Be Happy

The swan continued her story, "After saying goodbye to the three man, the wayfarer sat for a moment, he opened his bag. From inside his bag, he took a letter that had not long been read since he received it. The letter read,

'O my son, be happy! Among the greatest of blessings is to have a calm, stable, and happy heart. For in happiness the mind is clear, enabling one to be a productive person. It has been said that happiness is an art that needs to be learned. And if you learn it, you will be blessed in this life. But how does one learn it?

A basic principle of achieving happiness is having an ability to endure and to cope with any situation. Therefore you should neither be swayed nor governed by difficult circumstances, nor should you be annoyed by insignificant trifles. Based on the purity of the heart and its ability to endure, a person will shine. When you train yourself to be patient and forbearing, then hardship and calamity will be easy for you to bear.

The opposite of being content is being short sighted, being concerned for no one but one's own self and forgetting about the world and all that is in it. It is as if such people see themselves as being the whole universe, or at least at the center of it. They think not of others, nor do they live for anyone but themselves. It is incumbent upon you and I to take time out to be preoccupied with more than just us, and to sometimes distance ourselves from our own problems in order to forget our wounds and hurts. By doing this we gain two things: we make ourselves happy, and we bring joy to others.

Basic to the art of happiness is to bridle our thoughts and to restrain them, not allowing them to wander, stray, escape, or go wild. For if you were to leave your thoughts to wander as they wish, then they will run wild and control you. They will open the catalogue of your past woes. They will remind you of the history of your misfortunes, beginning from the day that your mother gave you birth. If your thoughts are left to roam, then they will bring to you images of past difficulties and images of a future that is frightening. These thoughts will shake your very being and will cause your feelings to flare. Therefore bridle them, and restrain them by directing them to the concentrated application of the kind of serious thought that begets fruitful and beneficial work.

Also among the principles of the art of happiness is to value life on this earth according to its true merit and worth. This life is frivolous and does not warrant anything from you except that you turn away from it. This life is filled with calamities, aches, and wounds. If that is the description of this life, then how can one be unduly affected by its minor calamities, and how can one grieve over such material things as have passed him by? The best moments of life are tainted, its future promises are mere mirages, the successful ones in it are envied, the one who is blessed is constantly threatened, and lovers are struck down by some unexpected misfortune.

O my son, be happy ! Happiness is acquired by a constantly smiling, by hunting for the reasons that make one happy, and even by forcing it into one's own self, however awkward that may seem. One does all of these things until happiness becomes second nature.

The truth of the matter is that you cannot remove from yourself all remnants of grief. And the reason for this is that life was created as a test. But the message I wish to convey to you is that you should, as much as is possible, reduce the amount and intensity of your grief. As for being completely free from grief, this is for the inhabitants of Paradise in the Hereafter. Grief will not be removed except in Paradise. Likewise, grudges and bitterness will not be completely removed except in Paradise.

So when a person knows the nature of this world and its qualities, he comes to realize that it is dry, deceitful, and unworthy; and he comes to fully understand that that is its nature and its description. It is worthy of the intelligent person not to help it in its onslaught, nor to surrender to depression and anxiety. What we should do is defend ourselves from all feelings that may spoil our lives, in a war that we must wage with all the strength that we have been endowed with.

O my son. Be Happy! If you are poor, then someone else is immersed in debt. If you do not own your own means of transportation, then someone else has been deprived of his legs. If you have reason to complain concerning the pains of sickness, then someone else has been bedridden for years. And if you have lost a child, then someone else has lost many children, for instance, in a single car accident.

O my son, do not be sad, because if you are, you disturb your soul and heart, and you prevent yourself from soundly sleeping.

O my son, be happy! The past is gone forever. By brooding over the past and its tragedies, one exhibits a form of insanity — a kind of sickness that destroys resolve to live for the present moment. Those who have a firm purpose have filed away and forgotten occurrences of the past, which will never again see light, since they occupy such a dark place in the recesses of the mind. Episodes of the past are finished with; sadness cannot retrieve them, melancholy cannot make things right, and depression will never bring the past back to life. This is because the past is non-existent. Do not live in the nightmares of former times or under the shade of what you have missed. Save yourself from the ghostly apparition of the past. Do you think that you can return the sun to its place of rising, the baby to its mother's womb, milk to the udder, or tears to the eye? By constantly dwelling on the past and its happenings, you place yourself in a very frightful and tragic state of mind.

Reading too much into the past is a waste of the present. Former days are gone and done with, and you benefit nothing by carrying out an autopsy over them, by turning back the wheels of history. The person who lives in the past is like someone who tries to saw sawdust. Of old, they used to say: "Do not remove the dead from their graves."

Our tragedy is that we are incapable of dealing with the present: neglecting our beautiful castles, we wail over dilapidated buildings. If every man and every jinn were to try jointly to bring back the past, they would most certainly fail. Everything on earth marches forward, preparing for a new season — and so should you.

O my son, today is all that you have ! When you wake up in the morning, do not expect to see the evening — live as though today is all that you have. Yesterday has passed with its good and evil, while tomorrow has not yet arrived. Your life's span is but one day, as if you were born in it and will die at the end of it. With this attitude, you will not be caught between an obsession over the past, with all its anxieties, and the hopes of the future, with all its uncertainty. Live for today: During this day you should pray with a wakeful heart, recite the Qur'an with understanding, and remember Allah with sincerity. In this day you should be balanced in your affairs, satisfied with your allotted portion, concerned with your appearance and health.

Organize the hours of this day, so that you make years out of minutes and months out of seconds. Seek forgiveness from your Lord, remember Him, prepare for the final parting from this world, and live today happily and at peace. Be content with your sustenance, your wife, your children, your work, your house and your station in life.

You must engrave onto your heart one phrase: Today is my only day. If you have eaten warm, fresh bread today, then what do yesterday's dry, rotten bread and tomorrow's anticipated bread matter?

If you are truthful with yourself and have a firm, solid resolve, you will undoubtedly convince yourself of the following: Today is my last day to live. When you achieve this attitude, you will profit from every moment of your day, by developing your personality, expanding your abilities, and purifying your deeds. Then you say to yourself:

Today I shall be refined in my speech and will utter neither evil speech nor obscenity. Also, I shall not backbite. Today I shall organize my house and my office. They will not be disorderly and chaotic, but organized and neat. Today I will be particular about my bodily cleanliness and appearance. I will be meticulous in my neatness and balanced in my walk, talk, and actions. Today I will strive to be obedient to my Lord, pray in the best manner possible, do more voluntary acts of righteousness, recite the Qur'an, and read beneficial books. I will plant goodness into my heart and extract from it the roots of evil — such as pride, jealousy, and hypocrisy.

Today I will try to help others — to visit the sick, to attend a funeral, to guide the one who is lost, and to feed the hungry. I will stand side by side with the oppressed and the weak. I will pay respect to the scholar, be merciful to the young, and reverent to the old.

O past that has departed and is gone, I will not cry over you. You will not see me remembering you, not even for a moment, because you have traveled away from me never to return.

O future, you are in the realm of the unseen, so I will not be obsessed by your dreams. I will not be preoccupied about what is to come because tomorrow is nothing and has not yet been created.

Today is my only day... is one of the most important statements in the dictionary of happiness, for those who desire to live life in its fullest splendor and brilliance.

O my son, be not hasty and rushed for things that have yet to come to pass. Do you think it is wise to pick fruits before they become ripe? Tomorrow is non-existent, having no reality today, so why should you busy yourself with it? Why should you have apprehensions about future disasters? Why should you be engrossed by their thoughts, especially since you do not know whether you will even see tomorrow?

The important thing to know is that tomorrow is from the world of the unseen, a bridge that we do not cross until it comes. Who knows, perhaps we might never reach the bridge, or the bridge might collapse before we reach it, or we may actually reach it and cross safely. For us to be engrossed in expectations about the future is looked down upon in our religion since it leads to our having a long-term attachment to this world, an attachment that the good believer shuns. Many people of this world are unduly fearful of future poverty, hunger, disease, and disaster: such thinking is inspired by the Devil. Many are those who cry because they see themselves starving tomorrow, falling sick after a month, or because they fear that the world will come to an end after a year. Someone who has no clue as to when he will die (which is all of us) should not busy himself with such thoughts. Since you are absorbed in the toils of today, leave tomorrow until it comes. Beware of becoming unduly attached to future prospects in this world.

O my son, be happy! Remember the favors of Allah upon you and how they surround you from above and below — indeed, from every direction. Health, safety, nourishment, clothing, air, and water — these all point to the world being yours, yet you do not realize it. You possess all that life has to offer, yet remain ignorant.

You have at your disposal two eyes, a tongue, lips, two hands, and two legs. Can you picture yourself walking without feet? Should you take it lightly that you slumber soundly while misery hinders the sleep of many? Should you forget that you fill yourself with both delicious dishes and cool water while the pleasure of good food and drink is impossible for some, due to sickness and disease? Consider the faculties of hearing and seeing with which you have been endowed. Look at your healthy skin and be grateful that you have been saved from diseases that attack it. Reflect on your powers of reasoning and remember those that suffer from mental ailments.

Would you sell your ability to hear and see for the weight of Mount Uhud in gold, or your ability to speak for huge castles? You have been given abundant favors, yet you feign ignorance. Notwithstanding warm bread, cool water, easy sleep, and good health, you remain despondent and depressed. You think about what you do not have and are ungrateful for what you have been given. You are troubled by a loss in wealth, yet you have the key to happiness and many blessings. Reflect upon yourself, your family, your friends, and the entire world that is around you. Live today free from sorrow, bother, anger, jealousy, and malice. Contemplate and be thankful!'

After reading the letter, the wayfarer sigh of relief, then he looked at the sky and raised his hands, praying,

"O Allah, Possessor of Majesty, Magnificence, and Might, let comfort take the place of sorrow, make happiness come after sadness, and let safety take the place of fear. O Rabb, give peaceful slumber to the restless and serenity to disturbed souls. O Rabb, guide the confused ones to Your light and those that are astray to Your guidance."

Bahasa

Reference :
- Aaidh ibn Abdullah al-Qarni, Don't be Sad, International Islamic Publishing House

Lesson from the Seerah : Succession

The historian said, "O young man, the biggest challenge for any leader; indeed, the single factor which can mean success or failure of his mission; is his ability to inspire others to follow him and commit time, energy, wealth and talent for the achievement of his goal. No goal can be achieved by anyone alone, no matter how talented or powerful of wealthy that person may be. The key to achieving this attention and commitment of people does not lie in paying money or granting favors or making inspiring speeches but to express the love and concern for followers that you truly and genuinely feel so that they also know it. Remember, people say, ‘They don’t care what you say, until they know that you care.’
If there is one thing that is crystal clear about the character of the Prophet (ﷺ) as a leader, it is his patience and gentleness. There are several instances in his life where others behaved with him in such foolish and harsh ways that those who were with him drew their swords to teach the person a lesson. But the Prophet (ﷺ) never allowed them to take that course. His way was to deal with the harshest of treatment with calmness, gentleness and a smile.

The Prophet (ﷺ) preached the importance of the rights of neighbors and he was the best to his neighbors. He (ﷺ) preached a message of human rights and social responsibility. He (ﷺ) emphasized the rights of neighbors irrespective of whether they were Muslim or not. Once, he (ﷺ) was asked the Sahaba, ‘Do you know what the rights of the neighbor are?’ He then said, "Assist him when he asks for assistance; Give him a loan if he needs it; Help him if he is needy; Visit him when he is ill; Accompany his funeral when he dies; Congratulate him on happy occasions; Console him in adversity; Do not build your house higher than his without his permission lest his ventilation is obstructed; If you buy fruit, send some for him as a present. If you cannot do so, take the fruit into your house concealed so that he cannot see it. Don't allow your children to take it out and eat openly in case his children see it and become grieved; Don't let the smoke from your house get into his house causing him annoyance. These are the rights of the neighbors." Thereafter the Prophet (ﷺ) declared, "By Allah, no one will ever understand these rights unless Allah has mercy on him.‛
In another Hadith it is mentioned that the Prophet (ﷺ) took an oath thrice saying, "By Allah! He is not a Believer! By Allah he is not a Believer! By Allah he is not a Believer!‛ Someone asked, "Who is not a Believer?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The person who causes suffering to his neighbor.‛ Another Hadith mentions that such a person will never enter Jannah.

The Prophet (ﷺ) preached about the rights of women and he gave the world a law that gives women rights that they don’t have in many other modern legal jurisprudential systems even today, 14 centuries later. He (ﷺ) preached the value of truthfulness and was himself called ‘Al-Sadiq ul-Ameen’: the Truthful & Trustworthy One, even by his enemies, the Quraysh. He (ﷺ) demonstrated Islam in every aspect of his life. And he taught his companions to do so, themselves. The result was that Islam spread far and wide, not by warfare and conflict with other religions but by ordinary Muslims living by the code of behavior that he taught them. Applied Islam has more power to convince people than any other method of preaching or propagating. The Prophet (ﷺ) demonstrated this to perfection.
The Prophet’s (ﷺ) concern was not only for his followers, but even for those who denied him and tried to harm him only because he wanted to invite them to the truth and save them from the Hellfire. This sounds like a strange thing because in all worldly matters people love those who are willing to give them things for free. But when someone invites a person toward eternal success, some people find that offensive and fight that person, and oppose him, even try to harm him.

Let me tell you some stories. There was a woman, who hated so much to a man who always preaching the Oneness of God. She thought of something till late at midnight and finally decided to insult him. She could not sleep all night, thinking how to make this man get mad. Then came an idea. Before the first ray of sunlight had entered her window, she was busy sweeping her house. She saved all the garbage in a basket, placed it on the roof of her house and proudly looked at it for a while, then with an impatient look on her face, she looked at the street that she lived on, and thought, "No one has ever seen him angry. Everybody will praise me when they will see him shouting at me and getting mad. They will laugh at him and make fun of him." She looked at the basket again and grinned.
Meanwhile, she heard footsteps, announcing the approach of the end of her waiting. "Finally my prey has arrived," she thought, as she saw a man dressed in clean, white clothes coming that way. She picked up the basket in her hands and threw all the garbage on him when he passed by. Much to the woman's disappointment, he did not say anything and continued on his way.
She did the same the following day thinking, "Maybe this time I will be able to annoy him." But he was too gentle to shout at a woman. But the woman misinterpreted his attitude as fear and decided to repeat the same mischief everyday in order to keep him frightened, so that he might stop preaching the Oneness of God. This gentleman did not want to disappoint the woman and so continued to walk down the street everyday, instead of picking an alternate route, and prayed for the woman to recognize the Truth.
One day, the gentleman did not find the woman to be on the roof of her house with the basket. This worried him, because he thought something must have happened to her for not being over there. So he knocked at the door. "Who is it?" asked a feeble voice. "Muhammad bin Abdullah," was the reply, "Can I come in?" The woman feared, "I am sick, and too weak to fight or talk back, therefore he has come to take revenge for what I have been doing to him." But the permission to enter her house was in such a gentle voice that she allowed him in.
A man entered the house and told the woman that not finding her on the roof had worried him and he thus wanted to inquire about her health. On finding out how ill she was, he gently asked if she needed any help. Hypnotized by the affectionate tone in gentleman's blessed voice, she forgot all fear and asked for some water. He kindly gave her some in a utensil and prayed for her health, while she quenched her thirst. This made her feel very guilty for being so cruel to him in the past and she apologized for her mean behavior. He forgave her and came to her house everyday to clean it, to feed her and to pray for her, till she was on her feet again. The kind attitude of this gentleman inspired her into the recognition of the Truth, and the man's prayers were answered in the form of yet another addition into the growing number of Muslims.

One day, the man was going somewhere at noon and it was too hot in the desert when he saw an old woman carrying her luggage on her head. He helped her and took the luggage from the woman and carried it for her. He asked the woman, where she was going and why. She said, she was leaving this town as she had heard that a magician named Muhammad is in town. The man didn't say a word and kept listening. The old lady kept on complaining about why she was leaving the town.
While walking with the man, that old woman noticed that this young man had a brightness on his smiling and humble face. And also, she smelled his fragrant sweat. She was very impressed. When they reached the destination, the man put down the bag and was about to leave when the old woman said,"O, open-armed man! At least tell me your name!". The man replied, "I am the one because of whom you left the town." The old woman was stupefied and amazed with such a kind and helping gentleman. This incident changed her view, true person could never be wrong, and this man certainly not a liar. The old woman was so shocked that it was the very person who she had been criticizing who had not only helped her but hadn’t said a word and listened to all the criticism without complaint that she finnally said, ‘You are Muhammad (ﷺ), so I believe that you are the Messenger of Allah. I bear witness that there is nobody worthy of worship except Allah and that you are His Messenger (ﷺ).’

There was another story about this fascinating gentleman. An old blindman, jobless, was known by the public in that territory as a person whose mouthful with vulgar swearing towards a man named Muhammad. In the corner of the marketplace, the blindman would cry out daily to all those who came near him," O my brothers, don't be near Muhammad! He's a lunatic, he's a liar, a sorcerer! If you are to be close to him, you will be influenced by him!" Surely he hated Muhammad, more than he could say. But weird, he had never seen the man whom he was swearing at. People who passed by would just ignore him be in his poor neglected condition. No one seemed to care of him and considered him as a nuisance, except to one man.
This one man, without saying a single word, would feed the blindman with his own hand! The blindman would chew the food being fed to him and eat contentedly. Once he was full, he would express his gratitude without knowing the one who had fed him. The man, made feeding the old blindman as his routine, until one day, this gentleman stopped doing his usual feeding activity. The blindman waited daily and was perplexed as to why the man did no longer come to feed him and provide for him as he had done all this while. The blind man waited in vain for the kind gentleman who had never missed visiting him each and every morning all these while.
Untill one day, someone approached him and started to feed him. At the first handful of food being fed to him, the blind man became angry and shouted out," Who are you?" The man answered " I am the one who usually feeds you every morning." "No! You lied to me!" said the blindman. The man shocked, thus he asked" Why did you say so?" Answered the blind man, "Because when he came to me, I felt it easy to hold his hand and found it easy to chew the food he fed me! The man who used to feed me would make the food fine before feeding it to me!"
Ultimately, the man could not hold back his tears anymore and he burst out crying and had to disclose who he actually was to the blind man. "Verily, I am not the one who used to come and feed you. I am Abu Bakr, one of his Companions for the noble one is alive no more! He was none other than the Prophet of Allah, Muhammad (ﷺ)!"
"Muhammad (ﷺ)?" asked the blind man, who totally stratled with what he had just heard. "You mean to tell me that the one who came each morning without fail and fed me by his hand was Muhammad (ﷺ)?" asked the blind man. "Yes! He was Muhammad (ﷺ)!" answered Abu Bakr, radhiyallahu 'anhu.
Immediately, the blind man walked out in despair and cried so pitifully coming to realise that it was none other than the Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) who had been feeding him all this time. With sobs he said softly, "All these while! All these while, I had been cursing him, I had been slandering him! Not once he has ever scolded me!." The blind man cried as he wiped away his flowing tears on his cheeks, "He kept coming every morning to feed me! O how so noble is he!" Then the blind man reached out to Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, raḍiya'llāhu ʿanhu, the first Commander of the Believers, and testified before him the Shahada.

The final and most important lesson that I want to draw from the life of the Prophet (ﷺ), is forgiveness and magnanimity. His conduct when he entered Makkah as its conqueror is an example for all humanity for all time, of personal humility, a big heart and mercy. The Quraysh who had tormented him and driven him from his home; who were directly and indirectly responsible for the deaths of those he loved the most, his uncles, wife, daughter; who had caused him immense physical and emotional pain were finally at his mercy.
So what did he do? He forgave them all. He announced a general amnesty and that there would be no revenge taking; an age-old custom among the Arab tribes who looted and killed the men and took the women and children as slaves. This was what people expected to see in Makkah also.
It is true that as a victor, the Prophet (ﷺ) could have taken revenge. But that would have opened new wounds which would have set off a new series of conflicts all resulting in delay or defeat of his real mission, the spreading of his Message. By forgiving those who had wronged him, he sent a powerful message that the mission was above all personal considerations and put those who had wronged him in his debt. Instead of fighting him or hating him they were now grateful to him and wanted to please him. At one stroke, he laid to rest all future potential conflicts among his followers without which his mission would have failed. The leader must be prepared to sacrifice his personal benefits for the sake of the goal and must be prepared to set a personal example in this respect. It is only when the followers see the behavior of the leader that they will follow suit. The result will be the success of the mission. Forgiveness is the foundation of this success.

On one occasion in Madina, Anas bin Malik, radhiyallahu 'anhu, narrates ‘Whilst we were in the Masjid with Allah's Messenger (ﷺ), a blind Bedouin came and started to urinate in the Masjid. The companions rushed to stop him. Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, ‘Do not interrupt him until he is finished.’
The Prophet (ﷺ) was thinking of the likely consequence if he were stopped while in the process of his action, he would most likely run away from the companions leading to the impurity spreading over a wider area of the masjid. The Prophet (ﷺ) had the far sightedness to see that leaving him alone until he had completed what he was doing, was the lesser of the two evils. After he had finished, the Prophet (ﷺ) led him out and told him what he had done and then had the place washed.
The Prophet (ﷺ) would follow the command of Allah scrupulously, to consult with his Sahaba before he took any decision. This may seem strange because for one thing he knew more and better than they did as he was the recipient of revelation as well as being the wisest and most experienced of them.

Yet we realize the wisdom of this when we reflect on the effect that this consultation had on the Sahaba themselves. It made them feel included, valued and responsible for the effort and outcomes; It ensured their commitment to the cause because they had been consulted; Sometimes they had critical information about local matters which came to light when they were consulted and enabled a better decision; It was training in decision making for them for the future for the time when the Prophet (ﷺ) would no longer be among them. It served to create cohesion among them and enabled them to think across their tribal and local boundaries for the benefit of all concerned and the success of the mission of propagating Islam.
A combination of picking the right people, setting a high personal example and intensive hands on training, the Prophet (ﷺ) created not one but a set of leaders who were able to take his message forward long after he had passed away. It is true that there were various conflicts three decades after he passed away which led to consequences that he wouldn’t have wanted or approved of but this fact only underlines the reality that no great effort is sufficient for all time. It must be continued generation after generation if one is to continue to reap its benefits."

Then the historian said, "O young man, whatever happened in history, the example and model that the Prophet (ﷺ) left for the world remains clear, vibrant and valid for anyone who is interested in benefiting from it. It is true that the world has changed beyond recognition from the world of the Prophet (ﷺ), but the principles he laid down are still as true as other laws of nature that don’t change because society changes. Just like gravity or the law of aerodynamics, the law of success in this world and the next remains the same. That is what the Prophet (ﷺ) was sent to teach the world. To that we bear witness and ask Allah to make us worthy of being his followers. And Allah know best."

"So by mercy from Allah, [O Muhammad], you were lenient with them. And if you had been rude [in speech] and harsh in heart, they would have disbanded from about you. So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them and consult them in the matter. And when you have decided, then rely upon Allah. Indeed, Allah loves those who rely [upon Him]." - [QS. 3:159]

Bahasa

References :
- Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, IIFSO
- Mirza Yawar Baig, Leadership Lesson from the Life of Rasoolullah (ﷺ), Standard Bearer Academy.

Lesson from the Seerah : Central Authority and Funding

The historian continued, "O young man, we have discussed about the foundation of the Islamic Ummah, the core ideology as the first requirements for a movement to become global in nature and to survive and grow long after its founder.
Islam presented an ideology that promoted justice, social responsibility and activism against all forms of oppression. The theological basis was translated into actual actions and rules of life which became the temporal/social model. It is not enough in Islam simply to believe in the Oneness of Allah and in the Messengership of Muhammad (ﷺ). There are clearly specified actions that must be done to prove that one actually believes. The first among these is the Salah and the second, spoken of in the same breath is Zakat, the compulsory charity that every Muslim who has the means as specified in the Shari’ah must pay into a central fund. One is not separated from the other and in fact reinforces the other. Interestingly if you read early Islamic history it becomes abundantly clear that all the opposition to Islam was really rooted in the unwillingness to act according to the rules of Islam, almost all of which were social, family and state related, rather than any opposition to the central belief itself. This trend continues to this day and those who have difficulty in following Islam, including modern day Muslims, must look to their personal desires to identify the root of their reluctance or opposition. It is not the theological argument itself but the fact that in Islam is it not merely intellectual in nature but must be affirmed through action. If Islam were just a matter of believing conceptually in Tawheed the work of the Prophet (ﷺ) would have been very easy.
There is an incident recorded where the leaders of Makkah came to the Prophet (ﷺ) and told him that they were prepared to worship Allah on one day provided he (ﷺ) would agree to worship their gods the next. In today’s world this may seem like a very reasonable argument and people may actually call you ‘extremist’ or ‘fundamentalist’ if you don’t agree to such a ‘reasonable’ stance. However the Prophet (ﷺ) did not accept this proposal, because accepting this would have been to nullify the entire philosophy of a religion that claimed to be directly from Allah and was diametrically opposed to polytheism and which he(ﷺ) had been sent to propagate. These are tests that the leader has to face and no matter how difficult, refuse to compromise his stance in favor of any logic. If he doesn’t, he will then lose the edge that is his as a result of his differentiating from the rest.

The second requirement for a global movement is a central authority that can create the necessary conditions to propagate the ideology and for people to practice it. This would consist of three distinct parts, first, a Law which prescribes permitted and prohibited actions with concomitant rewards and punishments. The Law must necessarily cover all aspects of life and must have within it enough flexibility to cater to emerging situations that may not have existed at the time of the inception of the ideology. We know this as Legislature.
Second, those who interpret the Law and deal with any infringements, questions and clarifications. Is known as Judiciary. The Judiciary must at once be well versed in the Law as well as be well aware of modern issues and how they affect the lives of people. Only then will they be able to interpret the Law in a way that it continues to be applicable as one century succeeds another and times, lives and people change.
Third, the Civil Administration which ensures that the Law is followed, those adhering to it are facilitated and those who break it are punished. We know this as Executive. The Executive is the arm of the Central Authority and ensures that individual intransience does not jeopardize the fabric of the Core Ideology. The Executive must possess great integrity, wisdom, diplomacy and firmness in order to ensure that it treads the narrow middle path between anarchy and dictatorship. Both are detrimental to the long term viability of the Core Ideology.

The Prophet’s (ﷺ) big challenge in Madina was to create an Islamic government in a state which was pluralistic and multi-religious. Madina at the time of the Hijra had two major Arab tribes, Aws and Khazraj, who had Muslims and polytheists among their members. There were the Muhajirin who had emigrated from Makkah and elsewhere to Madina to be with the Prophet (ﷺ) and the Muslims. There were three major Jewish tribes, Banu Nadhir, Banu Qaynuqah, Banu Quraidha and then there were sundry people who were polytheists and some Muslims. It was essential therefore that a new law be created which would take into account the rights of all concerned and ensure that justice was done to everyone. The Prophet (ﷺ) created what was perhaps the first Constitution of any state until that time.
The prophet (ﷺ) drew up an agreement between the Muhajirin and the resident population of Madina. This included the Muslims and the Jews who also lived in Madina. The agreement was binding on both parties and it was its violation by the Jewish tribes later that led to their eventually being expelled from Madina. This agreement can be said to be the Constitution of the Islamic State that the Prophet (ﷺ) founded and as such would perhaps be the first document of its kind in the history of the world which gave equal rights to all people irrespective of their religious belief. More than anything else, for the writer of such a document to be the head of a new religion that he founded is astounding to say the least. It is true that Islam was not a new religion because it was the religion of all the Prophets since the beginning of time but as far as the people of the time were concerned it was new to them and the Prophet (ﷺ) was its founder. Yet here he was prescribing equal rights to all people whether they belonged to his religion or not.

We have mentioned the covenant known as Ṣaḥīfat al-Madīnah or the Constitution of Medina. Key elements of the Covenant are, first, the law maker is the leader. The Prophet (ﷺ) wrote a document to regulate relationships and so his authority was established and he became the judge. All disagreements must be referred to Allah and His Messenger (ﷺ). The only name mentioned is the name of the Prophet (ﷺ). The relationship of the Prophet (ﷺ) to Allah is clearly defined in this and so is the fact that the authority of the Prophet (ﷺ) came from Allah and so it is the rule of Allah that was being established here. Second, the Muslim Ummah is one community excluding others. So the distinct identity of the Muslim is an important part of this. Third, Jews had equality, permission to practice their religion freely and had the protection of the Muslims. They had to support the Muslims and give them advice and counsel. Nobody could leave Madina without the permission of the Prophet (ﷺ) much as you can’t leave your country without a passport today. Fourth, Madina was made Al-Haram – the center of Yathrib was made a sanctuary i.e no hunting, cutting trees or fighting.
Islam created the institution of the ‘Constitutional Ruler’ – the Khalifa who rules by the Divine Law. He rules by a law that he did not create and under which he is also answerable just as the lowest of the citizens under his care. The Khalifa was the true servant of the people, was elected on the basis of demonstrated piety, wisdom and ability at statecraft. As is clear from early Islamic history, the Khulafa ar-Rashida were elected by their peers who agreed to obey them because of the high respect in which they held them. So obedience was subject to the ideology.

The third requirement for a global movement is funding. Islamically our belief is that it is Allah, Who provides with His Power and by His Grace and Mercy but that one must make the necessary effort to ensure that all material means are adopted and all material rules are fulfilled. There are many examples from the life of the Prophet (ﷺ), our litmus test for all matters, to show that he took all precautions, made all material preparations and made every physical effort before he turned to Allah in prayer and dua. Islam doesn’t limit the amount of money that one can make but regulates the methods that can be employed in making it. Islam is concerned with the means of earning wealth and with how it is spent, not with how much of it is earned.
Islam insists that wealth is earned using fair means, without deception of any kind, without usury and interest, without exploiting labor or society. Islam insists that wealth must not be made at the expense of the wellbeing of others and so prohibits hoarding of civil supplies, especially food items. Islam insists that wealth is spent for the good of society and so makes charity compulsory and encourages one to give more after having fulfilled one’s obligation. The Prophet (ﷺ) never prevented or stopped anyone from trade and making money and even said that Allah put 9 out of 10 parts of blessing (Baraka) in trade. On one occasion when prices were very high, the Prophet (ﷺ) refused to enforce price regulation and instead encouraged people to behave responsibly towards all constituents of society. Islam follows the principle of free enterprise with social responsibility based on accountability to Allah and eventual reward with him in the Aakhira.
It is with this principle in mind that  for any global movement to succeed, it is essential to have in place a mechanism for a centralized collection and administration of funds. This would consist of a structure for the collection of funds that is rooted in the Core Ideology, a method for collecting the funds and the infrastructure necessary for the collection and administration of the funds. It is necessary to have both obedience to the Central Authority and payment of the funds enshrined in the Core Ideology itself so that ‘believers’ will automatically become active financial supporters of the ideology. In this way also the movement is assured of a certain base amount annually which can be administered in accordance with its principles for its benefit.

Islam created the institution of Zakat as a compulsory payment to be made to the state. Islam legislated that a minimum of 2.5% of Zakat must be remitted into a common fund controlled by the state which is to be spent in welfare activities. The purpose of this was twofold. One was to enforce circulation of money into the economy. That is why Zakat is payable not only on monetary savings but also on gold and silver which is the most common way of securing one’s savings. Similarly Zakat is payable on crops, trade goods in stock, land purchased for the purpose of trade. All this to ensure that those who are rich cannot take money out of circulation and that a certain amount will always be forced back into the system.
The second purpose of Zakat was to give enough funds in the hands of the Central Authority to be able to utilize them according to an overall development plan. Zakat is the most effective way of development financing and if Muslims pay Zakat in the way it was meant to be paid; pay it in full and pay it into a common fund; then not only will there not be a single destitute Muslim in the world but the Muslims will be able to do a huge amount of social development of other deprived people all over the world. This would be the most powerful method of Da’awa which is the underlying intention in Zakat anyway.

Without a central method of collection and distribution it is not possible for the state to carry out any strategic development. The institution of Zakat was so important that it was combined with prayer itself and was declared to be another form of prayer – prayer in a financial form. People who refused to pay Zakat were declared to have exited Islam itself.
Allah ordered the Prophet (ﷺ) to collect Zakat from the people and called it a ‘purification’ of their wealth. The idea was for Zakat to be collected by the state and then used for different purposes. These were also specified. Allah said,

"Take, [O, Muhammad], from their wealth a charity by which you purify them and cause them increase, and invoke [ Allah 's blessings] upon them. Indeed, your invocations are reassurance for them. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing." - [QS.9:103]

"Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy and for those employed to collect [zakah] and for bringing hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the [stranded] traveler - an obligation [imposed] by Allah . And Allah is Knowing and Wise." - [QS.9:60]

The historian paused and said, "There is one thing we need to keep in mind. History does not spare anyone who changes its rules. And neither did it spare the Muslims. As Muslims changed the purity of the model of global movement so also their fortunes were and continue to be affected. Their effect became less and less global and their presence was seen more in history books than in actual observable fact. It is interesting, though painful, to examine some of the dilution that took place and its effect on Islam and Muslims worldwide.
As Islam moved out of the Arabian Peninsula and further away from the times of the Prophet (ﷺ) in terms of time and entered Egypt, Syria, Iran and India it took into itself influences from Coptic Christianity, Greek and Roman philosophy and mythology, Zorastrianism and Hinduism. The purity of the doctrine of Tawheed – the Oneness of Allah without partners and interceders, the direct connection between the Creator and the slave – was clouded by theories of partnership in various ways.

But as the unique identity of Tawheed was corrupted, correspondingly Islam lost its own uniqueness. Islam and Muslims started resembling Hindus, Christians and others in terms of their lifestyle, rituals, customs and practices. They stopped being standard bearers to an ideology that was as clean and pure as the desert air that bore witness to its glory first. It became as cloudy as the muddy stream that meanders through the gloom of the forest, its waters moving slowly, unable to carry even the flotsam of dry leaves and its bottom murky with decomposing vegetation and slush.
As people stopped seeing the uniqueness of Islam, so also they stopped being attracted to it. What they saw was not much different from whatever they believed in and did not have any solutions to the problems that they suffered from and nothing much was changed except the name of the ritual or the idol that was worshipped.

Above all of this however, the true tragedy was the breakup of the Ummah. As different interpretations, philosophies and cults started, the Muslim Ummah started to break up. And correspondingly the conflicts became more internal than external against shirk and Kufr. Leaders of the different sects fanned the flames of mutual hatred in order to build their own little islands of support at the cost of the whole Ummah. Muslims started killing Muslims. Muslims refused to cooperate with Muslims. Muslims worked against Muslims. Race, nationality, tribe, color and sect all became more important than being Muslim. All the boundaries that had been erased with so much effort by the Prophet (ﷺ) once again came back into the Ummah and the Muslim Ummah went down the road of fragmentation as did those who came before them. And with the same results in terms of lost influence, power and wealth.
The first things to be attacked and weakened was the foundation of the Ummah or the core ideology. The beginning was the change from the Khilafat being an elected office to becoming a hereditary one. The Khalifa therefore became a king, though he was still called the Ameer-ul-Mo’mineen. The structure remained in the form of an empty shell under which lived a different being. Since competence was no longer a criterion of leadership and leadership had become hereditary, competence came to be seen as a threat by the incumbent leaders. Brilliant generals like Tariq bin Ziyad and Mohammad bin Qasim were recalled at the peak of their campaigns and were punished for being successful in their tasks. The example of the Prophet (ﷺ) in not choosing his own relatives to inherit his mantle of leadership ended very quickly after his death. Consequently Islam and its global position of dominance suffered and gradually and steadily declined.

Times changed and so did the behavior of the Khalifa. Khulafa like Sayyidina Abu Bakr Siddeeq and Umar ibn al Khattab, radhiyallahu 'anhum, would not have dreamt of using a single dirham out of the treasury on themselves. This integrity changed to a situation where the treasury became the personal property of the king and his family. They built palaces and accumulated wealth that became legendary. Taxes were levied not to raise money for public welfare but to pay for the lifestyle of the king and his nobility. Wars were fought, not to open the doors of the world for the message of Islam but to acquire land and wealth. New converts to Islam were told that they would still have to pay the jizya in addition to the Zakat that they were liable to pay as Muslims because they did not belong to the ruling class. Muslim rulers became the cause of people staying away from Islam instead of being the facilitators for people to enter Islam. Eventually at the end of the 1-st World War, the Khilafat ended with the deposing of the last Khalifa who was overthrown by the British educated and indoctrinated apostate, Kamal Pasha also known as Ataturk."

Then the historian said, "O young man, as we can see from all the examples; as long as the three elements of global movements work in consonance, the movement has energy and progresses. When one or more of the elements becomes defective or ceases to function, the movement loses momentum and can even completely shut down. And Allah know best."

"O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best [way] and best in result." - [QS.4:59]

Bahasa

References :
- Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, IIFSO
- Mirza Yawar Baig, Leadership Lesson from the Life of Rasoolullah (ﷺ), Standard Bearer Academy.

Lesson from the Seerah : Foundation of the Ummah

Then the historian said, "O young man, know that the Islamic Ummah is not a group of people whose aim is to live in any manner and head in any direction so long as they have enough food and amusement. On the contrary, Muslims possess an ideology which defines their relationship with Allah clarifies their vision of life, organizes their affair internally according to specific patterns and leads their external connections towards definite goals. There is a great difference between a person who says to you, “ My only concern in this world is to live my life, and another who says, “ If I do not protect my honour, safeguard my rights, please Allah and defend His cause, then may my legs not carry me and my eyes not guide me.”
The Muhajirin to Madinah did not forsake their homeland out of desire for wealth or dominion. The Ansar, who welcomed them, swore enmity to their own people and made their lands targets for all the Arabs, did not do so in order to live in any manner as chance would have it. All of them had the desire to be guided by Revelation, gain the pleasure of Allah and realize the ultimate goal, for which humans wrere created and life was established. Can those who deny their Lord and yield to their lusts by anything other than despicable creatures or accursed devils?
From this point of view, the Prophet (ﷺ) immediately after settling down in Madinah, turned his attention to the laying of those foundations which were necessary for the fulfilment of his mission. The basic priorities were, firstly, the relationship of the Ummah with Allah; secondly, the relationship of the members of the Ummah with one another; and, thirdly, the relationship of the Ummah with non-Muslims.

Concerning the first item, the Prophet (ﷺ) hastened to build the mosque in which the rites of lslam, which had long been suppressed, could be practised, and in which the prayers could be established, drawing people closer to their Lord and purifying hearts from the filth of the earth and the schemes
of worldly life. The Prophet (ﷺ) built his mosque where his camel knelt down, in an empty lot belonging to two orphans under the care of As'ad Ibn Zurarah. Although the two boys wished to donate the land for the cause of Allah, the Prophet (ﷺ) insisted on paying the full price for it. This land, before being developed for a mosque like the mosques which abound in the Saudi Arabian countryside, was once covered with date palms and seeding trees, and had a few tombs belonging to idolaters.
The Prophet (ﷺ) ordered the palms to be cut down and the tombs to be levelled. The palms were arranged to mark out the qibla of the mosque, which was Jerusalem in those days. The length of the mosque from the qibla to the back wall was 100 dhira and the two sides were approximately of the same length. The sides were made of stones and the foundations were dug 3 dhira deep and built of bricks. The Prophet (ﷺ) and his Sahaaba joined together in fetching the bricks and stones on their shoulders and they would cheer themselves up by singing, "O Allah, there is no life except the life of the Hereafter, so forgive the Ansar and the Muhajirin." The Sahaaba became more enthused with the spirit to work when they saw the Prophet (ﷺ) himself toiling like any of them and disliking to show himself superior to any of them. One of them sang this couplet, “ If we sat down while the Messenger was working, that would be a misguided deed on our part.”
The mosque was completed in all simplicity; its flooring was sand and pebbles, its ceiling palm branches and its pillars the trunks of trees. Perhaps when rain fell the ground would become muddy, and perhaps the dogs were able to pass in and out of the walls.

This simple, humble building nurtured the angels from among people, the educators of mighty personalities and the monarchs of the Hereafter. In this mosque, Allah gave permission to His Prophet (ﷺ) to train the choicest of those who believed in him, and mould them with the discipline of heaven from early morning until the darkness of the night. The status of the mosque in Islamic society is unique. It is an institution. It is the source of spiritual and material guidance, it is the hall for worship, the school for knowledge and the centre for literary pursuits. Strongly attached to the duly of prayers and the rows of worshippers are moral attitudes and traditions which form the essence of Islam. Now, however, the people, who are incapable of building personalities on the basis of strong morals, have sought consolation in the building of huge mosques containing dwarfish worshippers! In contrast to that were the early generations of believers. They avoided adorning their mosques but purified and disciplined themselves and were a true reflection of Islam.
The mosque which the Prophet dedicated his efforts towards building before any other task was not just a piece of land on which prayers alone were offered. In fact, the whole earth is a mosque, and Muslims need not confine themselves to a specific place for the purpose of worship. It was in fact a symbol of that to which Islam attached the utmost importance. It was a symbol of the deep connection between the worshippers and their Lord, which is constantly renewed with the passage of time and recurs throughout the night and day. There can be no value in a civilization which is negligent of the One Illah, is ignorant of the Last Day and mixes the good with the bad. The civilization which Islam brought constantly reminds people of Allah, and the meeting with Him urges adherence to the good and repudiation of the bad and stays within the limits set by Allah.

It is interesting that the Islamic calendar does not start from the date of birth or of death of the Prophet (ﷺ), but from the date of his journey to Madina with the intention of starting a brotherhood of faith, the Ummatul Muslima and the establishment of the Islamic state. Structures are important because they influence behavior.
As regards the second item the relationship of the members of the Ummah with one another, the Prophet (ﷺ) based it on perfect brotherhood. It was brotherhood in which the word “ I” was non existent, and individuals moved with the spirit, interests and hopes of the group, unable to see themselves as separate entities detached from it. This brotherhood meant that the racial prejudices of jahillyah should dissolve; that only for Islam should one show enthusiasm; that all differences of lineage, colour and country should disappear; and that no-one should be placed in front or behind except his/her bravery and piety. The Prophet (ﷺ) made this brotherhood into a contract to be executed, not a mere word and deed linked to blood and wealth, nor a mere greeting muttered by the tongue and having no effect.
The feelings of altruism, beneficence and love were an integral part of this brotherhood and they filled the new society with the most wonderful examples. The Ansar were so eager to welcome their brothers, the Muhajirnf that lots had to be drawn for a muhajir to live with an Ansar. The Muhajirin respected this sincere sacrifice and never exploited it nor took from it more than that which enabled them to establish themselves in free, dignified business.

The Prophet (ﷺ) was the elder brother to this believing group. He did not distinguish himself above them by any honourable title. A sound hadith narrated by al-Bukhari on the authority of Ibn Abbas, radhiyallahu 'anhu, the Prophet (ﷺ) said, “If I were to have taken anyone from my Ummah as a friend, I would have taken Abo Bakr os a friend. But the brotherhood of Islam is better."
True brotherhood does not grow in a mean environment. Wherever ignorance, cowardice, miserliness and greed are prevalent, brotherhood will not appear and love will not flourish. If it were not for the fact that the Sahaaba were brought up on pure qualities and were united on acceptable principles, the world would not have recorded for them that deep brotherhood for the cause of Allah. The lofty ideal which had brought them together and the shining example which had led them to it were the two things which nurtured in them the qualities of virtue and honour and did not leave any space for the appearance of bad qualities.

Moreover, the Prophet was a man in whom were accumulated all of the virtues which were scattered throughout the mankind, and he was therefore a reflection of the highest peak of perfection attainable by humans. No wonder, therefore, that those who acquired their training from him and always supported him were the one who lived by bravery, fidelity and generosity. Love is like a gushing spring which flows of its own accord. It does not need machinery to extract its water. Similarly, brotherhood cannot be imposed by law’s and regulations. It can come about only when people eradicate their attitude of selfishness, greed and egotism. There w'as this interchange of brother!iness among the early Muslims because they had evolved to a higher level in all aspects of their lives through Islam, and had become brothers by becoming the servants of Allah. However, Had they become slaves of their own selves, they would not have allowed one another to continue living.
The Islamic emphasis on the value of sublime attitudes in the building of brotherhood does not negate the fact that the ruler must institute a system among the people so that each is given his or her rights and does his or her duty. If he or she does not do so willingly, then he/she is compelled to do so. It is similar to compulsory education, taxes, military service etc.

As regards the third item the relationship of the Ummah with the non-Muslims, the Prophet (ﷺ) instituted open-minded and indulgent laws which were never known before in a world filled with racism and prejudice. Whoever thinks that Islam is a religion which cannot accept being neighbours with another religion, and that the Muslims are a people who can never find rest unless they alone remain dominant in this world, is mistaken, or rather, biased and audacious.
When the Prophet (ﷺ) came to Madinah, he found Jews had settled there and idolaters who were natives of the place. He did not begin to create any strategy to evict or wage war on these people. On the contrary, he accepted the presence of the Jew's and idolaters with a good heart, and proposed that they make a covenant with himself as equals, they keeping their religion, and he, his.

We shall quote a few items from the terms of the contract which he concluded with the Jews as proof of Islam’s stance in this matter. Ibn Ishaq narrated the document wihout ascription, the clauses state,

That the Muslims of the Quraish and Yathrib and all who follow them, join them and wage jihad with them are one Ummah. That the believers shall unite as one person against any of them who rebels or seeks to spread evil, sin, transgression or corruption among the believers, even if he be the son of one of them.
That no idolater should grant asylum to the wealth or person of anyone from the Quraish and should not hinder a believer from access to such.
That it is not permissible for a believer, who has accepted this pact and believes in Allah and the Last Day, to assist a criminal or grant him refuge; and that anyone who assists or grants refuge to such will have the curse and anger of Allah on him on the Day of Judgement, and no compensation or fine shall be accepted from him.
That the Jews shall spend with the believers as long as they are at war.
That the Jews of the Banu 'Auf are a group of believers, and the Jews shall have the right to keep their religion just as those of the Muslims are entitled to theirs.
That the Jews of the Banu al Najjar, Al-Harith, Sa‘idah, Banu Jasham, Band Aus, etc, shall have the same rights as the Banu 'Auf.
That the Jew's shall bear their own financial burdens and that Muslims shall bear their own, and that they (the Jews and the Muslims) shall assist each other against anyone who w ages war on the signatories to this agreement
That among themselves they should be sincere, advise one another and be kind to one another.
That a man is not in the wrong if his ally commits a wrong; that assistance should go to the one who is wronged; and that any one who is given asylum is to be considered as oneself as long as there is no injury or sin.
That Allah is witness to the most pious and righteous items mentioned in this document.
That all shall assist one another against any surprise attack on Yathrib.
That whoever leaves is safe and whoever remains in MadTnah is safe, except the one who oppresses or sins. And that Allah is the Refuge for the one who does righteous deeds and fears Him.

This document expresses the desire of the Muslims for sincere co-operation with the Jews of Madlnah in order to establish peace and tranquillity throughout the city and put a stop to any transgressor or trouble-maker, whatever their religion might be. It clearly stated that freedom of religion was guaranteed. Thus there was not the least thought of attacking any group or oppressing any weak person. On the contrary, the words of this document clearly emphasized assistance to those who were oppressed, protection to the one who sought refuge, and safeguarding all the general and specific rights. It sought the support of Allah for the best and most pious, just as it sought the wrath of Allah on anyone who was treacherous and deceitful.
The Muslims and the Jews agreed to defend Yathrib if an enemy attacked it, and they granted the right to leave Madinah to anyone who wanted to leave and the right to remain as long as its sanctity was observed. It must be noted that the Prophet (ﷺ) made mention in this document of the standing enmity between the muslims and the idolaters of Makkah and he announced his decisive rejection of any co-operation with them and prohibited extending any form of aid to them. Could anything other than this be expected from a people whose wounds were still dripping blood from the assault of the Quraish and its allies on them?

Were the Jews truthful in their agreement to this treaty? It is almost certain that they were not serious when accepted the terms of this treaty. The problem with treaties is that faithfulness to them lasts only as long as one can see one's personal benefit from them. And when the treaty becomes stumbling block in fulfulling one's personal ambitions, adherence to it slackness and opportunities are sought whereby one will not have to remain bound by it. The Jews used to build their material and political power on the basis of disunity among the Arabs, However, when the Arabs entered into Islam, their old differences began to disappear and time began to show that Islam would make of them a single nation. Therefore the Jews started to fed uneasy. They were filled with anxiety. They soon began to plot against this new faith and lie in wait for its followers.
The Jews in Madinah in fact represented an atmosphere in which abounded all the shameful apparent formal religiosity and despicable trade with the principles of heaven. The most prominent characteristics of such an environment were envy, hypocrisy, outward formalities without depth, and love of discord. And behind all that were devious hearts and corrupt minds.
Perhaps as a result of their proximity to the Arabs they had acquired some of the virtues of the desert such as generosity' and bravery, Nevertheless, their racial introversion dominated their character and these virtues stuck to their selves just as wallpaper sticks to a cracked walk.

One would have expected the Jews to welcome Islam , Even if they did not do so, then at least one would have expected them to be more hesitant than the idolaters in opposing it, since the Prophet (ﷺ) inviting towards monotheism, upright deeds and preparation for a more sublime life in the Hereafter. His religion esteemed Moosa, alayhissalam, spoke highly of his Scripture and urged the Jews to execute its laws and keep within its limits. The Jews, at first, kept quiet as a doubtful person and then they decided to show their opposition openly. Reference can be found in many Quranic verses to the kind of welcome that was to be expected.
You will be astonished to find that the Jews wrere just as insolent as the idolaters towards Allah, fleeing from His laws and speaking of Him in a disrespectful tone. If Islam shows anger at someone who ascribes a son to Allah, whether human or of stone, then what would you say about one who describes the Rabb of the heavens and earth as being poor and miserly? Allah said,

"And the Jews say, "The hand of Allah is chained." Chained are their hands, and cursed are they for what they say. Rather, both His hands are extended; He spends however He wills. And that which has been revealed to you from your Lord will surely increase many of them in transgression and disbelief. And We have cast among them animosity and hatred until the Day of Resurrection. Every time they kindled the fire of war [against you], Allah extinguished it. And they strive throughout the land [causing] corruption, and Allah does not like corrupters." - [QS.5:64]

"Allah has certainly heard the statement of those [Jews] who said, "Indeed, Allah is poor, while we are rich." We will record what they said and their killing of the prophets without right and will say, "Taste the punishment of the Burning Fire." - [QS.3:181]

Islam, however, allows these stubborn people to remain in their error and does not root out their disbelief with the sword. It suffices by presenting its message, revealing its truthfulness and filling the air with its ayat and signs. Those who are comforted by it and enter it will have its benefit. Otherwise they will be left to their own devices, and Islam will not ask anything of them except politeness and peace and allowing the truth to go on its way without hindrance or objection.
The Prophet came to Madinah and stretched out his hand to the Jews. He bore all their insults with his forbearance until he saw them uniting to destroy him and his faith. It was then that he turned on them and there occurred a number of incidents between him and them which we shall discuss in their appropriate places.
From fear of Allah and sincerity to Him, the spiritual side of the new society was created with sincere brotherhood its structure held together and its foundations remained firm. With justice, equality and co-operation, the policy towards outsiders was formulated and the followers of the other religions included in a treaty. As a consequence, the situation was stabilized and the Muslims found sufficient scope to rebuild their strength and regulate their affairs."

Then the historian said, "O young man, without structures and systems behavior depends on the personal will of individuals which can change and the work of a generation may be completely lost. However if robust structures are created which can serve to give meaning to generation after generation, then you can be assured that the core ideology which gave them birth will remain vibrant and powerful. The biggest challenge that the Prophet (ﷺ) faced was to bring together people who were hereditary enemies, not only on one platform but make them brothers to each other and to get them to love one another such that they would be willing to sacrifice even their lives to protect someone who used to be their enemy. It was a challenge that anyone other than the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) would not even have attempted and as such it is one of the proofs of the Divine nature of the Prophethood of Muhammad (ﷺ). Finally it was a challenge that could not have been accomplished without the help of Allah.
For a people used to thinking in terms of race, tribe and lineage and to discriminating against one another on all those bases, what was the amalgam, the adhesive that would bind them despite all their racial and tribal diversity? This is where the power of the foundation of Islamiac Ummah, came into play and Islam became the binding force.
A man became the brother of another man, not because of his tribe or family or race but because of what he carried in his heart – a belief that there was nobody worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad (ﷺ) was His last and final Messenger. It was this belief that joined not only Arab tribesman to Arab tribesman, but Arab to non-Arab, black to white to red to yellow across the world. All this may seem strange today because we seem to have lost it all and gone back into the age of pre-Islamic darkness of ignorance, discrimination and racist thinking but Allah is witness that this miracle of the Prophet (ﷺ) did happen.And Allah know best."

"And [there is a share for] those who came after them, saying, 'Our Lord, forgive us and our brothers who preceded us in faith and put not in our hearts [any] resentment toward those who have believed. Our Lord, indeed You are Kind and Merciful'." - [QS.59:10]

Bahasa

References :
- Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, IIFSO
- Mirza Yawar Baig, Leadership Lesson from the Life of Rasoolullah (ﷺ), Standard Bearer Academy.

Lesson from the Seerah : Not Willing to Compromise his Message

The politician said, "O young man, for a leader, the most critical thing is to differentiate from the rest on the basis of his message. If the leader compromises his message for the sake of popularity, material gain, followership or anything else, the uniqueness of the message will be lost and it will lose its value as a clear standard on which to model all actions. This is naturally not easy to do, as there are a lot of societal and other pressures to conform to existing norms, values and customs. To stand out as different, especially when this means to go directly against the existing system is not easy. But it is an essential criterion that distinguishes the leader.
When Quraysh thought that the various methods of scorn and ridicule which they employed would demoralize the Muslims so much that they would hide for shame of their faith and soon return to the religion of their forefathers, their hopes were doomed to disappointment, however. Not a single Muslim forsook the truth with which Allah had blessed him; in fact the Muslims were on the increase. The methods of ridicule did not succeed in blocking anyone from Allah's path or in distorting its features; they only strengthened the feeling of the Muslims that paganism contained nothing but disgrace and ignominy and that it ought to be rooted out from the society. What could the ridicule of an ignoramus do to a learned man? Allah says,

"And he constructed the ship, and whenever an assembly of the eminent of his people passed by him, they ridiculed him. He said, 'If you ridicule us, then we will ridicule you just as you ridicule. And you are going to know who will get a punishment that will disgrace him [on earth] and upon whom will descend an enduring punishment [in the Hereafter]'." - [QS.11:38-39]

The Quraish sought to employ another strategy, which contained both allurement and threat, They sent to the Prophet (ﷺ) offering him any worldly thing that he desired, and they sent to his uncle, who was protecting him, warning him of the consequences of maintaining such protection and urging him to silence the Prophet (ﷺ) so as not to cause any harm to himself and his family. The Quraish sent 'Ulbah ibn Rabi‘ah, who was a calm and composed man, He went to the Prophet (ﷺ) and said, “0 nephew, you know the position which you hold among us because of your ancestry. However, you have brought a serious matter to your people and have broken up their community with it. So listen to me and 1 shall offer you some alternatives; perhaps you may accept one. If by this affair you wish to gain wealth, we shall collect all we can for you from ourselves so that you will become the richest of us. if you desire status, we shalt make you our leader and shall never decide any affair wilhout consulting you. if you desire to be a king, we shall make you king over us. And if that thing which visits you is an evil spirit which you cannot eradicate, wo shall look for the best doctor and spend all we possess to have you cured "
When he had finished, the Prophet (ﷺ) recited to him the opening verses of Surah Al-Fussilat,

"Ha, Meem. [This is] a revelation from the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful - A Book whose verses have been detailed, an Arabic Qur'an for a people who know, as a giver of good tidings and a warner; but most of them turn away, so they do not hear. And they say, "Our hearts are within coverings from that to which you invite us, and in our ears is deafness, and between us and you is a partition, so work; indeed, we are working." Say, O [Muhammad], "I am only a man like you to whom it has been revealed that your god is but one God; so take a straight course to Him and seek His forgiveness." And woe to those who associate others with Allah - Those who do not give zakah, and in the Hereafter they are disbelievers." - [QS.[41:1-7]

He recited until he reached ayah 13, which says,

"But if they turn away, then say, "I have warned you of a thunderbolt like the thunderbolt [that struck] 'Aad and Thamud."

The Prophet (ﷺ) chose those verses from the blessed Revelation so that his interlocutor might know the reality of the message and the messenger. The Prophet (ﷺ) brought a Book from the Creator to His creation, which guided it away from error and saved it from destruction. He before all others was responsible for believing in it, acting upon it and submitting to all its dictates. Thus, when Allah demanded of His servants that they should tread the right path towards Him and seek His forgiveness it was the Prophet (ﷺ) who applied himself more than alt the mankind to being upright and seeking forgiveness, without looking for kingship, wealth or status. Allah had already placed all of these things before him and he had turned away from them, disdaining to touch them. Instead, he gave away freely all the good-things that came his way. He spent a mountain of wealth in the path of Allah and when he left this earthly life he had not a dirham to bequeath to his progeny.

‘Utbah on behalf of the Quraish wanted the Prophet (ﷺ) to give up calling towards Allah and establishing justice among the mankind. What would become of life if a piece of rock detached itself from the earth and flew through the strata of space to ask the sun or any other star to stop giving light and heat to the universe? What a strange request it was! How well it would be for the person who makes such a request to return home and stay there. In fact, after hearing these Quranic ayat 'Utbah’s dormant thoughts began to stir He listened to the threat and he was moved. ‘Utbah put his hands to his side and got up as if the thunderbolt were going to strike him. He returned speedily to the Quraish and urged them to leave Mthe Prophet (ﷺ) alone.
As for the Quraish's delegation to Abu Talib, they told him, “0 Abu Talib, your nephew has cursed our gods and criticized our religion; he has belittled our ideals and accused our forefathers of having gone astray. Either you keep him away ftom us let us deal with him; you are one of us, for you disagree with his views.” Abu Talib spoke nicely to them and rejected their proposal in a gentie manner. So they went away, and the Prophet (ﷺ) continued his da'wah. Soon relations between him and them reached such a low level that he became the center of all the Quraysh's talk and plots. Once more they went to Abu Talib and said, “Abu Talib, we respect you because of your age and nobility among us. We had requested you to restrain your nephew but you did not. By Allah, we shall not show tolerance to this cursing of our gods and forefathers and belittling of our customs. So either you restrain him from criticizing us or we shall fight him and you over this matter until one side perishes.” Then they left him.

Abu Talib felt very worried at the thought of separating from his people and at their show of enmity toward him. Nevertheless, he did not feel comfortable at handing over the Prophet (ﷺ) to them. So he sent message the Prphet (ﷺ), informing what the Quraysh had said, and he urged, "Look after yourself and me, and do not burden me with more than I can bear." The Prophet (ﷺ) thought that his uncle had changed his mind, withdrawn his protection from him and was helpless to defend him. So he said: “O uncle, by Allah, if they put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left so that I might give up this matter until Allah causes it to prevail or I die in the process, I should not give it up.”
The Prophet (ﷺ) then wept and stood up. However, his uncle called him back and said, "Go, nephew of mine, and say whatever you wish. By Allah shall never hand you over for anything.” He also recited this couplet of poetry, "By Allah, they will never reach you with all their numbers until I am buried and sealed in the earth.” Thus did allurements and threats fail to stop the da‘wah.
The Quraish realized that their target was far beyond their reach, so they went back to their old ways, pouring their anger upon the believers and expending their utmost energy to torture them and turn them away from their faith. The Prophet (ﷺ) became very sad at the misfortunes that befell his Companions while he was unable to stop them. He intimated to those who had little support and were fearful of remaining in Makkah that they should migrate to Abyssinia. This was in the fifth year after his ministry, or two years after he openly proclaimed his message.

Now, let us look at some of the options that were available to the Prophet (ﷺ) when he started preaching his message. First, he could have accepted the kingship of Quraysh and then made changes. Second, he could have compromised and then tried to gradually make changes. Third, he could have addressed social evils and become a social reformer first to get some local support then he could have presented his theological message.
But, he didn’t choose any of these options. Instead, he did what all prophets have always done – he proclaimed his message, directly, in so many words. This is one of the many proofs of Divine guidance and the best example of Tawakkul on Allah because who other than the one who is being directed by Allah can do what he did?

This unwillingness to compromise is the theme in his entire life. He didn’t accept the Islam of Banu Thaqeef of Ta’aif when they came with the condition that they would accept his Risala and pray but wouldn’t pay Zakat – even though he needed support very badly at that time. Some people advised him to soften his stance and said that he should accept the Islam of the Banu Thaqeef and that they would perhaps pay Zakat in due course. However, the Prophet (ﷺ) refused to change his stance and said that the one who separates Salah from Zakat was not a Muslim. It was based on this ruling that Abu Bakr Siddique, radhiyallahu 'anhu, declared war on those who refused to pay Zakat after the Prophet (ﷺ) passed away. When he was asked how he could declare war on Muslims, he quoted the ruling of the Prophet (ﷺ) who said that the one who refused to pay Zakat was not a Muslim.
The greatest damage to a cause is done by those who, perhaps in a well-meaning way, soften stances regarding principles. When that happens the clarity of differentiation is lost and the message loses significance.
This stance of complete integrity stands out in the Da’awa of the Prophet (ﷺ) in that he was not willing to compromise his message, water it down or dilute it in any way to please anyone. This is one of the many proofs of the Divine nature of the message which naturally the Prophet (ﷺ) being the bearer of the message felt and knew that he had no authority to change. There was huge moral and psychological pressure on him to accept at least in part, the religion of his polytheistic family and tribesmen and to go easy on them and their traditions and customs. He refused.

They tried every means of persuasion. As I’ve mentioned, they offered him gold, women, power and authority. They offered to make him their king. They threatened him with death. They even told him that they would be willing to worship his god one day if he would agree to worship their gods on the other day. They told him that they would accept his Message of monotheism if he would stop saying that polytheism and idol worship was wrong. Finally when his uncle Abu Talib who had given him his protection asked him directly, he replied, ‚My Uncle, even if they put the sun in my right hand and the moon in my left hand, I will not give up this message that I have been charged with.
Let us reflect on what we do today in the name of all sorts of apologetic stances in Islam where we are willing to bend over backwards, water down the message, allow all sorts of innovations into it and do anything but speak clearly and directly. Just ask yourself, ‘If the Prophet (ﷺ) were alive today and took the stance he took in Makkah, how many of us would be willing to stand by him? Today we are even afraid to follow his Sunnah and to be recognized as his followers. What a shame! May Allah help us.

A flag is after all, only a piece of cloth and if it is washed and is drying on a clothesline it has no special status. But when that same piece of cloth is raised on the flag pole and is unfurled and flaps in the breeze, people salute it. The flag has not changed its nature, but it has now differentiated on the basis of its nature. As long as it was one of the clothes on the line, it had no status. But once it stands out alone, clearly visible, a symbol of the identity of the state that it represents, it acquires respect and honor and is saluted.
For people to follow the leader, his identity, the goal he is leading towards and what the followers will gain as a result of following him, must all be clear, unambiguous and inspiring. A flag is a symbol but only when it is flying high.
When those who oppose Islam see that they can’t stop the Da’aee from preaching, they try to force him to water down the message to make it more ‘palatable’ to those who have the disease of hypocrisy in their hearts. People who have no intention of subjugating their desires to the orders of Allah but who don’t mind pretending piety and agreeing to support the Messenger as long as he is willing to change or alter the message to suit their lifestyles and desires. This attitude of Fatwa shopping is visible today in the Muslims themselves where they go in search of those who are willing to twist the rules of the religion to permit them to indulge in their false desires. Such ‘Ulama’ are appreciated and rewarded. But those who have the integrity to admonish them and to speak the truth and forbid evil are maligned, persecuted and oppressed."

The politician concluede, "O young man, it is easy to torture a man who can't defend himself, and it is easy to kill a man, who is helpless. Yo can kill a dreamer, but can't kill his dream, and you can kill a man, but can't kill an idea. So, it is critical for the leader not to be seduced with the promise of followership and never to change, dilute or modify the message to suit anyone in the desire to get converts. The message distinguishes the leader. If he compromises that message then he has lost everything.
This is the biggest argument in favor of differentiation and against assimilation and losing one’s identity that I can place before you. Someone who does not have the confidence to differentiate and is content with being one sheep in a flock is completely unfit to be a leader. For people to follow the leader, his identity, what he stands for, the goal he is leading towards and what the followers will gain as a result of following him, must all be clear, unambiguous and inspiring. Being a leader means to take hard decisions and getting used to being lonely sometimes. Sheep has many friends, but is easily torn to pieces by a tiger who walks alone."

"Say, 'This is my way; I invite to Allah with insight, I and those who follow me. And exalted is Allah ; and I am not of those who associate others with Him'." - [QS.12:108]

Bahasa

References :
- Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, IIFSO
- Mirza Yawar Baig, Leadership Lesson from the Life of Rasoolullah (ﷺ), Standard Bearer Academy.

Lesson from the Seerah : Courage and Resilience

The politician continued, "One of things that distinguished the Prophet (ﷺ) was his willingness to put himself on the line. At no point did he send others out to do what he was himself not willing to do. The logical position of the Standard Bearer is in the frontline, ahead of everyone else where he is clearly visible so that others can rally to his standard. This naturally puts the leader in the line of fire but the willingness to accept this responsibility is a sign of leadership and inspires respect, love and loyalty.
There are innumerable stories from his Seerah where he was out ahead, facing any potential danger even before others were aware of its presence. At no point in his life did he put any of his companions in the way of danger or hide behind them. His travel to At-Ta’aif is a good example where he personally took the risks instead of sending someone else. On another occasion in the battle of Hunain against the Hawaazim, when the Muslims broke ranks and retreated in confusion when they were suddenly ambushed, Abu Sufyan bin Harb, radhiyallahu 'anhu, saw the rout and said, ‘Only the sea can stop them now,’ meaning that they will not stop until they reach the shore of the Red Sea many miles away. Yet in that confusion and situation of chaos, the Prophet (ﷺ) forged ahead, refusing to show his back to the enemy. His companions tried to restrain him by pulling on the reins of his mule but he continued ahead.
He saw Abdullah bin Mas’ud, radhiyallahu 'anhu, and ordered him to call Al-Ansaar and among them the Banu Najjar who were his special troops. And they came to him and surrounded him. In the end, it was just a little over 100 men who stood with the Prophet (ﷺ) in the field and turned back the tide of Al-Hawaazim and won the day. Allah helped them and it is these few men that He spoke of when he said that He sent tranquility on them and helped them with troops that they could not see. Such was the courage of the Prophet (ﷺ) that nobody could equal it.

Another example is his treatment of Abdullah bin Abi Sarh who was one of 7 people condemned to death for blasphemy and causing harm to Islam and to the person of the Prophet (ﷺ) himself. The Prophet (ﷺ) passed sentence on them and said that they were to be killed even if they were found hanging from the covering of the Ka’aba. Abdullah bin Abi Sarh took refuge with Othman ibn Affan, radhiyallahu 'anhu, who was his brother because of breast feeding. Othman took him to the Prophet (ﷺ). Abdullah bin Abi Sarh said, ‘I came to give you Bai’ah.’ The Prophet (ﷺ) did not respond. Abdullah bin Abi Sarh repeated his request twice. The Prophet (ﷺ) kept silent. When he said this for the third time, the Prophet (ﷺ) accepted his Bai’ah and he became Muslim. When he left the Prophet (ﷺ) said to the men around him, ‘Was there nobody among you who was wise enough to get up and kill him when you saw that I was silent?’ The Ansaar said, ‘O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) if you had only made a signal we would have killed him.’ The Prophet (ﷺ) said, ‘Prophets do not kill by giving signals.’ Abdullah bin Abi Sarh became a good Muslim and held some high positions of authority during the Khilaafa of Omar ibn Al Khattab and Othman ibn Affan, radhiyallahu 'anhum, and died in sujood in Salat-ul-Fajr.
In this incident, the Prophet (ﷺ) demonstrated his commitment to truth and trustworthiness where even for his worst enemy he would not do anything in a clandestine manner.

When he was not successful in Makkah, the Prohet (ﷺ) decided to go to At-Ta’aif, which was the home of Banu Thaqeef which was the other big tribe in Al-Hijaz in the hope that they would be more receptive to his message. Banu Thaqeef were honored as one of the most important tribes of the Arabs, as the Quraysh were honored and they also had a temple of a goddess in their town.
They proved to be worse. He presented the message to the leaders of the tribe of Banu Thaqeef. But such is the working of Shaytaan when Islam is presented that they responded in ways that broke their own traditions and etiquette and shamed themselves for posterity in the annals of the history of Banu Thaqeef and the Arabs. The Arabs were famous for their code of honor of honoring the guest. There are many famous stories in the history of the Arabs about people, especially tribal chiefs who literally impoverished themselves in their commitment to honoring their guests. The Prophet (ﷺ) was not a stranger but a wellknown person from the nobility of Quraysh and most deserving of their courtesy and hospitality even if they did not want to agree with his message.

The Prophet (ﷺ) went to At-Ta’aif with Zayd bin Haritha, radhiyallahu 'anhu, as his companion and attempted to present the message of Islam to the three brothers who were the leaders of Banu Thaqeef. As I have mentioned hospitality and generosity towards the guest was a time honored code among all tribal societies, especially so among the Arabs. It must have been in the mind of the Prophet (ﷺ) that given this tradition and his own status, the chiefs of Banu Thaqeef would at least give him a hearing. But to his utter astonishment, instead of greeting him with the civility that was his right as a guest and as he was a member of the aristocracy of the Quraysh, the Banu Hashim, they violated every rule of honoring the guest and treated him shamefully dishonoring themselves and the honor of Banu Thaqeef. Their story is written in words of shame in the annals of history to the end of time and Allah decreed that when the Banu Thaqeef of At-Ta’aif eventually came to Islam, they came as conquered people, losing all their wealth to the Muslims. Allah doesn’t forgive those who trouble His Anbiya.
The Prophet (ﷺ) tried to meet the three brothers who were the chiefs of the Banu Thaqeef. Two met him but one refused. One said, ‘I will tear apart the Kiswatul Ka’aba if Allah sent you as a Prophet.’ The second said, ‘Could Allah not find anyone better than you send as a Prophet?’ The third simply refused even to meet him and said, ‘I can’t talk to you because if you are in fact the Prophet then I am not qualified to talk to you. And if you are a liar then why should I talk to you?’ In a last attempt at damage control, the Prophet (ﷺ) said to them, ‘If you can’t accept my message at least keep this conversation private.’ But they refused and instead they got their slaves and others to revile the Prophet (ﷺ) and to throw rocks at them and drive them out of the city. Zaid bin Haritha tried to shield the Prophet (ﷺ) as best he could. But with people throwing rocks from all sides, both of them were wounded. The Prophet (ﷺ) bled from the wounds he received until his shoes stuck to his feet. It is tragic that people attack those who only want to help them.

Imagine the scene, when an aristocrat from the Quraysh, the best man who walked the earth, is reviled, abused and beaten only because he brought the message that there is nobody worthy of worship except Allah.
Remember that the Creator of the heavens and the earth was watching all this. Yet He allowed it to happen in order that the commitment of His Messenger (ﷺ) became clear to all of mankind to the end of time. It was His intention that this Messenger (ﷺ) was to be the last of them and that the message would henceforth be transmitted by his followers. And so it was necessary to establish a model of commitment which would be a shining beacon of guidance to anyone who faced any difficulty with respect to taking the message of Islam to an uncaring world. Nobody who studies the life of the Prophet (ﷺ) can say that for him it is more difficult than it was for the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ).
That is the reason why the One who created everything and in Whose Hand is the control of everything, did nothing to stop a single stone from hitting His Nabi but became Himself the witness in favor of His Nabi that he didn’t leave any stone unturned in his effort to take the message of Islam forward.

Eventually the Prophet (ﷺ) and Zaid bin Haritha took refuge in a farm, which belonged to two people of Makkah. They saw the Prophet’s (ﷺ) condition and sent their slave Addas (who was a Christian) with some grapes and water for him. Even though they were his enemies, they decided to help him in honor of the tradition of hospitality of the Arabs. When Addas gave the grapes to the Prophet (ﷺ), he picked one up and said, ‘Bismillah.’
Addas said, ‘The people of this land don’t speak these words.’ The Prophet (ﷺ) asked him, ‘Where are you from and what is your religion?’ Addas said, ‘I am a Christian from Nineveh in Iraq.’ The Prophet (ﷺ) said, ‘So you are from the land of the pious man Yunus ibn Matta, Nabi of Allah.’ Addas said, ‘How do you know about Yunus?’ The Prophet (ﷺ) said, ‘He is my brother as he was a Prophet and I am a Prophet.’ Allah guides those who are sincere to the truth; so Addas bent down and kissed the feet of the Prophet (ﷺ) and his hands and his head. His masters looked at what was happening and said, ‘See how he corrupts everyone? Now our slave has also gone into his religion.’
When Addas returned to his masters, they asked him why he’d kissed the hands and head of the Prophet (ﷺ)? Addas said, ‘There is nobody in all the land who is finer than him. He told me something that nobody but a Prophet could have told me.’ They said to him, ‘Don’t let him make you leave your religion because your religion is better than his.’ The amazing thing in this conversation is that the people advising Addas to remain Christian were themselves idolaters who knew nothing about Christianity. Yet they didn’t want him to accept Islam. Enmity is a strange disease which blinds those afflicted by it to all good, just because it comes from the one they hate.

Imagine the situation of the Prophet (ﷺ). He had failed in his attempt to present Islam to the people in Ta’aif. He already had very little success with the people in Makkah. What must have been his feelings at that time which was the worst of all failures because he had been personally abused and assaulted? He fell in Sajda and made a dua that has become famous in the Seerah.

“O Allah! I complain to You of my weakness, my scarcity of resources and the humiliation I have been subjected to by the people. O Most Merciful of those who are merciful. O Rabb of the weak and my Rabb too. To whom have you entrusted me? To a distant person who receives me with hostility? Or to an enemy to whom you have granted authority over my affair? So long as You are not angry with me, I do not care. Your favor is expansive relief to me. I seek refuge in the light of Your Face by which all darkness is dispelled and every affair of this world and the next is set right, lest Your anger or Your displeasure descends upon me. I desire Your pleasure and satisfaction until You are pleased.
There is no power and no might except by You.”

Allah heard the dua of His Nabi (ﷺ) and sent Jibreel, alayhissalam. Jibreel came with another angel. Jibreel said to the Prophet (ﷺ), ‘Your Rabb has heard your dua and has ordered me to bring this angel and put him in your control. Order him and he will obey.’ The angel said, ‘O Allah's Messenger. I am the angel of the mountains. Your Rabb ordered me to place myself at your command. Order me and I will bring together the two mountains on either side of the valley of Ta’aif and all those who tormented you will be wiped out.’
The Prophet (ﷺ) said to him, ‘Allah didn’t send me to kill people. Allah sent me to guide people to that which is pleasing to Him. It is my hope from my Rabb that even if these people don’t accept my message today, their descendants will accept it one day.’ Such was the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) whose kindness and mercy is an example for all time.

There are many lessons for us in this story apart from the major lesson about commitment. But one of the lessons we learn is about the devotion of the Sahaba towards the Prophet (ﷺ). Zaid bin Haritha shielded the Prophet (ﷺ) by his own body. He took the rocks meant for the Prophet (ﷺ) on himself. Other Sahaba did the same in Badr and Uhud where they protected him from arrows. Abu Talha Al Ansari, radhiyallahu 'anhu, took so many arrows on his right arm that his arm bristled with them and those who saw him marveled at how he continued to stand as a human shield for the Prophet (ﷺ).
Today, to protect his Sunnah is equal to protecting the blessed body and person of the Prophet (ﷺ). Abu Muslim Al-Qawlaani, rahimahullah, said, ‘Do the Sahaaba think that we are going to let them have the Prophet (ﷺ) to themselves? No, we will compete with them for the Baraka of the Prophet (ﷺ) and take our share of him.’ Today when we protect the Sunnah by practicing it, defending the honor of the Prophet (ﷺ) and speaking out against those who seek to revile him, what we do may not be as great as what Zaid or Abu Talha did but Allah will be pleased with us if we support His Messenger and his Sunnah and will reward us in keeping with His Own Majesty and Grace. Similarly leaving the Sunnah or attacking it or denying the importance of Ahadith, is tantamount to attacking the person and body of the Prophet (ﷺ) like the people of Ta’aif did. It is our choice who we want to be clubbed with – the Sahaba or the Kuffar and Munafiqeen; with the people of Jannah or People of An-Naar.

What stands out so clearly in this dua is how the Prophet (ﷺ) speaks of his own weakness and lack of influence. He does not curse those who rejected, insulted and tormented him. He does not call down on their collective heads, the wrath of Allah for refusing to accept his message. He faces his own weakness and asks Allah to give him strength. He says to Allah that as long as He is pleased with him, he does not care about the opinion of the world. And if He is not pleased, then the Prophet (ﷺ) will do everything in his power to continue to work until He is pleased.
Being goal focused when you are being applauded for it is easy. Being goal focused when you are being criticized for it and when you have no apparent support is very difficult. Especially when this criticism may take nasty forms of physical or psychological abuse. To continue to remain on your chosen path and to face your own failure to convince people; yet have no doubts about your eventual success is the test of the leader. In the dark of the night, when the darkness within the soul is more opaque than the darkness outside, when a man stands alone without any visible support, that is when he realizes that the real support for the mission has to come from within. And that comes with a connection to Allah, where he feels completely comfortable with taking his troubles to the only One who can solve them.

For the Prophet (ﷺ), At-Ta’aif was not intimidation or losing hope in his mission but a renewing of resolve and a strengthening of the spirit. After the incident of At-Ta’aif the situation deteriorated steadily. The two major sources of support that he had in the persons of his uncle, Abu Talib and his beloved wife, Sayyida Khadija, radhiyallahu 'anha, both died within a short time of each other. The threat to his mission, his followers and to his own life got more and more severe and eventually he had to leave his beloved Makkah, the place of his birth and ancestors. But through all this what comes out most clearly is the fact that he did not let up his effort for his message even momentarily. He continued to work ceaselessly to take his message of the Oneness of Allah to anyone who would listen to him and even to those who refused to listen. He did not lessen his effort nor did he lose hope.
This dua is a landmark for anyone who wishes to learn the right conduct for the one who wishes to lead. Despite his suffering, he did not curse those who persecuted him. Instead he recommitted to his covenant and declared that he would continue to brave all difficulties and strive until he satisfied Allah that he had completed his task. It is this commitment which continues undiminished irrespective of the opposition or difficulty that is the hallmark of the exceptional leader. On the contrary difficulty seems to only make the commitment even more keen and strong.
Opposition is not proof that you are wrong but that you are right for only then are you opposed. The blow that doesn't break your back only strengthens you.

For a leader physical and moral courage is a major requirement. As they say, ‘People don’t follow titles, they follow courage.’ Today, one may not need to take one’s life into one’s hands but the willingness to stand up for what one believes in or in support of one’s followers at personal risk to oneself are amazingly powerful tools to build loyalty and to demonstrate your own commitment to the goal. Many of these situations can’t be contrived. It is therefore essential that the leader has the courage of his convictions as an inherent trait so that when the challenge always from the front and that is sometimes a dangerous place. But it is good to remember that there is no such thing as a cowardly leader.
People listen with their eyes. They don’t care what you say until they see what you do. They watch what you do more than they listen to what you say. If they see you doing something different from what you told them, then they will believe and follow your actions and not your words. In the process your own credibility gets seriously compromised. Credibility falls through the gap between talk and walk.
The prophet (ﷺ) was always conscious of this and demonstrated his message by living it. That is why when someone asked Ummul Mu'mineen, Sayyida Ayesha, radhiallahu 'anha, about the life of the Prophet (ﷺ)m she replied, ‘Don’t you read the Qur’an?’ She meant that his life was the manifestation of the Qur’an in action.
Resilience consists of two apparently paradoxical positions: facing the facts about the failure without any attempt at disguising the reality; simultaneously having absolute faith in eventual success even when you can’t see any signs that your work is succeeding."

The the politician said, "O young man, I want to emphasize the importance of studying the Seerah which we seem to have totally neglected. The Seerah is the living Tafseer of the Qur’an. It is the methodology of implementing what Allah ordered. If we don’t want to look there for guidance of how to follow Allah’s orders, where else do we want to look? But sadly even in our religious schools, Seerah is not taught as an independent subject. Students learn about the life of the Prophet (ﷺ) from the study of Hadith and from the circumstances of revelation (Asbaab-un-Nuzool) of the Qur’an when they study Tafseer. This is not adequate by a long shot. It is essential to study the Seerah of the Prophet (ﷺ) because Allah told us that his life is the best example for us to follow but we don’t consider it necessary to study that blessed life. Now how logical is that? And Allah know best."

"Indeed, the Qur'an is a decisive statement, and it is not amusement. Indeed, they are planning a plan, but I am planning a plan. So allow time for the disbelievers. Leave them awhile." - [QS.86:13-17]

Bahasa

References :
- Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Fiqh-us-Seerah, IIFSO
- Mirza Yawar Baig, Leadership Lesson from the Life of Rasoolullah (ﷺ), Standard Bearer Academy.