Khalifah Journal
It is transmitted by at-Tabarani and al-Hakim that in one incident some people spoke very lowly about Salman al-Farsi. They spoke of the inferiority of the Persians in relation to the Arabs, and upon hearing this the Rasool Allah , May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, declared, "Salman is from us, the ahl al-bayt (the Prophet's family)."
This statement of the Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, disassociates all links based on lineage and tribal considerations. It was also transmitted, in two different versions, by Ibn al-Mubarak in his two books, Al-Birr and As-Salah, that some disagreement occurred between Abu Dharr and Bilal and Abu Dharr said to Bilal, "You son of a black woman." Rasool Allah , May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, was extremely upset by Abu Dharr's comment, so Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, rebuked him by saying, "That is too much, Abu Dharr. He who has a white mother has no advantage which makes him better than the son of a black mother." This rebuke had a profound effect on Abu Dharr, who then put his head on the ground swearing that he would not raise it until Bilal had put his foot over it. However he did not, rather Bilal embraced Abu Dharr and the issue was closed.
These incidents demonstrate that tribal ties have no place in Islam. Muslims are commanded to stick together and not to disassociate themselves from each other just because they come from different tribes. The Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, also said, "The believers, in their love, mutual kindness, and close ties, are like one body; when any part complains, the whole body responds to it with wakefulness and fever" [Muslim]. "The faithful are like one man: if his eyes suffers, his whole body suffers" [Muslim]. "An Arab is no better than a non-Arab. In return, a non-Arab is no better than an Arab. A red raced man was not better than a black one except in piety. Mankind are all Adam's children and Adam was created out of clay" [Al-Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Abu Musa].
Rasool (Messenger) of Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, said "The Faithful are to a one another like [parts of] a building - each part strengthening the others"
In addition he Rasool (Messenger) of Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, also said, "Every Muslim is a brother to a Muslim, neither wronging him nor allowing him to be wronged. And if anyone helps his brother in need, Allah will help him in his own need; and if anyone removes a calamity from [another] Muslim, Allah will remove from him some of the calamities of the Day of Resurrection; and if anyone shields [another] Muslim from disgrace, Allah will shield him from the disgrace on the Day of Resurrection" [Al-Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of 'Abd Allah ibn 'Umar].
Grouping on racial lines is forbidden in Islam. It is narrated by Abu Dawud that the Rasool Allah , May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, said, "He is not one of us who calls for 'Asabiyyah, (nationalism/tribalism) or who fights for 'Asabiyyah or who dies for 'Asabiyyah." And in another Hadith, the Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, referring to nationalism, racism and patriotism said: "Leave it, it is rotten" [Muslim and Bukhari].
Allah, the Almighty, says:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمْ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ مِنْ نَفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالاً كَثِيرًا وَنِسَاءً وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ الَّذِي تَتَسَاءَلُونَ بِهِ وَالأَرْحَامَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلَيْكُمْ رَقِيبًا
"O Mankind! fear your Guardian Lord, who created you from a single person, created, out of it, his mate, and from them twain scattered (like seeds) countless men and women; - fear Allah, through whom ye demand your mutual rights, and be heedful of the wombs that bore you: for Allah ever watches over you." [TMQ 4:1]
وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ خَلْقُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَاخْتِلاَفُ أَلْسِنَتِكُمْ وَأَلْوَانِكُمْ إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لآياتٍ لِلْعَالِمِينَ
"And among His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the variations in your languages and your colours; verily in that are Signs for those with sound knowledge." [TMQ 30:22]
Thus do the above verses remind us of our humble beginnings, where we were all created by Allah, the Almighty, and have sprung from one and the same parents. The variations in our locations, colours and languages, is not to be understood as a point of division, rather it is a reminder of the blessings that Allah, the Almighty, has bestowed upon us, and a reminder of our origins which reinforces the notion of unity based upon this fact.
There are many examples in the Seerah where the Messenger of Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, had rebuked those who upheld unity based on racial ties. On one occasion a party of Jews conspired to bring about disunity in the ranks of the Muslims after seeing the Aus and Khazraj within Islam. A youth amongst them was sent to incite remembrance of the battle of Bu'ath where the Aus had been victorious over the Khazraj, and he recited poetry to bring about division between them. As a result there was a call to arms.
When the news reached the Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, said: "O Muslims, remember Allah, remember Allah. Will you act as pagans while I am present with you after Allah has guided you to Islam, and honoured you thereby and made a clean break with paganism; delivered you thereby from disbelief; and made you friends thereby?"
When they heard this they wept, and embraced each other. This incident clearly highlights how the Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, rebuked any form of racism. Allah, the Almighty, then revealed,
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلاَ تَمُوتُنَّ إِلاَّ وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ
وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلاَ تَفَرَّقُوا وَاذْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ كُنْتُمْ أَعْدَاءً فَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ فَأَصْبَحْتُمْ بِنِعْمَتِهِ إِخْوَانًا وَكُنْتُمْ عَلَى شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِنْ النَّارِ فَأَنْقَذَكُمْ مِنْهَا كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ آيَاتِهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ
"O you who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared and die not except in a state of Islam. And hold fast together all of you to the rope of Allah, and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude Allah's favours on you; for you were enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so that by His Grace you became brothers; and you were on the brink of the pit of fire, and He saved you from it. Thus Allah made His signs clear to you that you may be guided." [TQM 3:102-103]
In another incident, Jabir ibn 'abd Allah al Ansari, narrated what happened at the watering place of al Muraysi which led to the Munafiqun stirring up traces of 'Asabiyyah and seeking to destroy the unity of Muslims. He said: "We were on a raid when one of the Muhajirun kicked one of the Ansar. The Ansar said, "O Ansar! Help me!" (calling his tribe) and the Muhajir said. "O Muhajirun! Help me!" (calling his tribe). Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, heard them and said, "Why are you stirring up something which belongs to Jahilliyah?" Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, did not deal with the situation only by speaking to his men, but he walked with them all day until nightfall, and through the night until morning and during the next day until the sun distressed them. Then he halted them, and as soon as they touched the ground, they fell asleep. He did this to distract their minds from what had transpired.
Lastly we should remind ourselves of a hadith that describes that the colour of ones skin is not a barrier to the pleasures of the hereafter. Anas narrated that a man came to Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, and asked, "O Rasool Allah , May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, I am a man who is black in colour having an ugly face, neither do I have any wealth. If I fought with them until I was also killed, would I enter the jannah?” He replied “yes”. Then he marched forward and started to fight until he was killed. After his martyrdom, Rasool Allah, May the Blessing and Peace from Allah be upon him, passed by him. He addressed, Allah, the Almighty, has beautified your face, has made his odour pleasant and has increased his wealth. I have seen two of his wives among the big eyed Hurs (of janah) who are quarrelling with each other as to who would enter between his Jubbah [cloak] and his skin."
Khilafah.com Journal, 12 Rajab 1424 Hijri / 8 September 2002
