Post by Islamic Revival on Apr 29, 2005 16:04:42 GMT -5
Function of the Khilafah in Islam
Allah (swt) has made it an obligation upon the Muslims to have the Islamic State. This Islamic State, represented by the Khilafah, is the mechanism which implements the Islamic ideology. The Khilafah is the
authority in Islam, responsible for implementing the total convictions, concepts, values, and rules of Islam.
It is a State founded upon the complete and homogenous ideological entity of the Islamic creed with all of its methods for dealing with the problems of life.
Thus, the Khilafah is not a symbol or a slogan by any means. The Islamic Aqeedah rests upon the fact that Allah (swt) revealed the Quran and Sunnah as guidance for humanity by worshipping and obeying Allah (swt) in every action of our lives. This worship includes collective as well as individual actions. The collective action includes preventing transactions which deal with interest as part of a economic system. While the individual actions would include hajj. To implement these actions completely necessitates the role of the Islamic State.
The economic or political system cannot be established at an individual level it requires the Islamic State. As far as individual actions are concerned they too require the role of the Khilafah. In the case of hajj, the Khalifah or his assigned representative is responsible for leading the Muslims down from Arafat. As mentioned earlier, Islam is not composed of separate components functioning separately. Islam is a homogenous entity requiring the implementation of every single element
concurrently.
In summary, the Khilafah is responsible for the following functions:
1. Uniting the entire Muslim Ummah under the banner of Islam
2. Conducting the affairs of the Ummah according to Islam
3. Protecting the Muslim lands and properties from any danger
4. Fully applying the Shariah (law) of Allah (swt) in every aspect of life.
5. Carrying the Islamic dawa'h (invitation) to the world
Any source of governmental authority for Muslims that is not based exclusively on the concepts, values, laws, and ruling system of Allah (swt) as revealed by the Quran and Sunnah will negate the declaration of
"La illaha illa Allah" (There is no deity but Allah).
Khilafah as a Unique Political Structure [/u]
The Khilafah is a unique form of political structure; different from all existing political structures. Khilafah is not a monarchy, empire, republic, theocracy, democracy, or dictatorship. It is narrated that Abdullah Bin Omar told Muawiah:
"You must know, Muawiah, that this Khilafah is not like that of Romans nor of Persians where the sons inherit it form their fathers."
The Khalifah, under the Islamic laws, the right to execute the Islamic rules by taking the Bay'ah from the people. The Bay'ah is not a vote cast by a citizen.
Rather, it is a contract between a Muslim citizen of the state and the person who is to become the Khalifah. The contract defines the duty of the citizens toward the Khalifah and defines the duty of the Khalifah towards the people. The Hadeeth of the Prophet (saaw) says:
"Fulfill the Bay'ah for them, one after another. And give them their rights. For Allah will ask them about that which He put them in charge of." (Muslim)
The form of the Bay'ah used at the time of the Prophet (saaw) is as indicated in the following Hadeeth of Obadah Bin Assamit:
"We offered the Messenger of Allah (saaw) our Bay'ah which is to listen and to obey the orders that we like and dislike, in relaxed as well as in tensed conditions."
On his part, the Khalifah is obliged to conduct the affairs of the people on the basis of the laws derived from the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw).
The claim, that the Islamic form of government is not explicitly defined in Islam, is not justified by any daleel. It is true that the details of the Khilafah structure are not given in the Quran. But the Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw) explained the Khilafah structure with great details. In the Quran, Allah established that his laws have to be used in the process of ruling. Through the Sunnah of his Prophet (saaw), Allah showed how the ruling is to be organized. Besides the Khilafah, there are many issues outlined in the Quran in a general
form, and the Sunnah defined their details. The prayer is an outstanding example. In the Quran, Allah (swt) orders the people to pray. But how to pray, when to pray, and how many times to pray were explained in the Sunnah of Prophet (saaw).
Fasting is another example, Where the Quran establishes the general duty of fasting, the Sunnah of Prophet (saaw) explained many of the details related to fasting. Similarly, the Hajj is established as a duty in the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw) explained all the details of the Hajj.
In the same manner, Allah in the Quran ordered the Muslims to employ his rules in the ruling system. The Prophet (saaw) explained the details of ruling, the form of the government the duties of the Khalifah, the duties of the people towards the Khalifah, the functions of the State, the structure of the administration, and all related matters.
The political system in Islam has to be built according to the guidance given in the Quran and Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw). In this respect, Muslims should not and must not attempt to make the Islamic political system look like the contemporary political systems. The Islamic political system is a unique one which is based on the revelation revealed by Allah to his Messenger (saaw).
The contemporary political systems are man-made systems which are subject to all kinds of influences, internal and external.
Khilafah as a Method for Propagating Islam [/u]
Islam consists of a creed and a method for implementing this creed.
The creed provides a comprehensive understanding of what is the meaning of life is and brings solutions to man's problems. Whereas, the method, describes how to establish and implement these solutions, as well as how to protect and convey the ideology.
Islam is the perfect ideology because it is designed by Allah, the Creator. The justice from this ideology has to be conveyed to others and this task is carried by the State. The Islamic State carries this task by building relationships such as economic or diplomatic with other nations.
Establishing foreign relations would entail many activities between states. Some activities may result in conflict, and this conflict has to resolved either politically or materially.
The Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw) detailed the role of the state in achieving the dominance of Islam over all other religions and systems. As soon as the Prophet (saaw) arrived in Medinah, he began to call upon the people to volunteer in the Jihad fronts. During his (saaw) life, the Prophet (saaw) engaged the Arabs in the peninsula and the non-Arabs outside the peninsula in many battles. The objective was to carry the Islamic ideology to the people and to have them live under the rules of Islam. Therefore, the practical method to convey Islam to humanity is through the state. A misleading claim which is made is that through the efforts of individual da'i than through the Islmaic State millions of people accepted Islam. Consequently, the Islamic State was ineffective in carrying the dawah compared to these muslim individuals.
Again, this claim lacks the concept of what the Khilafah is all about.
The Khilafah creates the Islamic environment which people can witness its justice. This environment would stimulate people's thinking and thus making it easier on the Muslims to carry the dawah to others.
Through the influence of the Islamic State in the International arena, Muslim traders were able to create the change.
Jaleel K. Abdul Adil
Allah (swt) has made it an obligation upon the Muslims to have the Islamic State. This Islamic State, represented by the Khilafah, is the mechanism which implements the Islamic ideology. The Khilafah is the
authority in Islam, responsible for implementing the total convictions, concepts, values, and rules of Islam.
It is a State founded upon the complete and homogenous ideological entity of the Islamic creed with all of its methods for dealing with the problems of life.
Thus, the Khilafah is not a symbol or a slogan by any means. The Islamic Aqeedah rests upon the fact that Allah (swt) revealed the Quran and Sunnah as guidance for humanity by worshipping and obeying Allah (swt) in every action of our lives. This worship includes collective as well as individual actions. The collective action includes preventing transactions which deal with interest as part of a economic system. While the individual actions would include hajj. To implement these actions completely necessitates the role of the Islamic State.
The economic or political system cannot be established at an individual level it requires the Islamic State. As far as individual actions are concerned they too require the role of the Khilafah. In the case of hajj, the Khalifah or his assigned representative is responsible for leading the Muslims down from Arafat. As mentioned earlier, Islam is not composed of separate components functioning separately. Islam is a homogenous entity requiring the implementation of every single element
concurrently.
In summary, the Khilafah is responsible for the following functions:
1. Uniting the entire Muslim Ummah under the banner of Islam
2. Conducting the affairs of the Ummah according to Islam
3. Protecting the Muslim lands and properties from any danger
4. Fully applying the Shariah (law) of Allah (swt) in every aspect of life.
5. Carrying the Islamic dawa'h (invitation) to the world
Any source of governmental authority for Muslims that is not based exclusively on the concepts, values, laws, and ruling system of Allah (swt) as revealed by the Quran and Sunnah will negate the declaration of
"La illaha illa Allah" (There is no deity but Allah).
Khilafah as a Unique Political Structure [/u]
The Khilafah is a unique form of political structure; different from all existing political structures. Khilafah is not a monarchy, empire, republic, theocracy, democracy, or dictatorship. It is narrated that Abdullah Bin Omar told Muawiah:
"You must know, Muawiah, that this Khilafah is not like that of Romans nor of Persians where the sons inherit it form their fathers."
The Khalifah, under the Islamic laws, the right to execute the Islamic rules by taking the Bay'ah from the people. The Bay'ah is not a vote cast by a citizen.
Rather, it is a contract between a Muslim citizen of the state and the person who is to become the Khalifah. The contract defines the duty of the citizens toward the Khalifah and defines the duty of the Khalifah towards the people. The Hadeeth of the Prophet (saaw) says:
"Fulfill the Bay'ah for them, one after another. And give them their rights. For Allah will ask them about that which He put them in charge of." (Muslim)
The form of the Bay'ah used at the time of the Prophet (saaw) is as indicated in the following Hadeeth of Obadah Bin Assamit:
"We offered the Messenger of Allah (saaw) our Bay'ah which is to listen and to obey the orders that we like and dislike, in relaxed as well as in tensed conditions."
On his part, the Khalifah is obliged to conduct the affairs of the people on the basis of the laws derived from the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw).
The claim, that the Islamic form of government is not explicitly defined in Islam, is not justified by any daleel. It is true that the details of the Khilafah structure are not given in the Quran. But the Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw) explained the Khilafah structure with great details. In the Quran, Allah established that his laws have to be used in the process of ruling. Through the Sunnah of his Prophet (saaw), Allah showed how the ruling is to be organized. Besides the Khilafah, there are many issues outlined in the Quran in a general
form, and the Sunnah defined their details. The prayer is an outstanding example. In the Quran, Allah (swt) orders the people to pray. But how to pray, when to pray, and how many times to pray were explained in the Sunnah of Prophet (saaw).
Fasting is another example, Where the Quran establishes the general duty of fasting, the Sunnah of Prophet (saaw) explained many of the details related to fasting. Similarly, the Hajj is established as a duty in the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw) explained all the details of the Hajj.
In the same manner, Allah in the Quran ordered the Muslims to employ his rules in the ruling system. The Prophet (saaw) explained the details of ruling, the form of the government the duties of the Khalifah, the duties of the people towards the Khalifah, the functions of the State, the structure of the administration, and all related matters.
The political system in Islam has to be built according to the guidance given in the Quran and Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw). In this respect, Muslims should not and must not attempt to make the Islamic political system look like the contemporary political systems. The Islamic political system is a unique one which is based on the revelation revealed by Allah to his Messenger (saaw).
The contemporary political systems are man-made systems which are subject to all kinds of influences, internal and external.
Khilafah as a Method for Propagating Islam [/u]
Islam consists of a creed and a method for implementing this creed.
The creed provides a comprehensive understanding of what is the meaning of life is and brings solutions to man's problems. Whereas, the method, describes how to establish and implement these solutions, as well as how to protect and convey the ideology.
Islam is the perfect ideology because it is designed by Allah, the Creator. The justice from this ideology has to be conveyed to others and this task is carried by the State. The Islamic State carries this task by building relationships such as economic or diplomatic with other nations.
Establishing foreign relations would entail many activities between states. Some activities may result in conflict, and this conflict has to resolved either politically or materially.
The Sunnah of the Prophet (saaw) detailed the role of the state in achieving the dominance of Islam over all other religions and systems. As soon as the Prophet (saaw) arrived in Medinah, he began to call upon the people to volunteer in the Jihad fronts. During his (saaw) life, the Prophet (saaw) engaged the Arabs in the peninsula and the non-Arabs outside the peninsula in many battles. The objective was to carry the Islamic ideology to the people and to have them live under the rules of Islam. Therefore, the practical method to convey Islam to humanity is through the state. A misleading claim which is made is that through the efforts of individual da'i than through the Islmaic State millions of people accepted Islam. Consequently, the Islamic State was ineffective in carrying the dawah compared to these muslim individuals.
Again, this claim lacks the concept of what the Khilafah is all about.
The Khilafah creates the Islamic environment which people can witness its justice. This environment would stimulate people's thinking and thus making it easier on the Muslims to carry the dawah to others.
Through the influence of the Islamic State in the International arena, Muslim traders were able to create the change.
Jaleel K. Abdul Adil