How can the ummah be sleeping?

[Learning_19]

Bismillaah.

Assalamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullaahi wa barakaatuh.

Indeed, all praise and thanks be to Allaah, Lord of the worlds. We seek His help Aid and we seek His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allaah from the evil of our souls and from the evil of our actions. Whosoever Allaah guides, then there is no one to misguide him and whomsoever Allaah leaves to go astray, then there is no one to guide him.

I bear witness that none has the right to be worshiped except Allaah, alone, without any partner, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

To Proceed;

On Wednesday, the 22nd of Safar, 1422, Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan (hafidhahullaah) was asked the following question regarding the following saying of Salmaan al-’Awdah, “Eminent Shaykh, some of them say, “The banners which are raised in the length and width of the Islaamic world are but secular banners" (Taken from Salmaan al-’Awdah’s well known cassette ‘Yaa liJiraahaatil-Muslimeen’). What is the ruling regarding this saying?”

Shaykh Saalih (hafidhahullaah) said, “This saying is falsehood, passing general rulings upon people that they are disbelievers and secularists. That is mass Takfeer, and Allaah’s refuge is sought. Amongst the people are the believers, and amongst them are the disbelievers, and amongst them are the munaafiqoon (hypocrites), so we do not make generalized rulings upon them.

That’s absolutely not permissible, to generalize kufr upon the people hence it be said, All of the people are Muslims. That is not true. Or that it be said; all of the people are disbelievers. That’s not true. Or that it be said; all of the people are munaafiqoon. That is futile speech. Rather, we say: amongst the Muslims are truthful ones, and amongst them are hypocrites, and amongst them are disbelievers. (Taken from his Sharh of Kitaabut-Tawheed (22/02/1422)

Stated Sayyid Qutb, “The Ummah (of Islaam) has ceased to be in existence (ghaabat al-Ummah) and has not been perceivable for a very long time.” (Ma’aalim fit-Tareeq p.8, 17th edition, 1991)

A Cassette Lecture was given entitled “Al-Ummah al-Ghaa’ibah” (The Absent Ummah) by Salman Awdah propounding the same concepts and being based upon the above quote from Sayyid Qutb. [Note Shaikh Salih al-Fawzaan considers the use of this term to be Takfir of the whole Ummah – which is actually the intent of Sayyid Qutb. Refer to al-Ajwibah al-Mufeedah]

Shaykh Saleh al-Fawzaan was asked: What do you say about the one who applies the term "the Absent Ummah" to the contemporary Islamic Ummah?

The Answer: The saying that the Muslim Ummah is absent, then the takfir of all of the Islamic nations is necessitated from it, since its meaning is that there is no Islamic state, and this is in opposition to the saying of the Messenger (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam), "There will never cease to be a group from my Ummah upon the truth, uppermost. They will not be harmed by those who desert them or those who oppose them, until the affair of Allaah - the Blessed and Exalted - arrives, and they are in this state."

So regardless of how much the misguidance, and differing, and disbelief might occur, then this safe and secure group will always remain.

Hence, there is no such thing as the absence of the Islamic Ummah, and all praise is due to Allaah, and nor is it a required condition for this Islamic Society, or this Aided Group that it is devoid of sins, since sins were found in the time of the Prophet (sallallaahu alaihi wasallam), and also in the time of his Khulafaa, however, they were faced and were rejected." (al-Ajwibah al-Mufeedah p. 151).

[url deleted]

To say the whole Muslim Ummah is sleeping is wrong, reason being who said this statement is correct in the first place, and what gives us the lay muslims to make such Big Heavy statement upon the whole ummah like this? Allaahul Must'aan.

Did not Allaah, the most High send the whole of mankind a blessed messenger as a mercy say the following:

''There will not cease to be a group from my nation who will be victorious until the Order of Allaah comes and they are victorious''.

[Narrated by Bukhaaree]

Similar to it has been narrated by Muslim from Thawbaan and it is:

''They will not be harmed by those who abandon them until the Order of Allaah comes and they are on it''.


And Imam Ahmad has narrated from Qurrah Al-Muznee with the wording:

''There will never cease to be a group from my nation who are aided. They will not be harmed by those who abandon them, until the establishment of the Hour.''

The description of the sect being saved is taken from the saying of the Messenger in the hadeeth of the splitting of this ummah (nation) into 73 sects: ''All of them (the sects) are in the fire except one''.

So how can the ummah be sleeping?

"Nothing will benefit the Ummah to come except that which benefited the early Ummah."

The Deen of Allaah, is not run by our emotions. Rather it is run by the law of Allaah and the guidance of the Prophet . We can not run around with our emotions everywhere and forget to return back to the Qur'aan and Sunnah at times when we are being tested. So when we see the fitnah that has befallen the Ummah today we can not point our fingers in all directions and say this ummah needs to wake up, how so? The ummah is not sleeping. We forget to look at the real problem that is right in front of us.

As Dr Saleh As-Saleh (rahimahullah) student of the Great Shaykh Al-Uthaymeen (rahimahullah) who said in his article the The Inverted Priorities: "Corrupt creeds, lying, cheating, injustice, innovations, lowly desires, attachment to this life, ignorance, mysticism, grave worship, bigoted blind following, and so forth… and we boast saying ''Our Main Problem is Our Leaders....!!!! Is this the case?''
Then he (rahimahullah) quoted the following verse:
Verily! Allaah will not change the good (or bad condition) of a people as long as they don’t change their state of goodness (or sins and wrong doings etc) themselves. [13:11]. For more depth of this article please go to www.understand-islam.net

Dear Brothers and Sisters those who say this ummah is sleeping need to wake up themselves and realize the reality and that is - running behind emotions and saying things way out of context is a big mistake and they should be careful of this. We all need to Learn our Deen first (correctly) and apply it to our lives and only then the help of Allaah will come, in sha Allaah.

I'm sorry i do not mean to offend anyone by this post and i'm sorry if i have, but i just want to make this point clear that this statment > the ummah is sleeping or needs to wake up < is Wrong. May Allaah forgive me if i have said anything wrong, aameen.

May Allaah, the most Merciful, guide us all to the truth and make us hold to it and may He, the most High and Majestic, save us all from fitan and guide us (ruled and rulers) to His path, aameen.

was-salaam.

 

[Al-Kashmiri]

As-salaamu `alaykum.

Jazaakillaah khayr. It's funny how the same Salmaan Al-`Awdah is now visiting secularists and ahl ul-bid`ah, sitting with them, liasing with them and attending errorneous, innovative events like the mawlid along with them...

Was-salaam

 

[Mohsin]

:salam2:

Does visiting a secular equates to becoming secular ?

 

[Al-Kashmiri]

wa`alaykum salaam.

No it doesn't, I didn't imply that. But from ranting "The banners which are raised in the length and width of the Islaamic world are but secular banners" to liasing, acknowledging them and discussing with them, is problematic.

 

[Abu Abdillah]

in a sign of Tolerance,''Shaykh'' Salman al-Odah,accepted an invitation from Sufi cleric Abdallah Fadaaq, right, to attend a Sufi Innovated celebration.

 

[Salem9022]

lol the sufi seems mad for some reason

 

[Mohsin]

Asslamo Alaikum

I don't exactly understand this and please correct me if I'm wrong but this says that that saying 'there is no Islamic State' is agaisn't a Hadith because ' there will always be a group on truth' the group of the Ummah can be anyone and does not have to necessarily mean it's to do with government and as far as I know there is no Islamic government currently. Maybe I misunderstood, can anyone maybe explain?

I second this misunderstanding. Please clarify

 

[Al-Kashmiri]

As-salaamu `alaykum...

I.e. by saying that the Muslim Ummah is not present, one is saying that the reality of the Islamic nations is that they are in fact, disbelieving nations.

And this of course opposes the saheeh hadeeth. As for Islamic governments, then just because some of them have rules that are not from the shari`ah, it doesn't negate them being Islamic. Likewise, many people claim that there are no abodes of Islaam (Daar ul-Islaam) present today, which again is complete trash. The scholars of the past and present have defined what constitutes an abode of Islaam and an abode of Kufr respectively. And none amongst them said that it necessitates implementing the shari`ah rule in totality (100%), and that any nation that doesn't, is ruled as an abode of kufr automatically.

 

[Mohsin]

:salam2:

You are fast to deduce from a saying of a person. Did you ask Shaykh that he meant what you are interpreting from it ?

 

[Mohsin]

:salam2:

[Note Shaikh Salih al-Fawzaan considers the use of this term to be Takfir of the whole Ummah – which is actually the intent of Sayyid Qutb. Refer to al-Ajwibah al-Mufeedah]

How the noble Shaykh knows that this was the intent of Sayyid Qutb (Rahimahullah)

 

[Al-Kashmiri]

As-salaamu `alaykum.

Note, that I edited the statement due to a possible mistake so please re-read. There is nothing fast here, the fatwa is like 6 years old, the issue is one that has been raised by `ullema for years, since the days of Syed Qutb. So there is nothing fast about deducing what is obvious from a matter that has been on-going for like over 50 years.

You can ask the Shaykh yourself if you want. But it is obvious from the wording of Shaykh Saalih that he said, that Salmaan's statement necessitates the takfeer of the Islamic nations. Do you know what that means? It means (in simpler terms) that there doesn't exist an Islamic nation. This is ALL the Shaykh was saying, as he said ".... its meaning is that there is no Islamic State". All I did was paraphrase that so that inshaa' Allaah you could understand.

 

[Al-Kashmiri]

:salam2:

How the noble Shaykh knows that this was the intent of Sayyid Qutb (Rahimahullah)

Wa`alaykum salaam.

I don't think the noble Shaykh said that, the note seems to be of the authors... The Shaykh says that the statement's intent is takfeer of the whole Ummah. The second part, "the intent of Syed Qutb" is in fact, not the Shaykh's wording at all isit?

 

[Mohsin]

:salam2:
JazakAllah khayran for the clarification.

Wa`alaykum salaam.

I don't think the noble Shaykh said that, the note seems to be of the authors... The Shaykh says that the statement's intent is takfeer of the whole Ummah. The second part, "the intent of Syed Qutb" is in fact, not the Shaykh's wording at all isit?

 

[Al-Kashmiri]

As-salaamu `alaykum.

Many of them may be terrible, but again that doesn't mean that the countries are not Islamic. This is a key point that needs to be understood. Many modern, contemporaries have errored and concluded for example, that since President so-and-so of such-and-such country drinks alcohol, the country he rules over becomes a non-Islamic country. This as I said, according to not just the scholars, but the sunnah is falsehood...

Baarak Allaahu feekum.

 

[al-fajr]

As for Islamic governments, then just because some of them have rules that are not from the shari`ah, it doesn't negate them being Islamic. Likewise, many people claim that there are no abodes of Islaam (Daar ul-Islaam) present today, which again is complete trash. The scholars of the past and present have defined what constitutes an abode of Islaam and an abode of Kufr respectively. And none amongst them said that it necessitates implementing the shari`ah rule in totality (100%), and that any nation that doesn't, is ruled as an abode of kufr automatically.

But you didn't add, that we shouldn't settle for anything but 100% Shari'ah.

(Just wanted to add that, because many end up feeling a false sense of security and laid back atittude once they take the view you expressed)

 

[Doris]

In the time of Imam Malik rahimeullah alcohool was consumed in the streets, but NEVER once did Imam Malik make any remarks concerning any type of kufr or non 100% shariah statments when it came to the rules of that time, rather he ordered people to be strong on their religion and remain patient. May Allah azauajal have mercy on the Imam

 

[Happy 2BA Muslim]

:salam2:

:astag::astag::astag:

Sayyid Qutb (may Allah have mercy on him) is dead. We can`t go back to him to ask him what he meant by some of his writings.

Shaikh Salman Al-Oadah (may Allah subhanahu wa taala preserve him) is still alive and has his own website. Why don`t people who are fast in declaring him as an innovator send him a question asking him of his stance on sufism?

Let`s fear Allah in all what we say and write!!!

This is what Shaikh Salman had to say regarding the "absent" ummah:

A Single Ummah​

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds. And May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon His servant and Messenger, Muhammad.

The title of this article reminds me of a speech I delivered about ten years ago entitled "The Ummah in Absentia". I recall that after giving that speech, I got a call from a sister who was quite upset. She said that the title of my speech implied that the Muslims today are living in a time of absolute ignorance and that no one remains on the face of the Earth who can correctly be called a Muslim.

This understanding of hers was, of course, far from what I had intended. What I had meant was that the presence that the Muslim nation - the Ummah - is supposed to have is described in the Qur'ân as: "to be witnesses for all humanity". This presence right now is a very weak presence indeed, weaker possibly than it has ever been at any time before in history.

All Muslims agree that there will never again be a time of absolute ignorance after the coming of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). There will always be a group of righteous people on Earth. The Muslims as a whole are still an ummah that unites around the Qur'ân and Sunnah. They carry out the basic Islamic duties, believe in the principles of faith, and more or less subscribe to Islamic moral values.

The Muslim Ummah will never be devoid of righteous people. Most Muslims adhere to the fundamentals of Islam. We maintain that Muslims are generally within the fold of Islam. Even those who fall into some heresies do so primarily out of ignorance. Many of those people have no one to teach them and take them out of their ignorance. As long as they still maintain that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the Messenger of Allah, then they should still be considered Muslims. If they do or say something that is tantamount to unbelief, then we can declare that statement or action as unbelief without calling the person involved in it an unbeliever. They may be ignorant or they may be acting under a mistaken interpretation.

We are adamant that the Muslim Ummah should not be declared a group of unbelievers, nor should individual Muslims be so accused. Declaring Muslims to be unbelievers is one of the most dangerous pitfalls that we as Muslims can fall into and it brings about the most negative of effects.

One of the reasons I am writing on the topic of "the single Ummah" is due to the tendency that some young Muslims have to restrict their understanding of the Muslim Ummah to one small group or sect and declare the masses of Muslims to be unbelievers. There is a marked difference between the person who loves the Ummah, seeks to reform it, feels its pain and shares in its joys, and someone else who detaches himself from it and declares the rest of the Muslims to be unbelievers, innovators, and misguided sinners.

Though there will never again be an absolute state of ignorance and unbelief after the coming of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), ignorance can manifest itself through sins. When Abû Zarr taunted Bilâl with the words: "You son of a black woman", the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to him: "You are a man who has within you something from the times of ignorance." [Sahîh al-Bukhârî (30), Sahîh Muslim (1661)] Here the Prophet accused Abû Zarr of possessing a trait of the times of ignorance because of his sin of using a racial vindictive. Al-Bukhârî places this hadîth under the heading "Chapter: Sins are from the Affairs of the Times of Ignorance, but Their Perpetrators are not Unbelievers unless they Fall into Polytheism".

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "There are four aspects of the times of ignorance that my Ummah will not give up: boasting about lineage, ridiculing others because of theirs…" [Sahîh Muslim (934)] This in no way implies declaring the Ummah to be unbelievers. Anyway, there is no reason to apply the epithet of ignorance to the Ummah in its entirety, since a state of absolute ignorance will never befall it.

Some traits from the times of ignorance will be held by certain individuals or be prevalent in certain areas of the world, but never again will ignorance be all-pervasive. This will be the case until right before the end of time, when Islam will perish. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Islam will be obliterated just like a stain is washed from a piece of clothing. No one will know anything about fasting, prayer, pilgrimage, and charity. The Book of Allah will be taken away one night until not a verse of it is left on Earth. There will remain some old people who will say: 'We found our fathers uttering the words "there is no god but Allah" so we say them as well.'" [Sunan Ibn Mâjah (4049) with an authentic chain of transmission.]

This means that this Ummah will remain on Earth until close to the end of time. A studious researcher on this topic, Mâjid al-Kaylânî, has written some books on the Muslim Ummah, and has come to the conclusion that it will pass through three distinct historical periods.

The first period is that of strength. During this period, the Muslim Ummah adheres to the Message. We may call it the period of health and prosperity.

The second period is that of sickness. During this period, the Muslim Ummah becomes fixated on certain entities, whether they be individuals, families, tribes, or what have you.

The third period is that of death. This is where the Ummah becomes obsessed with pursuing vain desires, amassing wealth, acquiring power, and other worldly matters. This seems vaguely reminiscent to a classical breakdown of people where great people are concerned with ideas, average people are concerned with material things, and the weak people are concerned with charismatic personalities.

I have some objections to that breakdown of Muslim history, since the Muslim Ummah can get sick but it will not die. It passes through periods of illness, but it overcomes these illnesses by way of renewal that the Prophet (peace be upon him) told us about. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Allah will send upon this Ummah at the beginning of every century someone who will renew the faith." [Sunan Abî Dâwûd (4291)]

The Arabic word for nation, "ummah", is employed in the Qur'ân with many different meanings. The Arabic scholar al-Fayrûzabâdî mentions ten different meanings for the word, but these can be reduced to the following five:

1. A leader or example for others. Allah says: "Ibrâhîm (Abrahâm) was indeed a devout model of behavior (ummah), pure in faith and not of the polytheists." [Sûrah al-Nahl:120] This is the way the majority of the classical commentators interpret this verse. Alternatively, the word "ummah" in this verse can be interpreted as "nation", meaning that he was a nation unto himself, since he was at one time the only believer on the face of the Earth.

Farwah b. Nawfal al-Ashja`î heard Ibn Mas`ûd say: "Mu`âdh was an ummah, devout and pure in faith." Farwah objected that it is Ibrâhîm who was an ummah. To this Ibn Mas`ûd said: "Do you know what an ummah is and who a devout person is? An ummah is one who teaches others what is good, and a devout person is one who obeys Allah and His Messenger. Now, Mu`âdh taught people what is good, and he was obedient to Allah and His Messenger.

2. An era of time. Allah says: "Of the two, the one who had been released remembered him after a period of time (ummah)…" [Sûrah Yûsuf: 45]

Likewise, He says: "If We delay for them their punishment until a specified term (ummah), they will ask: 'What kept it back?'" [Sûrah Hûd: 8]

The notion of time has some relationship to the idea of a nation, because every nation has a time period in which it exists. Therefore, Allah says: "For every nation (ummah) is its appointed term." [Sûrah al-A`râf: 34] This shows how these two meanings tie in together.

3. A mode of thinking or an approach to life, whether correct or false. Allah says: "Nay! They say: 'We found our forefathers following a certain way (ummah), and we will guide ourselves by their footsteps.' Likewise, whenever We sent a warner to any people before your time, the wealthy among them would say: 'We found our fathers following a certain way, and we will follow in their footsteps.'" [Sûrah al-Zukhruf: 22-23]

4. A group of people, however small. Allah says: "And when he arrived at the watering place in Madyan, he found there a group of men (ummah) watering their flocks." [Sûrah al-Qasas: 23]

Allah also says: "Every time a new group (ummah) enters, it curses its sister group." [Sûrah al-A`râf: 38]

5. A people united by faith. This is the meaning that we are concerned with in this article. This meaning of the word "ummah" can be found in many places in the Qur'ân. Allah says: "Humanity was a single ummah and Allah sent Messengers with glad tidings and warnings…" [Sûrah al-Baqarah: 213]

About this verse, Ibn `Abbâs said: "Humanity was a single ummah upon right guidance. From the time of Adam (peace be upon him), ten centuries passed with his descendants upon true faith and monotheism. Then the devils came to them and took them off of their religion, so Allah sent the Prophets with glad tidings and warnings.

Allah says: "You are the best nation (ummah) brought forth for humanity. You enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, and believe in Allah." [Sûrah Âl `Imrân: 110] This means that the Muslim ummah is good for all people. The Muslims were not brought forth merely to benefit themselves. They must teach and guide the rest of humanity and show them the way to attain felicity.

About this verse, Abû Hurayrah said: "You are the best of the people for the people, for you bring them forward until they enter into Islam."

Ibn `Abbâs believed that the people being referred to in the verse were those who emigrated to Madinah with Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him).

`Umar said: "This verse refers specifically to the Companions of Muhammad (peace be upon him) and those who conduct themselves in the same way that they did. It applies to the early generations of our people, not to the later ones." He meant that the early Muslims, who would continue to enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, and believe in Allah are the best of nations. As for those who neglect their duties and unite with each other on some other basis besides reverence for Allah and fail to be witnesses over humanity, they are not entitled to this honor.

Qatâdah relates that `Umar, while on pilgrimage, saw some people conducting themselves in a bad manner, so he recited the verse: "You are the best nation brought forth for humanity" then he said: "Whoever wishes to be from that nation must fulfill Allah's condition for it." The condition that `Umar was referring to is that of enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah.

Verses like the one we are discussing establish for us a major principle in Islam, which is that Allah has established the bond of brotherhood, allegiance, love, and affection between the people of Islam. This is a mandate of Allah that we cannot for a moment hesitate about.

Allah says: "This ummah of yours is a single ummah, and I am your Lord, so worship me." [Sûrah al-Anbiyâ': 92] The same verse practically repeats itself in the following chapter of the Qur'ân: "This ummah of yours is a single ummah, and I am your Lord, so fear me." [Sûrah al-Mu'minûn: 52]

In the first of these two chapters, entitled "The Prophets", Allah relates to us the stories of Prophets like Moses, Abraham, Jesus, Zachariah, John, and others (peace be upon them). Then Allah praises them, mentioning Mary, the mother of Jesus along with them, though she was not a Prophet, and says: "This ummah of yours is a single ummah". This leads to two possible interpretations. The first is that the Prophets themselves are a single ummah, and the second is that the verse is talking about the followers of the final Prophet.

The commentators of the Qur'ân differ on this matter. The best interpretation in my view - and Allah knows best - is that these verses establish the fact that the Ummah is one Ummah, giving all the stages of development that it has gone through during the course of history, starting with Adam and culminating with Muhammad (peace be upon them both). Muhammad (peace be upon him) was the Seal of the Prophets and their leader in this world and the Hereafter. The Ummah of Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the best and last Ummah. It has inherited the guidance and teachings of all the Prophets who came before it.

No other ummah since the time of Muhammad (peace be upon him) has ever carried with it anything like the illumination of the Qur'ân, the book that Allah has protected from corruption and alteration. It is the book about which Allah says:

"Fasehood cannot approach it from before it or from behind it." [Sûrah Fussilat: 42]

"We have indeed sent down the Message, and We are indeed its guardians." [Sûrah al-Hijr: 9]

This ummah that, from generation to generation, represents to the values set forth in the Qur'ân, carries out its commandments and eschews what it prohibits, no matter how imperfectly, is superior to every other scriptural ummah. It retains within its active life the knowledge, guidance, and faith of the Prophets to a degree that no other nation can boast. It carries with it a light by which it would completely reform itself if it would only act upon it. This light is the Qur'ân and Sunnah.

Allah alludes to this when he says: "This ummah of yours is a single ummah, and I am your Lord, so worship me. But they were cut off from one another in the matter of their unity, and yet they will all return to Us." [Sûrah al-Anbiyâ': 92-93] Here Allah is speaking about the scriptural communities that came before and how they fell into division and disputations. It is a warning for the Muslim Ummah that it must remain a single ummah and strive to maintain its unity and not follow in the footsteps of the People of the Book. They had been united in faith at one time, then fell into dispute, each faction taking with it a part of the truth. This is the meaning that is conveyed in the chapter entitled "The Believers" where Allah mentions the Prophets Moses, Aaron, and Jesus, and then says: "This ummah of yours is a single ummah, and I am your Lord, so fear me. But they cut off their affair of unity into sects, each faction rejoicing in what it has." [Sûrah al-Mu'minûn: 52-53] Allah first emphasizes that the people were one ummah and not many. Then He mentions how they broke themselves up into sects.

The verse reminds us of the problem of the academic disputes that plague the Muslim Ummah, especially when such disagreements are not based upon Islamic evidence or correct principles, but instead upon personal inclinations and misconceptions. Such disputations result in diametrically opposed viewpoints, not merely a difference of opinion. The verse reminds us of the danger of such disputations and how academic partisanship can lead to people assuming the mantle of knowledge while only taking selectively from the Book what they want and discarding what does not support their views. These disputations can also lead to people exaggerating the importance of some matters while neglecting others. This is why Allah says: "each faction rejoicing in what it has."

The disputations being alluded to here are not tenable disagreements grounded in correct principles, the type of non-divisive disagreements that even the Companions had with each other. Instead, these sects and schisms find their internal unity not in the inviolable principles of the faith but upon exceedingly specific particulars that they exaggerate to the exclusion of everything else. They draw their identity from a particular understanding, rejecting everyone who disagrees with them. Other groups do the same, with "each faction rejoicing in what it has".

Allah has given us clear and unambiguous principles of faith as well as laws and practices that set us a part from other corrupted religious communities. Allah had prohibited us from resembling them, saying: "Has not the time arrived for the believers that their hearts in humility should engage in the remembrance of Allah and of the truth that has been revealed to them and not be like those who were given the scripture aforetime whose term was prolonged for them and their hearts became hardened." [Sûrah al-Hadîd: 16]

Allah has prohibited us from letting the deeds of our hearts resemble theirs. Likewise he has prohibited us from resembling them in the way that they disagree. Allah says the following about the Jews: "You perceive them to be united, but their hearts are divided. This is because they are a people who do not comprehend." [Sûrah al-Hashr: 14] This verse shows us that such disagreements do not occur except with people whose religion and understanding have both become weak. Reason dictates that they would support one another and rally together in order to triumph over their problems and their enemies.

The Qur'ân, in unambiguous terms, tells this Ummah to be different than those nations of the past in its beliefs, its deeds, its conduct, and its character. At the same time, we are not supposed to cultivate differences amongst ourselves. We should not try to be distinctive from other Muslims save from those who are engaged in heretical innovations or who flaunt their sins and iniquities. Otherwise, we must not intentionally differentiate ourselves from other Muslims, whether it be in appearance, dress, behavior, or anything else. The only exception to this is where there is an aspect of the religion that the people are neglecting. Then it is correct to revive this aspect of the faith that has died, even if it means becoming distinguished from others, though our intention must be to revive the Sunnah and not to be different. If a person purposely tries to be different in matters that are not part of the Sunnah, then this is part of the conspicuousness that is forbidden in Islam. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever wears a garment to make himself conspicuous will be dressed by Allah on the Day of Resurrection in a garment of disgrace." Sunan Abî Dâwûd (4029)and Sunan Ibn Mâjah (3606) with a good chain of transmission.]

The earliest Muslims disliked being conspicuous, even in some practices that were founded but that were not absolutely clear. They preferred to conform to the general public and disliked going against them unless the dictates of Islamic Law required that from them. I have seen some brothers who are obsessed with their group affiliations and heedless of their loyalty to the Ummah as a whole go to extremes in some matters to distinguish themselves from others. They shows little understanding of Islamic Law in doing so. This is nothing more than an attempt to be above others or to seek leadership. A person should only distinguish himself by adhering to a sunnah that others have neglected or in carrying out an Islamic duty that others fail to carry out or in doing some virtuous deed in hopes that others will follow suit. This is not the same as trying to be different for the sake of being different.

Allah has established the bonds of brotherhood between the believers. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stressed this relationship on many occasions when he talked about the rights a Muslim has on his brother Muslim. Some of these rights are as follows:

1. Rights on the heart.

By these I mean the love and affection that a Muslim must harbor in his heart for his fellow Muslim. He should avoid beings suspicious of his brother and harbor no malice towards him in his heart. A Muslim should share in his fellow Muslim's joys and sorrows. When a Muslim learns of something good that has befallen his brethren, he should rejoice. He should feel as if he were the recipient of such good fortune. Likewise, he should feel the pain of his fellow Muslims anywhere in the world who have been stricken by tragedy. He should feel the pain when Muslim women are being raped or when a Muslim country is being afflicted with hardships or attacked. This grief and commiseration is the least of his obligations towards his fellow Muslims in such times. Allah has not commanded us merely to feel grief. However, such grief is the fuel that carries people to action.

2. Rights on the Tongue.

Your fellow Muslim has the right upon you that you return the greeting of peace when he greets you. You should pray for Allah's mercy upon him when he sneezes. You must praise him when he does something deserving of praise. You must teach him when he is ignorant. You must enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong. You must pray for him.

These are all outward expressions of the feelings that you must cultivate in your heart for your fellow Muslims. Praying for them is not a minor thing. Allah might remove some affliction from the Muslim Ummah because of your prayer. Allah commands us in the Qur'ân to pray to Him and tells us that he will answer our prayers. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "Supplication is worship." [Sunan al-Tirmidhî (3247) and Sunan Abî Dâwûd (1479)]

If nothing comes out of all of these feelings and all these good words but a true realization of belonging to this Ummah, then that would be enough. A person cannot rightly claim to belong to this Ummah and fail to share in any aspect of life with its other members, neither feeling joy at the Ummah's success or sadness when tragedy befalls it. We must identify with our religion and feel for our brothers and sisters in faith, and profess this with our tongues. The least we can manage is to speak the truth publicly and offer prayers for our fellow Muslims when we are alone.

3. Rights on the Purse Strings.

These include the duties of Zakâh and of charity that are imposed upon us. We must feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and fulfill all the other rights that Allah has granted to our fellow Muslims with respect to our wealth. Allah says: "And in their wealth, the beggar and the needy have their rights." [Sûrah al-Dhâriyât: 19] Some scholars have said that there are rights on money other than the prescribed Zakât tax. There are times of hardship, poverty, and severe need when those who enjoy affluence must spend their wealth to support and assist their brothers.

4. Rights on the Body.

These include the rights other Muslims have on you that you defend them when they are oppressed, secure their release when they are war captives, provide relief for them when they are in desperation, and give to them all possible assistance.

There is another way to categorize these rights besides the breakdown given above. It is the idea of the hierarchy of needs that is articulated by many contemporary scholars. The fundamental human needs can be broken down into five categories:

Physiological needs: These include the need for food, drink, clothing, shelter, and marriage. If a person is deprived of such things, he must occupy himself with securing them and can provide no service to the Ummah, his country, or his family. Therefore, these things are his primary rights. We find the same consideration given to them in the Qur'ân.

Safety needs: A person must feel secure in his basic needs, like food clothing, and shelter and not fear being deprived of them. He must also live free from fear of physical and psychological abuse. We find in the Qur'ân many verses like "Who provides them with food against hunger and with security against fear." [Sûrah Quraysh: 4] Allah begins with survival needs and then moves on to safety needs. In another verse, Allah says: "Allah sets forth a parable: a city enjoying security and quiet, supplied with sustenance from every place. Yet it was ungrateful for the favors of Allah, so Allah made it taste of hunger and fear because of what its people wrought." [Sûrah al-Nahl: 112] A person living in fear is unable to be productive or do anything positive.

Belonging (love) needs: Allah created the human being as a social creature. People crave the company of others. Some people, if denied the ability to interact with others for a protracted period of time, may even die. Once there was a king of Cyprus who collected a group of children and placed each one of them in total isolation, providing for their every need but not speaking to them or allowing them to speak to anyone else. Eventually, all the children died.

You can often see a person telling his troubles to someone else, but he is not complaining as much as he is getting his troubles off his chest to a sympathetic ear. A person has a need to belong and cannot live without others.

We can observe how the Qur'ân addresses people collectively: "O humanity" "O believers" "By time. Truly humanity is at loss, except those who exhort each other to truth and exhort each other to patience." "Say to the believers: lower your gases." "Help each other in righteousness and in fearing Allah and do not assist each other in sin and transgression."

All of this alludes to the human need to belong. It also shows us that the full meaning of Islam cannot be realized without this need being fulfilled. Prayer is a congregational duty. So is the pilgrimage. In Ramadân, we fast together. We cannot put the moral values of Islam into practice without living in a community. How can we show kindness, patience, generosity, and courage without interacting with others?

Esteem needs.

A human being, after belonging to this Ummah, has a natural need to be esteemed by others who also belong to it. He must feel useful and valuable and that he has some impact on those around him. When needs are not fulfilled, people sometimes resort to destructive and irrational behavior in order to assert themselves.

We can see how Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) used to praise different people, tribes, ethnic groups, and countries. He pointed out the efforts of different individuals. We see this often in the Sunnah. Some scholars have written books just on this topic. Ahmad b. Hanbal wrote a book entitled The Virtues of the Companions wherein he records many of the words of praise the Prophet (peace be upon him) offered to His Companions. It is a great honor indeed for a person when Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) praises him.

Moreover, Allah praises the Companions in the Qur'ân: He says: "Allah has turned in favor to the Prophet, the Emigrants, and the Helpers" [Sûrah al-Tawbah: 117]

We see that the Prophet (peace be upon him) would praise those who were new to Islam. Sometimes he would do so indirectly, like when he said, before entering Mecca: "Anyone who enters the home of Abû Sufyân will be safe." [Sahîh Muslim (1780)] He mentioned the home of Abû Sufyan specifically out of respect, though he had also said: "Anyone who closes the door to his home will be safe, and anyone who enters the mosque will be safe." [Sunan Abî Dâwûd (3022)] We cannot expect anyone to leave his home or the mosque and prefer to seek safety in Abû Sufyân's house? The Prophet (peace be upon him) made specific mention of Abû Sufyân to acknowledge him, since he had just accepted Islam. Likewise, he reconciled the hearts of many people by giving them gifts and acknowledging them in other ways. A person's reputation has no less value to him than material wealth. A person's need for esteem is a natural part of his makeup that Allah has placed within him. Therefore, Allah's Law comes with what protects and completes this esteem.

Self-Actualization.

A person needs to be self-actualized. This is an internal calling. Islam seeks to enhance this need, channel it, and bring it to fulfillment. We find that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "When a person dies, his deeds end, except for three: charity that continues to benefit people, knowledge that he taught which continues to provide benefit, and a pious child who prays for him." [Sunan al-Tirmidhî (1376)] and Sunan al-Nasâ'î (3651)] Many are inspired by these words and try to increase their efforts and their productivity, seeking to immortalize themselves with their deeds, hoping for their reward with Allah. People seek to leave behind some works of charity that will continue long after they die to benefit people. Others seek to impart useful knowledge. People seek to raise pious children who will carry on their legacy and pray for them after they die.

These are the needs that people seek to fulfill. We will speak about this matter further in the second part of this article.

 

[Happy 2BA Muslim]

It is worth mentioning that the Ummah's rights upon you are only the beginning of what it means to belong to this Ummah. Every Muslim shares in these rights, even if he is neglectful of his duties, sinful, or engaged in some form of innovation.

No doubt, rights are enjoyed by different people to different degrees, and this is contingent on a number of factors. The rights of your parents are unique. So are the rights of close relatives who have greater rights over you than more distant ones. Your neighbors have rights over you that others do not have. The rights of those who provide benefits for the Ummah and defend it against its enemies are different than the rights of those who do not. The basis of all these rights is mutual association, but the strength of these rights varies with the degree of association.

Every Muslim has rights and responsibilities with respect to every other Muslim. Your fellow Muslim has the right to your good advice, your prayers, your knowledge, and your assistance. You, likewise, have such rights over him. Whoever fulfills his duties to others can demand from others to do the same for him. Whoever is neglectful in his duties can expect others to be equally neglectful of him.

All Muslims are agreed upon the basic and unambiguous teachings of Islam. They all believe in Allah and worship Him alone without partner. They believe in His names and attributes, in His Lordship, His Divinity, and in the fact that He alone is deserving of our worship. All Muslims believe that Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the final prophet and the leader of all the Prophets. They believe that he came with the last and greatest manifestation of Allah's Law that must be followed until the end of time. All Muslims face the same direction in prayer. They all read the same Qur'ân and attest to its absolute authenticity. They all assemble on he same Plain of Arafât when they perform pilgrimage. They share a single history and a single destiny. The challenges that face the Muslims face them all. When the Muslims are attacked, everyone is affected, whether they are strong in faith or weak, knowledgeable or ignorant, righteous or sinful. This shows us how important it is for us to work to realize our common identity.

Ibn `Abbâs pointed out to us the undisputed teachings of Islam that we must rally around when he said: "In the chapter of the Qur'ân entitled 'The Cattle' (Sûrah al-An`âm), there are clear and unambiguous verses that are the foundation of the Book." Then he recited those verses. [Mustadrak al-Hâkim (2/317)]

Ibn Mas`ûd said: "Whoever wishes to read the document upon which is the seal of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) should read these verses." Then he recited the same verses from Sûrah al-An`âm. [Sunan al-Tirmidhî (3072)]

These verses are as follows:

"Say: Come, I will rehearse to you what Allah has really prohibited you from: Do not join with Him anything in worship. Be good to your parents. Kill not your children out of want, for We provide sustenance for you and for them. Do not approach indecent acts, whether open or in secret. Take not a life that Allah has made sacred except in the dispensation of justice. Thus does Allah command you that perhaps you may learn wisdom. And do not approach the orphan's property except to improve it until he attains the age of majority. Give full weight and measure. No burden do We place on a soul greater than it can bear. Whenever you speak, speak justly, even if a near relative is concerned, and fulfill the covenant of Allah. Thus does Allah command you that you may remember. This is My Way leading straight. Follow it. Follow not other paths. They will scatter you all away from His Path. Thus does He command you that perhaps you might fear Him." [Sûrah al-An`âm: 151-153]

Think about these commandments and how important they are to us. Think of how much of our Islamic discourse focus on these matters. We have here clear and unambiguous statements concerning our beliefs, our ethics, our deeds, and our way of life. Allah commands us to do what is good and prohibits us from what is evil. He commands us to worship Him alone and prohibits us from polytheism. Here is the basis for Muslim unity. These are the matters from which nothing can be detracted and to which nothing need be added. Everything else falls into one of the following categories:

1. People often unite around matters which are merely misguided notions, innovations, and fables that they have mistaken as part of the religion. Sometimes they treat these notions as fundamentals of the faith, making them a basis for affinity, affiliation, and enmity. Sometimes, these notions are contrary to what the Prophet (peace be upon him) came with. Such things are commonplace in most Muslim societies. Every society has baggage that it inherited from its forefathers and mistook for a part of its religion.

2. There are matters that are part of the religion - in many cases juristic opinions based on the sacred texts - but which are either subsidiary matters or matters of scholarly dispute. People have a tendency to misconstrue these as fundamentals of the faith or as indisputable facts.

3. There are matters that are unquestionably part of the faith and may even be of its principles, but people exaggerate their importance far beyond what Allah intended. People often neglect other principles of Islam because of the matters that they are obsessed with. There are many examples of this behavior, as we shall see.

There are many alternatives to identifying oneself with this Ummah that, unfortunately, a number of reformers turn to. People seeking reform all have one thing in common. They see the deficiencies that exist in the Ummah and want to remedy those deficiencies. This leads some reformers to divert their attentions from the Ummah as a whole. Sometimes, they fail to recognize the brotherhood of faith at all.

There are those who think it is a waste of time to talk about the Ummah as a whole. They see that as showing a lack of focus. Such people always ask us why we keep bringing up the fact that the Ummah comprises over one billon people.

We say to them: Why should we hesitate to mention it? We need to emphasize this fact, because all of these billion people have some sense of belonging to the Ummah, except those among them who have truly left the faith.

Some of us never think about the Ummah until there is a crisis at hand. We seem to need a rude awakening to realize that we are actually a part of it. When a tragedy befalls the Muslims in Indonesia, for example, and the Muslims see on television the charred or mutilated bodies of their brothers in faith, or when they see people, out of hatred for Islam, eating the flesh of living Muslims, then they start feeling pangs of loyalty for their brothers in faith. These feelings, however, remain poignant for a short period of time. As soon as the crisis begins to subside, these feelings fall dormant again.

The Muslims might feel something for their brothers in Africa when they are stricken with famine, drought, or war - if, of course, the media bothers to cover the matter - but we become heedless of these tragedies as soon as we cease to be reminded of them. When the crisis in Afghanistan looms before us, we are compelled to think about it and fear for our Afghani brethren. Then, when the crisis passes, we fall back into our oblivious slumber.

There is a need for us to impress upon the average Muslim the importance of identifying with the Ummah. We need to do this in our schools, our study circles, and our nurseries. We need to instill in their hearts feelings of brotherly love for everyone else who belongs to this Ummah.

There are many other things and ideas that compete with the Islamic identity. Among the most important of these are the following:

1. Ethnicity

Islam is a universal religion with a global perspective. It makes no ethnic distinctions. It is not an Arab religion. Nor is it what some people like to call an "Afro-Asiatic" religion, referring to the fact that most of its adherents live in these two continents. We find Islam all over Europe, in Australia, and in North and South America. It continues to spread at a healthy pace, winning new supporters every day. I read a book written by Jamâl Hamdân many years ago which claimed that the Muslims numbered around 350 million people, representing about 1/7 of the world population and that they were expected to increase to 1/5 of the world's population in the future. If we read today's statistics, we can see that this has truly happened.

Islam is a religion that is in harmony with the natural aspirations of humanity and advances with the efforts of those who call towards it. If only there were enough sincere workers who knew how to present the message of Islam to the people and how to reach their hearts, then Islam would spread like wildfire.

Ethnic identity is an old issue. We find many people who identify with their ethnic or racial group before anything else. This is especially true of the Arab identity. These people are obsessed with their Arab heritage and Arab ethnic poetry. They know the famous verses penned by a Syrian Arab Christian:

Give me a religion that will make the Arabs a nation,
And then you may intern my body on the way of the Brahmans.

For I will embrace any unbelief that will unite them,
And then gladly welcome Hell as our collective fate.

They know the following verses as well:

I take the Arab Renaissance as my Lord without partner.
The Arabs are my religion. I have no other.

The most zealous bigots consider Arabism as an alternative to Islam and the Arab identity as a substitute for a Muslim one. Now we admit that the Arabs have their virtues and their honor, but being an Arab is no substitute for being a Muslim. Likewise, those who hate the Arabs are deviant in their Islam for doing so. Ibn Taymiyah has written on this matter in detail in his book entitled Iqtidâ' al-Sirât al-Mustaqîm wa Mukhâlafah Ashâb al-Jahîm.

Having an ethnic identity is not a problem. It is quite normal to have one. The problem is for this to become a person's primary identity, obscuring his Islamic identity and overpowering his loyalty to Allah, the Messenger (peace be upon him), and the believers. It is a real problem when this ethnic identity leads to chauvinism and negative attitudes towards other peoples. Whenever a problem arises, they band together with their "own kind" and fight against those who are different.

If, however, these various ethnic groups feel perpetual solidarity with one another, then there is no problem. A good example is that of Palestine. All Muslim peoples feel solidarity with them and feel the pain that they are suffering, including the Arabs, the Kurds, the Muslims in the West, and the Muslims all over the world. They feel for them, pray for them, speak about their cause, and support them.

2. Nationalism

Nationalism is often closely tied to ethnic identity. The issue here is basically the same. We do not condemn a person's natural love for his country. As a poet once wrote:

Men love the countries they came from,
For in them they spent their childhood years.

When they think of their homelands, they are reminded
And yearn once again for those bygone days.

Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) mentioned the virtues of many Muslim lands, like Mecca, Madinah, the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen, Syria, Oman, Egypt, and other places. Merely identifying with a specific country is not a problem. The problem is where one's national origin becomes a substitute for what should be a person's primary identity.

This is the error that befell Ahmad Shawkî when he penned these unsavory lines:

It angers not your Lord that you take the face of Egypt
As an object of worship along with His face.

Turn your faces to it in calamity
And when you feel fear, worship it earnestly.

You can see how he takes the terminology of Islamic Law that are supposed to be used exclusively for the worship of Allah and uses them for his country.

The same can be said for al-Zarkalî when he penned these famous verses:

My country! It they fashioned for me out of it an idol,
I would approach that idol and kiss it.

At the same time, there are some turns of phrase that we should not employ, like mispronouncing the Arabic word for nationalism, "al-wataniyyah", as "al-wathaniyyah", which means idolatry. This can give the impression that Islam is opposed to serving the members of one's country and having love for them. This is incorrect. Allah has given one's neighbors special rights. The near neighbors have rights, as do more distant neighbors. One's relatives are more deserving of your good treatment than others, and the same can be said for one's countrymen. Therefore, a person should be concerned with the welfare, education, and Islamic guidance of his fellow citizens. Problems only arise when one's national identity supercedes one's identity as a member of the Muslim Ummah.

3. Tribalism

This is a common way for people to identify themselves. Allah says: "We made you into nations and tribes so you would know each other." [Sûrah al-Hujûrât: 13] Therefore, it is not a problem if a person identifies with his tribe.

Bigotry in the name of one's tribe, however, is another matter. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "There are four aspects of the times of ignorance that my Ummah will not give up: boasting about lineage, ridiculing others because of theirs…" [Sahîh Muslim (934)] It is wrong for a person to support his tribe when they are wrong. It is wrong for him to love and hate on the basis of tribal affiliations. It is wrong to practice favoritism and nepotism on behalf or your tribesmen. This goes for matters of government as well as business dealings and marriage. We should not place great weight on tribal lineage. It exists for identification purposes only.

4. Sectarianism

The different schools of thought in Islamic Law used to be a cause for schisms and disputes that sometimes even came to bloodshed. Families were torn apart on their account. Such disputes even afforded the enemies of Islam opportunities to penetrate through the Muslim's defenses and attack their lands.

5. Sheiks and Leaders

Many people are severely biased towards the sheikhs whom they follow. They are fiercely loyal to them and harbor enmity for others on account of that loyalty. Ironically, sometimes the sheikh is a person who teaches against blind following! In spite of this, they follow him blindly, abandoning others who are more worthy to be followed.

6. Groups and Factions.

Some of these groups are secular and some are political. You find many people supporting a candidate for a political party, even though they know that he has a secular platform or one that is hostile to religion. These people feel that they can separate their political loyalties from their religious identity. They feel it necessary to belong to this political faction or that.

This can also be a problem with some Islamic groups that encourage their members to identify solely with their group or with its ideology, compromising their identification with the broader Muslim Ummah. This tendency also leads to hostility between Islamic groups.

Another tendency that weakens the solidarity of the Ummah is that of students who debate incessantly about certain questions like whether ignorance can ever be an excuse. This topic has divided students into rival camps. Then we have the issue of Allah's unique right to legislate. Students have divided themselves into myriad factions over this issue in various aspects of it where juristic discretion plays a role. Another classic example is whether works constitute a part of faith. These issues are not pursued objectively as sober academic inquiries. There is no healthy exchange of ideas. If this was the case, then such pursuits would be laudable. What really happens, however, is that people become polarized to this opinion or that, even many who do not have a full grasp of the issues. These issues become causes of zealous devotion.

There are good reasons why we must strive to restore the identity of the Ummah. The divisions that we suffer from cause us no end of hardships. Every time we are faced with a new situation, we bicker wit each other and find no way to cope with it. Then there are the external challenges that we face, not the least of which is the globalization of politics, economics, culture, values, and power.

The road ahead is long. We need to prepare ourselves and develop our character. We must abandon the idea that we have to see the results of our efforts with our own eyes or within our lifetimes. We should give our utmost efforts to our cause, even if the results take long in coming and even if we will not see the fruits of our labor while we are still alive.

It is not our purpose to overturn all the loyalties that people have, especially when those loyalties are permissible in and of themselves. Revolutionary change often aggravates problems more than it solves them, since it always polarizes people into at least two camps: supporters of change and those who oppose it.

Among the Companions, there were the Emigrants from Mecca and the Helpers from Madinah. Islam did not seek to destroy this distinction. It recognized it and made it a basis for healthy competition in performing righteous deeds.

Trying to unite the Ummah right now in any practical sense would be to no avail. Some people have a desire to see the Ummah united or at least see its Islamic groups or scholars get together, but they have not the vaguest idea about what it is possible for them to unite around. What we need right now is to stop bickering and hating each other. We have to replace our anger with a sense of Islamic brotherhood. We must begin to learn how to work together by helping each other in performing righteous deeds. We must unite the Ummah on the basis of their correct beliefs and work to teach them what they need to know about the principles of their faith. They must learn about their Lord, their Prophet, their Qur'ân, and their history. This we can do, even if we cannot realize true Muslim unity at this stage.

We must raise our children to identify with the Ummah and not place any other identity before it.

Allah knows best. And may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Messenger Muhammad and upon his family and Companions.

:salam2:

www.islamtoday.com

 

[Mohsin]

:salam2:

JazakAllah khayran brother Yaser for the clarification of the true intent of Shaykh Salman's words (may Allah protect him)

 

[Abu Abdillah]

The sufi Shaikh is thinking,

'This was my lecture, he stole my show!!''

Looks upset and sulking