The Humble "I"

Muslims, Musings, Modernity

23 May 2013
9 Comments

Terrorism is to Jihad as Adultery is to Marriage

terror

For the past four days I had been working on the following article, which I intended to post yesterday evening. However, I then heard about the vile and sadistic act of violence carried out by two men with knives and a meat cleaver in Woolwich. So I thought it best to review the blog post in light of the event, to see if I should develop it in any way. But barring a few edits here and there, I am posting the article more or less as it was originally written.

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This is a brief overview of what Islam has to say about jihad, terrorism and the sanctity of human life. It bases itself, not on the need to please policy makers or the powers to be, nor on a colonialised mindset desperate to fit Islam into some acceptable liberal mould, but upon the texts of the Qur’an and the Sunnah, and the consensus (ijma‘) and considerations of mainstream Muslim jurists.

On a personal note, combating terrorism, and its ideological underpinnings, has long been a significant part of my da‘wah or outreach programme; and all praise is for God. It was animated long before the events of 9-11 or 7-7; since 1992 in fact, when a few of my teachers in shari‘ah alerted me to its realities, dangers and its unIslamic character. What follows is, as stated earlier, a brief trek across some of that terrain:

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1. The first thing to mention in this regards is Islam’s outlook concerning the sanctity (hurmah) of human life. For as Islam views it, the human creature is indeed a sacred creation; so much so that: Whoever kills a person for other than crimes of manslaughter or corruption in the earth, it shall be as if he has killed the whole of humanity; and whosoever saves the life of one person, it shall be as if he has saved the whole of humanity. [5:32] Such, then, is the extraordinary value placed on human life in the Qur’an. And thus, as will be shown, acts of terror where women, children and other civilians are intentionally targeted and killed is categorically repudiated by Islam and by the agreement of those versed in law and learning among the Muslims.

2. Jihad as a word stems from jahada, which means: to strive, to exert oneself, to take extraordinary pains. As for its religious sense, al-Raghib al-Asbahani (d.425H/1034CE) defines it thus: ‘Exerting one’s utmost ability in repelling an enemy, and it is of three kinds: namely, contending against the outward enemy, the devil, and one’s ego. Each of these enters into God’s statement, exalted is He: And strive for God as He rightly must be striven for. [22:78] And strive with your wealth and your lives in the cause of God. [9:41] Also: Those who believed and left their homes and strove with their wealth and their lives in the cause of God. [8:72]‘1

3. In Islam, the decision about war and peace is not left to scholars, soldiers, or anyone else. Rather it rests with the head of state who wields executive authority. This being a cardinal rule of warfare in Islam. Ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi (d.620H/1223CE) explains the rule like so: ‘The question of declaring war [or not] is entrusted to the head of state and his decision (amr al-jihad mawkulun ila’l-imam wa ijtihadihi). Compliance with the decision is the subject’s duty in terms of what the authorities deem fit in the matter.’2 Al-Buhuti (1051H/1641CE) echoes the principle: ‘Declaring jihad or not is entrusted to the head of state and his decision, for he best knows the condition of the Muslims and of the enemy.’3

4. The classical Islamic doctrine that forbids killing non-combatants and civilians in an outward (military) jihad takes its cue from the Prophet’s words, peace be upon him: ‘March forth in the name of God, trusting in God and adhering to the religion of God. Do not kill elderly men, infants, young children or women.’4 And Ibn ‘Umar relates that the Prophet, peace be upon him, ‘forbade the killing of women and children.’5

5. After quoting the last hadith, Imam al-Nawawi (d.676H/1277CE) typified the juristic consensus on the issue when he said: ‘Scholars concur upon acting by this hadith and forbid the killing of women and children, provided that they do not engage in combat. But if they do, the overwhelming majority of scholars (jamahir al-‘ulema) hold that they may be fought.’6 Ibn Qudamah, explaining the logic behind the consensus against not fighting women, the elderly, children, monks or traders, writes that each of these ‘are non-combatants (laysa min ahl al-qital).’7 Again, he states: ‘It is not permissible to kill a child among them, nor the insane, nor a woman, monk, elderly man, someone with a debilitating illness, and nor a blind man – except if they fight.’8

6. Thus, as has been shown, the intentional targeting and killing of civilians, which a fringe minority now seek to pass off as a bonafide jihad, is a gross departure from the classical juristic consensus and a perversion of the prophetic teachings. The wanton carnage and urban mayhem unleashed upon civilian lives, and the twisted re-readings of Islam’s scriptural sources by the current vanguards of terrorism, must continue to be denounced, repudiated and textually exposed. In unmasking terrorism (hiraba) for what it truly is, it has been aptly contended that: ‘Terrorism is to jihad what adultery is to marriage.’9 The Qur’an says: ‘What! Have you slain an innocent soul though he has killed nobody? Truly you have done a thing most foul.’ [18:73]

7. One argument extremists use to justify their acts of terror is to allege that civilians living in a democracy aren’t innocent at all. Their logic runs like this: In a democracy the government represents the will of the people, therefore civilian populations are complicit in their government’s foreign policies and are thus legitimate targets in war. This allegation is as false as it is factually distorted. What this reductionist everyone’s-guilty-in-a-democracy argument ignores or overlooks is that large swathes of citizens in a democracy may not agree with their government’s foreign policies, or even have voted them into power! So how can such citizens be complicit in their government’s actions? The anti-war demonstrations and protests against the Iraq war, for instance, which scores of millions of ordinary citizens across Western Europe and the United States rallied behind, is enough to show the fallacy of such logic. Moreover, as we shall see below, the shari‘ah still considers such people as not being min ahl al-qital – “actual combatants”.

8. A more direct rebuttal of this twisted logic would be to look at the context in which the Prophet, peace be upon him, prohibited the killing of women, children and other civilians in war. This injunction was given when the Prophet, peace be upon him, and the early Muslims were in the midst of war with the pagan Arabs of Makkah, whose goal was no less than the extermination of Muslims. The Makkan idolators were a tightly–knit confederacy whose tribal elders would make decisions collectively at their tribal councils. The average person in such a society had far greater access to their elders and leaders and far more influence on policies than any citizen in today’s Western democracies. In fact, it was not uncommon for women (either married or related to tribal leaders, or those with social influence) to pressurise, cajole and even threaten their husbands into war with the Muslims, on pain of family disgrace and tribal ignominy, if they did not do so. During the battle of Uhud, women, led by Hind, even went out onto the battlefield to lend moral support to the aggressors. In spite of knowing all this, the Prophet, peace be upon him, still insisted: ‘Do not kill elderly men, young children, or women.’10 And when he once saw a woman that had been killed, he said: ‘This is not one who should have been fought.’11

9. Another proof used to justify the killing of civilians is a hadith in which the Prophet was asked about some of the idolators whose settlements had been attacked at night and which resulted in a few women and children being killed. This led him to say: ‘They are from them (hum minhum).’12 There are two reasons why this hadith cannot be used in this manner: Firstly, a large body of jurists consider the hadith to have been abrogated by the explicit command to ‘not kill civilians in war.’13 Secondly, jurists who do permit night raids that could result in civilian loss clearly state: ‘This is provided they [women, children and other non-combatants] are not deliberately targeted.’14 It is also interesting that a leading jurist of early Islam, as well as the actual sub-narrator of this hadith, Imam al-Zuhri, would qualify the above hadith by immediately relating the hadith which forbids killing civilians. Thus: ‘Whenever al-Zuhri related this hadith, he would say: “Ka‘b b. Malik’s son narrated to me; from his uncle … that the Prophet, peace be upon him, forbade the killing of women and children.”’15

10. Another aspect of the shari‘ah which bears on the subject, but which has also come under extremism’s aberrant re-readings, is the notion of ‘aqd al-aman – “the covenant of security”. What this implies is that  Muslims residing, for instance, in a non-Muslim land – either native born, naturalised or legal resident – are under an explicit pact or contract which renders all non-Muslim life, property and honour sacrosanct. That is, Muslim citizens of non-Muslim countries cannot engage in acts of aggression against their own state of fellow citizens. Ibn Qudamah said: ‘As for treachery towards them, this is expressly forbidden. For they only granted him security on condition that he not betray them and that they be safe from his harm. If this is not stipulated in explicit terms, it is implicitly implied. …This being so, it is unlawful for us to be treacherous to them, since this is betrayal; and our religion has no place for betrayal. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “The Muslims fulfil their contracts.”16‘17

11. It isn’t possible to stress enough how seriously orthodox Islam takes the obligation to honour contracts and covenants, or how unlawful it is for a Muslim who lives or resides in a land to then attack it or its citizens. What should also be appreciated is that a Muslim may even hold the following opinion with no internal contradiction with the above ten points: that America and Britain are waging wars of aggression in the Middle East; however, Muslims who are under a pledge of security may not attack their country, nor its soldiers, nor any of its citizens. One hadith has this threat of humiliation and ignominy: ‘For every person who betrays a covenant will have a flag at his back on the Day of Judgement, which will be raised according to the level of his treachery.’18 

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To conclude: the chorus of condemnation from Islam’s textual sources and religious authorities, against acts of terror, must continue to ring out urgently and loudly. If we wish to be dissenting voices on any issue of domestic or foreign policy, we must find legitimate ways within the democratic process to voice such dissent.

It is to their credit that Muslim scholars, despite differences between them on a whole array of theological and legal issues, have come out so unanimously against terrorism. What we also ask of them is to continue to strive to expose and eradicate the deviant notions and assumptions that underpin it. Our governments (British and American) also have a responsibility to act. For they can drain much of the extremists’ anger by securing a fair resolution to the Palestinian problem, closing Guantanamo Bay prison, and enacting just foreign policies. It is for the Muslim scholars, however, to vanquish the twisted fiqh-cum-theology of the terrorists.

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1. Mufradat Alfaz al-Qur’an (Damascus: Dar al-Qalam, 2002), 208.

2. Al-Mughni (Saudi Arabia: Dar al-‘Alam al-Kutub, 1999), 13:11.

3. Kashshaf al-Qina‘ (Riyadh: Maktabah al-Nasr al-Hadithah, n.d.), 3:41.

4. Abu Dawud, Sunan, no.2614.

5. Al-Bukhari, no.3015; Muslim, no.1744.

6. Sharh Sahih Muslim (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, 1995), 12:43.

7. Al-Mughni, 13:178.

8. ‘Umdat al-Fiqh (Riyadh: Dar al-Mayman, 2009), 220.

9. Abdal Hakim Murad, Contentions, 5/7, at http://www.masud.co.uk

10. Abu Dawud, no.2614.

11. Abu Dawud, no.2669; Ibn Majah, no.2842.

12. Al-Bukhari, no.3012.

13. See: Ibn Hajr al-‘Asqalani, Fath al-Bari Sharh Sahih al-Bukhari (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘ilmiyyah, 1989), 6:182.

14. As per the classical Hanbali jurist, al-Buhuti, Kashshaf al-Qina‘, 3:47-8.

15. Cited in Fath al-Bari, 6:182. I am grateful to Muhammad Nizami for pointing out this report to me.

16. Al-Tirmidhi, no.1352.

17. Al-Mughni, 13:152.

18. Muslim, no.1738.

Posted in ethics, politics, religion, society, theology and tagged , , , , , , , , ,
18 May 2013
9 Comments

The Moth, The Light, The Hunger for God

moth-to-solar-flamePoetry, it is said, is ‘the spontaneous overflow of powerful meanings’. The following poem is no exception. The poet speaks of a love beyond earthly love; and a yearning for what may soothe our sorrows. Though not at all religious, believers may see in the poet’s words powerful symbols of religious sentiment: seekers, yearning, and a love sublimer than any other love – the heart longing to be in the presence of God.

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In his 1822 poem titled One Word is Too Often Profaned, the English poet, Percy Shelley, wrote:

I can give not what men call love;
But wilt thou accept not
The worship the heart lifts above
And the Heaven’s reject not:
The desire of the moth for the star,
Of the night for the morrow,
The devotion of something afar
From the sphere of our sorrow?

Poetry such as this often presents us with powerful imagery which can help us to reflect upon the theme of “Meaning”. For ‘In some poetry,’ the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said, ‘there is wisdom.’

Shelley sees in the moth’s desire for the star a poignant symbol of the heart yearning for something which is profound, compelling, sustains hope and soothes us from our immediate sphere of sorrow. Now for reasons we don’t fully understand, moths have a tendency – an innate, inborn nature – to be attracted to light. Starlight and moonlight attracts moths; so do candlelight and floodlights. But there is something of a problem for moths. A candlelight at night will attract moths, but they end up being consumed in its flame. Floodlights on a football pitch attracts moths, but will vaporise them on first contact. The innate longing of a moth for light, if it is the wrong source of light, can lead to its own destruction.

There is a parallel here with the human situation. Man, too, has a deep yearning for what will truly satisfy him – and that longing Islam tells us is for God. In the Qur’an, one of God’s Beautiful Names is al-Kafi – “The Sufficer”, “The One who satisfies all needs”. It follows, then, that whenever we turn our backs on the Sufficer, we shall continue to remain unsatisfied and unfulfilled.

Another of God’s Names is al-Nur – “The Light”, for God is the light of the heavens and the earth, says the Qur’an [24:35]. Muslims hold that creation is a theophany (tajalli), a manifestation, of the Divine Names. If God were not light, there will be no light anywhere in creation: neither physical nor spiritual.

As human beings, we have an innate hunger for God’s light – for God – and in the absence of that light there is only an unfulfilled restlessness within us. Like the moth attracted to harmful sources of light, we too can misdirect our hopes and our longings to things that may harm us, as they fail to deliver what we had expected. The objects of our desires have a marked tendency to frustrate us in that everything we hoped would bring meaning into our lives ends up disappointing us. A most obvious point in case is our current materialistic culture with its many quick-fixes and promises of fulfilment.

Indeed, such longing for God can even be subverted or perverted, in that one could end-up making a ‘god’ out of created beings or forces. For whenever the love, longing, devotion, loyalty and submission that is due to God, is focused on other than Him, or others along with Him, then this is idolatry – shirk. For as Islam sees things, whoever loves something, desires it, values it, and centres their hopes; fears; love and loyalty around it – submitting to it independently of God – then this, for them, is a deity, a god, an object of sacrilegious worship. Some there are who make a god of wealth, others make gods of women, still others make a god of their own whims and desires. Asks the Qur’an: Have you seen him who takes his whims for his god? [25:43]

Of course we have!

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Posted in poetry, religion, spirituality and tagged , , , ,
11 May 2013
3 Comments

Beacons along the Path

5004887deb62fc678e34b4215bb2713d-d5jqeckThe Prophet, peace be upon him, once said: kun fi’l-dunya ka’annaka gharibun aw ‘abiru sabil – ‘Be in this world as if you were a stranger or traveller.’ [Al-Bukhari, no.6416] Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali began his commentary to this hadith by stating: ‘This hadith forms the basis for having brief hopes (qisar al-amal) in terms of this worldly life and that the believer ought not to take the world as his permanent abode or residence, or grow too comfortable in it. Instead, he should live in it as though he were ready to depart for a journey, preparing his provisions for it.

The counsels of the prophets and their followers are in absolute agreement about this. God, exalted is He, relates that one of the believers amongst the courtiers of Pharaoh said: ‘O my people! The life of this world is nothing but a passing comfort; and the Hereafter, that is the ever-lasting abode.’ [40:39]‘1

Among those deeds that help one to traverse the bridge from this dar al-fana’ - “abode of extinction and impermanence,” to the dar al-baqa’ - “the abode of permanence and eternity,” and which act as milestones and beacons along the path, are:

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1. Venerating the Symbols of God: The Qur’an says: Whoever reveres the symbols of God, that is from piety of hearts. [22:32] Symbols (sha‘a’ir) refers to signs, marks and emblems by which something is known to belong to some particular body or group of people. Flags, for instance, are sha‘a’ir; as are religious rites that are emblematic of, or specific to certain religious communities. Here, the symbols of God refer to those well-known, external commands and prohibitions that are emblematic of Islam: the prayer, adhan, fasting, pilgrimage rites, the prohibition of pork or drinking intoxicants, etc. Revering and venerating God’s symbols shows veneration for the One who sent them; and this is from piety of hearts. The signs of revering God’s sha‘a’ir are: fulfilling their demands; keeping to their limits; being attentive to accomplishing them correctly; hastening to them when they are due; and to be sad, disappointed and contrite when having missed any of their benefits. Another sign of veneration is to feel anger when God’s symbols are mocked or reviled, and sadness when they are disobeyed.2

As today’s liberal prescriptions become ever more intolerant; and ever more eager to suppress, stigmatise and demonise any significant dissenting voices, honouring God’s symbols (especially in regards to morality and gender relations) becomes much more difficult. Even so, we mustn’t be bullied into failing to state the correct Islamic rulings in such matters, nor be browbeaten into silence: And whoever reveres the sacraments of God, that is better for him with his Lord. [22:30]

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2. Not to Overindulge in Humour & Amusement: One hadith states: ‘Do not laugh too much; for too much laughter deadens the heart.’ [Ibn Majah, Sunan, no.4193] This is not to say that laughter or humour must be avoided altogether; for laughter and light-hearted humour, in moderation, are prophetic Sunnahs that bring about joy and relief to oneself, and to others. There is little virtue in always being grave and solemn: And that He it is that makes to laugh and makes to weep. [53:43] Yet to overindulge in laughter is a lethal poison that kills the heart spiritually and, as al-Munawi points out: ‘Making a habit of laughing diverts one from deliberating over matters of importance.’3 When life becomes little more than “a bundle of laughs,” then the heart’s spiritual death has well and truly set in. Al-Munawi again: ‘The laughter that kills the heart comes from being frivolous and careless in the world. The heart has [spiritual] life and death. Its life lies in continuous obedience [to God]. Its death, in responding to the call of other than God: be it one’s ego, desires, or the devil.’4

Tragically we are now a culturally obese society, continuously feeding on an excessive diet of trivial amusement and entertainment. This over-consumption of laughter and frivolity, as noted before, diverts most of us from more serious considerations: war, famine, disease, environment, economy, disintegration of society and social cohesion and the breakdown of family; as well as those existential issues more serious still that relate to our Maker, the Afterlife and our purpose of being. Our continued addiction to all this joviality and diversion has made us a society wherein we are, in the words of Neil Postman’s deftly entitled book, Amusing Ourselves to Death.

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3. Cultivating Presence of Heart with God: Without doubt, the greatest trait to nurture in our worship of God and in our journey to Him is hudur al-qalb – “presence of heart” with Him. It states in one hadith: ‘Ask God [in a state where] you are certain of being responded to; and realise that God does not respond to a supplication from a heedless and inattentive heart.’ [Al-Tirmidhi, no.3479] Thus, a mindless heart elicits very little response from Heaven; whereas an attentive heart, present with its Lord, does. What is meant by “presence of heart” (or for the heart to feel the presence of the One being invoked or remembered) is that the heart be liberated from all distractions and that it be constantly attentive to its Lord. Such is the courtesy (adab) sought from the servant in his worship of the Generous Lord.

As we seek to break out of the prisons of our pleasures and distractions, and allow our lives to be illumined by faith and loving submission, the focus must be to educate our heart. The above hadith tells us that works of faith, presented to God from a heedless heart, count for very little; if anything at all. Ibn al-Qayyim wrote: ‘Whoever purposes the shari‘ah, its sources and wellspring, will know how actions of the limbs are tied to works of the heart and how they are of no benefit without them, and how works of the heart are more obligatory than those of the limbs. For acts of devotion (‘ubudiyyah) of the heart are far greater, more numerous and more continuous than devotion of the limbs. For they are obligatory at each and every moment.’5 Elsewhere, he wrote: ‘Acts of the limbs, without works of the heart, either lack any benefit, or else contain very little benefit.’6

Presence of heart with God is not only required in our salat and du‘a, it is something sought during every moment of our life. The way to nurture such presence is through kathrat al-dhikr – “remembering God frequently,” wherever and whenever possible. At first, says al-Ghazali, dhikr is just with the tongue; the heart having very little share in it. Then the heart, with considerable effort, is made to be present in dhikr – although if left to itself, ‘it would drift into the valleys of idle thought.’ It then takes root in the heart and dominates it, such that it now takes effort to not make dhikr. Finally comes “extinction” and being “lost” in the One being remembered.7 Thus, he wrote: ‘It starts with dhikr of the tongue; then by the heart being pressed into remembering; then the heart remembering spontaneously, thereby leading to it being dominated by the One being remembered and to the effacement of the one remembering.’8

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1. Jami‘ al-‘Ulum wa’l-Hikam (Beirut: Mu’assasah al-Risalah, 1998), 2:377.

2. Consult: Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, al-Wabil al-Sayyib (Damascus: Maktabah Dar al-Bayan, 2006), 32, 39.

3. Fayd al-Qadir Sharh al-Jami‘ al-Saghir (Beirut: Dar al-Ma‘rifah, n.d.), 2:157.

4. ibid., 5:52.

5. Bada’i‘ al-Fawa’id (Cairo: Maktabah al-Qahirah, 1972), 3:230.

6. Madarij al-Salikin (Riyadh: Dar Taybah, 2008), 1:206.

7. Ibn al-Qayyim wrote: ‘In fact, nothing resembles God’s relationship with someone who remembers Him. This relationship is even more special than the one that occurs to the doers of good or to the reverent ones. For beyond expression or description, it is something known only through spiritual “tasting” (dhawq). It is also where feet slip, unless the servant distinguishes between the eternal and the temporal, the Lord and the servant, the Creator and the created. Or else he will fall into indwelling (hulul); by which the Christians were misled, or unionism (ittihad); whereby the advocates of “the oneness of existence” (wahdat al-wujud) were misguided … In other words, when the power of remembrance takes hold of the servant, causing him to lose consciousness of himself and his remembrance, in [the consciousness of] the One he remembers, the servant is bound to drift through the doors of indwelling and unionism – unless he has a sound theology (‘aqidah sahihah).’ Al-Wabil al-Sayyib, 133-34.

8. Al-Ghazali, Kitab al-Arba‘in fi Usul al-Din (Jeddah: Dar al-Minhaj, 2006), 85-7.

Posted in religion, society, spirituality and tagged , , , , , ,
05 May 2013
15 Comments

The Heart, the Weather Man & the Indian Chief

winter village‘It was autumn, and the Indians on the reservation asked their new chief if it was going to be a cold winter. Raised in the ways of the modern world, the chief had never been taught the old secrets and had no way of knowing whether the winter would be cold or mild. To be on the safe side, he advised the tribe to collect wood and be prepared for a cold winter. A few days later, as a practical afterthought, he called the National Weather Service and asked whether they were forecasting a cold winter. The meteorologist replied that, indeed, he thought the winter would be quite cold. The chief advised the tribe to stock even more wood.

A couple of weeks later, the chief checked in again with the Weather Service. “Does it still look like a cold winter?” asked the chief. “It sure does,” replied the meteorologist. “It looks like a very cold winter.” The chief advised the tribe to gather up every scrap of wood they could find.

A couple of weeks later, the chief called the Weather Service again and asked how the winter was looking at that point. The meteorologist said, “We’re now forecasting that it will be one of the coldest winters on record!” “Really?” said the chief. “How can you be sure?” The meteorologist replied, “The Indians are collecting wood like crazy!”‘1

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The chief has unwittingly fallen into a circular argument, of sorts; a vicious circle, so to speak. His evidence for needing to stock more wood turns out to be that he was stocking more wood!

Humour aside, there is another sort of circular logic in a more serious aspect of our lives: the connection between our hearts and our outward actions. The Prophet, upon whom be peace, informed us that, ‘Truly in the body there is a morsel of flesh which, if it be sound, all the body is sound and which, if it be diseased, all the body is diseased. Truly it is the heart.’2

What this hadith tells us is that when the heart is filled with piety, pious intentions and reverent submission to God, the outward deeds of the limbs will reflect such piety in terms of hearing, seeing and doing righteousness. Conversely, if the heart harbours impiety, malice, spite, jealously and an inordinate love of materialism, that too will be reflected in deeds of defiance and disobedience to God; or injury and injustice to our fellow man. Ibn Rajab al-Hanbali struck this simile when he wrote: ‘This is why it has been said that the heart is the king of the limbs, and the limbs its soldiers. This being so, they are soldiers obedient to the king, in its service, ever fulfilling its commands, never opposing it in the slightest. So if the king is virtuous, the soldiers will be too; but if the king is corrupt, the soldiers will act corruptly too.’3

The above hadith confirms the link between our inward and outward state, and how the heart influences the outward behaviour of the limbs. It is worth noting that other hadiths tell us that the reverse is also true. The Prophet, peace be upon him, would say about the need to straighten the rows for prayer: istawwu wa la takhtalifu fa takhtalifa qulubukum – ‘Straighten your rows and do not differ, lest your hearts differ.’4 So here we see that tending to the outward act of straightening the rows for prayer is a reason for hearts to be inwardly united; and visa-versa! In other words, outward acts of piety influence the heart’s purity and soundness. ‘A servant’s faith,’ says another hadith, ‘will not be upright until his heart is upright; and his heart will not be upright until his tongue is upright.’5 In short: the inner (batin) influences the outer (zahir); and the outer, the inner.

As for those deeds which best rectify the heart, and are a profound cause for its inner purification, they include: fulfilling the obligations (fara’id, wajibat), consuming lawful food, reading Qur’an, making dhikr, keeping the company of righteous people, praying at night and seeking God’s forgiveness abundantly.6

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1. Cited in Cathcart & Klein, Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar (New York: Abrams Image, 2007), 42-3.

2. Al-Bukhari, no.52; Muslim, no.1599.

3. Jami‘ al-‘Ulum wa’l-Hikam (Beirut: Mu’assasah al-Risalah, 1998), 1:210.

4. Muslim, no.432.

5. Ahmad, Musnad, 3:198.

6. See: al-Haytami, Fath al-Mubin bi Sharh al-Arba‘in (Jeddah: Dar al-Minhaj, 2008), 250.

Posted in psychology, religion, spirituality and tagged , , ,
28 Apr 2013
11 Comments

The Prophet’s Rights – Peace Be Upon Him

imageTo travel through any Muslim land is to see tall, graceful towers – minarets – studded across the landscape from which, five times a day, the muezzin punctuates communal life by calling the faithful to prayer (salat). This stark, yet simple call acts to remind the community that in their day to day life – with its joys and pains, and its hopes and disappointments – there runs a thread leading them to their ultimate purpose and end goal: Allah, and that it is time now – for a short while, at least – to put aside the world and restore to the soul a fuller and more natural awareness of Him. It is a call which helps put life into perspective.

The muezzin begins his call by first extolling Allah’s greatness (takbir, allahu akbar) and then follows it by proclaiming the Declaration of Faith, or shahadah. The first half of this Declaration is to testify to: la ilaha illa’Llah – ‘There is no god worthy of worship but Allah’. The second half bears witness to: muhammadun rasulu’Llah – ‘Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.’ The first half affirms the doctrine of tawhid; the second, the method by which to live out and implement this doctrine.

Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah obliges upon each believer certain rights or huquq, all of which have been mentioned in the Qur’an. Scholars explain that these rights are seven in number:

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1. To Believe in Him: This does not mean to merely believe he was a true, historical figure of seventh century Arabia, but to believe in his prophethood (nubuwwah) and in Allah’s message (risalah) to him too. The Qur’an says: Believe, therefore, in Allah and His Messenger, and the light which We have sent down. [64:8] One hadith says: ‘I have been ordered to fight mankind until they testify that there is no god but Allah and until they believe in me and what I was sent with.’ [Muslim, no.34]

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2. To Obey Him: It is not enough to believe in him, peace be upon him. Instead, true faith means that we be guided by his message and obey its demands: O you who believe! Obey Allah and His Messenger, and do not turn away from him when you hear him speak. [8:20] And: He who obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah. [4:80] One hadith declares: ‘All my nation will enter Paradise except those who refuse.’ They asked: O Messenger of Allah, who would refuse? He replied: ‘Whoever obeys me shall enter Paradise, whoever disobeys me has in fact refused.’ [Al-Bukhari, no.7280]

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3. To Emulate His Example: Given that Allah says about His beloved Prophet, peace be upon him: Yours is indeed a tremendous character, [68:4] it should come as no surprise to enlightened minds that imitation of the Prophet, peace be upon him, is also a right we owe him. The Qur’an insists: Say: “If you love Allah, then follow me.” [3:31] Elsewhere it declares: You have in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful example. [33:21] One celebrated hadith says: ‘Whoever turns away from my Sunnah is not of me.’ [Al-Bukhari, no.5063; Muslim, no.1401]

No doubt, within the overall obligation of ittiba‘ - to “follow” or “emulate” him – there are certain matters where emulation is mandatory, and other places where it is highly encouraged and urged, but not obligated (there are even some matters recorded about his life that are merely descriptive, not prescriptive). A sound knowledge of fiqh should help distinguish between these levels of imitation and emulation. With that being so, believers try their best to conform to the prophetic example, and mould their lives in the light of his Sunnah, as far as possible. For it is in him that the Adamic perfection is found and the beauty of behaviour made manifest.

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4. To Love Him: Says the Qur’an: Say: “If your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your wives, your tribe, the wealth you have gained, the trade you fear my slacken, and the home you delight in are more loved by you than Allah and His Messenger and striving in His cause, then wait till Allah brings about His command. Allah guides not the corrupt. [9:24] Indeed, love of the Prophet is what distinguishes believers in their perfection of faith, as one hadith says: ‘None of you believes until he loves me more than his father, his children and the whole of mankind.’ [Al-Bukhari, no.15; Muslim, no.44]

An essential part of loving the Prophet, peace be upon him, is to love his Family. The Prophet, peace be upon him, once advised: udhakkirukumu’Llaha fi ahli bayti – ‘I advise you concerning my family.’ [Muslim, no.2408] Once, Zayd b. Thabit was once praying the funeral prayer for his mother, after which he brought his mule near so as to mount it, upon which Ibn ‘Abbas came and took hold of the stirrup. Zayd said: ‘Let it be, O nephew of Allah’s Messenger.’ But Ibn ‘Abbas said: hakadha naf‘alu bi’l-‘ulema - ‘This is how we treat the scholars.’ Zayd then took hold of Ibn ‘Abbas’ hand and, upon kissing it, said: hakadha umirna an naf‘ala bi ahli bayti nabiyyina - ‘This is how we were taught to treat the family of our Prophet.’ [Al-Tabarani, Mu‘jam al-Kabir, no.4746]

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5. To Honour and Revere Him: True faith (iman) not only demands that he be loved, but that he be honoured and revered too. The Qur’an insists: Those who believe in him, honour him, support him, and follow the light that was sent down with him: those are the successful. [7:157] That you may honour him and revere him. [48:9] Al-Qazwini contrasts honour, reverence and veneration (described by terms such as tabjil, tawqir and ta‘zim) with that of love and cites Imam al-Bayhaqi saying: ‘This is a higher degree than that of love; for not all who love revere. A father loves his child, or a master his slave, but does not revere him. Whereas all who revere also love.’1

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6. To Believe that Prophethood Ended With Him: The Qur’an declares: Muhammad is not the father of any man among you, but he is the Messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets; and Allah has knowledge of all things. [33:40] Needless to say, when a thing is “sealed”, it is complete and so there can be no further addition to it. In a like manner, the Prophet Muhammad sealed the cycle of prophethood and brought it to a close: he is the last Prophet, there will be no prophet after him. Henceforth, Heaven’s teachings will be revived and reanimated by scholars, saints and renewers; but never again by prophets. That the Prophet, peace be upon him, is khatim al-nabiyyin – “the Seal of the Prophets” – is also confirmed in a great number of hadiths. One of them states: ‘There will arise among my nation thirty liars, all of them claiming to be a prophet. But I am the final Prophet; there shall be no prophet after me.’ [Muslim, no.2889; Abu Dawud, no.4252]

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7. To Send Blessings (Salat) and Salutations of Peace (Salam) Upon Him: When telling us that Allah and His angels are constantly raising the rank, status and honour of the Prophet, peace be upon him, the Qur’an reveals the following: Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who believe! Send blessings upon him and salute him with a worthy salutation. [33:56] The hadith literature records: ‘Whosoever invokes one blessing upon me, Allah shall send ten blessings upon him.’ [Muslim, no.384] And: ‘Those closest to me on the Day of Resurrection are those who invoke most blessings upon me.’ [Al-Tirmidhi, no.484] Also: ‘The miser is he who, when I am mentioned in his presence, does not invoke blessings upon me.’ [Al-Tirmidhi, no.3546]

As for what it means for Allah to “bless” or “send salat upon” the Prophet, Abu’l-‘Aliyah, a famous tabi‘i, explained: ‘Allah’s salat is His extolling him to the angels; the angels’ salat is their supplication [for him].’2 The majoritarian view seems to be the one al-Tirmidhi records: ‘It is related from Sufyan al-Thawri and others from the people of knowledge that salåt of the Lord is His mercy, and salat of the angels is their seeking forgiveness for him.’3

Thus, Allah blesses the Prophet by the constant effusion of mercy descending upon him; such divine mercy referring to: light, knowledge, revelation, support, protection, swift response to prayers, exalting in rank and nearness to Him, honourable mention of him, as well as other things that only Allah and His Beloved know. The angels bless the Prophet by praying for him and supporting him. The believers, by invoking Allah’s blessings upon him. As for salutations (salam), it is praying for protection, safety and peace upon him.

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In conclusion: May Allah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet whenever his name is mentioned by those who may remember him, or neglected by those who are heedless of him. May Allah bless him among the first and the last of generations with the most favourable, most abundant and purest blessings that He has bestowed upon any of His creation. For, as the venerable Imam al-Shafi‘i has written, ‘no blessing, be it seen or unseen, has ever descended on us by which we gained spiritual or temporal gain, or by which spiritual or temporal harm was repelled, except that Muhammad, upon whom be peace, was the reason for it; the leader to its goodness; director to its guidance; protector from its destruction and evil that oppose righteousness; warner against what brings ruin; ever ready with sincere advice for guidance and warning. So may Allah’s blessings be upon him and his family, as His blessings are upon Abraham and his family. Indeed You [Allah] are Praiseworthy, Majestic.’4

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1. Mukhtasar Shu‘ab al-Iman (Cairo: Maktabah al-Turath al-Islami, n.d.), 29.

2. Related by al-Bukhari as a Chapter Heading (bab) to hadith no.4797.

3. Al-Tirmidhi, as a gloss to hadith no.485.

4. Al-Risalah (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Ilmiyyah, n.d.), 16-17.

Posted in law, prophetology, religion and tagged , , ,
24 Apr 2013
12 Comments

The Five Degrees of Prayer

537357_350393535062386_1229517523_nIn the following extract taken from his monograph explaining the virtues and merits of dhikr – God’s remembrance and invocation, Imam Ibn al-Qayyim (d.751H/1350CE) takes us through the ascending degrees of prayer (salat):

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‘With respect to prayer (salat), people are of five levels:

The first [degree] is of he who wrongs his own soul [35:32]; who is negligent [concerning it], and who falls short in his ablution as well as in the times, limits and essential pillars of the prayer.

The second is he who safeguards the times, limits, outward pillars and ablution, but is taken away by the devil’s whisperings and by stray thoughts, which he lacks the inner strength to resist.

The third is he who keeps the limits and essential pillars, and inwardly strives to repel the whisperings and stray thoughts. This person is occupied with striving against his Foe [the Devil], lest he rob him of his prayer. In prayer, he is engaged in jihad.

The fourth is he who stands in prayer, perfecting its rights, limits and pillars. His heart is engrossed in safeguarding its limits and rules, lest he miss any of them. Indeed, his entire focus is on performing the prayer as it ought to be performed; completely and perfectly. By this, concern for the prayer and devotion to his Lord absorb his heart.

The fifth degree is he who stands in prayer and establishes it as the fourth does, but along with this places his heart before his Lord. With this, he beholds his Lord (naziran bi qalbihi ilayhi), is vigilant before Him, and is filled with His love and glory; as if he sees and witnesses Him. Thus all whisperings and stray thoughts vanish, as the veil is lifted between him and his Lord. The difference between this person in his prayer and everyone else is as vast as the distance between heaven and earth. For he is occupied solely with his Lord, in which he finds his source of sheer delight.

[Of the five], the first kind of person is punished; the second admonished; the third redeemed; the fourth rewarded; and the fifth drawn close to his Lord, for his source of delight has been placed in prayer. Whoever is delighted by the prayer in this world, will be delighted by nearness to his Lord in this world and the next. And he who finds delight in God, delights and gladdens others. Whoever does not, leaves this world a loser.’1

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1. Al-Wabil al-Sayyib (Damascus: Maktabah Dar al-Bayan, 2006), 55-6.

Posted in religion, spirituality and tagged , , , ,
20 Apr 2013

On Praiseworthy Trials

caught-in-the-storm-1024x724We continue our reading into the words and insights left to us by Imam Shams al-Din al-Dhahabi – accomplished scholar, copious writer and committed traditionalist – as per his celebrated hagiography of Islam’s scholars, sages and other personalities, Siyar A‘lam al-Nubala:

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When Great Minds Think Alike: After recording the words of Ishaq b. Rahuwayah: ‘If al-Thawri, al-Awza‘i and Malik agree upon any matter, it is sunnah,‘ Imam al-Dhahabi comments:

‘Rather the sunnah is what the Prophet, upon whom be peace, made so, or the Rightly-Guided Caliphs after him. As regards consensus (ijma‘), it is whatever the scholars of this ummah, both past and present, have unanimously concurred upon: [including] a consensus which is probable (zanni) or tacit (sukuti). Whosoever diverges from such a consensus, among the Successors (tabi‘un) or their followers – due to stances arrived at via independent legal judgement (ijtihad) – it is tolerated from him alone.

As for those who disagree with the three aforementioned senior scholars, then this is not considered to be opposing the consensus, nor the Sunnah. All that Ishaq intended was that if they concur upon any given matter, then it is most probably correct. Just as we say today that it is almost impossible to find the truth to be outside of whatever the Four Mujtahid Imams concurred upon. We say this whilst at the same time admitting that their agreement on an issue doesn’t constitute a consensus of the ummah: though we are wary of stating, in an issue on which they agree, that the truth is otherwise.’1

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The Praiseworthy Trial: While describing the ordeal endured by Imam Malik in which he was severely beaten so much so that ‘his arm was wrenched out of its socket and an enormous wrong had been perpetrated against him. Yet, by God, Malik didn’t cease to be held in high esteem,’ al-Dhahabi wrote:

‘This is the result of a praiseworthy trial which only serves to raise a person’s rank and esteem in the sight of believers. Whatever the case, it is what our own hands earn; yet God pardons much. “Whoever God intends to show goodness to, He tries him through ordeals.”2 The Prophet, peace be upon him, further stated: “Everything decreed for the believer is good for him.”3 God, exalted is He, said: We shall try you until We know those of you who strive and those who are patient. [47:31] The following words were revealed by God about the battle of Uhud: When disaster befell you after you had inflicted losses twice as heavy, you exclaimed: “How did this happen?” Say: “It was from yourselves.” [3:165] God also said: Whatever misfortune befalls you, it is what your own hands have earned, and He pardons much. [42:30]

Thus a believer, when he is tried, shows patient, takes admonition, seeks forgiveness of God and does not busy himself in blaming the one who mistreated him. For God’s judgement is just. Instead, he should thank God that his faith remains intact, realising that worldly punishment is both lighter and better for him.’4

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A Falcon Among Fledglings: Imam al-Shafi‘i remarked: ‘People are all dependents of Abu Hanifah in jurisprudence (fiqh).’ After citing these words, Imam al-Dhahabi says:

‘Leadership in fiqh, along with its minutiae, is undeniable for this Imam. It is a matter about which there is no doubt: Intellects cannot be sound at all / If daytime needs a proof. His life would require two separate volumes to depict – God be pleased with him and have mercy on him. He died as a martyr in the year 150H, at the age of seventy, after being poisoned. A huge dome has been built over him in Baghdad, and a magnificent tomb; though God knows best.’5

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1. Siyar A‘lam al-Nubala (Beirut: Mu’assasah al-Risalah, 1998), 7:116-7.

2. Al-Bukhari, no.5645.

3. Muslim, no.2999.

4. Siyar A‘lam al-Nubala, 8:80-1.

5. ibid., 6:403.

Posted in history, law, religion, spirituality and tagged , , , , , , | Leave a Comment
18 Apr 2013
4 Comments

Islam, Reason & Rationality

door_with_key21-664x442In his Dictionary of Quranic Terms, al-Raghib glosses the lexical root of ‘aql thus: ‘The root of ‘aql is: restraint (imsak) and seeking to prevent (istimsak), as in: “he hobbled the camel with the harness” (‘aqal al-ba‘ir bi’l-‘iqal).’1

In their works on ethics, scholars sought to define what they meant by ‘aql - “reason,” “intellect”, “rationality” – proffering several definitions current at the time. For some, reason is an intuition (gharizah) by which knowledge is acquired and understood. For others ‘aql is a kind of necessary knowledge (darb min al-‘ulum al-dururi): knowledge that a hearer has no choice but to accept when it is presented to his mind. Some say it is a simple substance (jawhar basit); some, a transparent body (jism shaffaf); for others still, it is simply light (nur).

Ibn al-Jawzi, having listed these definitions, went on to describe it as: ‘an intuition, as it were, a light cast into the heart, enabling matters to be comprehended; the possible and impossible to be known; and the consequences of things to be grasped. This light may be strong or weak. If it is strong, it overcomes desires (hawa) via the realisation of their consequences.’2 The position of most scholars, he adds, is that the seat of reason is the heart; not the mind.3 He then quotes the following verse of the Qur’an to justify the assertion: Have they not travelled in the land, and have they not hearts to comprehend with? [22:46]

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‘Aql, as the Qur’an regards it, is understood in a moral context as a harness of desires and passions: it isn’t a tool for mere dialectic or a pretext to philosophise away belief or obedience to God. When the faculty of reason is used to reign in our tendencies to sin, or guides it to the need for repentance after sin, it honours man. It follows, that if reason is too feeble or weak to restrain man from giving himself over to his whims or to the dictates of his ego; if it makes him turn a deaf ear to the divine call, he ruins and debases himself. As such, he can hardly be called intelligent; a person of sound reason: And they will say: ‘Had we but listened or used our intelligence, we would not now be among the people of the Blazing Fire.’ [67:10]

In this sense, ‘aql is bound with the Qur’an’s greatest ethical imperative: taqwa (piety). Both terms embody the idea of restraint and self-control, and both serve to regulate proper behaviour with God.

In fact, whenever the Qur’an uses the phrase afala ta‘qilun – “will you not then reason,” or ulu’l-albab – “people of intelligence,” or it’s one time usage of ulu’l-nuha – “people of discernment” [20:128], it is always in terms of knowing God, knowing our relationship with Him, and knowing how to behave towards Him.

One hadith shall be cited to illustrate this: ‘Uqbah b. ‘Amr said that the Prophet, peace be upon him, would tap our shoulders before the prayer, saying: ‘Straighten your rows and do not stand unevenly, lest your hearts be at odds! Let those who possess maturity and discernment (ulu’l-ahlam wa’l-nuha) follow me.’4 So here, intelligence is equated with observing the instructions for the correct bodily position during prayer.

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Wahb b. Munabbih, a celebrated pietist of the second Islamic century, once said: ‘God, mighty and majestic is He, isn’t worshipped by anything better than reason.’5

‘Amir b. ‘Abd Qays, another of Islam’s early renuncients (zuhhad, sing. zahid), avowed: ‘When you reign in your intellect from what does not befit it, you are intelligent.’6

Sufyan b. ‘Uyaynah, the imam and exemplar, had this to say: ‘The intelligent one is not he who recognises good and evil. Rather the intelligent one is he who recognises  good and follows it; and recognises evil and refrains from it.’7

‘After faith in God,’ said ‘Ubayd Allah, ‘a person is given nothing better than reason.’8

And finally, the Companion (sahabi) ‘Urwah b. al-Zubayr declared: ‘The best of what is given to people in this worldly life is reason; while the best of what they can receive in the Afterlife is God’s acceptance.’9

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1. Raghib al-Asfahani, Mufradat Alfaz al-Qur’an (Damascus & Beirut: Dar al-Qalm & Dar al-Shamiyyah, 2002), 578.

2. Dhamm al-Hawa (Beirut: Dar al-Kutub al-‘Arabiyyah, 1998), 24. My translation of the passage is adapted from J.N. Bell, Love Theory in later Hanbalite Islam (New York: State University of New York Press, 1979), 14.

3. ibid., 24.

4. Muslim, no.432.

5. Ibn Abi Dunya, Kitab al-‘Aql wa Fadlihi (Beirut: Dar al-Rayah, 2004), §.22.

6. ibid., §.35.

7. ibid., §.59.

8. ibid., §.17.

9. ibid., §.18.

Posted in ethics, religion and tagged , , , ,
16 Apr 2013
4 Comments

Where There is Choice, Peace Must be Chosen

three-shiny-balls-3d-desktop-hd-wallpaper-2048x2048This is the third servings of my musings (earlier ones can be read here and here). This offering has somewhat more meat on them than previous ones:

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The Desire to Take the Centre Out to the Fringes, No Longer Makes it the Centre: We are presently being stifled by extremist and liberal re-readings of Islam. Both diminish the importance of nurturing a genuine spirituality; and both has proven themselves to be irrelevant to our needs. The philosophy of the former is to see religion as a political tool allowing young men whose anger has been set ablaze by Anglo-American foreign policy in the Middle-East, to read into the religious texts their own anger, frustrations and malcontent. The philosophy of the latter is simply that ‘religion has to be adapted to fit the times’.

The desire to bring religion to people and to make it easy for them is, for sure, a noble one; and revelation commends it. But this is hardly a case where the means justify the ends. Diluting the truth for the sake of meeting misguidance halfway is self-defeating. If people have drifted away from the centre to the fringes of heedlessness, then charity requires that they be shown the way back. To imagine that one can take the centre out to them, while they stay exactly where they are, is sheer folly.

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Use words in your preaching only if absolutely necessary, is what Abdal Hakim Murad rightly contends:1 It hardly requires stating that the best invitation, or da‘wah to Islam is not through speaking, but through our deeds and conduct. Debating the correctness of tawhid over shirk certainly has its place and may help to win an argument and rebut falsehood. But the conviction of tawhid lived out in a life of prayer, charity, service and selflessness has a decisive edge in purifying one’s own heart and winning the hearts of others.

Some say that the attempt to put on good character in order to present one’s best face to people is disingenuous; hypocritical even. That may be so if the intention is merely to impress people or to win brownie points in da‘wah. But if one does so from a love of dignified behaviour and good character, its beauty and its nobility; or out of a desire to shield others from one’s misdeeds and shortcomings; or from the hope of being more worthy of God, despite our inadequacies, this can only be virtuous. Indeed, cultivating good character (husn khuluq) and personal dignity have always been highly regarded in Islam.

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Love – the Recognition of Perfection: There has been a certain reluctance on the part of classical scholars when it comes to defining the word love (mahabbah). It is not that they haven’t tried, but that the definitions have tended to be causes, symptoms, effects and consequences of love, rather than love itself. A general description of love as mayl or an “inclination” aside, some have felt that those who have attempted to define love have done so in terms of their own experience, or dhawq; or to the extent of their own yearning for God, or shawq. Such hesitancy is found in Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah who, when discussing the matter of love, chooses not to give his own definition, but instead lists thirty suggestions of others; noting how they are either incomplete definitions or merely descriptive of love’s consequences. The only formula to gain near acceptance (though not quite a definition) is a rather lyrical description from the young Junayd al-Baghdadi who speaks about the self-effacement of the lover of God in the worship and service of Him.

Thus, in winding-up his attempts at defining love, Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyyah says: ‘The Thirtieth - being the most comprehensive of what is said about it: Abu Bakr al-Kattani related that a discussion concerning love took place in Makkah – may God, exalted is He, honour it – during the pilgrimage season. The shaykhs spoke about it, with Junayd being the youngest of them. They asked him: Tell us what you think, Iraqi! He lowered his head and his eyes filled with tears. He then said: “When the servant is effaced from himself, united in his Lord’s remembrance, renders what is due to Him, and sees Him with his heart, [then] his heart is set ablaze by the lights of divine awe; and his drinking from the cup of divine love is made pure; and the Compeller lifts the veil of the unseen to him. When he speaks, he speaks through God. When he utters, he utters about God. When he moves, he moves by God’s bidding. When he is resting, he rests with God. So he is for God, by God and with God!” The shaykhs burst into tears, saying: What more can be said. May God reward you, O crown of the gnostics.’2

How ever love is to be defined, at its heart is the idea of ma‘rifat al-kamal – ‘recognising perfection’. One of the great doors for man to nurture a deep and abiding love of God is appreciation of God’s acts of kindness and beneficence to His creation. ‘Hearts,’ it has been said, ‘have been created with a natural disposition to love those who do good to them.’ As this appreciation deepens, the lover is lead to a still greater door: the door of ma‘rifat al-kamal – recognition of God’s utter beauty and perfection in terms of His acts (af‘al), His attributes (sifat) and His essence or being (dhat). In almost every verse of the Qur’an there is mention of God’s beautiful acts and perfect attributes. For God wants the recognition of His perfection so that it will lead to the love of His being.

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Where There is Choice, Peace Must Be Chosen: The Qur’an sanctions the use of force for defence. It says: For if God had not checked some men by means of others, monasteries, churches, synagogues and mosques wherein the name of God is mentioned, would have been destroyed. [22:40] Islamic fiqh, in its classical Sunni formulation, envisioned (as well as endorsed) offensive war too. Although there is a certain ambivalence as to the reasons and justifications, the jus ad bellum, for war, contemporay jurists have advanced three reasons: (i) Defence against belligerency. (ii) Eliminating any obstructions in the path of freely propagating the call to Islam. (iii) Islamization of territory – i.e. to bring land under the dominion of Islam. Thus the Qur’an says: Fight for the sake of God those who fight against you. [2:190] Also: And fight them until there is no more sedition or persecution, and religion is all for God. But if they desist, then let there be no hostility except against the transgressors. [2:193]

The makings of the modern world (more specifically the birth of the nation-states, the United Nations Charter, the member-states of the OIC – Organisation of the Islamic Cooperation, international law and a willingness of contemporary Muslim legalists to redefine some of their readings on war), have altered the pre-modern formulations of jihad. For all save a tiny minority of jurists have relinquished the notion of jihad being waged for offensive, expansionist reasons. In other words, most mainstream scholars consider jihad to be unlawful against a non-Muslim state which does not threaten the territorial integrity of Muslim lands or put up barriers to stop the propagation of faith. The Qur’an insists: And if they lean towards peace, lean to it too. [8:61] Again: If they then withdraw from you, and do not fight against you, but offer you peace, God allows you no way against them. [4:90] The principle of pursuing peace is further seen in an all-important dictum in classical Islam that regulates warfare and jihad: wujubuhu wujubu’l-wasa’il la al-maqasid – ‘Its necessity is the necessity of means, not of ends.’

Overall, Islam’s attitude to war is best reflected in the following words of our Prophet, peace be upon him: ‘Do not desire to meet your enemy, but instead ask God for safety. When you do encounter them, be firm and know that Paradise lies beneath the shades of swords.’3

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Our State of Emptiness Ready to be Filled: The Qur’an says: O people! You are the ones in need of God, while God is free of need, worthy of all praise. [35:15]

We are, according to the Qur’an, needy beings, whilst Allah is Independent; Rich; One who needs nothing outside of Himself. We are in dire need of God from the moment of our birth. And it is in acknowledging such neediness – our state of emptiness ready to be filled – that lies at the heart of realising who and what we really are. As the reality of being dependant upon God is internalised; as we begin to sweep away the clutter of worldly hopes, desires and ambitions from our inner selves, we throw-off the shackles of slavery to created beings who, like ourselves, are also ‘empty’.

This realisation frees us from the need to seek fame and prestige from others, or from hankering after whatever others possess. We are thus shielded from being pretentious or acting for show, on the one hand; and being resentful and envious of other peoples’ achievements and advantages, on the other. For ultimately, all is with God and is from God.

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1. Commentary on the Eleventh Contentions (Cambridge: The Quilliam Press, 2012), 75.

2. Madarij al-Salikin (Riyadh: Dar Taybah, 2008), 3:447-8

3. Al-Bukhari, Sahih, no.2991. For comparisons between jihad theory and Western Just War theory, see: Kelsay & Johnson (eds.), Just War and Jihad: Historical and Theoretical Perspectives on War and Peace in Western and Islamic Traditions (New York, Westport & London: Greenwood Press, 1991).

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