disciplines him so that he is well disciplined, has done an action for which it is hoped that the reward will be doubled.”
The Father Establishes Iman with Conviction in His Children
Allah (swt) said, ﴿وَوَصَّى بِهَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ بَنِيهِ وَيَعْقُوبُ يَا بَنِيَّ إِنَّ اللَّهَ اصْطَفَى لَكُمُ الدِّينَ فَلا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ﴾ “This was the advice of Ibrahim, as well as Jacob, to his children, saying, ‘Indeed, Allah has chosen for you this Deen; so do not die except as Muslims.’” [TMQ Surah al-Baqarah 2:132]. The father establishes his children firmly on the Iman (belief) in Islam, emulating the example of the Messenger (saw) in raising the young Companions (ra) in Dar ul-Arqam. Allah (swt) reminds the Muslims that our descendants will be raised in rank due to their Iman, joining their good fathers in a life in Jannah. It is indeed a joyous eternal reunion after temporary separation through death. Allah (swt) said, ﴿وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَاتَّبَعَتْهُمْ ذُرِّيَّتُهُم بِإِيمَانٍ أَلْحَقْنَا بِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَمَا أَلَتْنَاهُم مِّنْ عَمَلِهِم مِّن شَيْءٍ﴾ “As for those who believe and whose descendants follow them in Iman, We will elevate their descendants to their rank, never discounting anything (of the reward) of their deeds.” [TMQ Surah at-Tur 52:21]. Islam gives the father the high vision of elevating the ranks of his children in the Aakhira, rather than the low vision of competition in Dunya in terms of worldly status, related to wealth, education and privilege.
Allah (swt) said, ﴿وَإِذْ قَالَ لُقْمَانُ لِابْنِهِ وَهُوَ يَعِظُهُ يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تُشْرِكْ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ﴾ “And remember when Luqmân said to his son, while advising him, “O my dear son! Never associate ˹anything˺ with Allah in worship, for associating others with Him is truly the worst of all wrongs.” [TMQ Surah Luqman 31:13]. In Islam, the father strives to build the belief as a conviction in his child, mindful that parents are a central influence in guidance. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «مَا مِنْ مَوْلُودٍ إِلَّا يُولَدُ عَلَى الْفِطْرَةِ فَأَبَوَاهُ يُهَوِّدَانِهِ أَوْ يُنَصِّرَانِهِ أَوْ يُمَجِّسَانِهِ» “Everyone is born a Muslim, but his parents make him a Jew, a Christian, or a Magian.” [Bukhari and Muslim].
Regarding the belief in Islam, fathers today face a great challenge under the secular states that harm our Deen. The secular system is based on the detachment of religion from life, so that the issue of belief is reduced in importance to almost insignificance. It is no surprise that there is a rise of agnosticism throughout the world, where people declare that they are undecided about the destination of life itself. The rise of agnosticism is not an accident but a direct consequence of education and social media that are based on secularism. Thus, the Muslim father must pay close attention to the well-established and elaborate Islamic teachings to establish Iman.
The father must study and convey subjects such as; the indispensable existence of Allah (swt), the need for a Messenger, the inimitable miracle of the Noble Quran, the confirmation of the Sunnah of the Messenger (saw) as Revelation and clarity in the matter of Qadaa’ and Qadr. At the same time, he must be aware of the corruption of the secular environment which advocates materialism as the origin of the Universe, whilst challenging the validity of Islam and its divine texts. He must also be aware of the corruption from the local traditions, where belief is inherited without definite conviction, whilst fatalism lead to a weakness in commitment to Islam. So the father models his household upon Dar ul Arqam, where the home is brightly lit by the illuminating light of guidance, as well as the refutation of the false kufr beliefs. This is the true way to strengthen the immunity of our children from the threat that is worse than Coronavirus, the threat of kufr, which can ruin the ever-lasting Afterlife.
Beyond these efforts and above these efforts, Guidance is in the hands of Allah (swt) alone. So the father makes constant Dua for the firm Iman of his children in our difficult times, knowing that he is one of those whose Dua is not refused. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «ثَلاَثُ دَعَوَاتٍ يُسْتَجَابُ لَهُنَّ لاَ شَكَّ فِيهِنَّ دَعْوَةُ الْمَظْلُومِ وَدَعْوَةُ الْمُسَافِرِ وَدَعْوَةُ الْوَالِدِ لِوَلَدِهِ» “There are three supplications that will undoubtedly be answered: the supplication of one who has been wronged; the supplication of the traveller; and the supplication of a father for his child.” [Ibn Maajah]
The Father Disciplines in the Practice of Islam
Allah (swt) said, ﴿يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا هَبْ لَنَا مِنْ أَزْوَاجِنَا وَذُرِّيَّاتِنَا قُرَّةَ أَعْيُنٍ وَاجْعَلْنَا لِلْمُتَّقِينَ إِمَاماً﴾ “Those who pray, “Our Lord! Bless us with (pious) spouses and offspring who will be the joy of our hearts, and make us models for the righteous.” [TMQ Surah Al-Furqan 25:74]. It is a duty upon the father in Islam to direct his children to the worship of Allah (swt) and Obedience of Allah (swt) and His Messenger (saw). Allah (swt) relates the speech of the father, Luqman (as),﴿يَا بُنَيَّ أَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ وَأْمُرْ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَانْهَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَاصْبِرْ عَلَى مَا أَصَابَكَ إِنَّ ذَٰلِكَ مِنْ عَزْمِ الْأُمُورِ﴾ “O my dear son! Establish prayer, encourage what is good and forbid what is evil, and endure patiently whatever befalls you. Surely this is a resolve to aspire to.” [TMQ Surah Luqman 31:17]. The father prays to Allah (swt) and strives to ensure his offspring are instilled with righteousness. Allah (swt) said,﴿قَالَ رَبِّ أَوْزِعْنِي أَنْ أَشْكُرَ نِعْمَتَكَ الَّتِي أَنْعَمْتَ عَلَيَّ وَعَلَى وَالِدَيَّ وَأَنْ أَعْمَلَ صَالِحاً تَرْضَاهُ وَأَصْلِحْ لِي فِي ذُرِّيَّتِي إِنِّي تُبْتُ إِلَيْكَ وَإِنِّي مِنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ﴾ “They pray, “My Lord! Inspire me to (always) be thankful for Your favours which You blessed me and my parents with, and to do good deeds that please You. And instil righteousness in my offspring. I truly repent to You, and I truly submit to Your Will.” [TMQ Surah Al-Ahqaf 46:15]. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «مَا نَحَلَ وَالِدٌ وَلَدًا مِنْ نَحْلٍ أَفْضَلَ مِنْ أَدَبٍ حَسَنٍ» “There is no gift that a father gives his son more virtuous than good manners.” [Tirmidhi]
Thus, as well as the friendly and attentive teacher, the father is mindful of disciplining wisely, securing his beloved offspring from the anger of Allah (swt) and punishment in the Aakhira. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «لأَنْ يُؤَدِّبَ الرَّجُلُ وَلَدَهُ خَيْرٌ مِنْ أَنْ يَتَصَدَّقَ بِصَاعٍ» “That a man should discipline his son is better for him than to have given a Sa’ in charity.” [Tirmidhi]. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «مَنْ عَالَ ثَلاَثَ بَنَاتٍ فَأَدَّبَهُنَّ وَزَوَّجَهُنَّ وَأَحْسَنَ إِلَيْهِنَّ فَلَهُ الْجَنَّةُ» “If anyone cares for three daughters, disciplines them, marries them and does good to them, he will go to Paradise.” [Abu Dawud].
The disciplining by the father is borne out of compassion and care, not out of frustration, anger and malice. Disciplining is not for the sake of the worldly aspirations of the father for his child, but for the sake of pleasing Allah (swt), raising the child’s status in the never-ending Aakhira. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «مَنْ كَانَ أَصْبَحَ صَائِمًا فَلْيُتِمَّ صَوْمَهُ وَمَنْ كَانَ أَصْبَحَ مُفْطِرًا فَلْيُتِمَّ بَقِيَّةَ يَوْمِهِ» “He who got up in the morning fasting (without eating anything) he should complete his fast, and he who had had his breakfast in the morning, he should complete the rest of the day (without food).” [Muslim]. Muslim further narrated that the Companions said; فَكُنَّا بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ نَصُومُهُ وَنُصَوِّمُ صِبْيَانَنَا الصِّغَارَ مِنْهُمْ إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ وَنَذْهَبُ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ فَنَجْعَلُ لَهُمُ اللُّعْبَةَ مِنَ الْعِهْنِ فَإِذَا بَكَى أَحَدُهُمْ عَلَى الطَّعَامِ أَعْطَيْنَاهَا إِيَّاهُ عِنْدَ الإِفْطَارِ “We henceforth observed fast on it (on the day of ‘Ashura) and, Allah (swt) willing, made our children observe that. We went to the mosque and made toys out of wool for them and when anyone felt hungry and wept for food we gave them these toys till it was the time to break the fast.”
As a last resort, after teaching, commanding, encouraging, advising, admonishing and warning, the father is to beat the child over ten years of age for not performing Salah. The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «مُرُوا الصَّبِيَّ بِالصَّلَاةِ إِذَا بَلَغَ سَبْعَ سِنِينَ، فَإِذَا بَلَغَ عَشْرَ سِنِينَ فَاضْرِبُوهُ عَلَيْهَا» “Order the children to perform Salah when they reach the age of seven and when they reach the age of ten, discipline them by beating for (not performing) it.” [Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidhi].
Today, the Muslim father must be particularly alert in disciplining, due to the absence of Islam as a way of life. Under the dominance of secularism globally, liberal values are corrupting our youth. The resultant problems have become a major concern for fathers, particularly those of pre-teens and teenagers. It is common place for fathers to lament at the conduct of their children, whilst reminiscing of respect and discipline in their time. The increased Westernization of education and social media has indeed had a destructive effect. Individualism builds an innate dislike of any authority, including that of the Command of Allah (swt), so what of the father?
Materialism and hedonism builds a sense of fulfilling desires, without restriction or guidance. Under the secular system, it is not rare now to hear of young Muslims neglecting obligations and indulging in prohibitions, such as drinking alcohol, smoking narcotics and fornicating. Corruption has even reached the extent that the unmarried are aborting children, whilst a few even declare themselves as homosexual.
All this is in addition to the weak personalities raised in Muslim families that are unable to restrain their anger, oppressing women or children, including merciless beating and mental torture. The problems exist in the Muslim World as well as the West, the difference only being in degree of severity.
The Father is Responsible for Financial Maintenance
In Islam, it is the father that is obliged to spend on the wife and their children. The mother is not obliged to provide maintenance for the children or the husband, no matter how much she earns. Allah (swt) said,﴿الرِّجَالُ قَوَّامُونَ عَلَى النِّسَاءِ بِمَا فَضَّلَ اللَّهُ بَعْضَهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ وَبِمَا أَنفَقُوا مِنْ أَمْوَالِهِمْ﴾ “Men are the caretakers of women, as men have been provisioned by Allah over women and tasked with supporting them financially.” [TMQ Surah An-Nisa’a 4:34]. Islam mandates that the father spends on the parents and relatives that are near, including his children. Allah (swt) said,﴿قُلْ مَا أَنفَقْتُم مِّنْ خَيْرٍ فَلِلْوَالِدَيْنِ وَالْأَقْرَبِينَ﴾ “Say, “Whatever donations you give are for parents and near relatives.” [Surah al-Baqarah 2:215].
The financial maintenance given by the father is neither a favour nor a charity but a duty obliged by Allah (swt). It must be sufficient to fulfil the requirements and it must not be miserly. Any shortcoming is a serious matter, which may result in a verdict from an Islamic judge. Hind bint `Utba said to the Messenger (saw), “Abu Sufyan is a miserly man and I need to take some money of his wealth.” The Messenger of Allah (saw) said, «خُذِي مَا يَكْفِيكِ وَوَلَدَكِ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ» “Take reasonably what is sufficient (bil maroof) for you and your children.” [Bukhari].
Regarding financial maintenance, Bil maroof includes the basic needs, such as food, clothing and shelter, as well as some of the luxuries. Bil maroof is to the reasonable standard, taking into consideration in the degree of urbanization of the family location, such that it is higher in the cities, less in the villages and least in the desert abodes.
It is the financial maintenance that itself is a challenge under the harmful states in the Muslim World today. Due to the absence of free education and healthcare of a reasonable standard, many fathers are faced with the back breaking burden of private education and healthcare. The fathers struggle to fulfil even the duty of financial maintenance adequately, let alone the other duties. Nonetheless, providing financial maintenance is one of the duties of the father and not the only one.