Author: islamciv

What is the meaning of the verse: “Those who do not rule by what Allah has sent down, such people are disbelievers”?

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There are many verses in the Holy Qur’an which oblige Muslims to judge and rule by the sharia. Three of these verses contain commands which are identical except for their endings, which is why the mufasireen (interpreters of the Qur’an) linked them together. Allah (ta’ala) says in Surah al-Ma’ida verses 44, 45 and 47, وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ “Those who do not judge/rule by what Allah has sent down, such people are disbelievers (kafirun).”[1] وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الظَّالِمُونَ “Those who do not judge/rule by what Allah has sent down, such people are oppressors (dhalimun).”[2] وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ “Those who do not judge/rule by what Allah has sent down, such people are deviators (fasiqun).”[3] These verses are political in nature, because they address the governments and judiciaries in the Muslim world, and so can be controversial to those academics and ulema who want to maintain the existing status quo, or aim to ‘reform’ Islam by secularising it and removing it …

Does حُكْم (hukm) mean judging or ruling or both?

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The term حُكْم (hukm) and its derivatives appear more than 250 times[1] in the Qur’an. Allah (Most High) says, إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَأْمُرُكُمْ أَن تُؤَدُّوا۟ ٱلْأَمَـٰنَـٰتِ إِلَىٰٓ أَهْلِهَا وَإِذَا حَكَمْتُم بَيْنَ ٱلنَّاسِ أَن تَحْكُمُوا۟ بِٱلْعَدْلِ Allah commands you to return to their owners the things you hold on trust and, when you judge between people, to judge with justice.[2] يَـٰدَاوُۥدُ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَـٰكَ خَلِيفَةًۭ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ فَٱحْكُم بَيْنَ ٱلنَّاسِ بِٱلْحَقِّ وَلَا تَتَّبِعِ ٱلْهَوَىٰ فَيُضِلَّكَ عَن سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ Oh Dawud! We have made you a khaleefah on the earth, so judge between people with truth and do not follow your own desires, letting them misguide you from the Way of Allah.[3] وَمَنْ لَمْ يَحْكُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْكَافِرُونَ “Those who do not judge by what Allah has sent down, such people are disbelievers (kafirun).”[4] In most English translations as you can see, hukm is translated as judgement because the Arabic dictionary definition of hukm includes القَضاء (al-qadaa’) which means to issue a decree or judge. In Lisan al-Arab (1290CE):  والحُكْمُ: العِلْمُ وَالْفِقْهُ وَالْقَضَاءُ بِالْعَدْلِ، وَهُوَ مَصْدَرُ …

Can women be judges in Islam?

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There is no dispute among the classical scholars that it’s prohibited for a woman to hold a ruling position such as the Khaleefah or a waali (governor), although she can hold any other non-ruling governmental position, and be an active member of the Majlis al-Nuwaab (House of Representatives). This is based on the hadith narrated by Abi Bakra, that when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was informed that the Persians had crowned the daughter of Chosroes as their ruler, he ﷺ said,

Migration to Abyssinia: Fleeing persecution or searching for a base for Islam?

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This has been reproduced from Dr As-Sallabi’s seerah book The Noble life of the Prophet ﷺ. Scholars have mentioned various reasons that prompted the Prophet’s ﷺ Companions to migrate to Abyssinia. One reason was that they felt it necessary to flee with their religion, fearing that constant torture might tempt them to apostatize. Ibn Ishaaq said, “At that point in time, some Muslims from the Prophet’s ﷺ Companions went to Abyssinia, fearing temptation and fleeing towards Allah M with their religion.”[1]

Islamic History Quiz 1 Answers

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Here are the answers to the 50 questions from Islamic History Quiz 1. They can be downloaded as a printable pdf. Islamic History Quiz 1 QUESTIONS web Islamic History Quiz 1 QUESTIONS pdf Islamic History Quiz 1 ANSWERS pdf

Islamic History Quiz 1

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Here are 50 questions on various aspects of our great Islamic civilisation. They can be downloaded as a printable pdf along with the answers at the links below. Islamic History Quiz 1 QUESTIONS pdf Islamic History Quiz 1 ANSWERS pdf Islamic History Quiz 1 ANSWERS web

Conditions of the Caliph: Why only a Muslim Caliph?

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The Khilafah (Caliphate) is an ideological Islamic State where the Islamic ‘aqeeda (belief) is the basis of the state, its institutions, systems and societal relationships. There is no separation between religion and politics in Islam as we find in the west. The Khilafah’s strength depends directly on the strength of the ideology within the state. This means those in ruling positions must be people who will work to protect, implement and propagate the deen of Islam, so the state becomes a beacon of high values, and a leading nation in the world. Only someone who believes in the ideology of the state i.e. Islam could do this, which means those in ruling positions must be Muslim. The Islamic State is no different to any ideological state within the world today. America or Western Europe for example would never accept a Muslim or Communist as President or Prime Minister. The fact that former US President Barack Obama had to repeatedly deny he is a secret Muslim is clear evidence of this. Muhammad Asad says, “One cannot …

Conditions of the Caliph

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The bay’ah is a contract, and so has pillars (arkaan) and conditions (shuroot) like any other Islamic contract. The bay’ah can be described as either saheeh (valid), baatil (invalid) or faasid (defective). Pillars and conditions of the bay’ah contract A summary of the pillars and conditions of the bay’ah contract is below. Section   Pillar (rukn) Condition (shart) Contracting Party – Khaleefah Muslim Free (hurr)Sane (‘aqil)Mature (baligh) Male Just (‘adl)Capable (kifayah) Contracting Party – Muslim Ummah Muslim Mature (baligh)   Offer by Muslim Ummah   Consent (muradah) Choice (ikhtiyar) Acceptance by Khaleefah   Consent (muradah)   Subject Matter Ruling by IslamOne KhaleefahAuthoritySecurityObedience Executive Powers (salaahiyat) Contracting Party – Khaleefah Starting with the Khaleefah, while there is consensus (‘ijma) among the scholars on the pillars (arkan) that someone must possess to take up the post of Khaleefah, there are differences of opinion (ikhtilaaf), on some of the other conditions (shuroot) such as being from Quraysh, a mujtahid (able to perform ijtihad) and brave. The contractual conditions of the Khaleefah must have a shar’a daleel (divine evidence) …