One Ameer, One Jama’ah

Implications for Muslims in North America

Muslims resident in North America need to devote careful attention to this subject since the overwhelming majority of them are collectively organized as Islamic Associations and Islamic Center, etc. These organizations have been established on the basis of Articles of Incorporation and Constitutions which provide for the creation of Management Committees, Executive Committees, Boards of Directors, Boards of Trustees, etc., which control and direct the affairs of the associations. These committees and boards are invariably established through elections in which only financial members may participate. Individuals have their names nominated for a particular post and then they “run” for that post. It is not unusual that there is active campaigning for an election. The campaign and elections, more often than not, create factions and divisions, and election day can sometimes take on the appearance of a fish market. The divisions created can sometimes lead to court battles. That is the reality in North America and elsewhere in the world.

The constitutions place no obligation on the President or the Management Committee to apply and enforce the Islamic way of life on the members, individually or collectively, nor do the constitutions require of the members that they listen to and obey the President as a religious obligation. And so, disobedience of the President does not constitute a sin.

One day We shall call together all human beings with their respective leaders; those who are given their record in their right hand will read it (with pleasure), and they will not be dealt with unjustly in the least. But those who were blind in this world (and, as a consequence, neglected to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet), will be blind in the Hereafter, and most astray form the path (Isra 17:71-72).

Muslims take pride in the fact that they are increasing in numbers in North America. And since the establishment of masajid is important for both immigrant and indigenous Muslims in the context of preserving a sense of identity, large number of masajid are now being established. But the painful reality is that despite all these new masajid, Islam is a receding force in the lives of the majority of Muslims in North America. And it may not take more than a generation or two before they are absorbed into the melting pot of an essentially godless modern Western civilization.

The overwhelming majority of immigrant Muslims will offer the pledge of allegiance to the American Constitution to obtain U.S. citizenship. And that is shirk! The majority will borrow money on interest to buy houses, cars, refrigerators, washing machines, etc. The majority will use credit cards. And that is riba! Indeed it will only be a matter of time before many of their children, or grand-children, will eat bacon and eggs for breakfast, drink wine, and use paper instead of water for personal hygiene after using the toilet!

That is the painful concrete reality which I perceive after having served the cause of Islam in North America since 1989.
{mospagebreak title=The Present Predicament}
The Present Predicament

Since 1924, the world of Islam has existed without Dar Al-Islam, consequent upon the abolition of the Khilafah by the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Why did Dar Al-Islam have to collapse because the Turks abolished the Khilafah in Istanbul? Was there no other part of the earth where Dar Al-Islam still existed, i.e., where Muslims had control over territory and Allah´s commands remained absolute and sovereign? If there was still Dar Al-Islam elsewhere, then the Khilafah could have been restored in such territory! The answer, of course, was that the forces which planned and executed the destruction of the Khilafah in Istanbul, made certain that Khilafah itself, as the central institution of the Islamic public order, cannot be restored. But more of this later!

No where on the earth today do Muslims have control over territory in such a manner that Allah´s sovereignty is recognized and applied. In this respect, at least, Muslims have now returned to the pre-Hijrah stage described previously. And while the goal is, of course, to return to Madinah — From Makkah to Madinah One More Time — the fact is that while Muslims still remain in the pre-Hijrah stage they face a predicament. They recognize that it is in the essence of the Prophetic model that they must be organized as a Jama´ah with an Ameer/Imam who must be obeyed as a religious obligation. But that single Jama´ah which embraces all Muslims does not yet exist, and all efforts to restore it have so far failed. What, then, should North American Muslims do? Indeed, what should Muslims around the world do? That is the predicament!

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) himself prophesied the emergence of the present sorry situation when he declared that his Ummah would be divided into 73 different firaq (divisions), and that all of them except one would be misguided. How can we recognize the one group which is rightly guided? The rightly guided group would be the one that follows the Sunnah of the Prophet (SAW) and his Companions (RAA), which means that this group, among other things, would be organized as an authentic Jama´ah, and would function under the direction of an Ameer/Imam who has adequate knowledge of Islam. Of course, the Ameer/Imam must conduct the affairs of the Jama´ah in accordance with the Qur´an and Sunnah. And, secondly, the Jama´ah must be under a religious obligation to obey the Ameer/Imam.

Additionally, while there was no pledge of obedience (Baiy´ah) to the Ameer/Imam in the pre-Hijrah model, that pledge was universally present in the post-Hijrah model. All the Sahaba (Companions of the Prophet), all the Taba´yeen (the generation after the Companions), all the Taba Taba´yeen (the generation after the Taba´yeen) gave that pledge to the Ameer/Imam. Sayyedina Imam Husain (RAA) gave that pledge to Hadrat Mu´awiyah (RAA). It was the refusal of Imam Husain (RAA) to give the pledge to Yazeed — and he was absolutely correct in that decision — which led to the tragedy of Karbala.

And so, the rightly guided group will be those Muslims, wherever they may be the earth today, who, among other things, are constituted as a Jama´ah, directed by an Ameer/Imam, who conducts the affairs of the Jama´ah in accordance with the Qur´an and Sunnah, and whose authority over the Jama´ah is legitimized by the Bai´yah (pledge of obedience). The rightly guided group will also be of those who recognize the Qur´an as the primary source of guidance as to what constitutes Islam.

The Tanzeem-e-Islami is one such Jama´ah. It may not be the only such Jama´ah today. But it recognizes and is committed to a morrow in which all “the people of Allah” will be unified as one Jama´ah under one Ameer/Imam. Indeed this must be recognized as one of the basic characteristics of a Jama´ah whose affairs are faithfully conducted in accordance with the Qur´an and Sunnah; to wit, such a Jama´ah is constantly struggling to unify all “the people of Allah” as “one Jama´ah” under the direction of “one Ameer.”

It is also a matter of critical importance that we recognize the Tanzeem-e-Islami as a Jama´ah which has accepted and projected the Qur´an as the primary source of guidance of Islam. Perhaps no one alive today has rendered greater service to the cause of the Qur´an as Dr. Israr Ahmad, the Ameer of Tanzeem-e-Islami.

{mospagebreak title=The Problem of Baiy’ah}
The Problem of Baiy´ah and the Implications of refraining from Baiy´ah

Let us, therefore, direct our attention to the concern of those who would prefer to give that Baiy´ah to the Ameer only when we have one leader directing the affairs of all Muslims. Such people express a legitimate concern and deserve an appropriate response. Our response is that they should recall the prophecy of the Prophet (SAW) regarding the divisions within the Ummah and that only one group amongst 73 firaq would be rightly guided. Those divisions have now appeared in the body of the Ummah, and it seems that the situation is going to grow worse. It would therefore be inappropriate and, indeed, foolhardy to demand or to expect that all Muslims can today be united under one Ameer.

Our advice to such Muslims is that they should not wait for a day which may not arrive in their life-time, in order to conform with this essential part of the Sunnah, i.e., to join an organized group which is an authentic Jama´ah, and which is led by an authentic Ameer whose authority is constituted through Baiy´ah and who directs the affairs of the Jama´ah in conformity with the Qur´an and Sunnah.

Other Muslims hold the view that they have conformed with the requirement of Baiy´ah by giving their pledge to a Sufi Shaikh. This would be true only in that instance (which is very rare today) where the Sufi Shaikh is engaged not only in the moral and spiritual training and development of his disciples but also in leading the Jama´ah in the revolutionary struggle for the restoration of Khilafah and triumph of the Deen of Islam over its rivals. Such a Sufi Shaikh was Muhiyuddin Abdul Qadir Al-Jeelani (RAA). Even today we see the Murabitun, for example, under the capable leadership of Shaikh Abdelqadir as-Sufi, waging that Islamic revolutionary struggle in a manner which commands respect. This Sufi order is far in advance of the rest of the Muslim world in their study and articulation of the problem of riba. The recent work by Umar Ibrahim Vadillo, entitled The Return of the Gold Dinar should be read by all those who are serious about dealing with riba. They are also making serious efforts for the restoration of Khilafah. Their efforts are concentrated in Turkey and they are making progress. The recent work by Shaikh Abdelqadir as-Sufi entitled The Return of the Khalifate is indicative of the progress which they are making!

What is the price which the Muslims will have to pay if they fail to respond to the obligation of sticking to the Jama´ah and to the Ameer? What price will the Muslims pay, in this age, if they fail to give the Baiy´ah to the Ameer of the Jama´ah and then comply with that pledge through “listening and obeying?”

In the first place, such Muslims will be violating Allah´s command in the Qur´an as follows:

O you who believe, obey Allah and obey the Prophet and those in authority from among you (Al-Nisa 4:59).

The pledge (Baiy´ah) is the instrument which places a Muslim formally into the third part of the Qur´anic command, i.e., “and (obey) those in authority form among you.” It would not suffice to declare that there is no one in such authority over the Muslims today. If there is no such authority over the Muslims, then they are under the obligation to promptly establish that authority and then submit to it. This is precisely the reason why the Tanzeem-e-Islami was established with an Ameer who demands that the members give the Baiy´ah to him. I myself placed my hands in his hands and gave the Baiy´ah to him Rawalpindi (Pakistan) in October, 1996.

Secondly, there is incontestable evidence that we are living in the age of fitan prophesied by the Prophet (SAW) as the age of great evil before the end of the world. The evil of the age of fitan is such that it will eventually reduce the overwhelming majority of mankind to godlessness. It should be quite apparent that the age of fitan has already commenced. In the Hadith Al-Qudsi narrated by Hadrat Abu Saeed Khudri (RAA) and included in the Sahih of Imam Bukhari (RA), we are told that 999 out of every 1000 persons (of this age) will eventually enter into the Hell. What should we do in this age to save ourselves from Jahannam, to preserve faith, and to earn Jannah? Did the Prophet (SAW) address this subject? If he did, what advice did he give? The answer is to be found in another hadith of Sahih Bukhari in which the Prophet (SAW) responded to questions posed by one of his Companions, Hadrat Hudhaifah (RAA):

Hudhaifah Ibn Al-(RAA) said: People used to ask Allah´s Messenger (SAW) about good but I used to ask him about evils lest I be overtaken by them. So I said: O Allah´s Messenger, we were living in ignorance and in an (extremely) bad atmosphere, then Allah brought to us this good (i.e., Islam); will there be any evil after this good? He said: Yes. I said: will there be any good after that evil? He replied: Yes, but it will be tainted (i.e., not pure). I asked: What will be its taint? He replied: (There will be) some people who will guide others (but) not according to my guidance. You will approve of some of their deeds and disapprove of some others. I asked: Will there be any evil after that good? He replied: Yes, (there will be) some people who summon others at the gates of Jahannam into which they will cast those who respond to them. I asked Allah´s Messenger (SAW) to describe them to us and he said: They will be from our own people and will speak like us. I asked what command he had to give me if that happened in my time and he replied: You must adhere to the Jama´ah (i.e., the community of Muslims which is organized as a Jama´ah) and the Imam (i.e., the Ameer or leader of the Jama´ah whose authority is established through the act of Baiy´ah). I said: if there is neither a Jama´ah nor an Imam? He said: Then turn away from all those firaq (i.e., misguided Muslim groups which have failed to constitute themselves as a Jama´ah with an Ameer/Imam whose authority is established through an act of Baiy´ah) even if you have to eat the roots of a tree until death overtakes you while you are in that state. (Bukhari and Muslim)

This hadith makes it quite clear that salvation in this age of fitan is dependent upon Muslims adhering themselves to the authentic Jama´ah and authentic Imam.

Thirdly, there are several Ahadith of the Prophet (SAW) which all declare that he who dies in a state of exclusion from the Jama´ah, or dies without Baiy´ah, or without an Imam, etc., actually dies in a state of Jahiliyyah. The overwhelming majority of the Muslims today stand aloof from the Jama´ah. They have no Ameer/Imam whom they are obliged to obey as a religious duty. And they have not given the Baiy´ah to any Ameer/Imam. The following Ahadith warns them of a death of Jahiliyyah which awaits them if death comes upon them in that state:

Umar (RAA) said that the Prophet (SAW) said: Be with the Jama´ah and avoid firqah (misguided Muslims who have failed to constitute themselves as an authentic Jama´ah) for surely Satan is with the (one who remains) alone and he stays far from two (believers who jointly constitute a Jama´ah). Whoever wishes to experience the fragrance of Paradise must cling to the Jama´ah. (Tirmidhi)

Ibn Umar (RAA) reported that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) said: The hand of Allah is on the Jama´ah. Whoever separates (i.e., remains outside of the Jama´ah) will be separated for (dispatched to) the Hell. (Tirmidhi)

Umar (RAA) said: There is no Islam without the Jama´ah; and there is no Jama´ah without (the obligation of having to) listen; and there is no listening without (the obligation to) obey (Mishkat). Abu Daud adds: there is no Jama´ah without an Ameer.

Harith Al-Ash´ari (RAA) said that the Messenger of Allah (SAW) declared: I order you (to adhere to) five (things): the Jama´ah, listening, obeying, Hijrah, and Jihad in the way of Allah. Whoever departs from the Jama´ah by as much (distance) as the span of a hand, he has removed the guardianship of Islam form his neck, except in case of his return (to the Jama´ah). And whoever calls with the call of Jahiliyyah, such is from the ashes of Jahannam. Even if he fasts and performs Salaat and (thereby) considers himself a believer (he will still enter into the Hell). (Ahmad, Tirmidhi)

Abdullah Ibn Umar (RAA) said that he heard the Allah´s Messenger (SAW) say: Whoever removes a hand from (the pledge of) obedience he will meet with Allah on the day of Qiymah with no evidence (of being a believer); and whoever dies without Baiy´ah on his neck (i.e., without having given the pledge of obedience to the Ameer/Imam and, as a consequence, submitted himself to the obligation of having to obey the Ameer/Imam), has died a death of Jahilliyah. (Muslim)

Mu´awiyah (RAA) said that the Prophet (SAW) said: Whoever dies without an Imam (i.e., without having become a member of the Jama´ah and, thus, accepted the authority of an Ameer/Imam over him) dies a death of Jahiliyyah. (Ahmad, Tabarani)

Ibn Umar (RAA) said that the Prophet (SAW) said: Whoever dies (while) separated from the Jama´ah, dies a death of Jahiliyyah. (Hilli, Tabarani)

There are some who will read these Ahadith for the first time and, because of shock, might doubt them. Others will declare that they could not be authentic Ahadith for, had they been such, then Muslims would have spoken about them. We would not, as a consequence, have witnessed this present state of total abandonment of Baiy´ah and the collapse of Khilafah.

Our response to such objections is, first, to remind the Muslims that the prohibition of riba in Islam was made in the most forceful language possible in both the Qur´an and Hadith, and yet the overwhelming majority of Muslims are today ignorant of the subject, and worse yet, are in a state of manifest and dangerous violation of that Divine prohibition.

Secondly, the authenticity as well as the supreme importance of the ahadith relating to Bai´yah, for example, were emphasized when Shaikh-ul-Azhar (i.e., the head of the Al-Azhar University) quoted the hadith from Sahih Muslim in the declaration issued by him on behalf of all the Ulama of Al-Azhar and of Egypt in response to the Turkish abolition of the Khilafah:

…and whoever dies without Baiy´ah on his neck (i.e., without having given the pledge of obedience to the Ameer/Imam and, as a consequence, submitted himself to the obligation of having to obey the Ameer/Imam) had died a death of Jahiliyyah. (Muslim)

The Turkish Grand National Assembly abolished the Khilafah on March 3, 1924. The declaration from Al-Azhar came three weeks later. This declaration from Al-Azhar University constituted the most important response from the entire world of Islam to the abolition of the Khilafah. That this sahih hadith should have been quoted in that most important declaration is an indication of the extent of recognition of its authenticity.

Let us not direct our attention to those who are persuaded that the Baiy´ah must be given to an Ameer/Imam but insist that they will give the Baiy´ah only when the Khilafah over the entire Ummah is restored. What explanation can we offer to them which would convince them of the virtual impossibility of restoring the Khilafah during the last seventy years (1924-1994)?

{mospagebreak title=An analysis of the Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate}

An Analysis of the Abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate and the Transcendental Reality of the Age which is still witnessing the Most Monstrous Attack on the Ummah
 blue mosque
When viewed form an essentially Qur´anic perspective, the abolition of the Ottoman Caliphate appears to have occurred at the same time that other events of supreme Qur´anic importance were unfolding. For example, the Ottoman Empire would not have been defeated and destroyed had the fundamental change not come to Europe, transforming European civilization into a major actor on the world stage. The French and the Bolshevik Revolutions marked the turning points in the transformation of Western and Eastern European civilization from those based on faith in Christianity to essentially godless civilizations. The Scientific and Industrial Revolutions and the emergence of the capitalistic economy resulted in those godless civilizations becoming predatory and having the power with which to prey upon all mankind. Those godless European civilizations then embarked upon the unholy mission to transform the rest of the world to godlessness! The Ottoman Empire stood in the way of Europe since it was established on foundations which were essentially sacred. The institution of he Khilafah established and legitimized Islam´s sacred model of a society and a world order. And so, the Ottoman Caliphate was targeted and destroyed.

With the destruction of the Khilafah, the last major hurdle in the way of those who were determined to reduce all of mankind to godlessness was now removed. The stage was thus set for the fulfillment of the words of Hadith Al-Qudsi, that 999 out of every 1000 persons (of this age) will eventually enter into the Hell. In other words, the destruction of the Khilafah by the modern godless world provided evidence that the age of Ya´jooj and Ma´jooj had commenced (See Qur´an, Al-Kahf 18:98-99).

At the same time that this objective of the destruction of Khilafah was being pursued by the modern godless European civilization, another more sinister revolution was taking place in the Jewish world. A godless Zionist Movement emerged among East European Jews. It declared that the Holy Land of Palestine belonged to the Jews because God gave it to them. It totally ignored the fact that Jews had both corrupted and betrayed the religion of Abraham and, as a consequence, no longer had any right to the Holy Land! Jews swallowed the bait of the Zionist Movement. The establishment of the State of Israel now became the goal of the Jews, regardless of the means which were to be employed to achieve it. Zionism was created by a truly evil force which set out to deceive the Jews and to take them for a ride. That ride would be the last ride they would ever take. At the end of the road, both Jews and Judaism now faced utter destruction. Allah (SWT) had warned of the release of that truly evil force (Dajjal), and of the release of Ya´jooj and Ma´jooj in a revelation which was ominously placed at the very end of the Qur´an:

Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of the dawn, from the evil (i.e., evil forces or evil beings) which He created… (Al-Falaq 113:1-2).

And so we witnessed the amazing phenomenon of the destruction of the Khilafah and the restoration of the State of Israel as contemporaneous events. The same evil forces were at work in both cases. This was confirmed in Surah Al-Anbiya of the Qur´an in Aayat 95 and 96 where Almighty Allah (SWT) spoke of a qaryah (i.e., the city of Jerusalem symbolizing the State of Israel) which He destroyed and then pronounced the restoration of that qaryah (i.e., the restoration of the State of Israel) to be haram (prohibited) until the (commencement of the) release of Ya´jooj and Ma´jooj.

Since the Jews were now deceived and were put on a path which led, progressively, to the greatest oppression and wickedness in their conduct with mankind in general and with Muslims in particular, a third event now took place as just this same time. It was a sign form Almighty Allah (SWT) which was spoken of in the Qur´an, a sign which was meant to warn the Jews: If you live like Pharaoh did, you will die the way he died (See Qur´an, Surah Younus 10:92). That event was the discovery of the body of Pharaoh by Loret in 1898 at Thebes in the King´s Valley of Lower Egypt.

Three other related events took place and, indeed, are still taking place, all of which are directly related to the release of those evil forces created by Almighty Allah (SWT). They all flowed from the emergence of materialism and secularism as the philosophical foundation of the modern Western civilization. These were the events:

1.       The emergence of riba at the very foundation of the European economy, and the subsequent deadly embrace of the entire world economy by riba; the Ottoman Empire was the special target, however, and the decline of this great Islamic State began when it was penetrated by Jewish bankers with riba during the rule of Mahmut II (1808-1839). By 1896, the stranglehold of riba on the Ottoman economy had put the Sultan/Caliph in such dire straits that the Zionist leader, Herzl, could finally visit Sultan Abdulhamid II and play the card of financial diplomacy which riba made possible, i.e., blackmail. In return for Palestine, he offered “to regulate the entire finances of the Ottoman State.” Abdulhamid refused. He was overthrown. And the Khilafah was easily abolished. Mission accomplished for the Jewish bankers.

2.       The emergence of shirk at the very foundation of the new European political philosophy. Allah is no longer the sovereign. The modern secular State is now sovereign. That modern European model of a State then embraced all of mankind in its deadly embrace; but the seat of the Caliphate was the special target. After the Khilafah was abolished, the new modern secular State of Turkey emerged with that shirk at its very foundation. Form Turkey it went to Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud who then transformed the heartland of Islam into the modern State of Saudi Arabia based on the same shirk. Pakistan followed in tame imitation and the great effort of Iqbal became an exercise in futility.

3.       The emergence of a new philosophy of feminism at the very heart of the new European secular society. It brought in its wake a sexual revolution which dismantled the edifice of sexual morality. Sexual freedom resulted in an unprecedented explosion of promiscuity and perversions. This was the Kathr Al-Khabaith which the Prophet (SAW) had declared to be the sign of the release of Ya´jooj and Ma´jooj. This destructive sexuality now targeted all of mankind, but the special target was again the world of Islam.

{mospagebreak title=Mirza Ghulam Ahmad}

Just before these events took place, or just as they were taking place, the world of Islam witnessed the emergence of by far the most dangerous of the dajjals, or false prophets, to have so far appeared. He was Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, the false prophet of Qadian (India) and founder of the Ahmadiyyah Movement. He appeared at the very time that the stage was being set for the attack on the institution of the Khilafah. And his primary role was one of corrupting Muslim thought and belief, especially as it related to the accurate perception of the transcendental reality which was now unfolding in the age of fitan. Mirza was a tool of the forces which were at work planning the destruction of Khilafah, and his primary role was one of diverting Islamic thought from the supreme attack which was being launched on the Ummah, and reducing the Islamic intelligentsia to a state of intellectual confusion.

Iqbal recognized all the above events for what they were. He recognized the evil forces which had been unleashed into the world and the supreme danger of he moment in which he lived. Indeed, he lived in Sialkot (Pakistan), the same city in which that cunning dajjal, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, lived for some time. Iqbal saw through the devilish schemes which had been planned for destroying the Ummah but he lacked an authentic Jama´ah through which he could respond appropriately.* He condemned Mirza Ghulam Ahmad and warned the Muslims of the great threat coming from the sinister dajjal of Qadian. He denounced the modern godless European civilization and warned the Muslims of the every grave danger which they faced from the West. And he forewarned the new ominous direction in which the Jewish world was heading.

If it was thought that the All India Muslim League and its leader, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, could function as the Jama´ah through which the renaissance of Islam in South Asia could be pursued, then this was a misconception. The League was not an authentic Jama´ah, nor was Jinnah an authentic Ameer/Imam. To his credit, Jinnah never claimed that status. The All India Muslim League and Mr. Jinnah had nothing of the Qur´anic understanding of the ominous nature of the reality of the modern age which was Iqbal´s forte. The League could neither respond appropriately to the collapse of the Khilafah, nor could it understand the dangers of the godless age. As for the dajjal who was sent to dupe the South Asian Muslim intelligentsia, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad´s success was such that Mr. Jinnah appointed Muhammad Zafrullah Khan, one of the most versatile and brilliant of all the followers of Mirza, as the first Foreign Minister of Pakistan.

We embarked on this cursory analysis in respect of the transcendental dimension of the historical reality which witnessed the abolition of the Khilafah, in order to demonstrate that its restoration was not possible during these last 73 years. After all, some of those who are hesitant about giving the Baiy´ah have asked the question: Why was the Khilafah not restored somewhere else after it collapsed in Istanbul? Why have we had no Khilafah for more than 70 years now? The reason for this is the nature of the age in which we now live. This is the age when the greatest force of evil ever created by Allah (SWT) has commenced its release. (The evil force will eventually appear as a human being.) This is the age of Dajjal and of Ya´jooj and Ma´jooj. The Islamic revolutionary movement which is struggling for the restoration of the Khilafah cannot possibly succeed in that effort unless it first has an accurate perception of today´s objective reality and recognizes this age as the age of Dajjal. That authentic Islamic revolutionary movement, or Jama´ah, with Iqbal´s accurate Qur´anic perception of contemporary reality, did not exist in 1924 and has not existed since 1924. How, then, was it possible to wage a successful struggle for the restoration of the Khilafah?

Alhamdullilah! The authentic Islamic revolutionary movement is now emerging in different parts of the world of Islam.

{mospagebreak title=Conspirators in the destruction of Dar – Al – Islam}

Shareef Al-Husain, the great-grandfather of the present King Husain of Jordan, claimed the Khilafah on March 7, 1924, four days after the announcement from the Turkish Grand National Assembly abolishing the Khilafah. He was appointed by the Ottoman Caliph as the Shareef of Makkah, but had rebelled against Istanbul and, as a client of the British, had fully cooperated in the British effort to defeat the Ottoman Empire. His reward was a princely seven million Sterling pounds payoff from the British Treasury. In claiming the Khilafah, however, he ran afoul of the basic British and Zionist objective in the war against the Ottoman Empire. The war was not just a war against the Turks. It was a war against Islam. The objective was the destruction of the Khilafah and the emasculation of the Muslims world so that the Jewish State of Israel could be restored, and the faith of Muslims destroyed.

Shareef Al-Husain´s claim to the Khilafah threatened the entire scheme of the British and the Zionists. And so they had to get rid of him. They did it with diabolical cunning. They gave the green light to another British client Abdul Aziz Ibn Saud, head of the Saudi-Wahhabi alliance (which had briefly captured Makkah about a hundred years previously) to attack Husain. Abdul Aziz had cooperated with the British in the destruction of the Ottoman Empire through concluding a Treaty of Benevolent Neutrality with the British in 1916. His payoff from the British Treasury for his treachery to Islam was a less princely sum of five thousand Sterling pounds a month. He explained to his gullible Salafi Ikhwan that this was Jizyah. They accepted this explanation!

The British-Zionist political strategy succeeded in replacing Husain with a Saudi-Wahhabi monarchy which effectively prevented the restoration of the Khilafah. The plan was simple yet brilliant. No one could possibly be recognized as Khalifa and win legitimacy for his Khilafah unless he controlled the Haramain and the Hajj. No one could succeed in controlling the Haramain and the Hajj so long as the Saudi regime, supported militarily by the West, remained in control of Arabia. And the Saudi-Wahhabis could never be so stupid as to claim the Khilafah for themselves. After all, what happened to Shareef Al-Husain was supposed to function as a warning. It did! And the Wahhabis abandoned the Khilafah!

The reality, therefore, is that the Khilafah could not, and still cannot, be restored until Arabia is liberated and Dar Al-Islam is restored. And while the struggle to restore the Khilafah must never (Insha Allah) cease, we also recognize the possibility that the liberation of Arabia may not take place until the advent of Imam Al-Mahdi.

When the Imam Al-Mahdi does emerge, however, he will need the Jama´ah of Muslims to support him and to struggle with him. This, then, is the imperative for the creation of the authentic Islamic revolutionary movement or Jama´ah. There is a greater need for that Jama´ah in South Asia than in other parts of the world since this is the implication of the appearance of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in South Asia. In other words, the evil force which is paving the way for the coming of the Al-Masih Al-Dajjal itself recognized the enormous potential which South Asian Muslims possessed for waging a successful struggle for the renaissance of Islam in the modern godless age, and it was because of this that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad emerged in South Asia rather than in the Arab world or Africa, etc.
{mospagebreak title=Restoration of the Khilafah}
To Restore the Khilafah, first Restore the Authentic Jama´ah

In order for the Khilafah to be restored, the Jama´ah must first be restored! It must be an authentic Jama´ah under the leadership of an authentic Ameer/Imam who has a commanding knowledge of the Qur´an and Sunnah. Authenticity requires that the members of the Jama´ah give the Baiy´ah to the Ameer/Imam and must then strictly adhere to the discipline of “listening and obeying” in all matters which do not involve disobedience of Allah (SWT) or His Messenger (SAW). Such a Jama´ah is needed so as to wage an organized and collective struggle for the restoration of the Khilafah and of Dar Al-Islam, for the purpose of establishing the Islamic socio-political system (Iqamah Al-Deen).

The methodology for the restoration of the Khilafah is that a revolutionary struggle has to be waged. The Islamic Movements in Turkey, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Algeria need to be urgently, yet gently, reminded of this fact. That Jama´ah will cease to be an authentic Jama´ah which registers itself as a political party in a secular State, and then participates in democratic elections on the basis of acceptance of a Constitution which claims sovereignty for itself. Although the Pakistani Constitution has an Objectives Resolution attached to it, the painful truth is that, since the birth of the State, de facto sovereignty has always been located with the State. It has never been accorded to Almighty Allah (SWT). And so there has been no practical difference between the shirk of the Pakistani Constitution and the shirk that is inherent in the claim of sovereignty in the Constitutions of all secular States.

The authentic Jama´ah must be engaged in a struggle to build power, such power as would permit it to sustain its control over any territory which may be restored to status of Dar Al-Islam, and to wage the struggle form that territory to liberate the Haramain and Hejaz. When it does so, the authentic Jama´ah will be re-realizing that historical process and golden age which witnessed the Prophet (SAW) establishing his base in Madinah and then struggling from there to liberate Makkah.

The authentic Jama´ah cannot be engaged in sectarian strife. On the contrary, it must establish itself on that authentic foundation of Aqeedah, and must function with that Hikmah of tolerance, as can attract Muslims form every dimension of the authentic belief spectrum. Then, having attracted them, it must weed out manifestly un-Islamic beliefs and then maintain tolerance in respect of harmless differences which exist at the periphery of the belief spectrum. The authentic Jama´ah would reach out to the Shi´ah Muslims and to Islamic Iran, and search for the authentic common bond of Aqeedah with which to build a foundation for strategic cooperation and solidarity in the pursuit of a common goal.

It should be quite clear that today´s intolerant Salafi Muslims, who take their primary inspiration from Ibn Saud´s stringent Wahhabi Ikhwan, can hardly function as an authentic Jama´ah. They wage a thoroughly obnoxious Jihad against harmless differences located at the periphery of the belief spectrum, while shamelessly betraying the very substance of the revolutionary struggle for the liberation from oppression and for the triumph of the truth of Islam over the falsehood and evil which today dominate the world, and which is descending upon mankind from every direction (min kulli hdabin yansiloon).

The authentic Jama´ah, finally, must be engaged in the effort for moral and spiritual purification and growth (Tazkiyyah) of its members. Without the spiritual magnetism and rapture which comes from the mobilization of the heart, the Ameer and the leaders of the Jama´ah will not succeed in attracting the masses of Muslims for active, spontaneous, and dynamic participation in the revolutionary struggle. This, indeed, was one of the weaknesses of the Jama´ah founded by Maulana Sayyid Abul A´la Maududi, the Jama´at-e-Islami. May Allah (SWT) guide the Jama´at-e-Islami to correct this weakness. And may Allah (SAW) bless the learned Maulana whose great service to the cause of Islam will never be forgotten. Aameen!

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 Dr Muhamed Iqbal and the Authentic Jamah

Iqbal´s strategic importance to the Islamic revolutionary movement in this age of fitan and godless modernity is located in the following:

1.       Iqbal is himself one of the most dynamic of the Islamic revolutionary thinkers who have emerged in the modern age. His greatest and most enduring contribution to the Islamic revolutionary movement was his critical, comprehensive, and sophisticated Islamic response to the intellectual challenge of the modern godless civilization which today dominates the world. In articulating that response with logic, rationality and acumen, Iqbal was, in fact, following the Sunnah of the Prophet (SAW) who said that he would himself do the intellectual battle with Dajjal if he were alive in the age in which he was released:

When he (Dajjal) makes his appearances and I am in your midst, I will overpower him by arguments; and if, when he makes his appearance, I am not in your midst, every one should argue with him. (Kanz Al-Ummal vol. 7 no. 2076)

2.       By virtue of the fact that he was not subjected to a traditional Islamic theological education in a Dar-ul-Uloom, Iqbal enjoyed an intellectual freedom to study the Qur´an in the light of modern knowledge, and with a view of locating that dimension of the exposition of Truth (Al-Haq) which had specific relevance to the modern age, i.e., for refuting the claims of godless modernity, for example. His was a pioneering effort, and he succeeded so admirably that nearly all the modern educated intelligentsia in the Muslim world who came in contact with his thought were immediately attracted to him. If the Islamic revolutionary movement is to attract and mobilize and motivate such Muslims, a real and dynamic link with Iqbal is indispensable.

3.       Sectarianism remains one of the deadliest diseases to afflict the contemporary Ummah. The Islamic revolutionary movement will have to locate a philosophical and theological standpoint from which to deal successfully with sectarianism. Iqbal is uniquely placed to act as a unifying force which can bring Muslims belonging to different strands of the sectarian spectrum on a single platform, and then weld them into a single force. Muslims who have been traditionally educated, as well as Muslims who have had a modern secular education, Muslims who are inclined to rationality in their religious thought, and Muslims who are attracted to the mystical in religious experience, can find their concerns sympathetically, authentically, and forcefully addressed by Iqbal.

4.       Iqbal also appears to be the key with which the Islamic revolutionary movement can embrace the spiritual dimension of the struggle for Iqamah Al-Deen. After all, it cannot be denied that there could not have been an Iqbal had there not been a Rumi. The road to Lahore passes through Konya (in Turkey, where Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi is buried).

On of the unique characteristics of the Tanzeem-e-Islami is the fact that it draws its major contemporary inspiration from Iqbal. It is true, of course, that Iqbal was not an aalim in the traditional sense of the term since he was not subjected to the intellectual training of the rigid conventional Islamic scholarship in a seminary. But this was precisely the reason why he was able to succeed where so many others failed. Iqbal´s unique achievement was his success in penetrating the Qur´anic wisdom and guidance as it pertained specifically to the modern age, and in articulating that Qur´anic wisdom in a manner which responded majestically, movingly, and appropriately to the crises created by the godless modernity.

In this respect, Allama Iqbal influenced the thought of Dr. Israr Ahmad in a much more profound, dynamic, and authentic manner than he did in the case of Muhammad Ali Jinnah or even Maulana Abul A´la Maududi (RA). And so, it is Tanzeem-e-Islami, rather than any other Islamic movement in the South Asia, which can truly be considered to be the first authentic fruit of that revolutionary seed planted so creatively and lovingly by Iqbal.

If it is to win that support of the massive Muslim intelligentsia in South Asia and in North America, and if it is to fulfill its promise as the Jama´ah which has inherited the mission of the Islamic revolutionary struggle from Iqbal, Tanzeem-e-Islami and its Ameer will have to work very hard at further developing that critical, authentic and sophisticated Islamic response to the godless modernity, initially formulated by Iqbal. In this regard, Dr. Muhammad Rafiuddin´s Ideology of the Future and, more so, Dr. Muhammad Fazlur Rahman Ansari´s Qur´anic Foundations and Structure of Muslim Society represent significant efforts by gifted and distinguished students of Iqbal to extend the frontiers of knowledge in the intellectual trail which he blazed.

PART II Coming soon – Establishing the Authentic Jama’h