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Muslim Unity - By Shaykh Ashraf Salah
Muslim
Unity
By Shaykh Ashraf Salah
Dear Muslims:
In
Sura Al-Imran, verse 103 we read:
(واعتصموا بحبل الله جميعاً ولا
تفرقوا واذكروا نعمة الله عليكم إذ كنتم أعداءً فألف بين قلوبكم فأصبحتم بنعمته
إخوانا وكنتم على شفا حفرة من النار فأنقذكم منها كذلك يبين الله لكم آياته لعلكم
تهتدون)
"And hold fast all together by the
rope which Allah (stretches out for you) and be not divided among yourselves;
and remember with gratitude Allah's favour on you; for you were enemies and He
joined your hearts in love so that by His grace you became brethren; and you
were on the brink of the pit of fire and He saved you from it. This is how
Allah makes his signs clear to you: that you may be guided."
In
Sura Al-Hujurat, verse 13, Allah (SWT) reminds us:
(يا أيها الناس إنا
خلقناكم من ذكر وأنثى وجعلناكم شعوبا وقبائل لتعارفوا إن أكرمكم عند الله أتقاكم
إن الله عليم خبير)
“O mankind! We created you from a
single (pair) of a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes that
you may know each other (not that you may despise each other). Verily the most
honoured of you in the sight of Allah is (he who is) the most righteous of you.
And Allah has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things)".
No
disputes should find place among Muslims. Allah (SWT) says:
(يسألونك عن الأنفال
قل الأنفال لله والرسول فاتقوا الله وأصلحوا ذات بينكم وأطيعوا الله ورسوله إن
كنتم مؤمنين)
“They
ask you (O Muhammad SAW) about the spoils of
war. Say: "The spoils are for Allah and the Messenger." So fear
Allah and adjust all matters of difference among you, and obey Allah and His
Messenger (Muhammad SAW), if you are believers”.
(8:1).
The
principle of Tawheed, Islam’s essential doctrine of Unity, underpins the great
diversity of all created things. Within every species, there is tremendous
variety. In nature, differences are not a sign of weakness, but a celebration
of Allah's creativity, something for us to admire and enjoy, with a sense of
wonder and excitement. The variety and diversity we find in the ocean, on land
and in the air, are also apparent in our human behaviour. We must not see our
human differences as a curse. Rather, it is a blessing. Each and every one of
us has gathered a wealth of experience from different geographical, social and
cultural influences. When we all share our experience freely, there is a
collective enrichment for everyone.
Dear
Muslims:
Unity
does not mean uniformity. We do not have to look the same, speak the same,
dress the same, and share each and every opinion unanimously. This is not only
unnatural, it’s humanly impossible.
There
are two kinds of unity, which we must try to understand and distinguish
clearly:
There
is a unity of purpose, and unity of opinion. As Muslims we should always
be united in our purpose, that is, seeking to please Allah, and serving the
advancement of Islam. But we must not be distressed by minor differences of
opinion. It is humanly impossible to always have unity of opinion. As long as
we keep our purpose clearly in view, there can be many opinions as
to the best ways of achieving our goal.
By
mutual consultation, sharing our knowledge and experience, we can move forward.
If we must disagree on some matter, let us remember the right way to disagree.
In a debate, a Muslim’s attitude should always be like this: I think I'm right,
but I might be wrong; and I think you're wrong but you may be right! If we kept
this attitude in all our dealings with one another, no one risks humiliation or
hurt feelings in any disagreement. We can debate and disagree in a most
agreeable manner, where we always maintain mutual respect and dignity. These
are the building blocks of real, lasting Unity.
Allah
(SWT) says:
(وأطيعوا الله ورسوله
ولا تنازعوا فتفشلوا وتذهب ريحكم واصبروا إن الله مع الصابرين)
“And obey Allah and His Messenger, and
do not dispute (with one another) lest you lose courage and your strength
depart, and be patient. Surely, Allah is with those who are As-Sâbirin, the
patient ones” (8:46 ).
Dear
Brothers and Sisters:
Muslim
Unity is not some miracle that, one-day will suddenly fall from the sky. Muslim
Unity, the unity of the whole Ummah, will be the reward for much effort, and
the culmination of a long process that begins with individual Muslims, and I
mean you, and me. We must start that process. We must seek to unite our own
mind, body and spirit. We must not say one thing, and do the opposite. Our goal
must be, a Unity of thought and feeling, word and action.
Allah
(SWT) reminds us in Sura Ar-Ra'd [13]: verse 11:
(..إن الله لا يغير ما بقوم حتى يغيروا ما بأنفسهم..)
"Verily never will Allah change
the condition of a people until they change what is within themselves."
Our
illustrious Prophet Muhammad [PBUH] was the most perfect of examples. Even his
enemies acknowledged that he was always honest, truthful and sincere. There was
no contradiction between his head and his heart. His thoughts, feelings, words
and actions were of the same substance. There was never even the slightest
trace of arrogance, hypocrisy, vanity or conceit in his personality. This was
the role model of personal character, on which the Unity of the first Muslim
Ummah was based. We need it today as well.
Sura
Al-Anbiyya` [21]:verse 92 says:
(إن هذه أمتكم أمة
ً واحدة ً وأنا ربكم فاعبدون)
“Verily this Brotherhood of yours is a single Brotherhood and I
am your Lord and Cherisher: therefore serve Me (and no other)”.
This brotherhood of Muslims will only be
as strong as we individual Muslims are strong. We are taught that the best
Jihad is the Jihad against one’s ego, Jihad al Nafs. We need to tame this beast
within our breast, our pride. We must learn to submit our will, our ego, our
vanity, to the will of our creator, just like our prophet Muhammad (PBUH)
taught us. When, and only when, we have made a start on this greatest of journeys,
will we earn Allah’s pleasure. And when we achieve this, we find that we can
easily tolerate differences of opinion without getting angry or abusive.
We will then, begin to see the unity of
purpose that underpins the wide diversity of all creatures. We will see the
good things that bind us together, without being distracted by the petty things
that divide us. By keeping our ego under control, by cleansing our hearts of
all vanity and false pride, we actually make room for Allah’s divine wisdom,
which must follow if we are sincere in our quest for knowledge and
understanding.
In a Hadith Qudsi, Allah tells us
directly:
"When a slave of Mine draws near to
Me a span, I draw near to him a cubit, and if he draws near to Me a cubit, I
draw near to him a fathom, and if he comes to me walking, I go to him
running". (Muslim).
What a beautiful and graphic description
of Allah`s love and affection towards us! And all He wants, is for us to take
that crucial first step! I’m sure that each and every one of us here, would
like to be amongst those, towards whom Allah comes running at speed!
O Allah, help us to acknowledge our own
shortcomings with honesty and humility. O Allah, plant within our hearts the
desire to improve ourselves. O Allah, help us to strengthen our families, to
uplift our communities and to unite the Ummah. O Allah, strengthen our resolve
and give us courage and patience to endure hardship and overcome evil.
May
Allah (SWT) bless, guide and forgive us all. (Ameen).
