Building Ummah - One Muslim Individual at a time

Assalamu alaikum all,

I just read a beautifully written article about Individual Responsibility by respected Sheikh Salman al-Oadah - which insha Allah can help us "think globally (about the ummah yet) act locally" and at inidividual levels to slowly try to come out of the morass that we find outselves in.

May Allah help instill in us - the desire to change for the better - to be better able to deserve His blessings and to be able to deserve the title of "Khalifa" a'meen. Pls read the article from Sheikh Salam al-Oadah below:
Courtesy of: Islamtoday.net emphasis added by me (in bold)

- Now go out and change yourself 1st and then change the world around you - one bit at a time. May Allah reward you - for even spending the time to think about this - remember "A'fala Yatadabbaroon".
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The individual is, without doubt, a part of society and an essential aspect of the Islamic way of life.

Allah says: “You began to say: Whence is this? Say: It is from yourselves.” [Sûrah Âl `Imrân: 165]

Allah also tells us: “Truly, Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change what is within themselves.” [Sûrah al-Anfâl: 53]

Indeed, the very idea of the resurrection and the judgment in the Hereafter is founded on the concept of individual responsibility. The same can be said for our creation. Allah says: “Leave me to deal with the one whom I created in a lonely state.” [Sûrah al-Mudaththir: 11]

A person will be all alone, though he might fancy that he will be resurrected along with his wealth, his children, his particular group, or his fellow countrymen. However, the truth is that even his nearest and dearest will forsake him on that day.

Allah says: “On the day when a man will flee from his brother, from his mother and his father, from his spouse and his children. Every person on that day will have concern enough to make him heedless (of others).” [Sûrah `Abasa: 34-36]

When we observe i`tikâf in the mosque, one aspect of the wisdom behind our doing so might be so we can restore to ourselves our awareness of our individual responsibility. This is because i`tikâf frees us from the outside pressures of our group affiliations and of society as a whole, pressures that normally weigh heavily on our thoughts. When we observe a retreat in the mosques, we as individual Muslims can restore the health and natural state of our minds.

The general public can cry out, prod and push, and carry out all kinds of activities. This is why Allah guides us as follows: “Say: (O Muhammad): I do admonish you on one point – that ye do stand up before Allah, - (it may be) in pairs, or (it may be) singly, - and reflect (within yourselves): your Companion is not possessed: he is no less than a warner to you, in face of a terrible Penalty.” [Sûrah Saba’: 46]

The clear thinking and reflection that Islam calls for is something that does not follow after the whims of the people, but it demands respect for the opinions of others and to give those opinions due consideration. One of us may disagree with what someone else might say, but he has to be prepared to defend that other person’s right to express what he believes.

Each individual has to wrestle with most of the concerns that people generally have. Each Muslim faces most of the problems that confront Muslims today. When a person faces problems without the awareness of individual responsibility that Islam seeks to cultivate in him, that person finds it easy to foist the blame on outside influences. He starts talking about globalization, Zionism, hidden hands, and shadowy powers playing some clandestine game. He might blame the government, the scholars, fate, or history for whatever crisis he faces.

He will never think of blaming himself. He takes his own innocence for granted. His views and opinions are always right. He knows it all. If only everyone else would follow his lead, everything would be alright.

We might find this same person incapable of solving his own domestic problems, unable to put one and one together to make two, inexperienced, unschooled, and indecisive. He might be incapable of overcoming his bad habits and character flaws.

We see this often in a young man who has just recently become religious. He thinks that he has the keys to everything in his hands. He acts as if he, like Christ, can heal the leper and the blind with a mere touch of his finger and resurrect the dead with Allah’s leave. When he talks about the Qur’ân and the Sunnah, he acts as if only he understands it. How easy it is for him to accuse others of ignorance and misguidance.

This is a great personal failing and it contributes the general crisis facing the Muslims today and contributes nothing to the solution.

Individual responsibility varies from person to person depending on the importance of that person’s position in society, his knowledge and his expertise. Individual responsibility exists within a historical context and is not something that just appears overnight. Responsibility means having to bear burdens, fulfill obligations, uphold rights, and do what is proper.

Though individual responsibility is by definition focused on the individual, it reaps rewards for society as a whole. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Every joint in a persons body has charity due upon it for every day that the Sun rises. It is an act of charity to bring reconciliation between two people. It is charity to help a man onto his horse. Likewise, to raise his luggage up to him is charity. A good word is charity. Every step taken on the way to prayer is charity. It is charity to remove an obstacle from the road.”

Even holding ourselves back from abusing others – if we find ourselves incapable of anything else – is a form of charity that we give to ourselves.

The individual obligations discussed in the classical books of Islamic Law are nothing other than individual responsibilities. All of those obligations are prescribed to develop a person’s Islamic character so that the person can make a positive contribution to society.

In spite of this, we find a good number of Muslims preoccupied with general concerns and global problems at the expense of dealing with their own deficiencies. They think about the affairs of Muslims world and neglect the matters affecting them in their own countries. They fret about the state of humanity but fail to correct their own numerous faults or make amends for their own wrongdoings, though they may be perpetrating injustices and be beset by ignorance, indolence, and weakness of faith.

If we as individuals are in such a sorry state – where we are misappropriating the wealth of others, engaging in licentiousness, backbiting and slandering people, and operating under vested interests that cloud our judgments – then how can we speak generally about the problems of the Muslims? If we are in such a state, we will ourselves have become part of the problem.

Therefore, in order to solve the problems of the world, we have to starts by rectifying ourselves as individuals. The first steps on the long road to reforming society are the steps we take to reform ourselves.

We are easily distracted by the general problems and crises that erupt around the world and forget about the serious problems that exist within our own selves. We neglect the important task of developing ourselves and our thinking – which will contribute to solving our general problems. All of the individuals that make up the organizations, institutions, and nations of the world they have considerable power to make a difference, though they may be unsung by history and unknown in the media.

The great expansion of Islam in the early days should not only be remembered in the context of the prominent leaders whose names have gone down in history. All of those who sacrificed, struggles, and even laid down their lives, and all of the women who gave their support and lent their fortitude, they must be remembered as well.

Islamic civilization is not to be credited only to the caliphs and rulers, but to all the workers, artisans, thinkers, planners, and investors who built that civilization, though history might only remember the names of the rulers associated with it.

The meaning of individual responsibility is embodied in the teachings of the Qur’ân and Islamic thought. It is the essential building block of society. A building is made of many individual bricks.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “The believers with respect to one another are like a building, each one lending support to the whole.” [Sahîh al-Bukhâri and Sahîh Muslim]

The Priorities of the Muslim Ummah

Bismilla hirRahman nirRaheem,
Assalamu alaikum wr wb to all brothers n sisters in Islaam

What are "The Priorities of the Muslim Ummah ?"

Is it quite easy to simply list a set of priorities? Are the lofty & utopian words like "Unity", "Khilafa", "Islamic State" the right priorities? Or is it Economic and intellectual upliftment? Is self reliance in defence (military) more important than self reliance in energy (fuel) ?- or is making Justice and the Rule of Law reign supreme more important than changing the form of government - be it Kingship, Dictatorship, or Democracy ?

How do we go about selecting the priorities and in what order? Moreoever - what research do we do beforehand to first and foremost take a stock of where we are as an Ummah and where we need to be. If an severe road accident victim having multiple wounds comes into a hospital ER (Emergency Room), a good doctor identifies the most severe of the wound that can cause the most blood loss first and then works his way through the rest of the wounds to make sure that the patient can be saved. The doctors' goal is the to save the victim's life first even if it requires some painful amputation.

Just as knowing the Goal is very important - equally or possibly more important is the fact that we need to have a very clear and realistic understanding of our current state of affairs. Indeed - this question of "The Priorities of the Muslim Ummah" is something that requires serious contemplation (tadabbur).

Just like a pilot needs to know his starting point to be able to properly fly the airplane towards its destination with the right heading - taking all of the passengers along, those who want to be the pilots of the Muslim Ummah - need to understand the Ummah's starting point as well as its destination, so that hopefully they can set the Ummah's heading correctly.

Remember that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. This means that if both the starting point and the destination is properly understood and mapped - the time taken for the journey will be the shortest. If the pilot does not know of the Starting point, or he misunderstands the destination or maps it incorrectly - the pilot can easily get lost and take the wrong route possibly consuming all the fuel (energy & drive) to get to the destination.

If you have ever tried to study and prepare for an exam - you would agree that if you properly organize yourself for this task - you need (i) a goal (passing the exam), (ii) a strategy (study the relevant course material), and (iii) Prioritize (your preparation for the exam). And hopefully if done right - you will achieve your goal (pass the exam).

However - if you have a team to take along with you and achieve a team goal - the team dynamics also comes into play and so you need a fourth element - (iv) Educating the team about the goal.

In every team - you would notice the following types of people:

• Leaders or "active" team members. These are typically in a minority
• Followers or "passive" team members. These are typically the majority, and finally
• Critics or those who are good at finding flaws.

A minority of the critics - I call them "positive critics" - could be quite helpful as long as you involve them in decision making and invite them to critique any draft plan you produce. However - a small minority of the critics will object simply for the sake of finding faults so it is better to be prepared to live with them but one should not concern oneself too much about any noises they make - as they can try to sabotage and side track any important work - you may be trying to do.

What is needed is to 1st and foremost seek help from Allah through prayers, & patience and then:

1. Identify the Goal
2. Come up with a Strategy, and
3. Prioritize the tasks (i.e. make mini-goals that lead towards the central/larger goal)

Without proper education - each active member, or positive critic of the Ummah can also become a negative critic and can potentially just be a burden and keep the Ummah occupied in umpteen arguments about why are we going this way, why are we doing this or that and at the very least - will keep others irritated by regularly repeating "Are we there yet?". Hence it is a must to also properly:

• Educate about the Goal, Strategy and Priority to the active members and positive critics of the Ummah

This education should be done with such organization and vigour that the goal, strategy, and priority is inculcated into the very heart and soul of the people and that their heart should begin to beat with its rhythm.
During all this exercise - the issue of "Seeking the pleasure of Allah (subhanahu wa ta'ala)" must be kept paramount - in light of the purpose of our creation. The Qur'an calls us all - both muslims - as well as any human being to do tadabbur (contemplate) about the reasons for our creation and it informs us that neither this world nor anything in it has been created without a purpose. Instead it states quite clearly:

“…We created not the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, for mere play. We created them not except with truth but most of them do not understand” (Qur’an 44:38-39)

In another place - the Qur'an states:

“And I (Allah) created not the jinn and men except they should worship Me (Alone).” (V. 51:56)

Worship here means that on an individual level - we need to humble and lower ourselves in front of Allah (swt) and to recognize Allah as the sole power and authority. Included in this meaning is that after recognizing the supremacy of Allah - we need to fully submit to His Will by being obedient to His commands.

Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states the following:

The priority for Muslims at all times must be to educate themselves in the sound teachings of their religion and to act accordingly. Most of the confusion prevailing in the Ummah is due to lack of proper understanding of Islam. The Qur'an makes it imperative for us to educate ourselves first; that is why Imam Bukhari in his work, As-Sahih says, "Knowledge comes before speech or action!" The pious Caliph `Umar ibn `Abdul-`Aziz said, "Whoever acts without knowledge, he is bound to be more destructive in his approach rather than doing something constructively."

Having said this, I must also add: As an Ummah we need to consider the challenges facing us as a community and chalk out a program of action. Such an effort must be done by an Islamic think-tank consisting of Muslim intellectuals, scholars and leaders.

One lesson we could learn from the seerah (biography) of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is that he was a planner par excellence; so we would only be following his footsteps if we plan out steps carefully after due thought, consultation, and discussion. May Allah guide our steps. Ameen

So knowing the purpose of our creation - what are the priorities of the Muslim Ummah?