ISLAMIC UNITY

This time of day, this khutbah, of every week has to be known for its taqwa character. The Imam or speaker is supposed to remind the Muslims, (and) listeners of Allah's ever vigilant power presence in everyone's life at every moment. As this is the character of this time or slot every week, we, (Muslims), remind ourselves of Allah's corrective power presence in our lives. Allah says to all of us- Muslims- with the "fine lines" among us

And hold firm to Allah's binding matter all of you- no exceptions- and be not divided... (Surah Ahl Imran verse 103)

This ayah in Surat Aal Imran is famous or is commonly quoted here, there and everywhere.

...and bare in mind Allah's provision, favor and privilege upon you when you (who are now Committed Muslims), were once enemies of each other and then He reconciled your hearts and familiarized and acquainted you with each other and then, due to this provision, favor and privilege you became brethren of each other...

(Surah Aal Imran verse 103)

This ayah is very clear in it's meaning, direction and objective. Now, we come to some of the issues that other Muslims run away from and we approach this issue with Allah ever present in our mind and in our hearts. (This is the area that the trouble makers have been chopping away at), we, (Muslims), of today, come we find that there are some Muslims who say that they are "Sunnis" and are other Muslims who say that they are "Shi'is". Brothers and sisters- sometimes people like to understand what they like to understand regardless of what's being said. We are saying some Muslims who are/consider themselves "Sunnis" and equally some Muslims who are/consider themselves "Shi'is" come (and) among themselves, (let us take the "Shi'is" 1^st...) they'll probably not express this publicly or not want to express this to some friends of theirs who are "Sunnis" but away from that, they (this is the average person), will express some harsh and sometimes some foul language concerning those who were in the company of Allah's Prophet. We don't know exactly how long this has been going on for, but our sense of history, (that if it is in any sense correct), would have it in the hundreds of years that this has been going on. Now, we, (Muslims altogether, "Sunnis and Shi'is") have a problem- why? Because some people don't express whop they really are! If you can't express what you believe concerning some of the people who are around the Prophet freely, comfortably and without emotions and a grudge of some sort, then you're going to have to come to terms with yourself! We're sure- all other Muslims, (Whether they're "Sunnis or Shi'is") in their Islamic mind are willing to help you. We can begin and throw the seeds out there in helping these types of individuals or people.

Allah says, (this is the reference of all Muslims, regardless of what madhab, persuasion, school of thought or denomination they like to be called- the words of Allah are prime and come before anything and everything else), for all of us to listen, understand and then to behave- not with two personalities, but with one personality

Muhammed is the Messenger of Allah and those who are with him have a strong position against the kuffaar and a gentle position towards themselves..

.(Surah Al Fath verse 29)

OK- some person has some problem concerning those who were in the company of Allah's Prophet. These are plain and easy words- it's not difficult to understand- is there anything missing in your mind, (you the Muslim), who has some foul language concerning those who were with the Prophet of Allah? This doesn't mean that everyone who professed Islam in the time of the Prophet was with the Prophet. This is the grey area that we, (Muslims), bounce in and out of with our emotions, not thinking or being guided by Allah and His Prophet. There were Munafiqeen who were living during the time of the Prophet- who say that these are with the Messenger of Allah?! So let us be careful with what we are saying and how we say what we say. Besides, (we say this especially to those who think of themselves as "Shi'is"), we remind you that on the way to the battle at Siffin, (this is prime history for you), this was largely characterized as a battle between the people of Iraq and the people of Shaam in general terms in the books of history. There were some people in the camp and company of Imam Ali (radi Allahu anhu) who were saying bad words about these Muslims who they were going to encounter, fight and do war with very soon- they were speaking the same types of words that we hear today among the same category of people, but with a difference. It's a difference if you are saying harsh words against a governor at that time, viz. Muawiyah who was doing all he could do to gain power and de-legitimize Ali (but), still, listen to what Ali said to these people but look at the difference. They were not speaking ill about those who were in the company of the Prophet, they were speaking ill and using words that we cannot use in the khutbah against those who were in the company of Allah's Prophet and sincerely in his company. We're going to quote for you the words of Ali, and for those of you who have doubts, you refer yourselves to Nahaj Al Balagha. These are his words to these people who were using this type of divisive and sometimes hateful language- (people who use foul language and curse and cuss others). I dislike for you to be damning people. If only you were to describe what they do and mention their condition that would have been a more accurate statement and it would have served the purpose of rationality and instead of you using, saying or vocalizing this cursing, cussing, damning, defaming and blaspheming language say O Allah save our blood and their blood and reconcile what is between us and what is between them, i.e. have this difference that we have among us reconciled; and guide them out of their waywardness so that he who is ignorant of the truth and the fact will become familiar and knowledgeable of it and he will be withheld from transgression and aggression. These are obviously words that are said by an Imam that is recognized as an Imam by all Muslims- if you're a Shi'i you say "Imam Ali"; if you're a Sunni you say "Al Imam Ali"; and if for some reason you're a new-comer to Islam (and) you don't know this, the only thing you have to do is review the Islamic literature in all the Islamic sources and you'll find that this is the common title of this person- this is what he's saying to these people who are using this type of language (and) presenting a type of attitude and mentality that does not fit into the Islamic character. These sharp words do not serve to bring the Muslims together, they serve to separate the Muslims from each other. Those of you who also think/consider/ or say that you are Shi'is- because this attitude, these words and this type of language existed at that time as it exists today- when Imam Jafar As Sadique heard these types of people speaking and saying what they were saying concerning those who were in the company of Allah's Prophet, he said to them withhold your tongues from those individuals that you are bad mouthing. He also said Abu Bakr gave birth to me twice- that is in reference to Imam Jafar's parentage that come down through the blood-line of Abu Bakr (radi Allahu anhu). Besides, when Talha, Zubair and Umar (radi Allahu anhum) died, Al Imam Ali eulogized them. OK- some of you say "brother, you're using some words we're not familiar with, i.e. he paid homage to them and said words in their funeral that praised them. He wasn't a la'aan or a sabbab! He disagreed with them either mildly or all the way to the war-fronts. He disagreed with Umar in a mild manner and he disagreed with Talha and Zubair in a military manner, but he never said bad words to them. Do you hear that?! If you have any authority, reference or source for what you are saying- we are open minded and open hearted; with open arms we welcome the information which you have which we don't have. We've never been fanatic about these issues and with Allah's help we never will become fanatic about these issues.

Another demonstration of what we are saying... The time or day that is considered one of the most critical days if not the most important day in what has become know as the divergence in Al Khilafah and Al Imamah was the day the Prophet passed away. It's called in our common history yawm As Saqifah. Once again, (for the "doubting Thomas', as it were and for those people who have so much tradition in their heads that they don't have the correct information where it belongs), we want to quote for you, (you can also go back to Nahaj Al Balagha and look it up for yourself), how Ali described that day and the sensitive moments in that day- an issue that some Muslims want to divide and break away from other Muslims because of. After you listen to what Al Imam said, you're not going to have grounds to divide and split from other Muslims. These are his words, (sometimes we run into translation problems- we thank Allah that you don't run into translation problems here), the only thing that overcame, surprised, overwhelmed or intimidated me was the streaming thing towards Abi Bakr giving him the bai'ah. I (literally) withheld my hands, (but contextually it means) I checked myself until I saw this wave of people contracting away or stepping away from Islam, (this is in reference to what is known in Islamic history in a couple of years after this day that we are speaking about as hurub ar ridda). They were doing what? These people, the Arabians, who had become Muslims in their majority had, (early on, at that time), expressed their national or asabiyyah character and now they wanted to break away from Islam. What did he see? He saw two movements- he saw the movement of people streaming to give bai'ah to Abi Bakr and what followed that was he saw the movement of people trying to bring down the deen of the Prophet. I was apprehensive or sort of afraid that if I was not (in this context and with these dynamics that he just outlined), to come to support Islam and it's folks or people that I will wind up seeing that now (literally speaking), there is a hole in Islam or an Islam that is destroyed. And now, I would wind up with a larger and more significant catastrophe or problem. (Do you see), when you read, listen and understand this position- he wasn't breaking away from Muslims or using bad words like some people do today! Why? Because he wasn't reacting; people today who break away from other Muslims or who use foul language are weak, they are reacting to the circumstances that they are in and they are proving that they are closer to this world than they are to Allah and His Prophet- that's all they are doing. If they had the confidence, moral strength and accurate information, they wouldn't be bouncing like we watch them doing. These are his words, if I were not to partake, now, in the established order- the khilafah of Abi Bakr, the khilafah of Umar and the khilafah of Uthman (radi Allahu anhum), and do my duty with these facts around, then this wilayah that (we're obviously paraphrasing), I qualify more for than the others, the damage in me concentrating on my wilayah by being apart from the rest of the Muslims will bring about more damage than anything else. The wilayah which he calls, (we have to remind those who are going to have trouble with what we are quoting him as saying- these are not my words or someone else's words, but for those of the listeners who are going to have problems and trouble with this, refer yourselves to Nahaj Al Balagha, open the pages and read them with your mind; set your emotions aside a little), this wilayah is just a matter of an enjoyable few days, if that, it will drift away just like a phantom in the desert disappears or just like a cloud in the sky moves on, so I took a position within the event of these times until this structure of falsehood was moved away- Now, there's no longer the immediate danger that was there during the time of this potential early civil war in Islam, the 1^st manifestations of which was this hurub ar ridda- and this deen of Allah has now settled in a somewhat comfortable manner. Compare these words and behavior with some of today's weaklings- what can we say- people who use bad words and blaspheme Aba Bakr, Umar and Uthman when Ali who lived during that time did no such thing are weak; there's nothing whatsoever that we no of that is reliable that tells us that he used the language that's being used today or that he broke away from the rest of the Muslims the same way some people today break away from the rest of the Muslims. (He did) none of that at all- he was in the middle of it and he wasn't reacting, he was doing his God-given duty and knowing what we know, he probably could not feel comfortable with the people of today who say that "they are his followers, supporters and partisans" by looking and watching them do what they do. They need the help of the rest of the Muslims; we need each other. When you understand who you are, then you'll understand that we need the other complimentary Muslim- Sunni or Shi'i, it doesn't matter- you are in need of the other Muslim. 

Then, there's the issue of ad dhilah - this is one other disturbing detail in our Islamic history. In some history books- to be frank about it, in those history books that are in the Shi'i writing of history- they say that Umar came to Fatimah (radi Allahu anha) and physically abused her- he hit her to the extent that one of her ribs was broken; not only that, some narratives go on to say that she died because Umar broke her rib. A closer scrutiny of this literature- when you read this history a little more, it will tell you that Ali was in this room in which Umar was, (literally), physically hitting Fatimah; the daughter of Allah's Prophet and the wife of Ali- what was he doing? Watching this?! Ali is known by all Muslims as Asad Allah; the lion of Allah, who in the course of every day in his life protected the Prophet of Allah and the family of the Prophet of Allah, but now, when this is happening in front of his own eyes he does nothing?! Something is wrong with this type of literature! He becomes a wimp! (When), you read this history, you think that at that moment, Ali has become a wimp and some people believe this! This is a problem- we can argue for believing or not believing it or we can argue against the divisive behavior that comes from this. Let's reverse this- sometimes, some people don't have what it takes. Some of the people who were in the company of Allah may have been correct on many issues and wrong on some issues- to come and evaluate them in a methodical and mental is way is one thing, (there's nothing wrong with that; actually that should be the responsibility of all of us), but to present yourself as a powerhouse of emotions and then destroy every logic on the way to your emotional climax and you demean these people... It may climax in some persons mind that Ali was in a serious difference with Umar- this is in all books, (Sunni and Shi'i), of Islamic history; how do you explain to us that when the Islamic Jihad was at it's peak in the time of Umar against the Persians, (those of you who come from a Persian background, don't feel offended- the fact of the matter is that they were not Muslims before Islam; the same way the Romans, Egyptians, Turks and Palestinians were not Muslims before Islam- but there was a war-front between the Muslims and the Persians at once time and it was during the time of Umar that he felt that he was going to go personally to the was front and fight, (as we said, this is an issue that is in all of these history books.) He goes to Ali and he consults him i.e. what is you opinion? I want to go and fight at the war fronts. Ali tells him No, I advise against it. Shift that into the types of divisive, separatist and isolationist type of attitudes that prevail! So when we say be on your guard against Allah's corrective punishment in relation to Rasulillah, the family of Rasulillah and the company of Rasulillah- we say this not as a blanket statement, we say this with the refinement of Allah's words and the Prophet's model.

To some people, speaking about the defining era in our early Islamic history may sound like an academic exercise- but it is not. This is a matter of trying to bring home to you that we are going to have to close ranks and when we do, we will do so as enlightened Muslims. You can be a Shi'i or a Sunni to your hearts content- but you have to be an enlightened Shi'i or Sunni- and, an enlightened Muslim, (whether he is a Sunni or Shi'i), he always has his hand extended to a brother however he may think of these events. (As for) those people who put their hands in their pocket and fail to extend it to the other Muslim, they have broken away from Allah, His Prophet and the school of thought they think they belong to! This is the tragedy out of which today's wars are made and they are banking on this break-away attitude among the Muslims to continue their war-like policies and grand strategies. We can see Iraq- it's a bloody and a current demonstration to what we say, and we can only look to the surrounding areas, countries and nation-states that are potentially or about to go up in fire and smoke because we have left these gaps and cleavages among us. When someone comes to speak about Muslims coming together, they do that because they were given instructions from some governments (that, "now is the time to speak about Islamic solidarity." They don't listen to Allah and His Prophet, they listen to governments, departments, money and finances- when it's profitable to accuse the other Muslim of kufr, they will do it; and they will quote the Qur'an and the Prophet, and when it is profitable to say that the other Muslim is a Muslim, they will do it, and they will also quote the Qur'an and the Prophet! We've had enough years to expose these types and prove who they really are- is there anyone left who cannot see those who speak the truth because they are the subjects of Allah and followers of the Prophet and those who are seasonal? If in this season they have to say something- they will, regardless of what Allah and His Prophet say! Haven't we had enough experience and years to learn who those who speak the truth for Allah are, and those who speak the truth for At Taghut are?!

http://www.yanabi.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=59&threadid=42834

Audio on http://almusawwir.org/2007/12/29/learning-from-history/ (18-04-2008)