The Glory of Faith

Haaroon Ar-Rasheedonce stood looking at the sky when he saw a cloud
passing by. He addressed it saying, "Rain wherever you wish, for your
fruit will certainly come to me anyway." This means that the cloud
would have rained either on an Islamic land or on a non-Islamic one.
In the first case, Muslims would have benefitted from this rainwater
in agriculture and in drinking; in the second case, Muslims would have
also benefitted from this rainwater in the form of Jizyah )a tax( that
would be paid to them by non-Muslims. This example shows the state of
glory, which the Muslims reached in the past when they applied their
religion and worked for it. Nowadays, Muslims are certainly required
to pursue the means of glory.
Glory here refers to power, victory, high standing and invincibility.
It is a word which denotes that a person cannot be overcome or
humiliated. Ibn Al-Jawzisaid,
Some of the scholars of Tafseer )Quranic exegesis( said, "In the
Quran, glory is used in three different senses.
It is used to signify might, as in the verse )which means(:
•}"By the might of Pharaoh, indeed it is we who are predominant."{]Quran 26:44[
•}By Your might, I will surely mislead them all{]Quran 38:82[
It is also used to signify honor, as in the verse )which means(:}Do
they seek with them honor ]through power[? But indeed, honor belongs
to Allaah entirely.{]Quran 4:139[
Finally, it is used to signify dispraised pride as in the verse )which means(:
•}And when it is said to him, "Fear Allah ," pride in the sin takes
hold of him.{]Quran 2:206[
•}But those who disbelieve are in pride and dissension.{]Quran 38:2[
From the above, it is noticed that there is praised glory and
dispraised glory. Praised glory is that which pertains to Allaah The
Almighty, to His Messengerand to the believers. This is real and
permanent glory since it is from and with the support of Allaah The
Almighty who cannot be defeated or resisted. Allaah The Almighty Says
)what means(:}And to Allaah belongs ]all[ Honor and to His Messenger,
and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know.{]Quran 63:8[.
On the other hand, the glory of the disbelievers is, in fact,
humiliation and disgrace. Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:}And
they have taken besides Allaah ]false[ deities that they would be for
them ]a source of[ honor. No! Those "gods" will deny their worship of
them and will be against them opponents ]on the Day of
Judgment[.{]Quran 19:81-82[.
Many people pursued the wrong way to glory, victory and enablement.
Some of them pursued it through money and forgot that money is only a
Fitnah )trial( and a loss if one does not give the right that Allaah
The Almighty has to it. Moreover, this money might be a means of
humiliation. Al-Hasansaid, "By Allaah, Allaah The Almighty humiliates
whoever glorifies money." Indeed, we have seen a many examples of that
in life.
Other people seek glory through their positions and prestige. This may
enable them to achieve temporary glory. However, if this is not
established on justice and good reputation, then it certainly will not
last. Indeed, many a leader and president were enjoying glory and then
became captives in prisons, and their glory turned into humiliation.
What is even more dangerous is when a person seeks glory through the
disbelievers, i.e. by allying himself with them, even if this is
against the Muslims' interests. This is no more than an illusion. In
fact, it is an instant humiliation, and the first people to turn
against such people would be his 'allies' from the disbelievers.
Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:}Give tidings to the hypocrites
that there is for them a painful punishment - Those who take
disbelievers as allies instead of the believers. Do they seek with
them honor ]through power[? But indeed, honor belongs to Allaah
entirely.{]Quran 4:138-139[ Consequently, throwing one's self in the
arms of the disbelievers is the shortest way to dishonor and
humiliation because these disbelievers would not accept from us
anything less than disbelief. Allaah The Almighty Says )what
means(:}And never will the Jews or the Christians approve of you until
you follow their religion.{]Quran 2:120[.
Other people still seek glory through their ancestors and tribes, even
if they were misguided. In a Hadeeth on the authority of Abu
Rayhaanahthe Prophetsaid:"If a person attributes himself to nine of
his disbelieving forefathers, seeking through them glory and pride, he
will be their tenth in Hell."
Hence, the unquestionable truth is that a person who seeks glory must
demand it from Allaah The Almighty through obeying Him and avoiding
disobedience. 'Umar ibn Al-Khattaabsummarized this wonderful meaning
in a few words; He said, "We were the most humiliated people, but
Allaah The Almighty has honored us with Islam. If we demand honor
through any means other than Islam, Allaah The Almighty will humiliate
us."
Ibraaheem ibn Shaybaansaid, "Honor lies in modesty, glory lies in
piety, and freedom lies in contentment." When a Muslim lives in
obedience to Allaah The Almighty, he lives in honor and dignity. He
may be afflicted, but nevertheless he has a strong sense of honor.
This appeared clearly in the life of the righteous predecessorseven in
the darkest moments and in the severest and hardest situations.
Situations Which Indicate the Glory of the Righteous Predecessors
When Bilaalwas tortured in Makkah in its hot desert and a great heavy
boulder was put on his chest, not to make him abandon his faith but
only to stop blaspheming his peoples false gods or to keep silent, the
honor of faith showed in his words when he repeated, "Allaah The One,
Allaah The One." This remained as an eternal anthem which the
generations have chanted throughout history. In addition, the words of
Bilaalpoured despair into the souls of those who tortured him. So, who
was honorable in this scene? Was it this weak, tortured slave or the
arrogant disbelievers?
The story of 'Abdullaah ibn Huthaafah As-Sahmiwhen he was taken
captive by the Romans is another example. The king of the Romans tried
to entice 'Abdullaah to abandon his religion, but he refused. The king
offered him half of his money but he refused. Then, he imprisoned him,
tortured him and did not give him any food or water except some pig
meat and wine. After three days, they brought him out and found that
he had eaten nothing of it. When he was asked why had he not eaten any
of it, he replied, "By Allaah, Allaah The Exalted made it lawful for
me because I was under duress, but I would never let you gloat over
Islam." Then, the king asked him to kiss his head in return for
releasing him but Ibn Huthaafahsaid that he would only do so if all
the Muslim captives were released. The king accepted and Ibn
Huthaafahkissed his head.
He then returned to the Commander of the Believers 'Umar ibn
Al-Khattaabwith all the Muslim captives. 'Umarstood up and kissed the
head of 'Abdullaah ibn Huthaafah, and said, "It is a duty upon every
Muslim to kiss the head of Ibn Huthaafah."
Also, Shaykhul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyahwas prosecuted and imprisoned. When
he was thrown in prison, he recited the words of Allaah The Almighty
)which mean(:}And a wall will be placed between them with a door, its
interior containing mercy, but on the outside of it is torment.{]Quran
57:13[. This is the glory of faith and the pride of Islam which make a
person the most honorable one through the obedience of Allaah The
Almighty. Even if all people on earth stood against such a person, he
would still derive his honor and glory from Allaah The Almighty who
can never be defeated. Allaah The Almighty Says )what means(:}Whoever
desires honor ]through power[ - then to Allaah belongs all
honor.{]Quran 35:10[.
The state of humiliation which prevails in many aspects of our lives
nowadays is the result of religious innovations, sins and remoteness
from the Sharee'ah of Allaah The Almighty. This is supported by the
Hadeeth of the Prophetwhere he said:"Humiliation and disgrace are the
fate of whoever disobeys my order."A major reason behind this
humiliation is the state of disagreement and disunity that the Muslims
experience. Our enemies take advantage of us one by one; they strike
one of us today and another tomorrow while Muslims take no action, as
if what happens to our brothers does not concern us. History testifies
that we were never like this in the past. When a Muslim woman, who was
taken as a captive by the Romans in 'Amooriyyah, screamed for help
uttering her famous scream, "Wa Islaamaah" )Oh My Islam!(, Al-
Mu'tasimanswered her call with full concern, "Labbayki ]at your
disposal[" and prepared an army which heavily defeated 'Amooriyyah and
rescued the Muslim woman from the hands of the disbelievers. We should
ask ourselves here: what tie was there between Al-Mu'tasim and that
woman except the tie of faith?