Continuing our series on war and peace in Islam, the seeking of shahada (martyrdom) is something all Muslims would love to achieve due to the high status and honour given to the shaheed in the next life. However, martyrdom has conditions in order to be accepted. Attempting to gain martyrdom through disobeying Allah such as by treachery, would negate the honour of receiving the shahada.

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said,

إِنَّمَا الْأَعْمَالُ بِالنِّيَّاتِ

“Verily, actions are only [accepted] by intentions.”^[1]

“This is one of the most comprehensive hadith of the Prophet ﷺ. It touches upon almost every deed of Islam…Imam AbuDawood stated that this hadith is one-half of Islam; that is, Islam compriseswhat is apparent, the deeds of Islam, as well as what is not apparent, theintention behind the deeds.

Al-Shafi’i also said that it encompasses half ofknowledge, meaning that the religion concerns both what is external and whatis internal. The deeds are the external aspect and the intention behind them isthe internal aspect.”^[2]

Rumi (d.1273CE) narrates a famous story of Ali ibn Abi Talib where he stopped fighting an enemy soldier because he wanted to purify his niyyah (intention), in order to ensure he was fighting for the right reasons and not out of revenge. “Ali, the “Lion of Allah,” was once engaged in conflict with a Magian chief, and in the midst of the struggle the Magian spat in his face. ‘Ali, instead of taking vengeance on him, at once dropped his sword, to the Magian’s great astonishment. On his inquiring the reason of such forbearance, ‘Ali informed him that the “Lion of Allah” did not destroy life for the satisfaction of his own vengeance, but simply to carry out Allah’s will, and that whenever he saw just cause, he held his hand even in the midst of the strife, and spared the foe.”^[3]

The intention behind any action is hidden in someone’s heart (mind) and so may not be obvious even to the person performing the action. This is why constant vigilance and self-accountability is required especially when it comes to mu’amilat (dealings with people) to ensure someone doesn’t act upon hate and revenge leading to injustice. We need to be careful that grievances and life’s test such as losing a job, home, relative, failed marriage, illness etc which are all part of the dunya (worldly life) and affect believers and disbelievers alike, do not become a catalyst for undertaking un-Islamic and ultimately treasonous acts.

Allah (Most High) clearly says,

وَلَا يَجْرِمَنَّكُمْ شَنَـَٔانُ قَوْمٍ عَلَىٰٓ أَلَّا تَعْدِلُوا۟

Do not let the hatred of a people lead you to injustice.^[4]

He also says,

وَإِذَا حَكَمْتُم بَيْنَ ٱلنَّاسِ أَن تَحْكُمُوا۟ بِٱلْعَدْلِ

And when you judge between people, judge with justice.^[5]

Ibn Ashur (d.1973) comments on this verse, “Some laws were established out of anger and selfishness, and thus contained egregious errors, such as the laws imposed by revolutionaries in anger against those who had ruled before them, and some laws stemmed from fantasies and illusions, like the laws of the pre-Islamic era and nations deeply rooted in paganism.

We find that the laws enacted by wise men are more effective in achieving the benefits of justice, such as the laws of Athens and Sparta. The highest laws are the divine laws because they are suitable for the circumstances of those for whom they were legislated. The greatest of these is the Islamic law (sharia) because it is based on pure or preponderant interests, and it disregards the whims of nations and misguided customs, for it does not concern itself with selfishness and desires, nor with corrupt customs. It is not built on the interests of a particular tribe or country, but rather on the interests of humankind, its improvement, and its guidance to the right path.”^[6]

The endless wars in pre-Islamic Arabia over the most trivial of matters, are examples of what happens when hate becomes deeply embedded in a society. In modern times Nazi Germany, the holocaust, ethnic cleansing in Bosnia, and the genocide in Gaza are all examples of pathological hate which ends in the deaths of millions.

No martyrdom without correct intention and action

There is no doubt that the martyr (shaheed) in Islam is one of the highest statuses in the next life. The reward of a shaheed is immense and seeking martyrdom is what drove the Islamic armies to achieve incredible almost miraculous victories. How do you fight an army that loves death more than the enemy loves life?!

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

لِلشَّهِيدِ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ سِتُّ خِصَالٍ يُغْفَرُ لَهُ فِي أَوَّلِ دَفْعَةٍ وَيَرَى مَقْعَدَهُ مِنَ الْجَنَّةِ وَيُجَارُ مِنْ عَذَابِ الْقَبْرِ وَيَأْمَنُ مِنَ الْفَزَعِ الأَكْبَرِ وَيُوضَعُ عَلَى رَأْسِهِ تَاجُ الْوَقَارِ الْيَاقُوتَةُ مِنْهَا خَيْرٌ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا وَمَا فِيهَا وَيُزَوَّجُ اثْنَتَيْنِ وَسَبْعِينَ زَوْجَةً مِنَ الْحُورِ الْعِينِ وَيُشَفَّعُ فِي سَبْعِينَ مِنْ أَقَارِبِهِ

“The shaheed has six privileges with Allah: he is forgiven with the first flow of blood, he sees his place in Paradise, he is protected from the torment of the grave, he is safe from the Great Terror, a crown of dignity is placed on his head, a single ruby of which is better than the world and all that is in it, he is married to seventy-two wives from among the houris, and he intercedes for seventy of his relatives.”^[7]

Martyrdom (shahada) is a very seductive goal and is marketed by takfiri groups as a shortcut to jannah (paradise). Who wouldn’t want to press a button and end up in eternal bliss?! There are conditions however, which must be met for someone to receive the honour and reward of martyrdom. Intention (niyyah) plays a pivotal role here. If someone believes shahada is a way out of life’s problem by undertaking “suicide by cop” through treacherous actions, then they are sadly mistaken as the next three hadith highlight. Of course, a soldier dying in a legitimate war, abiding by the regulations of the sharia will achieve the high status of shahada by the permission of Allah, but the discussion here is addressing the issue of treason and treachery of those who believe they are undertaking lawful acts.

The first to be judged on the Day of Resurrection

The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said,

إِنَّ أَوَّلَ النَّاسِ يُقْضَى يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ عَلَيْهِ رَجُلٌ اسْتُشْهِدَ فَأُتِيَ بِهِ فَعَرَّفَهُ نِعَمَهُ فَعَرَفَهَا قَالَ فَمَا عَمِلْتَ فِيهَا قَالَ قَاتَلْتُ فِيكَ حَتَّى اسْتُشْهِدْتُ ‏.‏ قَالَ كَذَبْتَ وَلَكِنَّكَ قَاتَلْتَ لأَنْ يُقَالَ جَرِيءٌ ‏.‏ فَقَدْ قِيلَ ‏.‏ ثُمَّ أُمِرَ بِهِ فَسُحِبَ عَلَى وَجْهِهِ حَتَّى أُلْقِيَ فِي النَّارِ

“The first person to be judged on the Day of Resurrection will be a man who was martyred. He will be brought forth, and Allah will remind him of His favors, and he will acknowledge them. Allah will say, “What did you do with them?” He will reply, “I fought for Your sake until I was martyred.” Allah will say, “You have lied. You fought so that it would be said, ‘He is brave.’ And it has been said.” Then he will be ordered to be dragged on his face until he is thrown into the Fire.”^[8]

Disobeying the commander at Khaybar

The Prophet ﷺ during the military expedition to Khaybar, forbade fighting on a particular day and said:

لَا تَحِلُّ الْجَنَّةُ لِعَاصٍ

“Jannah (paradise) is not halal for the one who disobeys.”^[9]

In relation to this hadith, the following was stated in ‘As-Siyar Al-Kabeer’: “He ﷺ commanded that it [this command] be proclaimed on the day of Khaybar when he forbade them from fighting, and it was said to him ﷺ: “So-and-so has been martyred.” So he ﷺ said: “Did I not forbid fighting after that?” They said: “Yes.” So he said:

لَا تَحِلُّ الْجَنَّةُ لِعَاصٍ

“Jannah is not halal for the one who disobeys.”^[10]

So, despite the rank of martyrdom, he said what he said about him to clarify that disobedience in matters where the error of the Amir is not certain, is not permissible under any circumstances.”^[11]

The context of this discussion is obedience to the army commander in carrying out his orders even if the soldier disagrees with them. This is unless a clear-cut violation of the sharia rules has been ordered such as torture, rape and deliberate targeting of civilians.

The man who stole from the state funds (war booty)

It is narrated that Abu Hurayrah said: “We were with the Messenger of Allah in the year of Khaibar, and we did not get any spoils of war (ghaneema) except for wealth, goods and clothes. Then a man from Banu Ad-Dubaib, who was called Rifa’ah bin Zaid, gave the Messenger of Allah a black slave who was called Mid’am. The Messenger of Allah set out for Wadi Al-Qura. When we were in Wadi Al-Qura, while Mid’am was unloading the luggage of the Messenger of Allah, an arrow came and killed him. The people said: “Congratulations! You will go to Paradise,” but the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “No, by the One in Whose hand is my soul! The cloak that he took from the spoils of war on the Day of Khaibar is burning him with fire.” When the people heard that, a man brought one or two shoelaces to the Messenger of Allah and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “One or two shoelaces of fire.””^[12]

We can extrapolate from all of these incidents that attempting to gain martyrdom through disobeying Allah such as by treachery, would negate the honour of receiving the shahada.

Notes

[1] Muttafaqun Alayhi (authenticity agreed upon). Sahih Muslim 1907a, https://sunnah.com/muslim:1907a ; Sahih al-Bukhari 6953, https://sunnah.com/bukhari:6953

[2] Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo, ‘Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi,’ Vol.1, p.98

[3] Masnavi i Ma’navi, Teachings of Rumi The Spiritual Couplets of Maulana Jalalu-’d-din Muhammad i Rumi Translated and abridged by E.H. Whinfield, M.A. Omphaloskepsis, 2001, Story XVI, p.83

[4] Holy Qur’an, Surah Al-Ma’ida, ayat 7-8

[5] Holy Qur’an, Surah Al-Nisaa’, verse 58

[6] Ibn Ashur, Tahrir wa Tanwir, https://tafsir.app/ibn-aashoor/4/58

[7] Jami’ at-Tirmidhi 1663, https://sunnah.com/tirmidhi:1663

[8] Sahih Muslim 1905a, https://sunnah.com/muslim:1905a

[9] Al-Hakim, Al-Mustadrak, https://www.islamweb.net/ar/library/content/74/2526/%D8%A5%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%A9-%D9%84%D8%A7-%D8%AA%D8%AD%D9%84-%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%B5

[10] Al-Hakim, Al-Mustadrak, https://www.islamweb.net/ar/library/content/74/2526/%D8%A5%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%86%D8%A9-%D9%84%D8%A7-%D8%AA%D8%AD%D9%84-%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%B5

[11] Sharh As-Siyar Al-Kabeer: 1/63-64. https://shamela.ws/book/5434/63

[12] Sunan an-Nasa’i 3827, https://sunnah.com/nasai:3827