Tariq Mehanna
In Surat al-Baqarah, v.158, Allah said: {"Verily, as-Safa and al-Marwah are from the rituals of Allah. So, it is no problem for the pilgrim to the Sacred House to traverse between them…"}
At first glance, the verse doesn't stick out, but the circumstance of its revelation show how significant it is.
As-Safa and al-Marwah are two mountains in Makkah where Prophet Abraham left Hajar and his son Ishmael before heading to Palestine. In her quest to find some water for her son, she ran back and forth between the two mountain tops seven times (as-sa'i). This was the source of the sa'i in Hajj when Prophet Abraham called people for pilgrimage to Makkah later on. When polytheism later took root in Arabia, idols were placed atop the two mountains, and they were venerated while the pilgrims performed the sa'i. When Islam came to reclaim Makkah from the pagans and Hajj was reinstated in its monotheistic form, there was uncertainty as to whether sa'i could still be performed between as-Safa and al-Marwah in light of the paganism it was used for, and the Companions were reluctant to engage in a ritual tainted with the stain of jahiliyyah. Al-Bukhari and Muslim related that Anas bin Malik was asked: "Did you hate to perform sa'i between as-Safa and al-Marwah?" So, he replied: "Yes! Because it was from the rituals from the time of jahiliyyah! But this was until Allah revealed: {"Verily, as-Safa and al-Marwah are from the rituals of Allah. So, it is no problem for the pilgrim to the Sacred House to traverse between them."} So, the ritual was maintained because it was originally a Sunnah of Prophet Abraham's Hajj, despite the Makkan pagans corrupting it afterwards.
This verse, then, tells us a very significant fact about the Companions' approach to the Din, and about the nature of Islam itself. The Companions treated everything as suspect until proven acceptable in Islam. For them, the Din was a revolution for their hearts, minds, behavior, outlook. Islam was like an electrical current that ran through their entire being, rearranging and polishing and leaving a new product. An electrical current, when it is fired through a group of atoms, will rearrange their electron configuration completely. Islam did that to the Companions. When they decided to be Muslims, they would then look at each and every aspect of their lives and see where it stood in light of the Qur'an. Whatever went along with Islam, they kept. Whatever contradicted it in any way, they would not come near, because this was considered a leftover of jahiliyyah. Sayyid Qutb said:
"When a person embraced Islam during the time of the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم), he would immediately cut himself off from the jahiliyyah. When he stepped into the circle of Islam, he would start a new life, separating himself completely from his past life of ignorance of the Shariah. He would look upon the deeds during his life of ignorance with caution, with a feeling that these were impure deeds intolerable in Islam. With this feeling, he would turn to Islam for new guidance… and would turn to the Qur'an to mold himself according to its guidance.
… This abandonment of the jahili environment, its customs, traditions, ideas & concepts was the result of polytheism being replaced with the concept of pure, true monotheism, of the jahili view of life and the world being replaced by the Islamic view… This was the parting of ways and the start of a new journey – a journey free of the pressures of the values, concepts, and practices of the jahili society."
So, this was what Islam was to them. It was like an electrical current rushing through their entire being, rearranging the lifestyle and mindset they had in jahiliyyah. If they had never lived in jahiliyyah, they would inspect every major and minor detail of their personalities and evaluate them in light of Islam, and make changes accordingly, no matter how drastic. This was what Islam was to them, and it is the same Islam we have with us today, as we face today's jahiliyyah.
Commenting on a statement attributed to 'Umar bin al-Khattab: "The bonds of Islam will come loose, one by one, so long as one grows up as a Muslim without knowing what jahiliyyah is," Ibn al-Qayyim said:
"Because of this, the Companions were the most knowledgeable of Islam and its details, its methods, and its subjects, and they were the most enthusiastic about it, they loved it the most, struggled the most against its enemies, warning against what contradicted it – all due to their complete knowledge of its opposite. Islam came to them and all of its aspects conflicted with what they were used to. So, their knowledge, love, and struggle for it was greater because of their familiarity with its opposite!
This is like someone who is constricted, sick, poor, afraid, and lonely suddenly being rescued and taken to an environment of relaxation, security, wealth, and prosperity. Such a person will be happier due to what he was previously experiencing."
I've always wished that a student of knowledge in the West would take it upon himself to compile a sort of modern-day version of the classic treatise 'Masa'il al-Jahiliyyah.' When a clear, comprehensive profile is constructed of the 21st century jahiliyyah, it would be much easier to compare/contrast it with Islamic teachings, and thus make it much easier for us to help each other live in this world according to the Sunnah! No doubt, such a compilation would have to touch upon world view/politics, social norms (e.g. physical appearances, Islam vs. jahili), entertainment, family life, education, community, attitudes toward religion in society, use of foul language, role of wealth, health issues, gender issues, racism, sexuality in society, and on and on – all aspects of the 21st century jahiliyyah contrasting with Islam that can be compiled and turned into a 'DO NOT DO' list, in effect making it easier to know and show what TO do, and allowing us to truly appreciate and approach Islam today as the Companions did back then.
As Ibn al-Qayyim said in 'Madarij as-Salikin': "One will never taste the sweetness of faith, and the flavor of truthfulness and certainty, until every last bit of jahiliyyah leaves his heart." This is what the Companions had in mind when they were hesitant to perform the sa'i between as-Safa and al-Marwah.
May Allah be pleased with them, and put us on their path.
