What brings victory?
The importance of unity of the Ummah
In the Quran, in Surat Al Imran, Allah talks about the importance of three elements in order to secure victory: taqwa, submission and unity.
Victory does not just parachute down on you because you are a believer. It requires effort. Whether you want to success in any sphere of life, for instance your business or a project, you have to work at it. You need to fulfil all the requirements.
Unity alone does not bring victory. Nor does imaan by itself. You have to put all elements together and then you can achieve victory.
The importance of unity
Allah Almighty says, ‘Hold firm to the rope of Allah, all together’ (wa tasimu bi hablillahi jami’an), which is the revelation. Following the commands of Allah pave the way for you to gain success in both worlds – dunya and akhirah.
﴿١٠٢﴾ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ
﴿١٠٣﴾ وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا ۚ وَاذْكُرُوا نِعْمَتَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ كُنْتُمْ أَعْدَاءً فَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ فَأَصْبَحْتُمْ بِنِعْمَتِهِ إِخْوَانًا وَكُنْتُمْ عَلَىٰ شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِنَ النَّارِ فَأَنْقَذَكُمْ مِنْهَا ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ
﴿١٠٤﴾ وَلْتَكُنْ مِنْكُمْ أُمَّةٌ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى الْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنْكَرِ ۚ وَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
﴿١٠٥﴾ وَلَا تَكُونُوا كَالَّذِينَ تَفَرَّقُوا وَاخْتَلَفُوا مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا جَاءَهُمُ الْبَيِّنَاتُ ۚ وَأُولَٰئِكَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
﴿١٠٦﴾ يَوْمَ تَبْيَضُّ وُجُوهٌ وَتَسْوَدُّ وُجُوهٌ ۚ فَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ اسْوَدَّتْ وُجُوهُهُمْ أَكَفَرْتُمْ بَعْدَ إِيمَانِكُمْ فَذُوقُوا الْعَذَابَ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَكْفُرُونَ
﴿١٠٧﴾ وَأَمَّا الَّذِينَ ابْيَضَّتْ وُجُوهُهُمْ فَفِي رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ
O you who believe! Revere Allah with due reverence, and do not die except in Submission.
And hold firmly to the rope of Allah, all together, and be not divided. And remember Allah’s favour upon you; when you were enemies, and He united your hearts, and by His grace you became brethren. And you were on the brink of a fiery pit, and He saved you from it. Thus Allah clarifies his revelations to you, so you may be guided.
And let there be among you a community calling to virtue, and advocating righteousness, and deterring from evil. These are the successful.
And be not like those who became divided and disputed after the clear proofs came to them. It is they who will have a great punishment.
On the Day when faces whiten and faces blacken. As for those whose faces blacken: “Did you disbelieve after having believed?” So taste the punishment for having disbelieved.
But as for those whose faces whiten: they are in Allah’s mercy, remaining in it forever. (3:102-107)
Be connected
At the ummah level, we have to put our disagreements aside and we need a mechanism to reconcile ourselves when we differ from each other, so we can function as one body. The believer should have compassion, so that if anything affects his brother in humanity and faith, he is affected too. He feels the pain.
Al-Nu’man ibn Bashir reported that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), said:
“The parable of the believers in their affection, mercy, and compassion for each other is that of a body. When any limb aches, the whole body reacts with sleeplessness and fever.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
Do not be disconnected
When you dispute among yourselves, you weaken yourselves.
﴿٤٦﴾ وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَلَا تَنَازَعُوا فَتَفْشَلُوا وَتَذْهَبَ رِيحُكُمْ ۖ وَاصْبِرُوا ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ
And obey Allah and His Messenger, and do not dispute, lest you falter and lose your power. And be patient; Allah is with the patient. (8:46)
Allah Almighty says here be patient. We need patience to overcome our differences. Allah is truly with the patient. In order to have success and victory there are 13 elements.
13 ingredients for victory
- Unity
You need to have common ground between Muslims, and also between Muslims and non-Muslims. You need to unite groups, and communities and nations. You need alliances with non Muslims. We need to bridge the gaps between us and other communities, support causes which are in line with justice and human rights
2. Obedience
You need inward and outward. Pure heart pure intentions and pure relationship with Allah
3. Ikhlas (sincerity)
It is not enough to want victory, you need sincerity in your relationship with Allah and in your deals and alliances.
4. Sacrifice
We need to make sacrifices. Victory does not come without sacrifice. If you are not willing to sacrifice time and effort you are heading for failure.
5. Tawakkul (reliance) on Allah
Relying on Allah, not just your own efforts. You need to make the efforts, but once you have done your best, rely on Allah and move on.
6. Understand reality
Whether it is for a project or future plan, you need to know the politics, economy, alliances and networks where you operate.
7. Be articulate
You need to work hard and deliver your own narrative. Be smart and be eloquent.
8. Preparation and hard work in different fields
﴿٦٠﴾ وَأَعِدُّوا لَهُمْ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ مِنْ قُوَّةٍ وَمِنْ رِبَاطِ الْخَيْلِ تُرْهِبُونَ بِهِ عَدُوَّ اللَّهِ وَعَدُوَّكُمْ وَآخَرِينَ مِنْ دُونِهِمْ لَا تَعْلَمُونَهُمُ اللَّهُ يَعْلَمُهُمْ ۚ وَمَا تُنْفِقُوا مِنْ شَيْءٍ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ يُوَفَّ إِلَيْكُمْ وَأَنْتُمْ لَا تُظْلَمُونَ
And prepare against them whatever forces you can muster, and all the cavalry you can mobilise, to terrify thereby Allah’s enemies and your enemies, and others besides them whom you do not know, but Allah knows them. Whatever you spend in Allah’s way will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged. (8:60)
9. Patience and wisdom: do not fall into the traps of the enemies
﴿١٢٠﴾ وَإِنْ تَصْبِرُوا وَتَتَّقُوا لَا يَضُرُّكُمْ كَيْدُهُمْ شَيْئًا ۗ إِنَّ اللَّهَ بِمَا يَعْمَلُونَ مُحِيطٌ
but if something bad befalls you, they rejoice in it. But if you are patient and maintain righteousness, their schemes will not harm you in the least. Allah comprehends what they do. (3:120)
10. The ability to accommodate our differences and utilise it to serve our purpose
11. The art of prioritising
We need to know what is more important and focus on it
12. Manage conflicts
We need to understand how to resolve conflicts.
13. Have a mechanism for reconciliation.
We need to put these in place and Allah will open the way for us as long as we deal with the mans and relay on him. Then we can achieve victory. We need to do our bit. What is our duty we need to fulfil, then Allah will fulfil His promise.
﴿١٦٠﴾ إِنْ يَنْصُرْكُمُ اللَّهُ فَلَا غَالِبَ لَكُمْ ۖ وَإِنْ يَخْذُلْكُمْ فَمَنْ ذَا الَّذِي يَنْصُرُكُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ ۗ وَعَلَى اللَّهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ
If Allah supports you, there is none who can defeat you. But if He fails you, who is there to help you after Him? So in Allah, let the believers put their trust. (3:160)
We ask Allah to enable us to understand how to achieve victory. Ameen
Shaykh Haytham Tamim – Thought for the Week 21st May 2021
Shaykh Haytham Tamim
Shaykh Haytham Tamim is the founder and main teacher of the Utrujj Foundation. He has provided a leading vision for Islamic learning in the UK, which has influenced the way Islamic knowledge is disseminated. He has orchestrated the design and delivery of over 200 unique courses since Utrujj started in 2001. His extensive expertise spans over 30 years across the main Islamic jurisprudence schools of thought. He has studied with some of the foremost scholars in their expertise; he holds some of the highest Ijazahs (certificates) in Quran, Hadith (the Prophetic traditions) and Fiqh (Islamic rulings). His own gift for teaching was evident when he gave his first sermon to a large audience at the age of 17 and went on to serve as a senior lecturer of Islamic transactions and comparative jurisprudence at the Islamic University of Beirut (Shariah College). He has continued to teach; travelling around the UK, Europe and wider afield, and won the 2015 BISCA award (British Imams & Scholars Contributions & Achievements Awards) for Outstanding Contribution to Education and Teaching.
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