Once again, Masajid are besieged and Muslims are desperately throwing themselves out of the way of machine-gun fire. The morgues are pilling with ranks of uncounted bodies. What is happening in Egypt is not anything remarkable from the routine that already exists in many Muslim countries across the table - death and maiming of the innocent. No matter how many times I read the news, I see wrenched only one reality - absence of true understanding of the Deen. How many bullets have to be fired, how many bulldozers closed in, how many protests slotted until we accept that peace and good governance is not a political template but a Divine ordinance.
The current plight of Egypt cannot change unless Allah wills it: "There is no help or victory except from Allah, the Exalted, the Wise" - Qur'an 3:126. Why is Allah's help not with the Muslim Brotherhood? Why isn't Moorsi able to overcome the rebel gangs? "We will, without doubt, help Our Messengers and those who believe, both in this world's life and on the Day when the witnesses will stand forth" - Qur'an 40:51. Ibn al Qayyim noted that this verse means that whoever has a shortcoming in his faith will, thereby, receive a correspondingly lesser amount of help and victory from Allah. If a believer suffers any form of affliction from her enemy, it is due to her own sins, either leaving an obligatory act or performing a forbidden act, which represents weakness in her faith (ighaathab al-luhfaan min masaayid al shaitaan). Hence, Egyptians will see peace and tranquility restored to their land when they meet the criterion or fulfill the causes of Divine support. "Allah has promised to those among you who believe and work righteous deeds that He will, of a surety, grant them in the land inheritance (of power) and HE granted it to those before them. [He also promises] that He will establish in authority their religon, the one which He has chosen for them And [He promises] that HE will change their stand after the fear in which they lived to one of security. 'They will worship Me alone and do not associate anything with Me.' If they do reject faith after this, they are rebellious and wicked" - Qur'an, 24:55.
So if I was an Egyptian, I wouldn't be at any demonstration at all. What made the Muslims win at Badr? It wasn't their large numbers or weapons - it was their faith and strong obedience to Allah. "Allah helped you at Badr, when you were a contemptible little force; then fear Allah; thus may you show your gratitude" - Qur'an, 3:123. The victory at Badr was only possible because the Sahaba (r.a) worked on their faith not fighting for 13 years. Don't the Muslims have the right to fight for their religious beliefs and live under them? Sometimes we fail to notice the fact that the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) lived the majority of his da’wah life as a minority in a non-Muslim society. 13out of the 23 years of da’wah, he (s.a.w) spent living as a minority in Makkah, which although was the city of Prophets like Egypt, it still was then a non-Muslim society. There is a lot for us to learn from this part of Seerah.
In Makkah, the Prophet (s.a.w) never started a political movement or caused people to die so he could have power - even if it was for all the right reasons - to spread Islam. The Prophet (s.a.w) says in a hadith found in Muslim, “The analogy of me and you is like someone sitting in the bonfire in the wilderness and insects and bugs are trying to fly into it. While I am holding your clothes, dragging you away from the fire, you are rushing into the fire without thinking about it.” This is how the Prophet (s.a.w) viewed his mission, warn people against Hellfire. There is a hadith from Nu’man bin Bashir, found in the Musnad of Imaam Ahmed: “The Prophet (s.a.w) stood on the pulpit and delivered a speech to us. (His speech was): ‘I warn you (of) Hellfire! I warn you (of) Hellfire! I warn you (of) Hellfire!’ He (saws) was repeating it again and again; his volume was going up and up. If there was someone in the market place they would be able to hear Muhammad (saws) from the masjid!” Tell me, in all of this, is the Prophet (s.a.w) campaigning for elections here? Are people dying to acquire a political seat?
Our first role in living as a minority amongst non-Muslims like Egypt and Canada is to proclaim the message of Islam publicly in a very clear way. Knowledge which is food for the mind/soul, da’wah which is paying the taxes for this knowledge (by conveying it) and ibadah which is food for the heart (reaffirms and strengthens one’s belief). We must internalize these three basic components of Islam - knowledge, da'wah and ibaadah before we take on the government. If Islam is not fully in our hearts, how can we ever hope to establish it in the land?
What brought Muslims defeat at Uhud? They sinned! "Allah did indeed fulfill His promise to you when by His permission you were about to annihilate your enemy, until you flinched and fell to disputing about the order, and disobeyed it after He brought you in sight of the booty which you covet. Among you are some that hanker after this world and some that desire the Hereafter. Then did He divert you from your foes in order to test you" - Qur'an, 3:152.
So whats the lesson in here for Egypt? Allah does not inflict a nation brutal military dictatorship unless they do misdeeds and ignore the guidance and path of Allah. "Whatever good happens to you is from Allah; but whatever evil touches you, is from your own soul" - Qur'an, 4:79
Maybe our individual sins are too many to pick on the sins of others. As the saying goes: let her who is free of sin cast the first stone, otherwise stay at home! What are the maqasid of Shariah - the reasons for which Allah sent divine law? To protect Deen and then protect life! The death of Muslims by the thousands in demonstration is a clear indication that these protests in Egypt do not serve the Shariah but a non-Islamic agenda. We cannot accept non-Islamic means to establish Islam, it will never work!
Ibn Taimiyyah was asked by his students if they should prevent the Tatar armies from drinking at night (give them Da'wah and good nasheeha). Ibn Taimiyyah stated that he is willing to tolerate a smaller evil - drinking of alcohol in order to keep a greater evil from occuring, the death of Muslims. If the Tatar drink, they will most likely to pass out from their drunkenness. However, if are ceased from drinking, they will raid Muslim neighbourhoods and kill scores of innocent. In the same way, we can endure the existence of a non-Islamic government, we will put up with it no matter how repugnant it is but we cannot stand the practice systematically wiping out Muslims and Masajid.
In Makkah, the Prophet (s.a.w) never started a political movement or caused people to die so he could have power - even if it was for all the right reasons - to spread Islam. The Prophet (s.a.w) says in a hadith found in Muslim, “The analogy of me and you is like someone sitting in the bonfire in the wilderness and insects and bugs are trying to fly into it. While I am holding your clothes, dragging you away from the fire, you are rushing into the fire without thinking about it.” This is how the Prophet (s.a.w) viewed his mission, warn people against Hellfire. There is a hadith from Nu’man bin Bashir, found in the Musnad of Imaam Ahmed: “The Prophet (s.a.w) stood on the pulpit and delivered a speech to us. (His speech was): ‘I warn you (of) Hellfire! I warn you (of) Hellfire! I warn you (of) Hellfire!’ He (saws) was repeating it again and again; his volume was going up and up. If there was someone in the market place they would be able to hear Muhammad (saws) from the masjid!” Tell me, in all of this, is the Prophet (s.a.w) campaigning for elections here? Are people dying to acquire a political seat?
Our first role in living as a minority amongst non-Muslims like Egypt and Canada is to proclaim the message of Islam publicly in a very clear way. Knowledge which is food for the mind/soul, da’wah which is paying the taxes for this knowledge (by conveying it) and ibadah which is food for the heart (reaffirms and strengthens one’s belief). We must internalize these three basic components of Islam - knowledge, da'wah and ibaadah before we take on the government. If Islam is not fully in our hearts, how can we ever hope to establish it in the land?
What brought Muslims defeat at Uhud? They sinned! "Allah did indeed fulfill His promise to you when by His permission you were about to annihilate your enemy, until you flinched and fell to disputing about the order, and disobeyed it after He brought you in sight of the booty which you covet. Among you are some that hanker after this world and some that desire the Hereafter. Then did He divert you from your foes in order to test you" - Qur'an, 3:152.
So whats the lesson in here for Egypt? Allah does not inflict a nation brutal military dictatorship unless they do misdeeds and ignore the guidance and path of Allah. "Whatever good happens to you is from Allah; but whatever evil touches you, is from your own soul" - Qur'an, 4:79
Maybe our individual sins are too many to pick on the sins of others. As the saying goes: let her who is free of sin cast the first stone, otherwise stay at home! What are the maqasid of Shariah - the reasons for which Allah sent divine law? To protect Deen and then protect life! The death of Muslims by the thousands in demonstration is a clear indication that these protests in Egypt do not serve the Shariah but a non-Islamic agenda. We cannot accept non-Islamic means to establish Islam, it will never work!
Ibn Taimiyyah was asked by his students if they should prevent the Tatar armies from drinking at night (give them Da'wah and good nasheeha). Ibn Taimiyyah stated that he is willing to tolerate a smaller evil - drinking of alcohol in order to keep a greater evil from occuring, the death of Muslims. If the Tatar drink, they will most likely to pass out from their drunkenness. However, if are ceased from drinking, they will raid Muslim neighbourhoods and kill scores of innocent. In the same way, we can endure the existence of a non-Islamic government, we will put up with it no matter how repugnant it is but we cannot stand the practice systematically wiping out Muslims and Masajid.
Allah Knows Best.
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