02 January 2011

02 January 2011

Seerah of Muhammed*

*: May the Peace, Blessings & Mercy of Allah be upon him

TMQ: Translation to the nearest meaning of the Qur’an

Challenges after Badr

The battle of Badr was the first armed encounter between the Muslims and Quraish. It was in fact a decisive battle that gained the Muslims a historic victory acknowledged by all the Arabs, and dealt a heavy blow to the religious and economic interests of the polytheists. There were also the Jews who also used to regard each Islamic victory as a heavy blow to their religio-economic entity. Both parties were burning with rage and fury since the Muslims had achieved that great victory:

“Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and Al-Mushrikun (polytheists, pagans, idolators and disbelievers, etc.).” [5:82]

Both resentful parties were joined in their hatred if Islam by the hypocrites who faked Islam just to save their faces; at the head of whom came ‘Abdullah bin Ubai (more about him later).

The whole cause of Islam was thus at stake with four furious parties laying ambushes against the new religion, each in its style:

- Hypocrites pretending to be Muslims so as to be involved in conspiracy plots and provocative deeds within Madinah

- Jews hating that the Prophet* was an Arab

- Quraish in Mecca bend on revenge

- Other Arabs waiting to take advantage of the new Islamic Sate in Medina

The Muslims were always obliged to be on the lookout for any hostile movements, and it was imperative on them to launch pre-emptive strikes in all directions in order to enjoy a reasonable degree of security in this great instability-provoking ocean of unrest.

As Muslims, we should not be racist or prejudiced against other people based on race, colour or ethnicity. Muslims are not anti-semitic, and infact, the arabs are cousins of the Jewish nation. Muslims should not think of themselves as superior due to their ethnicity or birth but due to their piety. It may not be politically correct to talk about Jews and how the Prophet* dealt with them but these are historical facts and the coming study circles will highlight these. The Prophet* started out treating the Jews of Medina as near-equal citizens of the state but they chose to break that agreement and worked against the Prophet* by word and deed.

Al-Kudr Invasion

Seven days after the event of Badr the Muslims wre on the march again to defend themselves. The scouting body of Madinah reported that Banu Saleem of Ghatafan were engaged in mustering troops to invade the Muslims. The Prophet* took the initiative himself and mounted a surprise attack on them in their own homeland at a watering place called Al-Kudr. Banu Saleem, on receiving the news, had fled before he arrived. He stayed there for three days, took their 500 camels as booty and distributed them to the fighters after he had set aside the usual one-fifth; each one gained two camels. This invasion took place in Shawwal in the year 2 A.H.

As-Sawiq Invasion

Two-pronged hostile activities were being independently conducted against the Prophet*; plots and intrigues being hatched by Safwan bin Omaiyah, the hypocrites and Jews on the one hand, going on and on parallel lines with military hostilities being prepared by Abu Sufyan aiming at saving the face of his people and impressing on the other Arabs that Quraish was still a military power to be counted for. In the aftermath of Badr, Abu Sufyan was burning for revenge and took a solemn vow he would never bathe off impurity unless he had avenged himself on Muhammad* and his followers. He set out at the head of 200 men towards Madinah but was not brave enough to attack it in broad daylight. He, instead resorted to acts of piracy that are performed in the dark. He infiltrated into the Prophet ’s town and went to see an old ally Huyai bin Akhtab, who was too cowardly to let him in, so he left for Salam bin Mashkam, chief of Bani Nadeer, a tribe of Jews. The Jew entertained and gave him a full account of the situation therein. Late at night he despatched a group of his men to raid Al-‘Uraid, a suburb of Madinah. There, the men felled and burnt the palm trees, killed two Muslims and then took swiftly to their heels.

On hearing the news, the Prophet* gathered his men and set out at their heels, but could not catch them. The Muslims brought back the provisions (Sawiq, a kind of barley porridge) which the polytheists had thrown aside in order to lighten their loads and hasten their escape; hence this campaign was called As-Sawiq Invasion. It took place in Dhul-Hijjah 2 A.H., two months after the event of Badr.

Hadith

Number 14 of Nawawi's 40 Hadith: The value of Life

On the authority of Ibn Mas’ud who said The Messenger of Allah* said: "The blood of a man who is a Muslim is not lawful (i.e. cannot be lawfully shed), save if he belongs to one of three (classes): a married man who is an adulterer; life for a life (i.e. for murder); one who is a deserter of his religion, abandoning the community.” [Bukhari & Muslim]

Before the arrival of Islam, human life had no value. A person can easily be killed for many different reasons, e.g. revenge, to show the superiority of a tribe, killing a newborn baby girl because it was considered a shame, etc.

When Islam arrived, it stressed on the value and importance of human life. A life must not be threatened unless it is lawful, i.e. where a serious violation of the shariah had occurred. Islam also made it clear that the taking of a human life is the responsibility of the highest authority, i.e. the judge. This is to prevent this practice from being abused for personal interests.

Islam has established rules and regulations for the community that minimise the need to carry out the execution of a man or woman as allowed by the three cases defined in the hadith. Islam is a peaceful religion and it has established rules where people respect each other and live together peacefully, without lives being threatened.

This hadith should be seen and understood from a positive viewpoint – it is not legal to kill a Muslim except in one of three cases. Because these three cases are exceptional, it shows that the Muslim blood is valued and treasured and is blessed by Allah.

In the last sermon of the Prophet* during his farewell Hajj (which was a few months before he died), he* re-emphasised the principle of this hadith which is the sanctity of a Muslim’s blood. Islam encourages Muslims to avoid any kind of act, e.g. violence, injustice, etc. that will lead to violating this principle. All this shows just how important it is not to shed the blood of a Muslim.

In Islam what is seen as punishment are actually measures put in place to protect the Muslim society and community. Islam takes precautions to ensure that these evil acts (or the violations of these principles) are minimised. In other words, Islam promotes good values and chastity; it encourages marriage, i.e. the legal relationship between man and woman; Islam also discourages acts that might lead to the violations of this principle, e.g. zina (adultery).

The sanctity of a Muslim life is confirmed by the Prophet in this hadlth. The three stated exceptions are those where legal execution is carried out by the state to protect society from the spread of corruption. It may be compared to the surgical removal of a hopelessly diseased limb or organ which, although painful, restores the rest of a body to health. The death penalty, like the lesser prescribed (hadd) punishments, may only be carried out after a conviction completely free of the least doubt. It must further be established that the accused had reached puberty, was in full mental capacity at the time of the crime, and did not act under any form of coercion.

1) Adultery

Marriage is the cornerstone of society and a very important part of Islam. Hence, Islam does its utmost to protect this as society would begin to crumble if marriage is not protected. In the Western countries we see many social problems and some could be attributed to the lack of a strong family structure and systems of support that arise from marriage. Indeed, western society often glorifies adultery (and violence, murder and rebellion against religion) in its TV shows, films, books and how people live.

Hence, modern technology, e.g. the media, Internet, entertainment, etc., is being misused to promote the three negative cases mentioned: adultery, violence/murder, and apostasy. These are shown as being normal and acceptable for the sake of entertainment. The world today has made bad, unacceptable behaviour and negative elements appear as good and vice versa.

In the case of zina, Islam has rules for the Muslim society that regulate relationships. Hence, it is very difficult for the cases mentioned to occur if these rules and regulations are observed. These truly are exceptional cases because during the time of the Prophet* (and later during the era of the Rightly-Guided Caliphs) there were only a few cases where such violations or problems occurred.

Actually implementing the law (stoning to death) is difficult as the criteria for successful prosecution are so strict – which include a confession, or 4 witnesses to the actual act (and not circumstantial evidence).

Execution by stoning for the married adulterer is established in the sunnah beyond any doubt. It was carried out by the Prophet* on a few conspicuous occasions but is admittedly a rare occurrence due to the strict conditions that must be fulfilled. First, the offender must be of legal age, sane, free (not a slave), and bound within a marriage where there is no impediment to normal sexual relations. Then it must be proven conclusively that the person committed the crime of his own free will while knowing that it is unlawful. This necessitates either the testimony of four trustworthy male Muslim witnesses that they actually saw the act taking place at a specific time and location (circumstantial  evidence is not acceptable) or explicit confession by the guilty party, who should be encouraged at the outset to repent privately to Allah and  reform rather than condemn himself to sentence.   A confession later retracted prevents the execution, as does the denial of a person named as the partner of a confessing party. Thus, the harshness of this prescribed penalty serves mainly as a practical deterrent and can rarely be carried out.

Muslim has related the speech of 'Umar bin al-Khattab in which he said: "Allah sent Muhammad with the truth and sent down to him the Book. And included in what Allah sent down to him was the verse of stoning. We recited it, memorized it and understood it. The Messenger of Allah* had people stoned to death, and we have done ii after him. I fear that if time is prolonged for people, someone may say, 'We do not find stoning in the Book of Allah,' and they would go astray by abandoning an obligation revealed by Allah. And stoning is a true obligation in the Book of Allah, the Exalted, for those who commit adultery when married, of men and women."

By putting such a harsh penalty (death) on this it forces people to take the matter seriously.

2) Murder

"A life for a life" means that the life of one who deliberately kills another without right will be taken in turn. Hence, it is not lawful to kill anyone other than the murderer himself, as had been done in the pre-Islamic wars of tribal vengeance. Again, the matter of justice is not left to the victim's family directly but must be referred to the legal authority of the judge and the Islamic State.

The ruling is clearly stated in the Qur'an in verses 178 of Surah al-Baqarah and 45 of Surah al-Ma'idah, where it is shown that this law was also revealed in the Torah and then upheld in Islam. However, Allah has honoured the nation of Prophet Muhammad* by permitting the acceptance of payment (diyah) to the heirs of the victim should choose that option over execution of the murderer.

Some exceptions to the general law of a life for a life have been cited by scholars, such as the father who kills his son, the master who kills his slave, and the Muslim who kills a non-Muslim, although there is no consensus on these matters and differences remain based upon various interpretations of the Qur'anic verses. It is conceded by all, however, that the sex of both the killer and the victim is irrelevant.

Any case in which a judge rules against execution requires payment to the deceased's heirs of the diyah. Besides the possible exceptions mentioned above or the willingness of the heirs to forego the death penalty, it will not be carried out in case of doubt about the killer's intention, even when he has been convicted of the deed by definite proofs. If wilful intent cannot be proved, the diyah must be accepted rather than execution, just as in clear cases of accidental killing. Proper legal measures recognized by all serve to put an end to further bloodshed by those who would otherwise seek revenge through acts of violence, perhaps against innocent persons.

3) Apostasy

The meaning portrayed in this hadlth is that of riddah (reversion) of a sane, mature Muslim from Islam to disbelief of his own free will and his insistence upon it. This must be expressed clearly by him, either by word or deed. Scholars have also stipulated that the Muslim must once have been conscious of the truth of Islam, not unaware or ignorant. To completely dispel any doubt, the apostate is allowed a period during which Islam is presented to him anew with the best methods of da' wah in the hope that he will return to the religion and to the community, thus sparing his life. He is executed by the state government only upon adamant and rebellious persistence in kufr. This differs from the case of a non-believer who has never entered Islam because the apostate, through betrayal from within, poses a greater danger to society. A Muslim does not become an apostate by disobedience or sin; rather, only by denial of divine ordinances or by open claims contrary to the basic tenets of aqeedah.

Some examples are: denial of Allah's oneness; the assertion I hat some human or other beings have something of divinity within them or have divine attributes; denial of the prophethood of Muhammad* or claiming there has been a prophet after him; assertions by a person that he has received revelation from Allah; denial of the Hereafter or anything clearly stated in the Qur'an; ridicule, abuse or denial of any of Allah's prophets, of the Qur'an or of the sunnah and declaration of one's preference for humanly devised systems of government or legislation over the divine shari'ah. A recent convert to Islam would be excused if he made such claims out of ignorance and accepted correction of his views. In addition, anyone forced to save himself by the pronouncement of such statements, his inner faith being unaffected, cannot be regarded as an apostate.

Certain crimes, mentioned in the Qur'an, for which the death penalty may be inflicted (namely, "causing corruption in the land" and "waging war against Allah and His Messenger*), generally coincide with the above.

When Muslims turn away from Islam it is a sad reflection upon the whole Muslim community ans means that we need to have better education and support for each other. In these sorts of situations, it is the Muslims themselves who are responsible for this apostasy because they do not look out for one another.

Many Muslims today are victims of mind-manipulation where misconceptions created by, for example, Western Orientalists and Christians have influenced their perception and attitude. This results in the Muslim being less careful about his Islam, living a double-standard life – looking at him from one angle, he looks like a Muslim but looking at him from another angle, he doesn’t seem to have the Muslim identity.

This leads to another problem which is the lack of the Muslim identity among the Muslims. There are Muslims today who are promoting non-Muslim identities or speaking highly of other cultures which in the Islamic view may have negative elements. We should maintain and promote our own identity. We can still benefit from progress of the West, e.g. technology advancement, but we should do so in a positive way, without jeopardising the image and values of Islam.

We need to discuss these issues which are the real challenges faced by the Muslim community today. We should not just talk about Islamic concepts without putting them in context with reality. We should not just talk about these issues theoretically, simply stating what the rulings on Islam are on this or that matter. We need to have an approach that goes deeper and considers the challenges and strategies we need to put in place in order to help the Muslim community to be positive, confident and proud of their Muslim identity. We need to help them so that they do not become trapped by the challenges they face today.

We need to create awareness among the Muslim community so that they are aware of their roles and responsibilities. We need to see how we can revive the original concepts of Islamic values and behaviour in a way that will work today.

Conclusion

This hadith needs to be looked at in the positive light where the emphasis is on the value of the human life and not on the punishments permissible for the three cases mentioned. Islam has put in place a system which leads to minimising the occurrences of the three cases. There are strategies, obligations, etc., which help the Muslims to avoid these acts.

Opponents of Islam look at the hadith in a negative way where they accuse Islam of being murderous and barbaric. But the truth of the matter is Islam values human life, just as it values chastity (iffah or taharah) - a virtue which has lost its value in these contemporary times because of the evil being promoted by the opponents via the media and negative side of technology. These negative influences have also caused some Muslims to interpret this hadith negatively.

One of the biggest problems today is that with there being more and more challenges, the explanation of the hadith should take into account what the problems are that are facing the Muslims today that violate the principles set up by the hadith. We should look into what we can do to promote the principles and virtues mentioned in the hadith (e.g. to uphold chastity, valuing human life, that killing is a crime, etc.) and to minimise their violations.

News Topic

There was no time to discuss any news topic this week

Homework from 02 January 2011:

1. Read about the People of as-Suffa, who lived in the Prophet's mosque?

2. What do you understand from the next (number 15) of Nawawi's 40 Hadith: Abu Hurairah reported that the Messenger of Allah* said: "Let whosoever believes in Allah and in the Last Day either speak good or be silent. Let whosoever believes in Allah and in the Last Day honour his neighbour. Let whosoever believes in Allah and in the Last Day honour his guest." [Bukhari and Muslim]

3. News Topics from this week: Any interesting news articles from the week that relate to Islam or the Muslims? Bring a clipping or print out if you can...