Chapter Nine
Local Security and International Security
What is the normal relationship between people and societies: war or peace?
Indeed it is peace. Most certainly, peace is the normal relationship between all creatures. It is an end and an innate desired goal for every human being: “That is the nature according to which God creates people” ( Al-Room XXX: 30). War is an exceptional state between fighting sides created by certain causes and justifications, and when these justifications no longer exist, people’s security and peace are restored.
§ If they incline to peace, incline yourself to it, and place your trust in God. He is the All-Hearing and All-Knowing One (Al-Anfaal VIII: 61).
The word “peace” is derived from one of God’s names that are sacred and honored:
§ He is God, other than whom there is no deity, the Sovereign, the Holy One, the Peace Giver, the Keeper of Faith, the Guardian, and the Mighty One, the All-Powerful. Exalted is God above what they worship along with Him (Al-Hashr LIX: 23).
Peace is in harmony with God’s end for the universe.
God calls to the abode of peace, and guides whomever He will to a straight path (Yunus X: 25).
Peace is also in harmony with God’s wish to honor the children of Adam.
§ We have honored the children of Adam (Al-Israa XVII: 70).
The honoring here is for the children of Adam at large, that is for all human beings without any exception and without considering any distinction between them. It is an honor for the race, which includes atheists and believers, Muslims and non-Muslims, all races and colors, and males and females. All are honored by their Creator, and nobody can deprive them of that honor.
§ Peace serves an end that is in harmony with the Islamic mission and the objectives of its immortal, international message. That end is extending mercy to all creatures.
We have sent you only as an act of mercy for all creatures (Al-Anbiya XXI: 107).
§ Peace is the desired environment to accomplish the objective of God, the Most Sublime, in creating human beings and assigning to them the task of vicegerency on earth in order to settle it and exploit its resources.
He it is who brought you into being out of the earth and settled you therein (Hood XI: 61).
§ Peace is the rich soil to realize Islam’s mission of establishing life.
Believers respond to the call of God and the Messenger when he calls you to that which will give you life (Al-Anfaal VIII: 24).
§ Peace is the proper environment to activate the ties of affection, mutual compassion, and mutual assistance, competition for the best and mutual advice among human beings, all of which are stressed and encouraged by Islam.
Have mercy on those on earth, and you will receive mercy from Him in the heavens (a tradition of the Prophet’s).
Those who exchange compassion will receive mercy from the Most Merciful (another tradition of the Prophet’s).
God does not forbid you, in regards to those who did not fight you over your religion nor driven you out of your homes, to be kind and just to them. God loves the just (Al-Mumtahinah LX: 7-8).
By God he is not a believer, by God he is not a believer, by God he is not a believer: the person who is full when he sleeps, while his neighbor next to him is hungry and he knows that (A tradition of the Prophet’s).
The reference here is, as pointed out earlier, covers every neighbor without considering any distinction based on religion, race, gender, or color.
Speak kindly to people (Al-Baqarah II: 83).
Contend with what is best, and then the one you have been at enmity with behaves as a close supporter (Fussilat XLI: 34).
Reason with the People of the Book only in a graceful manner (Al-'Ankaboot XXIX: 46).
§ Peace emphasizes ethics and good manners with non-Muslims, and is in harmony with the prohibition in the Qur'an of any offense to the beliefs of others.
Do not revile what they invoke instead of God, lest they should revile God spitefully out of ignorance. Thus have We made the actions of every community seem goodly to them. Then to their Lord shall they all return, and He will explain to them all that they have been doing (Al-An' am VI: 108).
§ Peace provides cool shades in which to conduct dialogue and mutual discussion that enhance the mutual acquaintance of people, which in turn reveals facts and dispels the clouds of deviation from the obvious truth, which is confirmed by Islam.
People, We have created you from a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes in order to know each other. The noblest among you in God’s consideration are those who fear Him the most (Al-Hujuraat XLIX: 13).
§ Peace serves to bolster the spirit of caring for the other; respecting his feelings, reason, and thinking; looking at him without any condescension; and making him feel he is equal and can participate in the search for the truth and the right way,
Say, “Who provides for you from the heavens and from the Earth?” Say, “It is God, and we and you are either well-guided or clearly astray.” (Sabaa XXXIV: 24).
The Qur'an goes on with its emphasis of the meanings of good behavior and of the choice of phrases that are appropriate for a Muslim participating in a dialogue and for the human mind which God, the Most Glorious and Sublime, has honored.
Say, “You are not accountable for the crimes we have committed, or we for your actions.” (Sabaa XXXIV: 25).
To confirm this approach of cooperation with the other in seeking the truth and making him a partner in accomplishing that sublime end – which suits the blessing of reason, the most prominent component of that honor which God has bestowed on the children of Adam – the Qur'an commands the Prophet of Islam and guiding Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, to follow that great approach. God says:
Say, “People of the Book, come to a word that equally applies to us and you; that we will only worship God, and worship nothing other than Him. We would not take each other to be lords, rather than God.” If they decline, say, “Be witnesses that we are Muslims” (Aal ‘Imran III: 64).
Reflect, dear reader, may God extend mercy to you and me, upon the refined conclusion of this great verse: “Be witnesses that we are Muslims.” This testimony for a Muslim that he is a Muslim and that he has informed them of the divine guidance he has received is all that is required from those who decline the invitation for dialogue; turn down the invitation to agree upon the fact that God alone enjoys Godhood and Lordship, and to agree not to claim any partner for Him; and reject the call to honor human beings and free them from servitude to any one but God. Yes, that testimony is all that is required from them after all this rejection and after all the kind manner used in talking to them, and all the respect shown for their reason and humanity: “say, ‘Be witnesses that we are Muslims.’”
A friend has told me that this particular verse was, by the Grace of God, the reason that made a Western thinker embrace Islam. When it was translated to him, with an elaborate interpretation, he started to say, repeatedly, “Only? That is the only thing required from a non-Muslim if he differs with Muslims over questions of faith and belief?” He was told, “Yes, that and nothing else is required.” He said, “This indeed is a great ethical standard. It is completely different from what I have been told before.”
Of course what he had been told was that the other alternative for a person who refused to accept Islam was either to get killed or to pay Jiziyah, which is the way the promoters of the Quest Jihad understand things and is the claim of promoters of Sword and Combat Jihad as the permanent and normal condition of the relationship between Muslims and others. Those people believe that the only peace non-Muslims can enjoy is through embracing Islam or submissively paying Jiziyah to Muslims. They give no credit to the fact that peace is the normal relationship among people, as commanded by their Creator and Lord; Most Glorious is He, as noted above. They insist that the normal relationship is one of war and combat, until non-Muslims declare that there is no deity other than God and that Muhammad is God’s Messenger. If they make the declaration, they save their lives and property and guarantee their safety. They base this interpretation on the famous, verified tradition in which God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, says:
I am ordered to fight people until they say, “There is no deity other than God.” If they say it they protect their lives and property from me, except in justified situation.[1]
Although there are viewpoints that oppose or moderate this tradition, it is unanimously verified in the anthologies of verified traditions, particularly those of Al-Bukhari and Muslim. However, there are different versions, the most famous of which are two. The first is:
I am ordered to fight people until they say, “There is no deity other than God.” If they say it, they safeguard from me their lives and property, except for the claims of Islam. It is for God to bring them to account.[2]
The second is:
I am ordered to fight people until they say [in another version: until they testify], that there is no deity other than God, and Muhammad is [in another version: and I am] God’s Messenger; perform prayers, and pay zakat. Once they do that, they safeguard from me their lives and property, except for the claims of Islam. It is for God to bring them to account.
This means that the two versions of the tradition are verified by Al-Bukhari and Muslim, although they and others find it strange. Some, as already mentioned, say its chain of attribution is poor. On the other hand, the tradition is in conflict with explicit Qur'an statements, with definite meaning, such as God’s statement that “There shall be no coercion in religion” (Al-Baqarah II: 256). This is an explicit verse that was not canceled, as affirmed by Imam Ibn Taimiyah, may God have mercy on him and make him satisfied, and other Muslim leaders, as well as the majority of Muslim scholars, may God have mercy on them all and make them satisfied. The tradition is also in conflict with the following two statements by God, the Most Sublime:
Had your Lord so willed, all people on earth collectively would have believed. Are you, then, going to coerce people to become believers? (Yunus X: 99).
Fight for the cause of God those who fight you, and do not commit aggression. God does not love aggressors (Al-Baqarah II: 190).
It is in conflict with many other verses and traditions.
Therefore, we have to look for elements that reconcile this tradition with others and with the many Qur'an verses conflicting with it. Towards achieving this noble mission, I begin by saying:
§ For the learned, when the word “people” is used in a general sense, it means all the children of Adam. “Say: ‘I seek refuge from the Lord of people, ◘ the King of people, ◘ the God of people …’” (Al-Ikhlas CXII: 1 – 4).” But in this tradition, many people of learning believe the word “people” refers specifically to the polytheists of Arabia. “Those to whom people said, ‘People have gathered against you, so fear them! And this added to their faith, and they said, ‘God is sufficient for us; He is the best Guardian’” (Aal ‘Imran III: 173).
§ The word “people” in this verse does mean Arab polytheists, who have gathered their forces to fight the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. The same word also refers to one person: “Those to whom people said.…” Some interpreters and scholars of Arabic say that “the word here is used to refer to Na'eem Ibn Mas'ood or Abu Sufyan. These scholars cite this as evidence of using “people” to mean one person. The verse supports such an interpretation. The word is used in this manner to refer to one person for the purpose of ambiguity. Similarly, God says: ‘… or do they envy people for what God has given them of his bounty’ [Al-Nisaa IV: 54]. Interpreters say that God uses the word “people” to refer to Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.”[3]
§ Thus the word “people” in a verse that says, “Those to whom people said …” refers to Na'eem Ibn Mas'ood, for he is the person who reported to God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, that Quraish had gathered Arab tribes to fight him, and he said, “God is sufficient for us; He is the best Guardian.”
§ In Islam, Arabia and the Arabs have a special position. It is from among the Arabs that God chose His Prophet and the last of His messengers, Muhammad Ibn Abdullah, peace and blessings be upon him. Goad also chose them to be entrusted with the final message to mankind. “It is a reminder to you and your people, and you all will be questioned” (Al-Zukhruf XLIII: 44). Arabia is the geographical citadel for the Islamic faith and the authority of Islamic Law, so no two religions may coexist in it. Islam is the only religion that may dominate and be declared in it: “No two religions may coexist in Arabia.”[4]
§ The tradition that begins with “I am ordered to fight people…” is taken by many learned people to refer with the word “people” to the polytheists of Arabia and to no one else. The word “fight” is used here to mean “fight back” any group of Arabian polytheists that initiates fighting against Muslims, until they submit to God’s authority, for there cannot be in Arabia any authority other than God’s.
It might be asked, “Are the polytheists of Arabia excepted from the rule that ‘There is no coercion in religion,’ that God orders His Messenger to fight them in order to make them say that there is no deity other than God?”
Without any doubt, this is an objective, legitimate question and deserves to be contemplated, because the verse most certainly makes a generalization without any exception. In his Epistle on Fighting, Ibn Taimiyah, may God have mercy on him, says, commenting on those who say that the verse is canceled, “It is neither canceled nor specified. The text is general.” After consideration the answer is negative: No, Arabs are not exempted from God’s statement that “There is no coercion in religion.” None of them has to be forced to accept Islam as his faith and belief, but all of them, without exception, have to submit to God’s authority. Here, “There is no deity other than God” means submission to God’s authority as represented by the leadership of God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, because in Arabia, by God’s command, only God’s authority and Islamic Law may dominate. That is the case because of the declaration of the Prophet, peace be upon him: “No two religions may coexist in Arabia.”
It is for that reason that God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, refused to fight hypocrites for their hypocrisy when his Companions asked him to do so, although he had no doubt of their being hypocrites. His refusal was based on the fact that they declared their allegiance to God’s authority and the Islamic leadership. This means their commitment and submission to the authority of the Muslim administration is the factor that kept the messenger from fighting them. He even called them his companions, when he said, “… so it will not be said the Muhammad fights his companions.”[5]
It is within this context that the Muslim leadership allowed the Taghlib tribe to pay Jiziyah and keep to the faith they had, so long as they submitted to God’s authority and the Islamic leadership. Even when they refused, out of pride, to pay Jiziyah, under the name given to it in Islamic Law, the Prince of Believers Omar Ibn Al-Khattab, may God be pleased with him and keep him satisfied, said, “Never mind! Let them pay it, and they can call it by any name they want.” Because what is required of them is to submit to God’s authority and the Islamic leadership, “let them pay it under any name.” After all, paying Jiziyah is the criterion of their submission to God’s authority in Arabia.
The Jews in Yathreb (the Bright Medina), from the beginning, signed with God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, a charter of citizenship, within the framework of submission to God’s authority as represented by his leadership, which allowed them to retain their belief in their religion, without being forced to embrace Islam. The Messenger, peace be upon him, allowed them their full religious rights. Through that contract, these Jews became part of the Islamic Nation.
This is a document from the prophet Muhammad concluded between the believers and Muslims of Quraish and Yathreb, and those who follow them, joining them and strive with them, that they are one nation separate from other people.[6]
However, when they violated the charter and conspired with some Arab tribes to fight against God’s authority and His leadership in Arabia, God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, fought them, for their violation of the charter was high treason on their part, performed through their alliance with the enemy. That alliance was concluded to fight the Islamic state and undermine the authority of God, the Most Sublime, which violated the stipulations of the citizenship document which the Jews had concluded with God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him. The document stipulated that “they will support each other against any party attacking Yathreb. The Jews violated that stipulation, which calls for mutual support between the parties of the document in confronting attackers or fighters against Yathreb, and declined to support Muslims as stipulated. But they not only did that; they even went further, when they entered into an alliance with the attackers and fought on their side, violating, in a most deceitful and treacherous way the pledge and the trust. That is their usual practice in every age and location:
… Those with whom you have concluded a treaty, and then they break their treaty at every occasion, and they do not fear God. Should you meet them in battle, make of them a fearsome example for those who follow them, so that they might remember (Al-Anfaal VIII: 56 – 57).
That mean deceit, high treason, and violation of the pledge and charter was the reason for fighting them in punishment.
On the other hand, one of the two well-known, verified versions of the tradition in question reads: “I am ordered to fight people until they say, ‘There is no deity other than God.’ If they say it, they safeguard from me their lives and property, except for the claims of Islam.” This implies that fighting polytheists in Arabia takes place only if they fight Muslims and declare war against the Muslim leadership. To fight them in this case means to repulse their aggression and, subsequently, subject them to God’s authority. It is not to force them to convert to Islam.
Inviting them to Islam should be through a wise approach which involves argument, evidence, patience, tolerance so that they may willingly and voluntarily embrace Islam. If they take the initiative of fighting Muslims and committing aggression against them, the latter have to fight them to repel their aggression and violation, rather than to force them into Islam.
§ The Arabic word for “fight” that is used in the tradition is in a form that suggests mutual action. I mentioned this point in some of my earlier books, such as Islam and the Bases of the Common Ground of Human Civilizations, but I did not support it there with a statement or an interpretation by any early scholar. I had not, at the time, found anything to this effect in the writings of old scholars in the books of Islamic heritage I had read. Still, I was highly convinced of my opinion, which I based on the context of the “fighting verses” in the Glorious Qur'an and the general framework of the great jihad jurisprudence (Fiqh). However, praise be to God, I have recently managed to find statements by some of those scholars that support the interpretation I had arrived at, with God’s guidance. I have mentioned these statements above when discussing the problem of jihad and fighting One of these is a statement made by Ibn Taimiyah, may God have mercy on him, in his book Legal Islamic Policy, saying, “Because we fight those who fight us when we want to announce God’s religion. Killing people just because they are unbelievers is impermissible.”
§ On the other hand, as the reader can see, in its second version, the tradition includes the second half of the declaration of embracing Islam: “… and Muhammad is God’s Messenger.” This means the fighting back is against the fighting polytheists of Arabia, who refuse to submit to God’s authority, as represented by God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, and who further confirm their refusal by taking the initiative of fighting Muslims in order not to submit to God’s authority as represented by the declaration that “there is no deity other than God.” This declaration means that there can be, in Arabia, no authority other than God’s and no submission or obedience except to him. When people submit and declare that “there is no deity other than God,” they are submitting to God’s authority and the Muslim leadership. Thus, they can safeguard their lives and property, having become citizens in the Islamic state, with rights and obligations as determined by the citizenship charter.
On the basis of this interpretation, there is no longer a conflict, in my opinion, between God’s declaration that “There is no coercion in religion” and the statement of God’s Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him, which says: “I am ordered to fight people until they say, ‘There is no deity other than God.’ If they say it, they safeguard from me their lives and property, except for the claims of Islam.” As I understand the phrase, “the claims of Islam” mean obedience to God’s authority and Islamic leadership, and observance of the citizen charters concluded by the Islamic leadership with the people concerned under God’s authority.
This has been a lengthy elaboration commenting on the interpretation of some Muslims that the normal relationship between Muslims and others is war, and that the other alternative for non-Muslims, beside war, is one of two things: embracing Islam or paying Jiziyah. This elaborated comment is meant to emphasize, as mentioned earlier, that the question of war is not like that at all (either Islam or Jiziyah). It is rather an intricate question and it has various cases and conditions. These include the following.
§ There is a difference in the rulings on how to deal with non-Muslims in Arabia and how to deal with them elsewhere. In Arabia:
1. No religion should remain other than Islam.
2. It can only be dominated by God’s authority and Islamic Law.
3. Worship places may be established and advertised only for Muslims.
4. It is impermissible for unbelievers and polytheists to enter Makkah.
5. The Holy Mosque of Makkah, with its local and international boundaries, has special rulings.
§ There is also a difference in the rulings that apply to non-Muslims on the basis of whether they belong to the People of the Book.
§ Likewise, there is a difference in the rulings that apply to non-Muslims on the basis of whether they are combatants, peaceful people, or people covered by a covenant.
This explanation shows the difference in rulings that cover dealing with Muslims, depending on their situations and attitudes and on the change in time and place. This is something known to learned people, and it is not within the scope of this work to go into its details. An interested person may refer to the major works that deal with the subject, and he will find a lot that confirms what I have mentioned here about different rulings for different situations. Still, in spite of all this, some Muslims insist on limiting jihad to combat and claim that “fighting” is synonymous with jihad. Whenever the word “jihad” is used, the meaning, as they claim, is “fighting,” and nothing other than fighting, against all non-Muslims without discrimination. For them, war and fighting is the normal relationship with non-Muslims.
That interpretation is in conflict with the context of the glorious Qur'an and the objectives of its divine tolerant message. It also contradicts the approach followed by Muhammad, the Messenger of Islam, peace and blessings be upon him. I have given sufficient details on that and on the normal relation with non-Muslims, and I have emphasized that the normal relationship with all other human beings is peace and that war is an exceptional case dictated by its legal causes and justifications. It comes to an end when they do. Just for further emphasis, I remind the reader of the passage quoted above from Epistle on Fighting by Ibn Taimiyah, which says, “This confirms that the normal state with unbelievers is peace, rather than war. Had war been the normal thing, the Prophet, peace and blessing be upon him, would have initiated it against them. The corroborated account of his life, peace and blessing be upon him, is that he initiated fighting against no one.”
What then should be stressed when Islam is being introduced to people is that normal relationship between Muslims and others is peace. War and fighting is a legitimate means of jihad, which begins when justifications for it, and these are aggression and oppression, arise, and it ends with their end.
From His Book (Partners ... not Guardians) Part Four / Chapter Nine
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To the Nation’s leaders - To the Nation’s scholars and intellectuals - To leaders of the world |
All Rights Reserved For The Author Prof. Dr. Hamid Al-Rifaie