The Creator of the universe, Allah Taala remains clearly committed that kingdom and His Khilafah on earth
are only meant for the true Muslims, those of perfect Imaan. This is clear from the following Ayah Allah has
promised to those from amongst you who believe and do righteous deeds that He would surely make them
His Caliph on earth. (al-noor 55).
He has also given assurances that true believers will always dominate over non-believers and that nonbelievers
will be left without any friend or ally, as is clear from the following Ayah And if these nonbelievers
had given you a battle, they were sure to turn on their heels, and they would have found no
protector and no helper (al-fath 22). Moreover, it is Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) own obligation to grant
every help to the true Muslims and it is also His promise that such people will always remain superior and
honored. This is borne out by the following Ayah And it is our bounden duty to render to the true believers
(al-room 47). And do not give way to despair, and do not grieve and you only shall dominate, if you are true
believers (al-Imran 139), And honor is only for Allah, His Rasul (Sallallaho Alaihi Wassallam) and those
who believe (Al-Munafiqoon 8).
The above Divine declarations clearly show that the way to regain honor, greatness, superiority, fame and
virtue for Muslims lies only in their having a strong faith. If their relationship with Allah (Subhanahu wa
Taala) and with Rasul (Sallallaho Alaihi Wassallam) is strong and firm, they are bound to be masters of each
and every thing on this earth. But if, on the other hand, it becomes weak or it gets broken, disaster and
decline are bound to follow. The latter part is clear from the following Ayah: "And let Time be witness: verily man is in a great loss except, of course, those who believe and do righteous
deeds and who enjoin truth and enjoin patience" (Al-Asr 1-3)
As already brought out, history proves that the early Muslims had been able to reach the highest peak of
honor and glory, whereas the present day Muslims seem to have moved in the opposite direction. It is
obvious from the above ayah of the Quran that the first Muslims had attained that high position in life
because of the purity and strength of their faith and the excellence of their character. As against this, the
miserable condition of the present day Muslims is the result of weakness in their faith and character, the
opposite of what their forefathers possessed. Therefore, it will be right to say that today we are Muslims in
name only! In this connection, the true Messenger of Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) Mohammed (Sallallaho
Alaihi wassallam), had prophesied. An era will come in the near future when Islam will exist merely in name
and the Quran will exist merely in writing (Mishkat).
This is clearly applicable to the Muslims of the present time. In these circumstances, the points which need
urgent investigation are:
· As the right type of faith, which can have the approval of Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) and His Rasul
(Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam) (and which will bring us spiritual and material advancement). is not to be seen
anywhere, what will be the means of acquiring that true faith and
· what are the factors that have caused the destruction of that faith and with it the true life of Islam, from our
midst?
A study of the Quran clearly reveals that the capacity to maintain the required level of the true faith of Islam,
and the ultimate rise to honor and fame through it, are dependent on the fulfillment of a special task which
has been so graciously assigned by Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) to the Muslims alone. It is for this that they
have been given in the Quran the distinguished position of Khair al-umam (the best of all Ummah)
According to the faith of Islam, the main purpose behind the creation of this world was to establish and prove
the holiness, the Oneness and the most supreme existence of Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala)and to reflect His
unlimited powers and boundless attributes through man, who was to be guided by the light of true
knowledge. It was impossible for man to understand and utilize that knowledge without his first being
purified of Godlessness and impurity, Only after that purification is he to be decorated with fine virtues,
excellence of conduct and the eventual capacity to act righteously. It was for this purpose of brining about
this purity and power in the ranks of mankind that thousands of Ambiya and Rasools had been deputed by
Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala), Then, last in the series came the Sayyid ul Anbiyaa wal Mursaleen (the greatest
of all the Ambiya), Mohammed (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam). It was through him that man reached the high
state of development of mind and body leading to the final stage of purity. It was then that mankind received
the glad tidings of And today We have perfected your religion for you and completed Our bounty upon you
(Al-Maaidah 3).
The supreme purpose of man's creation had been fulfilled good and evil had been clearly defined, a complete
system of practical life had been revealed, the line of Nubuwwah and apostlehood had been terminated and
lastly the duties that were formerly discharged exclusively by the Ambiya and Rasools had been given as a
collective mission to Al-Ummat Al-Mohammadeeyah (The Muslim people). This last fact has been clearly
brought out in the following Ayah of the Quran:
"O you (followers of Mohammed) you are the noblest of all Ummah, in that you have been brought out for
(the benefit of) mankind. You enjoin the good and forbid the evil and you believe in Allah" (Al-Imran 110)
"And there has to be a group of people among you who call towards the good and bid the fair and forbid the
unfair and it is these who are successful" (Al-Imran 104)
In the first Ayah, Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) has stated the reason why the Muslims are called Khair ul
Umam (noblest of all Ummah) it is because of spreading good and preventing evil. In the second Ayah, He
has further clarified that only those people shall be supreme in life who fulfil that order. The command does
not end here, It is stated in another place that the failure to accomplish this vital task will bring disaster and
punishment on its assignees. This reference is taken from the following Ayah.
On those who disbelieve from among the children of Israel was a curse pronounced by Dawood and Essa the
son of Maryam all this because they disobeyed and used to cross the limits, they did not forbid each other
from an evil they committed, indeed evil is what they have been doing (Al-Maaidah 78)
A further explanation and clarification of the above Ayah of the Quran can be seen from the following
Ahadith of Mohammed (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam)
It has been narrated by Abdullah bin Masood (Radiallaho Anho) that Rasulullah (Sallallaho Alaihi
wassallam) was pleased to say In previous Ummah, when somebody committed a sin, the other would
reprimand him and would say "Fear Allah" But on the following day he would be friend him and mix with
him as if he had never seen him committing the sin and when Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) saw the behaving
thus, He confounded the hearts of some with those of some and cursed them through the tongues of Dawood
and Essa, son of Maryam and this because they rebelled against Allah (Subhanahu wa Taala) and
transgressed His limits. I, Mohammed swear by Him, Who has control over my soul you must enjoin the
good and forbid the evil and force the ignorant wrong doer into the path of righteousness, else Allah
(Subhanahu wa Taala) will confound your hearts and you will be cursed, as were those peoples gone by.
Jareer (Radiallaho Anho) has narrated that Rasulullah (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam) said When an
individual of a community sins, and the community in spite of its authority over him, does not prevent him
from sinning, Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta'ala's punishment descends on them even before death i.e. subjects
them to various punishments in this very world.
Anas (Radiallaho Anho) has narrated that Rasulullah (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam) was pleased to say Laa
Ilaaha illa llaahu always benefits the individuals who proclaim it, and keeps away from them woes and
troubles, unless its rights are ignored. The Sahabah inquired " what does the ignoring of its rights mean?".
Replied Rasulullah (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam), It means that when sins are being committed openly, they
do not prevent or stop them.
Aishah (Radiallaho Anha) has reported " The Nabi (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam) came to me and I could
read from his noble countenance that something extraordinary has happened, He did not utter a single word
but, having performed Wudoo went straight to the Masjid I, too stood by the wall of the Masjid to hear what
he had to say, The Nabi of Allah ascended the mimbar and after the usual exordium said O' people, Allah has
ordained you to enjoin the good and forbid the evil, lest a time should come when you call and He may not
respond, you ask for a favor and He may not grant it, and you call for help and He may refuse, He then came
down from the mimbar.
Aboo Hurairah (Radiallaho Anho) has narrated Said Rasulullah (Sallallaho Alaihi wassallam) When my
Ummah begin to attach more importance to the world and to regard it as a source of glory the awe and
importance of Islam will vanish from their hearts whey they give up the practice of enjoining good and
forbidding evil, they will be deprived of the blessings of Revelation and when the begin to indulge in mutual
recrimination they will fall low in the eyes of Allah.
