The Rahbar’s fatwa of respect, and unity

Early last month, Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei, Rahbar (Leader) of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, issued a fatwa of far-reaching importance for the unity and solidarity of the Ummah. It was immediately welcomed by leading scholars in the Muslim world, including the Rector of Al-Azhar University in Egypt. In his fatwa, the Rahbar said disrespect or insult to the Sahabah (Companions), or wives of the noble Messenger (pbuh) is haram (forbidden).



To understand the significance of the fatwa, a brief detour into history is necessary. Based on differences of opinion over leadership after the Prophet (pbuh), Muslims have been divided into two camps — Sunnis and Shi‘is. The Sunnis believe that the process of succession was agreed by the consensus of the community while the Shi‘is are of the view that the Prophet (pbuh) had designated his cousin and son-in-law, Imam ‘Ali as his successor. Based on these differences, followers of the two opinions became so rigidly entrenched that they started to denounce each other. During Mu‘awiyah’s reign (when the system of khilafah was subverted into hereditary monarchy), it was official policy to denounce Imam ‘Ali during the Jumu‘ah khutbah. Umar ibn ‘Abdul ‘Aziz ended this un-Islamic practice during his rule. He was a man committed to the character and practice of the Prophet (pbuh) but his rule did not last long. His own family members poisoned him. They were unhappy with his restoration of Islamic principles to the practice of governance.

In reaction to such un-Islamic practices by the Umayyads (family of Mu‘awiyah), the Shi‘is resorted to their own denunciations. They condemned not only Mu‘awiyah and his drunkard son Yazid — whose army martyred Imam Husayn at Karbala, perpetrating the most heinous crime in Islamic history — but all the Sahabah that had not supported Imam Ali’s position for leadership. These Shi‘is went further; they cursed ‘A’ishah, the wife of the noble Messenger (pbuh), as well. In turn, some Sunnis started to hurl allegations of takfir against the Shi‘is.

Naturally such mutual denunciations have poisoned the atmosphere among Muslims and prevented genuine unity from taking root. Not only ordinary Muslims unaware of the details of Islamic history but also those knowledgeable about it have used such differences to stoke conflict and discord. It must be said that while there are sholarly positions on both sides that want to end such differences because they understand that history cannot be reversed and mutual recriminations do not serve the larger interests of the Ummah, there are others that want to stick to their entrenched positions. Imam Khamenei’s fatwa bridges this gap considerably. While it provides guidance to the Shi‘is to show more respect to the Companions and the wives of the Prophat (pbuh), it also reassures the Sunnis that their sensitivities are being respected. At the same time, it deprives those that want to stoke sectarian differences of a major argument.

The quality of true Islamic leadership is that it is able to lead all the Muslims regardless of their schools of thought (madhhabs). Imam Khamenei’s fatwa does just that. The Ummah must thank him for his sincerity and taqwa.

Impediments in the path of Muslim Unity

Two laments are common among Muslims: lack of unity and negative projection of Muslims in the Western media. Most Muslims believe cooperation between Muslim rulers and governments constitutes unity. The desire for favourable projection in the Western media is based on an equally faulty assumption that journalists do not know the truth about Islam and Muslims. If only Muslims made the effort to write letters to editors, the media would correct their negative reporting.

The very existence of Muslim nation-states is a violation of Allah’s (swt) designation of Muslims as one Ummah (21:92, 23:52). The nation-state structure is a European colonial imposition to divide Muslims. By adopting this concept, Muslims are ipso facto, guilty of rejecting the Qur’anic command of living as part of the Ummah. To accept that the beneficiaries of such division will forgo their interests and work for unity is unrealistic.

Reasons for negative reporting about Islam and Muslims in the Western media must also be properly understood. Western reporters are not ignorant about Islam; their distortions are part of a wider war: to project policies that advance the corporate elites’ agenda of rapacious greed under the rubric of civilizational mission to promote human rights. Creating enemies — real or imagined — is part of this agenda. Since the Muslim world has resources, primarily oil and gas, that the West covets and the fact that the Muslims are a soft target, they are projected as the enemy to justify the wars being waged against them. If multinationals do not care about their own people, why should they care for Muslims in distant lands?

Muslim rulers work in tandem with and for the interest of the West because their personal survival depends on it. Thus one is confronted with a curious paradox: while hundreds of millions of Muslims live in abject poverty their rulers lead a lifestyle that would be the envy of most people in the West. Expecting unity from such people is unrealistic. What Muslims and the Islamic movement must strive for is to change this situation but the question is: how? Getting rid of individual rulers may help assuage Muslim anger but it does not solve the fundamental problem of illegitimacy of the systems imposed in their societies. The Islamic movement must work to dismantle these systems rather than vent their anger by killing rulers, hateful as they may be. We can compare the situations in Iran and Egypt. In Iran, the Muslim masses led by a muttaqi leader, overthrew the oppressive order in 1979 and ushered in an Islamic system. In Egypt, the Muslims killed then President Anwar Sadat in October 1981 but they are faced with an even more oppressive dictator.

How did Muslims end up in this sorry state? The answer lies in our history, both distant and recent. The seeds of disunity were sown in early Islamic history when the khilafah was subverted into mulukiyah. This was the fundamental breach in the divinely-inspired system that occurred so soon after the Prophet (s) left this world. The deviation at the core worked its way through the Islamic polity and a thousand years later Muslims were so weakened that they easily succumbed to the colonial onslaught. The nation-states that emerged from the bowels of colonialism were infected by the same germs that had weakened the Ummah in the first place. There was also a deadly virus attached to it: sectarianism. This virus has wreaked havoc in the Ummah and has been used to deadly effect by the enemies of Islam.

We must also add nationalism to the viruses infecting the Ummah. Nationalism is little more than glorified tribalism, a primitive social construct that was challenged and defeated by the liberating influence of Islam in Arabia 1,400 years ago. Muslims that imbibed the Islamic spirit fully had to contend with the jahili spirit of tribalism. The Umayyads, the principal standard bearers of tribalism, were the first to strike at the core of Islamic values. Jealousy was also a factor. Before the advent of Islam, the Abd Shams clan to which the Umayyads belonged considered itself superior to the Banu Hashim clan of the Prophet (s). Muhammad’s (s) prophethood upset this hierarchy of power and prestige in Makkah. The Umayyads did not reconcile with such loss, hence their staunch opposition to the Prophet (s) and his message until the very end when it was no longer tenable. Abu Sufyan led the Makkan mushriks in all the battles against the Prophet (s) except Badr. On that occasion Abu Sufyan was leading the Qurayshi caravan on its way back to Makkah from Syria. Muslim threat to the caravan was the main reason for the battle of Badr.

It appears little has changed in the Middle East in 1,400 years. The early opponents of the Prophet of Allah (s) are alive, their jahili spirit manifesting itself in their descendants who rule the Middle East today. They not only promote tribal loyalties but are also aligned with the enemies of Islam. The Middle East has once again become a cauldron of intrigue and superstition. Instead of supporting the struggling Muslims in Palestine and Lebanon or joining hands with the Islamic State of Iran for dignified existence, Arabian rulers are openly aligned with the US and Israel.
They are busy stoking the flames of sectarianism to divide Muslims.



If Muslims want to change their present sorry state, they must first develop a better understanding of the reality facing them. Killing one or two rulers, trying to infiltrate the military to bring about a coup or hoping to win power by participating in fraudulent elections is not the answer. The Islamic movement has to bring about a revolution through non-violent resistance in their societies. For this, the emergence of muttaqi leadership that has clear directional course is an absolute necessity. There are no short-cuts in the Islamic movement.

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Guests of the Almighty

islamicinsights-
Nabila Rizvi


Will we connect with our Host?


You're invited! Although the invitation hasn't come in the mail, your presence would please the Most Honorable One during the month of Ramadan. So clear your calendars and get ready, because this is one invitation you don't want to pass up!

While Rajab is the month of our Creator and Sha'ban is the month of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him and his progeny), the blessed month of Ramadan is our month – the month of the Ummah. It is during these few weeks that we are the guests of the Most Gracious. Taking our role into consideration, we should try to be the best of guests – after all, we do want to be worthy of being invited again!

Just as any invitee plans his/her day with the event in mind, we should try to plan our schedules during this month in a way that would enable us to truly spend time with our Host. The guest who arrives late, who is not wholeheartedly visiting, is constantly interrupting dinner to make phone calls and check Facebook updates, is ungrateful of the accommodations, is in a rush to leave, and obviously does not consider the host to be important enough to devote time to is definitely not the type of guest we want to be. Undoubtedly, Allah is Independent and in no need of our devotion; nonetheless, we would be disrespecting Him and degrading ourselves if we do not take the time to sincerely worship Him.

Besides planning out a schedule, a guest makes other preparations before going to the host's event. Choosing respectable clothing according to the occasion, the invitee glances at his/her reflection to appraise the final appearance. Likewise, we need to reflect upon our state of being, and consider whether or not we have prepared our bodies and souls before being guests of Allah. Have we been taking care of the body that He has lent to us, so that fasting will not be a problem? Have we strengthened our conviction and increased our devotion so that the soul can easily connect with Allah during this special month? Have we contemplated upon how we will use this month according to the teachings of our Ahlul Bayt (peace be upon them), in order to get closer to Allah?

Whether or not we have been able to prepare ourselves as exemplary guests, the Most Merciful One leaves His doors open to the entire Ummah. His grace does not end there, as the Holy Prophet said in his sermon, "The doors of Hell are closed, so ask Allah to keep them closed for you. During this month Shaytan is imprisoned, so ask your Lord not to let him have power over you." These are but a few ways the Most Kind Host sets His guests at ease.

As guests we might take a gift for the host, according to our means. Yet as unworthy slaves of the Almighty, what can we possibly gift Him? Everything is thanks to Him! However, the point of a gift is to make the host happy. While there is no doubt that our actions do not increase or decrease His Greatness, we will certainly be pleasing Him by following the pure footsteps of our Ahlul Bayt.

As our Most Honorable Host, Allah welcomes the Ummah and makes us especially comfortable during Ramadan. This peaceful month is magnificently adorned with the remembrance of noble personalities, particularly that of Lady Khadija (peace be upon her), Imam Hasan (peace be upon him), and Imam Ali (peace be upon him). With many ornate lanterns giving off the pristine light of the Nights of Power, all the intricate remembrances cannot be missed.

As we enjoy the serene atmosphere, it seems that the air we normally take for granted is fragrant with the most heavenly scent of thawaab permeating everything. For actions as simple as sleeping in the state of fasting, Allah cushions us with counts of good deeds.

Sitting on the carpeted ground to our meal, it is obvious that our Host has arranged for quite the banquet! The vast dining cloth is laden with beautiful praise, prayers, and invocations of all sizes. These silver platters of opportunities to communicate with our Lord are never-ending, but the size and number of servings we choose to take during this month is up to us. With such an incomparable spiritual menu, it is no wonder that we do not consume as much worldly sustenance during this month!

When the Prophet ascended to the Heavens, the Almighty told him about the purpose of fasting: "Fasting leads to wisdom, and wisdom enables you to understand My signs and ways; that will raise you to the stage of certitude. And when a person has reached the level of certitude, he or she cares not whether the days pass in plenty or scarcity." (Bihar al-Anwar) Indeed, as His guests fast all throughout this blessed month, He provides their souls with an infinite amount of food.

When the month draws to a close, we earnestly pray for the occasion to be in the presence of such a Remarkable Host again. However as we bid our farewell to Ramadan, the Unique Host reminds us that – despite the month's end – He is always there for us. We must always live with the conviction of His Omnipresence. We may not be His guests throughout the rest of the year, yet He is closer to us than our jugular vein.

Indeed the month of the Ummah ends, but its Host's love does not. Just as hosts may give their departing guests a gift as something to enjoy and remember them by, the Best of Hosts also blesses us with a gift after Ramadan. As the month of Shawwal begins and we unwrap this gift, it is a delight to find yet another priceless gem: a special opportunity to worship our Lord by celebrating Eid al-Fitr.

But let us not jump to Shawwal just yet – after all, we have the whole month of Ramadan ahead of us! While it is here, let us make the most of this special time as honorable guests of the Almighty. Ramadan Mubarak!