Obedience and unity are the keys for a strong Ummah
The Prophet ﷺ warned us in the well known hadith to stay far away from seven destructive sins, which he called al mubiqaat, meaning sins that are ruinous and fatal, the kind that can flip a person’s life and destroy them in this world and the next.
The seven destructive sins (al mubiqaat)
«الشِّرْكُ بِاللهِ، وَالسِّحْرُ، وَقَتْلُ النَّفْسِ الَّتِي حَرَّمَ اللهُ إِلَّا بِالْحَقِّ، وَأَكْلُ الرِّبَا، وَأَكْلُ مَالِ الْيَتِيمِ، وَالتَّوَلِّي يَوْمَ الزَّحْفِ، وَقَذْفُ الْمُحْصَنَاتِ الْغَافِلَاتِ الْمُؤْمِنَاتِ».
(متفق عليه, رواه البخاري ومسلم)
Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said:
Avoid the seven destructive sins
It was said: O Messenger of God, what are they? He said:
Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said:
“Avoid the seven destructive sins.”
They said: “O Messenger of Allah, what are they?”
He said:
“Associating partners with Allah, sorcery, killing a soul which Allah has forbidden except by right, consuming usury, consuming the wealth of an orphan, turning one’s back on the day of battle, and slandering chaste, innocent, believing women.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
The Prophet ﷺ first commanded the believers to avoid these sins without naming them. This is part of his beautiful teaching style. He wanted to pull the listeners in, wake up their hearts, and make them fully alert. Naturally, the Companions asked what they were, because you cannot avoid something properly unless you know it clearly.
The most severe major sins (akbar al kabair)
Although Islam warns against many sins, these seven sit at the very top, akbar al kabair, the most severe of the major sins. Many scholars later expanded the discussion of major sins. Imam Dhahabi wrote Al Kabair, and Ibn Hajar al Haytami gathered an even larger number, but the Prophet ﷺ mentioned these seven because they are foundational, and many other prohibitions branch out from them.
Shirk is listed first because it destroys the purpose of life and wipes out the reward of deeds in the akhirah. You are rewarded in this world for all the good you do if you are not a believer. However not in the akhirah. Allah’s law applies to everyone. No one is above it, not even the Prophet’s ﷺ own family. That is why the believer must take this seriously. Faith is not inherited, it is lived.
Then the Prophet ﷺ mentioned black magic. This is destructive because it corrupts belief and causes harm. He mentioned riba and the consuming of an orphan’s wealth. These are not small financial mistakes, they are oppression and betrayal of the weak. Consuming the wealth of the orphan is like swallowing fire, because it is taking advantage of someone who has no protector.
Then the Prophet ﷺ mentioned the sin that we are focusing on here, turning one’s back on the day of battle, fleeing when you are meant to hold the line.
The Quranic warning against turning back
Allah commands the believers clearly in the Quran:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا لَقِيتُمُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا زَحْفًا فَلَا تُوَلُّوهُمُ الْأَدْبَارَ
“O you who believe, when you encounter those who disbelieve advancing in battle, do not turn your backs to them.”
(Surat Anfal, 8:15)
This is not merely a military instruction. It is a lesson in loyalty, discipline, and responsibility. When someone abandons their position at the moment of confrontation, they do not only harm themselves, they open a breach in the ranks and expose the entire community to danger.
Commands and prohibitions in Islam
The Prophet ﷺ taught a comprehensive rule that shapes how we live our religion:
عن أبي هريرة رضي الله عنه قال: قال رسول الله ﷺ:
«مَا نَهَيْتُكُمْ عَنْهُ فَاجْتَنِبُوهُ، وَمَا أَمَرْتُكُمْ بِهِ فَأْتُوا مِنْهُ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ»
(متفق عليه, رواه البخاري ومسلم)
“What I have forbidden you, avoid it, and what I have commanded you, do of it as much as you are able.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
This gives us a powerful principle. Commands are tied to ability, whereas prohibitions must be avoided completely. So when Allah forbids something, we do not treat it lightly, especially when it involves harming others, abandoning others, or weakening the believers.
The prohibition of fleeing and the fiqh exception
This is why the scholars mention the chapter heading:
باب تحريم الفرار من الزحف إذا لم يَزِد العدوُّ على ضِعف المسلمين إلا المتحيز إلى فئة وإن بعدت
The prohibition of fleeing from the battlefield when the enemy does not exceed twice the number of the Muslims, except for one who withdraws strategically to join another group, even if it is far away.
Islam does not call people to recklessness. It recognises strategy and necessity, but it forbids cowardice and betrayal disguised as self preservation.
Steadfastness against shaytan
This concept is not limited to the battlefield. On a daily basis, we are battling shaytan. Every day there is pressure, fear, temptation, doubts, distractions, and laziness. The believer is commanded to stay firm, not to collapse when it becomes difficult. That is why the Prophet ﷺ described these sins as destructive. They do not only affect one moment, they can destroy a person’s direction entirely.
Why Islam builds community
This also explains why Islam repeatedly gathers us and unites us. We pray together, so when serious issues arise, we can face them as one body. Congregational prayer, Jummuah, Eid, and janazas are not random rituals. They bring hearts and bodies together. They create bonds, trust, and warmth. They train us to rely on one another and protect one another. We are strong as a group and weak when we isolate ourselves.
Allah already gave this Ummah the foundations for unity.
Allah’s love for a united structure
Allah gives us the picture of what a strong Ummah looks like:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ الَّذِينَ يُقَاتِلُونَ فِي سَبِيلِهِ صَفًّا كَأَنَّهُمْ بُنْيَانٌ مَرْصُوصٌ
“Indeed, Allah loves those who fight in His cause in ranks, as though they are a solid, firmly joined structure.”
(Surat al-Saff 61:4)
This is the type of community Allah wants, a community that is united, coordinated, and robust against corruption and tyranny. Because if we do not stand together, we will be eaten up. We will be picked off one by one.
When goodness and truth are not defended collectively, it does not stay the same. Falsehood spreads, quietly and steadily, like a virus, until the whole body becomes sick.
Allah’s help comes with unity
That is why the believer must value the community. When you are together upon truth, Allah supports you. Allah’s help descends when people help one another and stand for what is right.
This is why the Prophet ﷺ built unity immediately when he arrived in Madinah. He formed alliances and bonds, because an Ummah is not built by speeches alone. It is built by structure, loyalty, responsibility, and collective strength.
روى الإمام أحمد وأبو داود عن جابر بن عبد الله وأبي طلحة بن سهل الأنصاري أنهما قالا: قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم:
“ما من امرئٍ مُسلمٍ يخذُلُ امرأً مسلمًا في موضعٍ تُنتَهكُ فيه حرمتُه، ويُنتقَصُ فيه من عِرضِه إلَّا خذله اللهُ في موطنٍ يُحِبُّ فيه نُصرتَه، وما من امرئٍ مُسلمٍ ينصُرُ مسلمًا في موضعٍ يُنتَقصُ فيه من عِرضِه، ويُنتهَكُ فيه من حُرمتِه إلَّا نصره اللهُ في موطنٍ يُحبُّ فيه نُصرتَه”.
Jabir ibn ‘Abdullah and Abu Talhah ibn Sahl al-Ansari narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“No one abandons a Muslim at a time when his sanctity is violated and his honor is attacked except that Allah will abandon him at a time when he is most in need of Allah’s support. And no one supports a Muslim at a time when his honor is attacked and his sanctity is violated except that Allah will support him at a time when he is most in need of His support.” (Imam Ahmad and Abu Dawud)
Reviving the strength of the Ummah
We need to understand how Allah made this Ummah strong, by obeying His commands and reviving His guidance. Until we return to that, unity, discipline, courage, steadfastness, and protecting one another, we will remain weak. And when we are weak, we will be eaten by wolves.
قال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم:” يدُ اللَّهِ معَ الجماعةِ ، ومَن شذَّ شذَّ إلى النَّارِ”. الترمذي.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
“The Hand of Allah is with the community, and whoever separates (from it) separates into the Fire.” (Tirmidhi)
The link back to turning one’s back on the day of battle
This is exactly why turning one’s back on the day of battle is such a major sin. It is not simply running away. It is abandoning the believers at the moment they need you most. It breaks the structure that God loves. It creates the breach through which the enemy enters.
May Allah enable us to be obedient to Him and be united. Ameen
Based on the Khutbah of Shaykh Haytham Tamim 22nd Jan 2026