Ashura: The Call to Strive Against Oppression

Every Firawn Has a Musa

Islam is built upon a single great overreaching principle – Justice.  And He has commanded us to strive against injustice.


2:39. And fight them on
Until there is no more
Tumult or oppression,
And there prevail
Justice and faith in God
Altogether and everywhere;
But if they cease oppression and war, then verily God
Doth see all that they do.

The path of Islam is the path of justice and freedom.  Allah SWT reminds us that He is al-Adl – the Justice and He will not treat us, his Creation, with the least injustice.

One of the ways He SWT has ensured that justice will prevail and people will have the freedom to choose to have faith in Allah, is by sending messengers to be a witness unto us.

إِنَّا أَرْسَلْنَا إِلَيْكُمْ رَسُولًا شَاهِدًا عَلَيْكُمْ كَمَا أَرْسَلْنَا إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ رَسُولًا

Al-Muzammil 73:15  Behold I have sent a messenger, a witness from among you, just as I sent a messenger to Firawn.  

Our Prophet Muhammad SAW was sent as a messenger to deliver the guidance, the message from Allah, and as a witness to the truth of that message as well as a witness to the reaction of the people to that message.  Likewise, was Musa AS sent to the people of Firawn.  In fact, every prophet was sent as a witness to his people.  

The shuhadah al anbiyya, the witness of the prophets (AS) during this life is to the truth, the message that Allah SWT is One, and that He will hold us accountable for our actions on the Day of Judgment.  The witness of the prophets (AS) in the next life will be as to our acceptance of this message, this truth.

 10:47. To every people (was sent)
An Apostle: when their Apostle
Comes (before them), the matter
Will be judged between them
With justice, and they
Will not be wronged.

It was reported that the day the Children of Israel were saved from Fir`awn was called the day of `Ashura'. Imam Ahmad reported that Ibn `Abbas said that the Messenger of Allah came to Al-Madinah and found that the Jews were fasting the day of `Ashura'. He asked them, "What is this day that you fast'' They said, "This is a good day during which Allah saved the Children of Israel from their enemy, and Musa used to fast this day.'' The Messenger of Allah said,

«أَنَا أَحَقُّ بِمُوسَى مِنْكُم»

(I have more right to Musa than you have.) 


So the Messenger of Allah fasted that day and ordered that it be fasted. This Hadith was collected by Al-Bukhari, Muslim, An-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah. 

We know that Musa came to the people of Firawn.  Firawn was caught up in the gravest of sins, the shirk of setting himself up as a god.  He demanded that the people revere and worship him, as if he was a lord and was the one who actually provided their sustenance.  How deluded he was? 

28: 3. We rehearse to thee some
Of the story of Moses
And Pharaoh in Truth,
For people who believe.
4. Truly Pharaoh elated himself
In the land and broke up
Its people into sections, or parties
oppressing a small group
Among them: their sons he slew,
But he kept alive their females:
For he was indeed
A maker of mischief, a criminal
5. And We wished to bring peace and safety
to those who were
Being oppressed in the land,
To make them leaders, imams
And make them heirs spiritually and temporally


(And We appointed for Musa thirty nights and added (to the period) ten (more)) (7:142). 

It was said that these days were during the month of Dhul-Qa`dah plus the first ten days in Dhul-Hijjah, after which the Children of Israel were delivered from Fir`awn and they safely crossed the sea. Allah's statement,

﴿وَإِذْ ءَاتَيْنَا مُوسَى الْكِتَـبَ﴾

(And (remember) when We gave Musa the Scripture) means, the Tawrah,

﴿وَالْفُرْقَانِ﴾

(And the criterion) that is that which differentiates between truth and falsehood, guidance and deviation.

﴿لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ﴾

(So that you may be guided aright)

So the Bani Israel continued to commemorate the call to justice delivered by Musa to Firawn by fasting on the day of Ashura, the tenth day of Muharram.  

And every Firawn has a Musa.  To everyone who comes along and in arrogance, sets themselves up as a lord, a god, demanding to be worshiped by his fellow human beings, and in doing so commits innumerable acts of injustice, Allah SWT sends a Musa.  

The Quran remarks that Firawn and his people will be in the worst place in hell fire.  This will be their just reward for their injustice to humanity, their injustice to Allah SWT.

The Qasas or story of Musa and Firawn reminds us that Muslims must always strive against injustice.  In remembrance of this, Sunni Muslims fast on the 10th day of Muharram, the Day of Ashura.

What if the Firawn is a Muslim?

 

But what if the person committing Dhulm claims to be a Muslim?  

Some claim that Muslims cannot revolt against a Muslim ruler, even if he behaves unjustly.  They cite as evidence the following hadith:
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “The best among your rulers are those whom you love and they love you in turn, those who pray (make supplication) for you and you pray for them. The worst of your rulers are those whom you hate and they hate you in turn, and you curse them and they curse you.”

Someone asked: “O Messenger of Allah! Shall we confront them with swords?”

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “No, as long as they hold prayers among you. If you see from your rulers what you hate, hate the action they do but do not rebel against them.” [Sahîh Muslim]

They say, “The majority of Ahl al-Sunnah wal Jamâ`ah have adopted these hadîth and use them as evidence in their ruling that is unlawful to rebel against the ruler, no matter how oppressive he might be, unless he exhibits outright unbelief.”  (Sheikh Muhammad al-Qannâs,  http://en.islamtoday.net/node/1404).

Imam Ibn Taymiyyah says: “The Prophet (peace be upon him) ordered people to be patient with the oppression of the rulers and refrain from fighting them. This is better for people for their worldly life and their Hereafter. Whoever opposes them intentionally will cause nothing but mischief. Allah will eliminate evil by way of the oppressive king much more than the oppression he is doing to people. It was also said that sixty years under an oppressive ruler are better than one night without any ruler.”

Allah SWT warns us about violence and killing against fellow Muslims: 

  

4: 92 It is not for a believer to kill a believer unless (it be) by mistake. He who hath killed a believer by mistake must set free a believing slave, and pay the blood- money to the family of the slain, unless they remit it as a charity. If he (the victim) be of a people hostile unto you, and he is a believer, then (the penance is) to set free a believing slave. And if he cometh of a folk between whom and you there is a covenant, then the blood-money must be paid unto his folk and (also) a believing slave must be set free. And whoso hath not the wherewithal must fast two consecutive months. A penance from Allah. Allah is Knower, Wise.

93 Whoso slayeth a believer of set purpose, his reward is hell for ever. Allah is wroth against him and He hath cursed him and prepared for him an awful doom.

94 O ye who believe! When ye go forth in the sabeel of Allah, be careful to discriminate, and say not unto one who offereth you peace: "Thou art not a believer," seeking the chance profits of this life (so that ye may despoil him). With Allah are plenteous spoils. Even thus (as he now is) were ye before; but Allah hath since then been gracious unto you. Therefore take care to discriminate. Allah is ever Informed of what ye do.

Although it is may be unlawful to fight against a Muslim ruler, this does not mean we should just patiently accept injustice.  We must not refrain from enjoining what is right and forbidding what is evil. In fact, we are required to do that and glorify our religion and to raise the word of righteousness, each one according to his ability.

In accepting the position of Amir, Abu Bakr said:

O People! I have been put in authority over you and I am not the best of you. So if I do the right thing then help me and if I do wrong then put me straight. Truthfulness is a sacred trust and lying is a betrayal. The weak amongst you is strong in my sight. I will surely try to remove his pain and suffering. And the strong amongst you is weak to me I will – Allah willing – realize the right from him fully. When obscene things spread among any nation, calamities generally continued to descend upon them. As long as I obey Allah and His messenger, you should obey me, and if I do not obey Allah and His messenger, then obedience to me is not incumbent upon you. (Now prepare for prayer). 

While some have taken the hadith regarding the unlawfulness of rebelling to mean any form of rebellion, Abu Bakr tells us this is not so.  He specifically tells the people not to obey him if he does not obey Allah and His Messenger, in other words if he fails to uphold the Deen of Islam, if he fails to follow its teachings and strays from its path.  
Although fighting and killing is not desirable and fitnah in the Muslim community is a grave sin, when faced with injustice and oppression, we must respond and not sit quietly by.  

We must first amr bi al-ma’ruf wa nahi anni al munkar – command the good and forbid the wrong.  Many misunderstand this important concept.  Some seem to think this is forcing people to Islam.  But Allah SWT makes it clear that there can be no compulsion in religion.  The choice to submit to Allah SWT must be free.  

Abu Bakr (RAA) says, that if he errs, set him straight.  Rulers are human,  therefore, if they make mistakes, we should gently remind them and give them the freedom and opportunity to do better.  

But amr bi al-ma’ruf wa nahi anni al munkar also means to be a witness, to be a shaheed.


2:143. Thus have We made of you
An Ummat justly balanced,
That ye might be witnesses
Over the nations,
And the Apostle a witness
Over yourselves;
And We appointed the Qibla
To which thou wast used,
Only to test those who followed
The Apostle from those
Who would turn on their heels
(From the Faith). Indeed it was
(A change) momentous, except
To those guided by God.
And never would God
Make your faith of no effect.
For God is to all people
Most surely full of kindness,
Most Merciful.


It is the role of the Ummah to be a witness over mankind, to witness as to the truth of the message of Islam, and to witness the reaction of the people to the message.  That includes witnessing to our leaders.

And the Prophet is the witness over us as to the message he gave us, and as to our response to it.

The Uthmanic Legacy

Muslims are forbidden to wage war, to cause tulmult and oppression and to create fitnah.  Allah SWT says the fitnah is worse than Qatl – tulmult and oppression is worse than killing.  On the other hand, Muslims are commanded to strive against injustice.  When it is the leader himself who is creating the tumult and oppression, he must be restrained.  

Unfortunately, we have usually killed him, and not just restrained him.  It started with Uthman.  Many were dissatisfied with Uthman and the fact that he favored his family, the Bani Umayyah.  They demanded change and marched on Madina.  They ended up killing the man and cutting off his wife’s fingers, because he refused to step down.  

It was wrong for Uthman to continue to rule when the people made it clear they were not longer satisfied with his rule. 

Imam Ahmad said: “Obedience to the ruler who is agreed upon by people is obligatory.” 

What we should note here is that obedience is required when the people have agreed on the leader, not when they are no longer satisfied with his rule.  People change and power corrupts.  Once a community feels the ruler is no longer looking after their best interest, and is oppressing them, that leader should be restrained.  If he is a Muslim, his blood is inviolate, but that does not mean he cannot be forced to step down.  

Every Yazeed Has A Hussein

We turn now to another Ashura, the one over 1300 years ago, the day that Hussein ibn Ali (RAA) stood at Karbalaa’.  A tyrant reigned in Hussein’s time.  He oppressed the people and lived in wealth and privilege.  Yet he claimed to be Muslim.  We can argue whether his behavior had so crossed the line that he had left Islam.  Many claim modern leaders have done so, in order to justify killing them.  This is not the point.  We cannot judge a person’s heart.  If they claim Islam, we cannot judge them, just as Allah points out in the Qur’an, even if they claim Islam just to save their skins, you cannot kill them.  Yazeed claimed to be a Muslim.  Yet he began to distort the message itself.  He began to oppress his own people.  

And so Imam Hussein (RAA) marched towards the people of Iraq who cried to him for help against the oppression.  He sought to mediate, to help settle the disputes, to try to talk sense to the leaders, to remind them of the true teachings of the deen of Islam.  

But the leaders sent an army to hunt him down and kill him.  They killed the nephew of Imam Ali, Muslim ibn Aqeel.  Who kills a messenger?  To do so violates all the rules of war men have agreed upon for all history, all over the world.  Then they went for Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet, and all the members of the Abd al Muttalib.  

Hussein (RAA) made his stand at the dusty plain of Karbalaa.  The blood of the grandson of the Prophet and his family soaks the soil of that barren plain to this day.  

Shia Muslims remember this Ashura by re-enacting the bloody passion of Hussein, by shedding tears and bloodying their own backs in remorse and sorrow.

The New Ashura

 

As we all know, our brothers and sisters in Syria are suffering tremendous oppression.  What began as peaceful demonstrations turned into bloody repeats of Karbalaa.  Our brothers and sisters and children are being butchered just as Hussein ibn Ali and the family of our beloved Prophet SAW were slaughtered over 1300 years ago, and by the same caliber of person, a person who flaunts religious laws, and kills fellow Muslims without hesitation or excuse.

What makes matters even worse is that the tyrant of our time masquerades as a descendant of Imam al-Saadiq, Ali ibn Abi Talib, the beloved baba of Hussein.  The legacy of the Bani AbdulMuttalib, and of Imam Ali and Hussein ibn Ali is a legacy of standing up for justice and striving against oppression.  Not only has Bashar al-Zhalim forfeited all rights to the legacy of the family of Abdul Muttalib, but he has committed the most heinous crime imaginable.  He has set himself up as a god.  He has killed children for failing to make sajdah on his likeness!  Istaghfirullah!!

Firawn did this long ago – and Prophet Musa AS warned him.  As we mentioned, Allah SWT has reserved a special torment in hell for those who set themselves up as gods – as rivals to Allah SWT Himself.   

For how many years have we seen violence in the Middle East and in the so-called Muslim World.  While it is true that many of these conflicts have been justified by oppression by outside forces, colonial powers and other jabbar, they have achieved nothing.  Not a single armed conflict in any Muslim land has been successful.  Although we may admire the heroism, the perseverance, the tenacity and strength of the oppressed people, not a single armed conflict or resistance movement has gained territory, managed to drive out the oppressors or managed to return their land to a state of peace.

Until Tunisia and Egypt.  The youth achieved real and lasting victory against jabbar not through violence, but through waging peace.  They waged real jihad – guarding each others property, protecting buildings from looters and criminal elements, even taking away trash and cleaning the city.  They achieved victory by praying together in the streets, by joining hands and getting beyond tribal affiliations, village affiliations and other things which divide humanity.  They achieved victory by following the actual Sunnah of the Prophet – who created an Ummah – free of social and political subdivisions and sources of fitnah, who called us to action – to put our faith into action and not just spew rhetoric and slogans.  And the leaders of this victory were there in the streets, just like our Prophet and Sahabi, who led in the effort.  They did not shout and scream and incite people to violence and then retreat to holes of safety while their followers fought and died.  They achieved victory through love not hate; through caring for each other, treating each other as equals, leaving behind the kibriyya of the group identity and adopting the identity of One Ummah. 

In Syria too, the people sought to wage peace, but the brutal response by Bashar al-Zhaalim overwhelmed the people.  He has tried to crush their will, but he has only strengthened their resolve.  Now they fight, but they are losing.  Without support from the outside, their weapons will soon dry up.  Then what?  The West stands by, allowing political fears to overcome ethics and human feeling.  These are men, women and children and they are dying in the thousands.  How can we sit by and watch.

But what can we do?  Violent warfare is not working.  It has not worked in a long time – as long as we have had weapons that do not allow the person about the face death the dignity of making their peace with Allah.  Guns, bombs, modern weapons kill from a safe distance.  And the victim will have no time to pray, no time to take the Shahadah, no time or even awareness of his eminent demise, no time to ask Allah for forgiveness.  Is that just? 

So how did our beloved Prophet SAW handle the situation when violence only led to a uncomfortable stalemate?  He marched on Hudaibiyyah.  Thousands of men, women and children marching unarmed on Makkah!  It frightened the Quraish so much they signed a peace treaty that eventually led to the opening of Makkah – the fatah Makkah.

So why do not we do the same?  Instead of composing beautiful latmiyyah for Hussein, or flogging our backs out of over a thousand years of remorse, why don’t we actually respond to his cry – hal min nasiriyin yasurna?!  Labayyak Ya Hussein – Labayyak Allahuma Labayyak – We are here to respond to Your call to establish justice and to strive against oppression.  And then let’s flog the tyrant, Bashar al Assad, not ourselves. 

Sunni, Shia, no matter what Madhdaahib, or school of thought.  Lets come together to overcome this zhaalim of our time. This should be our joint celebration of Ashura, fasting as the Prophet fasted in commemoration of the shahada of Musa, and marching and commanding our own leaders to justice, to ma'ruf and prohibiting them from dhulm and munkar.

But our goal should not be to kill them, our goal should be to humiliate them.  No more should we allow zhaalim leaders like Qadhaafi to commit suicide by mob, in a vain and moronic attempt to retain their hayaa, their dignity.  They have none to begin with.  No one’s hayaa is worth a single Muslim life and only Hell Fire will await them.  So capture Bashar al-zhalim and let him rot for the rest of his life in a jail in the Hague for crimes against humanity.  Let every Syrian come and spit on him.  May the rest of his days be filled with utter despair and humiliation.

In the time of the Prophet, the Sahabi made baiyyah to Allah SWT and to His Rasul (SAW).  They made a commitment also to each other – the Ummah of Allah. 

We speak the words of the Kalimah – the Shahada – the Witness, but how many of us have actually pledged our hearts, our minds, our lives to Allah – to His Rasul, Muhammad SAW – and to His Ummah!

Without this surrendering of our souls to Allah and commitment to following the Sunnah of Rasul Allah, and the commitment to coming together as One Ummah, we are not Muslims – those who are at Peace with Allah.  We may not have to go out in the streets to gain our freedom, we may not have to face guns and bombs, but we can join our brothers and sisters all over this globe in one Ummah of Islam and make a commitment to follow the true teachings of Allah and His Prophet, putting our faith into action by watching our behavior, staying clear of sins and using the tool of tawbah repentance to gain closeness to Allah, and by helping the less fortunate in our community, working together with other people of faith to strive against immorality and forms of oppression.  This is the legacy of our Prophet SAW.    His Sunnah is surrender to Allah, is striving in the sabeel of Allah – putting our faith into action with only Allah’s pleasure as our intention, our niyyat, for no selfish reason – for Allah alone – for inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajiuun.

Oh Allah I give you my life, I give you my love, I give you my soul!!

Bayyatu Allah Wa Bayyatu Rasul Allah Wa Bayyatu Ummatullah al-waahidah!

Allah Akbar!

Shahadah: Witness, Testification, Sacrifice

The Call to Witness, to Testify

Al- Saffat 37: 102. Then, when (the son)
Reached (the age of)
(Serious) work with him,
He said: "O my son
I see in vision
That I offer thee in sacrifice:
Now see what is
Thy view!" (The son) said:
"O my father! Do
As thou art commanded:
Thou will find me,
If God so wills one
Practising Patience and Constancy!"
103. So when they had both
Submitted their wills (to God),
And he had laid him
Prostrate on his forehead
(For sacrifice),

104 We called unto him: O Abraham!

105 Thou hast already fulfilled the vision. Lo! thus do We reward the good.

106 Lo! that verily was a clear test.

107 Then We ransomed him with a tremendous sacrifice.

Eid al Adha, the Day of Sacrifice is the focal point of the Muslim year.  Every other act of ibadaah leads us to this great day, the day when our lives are ransomed by a tremendous sacrifice. 

As we mentioned, it is not the blood or meat that reaches Allah SWT.  He is not some pagan deity who requires blood sacrifice or some sort of feeding to do our bidding.  The ancient Aztec people believed the gods required human blood, so when their civilization came under attack by the Spanish, they stepped up the butchery of prisoners, killing their own people daily, until the temples ran with blood and human skulls were piled in mounds.  Even without the Western penchant for exaggeration, the carnage was horrific. 

22: 37. It is not their meat
Nor their blood, that reaches
God: it is your piety
That reaches Him: He
Has thus made them subject
To you, that ye may glorify
God for his guidance to you:
And proclaim the Good News
To all who do right.

Allah does require a sacrifice, but not of blood or meat.  He requires a sacrifice of ourselves, to Him and to Him alone.  He requires our surrender. He requires our witness, our acknowledgment that He is our Lord. Alaisa rabbakum? “Arent I your Lord.”  “Yes, you are our Lord.”  He provides us guidance and salvation, and we should glorify Him and be grateful for His blessings and mercy.  We show this by our submission to Allah in Islam, and the first pillar of Islam is the Shahada – the Witness.

So what is it to be a Shaheed?

2:143. Thus have We made of you
An Ummat justly balanced,
That ye might be witnesses
Over the nations,
And the Apostle a witness
Over yourselves;

The Muslims are a middle and balanced Ummah; not people of extremes, and they are the witnesses over all Mankind.  Our shahadah is not only words:  Ash-shahadu allah illaha illa llah, wa ash-shahadu anna Muhammadan ar-Rasul Allah.  It means to witness this – by telling others, by guiding others to the truth.

We need to talk to others about our deen, but we also need to live our deen, so that we become ambassadors of our faith, showing others that people can live a moral life, free of selfish behavior, injustice and misery.  This is testification.  To testify to something is to confirm its truth.

And we need to guide others to the truth, as our Rasul guided us.  We do this by Amr bi ma’aruf, wa Nahi al-munkar – commanding the right and prohibiting the wrong –

What does this mean?  It means to preach and practice morality. 

Man’s reason can lead us quite far.  After all, we are all gifted with the fitrah.  A reading of the Analects of the great Roman Emperor, Marcus Arelius, shows what truths human reason can attain.  Logic may lead us quite a ways along the path, but then what is the role of guidance that Allah SWT promises He will send us? 

A quick preview of the decisions of the American Supreme Court shows that what a people might find “moral” at one time, can change.  Should morality change?  We can brainwash ourselves into all kinds of beliefs.  And Morality is not necessarily logical.  As Allah SWT says, a thing may be good for you and you dislike it, and a thing may be bad for you and you like it.  We may not always appreciate the harm a thing can have until its too late. 

The Prophet is the witness over this Ummah – he is so, because he provides us with a model, and he is the best of models.  He provides us with a pattern, a criteria for judging right and wrong, and telling what ma’aruf and munkar are. 

While logic can tell us a lot, and even lead us to posit a god, it is faith and guidance that leads us to salvation through ethical action. 

We took this amana upon ourselves, foolishly perhaps, arrogantly even, but because we took on the amana of ethical action, we are the ones who must witness to all creation the ma’aruf and the munkar.  May Allah guide us to the truth, the ma’aruf, and save us from munkar.

 The Call to Be a Shaheed

So what is it to be a shaheed?  What is this Day of Sacrifice pointing to?  All the Prophets have been shuhadaa.  All gave their lives fi sabilli llah, in the path of Allah, the cause of surrendering to Allah, and witnessing to others the truth of this message, this Good News.

Some where killed, but not all.  Musa lived a long life and ascended into heaven.  Isa, also, ascended into heaven, and it is believed by both Muslims and Christians, that he will come again.  However, Ibrahim, AS shows us the meaning of sacrifice – this great sacrifice.  

Ibrahim's people were pagan; they worshiped idols and the stars and planets.  But Ibrahim began to have his doubts about these so called gods.  The Qur’an mentions two arguments against pagan beliefs.  First Ibrahim looks up and sees a star, and thinks, ok this is my lord – the one who provides me with all sustainance.  But the star sets.  So how could this be a lord?  Then what about the moon?  It set too.  Then how about the sun.  Many ancient civilizations worshiped the sun.  But it set.  So Ibrahim says in gratitude to Allah, if Allah SWT had not guided him to the truth, then he would be in clear error.  He submits to Allah all of himself, his obedience and relies totally on Allah.

Then Ibrahim raises an argument against idol worship.  They go out for an Eid, and he enters their temple, smashes the idols, all but one.  In the hand of the one, he puts an axe.  The people return and are shocked.  Who did this?  They get Ibrahim, since he had been talking about their idols.  He says the one idol did it.  After all, he has the axe.  The people say this cannot be so.  Its just an idol.  …  so why are you worshipping something that has no power? What foolishness is this?

For all of this, Ibrahim is willing to risk death.  They throw him into a fire.  But Allah SWT cools the fire and he survives.  He is willing to give everything to this Allah SWT who guided him and showed him the truth.

Time moves on and he has a son.  He always wanted a son.  The son was the most precious thing to him.  Now Allah asks him to give up, to sacrifice even that.  And he is immediately willing to do so.  But he also asks his son.  The son is also willing.  Both are fulling committed to Allah.  They are true shaheedain.


And Allah tells Ibrahim that he has fulfilled his vision.  Allah does not need blood or meat, he loves our taqwa – our grasping Him as the most secure handhold, our clinging to him, like a babe to a mother.  Ibrahim fulfills the vision by his willingness to sacrifice all, give all, surrender all, and express his full gratitude to Allah SWT.  That is what is a shaheed.  

The shuhadaa are those who give all  to Allah, and only they are suitable as witnesses over all humanity.  It is a serious commitment, to leave behind our egos, our comforts, all that we think we are, and fully obey Allah, no excuses, no justifications, no loopholes.  

This Eid al Adha many will sacrifice an animal.  And we will share this great day of ransom with all who have been the guests of Allah on Hajj.   But for the hajjis there is no Eid really.  It is more a day to remember that ancient covenant between man and Allah, and to renew that commitment ourselves.  The same should be true for us all.  

Remember when he said to you “Am I not your Lord.” And you responded, ‘Yes, indeed you are our Lord.”  

Labbayyak Allahumma Labbayyak, labbayyak la sharika laka labbayyak. Inna al hamdu, wa ni’amata, laka ul mulk la sharika lak.

Hajj: The Journey To Allah

Al-Hajj 22:26 And (remember) when We prepared for Abraham the place of the (holy) House, saying: Ascribe thou no thing as partner unto Me, and purify My House for those who make the round (thereof) and those who stand and those who bow and make prostration.

27 And proclaim unto mankind the pilgrimage. They will come unto thee on foot and on every lean camel; they will come from every deep ravine,

28 That they may witness things that are of benefit to them, and mention the name of Allah on appointed days over the beast of cattle that He hath bestowed upon them. Then eat thereof and feed therewith the poor unfortunate.

29 Then let them compete their proscribed rites and pay their vows and go around the ancient House.

Proclaim unto mankind the hajj, the pilgrimage!  In this ayaat from Surah al Hajj, Allah SWT commands us to call unto all mankind this Hajj, this pilgrimage to Allah.

22:34. To every people did We
Appoint rites (of sacrifice),
That they might celebrate
The name of God over
The sustenance He gave them
From animals (fit for food).
But your god is One God:
Submit then your wills to him
(In Islām): and give thou
The good news to those
Who humble themselves,—

Truly every religion has a pilgrimage, a sacred journey.  In Hinduism it is the yearly Kumb Mela.  In Buddhism, it is the journey to Bodh Gaya, where the Buddha attained enlightenment. In Shinto, the religion of Japan, it is a climb up Mount Fujiyama. In Judaism, it is a journey to Jerusalem.  In Christianity, there are many pilgrimages, including to Jerusalem, Rome and in England, to Canterbury. 

Pilgrimages are sacred journeys; they follow a physical path, but also involve a journey of the heart.  They mirror our journey in this life, from birth to death, and beyond.  In the classic of English literature, the Canterbury Tales, a group of people set off on the English pilgrimage.  Along the way, they share their stories and thereby learn about themselves. 

I have made some of these pilgrimages myself; to Varanasi, to Bodh Gaya, to Rome.  The pilgrimage lies in the journey.  In India, some people literally crawl to these sites.  Once they get there, they say a few prayers and go home.  Mission accomplished. 

I have also made the Hajj.  Ma’ashallah.  It is a profoundly different experience, calling upon all it is to be human.  If we fully appreciated its benefits, we would wish to make it every year, not just once in a life time.

In the past, the Hajj was a great journey. Ibn Batatuta, the famous traveler, set out from Morocco to make his Hajj.  It took him over a year to reach Arabia, and then he traveled around waiting for the next Hajj season because by the time he arrived there it was to late to catch that year’s Hajj. 

This shows us one of the most unique features of the Hajj.  Even today, with the ease of travel, our Hajj is still the same.  This is because it does not really begin until we arrive.  Other pilgrimages end when we get there.  Ours begins when we get there.  And only our Hajj is communal.  Others may involve gatherings, such as Kumb Mela, but only Hajj has elements that are individual and communal. 

We come together, as individuals, on the Plain of Arafat.  We pray as individuals or in small groups, and our numbers grow over the course of the day.

The Prophet is reported to have said, Hajj is Arafat.  It is this great gathering of people, coming together, praying and remembering Allah, just like the Day of Judgment.  We will be gathered then too.  Just as we were once gathered before Allah when He asked us, “am I not your Lord?”  and we replied, “Yes you are our Lord.” 

And then the sun sets… and we pour forth all together, one great mass of humanity …setting off in one direction, one destination.  We sleep beneath the stars in Muzdalifah.  The earth below us, the sky above, and nothing between us and our Lord.  Then we wake to reject the Shaytan and his evil whisperings.  We sincerely seek to make all of his efforts to destroy us and lead us astray, vain and fruitless.  And then after a sacrifice, we return home to circle the ancient house, to model of the one we left behind in Jennah, the Bait al Ma’mur. 

Yes we were gathered before Allah once before.  And them we poured forth into this dunya.  And we spend a lifetime on this battle ground, fighting Shaytan and sacrificing all we have, all we are, to show our surrender to the one who created us, our Allah SWT.  After our own deaths, we will return home.  We will circle the ancient house. 

And as we circle that house, our sins unwind from us.  We pray for a Hajj mabrur, an accepted Hajj, where all of our myriad sins are lifted from us and we receive His forgiveness.  That amazing gift …forgiveness…

22: 35. To those whose hearts,
When God is mentioned,
Are filled with fear,
Who show patient perseverance
Over their afflictions, keep up
Regular prayer, and spend
(In charity) out of what
We have bestowed upon them.

Herein lies the essence of our deen.  Good news to those in whose hearts Allah is remembered, and whose hearts fill up with love and awe of Allah.  They are patient in all types of afflictions, for they trust Allah and they know that in the end, they will be in peace.  And they establish salaat and spend out of the risq that Allah has bestowed upon them.  

 22:36. The sacrificial camels
We have made for you
As among the symbols from
God: in them is (much)
Good for you: then pronounce
The name of God over them
As they line up (for sacrifice):
When they are down
On their sides (after slaughter),
Eat ye thereof, and feed
Such as (beg not but)
Live in contentment,
And such as beg
With due humility: thus have
We made animals subject
To you, that ye
May be grateful.

People often wonder at this sacrifice of animals in this day and age.  Many may look at it as an ancient custom, not suitable for today. 
Consider its roots.  We all know the story of Abraham and his son.  Abraham saw in a dream that he sacrificed his son to Allah.  For Abraham, this was a thing more dear even than his own life.  

 Al- Saffat 37: 102. Then, when (the son)
Reached (the age of)
(Serious) work with him,
He said: "O my son
I see in vision
That I offer thee in sacrifice:
Now see what is
Thy view!" (The son) said:
"O my father! Do
As thou art commanded:
Thou will find me,
If God so wills one
Practising Patience and Constancy!"
103. So when they had both
Submitted their wills (to God),
And he had laid him
Prostrate on his forehead
(For sacrifice),

  

 104 We called unto him: O Abraham!

105 Thou hast already fulfilled the vision. Lo! thus do We reward the good.

106 Lo! that verily was a clear test.

107 Then We ransomed him with a tremendous sacrifice.

Abraham and his son were tested, and both submitted their wills to Allah.  Allah SWT tells Abraham, you have fulfilled the vision, you have passed to test.  Then “fadainaahu” – although this word has been translated as “ransomed” following the Bible’s account of this event, this is not the best translation.  Coming from the same root as dain, or deen, it indicated a covenant, an agreement – in this case the fulfillment of the deal on the part of both parties to the contract.  And it says, Allah fulfilled to contract – fadainaahu – We fulfilled to with a tremendous sacrifice. 
From this some have posited the concept of blood atonement.  They say that in order to forgive sin, God requires a blood sacrifice.  In some forms of Christianity, this concept is essential and justifies belief in the sacrifice of Jesus AS upon a cross.  But in Surah al Hajj, Allah says:

22: 37. It is not their meat
Nor their blood, that reaches
God: it is your piety
That reaches Him: He
Has thus made them subject
To you, that ye may glorify
God for his guidance to you:
And proclaim the Good News
To all who do right.

Allah SWT does not need blood or meat.  He needs nothing from us really.  It is we who need Him.  Our sacrifice on the Hajj, Abraham’s sacrifice so long ago, reveals our degree of taqwa and provides us a tangible way to glorify Allah SWT and thank Him for His guidance.  If He did not guide us, we would be forever lost, wandering in the desert, like Hagar running from hill to hill, seeking the water of life.  But Allah has given us guidance, and so we show our gratitude to Him.  


22:34. To every people did We
Appoint rites (of sacrifice),
That they might celebrate
The name of God over
The sustenance He gave them
From animals (fit for food).
But your god is One God:
Submit then your wills to him
(In Islām): and give thou
The good news to those
Who humble themselves,—

Deen al-Qayyim: The Aboriginal Religion of Mankind

 TO EVERY PEOPLE WE HAVE APPOINTED RITES

Allah SWT says in the Qur’an a;-Hakim

22:67. To every People have We
Appointed rites and ceremonies
Which they must follow:
Let them not then dispute
With thee on the matter,
But do thou invite (them)
To thy Lord: for thou art
Assuredly on the Right Way.

68. If they do wrangle with thee,
Say, "God knows best
What it is ye are doing."

69. "God will judge between you
On the Day of Judgment
Concerning the matters in which
Ye differ."

In these ayaat from Surah al-Hajj, we learn a very important concept – religious tolerance.  Many acts of aggression of man upon man have been justified through religion.  We have used the fact that our beliefs differ from those of another group to whip up anger and hate, and manufacture a reason to kill the other group.  But Allah SWT has made it clear to us through revelation that killing others for other than murder or hirabah is haram. 

5:32.  On that account: We ordained
For the Children of Israel
That if any one slew
A person—unless it be
For murder or for spreading
Mischief in the land—
It would be as if
He slew the whole people:
And if any one saved a life,
It would be as if he saved
The life of the whole people.
Then although there came
To them Our Apostles
With Clear Signs, yet,
Even after that, many
Of them continued to commit
Excesses in the land.

This is not to say that Islam advocated passivity.  Islam recognizes that there are times when one must respond to aggression by repelling it with equal aggression.

22:39. To those against whom
dhulm is made, permission
Is given (to fight), because
They are wronged;—and verily,
God is most Powerful
For their aid;—

40. (They are) those who have
Been expelled from their homes
In defiance of right,
(For no cause) except
That they say," Lord
Is God". Did not God
Check one set of people
By means of another,
There would surely have been
Pulled down monasteries, churches,
Synagogues, and mosques, in which
The name of God is commemorated
In abundant measure. God will
Certainly aid those who
Aid His (cause);—for verily
God is Full of Strength,
Exalted in Might,
(Able to enforce His Will).

Allah SWT teaches us several things in these ayaat.  First, war and fighting is haram.  It is absolutely haram, unless under the conditions in which Allah SWT has granted us permission to fight back.  The first criteria is that fighting is only permitted in response to dhulm – oppression.  In the previous ayat we learned that includes murder , which is the killing of another individual, as well as hirabah, which is killing perpetrated by one group against another.  This includes tribal warfare, and today, gang violence, and also nation against nation.

Moreover, expelling others from their homes, their land, their “dar” or dwelling place, is haram, and it is even more of a sin when a tyrant does so only because of the beliefs of the displaced group.  But notice also that Allah SWT does not justify aggression simply because one is expelled, but only when the displacement is due to the beliefs of the people – especially the belief in the One God, Allah SWT. 

Freedom of belief is essential in Islam.  La Ikraha fi Deen.  If we are not free to choose to obey Allah, then our worship has no real value.  It has not depth or reality.  The greatness of man is his ability to voluntarily turn to Allah and worship Him.  If we are forced, then what is the point.  Allah SWT tells the angels, “I know what you do not.”  He know that despite not being able to see Him, despite all the attractions of this life, hayat al duniyyah, we can believe in Him and turn to Him freely.  Think of how amazing that is.  Can you imagine a creature like us being able to overcome the testimony of our limited senses, and foregoing the apparent pleasures of this immediate life, to accept the dominion of a being we cannot have any certainty regarding His existence, but whom we are capable of loving, freely serving and obeying.  All this on trust… on faith. 

But out of that is our greatness.  And from that initial free act, Allah SWT gives us many rewards in this life and the next, and reveals His Ayaat to us in this life and in the next we will perceive Him even more clearly. 

Allah SWT teaches us why He has given us permission to fight.  He tells us that if He did not then dhulm would overwhelm the earth and places of worship, including those of all faiths, would be destroyed.  The forces of oppression despise all faith, because faith calls us to love and unity, and condemns all aggression and hate.  Any faith is dangerous for dhulm, for all faiths cry out against oppression.  This tempts some tyrants to hijack religion to serve their own purposes.  They understand its power, and they distort teachings to try to portray the other side they want to fight as the oppressors, the kafirs etc etc. 

Many had great hope in non-violent resistance to dhulm.  Gandhi inspired many, as did Dr. King.  But non-violence only works if the other side has a conscience.  Recently, the Dalai Lama, a great proponent of non-violence, stated that, unfortunately, aggression is necessary in certain situations if to continue to allow the dhulm to persist would only lead to more and more killing and only an aggressive response would stop further death.  In doing so, he reprises the words of Allah that without this permission, many places in which the name of Allah is remembered would be destroyed. 

So Islam calls us to religious toleration, because all mankind must be free to find a relationship with Allah.  In Surah al-Hajj, He reminds us that He has appointed rites and beliefs for all.  He sent prophets before our Rasul.  We only know some of their names.  The important point is not to wrangle about what we believe.  We must respect one another.  It is Allah SWT that will determine the truth of the matter between us.   So we should never fight over beliefs.  We should respect others and discuss things calmly and politely, and leave judgment to Allah. 

3:64. Say: "O People
Of the Book! come
To common terms
As between us and you:
That we worship
None but God;
That we associate
No partners with Him;
That we erect not,
From among ourselves,
Lords and patrons
Other than God."
If then they turn back,
Say ye: "Bear witness
That we (at least)
Are Muslims (bowing
To God's Will)."

3:66 Ah! Ye are those
Who fell to disputing
(Even) in matters of which
Ye had some knowledge!
But why dispute ye
In matters of which
Ye have no knowledge?
It is God Who knows,
And ye who know not!

 THE ISLAMIC CALL TO RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE

3:72. A section of the People
Of the Book say:
"Believe in the morning
What is revealed
To the Believers,
But reject it at the end
Of the day; perchance
They may (themselves)
Turn back;

73. "And believe no one
Unless he follows
Your religion."
Say: "True guidance
Is the guidance of God:
(Fear ye) lest a revelation
Be sent to someone (else)
Like unto that which was sent
Unto you? Or that those
(Receiving such revelation)
Should engage you in argument
Before your Lord?"
Say: "All bounties
Are in the hand of God:
He granteth them
To whom He pleaseth:
And God careth for all,
And He knoweth all things."

Clearly tolerance is proscribed by the Qur’an, but we are also taught that we are on the guidance of Allah, and that Islam is our deen.  Allah SWT tells us He has perfected our deen, and we should strive against oppression until it is no more the and deen is for Allah alone.  

Two points are important in understanding this.  First, what is the Deen of Allah; the Deen al Qayyim?  Allah makes that very clear. 


2:62. Those who believe (in the Qur-ān),
And those who follow the Jewish (scriptures),
And the Christians and the Sabians,—
Any who believe in God
And the Last Day,
And work righteousness,
Shall have their reward
With their Lord: on them
Shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.

Allah repeats this ayat twice in the Qur’an, once in Surah al Baqarah and once in Surah al-Maida.  He tells us many times in the Qur’an that those who believe in Allah, and the last day and do righteous deeds will be rewarded and they will have no fear, neither will they grieve.  Despite some opinions to the contrary, these ayaat are not abrogated.  Any permission given to fight is permission to fight dhulm, to fight those who force beliefs on others, who tear down houses of worship and kill priests, rabbis, and monks, and Muslims.  Allah SWT says as to those who believe in one God, that He will deal with the ways in which we differ, and we should cling to unity in toleration of ikhtilaf. 

29:46. And dispute ye not
With the People of the Book,
Except with means better
(Than mere disputation), unless
It be with those of them
Who inflict wrong (and injury):
But say, "We believe
In the Revelation which has
Come down to us and in that
Which came down to you;
Our God and your God
Is One; and it is to Him
We bow (in Islam)."

This ayat is very clear.  Do not dispute with those who believe in one God.  We must respect their deen and they should respect ours.  We are permitted to “jidaal” or wrangle and argue with those who commit dhulm against others.  And truly, no one commits dhulm if he is a true believer.

So, Islam commands us to respect religious freedom and to respect the beliefs of others.  In a time when people are becoming increasingly unethical, it is imperative that those who seek to be ethical find a way to come together and work together to overcome oppression and hate.  The hour is late, and we need all the unity and support we can muster to show humanity the way to true happiness and success.  As the Prophet says, we must find a “just way of common assent.”  His respect for the Negus of Ethiopia, the Maqaaqqis of Egypt and the people of Najran shows that such cooperation is part of the Sunnah, part of our Deen.  

Some might see the ayat which states that we must struggle until the deen is only for Allah, is a command to fight until there is no other deen in the world.  But what is the Deen of Allah?  The deen of Allah is to believe in one Allah, in the last day, and that we are held accountable for our actions.  

AL DEEN AL QAYYIM

Every major religion holds this in some manner; this is the Deen al-Qayyim.  What we have added on, and what we often fight about, are the inventions of imagination, and not the guidance we were actually given.   

The Deen of Allah is not that we perform worship exactly the same way, even our madhaahib do not do that, but that we worship one God – what ever name we use.  And we strive to put the teachings we have been given into practice, and that we understand that some acts are evil and some good, and that we are held accountable for those acts.  If we believe this, then on us is no fear, nor shall we grieve.  Allah SWT will instruct us in the matters in which we differ.  We should never use these differences as an excuse for fitnah and fighting. 

We must all seek to follow the Deen al-Qayyim, the Aboriginal Religion of Mankind, and thereby, we will find the unity within our diversity that will enable us all to defeat our common enemy, and succeed in this life and in the next.

Egypt: Mamluks or Maliks

Al-Bukhaari, Book 41, Number 6902:

Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) many ahadith and one of them was this: The last Hour will not come until the two parties (of Muslims) confront each other and there is a large-scale massacre amongst them and the claim of both of them is the same.

Al-Bukhaari, Book 41, Number 6898:

Ahnaf b. Qais reported: I set out with the intention of helping this person (Hadrat 'Ali) that Abu Bakra met me. He said: Ahnaf, where do you intend to go? I said: I intend to help the cousin of Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), viz. 'Ali. Thereupon he said to me: Ahnaf, go back, for I heard Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: When two Muslims confront one another with swords (in hands) both the slayer and the slain would be in Fire. He (Ahnaf) said: I said, or it was said: Allah's Messenger, it may be the case of one who kills. but what about the slain (why he would be put in Hell-Fire)? Thereupon he said: He also intended to kill his companion.

Is the Arab Spring Turning into the Arab Fall?

 The Arab Spring began in Tunisia, but it was in Egypt that it showed its promise.  Where is that promise now?  What began as an amazing showing of brotherhood - Muslims, Christians, Secularists - standing together against a tyrant, has devolved into sectarian violence. We recall the scene of the Jumu'ah Prayer led by Imam al-Qaradawi in Tahrir Square.  It was truly a wonder and a hope.

What began as a proud moment has become a source of confusion and shame.  And the military, who initially showed amazing restraint and acted in a manner that no other military force has, by remaining out of the political fray, has now jumped in with a vengeance. 

Despite the sectarian bias of the hadith above of Ahnaf b. Qais, the basic message has been transmitted by others. 

al-Bukhaari, Book 41, Number 6904:

Thauban reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Allah drew the ends of the world near one another for my sake. And I have seen its eastern and western ends. And the dominion of my Unimah would reach those ends which have been drawn near me and I have been granted the red and the white treasure and I begged my Lord for my Ummah that it should not be destroyed because of famine, nor be dominated by an enemy who is not amongst them to take their lives and destroy them root and branch, and my Lord said: Muhammad, whenever I make a decision, there is none to change it. Well, I grant you for your Ummah that it would not be destroyed by famine and it would not be dominated by an enemy who would not be amongst it and would take their lives and destroy them root and branch even if all the people from the different parts of the world join hands together (for this purpose), but it would be from amongst them, viz. your Ummah, that some people would kill the others or imprison the others.

 As Muslims, we must beware of fitnah.  Fitnah Akbar Min al-Qatl.  Fitnah is worse than killing.  We are forbidden to allow strife and fitnah from destroying our basic unity.  Ikhtilaf is permissible (mubah) in Islam, but fitnah is not, it is haram.  And to kill another Muslim is the gravest of sins.  Allah SWT himself will punish this crime. 

Today, in Syria and Egypt, Muslims, or at least those who call themselves Muslims, are killing other Muslims.  How can anyone who calls themselves of those who have submitted to Allah possibly kill others who have done so.  We must consider who is really benefiting from this fitnah.

When we consider who is benefiting from the fighting, we have to realize that only our enemies are benefiting.  Our biggest enemy, Shaytan, is having a "field day."  He must be laughing at all this killing.  And those he inspires, no matter what their nationality or political affiliation, are laughing at us too. 

We have to consider who is benefiting.  Previously, the West did not want to get involved in Syria.  Now it does.  Why?  The fact that it is proven beyond a doubt that Bashaar al-Assad possesses chemical weapons worries a certain ally of the US, and that ally has a great deal of money with which to lobby the US government to act on its behalf.  When that ally was more worried about the rebels, the US did nothing, but when that ally began to fear that continued civil war would favor the Dawlat al Islami and that extremists might get the chemical weapons, the US decided to do something, which most likely will involve destroying chemical weapons stockpiles and little else. 

We have to consider who is benefiting.  In Egypt, we can also assume this same "ally" is benefiting the most from the strife.  They fear a united Egypt, especially if it has a government that is not thoroughly controlled by itself.  Obviously, an Islamic party would not be so controlled.  However, we have to acknowledge that the Muslim Brotherhood has little experience in statecraft.  How could they; they have been a banned party for most of their existence, and have not been able to gain such experience.  So they made a great many mistakes, did little, and did not clean up the corruption in Egyptian society. 

In fact, few in Egypt have administrative experience.  All but the old guard know little about statecraft, so any new party will fail, unless they are able to get the necessary experience.  The internet generation that led the Arab Spring needs to step up and learn how to serve, not just lead society.

Mamluks or Maliks

One important step is development of Islamic Shura Government.  Elsewhere, we have addressed the concept of Wilayat al Ummah - Islamic Democracy.  Some people think that Islam calls for some kind of dictatorship.  Even if they acknowledge Shura, they insist that there be one leader, and that that leader consult in shura.  But this is not the governance practiced by the Prophet SAW.  He practiced Wilayat Al Ummah.

Although Sayed Muhammad Baqir al-Sadr felt there was no evidence for the use of shura by the Prophet SAW, he has neglected certain clear events in the Seerah.  The first is the Shura at the time of the Battle of Uhud.  The Prophet SAW met with the Sahabi and discussed what to do about the army of Quraish marching toward Madina.  Some were eager to go out and meet it.  Some wanted to stay in Madina and defend it.  The Prophet SAW favored this view.  A third group suggested going out to Uhud.  This option was finally agreed upon because it satisfied the urge of those who wanted to go out, but it also satisfied those who wanted to prepare defenses for the battle and to remain near Madina to come to its defense, if necessary.  When asked later if they should have followed the Prophet's original opinion to stay in Madina, he said no.  Once a decision is made in Shura, we understand that Allah SWT will support us.  Allah SWT has said He will not allow us to agree on an error.

The second time shura was used was in the division of the booty/anfal from the Battle of Hunain.  Here, the booty was not divided until after the Seige of Taif, when the Hawazin Tribe had become Muslim.  So the Prophet SAW instructed the people to meet with their amirs and naibs and let them know if they preferred to keep either the captives or the property taken at the battle.  All but two groups said they would return the captives and keep the property.  When the two groups heard of this, one also decided to return the captives, but one held out and the Prophet SAW ransomed the captives himself. 

Finally, the Prophet SAW set up the community in Madina into Saqa'if or Saqifahs, each with an amir or naib.  This is similar to affinity groups in consensus governance.  In fact, Shura is consensus governance.  Some have translated Shura as consultation, but consensus is a better translation.  Consensus is not unanimity or ijma.  Consensus means that everyone 'can live with' the decision, even if they would prefer something else, just like the decision to go out to Uhud. 

It is clear this is the method of governance preferred by our Rasul.  Amirate is for ghazawat, not for the governance of the ummah.  We encourage our brothers in Egypt to adopt this Wilayat al Ummah.  One of the greatest strengths of shura government is that all voices get a seat at the table, and all parties have a stake.  Studies have shown that people are more likely to fulfill mediated agreements rather than obeying judicial decrees.  This is because they must work to come to mediated agreements, and so feel they have a stake in the outcome.  They take ownership of the agreement and want to fulfill it.  Shura government creates the same effect.  But it does require work.  The one problem with dictators is that it produces a lazy populace.  People cannot be lazy and depend on others to govern them. 

For too long, the Arabs have been ruled by "mamluks."  It's time to be "maliks" again.

We pray to Allah SWT to guide us all and to prevent us from fitnah and killing.  We pray to Allah SWT to guide us to the best




 

---

Atheism: Is it a Rational Belief?

Allah SWT says in the Qur’an a;-Hakim

Allahu as-Samad  (Al-Ikhlas:2)

Allah is the Self-sufficient upon which all depends.

 

Francis Bacon said in his essay “Of Atheism.” 

  “I had rather believe all the fables in the Legend, and the Talmud, and the Alcoran, than that this universal frame is without a mind. And therefore, God never wrought miracle, to convince atheism, because his ordinary works convince it. It is true, that a little philosophy inclineth man's mind to atheism; but depth in philosophy bringeth men's minds about to religion. For while the mind of man looketh upon second causes scattered, it may sometimes rest in them, and go no further; but when it beholdeth the chain of them, confederate and linked together, it must needs fly to Providence and Deity... For it is a thousand times more credible, that four mutable elements, and one immutable fifth essence, duly and eternally placed, need no God, than that an army of infinite small portions, or seeds unplaced, should have produced this order and beauty, without a divine marshal.”

Rationales for not believing in any supernatural deity include the lack of empirical evidence, the problem of evil, the argument from inconsistent revelations, and the argument from nonbelief.

The Qur’an answers the first argument by saying: 

41:53. We will show them
Our Signs in the (furthest)
Regions (of the earth), and
In their own souls, until
It becomes manifest to them
That this is the Truth.
Is it not enough that
Thy Lord doth witness
All things?

He also says:

50: 6. Do they not look
At the sky above them?—
How We have made it
And adorned it,
And there are no
Flaws in it?

And in Surah al-Ghashiyah:

   

88:17 Will they not regard the camels, how they are created ?

18 And the heaven, how it is raised ?

19 And the hills, how they are set up ?

20 And the earth, how it is spread ?

So Allah SWT tells us that His signs are in his Creation.  His Creation is empirical evidence of His existence.  As Francis Bacon says, “God never wrought miracle, to convince atheism, because his ordinary works convince it.”  In other words, Allah does need to provide some amazing, miraculous proofs, His entire Creation and the existence of that Creation is miraculous enough, and is enough of an inductive proof.

Many may think there is no empirical evidence for the existence of Allah.  What are they looking for?  Do they expect some big guy on a throne who cooked up this universe on a stove?  The purveyors of the religion of science state that their view is superior to religion and that religion is mere superstition.  They base this stance on the concept of falsefiability – meaning that any theory must not only be provable, but also disprovable.  There must be a set of conditions that if present, would prove that the theory is not correct.  For example, the theory of gravity would be false is things did not fall down when dropped.

Sciencians – those that “believe” in science – claim that the belief in Allah held by religious people does not allow for falsefiability.  However, it does not detail what would be necessary to prove Allah’s existence either. 

Part of the problem is that religious people have generally used deductive proofs to prove Allah’s existence.  These proofs all have philosophical problems.  They are generally circular because the very definition of God assumes He exists.  So you end up proving Allah exists by assuming He exists. 

However Allah has used an inductive proof to prove His own Presence.  He calls upon us the look at His Ayaat or sign in the universe.  His evidence is everywhere around us. 

Francis Bacon remarks:  “For while the mind of man looketh upon second causes scattered, it may sometimes rest in them, and go no further; but when it beholdeth the chain of them, confederate and linked together, it must needs fly to Providence and Deity.”  What he is noting is that if we look at the things around us as individual objects in isolation, we might go no further and not notice the connections between things and between those things and their Creator.  But if we look at the whole picture, how can we miss the evidence of Allah?  We would have to be blind no to do so.

Consider fractal geometry – the amazing and repeated patterns created by non-linear equations and strange attractors in chaos theory.  Why would such patterns exist, if as Bacon notes, there was no mind behind, no source of those patterns.  How can whirling electrons and protons create such patterns?

This is an interesting question.  Sayid Muhammad Baqir al Sadr, in his book Falsafatuna, also notes this.  He holds, just as materialists and atheists, that there is one substance from which all things in this universe are formed, but if that is the case, then how can those things exhibit differences.  How can things made from the same clay exhibit the vast varieties of color, taste, texture, shape, movement, and every other attribute and characteristic we observe – empirically.  Have you ever molded clay?  We used to mold figures with "Playdough" when I was a kid.  If you took blue "Playdough" and molded into a cat or car, they might look a bit different as to shape, but both were blue, and had the same texture, smell, and every other quality.  In noting this problem of the underlying uniformity of the substance of the universe, Sayid al-Sadr has devised a wonderful proof for the actuality of Allah. Allah SWT must be actual because all of these diverse attributes are actual.  Again, Allah is proven by the signs of His presence in His Ayaat, found in our universe.

As for arguments that Allah does not exist due to inconsistencies in revelation or that non-belief is possible; these arguments are hardly to be taken serious upon reflection.  The Qur’an notes that inconsistencies might result in doubt about revelation:

4:82. Do they not consider
The Qur-ān (with care)?
Had it been from other
Than God, they would surely
Have found therein
Much discrepancy.

While discrepancies might call a so-called revelation into question in regards to it being a revelation, does it really call the existence of Allah into question?  Isn’t it more likely that it was not revelation to begin with, or that it was altered in some way, either mistakenly or intentionally?

The argument from unbelief holds that God does not exist because it is possible for people to believe that He does not exist.  I do not believe that unicorns exist, but it does not mean that it is impossible that they do exist.  Moreover, we have free will, so we are free to believe or not believe.  The argument simply fails.

Finally, we come to the philosophical problem of evil.  It is a question every religion must answer.  If Allah is good, why is there evil.  We have dealt with this issue in the past, but to remind ourselves; Allah actually answers this in Surah al-Qahf.  In that Surah, Allah SWT recounts the story of Musa and one of Allah’s servants, often referred to as Khidr.  Khidr scuttles a ship and kills a boy.  Musa is horrified.  From a legal standpoint, from Shariah, these are haram acts.  But later Khidr explains that he scuttled the ship to save the people from being captured by pirates.  The people in the ship survived and could swim to safety.  So an apparent evil is turned by Allah SWT into good.  The same is true of the boy.  His parents would have suffered if he had grown up and sinned.  Instead, they will have a new child, and the boy himself is saved from hell by dying before he ever sinned as an adult.  Musa AS was looking at the Shariah – the law and the rules of society that make life together possible, which Allah has revealed to us through revelation or wahy; Khidr was looking at the big picture – the ultimate result – which is always good because Allah is Good. 

Allah tells us in the Qur’an, that He controls the ultimate result.  His Qada and Qadar means He has the ultimate Dominion and Control and He can turn the evil deeds of rebellious men into vain acts, in the end, and the bad deeds of believers into good.

47:1 Those who disbelieve and turn (men) from the way of Allah, He rendereth their actions vain.

2 And those who believe and do good works and believe in that which is revealed unto Muhammad - and it is the truth from their Lord - He riddeth them of their ill-deeds and improveth their state.

May Allah SWT forgive us all our sins and turn them to good deeds in our account.