The Da’wah To Islam by Sheikh Ahmad Mahmoud

In this painful situation, in which the Muslims live, Islamic movements have emerged that work to change this situation and establish the good alternative, which is represented in the sight of all people by establishing the Islamic State. These Islamic movements had two approaches; the first relies on the reformist method in the da’wah to establish the Islamic society. So they began to work on restoring what had been destroyed and reforming what had become corrupted. The second approach relied on the path of change and takes the view that there is no benefit in reform in a reality where the corruption has reached the foundations, so the patchwork approach or mere reformation became of no use.

The difference in the way of thinking of these two approaches has led to differences in the way that they view the reality and the work to treat it. As a consequence, the methods of work and ways of da’wah have differed.

So what is the Shar’ee rule regarding this subject?

To give the Shar’ee rule, we must proceed according to the method of thinking in Islam. This is because it will not be possible to gain knowledge of the Shar’ee rule except on its basis.

Proceeding on the Shar’ee method is imperative for us to understand the reality in which we wish to work, and to produce the Shar’ee evidences relating to this reality, and then to understand them in a legislative manner.

It is well known that Islam, the complete deen, indicates the manner of reform when the reality necessitates reform, and the manner of change when the reality demands change. So what does the Shar’a require today?

The judgement in both situations is for Allah 􀀬, and is based on the Shar’ee evidences. However what defines the type of da’wah (whether it is reform or change) is the reality of the thing one wishes to change or reform.

As for change, whether it is the change of the minds of individuals, or their condition, or of societies or the change of the situation of peoples and nations, it should start with the basis on which human beings, societies, and situations are established. That is because, it is from the basis that all the partial thoughts and concepts that define the behaviour of man in this life emanate. It is according to this basis, and whatever partial or peripheral thoughts are linked to it, that man’s happiness or misery results, and nations revive or decline.

The basis on which the Muslim or the Islamic society is built is the Islamic ‘Aqeedah. Not one action of the Muslim or the Islamic State should deviate from the ‘Aqeedah and its requirements.

As for islah (reform), it includes taghyeer (change), but deals only with the branches and not the basis, owing to the fact that the basis is sound, or it may be to correct the basis and purify it, assuming that it exists.

If the basis existed but some obscurity came over it, or some thoughts affected it, and it became dominated by this, then the work here will be of reform and not change. The work will be to return the basis to its original purity, and thus strengthen it, so that its effect appears in the branches when they are applied. For example, one must work with the Muslim affected by the western culture, in order to purify his Imaan and remove all the defects from him, so as to correct his direction and rectify his behaviour. One must also work with the Muslim who commits sins (‘aassi) in order to strengthen the area of his Imaan, so as to generate the impetus that pushes him towards Taqwa, and the deterrent that prevents and protects him from sins.What applies to the Muslim individual applies to the Islamic State. For example, when we wish to invite a Kaafir to Islam, our da’wah will be one of change. This is because the basis, everything established on it and whatever emanates from it, are false. So we must replace it with the correct basis. Therefore we do not call a Kaafir to pray, and leave the kufr basis upon which he is established.

This is what the Messenger 􀁕 did, and this is what is indicated by the reality of things. Allah 􀀬 informed us that He will not accept any action of the kuffar, however good it may have been, and that no disbeliever will be admitted to Jannah because of his action, unless it is based on the Imaan (belief) that Islam has brought. He 􀀬 said; “And We shall turn to whatever deeds they (disbelievers, polytheists) did, and We shall make such deeds as scattered floating particles of dust” [TMQ 25:23].

Similarly, the Muslim who commits apostasy and leaves his Imaan, all his actions will be of no avail. Thus Imaan must be the basis of all actions.

As for when we want to invite a Muslim, then our da’wah will be one of reform. This is because the basis he has is correct, but he must be made free from all defects and everything that has made his direction and adherence weak. As long as the basis is present in origin, then it requires whatever will develop it, strengthen it, make it productive and purify it. When that happens he will have the correct direction and the sound adherence. If the Muslim drinks alcohol, commits Zina, steals, deals with Riba or neglects to carry the Islamic da’wah to resume the Islamic way of life, treating his area of Imaan will treat him. He is reminded of Allah the Creator, the Governor of affairs, Whom he must worship and obey. He must not look at how small his sin is, but how great the Creator is. When the Creator orders him or prohibits him from something, He 􀀬 does not do this except for what is best for him in this life and the Hereafter. He is also reminded of the bad recompense of sins, which will admit him to the Fire, and the good recompense of obedience, which he will find on the Day of Judgement and which will make him of those deserving the Mercy of his Lord. So, one should concentrate on mentioning the terror of the Day of Judgement and the torment of Jahannum, and the bliss of the Jannah with him. In this manner, his area of Imaan is aroused, so he rushes forward in obedience and deters himself from sins. The matters will not be rectified for the Muslim, except in this manner. That is why in our da’wah today, to the Muslims as individuals, we must take into account that they are Muslims, and their thoughts must be corrected and their behaviour reformed.

As for the states whose systems are established on constitutions, their constitutions are established on sources, and these sources are established on a basis. This matter must be looked into. Is the State established on the basis of the Islamic ‘Aqeedah, and consequently taken the Kitaab and Sunnah, and whatever they have guided to, as the only sources of revelation? Have the rules of the constitution been derived from it such that no rule deviates from the revelation? If it does this, then the State, in this case, is Islamic.

If it happened that in such a State much corruption and misapplication took place, then such a State requires reform and not change, as was the case in the time of the Islamic State during the latter period of the Ottomans. It required reform, it was not allowed to rebel against it and cooperate with Western Kuffar to destroy it, as was done by the so-called Shareef Hussein.

As for when the States are not actually established on the basis of the Islamic ‘Aqeedah, which is the basis of the constitutions, systems and laws, then one is required to change it and not reform it, as is the condition of the States in which the Muslims live today. They are non- Islamic states, because their systems do not originate from the Islamic Sharee’ah - even if they say the religion of the State is Islam - because what matters is the application and not statements; the meaning and not the name.

Therefore, since the systems of the States that govern the Muslims today and their constitutions are not established solely on the basis of the Kitaab and Sunnah, the reality obliges to undertake the work of change, which is established on the radical change of the pillars and foundations of the regime. This reality cannot be dealt with based on patchwork partial reform; rather it should be based on the comprehensive, radical and revolutionary change. Any way of dealing with it on any other basis is definitely not allowed, because it is an implicit recognition of it, and because it is a non-Shar’ee demand concerning the reality, and because the reality is ruling by other than what Allah 􀀬 has revealed. That is why we find the groups that turn to the existing regimes to reform them actually coexist with them and work to infiltrate their ranks, and their approaches are partial according to the reality that they wish to reform, because their programmes are partial. They work to create common intellectual channels of contact, considered to be starting points for dialogue between them and the system. Hence their approaches change colour according to the country in which they are working. They try to paint the country with the Islamic colour – whilst retaining the trash that keeps its non-Islamic essence - in order to make it appear in the guise of Islam, but without that colour reaching its essence.

We also see the da’ees of (radical) change are completely distinguished in everything, regarding their approaches, from the reality which they are working to change. This is because they link their thoughts with the basis that they believe in. They reject the existing reality in terms of the basis. As long as the basis is different, then whatever emanates from it is rejected due to the rejection of its basis, even if there is some similarity in some of its partial issues.

That is why the advocates of this approach live, whilst having in their minds the overall picture of the model they wish to transfer the people to. This model takes them back to the time of the Messenger 􀁕 and his Sahabah. They criticise the reality in which they live, including its basis.

Therefore, the approach of this group is the same in every country, because the situations in which the kaafir colonialist has placed the Muslims in are the same and similar, and because the solution for these situations is the same.

The West has worked from the very beginning of its colonisation of the Muslims to remove the Kitaab and Sunnah as the only source of legislation for our life. It did this when it worked to separate the Islamic deen from the reality of our lives and its organisation, and succeeded. Its success was an evil consequence upon us. Today it is strange to see Islamic movements dealing with the artificial entities, which The West created to its design, when they are dealing with them in terms of reform and not uprooting. Indeed, patchwork repair, however much it is, will not rectify this reality. The one who does not comprehend the reality of things will not comprehend their rule, so he will lose the correct work and the good emulation of the Suannah.

The one who wishes to call people to Allah 􀀬 these days cannot forget the hadith of the Messenger 􀁕; “...then there will be a Khilafah on the way of the Prophethood.” [Reported by Imaam Ahmad]. The one who wants it to be a Righteous Khilafah on the way of the Prophethood, does not have any option other than to emulate the Sirah of the best amongst men, whose efforts gave fruit by the help of Allah 􀀬 and brought out the best Ummah raised up for mankind. It is but one chain, which is the life of the Prophets and those who followed their path. We pray to Allah 􀀬 that we are one of its links. Thus, we emulate the Sirah of al-Mustafa (the chosen one), and the people follow us and we gather together upon the most noble of actions and the truest of worhips.