What Negates Islam
~ Chapter 8 of the Book, entitled: 'Al Wala' wa'l Bara' Authored by: Muhammad Sa'eed Al Qahtani ~
Contents
A Summary of What the 'Ulamaa Say
Ruling by Other than What Allah has Revealed
Helping the Disbelievers Against the Muslims
A Summary of What the 'Ulamaa Say
The 'Ulamaa have mentioned ten actions that negate Islam. These are:
First, associating other dieties with the worship of the One God Who has no partners. Allah (Ta'aala) says:
{Verily, Allah forgives not (the sin of) setting up partners (in worship)
with Him, but He forgives whom He Wills sins other than that...}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 4: Ayah 116)Second, relying on an intermediary between oneself and Allah (Ta'aala) when seeking intercession.
Third, refusal to condemn the kufr of those who rely on other deities instead of Allah (Ta'aala), or doubting that they are disbelievers, or approving of their religion, is itself disbelief.
Fourth, belief that there is a more perfect guidance than that of the Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam), or that there is a form of governance that is preferable to this, such as someone who prefers the rule of tyrants to that of the Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam).
Fifth, dislike of any part of the Revelation, even though one may act upon it, is disbelief. Allah (Ta'aala) says:
{That is because they hate that which Allah has sent down (this
Qur'an and Islamic Laws); so He has made their deeds fruitless.}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 47: Ayah 9)Sixth, disparaging any part of the Deen or any aspect of reward or punishment:
{Say: 'Was it at Allah and His Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons signs,
Revelations, etc.) and His Messenger that you were mocking?' Make
no excuse; you have disbelieved after you had Believed.}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 9: Ayat 65-66)Seventh, practising magic, either black or white, is proof of disbelief:
{...but the shayateen (devils) disbelieved, teaching men magic and such
things that came down at Babylon to the two angels, Harut and Marut, but
neither of these two (angels) taught anyone (such things) till they had said,
'We are only for trial, so disbelieve not (by learning this magic from us).'}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 2: Ayah 102)Eighth, helping and assisting the disbelievers in overcoming the Muslims:
{And if any amongst you takes them (as Auliya' [friends, protectors, helpers]),
then surely, he is one of them. Verily, Allah guides not those people
who are dhaalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers and unjust).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 5: Ayah 51)Ninth, belief that it is not necessary to follow the Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam), and that it is permitted to step outside the Law of Allah (Ta'aala), as al Khadir did when he exceeded what had been revealed to (Prophet) Musa ('alayhee salaam). This is disbelief.
Tenth, wilful neglect of Allah's Deen, neither learning it nor acting upon it. Allah (Ta'aala) says:
{And who does more wrong than he who is reminded of the Ayat of his
Lord, then turns aside therefrom? Verily, We shall exact retribution from
the mujrimun (criminals, disbelievers, polytheists, sinners).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 32: Ayah 22)No distinction is made as regards these actions in terms of intention, whether a person is joking or serious or even acts out of fear. The only excuse is compulsion. These ten actions are extremely dangerous and exceedingly common. Every Muslim should beware of them and feel a real fear in his heart of even drawing near them. (1)
We will now take a closer look [Insha' Allah] at two of these matters which are particularly relevant to our discussion, because of the significance and the proximity of the danger that they represent, and because this will clarify matters regarding political legitimacy, loyalty and opposition.
The first matter is the disbelief of someone who maintains that some other guidance is preferable to that of the Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam), or that some system of governance other than that which he established is better:
Ruling by Other than What Allah has Revealed
The marginalisation of the Sharee'ah, its disappearance from the mainstream of Islamic life and its replacement by laws formulated by ignorant humans is a modern heresy that has arisen during the last few centuries of the life of our Community. This has happened despite the fact that Muslim societies had for centuries sheltered under the protection of the Sharee'ah, which provided for everyone's security, whether the governor or the governed. Although some people were disobedient, some more than others, nevertheless the guiding principle, both in public and private life alike, was provided by the Sharee'ah.
Similarly, the continuation of the Jihad, the pushing back of the frontiers of disbelief and the raising up of the Word of Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala) throughout the world, carried on over and above this.
Thus the charge that the Sharee'ah, that Islamic Law, is deficient, reactionary, and incompatible with progress in the modern world, is something that could not have been made until the rise of European colonialism and the resulting forgetfulness of the Muslims: they forgot Allah (Ta'aala) and so He made them forget their own souls.
We find, however, much guidance in the Qur'an and in the Sunnah that clearly speaks about the governance of the Community. This most surely constitutes a part of our Belief, and is one of the most essential elements of our 'Aqeedah.
Allah (Ta'aala) says:
{And whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed,
such are kafirun (disbelievers.)}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 5: Ayah 44)and:
{And whosoever does not judge by that which Allah has revealed, such
are the dhaalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 5: Ayah 45)and:
{And whosoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed (then) such
(people) are the fasiqun (the rebellious i.e. disobedient to Allah).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 5: Ayah 47)And He (Ta'aala) says:
{Do they then seek the judgment of (the days of) ignorance?
And who is better in Judgement than Allah for a people
who have firm Faith.}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 5: Ayah 50)and:
{But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you
(O Muhammad) judge in all disputes between them, and find in
themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept
(them) with full submission.}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 4: Ayah 65)and:
{Or have they partners with Allah (false gods) who have instituted
for them a religion which Allah has not ordained?}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 42: Ayah 21)And He (Ta'aala) says in Surat an Nur:
{ They (hypocrites) say: 'We have believed in Allah and in the Messenger,
and we obey.', then a party of them turn away thereafter, such are not
Believers. And when they are called to Allah (i.e. His Words, the Qur'an)
and His Messenger, to Judge between them, lo! a party of them refuses
(to come) and turns away. But if the truth is on their side, they come
to him willingly with submission.
Is their a disease in their hearts? Or do they doubt or fear lest Allah and His
Messenger should wrong them in Judgement. Nay, it is they themselves
who are the dhaalimun (polytheists, hypocrites and wrong-doers). The only
saying of the Faithful Believers, when they are called to Allah (His Words, the
Qur'an) and His Messenger, to Judge between them, is that they say: 'We hear
and we obey.' And such are the successful (who will live forever in Paradise).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 24: Ayat 47-51)And He (Ta'aala) says in Surat an Nisaa:
{And whoever contradicts and opposes the Messenger after the right Path
has been shown clearly to him, and follows other than the Believers' Way,
We shall keep him in the path he has chosen, and burn him in Hell -
what an evil destination!}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 4: Ayah 115)Then Allah (Ta'aala) exposes the claims of those who say they are Believers, but who prefer to be ruled by disbelievers:
{Have you seen those (hypocrites) who claim that they believe in that
which has been sent down to you, and that which was sent down before
you, and they wish to go for judgement (in their disputes) to the taghut
(false judges) while they have been ordered to reject them.
But Shaytaan wishes to lead them far astray. And when it is said to
them: 'Come to what Allah has sent down and to the Messenger',you
see the hypocrites turn away from you (O Muhammad) with aversion.}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 4: Ayat 60-61)One of our 'Ulamaa summed this up nicely when he compared the person who wishes to substitute secular law for the Sharee'ah to a beetle that loves the smell of urine and faeces but hates the fragrance of roses and musk. (2)
And He (Ta'aala) says:
{Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad),
they will be among the lowest (most humiliated).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 58: Ayah 20)The worst form of dispute is to oppose Allah and His Messenger and to turn away from the Sharee'ah of Allah (Ta'aala), and the Sunnah of His Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam). The humiliation that the Muslims are today experiencing throughout the world is only a natural consequence of their having abandoned the Sharee'ah. Muslims today are numerous but they are like flotsam on a full tide. They have been seduced by the basest of nations and conquered by the most degenerate of people.
Indeed, the words of the Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam), have come True: He (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam) said:
'These nations will call one another to invade you as people call one another
to come and eat from one bowl.' Someone asked: 'Will it be because we are so few?'
He (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam) replied: 'Indeed no, in these days you will be many
but you will be like flotsam and jetsam on the sea, for Allah (Ta'aala) will strip fear of
you from the breasts of your enemies and He will cast Al Wahn into you.' They said:
'What is Al Wahn?' He (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam) said:
'Love of the world and a distaste for death.' (3)A large part of the imbalance in Muslim life today is due to the handiwork of men who, disguised as scholars, have persuaded people to substitute human speculation for the Sharee'ah of Allah (Ta'aala). Surely they will carry the full burden of their actions, and also that of those whom they have led astray, until the Day of Resurrection. Islam will not be sullied by them. May Allah (Ta'aala) preserve the 'Ulamaa from among our rightly guided predecessors who guarded the gates of Islam so that none of its enemies could penetrate beyond them.
Ibn Katheer discusses the condition of the Muslim Nation in the days of the Tatars. Discussing in his tafseer the ayah: {Do they then seek the judgment of (the days of) ignorance? } (5: 50), he says,
'The Law of Allah (Ta'aala) encourages whatever is beneficial and discourages whatever is detrimental. Allah (Ta'aala) has rejected all who would depart from it, and who accept the views, opinions, and conventions determined by men without any support from the Sharee'ah. This was done in the times of the Jahiliyyah, when people ruled by chance and blind conjecture in accordance with their own views and opinions.
So too do the Tatars rule, in accordance with their own royal policy, pronounced by their king Ghingis Khan, which they call the 'Yasaq'. This 'Yasaq' is a hotchpotch of all the rules and systems that he has come across, taken from the Jews and Christians and the Muslims, with many elements added which are based purely on his whims and fancies. This, the Tatars say, is the law of the land to which they give precedence, above the Book of Allah (Ta'aala) and the Sunnah of His Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam).
Whoever amongst them does this is a disbeliever who must be opposed until he returns to the Rule of Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala) and His Messenger (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam).
Such a person should not rule even for a day.' (4)
Shaykh Muhammad Ibn Ibraheem Al ash Shaykh outlines the ways in which a ruler may commit the greater disbelief (Kufr ul Akbar) that takes a person out of Islam:
If the ruler who rules by other than the Revelation of Allah (Ta'aala) challenges the legal obligation to rule by the Sharee'ah then he is outside Islam. This is the meaning of what has been reported by at Tabari on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas (radiallaahu 'anhu), who said that there is no disagreement among the 'Ulamaa about someone who challenges the legitimacy of the Sharee'ah; that this is a fundamental point about which everyone agrees; and that anyone who challenges a fundamental point of Belief - or even a secondary issue that all the 'Ulamaa are agreed about - or who denies any part of the Revelation out of hand, is a disbeliever and is not a part of this Community. (5)
If such a ruler does not challenge the legitimacy of the Sharee'ah, but believes that he rules by a better system of law than that which the Prophet (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam) observed, a system which in his opinion is more coherent and more suited to the needs of the people in the face of their changing needs and circumstances, then there can be no doubt that he too is a disbeliever. He has formulated a rule that can never compete with that of Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala). There is no issue whatsoever whose answer is not contained in the text of the Qur'an and the Sunnah, either explicitly or implicitly; whether or not a person knows this is a different matter.
If a ruler does not believe that what he has is better than the Sharee'ah, but still thinks that it is at least equal to it, then he is like the others. This is disbelief that takes him out of the Community, because it seeks to equate a creature with his Creator. This is also true if someone believes that a ruler has a right to deviate from the Sharee'ah in the way that the three types of rulers outlined above do.
It is even worse still when a person stubbornly supports his own rule in opposition to that of Allah (Ta'aala) and His Messenger (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam), aggrandising it at the expense of the Sharee'ah. This is what modern secular rulers do, whose recourse is to French, British and American law, or to whatever else they please to choose from non-Muslim systems.
What could be greater disbelief than this?
What could be more excessive than this in contradicting the declaration of Faith, 'There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is His Messenger'? (6)Finally, there is the disbelief of many chieftains of the tribes and clans of the Bedouins - and others like them - who cling to the tales of their ancestors, to their habits and traditions. These form a kind of inherited common law by which they rule themselves in preference to, and in spite of, the Revealed Law of Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala).
Then there is the type of disbelief that does not take one out of the Community, and which Ibn 'Abbas (radiallaahu 'anhu) termed 'a disbelief less than disbelief'. Thus someone who is overcome by his own desires in a particular situation may act contrary to the Sharee'ah, and yet still be aware that he is acting wrongly. He may later reproach himself for his error and failure to follow the guidance of Allah (Ta'aala). Even though this action does not take him out of the Community, it is still a very great sin, greater than fornication or drinking or theft. Allah (Ta'aala) has called this 'disbelief', so it is more grave than other wrong actions which have not been described in this fashion. (7)
It is because of the significance and importance of the matter that we have examined the subject of governance in detail. To ally oneself with a ruler who does not rule by what Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala) has revealed, to approve of his rule and the implementation of legislation under his authority - saying this is lawful, without the Permission of Allah (Ta'aala) - is a contradiction of the declaration of Faith. Allah (Ta'aala) is the only God, to whom all devotion from the heart is due, in love, and in awe, and in obedience, and in submission.
Such behaviour is a contradiction of the statement, 'Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah', since whoever truly believes this will follow what the Messenger (salallaahu 'alayhee wa sallam) has commanded and leave what he has forbidden and what he has criticised. If people only understood this fact then tyranny could not persist, nor could it establish disbelief and push the Sharee'ah of Allah (Ta'aala) to one side.
The second matter that should be considered in this context is the helping and assisting of the disbelievers against the Muslims.
Helping the disbelievers Against the Muslims
Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala) says:
{And if any amongst you takes them (the Jews and Christians, as Auliya'
[friends, protectors, helpers]), then surely, he is one of them. Verily, Allah
guides not those people who are dhaalimun (polytheists
and wrong-doers and unjust).}
(The Noble Qur'an, Surah 5: Ayah 51)This is a major contradiction of the declaration of Faith into which many people today have fallen. They are nominally Muslims and still apparently within the fold of the Faithful. And yet, we have come to feel a certain embarrassment when it comes to calling a spade a spade, to saying to the supporters of kufr, 'You are disbelievers!'
Some people even see this as an impertinence in view of the wonder and awe, and the fear and anxiety, that they feel for the enemies of Allah (Subhannah wa Ta'aala). And so the matter of setting the pace, of setting an example, has given way under the weight of their feebleness of faith. They are dazzled by the enemies of Allah (Ta'aala) and long to be like them, even to the point that if they entered the hole of a lizard they would follow them into it.
Footnotes
1) Imam Muhammad Ibn Abdul Wahhab, Mu'alafat, 5/212-214.
2) Abi Hibbatu'llah Isma'il al Khateeb, Tadheer Ahl al Iman 'an al Hukm bighayri ma Anzala'r Rahman, in Rasa'il al Muniriya, 1/139.
3) Abu Dawud, Kitab al Malahim, 4/484, (4297); Mishkat al Masabih; also al Bayhaqi; al Albani classifies it as sahih.
4) Ibn Katheer, Tafseer, 3/123.
5) Tahkim al Qawanin, p.5.
6) ibid. p.7.
7) ibid. p.8.
Formatted and Edited by Abu Suhayb
Due to the inferiority of the original Qur'anic translations in this chapter - which was that of Muhammad Pickthall's - all translations of Qur'anic text have been changed to texts from the: 'The Noble Qur'an': A summarized Version of At-Tabari, Al Qurtubi and Ibn Kathir with comments from Sahih al Bukhari. Summarized in One Volume. Translation by Dr. Muhammad Taqi-ud-Deen Al Hilali and Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan.
Maktaba Dar-us- Salam: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, 1995