وَاعْتَصِمُوْا بِحَبْلِ اللّٰهِ جَمِيْعًا وَّلَا تَفَرَّقُوْا
And hold firmly to the rope of God all together and do not become divided.
[Sūrah Āl-e-'Imrān, 103]
In The Name Of God
Praise Belongs To Him Alone
Peace And Blessings Be Upon The Prophet And His Pure Progeny
The above āyah of the Qur'ān prohibits division of the Muslims into sects but here we are in the 15th century since the Qur'ān was revealed, scattered and divided into so many sects while paying absolutely no heed towards this āyah. Sectarianism is a debilitating disease that can infiltrate any community, rendering it weak once division sets in.
As we write this, a genocide is unfolding in Palestine. Despite the surrounding countries being Islamic, they are unable to alleviate the suffering of their Palestinian brethren. This situation echoes a sermon attributed to Imām 'Ali (ع), where he remarked, “There is no benefit in the majority of your numbers because of the lack of unity of your hearts”. [Nahjul Balāgha, Sermon 119]. Perhaps this lack of unity explains why most Islamic countries are unable to take meaningful action regarding Palestine, except for a few.
And God says
وَاَطِيْعُوا اللّٰهَ وَرَسُوْلَهٗ وَلَا تَنَازَعُوْا فَتَفْشَلُوْا وَتَذْهَبَ رِيْحُكُمْ وَاصْبِرُوْا ؕ اِنَّ اللّٰهَ مَعَ الصّٰبِرِيْنَ ۚ
And obey God and His Messenger, and do not dispute and [thus] lose courage and [then] your strength would depart; and be patient. Indeed, God is with the patient.
[Sūrah al-Anfāl, 46]
Sectarianism And Claim For Truth
Our behavior has descended to a disgraceful level that even our masājid are being segregated by sect, such as sunni masjid, deobandi masjid, shia masjid and so on. The people who are primarily responsible for the disunity of the Ummah and on whose shoulders the burden of uniting the Ummah lies, are the 'Ulema.
Imām 'Ali (ع) reported the Prophet (ﷺ) as saying “A zamān (time) is soon coming to mankind when nothing of Islam but its name will remain and only the written form of the Qur’an will remain. Their mosques will be in fine condition but will be devoid of guidance, their 'Ulema (learned men) will be the worst people under heaven, corruption coming forth from them and returning among them”.
[Mishkāt al-Masābīh, 276]
It shouldn't be hard to recognise that the ‘zamān’ the Prophet (ﷺ) is referring to in the above hadīth is the same ‘zamān’ we are living in, today. The Mimbars which were made to unite and benifit the Ummah are now being used to divide it. 'Ulema from a particular sect assert that their sect exclusively represents the truth, while labeling other sects as falsehood and misguidance. They proclaim that all sects, except theirs, are destined for condemnation to the fire. They say this on the basis of a hadīth where the Prophet (ﷺ) is reported to have said “the Jews were split up into seventy-one or seventy-two sects; and the Christians were split up into seventy one or seventy-two sects; and my ummah will be split up into seventy-three sects.”
[Abu Dāwūd, 4596]
As per the hadīth above, out of seventy three sects, only one makes it to Jannah, and rest to the fire. The ratio is that, chances of being thrown into hell are 98.6% and only 1.4% chance of entering Jannah. A hadīth that should be taken as a warning and avoid divisions, is now being used by the 'Ulema to motivate their so called sect [we recognise that there are some 'Ulema who indeed work towards uniting the Muslims]. Any person who uses reason and logic would avoid all these different sects.
Infact, the Prophet (ﷺ) himself said in another hadīth, “Keep away from all those different sects, even if you had to bite (i.e. eat) the root of a tree, till you meet God while you are still in that state.”
[Sahīh al-Bukhāri, 3606]
The Sunni-Shi'a Unity
Let us momentarily set aside the distinctions among various sects, recognizing that they all emanate either from Sunni Islām or Shi'a Islām. The crux of the matter lies not in the nuances of minor or sub-sects, but rather in the predominant sects, namely Sunnism and Shi'ism.
While Sunnis harbor antipathy towards Shi'as, the reverse is not true. Sunnis often categorize Shi'as as Kuffār, whereas Shi'as refrain from such categorizations. Why does Sunni animosity towards Shi'a persist? Sunni Muslims generally exhibit tolerance towards those who worship entities other than Allah (God), in other words those who commit ‘shirk’, yet they swiftly resort to takfīr and condemnation of Shi'as due to their perceived insults towards individuals revered by Sunnis as Sahāba. This hatred and animosity should come to an end and things should be settled, as God commands
اِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُوْنَ اِخْوَةٌ فَاَصْلِحُوْا بَيْنَ اَخَوَيْكُمْ وَاتَّقُوا اللّٰهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُوْنَ
The believers are but brothers, so make settlement between your brothers. And fear Allāh that you may receive mercy.
[Sūrah al-Hujurāt, 10]
Legitimacy To Follow An Opinion
The issue isn't about following an opinion; rather, it's about denying legitimacy to those who want to follow other opinions.
Our hellbent behaviour that only ‘we are correct’ must be changed, history has evolved and along it's course many things as well. The religious significance that Sunnis attach to Sahīh Bukhāri and Sahīh Muslim is equivalent to the significance Shi'as assign to Nahjul Balāgha and Al Kāfi or Bihār al-Anwar. While these books share many similarities, they also diverge in various aspects. So, should this 'similarity' unite Muslims, or should this ‘diversity’ divide them?
We should recognize that individuals have the right to follow their own beliefs. If we perceive someone to be mistaken or on err, we must use knowledge ('ilm) and wisdom (hikmah) to guide them constructively, rather than severing ties and harboring hate and resentment towards them.
Tolerance
Imām 'Ali's approach towards the Khawārij provides a historical lesson on tolerance.
When the khawārij broke away with Imām 'Ali, Imām 'Ali didn't force his belief on the khawārij even though he was the Amīrul Mu'minīn and the Khalīfa of the time, nor did he call them kāfir or kill them because they held a different opinion or belief. He sent Ibn 'Abbās (رضي الله عنه) to invite them because of which nearly a half of the khawārij came back and joined the Imām. But half of them still rebelled, to whom Imām 'Ali said, "We grant you three things:
1. We do not forbid you from offering the Salah (prayer) in this Masjid.
2. We do not forbid your share in the spoils of war.
3. We shall not fight you unless you fight us.”
What we learn here is that, Imām 'Ali granted the khawārij these rights as long as they desisted from fighting the Khalīfa i.e., himself or rebelling against the Muslim body. He granted them the “right to differ” as long as it did not lead to Sectarianism and taking up arms. The Amīrul Mu'minīn did not imprison the Khawārij, neither did he place amongst them spies, nor did he impose upon their freedoms, but instead hearduously elucidated the evidence and manifested the truth for them and others who may have succumbed to their opinions and behaviour.
Remember, “Tolerating does not mean compliance”
The Ground For Unity
Muslims need to understand that all books may contain errors but not the Qur'ān. As God says,
وَإِنَّهُۥ لَحَقُّ ٱلْيَقِينِ
And indeed, this ˹Qur'ān˺ is the absolute truth.
[Sūrah al- Hāqqāh, 51]
The sects arose not because of the Qur'ān but because of ‘books’ which are the work of men. Answer this, what is wiser, fighting over books authored by men or uniting upon God's Book?
The answer is obvious, but why don't we put it into practice?
Every sect that exists has been founded on principles diverging from the Qur'ān. However, for true unity to materialize, the Qur'ān must reign supreme above all else, even above ‘hadīth’ and the 'Ahlul Bait'.
We conclude this article by highlighting that our current state is a result of a lack of knowledge, wisdom, and tolerance. To address these issues, it is imperative to acknowledge and promote tolerance by addressing misconceptions and prejudices between Sunnis and Shi'as. This task should begin with 'Ulema clarifying misunderstandings from the Mimbars, followed by individuals educating themselves. Our teacher, Sh.INH, has been actively advocating for Sunni-Shi'a unity, exemplifying the path towards reconciliation and understanding.
May Allāh unite the Muslims.
Āmīn
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