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The Muslim Ummah is facing many problems, and new problems emerge
continuously with the passage of time. In response to these
challenges, Muslims are called to take action in the name of
''Activism''. From participating in demonstrations and rallies, to
pitching in dollars in donation boxes, the call for Activism
reverberates throughout the Muslim Ummah, and many Muslims respond
to this call.
However, before rushing forward with blind enthusiasm, it is time
for Muslims to take a step back and put the concept of Activism in
proper perspective. Otherwise, we will be reduced to an Ummah that
rushes towards any outlet that enables us to discharge our energies,
and this will only result in exhaustion and despair in the end.
Muslims are obligated to be active, because the antithesis of
Activism - Pacifism and Apathy - are not only counterproductive, but
they are prohibited. Pacifism means to relent to the status quo and
to work within the status quo, and this is not allowed for Muslims
because Allah (swt) revealed Islam to be applied and carried to all
humanity so that humanity will worship Him Alone. This is mentioned
clearly in the Qur'an:
''I have not created the human beings and the
jinn for any other purpose except to worship Me.''
''It is He Who has sent His Messenger with
the guidance and the Deen of Truth so that it will prevail over all
other Deens, even though the Mushriks hate it.''
In addition, the reference for Muslims is Islam and not the status
quo. This leads to a basic maxim that governs the behavior and
actions of Muslims: If there is a discrepancy between the status quo
and Islam, Islam cannot change to conform to the status quo. Rather,
the status quo must change to conform to what Islam mandates.
Similarly, like Pacifism, Apathy is also prohibited because Muslims
must take the initiative to implement Islam and carry Islam to the
others. One of the Laws that Allah created is Cause and Effect.
Muslims are obligated to understand Islam, implement Islam, and
carry Islam to the others. All of these obligations require active
effort and initiative, and apathy by its nature is devoid of any
initiative or effort. Muslims must avoid apathy, because not only
will it kill any momentum for revival or change, but it is condemned
in the strongest terms by Allah (swt). This condemnation is clearly
illustrated in the Hadith Qudsi in which the Prophet (saaws) is
reported to have said that Allah told the angels to destroy a town.
And after the Angels asked Allah, ''Even if one man is worshipping
you'', Allah ordered them to start with this man since he did not
even react to all the evil that was around him.
Therefore, the Muslims must adopt the position of Activism, but
Activism in Islam comes with certain conditions:
1). Muslims must not be active simply for the sake of being active.
Such a stance is not considered Activism but his actually
Hyper-activism, and the one who is active for the sake of being
active is like somebody who is running around a circle, knowing that
he will start and end at the same point.
2). Any action that Muslims undertake must conform to the Islamic
rules and to the Methodology of the Prophet (saaws). Being active is
no justification for committing the haram or compromising the Deen.
The Prophet (saaws) was active, but at the same time he was firm in
his position. He illustrated this position clearly when he was
offered all sorts of things by the Quraish in Mecca in exchange for
accepting reconciliation - offers that, translated in today’s terms,
were more lucrative than anything that anybody has ever offered to a
human being. Yet the Prophet (saaws) responded to these offers with
a very harsh negation when he stated:
''Even if they put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left,
I would not abandon my mission.'' Also, when the Prophet (saaws)
was approaching various tribes in order to seek the political power(nusrah)
necessary to establish the Islamic authority, some tribes accepted
the offer with some conditions attached. But the Prophet (saaws)
refused these offers and accepted only unconditional transfer of
authority, even though during this time the Muslims were being
subjugated to the most severe persecution. Therefore, the Prophet (saaws)
was actively working to change the situation and establish Islam,
but he did not rush to embrace any action. Rather, his actions were
based on a specific methodology revealed by Allah (swt), and all
Muslims are obligated to conform to this methodology as he did.
3). The Activism must be coupled with political awareness. Perhaps
one of the greatest weaknesses that the Muslims possess is the lack
of a clear political awareness. As a result, the Muslims have been
used time and time again by the other nations, and even Islamic
movements are used by the status quo to fulfill the political agenda
of other powers. Muslims must be sincere in their efforts, but
sincerity alone is not a guarantor for success. The Prophet (saaws)
himself never relied upon sincerity alone; rather, he established
personalities that were sincere and politically astute. If the
Muslims possessed this political awareness, then this would have
saved them from many pitfalls that proved to be catastrophic to the
Muslims and to Islam itself. For example, when the PLO was
established with the help of the Arab regimes, which themselves are
puppets to the Western powers, the Muslims were diverted away from
focusing on the main problem, which was to rebuild the Ummah and to
establish Islam in their minds and as a system. Instead, the
resources and thinking of the Muslims was shifted towards fighting a
guerrilla war, which was headed by an organization that itself was
working hand-in-hand with the West to execute their political
agenda. The end result was over three decades of rallies, protests,
blood spilled, and resources dwindled, and the status quo has
remained unchanged.
4). Any movement must avoid two pitfalls: The pitfall of reform, and
the pitfall of compromise. The Muslims should never accept
compromise because once they accept to compromise, then they have
sown the seeds for the destruction of the revival. In addition, they
will be held accountable on the Day of Judgement for their actions.
The appeal of compromise is very strong, and this appeal is made
stronger by the worldwide media that attempts to portray those who
compromise as ''modern, civilized, and progressive'' while portraying
those who adhere to Islam as ''backwards, barbaric, narrow-minded,
and extreme.'' In addition, the temptation to compromise will be very
strong during times of despair or crisis, or when the Muslim Ummah
experiences bitter failure. Therefore, the Muslims must remain very
diligent in eliminating any seeds for compromise before they bear
fruit.
Equally dangerous is the pitfall of reform. Though it may seem
innocent and even beneficial, if the Islamic movement becomes a
reform movement, then this would be devastating to the revival. The
reason for this is twofold. First, Islam is a comprehensive system
of life which must be carried as a comprehensive package and
implemented as a comprehensive package. Any attempt to implement
Islam in a piecemeal fashion will result in a mutated system in
which Islam is mixed with Kufr, and such a system will not only
cause great oppression, but will do so in the name of Islam. Also,
the reason for the problems of the world is not because there is
corruption, but because the very status quo itself is not Islamic.
However, by reforming the society, one will engage himself in
cleaning up the mess left by the incorrect status quo. This will not
only divert the attention of the people from recognizing the cause
of their problems, but it will lengthen the lifespan of the status
quo that does not deserve to exist. Therefore, the Muslims must
refrain from reform as the focus of any Islamic movement. This does
not mean that Muslims should not engage in charitable deeds or help
others. Muslims are encouraged to set the best example in all
situations, and one way of reaching the people is by extending their
hand to those in need. However, it would be a great disservice to
the people to simply satisfy their immediate needs without providing
them with any concepts. This will do nothing but create within the
people a false sense of gratification and contentment, which would
lead to a perception that nothing else needs to change and that the
revival is complete once the poor are fed and the orphans are housed
and the sick are treated. In reality, the revival will be complete
once the Muslim Ummah understands Islam and entire status quo
changes to one in which Islam is applied as a system in all aspects
of life.(This is exactly the problem in some countries such as
Malaysia where economic prosperity and worldly comfort has given
the masses a false sense of gratification,which has lead to a public
perception that all is right and Islam need not be applied as a
system.And the ruling party in Malaysia uses this as a red herring to win
elections.)
For the Muslims, the revival is premised upon the recognition that
Islam is the only correct system to be applied in life. Though it
will elevate the social, moral and material welfare of both Muslims
and non-Muslims to a level unrivalled by any other belief or
ideology, the motivation to establish the Islamic System i.e. the
Khilafah is because it is a command established upon the Islamic
Aqeedah.
5) We should be very wary of those voices that undermine the
importance of discussion. The highest and most effective form of
activism is to actively promote and engage in intellectual
discussion, because only through discussion will our thinking be
reshaped and ideas be clarified and crystallized. Slogans such as
'all talk and no action', while they may seem innocent, are among
the greatest dangers to the Ummah because they kill the momentum for
discussion, and by doing so they stifle the movement to change the
thinking of the Ummah, which is the first and most important stage
of revival. In addition, these slogans push the people to surge
forward and commit actions prematurely.The Muslim Ummah has become
used to relying on paramilitary organizations(Hamas and Hizbullah)
and children throwing stones at tanks to fight on its behalf. We
have to break this notion and realize that the responsibility of
dealing with issues such as Israel rests with the Islamic authority,
and if no such authority exists, our priority is to establish one.
This does not by any means undermine the sincerity of those who are
engaging in such a struggle, nor does it exempt us from the
obligation of defending ourselves and our property. The Muslim Ummah
must defend itself, as any nation would do the same if attacked.
However, our objective should not be limited to just ridding
ourselves of physical occupation in a certain area. Rather, the
physical occupation should lead us towards the correct path to
revival, which is to resume the Islamic way of life by
reestablishing Islam first in our minds and then as a system of life
applied by a legitimate Islamic authority.The actions carried out by
guerilla movements(such as Hamas) do not target the thinking of the
masses, and as a result, their actions will not produce any
long-term change. The problem with the Muslims is the absence of
Islam as a way of life, which itself is the result of the Muslims
not thinking based on Islam. Therefore, any attempt to change our
situation must have as its focus to reconstruct the thinking of the
Muslims to where the Muslim Ummah thinks solely based on Islam.
The Muslim Ummah today is
dedicating a tremendous amount of activity; however, these actions
are either devoid of thought or are guided by incorrect thoughts.
And as a result, the actions either lead nowhere or they actually
exasperate the problem, and resources are exhausted and blood is
spilled needlessly in either case.
In conclusion, the concept of Activism must be clear. Muslims cannot
just be active simply for its own sake. Activism is not an objective
by itself. Rather, the Muslims must be actively working towards a
positive change, and this requires for the Muslims to have a clear
understanding of Islam and a clear understanding of their
objectives, in addition to a clear understanding of the reality
around them.
May Allah (swt) give us the correct understanding to enable us to
Worship Him correctly and to fulfill our responsibilities in the
best possible manner.
Comments
Many refuse to undertake this duty because they are affected by a
fatalistic mentality( ''establishing Islam is going to take a long
time,maybe 50 years'').This is distorted way of thinking which will
produce nothing but stagnation.Islam will be established only by the
Will of Allah and Allah's Will or Allah's Knowledge is beyond our
comprehension.The correct attitude is not to proceed through life
based on Allah's Will or Allah's Knowledge because we do not have
access to either. Rather, what we have access to is the Islamic
text, the Islamic concepts and way of life, the Ahkam Shariyah, the
Halal and the Haram, and the realities around us, which we must seek
to understand in order to proceed through life in a manner that will
guarantee for us success in this world and the Hereafter.
A man came to the Prophet (saaw) asking him about the time of the
Day of Judgment. The Prophet (saaw) asked him,
''What did you prepare for it?'' Thus, the Prophet (saaw)
shifted the man's thinking from the Ghaib to the practical
aspect of the issue.And through this approach, the discussion of the
course of action for Muslims will be based on the Hukm Sharii and
not the Will or Knowledge of Allah, which is part of the Ghaib.We
are Muslims guided by the Islamic Aqeedah,and we don't rely on
probability theories.
Another might ask:How can we work for Islam when we are in a poor
country with hardly any resources?
This is also a case of trying to speculate about Allah's Will or
Allah's knowledge.The Prophet Muhammad(saw) initiated the Dawah in
the Arabian desert which suffered continuous drought and had hardly
any resources.Besides that,the realisation that rizq is from
Allah(swt) is a part of our belief and should be understood as such.
There must be no lip service by saying it and then acting contrary
to it. Countless examples abound in the world around us. Moreover,
the means through which rizq reaches us is known only to Allah(swt).
For example, the discovery of oil in the 20's granted the people of
Saudi Arabia access to vast amounts of wealth out of the blue. By
the same token, Allah (swt) has removed accessibility to wealth from
many parts of the world via earthquakes and other natural
disasters.Therefore we should shift our focus to Hukm Sharii because
we will be judged based on our actions.Working to re-establish the
Islamic system in obligatory.The amount of rizq and the means of
rizq is beyond our comprehension.
3.Also,it might be asked :How can we work for Islam in a
society rampant with drug-addicts
We have to understand that Prophet Muhammad(saw) conducted the
ideological warfare on the society in Meccah when it was stooped in
moral depravity;the people used to run nude around the Ka'aba and
others used to bury their daughters alive.In this task, the Prophet
(saaw) met the Jahilliyah system head on without any compromise or
deviation with full awareness that there are bound to be specific
individuals who will never enter the fold of Islam.
Allah(swt) says: "The same is it to them
whether thou admonish them or thou do not admonish them they
will not believe." [Ya Sin 36:10]
Again,we have to reiterate that only Allah(swt) knows who is going
to reform and who will not.As Allah's knowledge is beyond our
comprehension,we shift our focus on the Hukm Sharii,the halal and
haraam.These texts are the only sources available to act upon.
All these imaginary shackles have to be decisively defeated. |
