A Book Review by
Alexander Abu Bakar Stark
71686 Remseck, Germany
(MA Sociology at Heidelberg University in Germany and MA Islamic Studies Graduate)
In the Name of Allah,
the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful.
Praise
is to Allah Whom we ask for help and forgiveness. We seek the
protection of Allah from the sins of ourselves and our deeds. No one can
misguide whom He guides and whom He does not guide will never find a
guide.
I testify that there is no God but Allah, the One with no partner, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.
It is a great pleasure for me to write a book review about the book: “Da’wah
according to the Qur’an and Sunnah“ written by Dr. Norlain Dindang
Mababaya and published by Darussalam Publications 1998: Riyadh Saudi
Arabia.
We
can find this book in many Islamic bookstores. For example I bought it
at one shop in the holy city of Makkah. But I have seen it in many other
book shops, for example I have even found it at the airport bookshop of
Kuala Lumpur airport. This is already an indication of the importance
of that book.
First
I want to write about the author. The name of the author is Dr. Norlain
Dindang Mababaya. Now she prefers to write her name by using her kunya:
Dr. Norlain bint Muhammad Dindang. However if we want to quote from
this book it is more correct to use the first mentioned name. I will use
the neutral name Dr. Norlain which comprise both.
Dr.
Norlain obtained her doctoral degree in Educational Administration with
a dissertation entitled: “Correlates of Aspirations of Muslim
Filipinos: Implications for Education and other Government Policies“ at
the University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City in the year 1982
(page 198). This dissertation shows that Dr. Norlain is a specialist in
the field of education and if we want to make da’wah then we
have to educate the people. We must teach them the correct belief,
behavior, etc. In the year 1984 she moved to the city of residence of
her husband Dr. Mamarinta Omar Mababaya (Riyadh – Saudi Arabia). Her
husband is also an active da’ee and writer of various Islamic
books and articles. Now Dr. Norlain lives in Riyadh together with her
husband and her 3 children (page 198). Whilst she lived in Riyadh she
began to improve her Islamic knowledge by studying at various lectures.
She became very active in the field of da’wah and wrote many
books. All these books are based on authentic sources like the Qur’an
and Sunnah. Probably her most important work is the book about da’wah because
it is as far as I know the only publication about this topic in
English. Maybe there are also a few other publications but the book
which was written by Dr. Norlain is the only book which is based on
authentic sources. Now Dr. Norlain is making da’wah also via
internet. She is a Professor at the Wisom International Schools of
Higher Education Studies (WISHES). It is a fantastic way to make da’wah worldwide.
Now
let’s look at the structure of the book. In order to get a better
overview we should look at the table of contents and so we will be able
to understand the way of the argumentation:
- Da’wah: Its Rationale and Benefits
- Da’wah for All Mankind
- Da’wah based on the Qur’an and Sunnah: A Must for Success.
- The Characteristics and Manners expected of Du’at
- Inviting with Hikmah and beautiful Preaching.
- Present the fundamental or best teachings of Islam and refrain from nonsense talking.
- Patience and Perseverance.
- Constancy
- Moderation
- Value of time
- Remembrance of Death, the Grave and the Hereafter
- Belief in the Day of Judgement as well as the Rewards and Punishments in the Hereafter.
- Adherence to a well-balanced Way of Life and Preference for the Eternal Life in Paradise.
- Giving Glad Tidings to Muslims and Warnings to Non-Muslims.
- Modesty
- Respecting People’s Freedom of Religion
- Seeking Allah’s Forgiveness and Repentance
- Practicing Islam wholeheartedly
- Encouraging Fellow Muslims to practice Islam wholeheartedly and do Da’wah.
- Conclusions and Recommendations
If we look at this table of contents then we can see that it is well-structured. The first thing we must know is that da’wah is necessary and that the da’ee will be rewarded by Allah (s.w.t.). Da’wah is a commandment from Allah (s.w.t.):
“Invite
(all) to the way of your Rabb with wisdom and and beautiful preaching;
and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious, for your
Rabb knows best, who have strayed from His path and who receive
guidance.” (Qur’an 16:125)
There are also other verses which show that da’wah is important. For example:
“You
are the best of people, evolved for mankind. You enjoin what is right,
forbid what is wrong, and believe in Allah...” (Qur’an 3:110).
And there are also proofs which can be found in the authentic collections of ahadith. For example the following:
Sahl
bin Sa’d (r.a.) narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.) said, “Be
patient till you face them (i.e.the infidels) and invite them to Islam
and inform them of what Allah has enjoined upon them. By Allah! If a
single person embraces Islam at your hands (i.e. through you) that will
be better for you than the red camels.” (Bukhari)
Abu
Mas’ud Al Ansari (r.a.) narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.)
said, “... One who guides to something good has a reward similar to that
of its doer.” (Muslim)
The reader of the book of Dr.Norlain will be impressed by the quotation of many other ahadith. And she also mentions exactly where we can find them. Usually the ahadith are often quoted like above but if the reader wants to use them he can just see that these ahadith
can be found in the collection of Imam Bukhari or Imam Muslim. So the
reader must search on his own where he can find one special hadith. But Dr. Norlain uses a more exact way. She mentions that the first quoted hadith can be found in Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 4, No.192 and in Vol. 5, No.51 and the second hadith can
be found in Sahih Muslim Vol.5, No. 4665. This kind of quotation is
very useful for the students of knowledge. They can easily search the ahadith
and then look at the explanations for example in Fath al Bari by Ibn
Hajar or in Sharh Sahih Muslim by An-Nawawi. But for the normal reader
it is also useful as a clear source of the narration will improve their
certainty. So we can conclude: the way of quotation which is used by Dr.
Norlain is useful for both the “normal” interested reader and the
students.
In the next chapter the writer gives many proofs that da’wah is a must and that da’wah will lead to success. But it is also necessary that da’wah
is based on the Qur’an and Sunnah. Dr. Norlain differentiates between
different fields of interaction. The first group we have to educate is
our family. The family is the group which is very important. After our
death our children will make dua for us. If our family lives in a
good Islamic way then this will motivate us to teach other groups as
well. So after that we should make da’wah to our relatives, neighbours and friends, towards the local community, our country and finally on the international level.
After we have learnt that da’wah is
a must then we should know that we have to follow the way of the
Prophet (s.a.w.s.). Otherwise we will easily fall into innovations.
Narrated
Abdullah bin Amr bin Al As (r.a.) that Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.)
said, “There will befall my Ummah exactly (all those) evils which befell
the people of Isra’el; so much so that if there was one amongst them
who openly committed fornication with his mother, there will be among my
Ummah one who will do that. And if the people of Isra’el were
fragmented into seventy-two sects my Ummah will be fragmented into
seventy-three sects. All of them will be in Hell-Fire except one sect.
They (the Companions) said, ‘Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.! Which is
that?‘ Whereupon he said, ‘It is one to which I and my Companions
belong.’” (Tirmidhi)
Jabir
bin Abdullah (r.a.) narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.) said,
“The best speech is that embodied in the Book of Allah, and the best
guidance is the guidance given by Muhammad (s.a.w.s.). The most evil
affairs are their innovations, and every innovation is an error.”
(Muslim)
After that the author explains in many details how the person who intends to make da’wah
should be. Such a person should possess special features and
characteristics. The writer wants to stress that if we want to make da’wah
then we must be honest and trustworthy. For example we should not
preach that the prayer is important but in fact we don’t pray. This is a
wrong way to make da’wah. There are many persons who say that
the believers must pray in the mosque but they sit in the coffee house
during the prayer time. Such a way to make da’wah would be bad
and useless. The people would think that we speak meaningless words.
Therefore the first thing we must try to improve is our character.
Abdullah
bin Amr Al-As narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.) said,.”..The
best among you are those who have the best manners and characters.”
(Bukhari)
Abu
Darda (r.a.) narrated that the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said, “There is
nothing heavier than good character put in the scale of a believer on
the Day of Resurrection.” (Abu Dawud)
The
author differentiates between different levels of Muslims. Many Muslims
are just nominal Muslims. They usually commit sins, they don’t pray,
they don’t fast during Ramadan etc. Therefore it is important to make da’wah
towards them in order to improve their belief. So the next level are
the practising Muslims and inside this group there are different levels
too: Muslimon, Mu’minon and Muhsinon. The Muslimon are practising Islam. They act according to the five pillars of Islam while the Muhsinon
have achieved the highest level of faith. They worship Allah and are
always aware that He (s.w.t.) is looking at us. We can add that the
believers of the highest level of faith perform nawafil prayers and live according to the Sunnah. One aim of da’wah is to show how to behave as an ideal Muslim and the Du’at should
possess this personality. Therefore Dr.Norlain describes many important
features. The first important feature is sincerity towards Allah
(s.w.t.). We must have the right intention otherwise we won’t get a
reward which will help us in the Hereafter.
Umar
bin Al-Khatab(r.a.) narrated, I heard Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.)
saying: “The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions and every
person will get the reward according to what he has intended....”
(Bukhari)
This hadith is very important and so Imam Bukhari rahimahullah decided that it should be written as the first one in his vast collection.
After
that the writer mentions other important characteristics: we should be
grateful towards Allah (s.w.t.), we should have trust in Allah (s.w.t.),
we must have faith, we must have fear and hope of Allah. So we can
state that this chapter explains the ideal believer. We must be faithful
and then Allah (s.w.t.) will help us in our efforts to make da’wah. If Allah (s.w.t.) loves us then everything will be easy:
Abu
Hurairah (r.a.) narrated that Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.) said, “If
Allah has loved a servant (of His), He calls Jibril (a.s.) and says,“I
love so-and-so, therefore love him. He said, ‘so Jibril loves him.‘ Then
he calls out in heaven saying,‘Allah loves so-and-so, therefore love
him.‘ And the inhabitants of heaven love him. He said, ‘Then acceptance
is established for him on earth.‘ And if Allah has abhorred a sevant (of
His), He calls Jibril and says,‘I abhor so-and-so, therefore abhor
him.‘ So Jibril abhors him. Then he calls out to the inhabitants of
heaven,‘Allah abhors so-and-so, therefore abhor him‘. He said, ‘ So they
abhor him‘, and abhorrence is established for him on earth..” (Bukhari
& Muslim)
Such a hadith will surely motivate us to behave good so that Allah (s.w.t.) will love us. There are plenty of other ahadith
which are quoted by the author and which show us how we should behave.
We should be kind, love each other for the sake of Allah (s.w.t.) etc.
All these character traits are preconditions before we engage in da’wah.
If we are certain that our religion is the truth and that the people
will trust us then we can start to deliver certain speeches. But before
we begin to speak we should make dua because only Allah (s.w.t.) can help us to be good in da’wah.
“…O
my Rabb! Expand my breast. Ease my task for me; and remove the
impediment from my speech, so they may understand what I say.” (Qur’an
20:25-28)
Then
we should speak with confidence but at the same time we must be kind
and use a good language. Dr. Norlain mentions many practical advices how
to be a good du‘at. And therefore her book is unique. There is
no other book which delivers such practical advices. For example we
should not engage in vain discussions and debates:
Abu
‘Umamah (r.a.) narrated that the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said, “No one who
once found the right way, ever goes astray except through dispute.“ Then
Allah’s Messenger (s.a.w.s.) recited this verse,“They set forth to you
only by way of disputation. Nay! But they are cautious people (Qur’an
43:58).” (Tirmidhi)
So
Dr. Norlain stresses the importance to be careful in public debates
especially in seminars involving comparative religions(page108). And
this is an important advice. It is true that a kind of competition
between religions create an unfriendly atmosphere with many suspicions
and troubles. Therefore Dr. Norlain recommends that we should be
prepared and that we have to follow a certain strategy. She writes: “We
have to plan how to do da’wah to various kinds of people coming from different backgrounds. We need to plan especially if we are organizing da’wah
for groups through lectures or seminars. We have to plan ahead of time,
plan for the theme, topics, venue, time participants ....”(page 100).
This kind of practical advice is fantastic and therefore it is
recommended for everyone who wants to be active in da’wah to read
this book. As we have seen in the above-mentioned quotation the style
of Dr. Norlain is easy and helpful for us. The aim of the book is not to
have a theoretical discussion about da’wah but to deliver a
practical advice. After that Dr. Norlain bint Muhammad Dindang explains
in detail what we should teach. The first thing are the fundamentals of
Islam ,i.e., the five pillars: shahada – salah – zakah – sawm-hajj. Every pillar has ist own regulations and rules. For example our prayer will be void without wudu or without praying in the direction of the qiblah.
But we should also teach the parts which are strongly recommended by
the Sunnah. Dr. Norlain writes: “When prayer is performed in
congregation, it promotes a bond of brotherhood, unity and equality
among Muslim worshippers.” (page 114). Here she stresses the wisdom of
the congregational prayer. We will know that we are living in an
universal brotherhood without racism or nationalism. The listeners will inshaAllah
understand this point and see the beautiful way of Islam. But there
will be burdens too. Maybe the listeners want that we join their useless
discussions, maybe they attack us verbally etc. Dr. Norlain bint
Muhammad Dindang concentrates her view on public speaking. It would be a
good idea if she is going to add a chapter about da’wah via
Internet. (Now she is very active in doing that with her homepage, may
Allah (s.w.t.) protect her). But whether we write articles or speak in
the public we should be aware that there are enemies. Sometimes these
enemies attack us verbally or even physically. Especially at this it
time can be difficult. I will mention one example which I know: about
one and a half year ago there was a lecture in a room besides a mosque.
Some Salafi brothers attended these lectures and studied the 40 Hadith
of An Nawawi. Some weeks later the Imam of the mosque came and said that
this group must leave the place because the Sunnah clothes of the
brothers would be suspicious and the mosque doesn’t want to have
problems. So the group moved to another mosque. In that mosque the group
attended the lecture of a famous Salafi scholar. He taught fiqh and aqeedah but after some months the local government decided to deport the scholar and so it became more and more difficult to make da’wah. Dr. Norlain mentions that we have to be patient. Allah (s.w.t.) says:
“O
you who believe! Persevere in patience and constancy, vie in such
perseverence; strengthen each other, and fear Allah; that you may be
successful.” (Qur’an 3:200)
Here I want to add: many scholars say that it is allowed lto live in the land of the unbelievers if the Muslims make da’wah. I remember one lecture of Shaikh Albani (“Residing in the land of the Kuffar“
which is available in every good bookstore) and one of the listeners
said that he is living in Holland and teaches at an Islamic school so it
should be allowed to live there. But the Shaikh said that this is not
true as the narrations are clear. It would be more important to change
the Islamic societies. So I want to stress that da’wah should be made with public speeches in Islamic countries. And the way to make da’wah in
non-Islamic countries is to publish books, homepages etc. Dr. Norlain
bint Muhammad Dindang mentions that these other ways of making da’wah are allowed. She writes: “It is part of Hikmah
to use other possible means to invite both non-practicing Muslims and
non-Muslims by appealing to their interests or needs. Examples of these
are writing, publishing and distributing books and other reading
materials on Islam and using modern public media such as radio,
television and the Internet.” (page 142). She does not explain in detail
how to make that, but this remark is very important. Sometimes the
people are shy to attend Islamic lectures. In many Islamic countries the
young people think that Islam is old-fashioned. They want to be “cool“
kids. So if we ask them to come to the mosque they will say “I can’t
come because my friends would laugh at me.” I know such a case. The
young man wants to be good but the friends prevent that. So what can we
do? We can give him books and inshaAllah this will motivate him to
become good. I could mention many other cases. Especially in kufr
societies there are many brothers who are afraid because of the local
government. In such a hostile environment the internet is very useful.
The people can enter Islamic chatrooms, download books, etc. Da’wah is
something which needs a lot of time. We can not change the society with
just a few lectures. The process will be slow. Sometimes we will be
frustrated and sometimes we will be highly motivated. Therefore we
should remember the following narration as it stresses the importance of
constant deeds:
Narrated
Aisha (r.a.) that the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) was asked, “What deeds are
loved most by Allah?“ He said, “The most regular constant deeds even
though they may be few.” He added, “Don’t take upon yourselves, except
the deeds which are within your ability.” (Bukhari)
Step by step we should make da’wah. This is well-explained in the famous hadith of Mu’adh bin Jabal who was sent to Yemen:
Narrated
Abdullah bin Abbas (r.a.) when Allah’s Messengers sent Mu’adh bin Jabal
(r.a.) to Yemen, he said (to him),“You are going to people of the Book.
First of all invite them to worship Allah (alone); and when they come
to know Allah, inform them that Allah has enjoined on them five prayers
in every day and night; and if they start offering these prayers, inform
them that Allah has enjoined on them the Zakat. And it is to be taken
from the rich amongst them and given to the poor amongst them; and if
they obey you in that, take Zakat from them and avoid (don’t take) the
best property of the people as Zakat.” (Bukhari)
This narration makes clear how to make da’wah. The people should first learn more about tawheed and then study the five pillars of Islam. In the famous hadith of Jibril (a.s.) it is mentioned that we also must learn the pillars of Iman.
We can not teach all this in just a few lectures. This would be to
difficult for the normal people. And they would easily become
frustrated. We must encourage especially the new Muslims to become
practicing believers. Unfortunately there are so many converts who never
pray. The reason is that there is nobody who will teach them the basic
rules. Therefore da’wah means also to help the new converts. There is no place for nationalism in the field of da’wah. Both the du’at and
the listeners must be aware that the life in this world is nothing
compared with the life in the hereafter. Soon we have to die but we
don’t know when. Dr. Norlain stresses at the end of her book to learn
more about death and the punishment in the grave. This will motivate us
because we will be eager to make many good deeds. Allah (s.w.t.) says:
“Every
soul shall have a taste of death. And on the Day of Resurrection shall
you be paid your full recompense. And whoever is saved far from the Fire
and admitted to the Garden (Paradise) will have succeeded. And the life
of this world is nothing but goods and chattels of deception.” (Qur’an 3:185)
InshaAllah, such verses will motivate us to learn more about Islam and finally we can organize our own lectures.
At
the end of this book review I want to ask: How can we use this book?
There is no question that this book is fantastic and important but we
should ask ourselves how can we use it. First we must say that it is
useful for everyone who wants to learn more about the field of da’wah and
second this book should be part of the Islamic curriculums. I think the
students of Islam should study it in order to be able to make da’wah on
their own. It is necessary to use the e-book of Dr. Norlain bint
Muhammad Dindang about public speeking as well. This book is important
as it teaches how to make a public speech for example what kind of
invocation we should use at the beginning and the end of a speech.
Therefore I strongly recommend that every Islamic school or mosque
should possess one copy of the book of Dr. Norlain bint Muhammad
Dindang. And of course there are also other books which are highly
useful in our way to make da’wah for example the books of Maulana
Maudoodi or Muhammad Qutb. But the book of Dr. Norlain teaches us how
to use our knowledge in the best way.
The
above book review is about the printed version which was published by
Darussalam Publications. Meanwhile Dr. Norlain bint Muhammad Dindang
published an e-book version which she uses in the Islamic studies of
WISHES (Wisdom International School of Higher Educational Studies). In
this book Dr. Norlain also integrated other important articles and books
which should be learnt in order to be successful in the field of da’wah. The e-book comprises the following books and articles:
- Introduction to the Salafi Da’wah
- Dr.Norlain bint Muhammad Dindang: Da’wah according to the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
- Abdul Aziz Abdullah bin Baz: Inviting towards Allah and the Qualities of the Caller.
- Ibn Taymiyyah: Enjoining Right and Forbidding Wrong.
- Ubayd al Jaabiree: Questions and answers concerning ad-Da’watus-Salafiyyah.
The
biggest and most detailed book is the book of Dr. Norlain bint Muhammad
Dindang. In the e-book version she added many important and useful
articles at the end. For example we can learn more about the prayer or
how to organize a lecture. These additions are very useful and help the duat
in their work. But there are also some additions which were added in
the book itself. For example Dr. Norlain added one chapter about
self-evaluation which is really impressing. We should ask ourselves
whether our prayer was good, i.e., with khushoo or whether our
intention was correct. We have to evaluate ourselves in order to correct
our mistakes. In the e-book version there are some important and
motivating additions (for example it is mentioned how a non-Muslim can
become a Muslim) and therefore I hope this version will be soon
available in the bookstore. But in the e-book we can also read the
article “Introduction to the Salafi Da’wah.” This article is very useful
in order to learn the basics. We learn why the Salafis are the best
group. The Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said:
“The best of people is my generation, then those who come after them, then those who come after them.” (Bukhari and Muslim)
Of course the best of the Prophets was Muhammad (s.a.w.s.). We should know that da’wah is fard khifaya (a communal obligation). If there is someone of the community who makes da’wah then this is sufficient but if nobody makes that then da’wah
becomes an obligation for every individual. We must know that we
Muslims are the best community and so we have to teach the truth to
others. If there are only a few du’at then this will lead to jahiliyah. So we should know what Allah (s.w.t.) says:
“Invite
(all) to the Way of your Rabb with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and
argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious, for your Rabb
knows best, who have strayed from His Path, and He is the best Aware of
those who receive guidance.” (Qur’an 16:125)
In this ayah Allah(s.w.t) explains how to make da’wah.
Shaikh Bin Baz mentions that we should be patient and should not be too
hard. Only if the enemies are attacking us then we are also allowed to
be hard towards them. Da’wah means to call to the right way and not to call the people to follow a certain madhab. The most important thing to which we should call the people is tawheed. At the end of his article the Shaikh mentions what qualities the du’at should
possess:1) Sincerety: Our actions must be for the sake of Allah
(s.w.t.) 2)Knowledge:Only if we have some knowledge we should preach
otherwise the enemies of Islam could be successful.3)Excellent
character: We should be tolerant, patient etc.
We can conclude that the text of Shaikh Bin Baz is a good introduction to da’wah. The text is short in order to concentrate on the essentials.
In the e-book we can also find a book of Shaik-ul Islam Ibn Taymiyyah
with the title: “Enjoining Right and Forbidding Wrong.” First I want to
mention that all the books of Ibn Taymiyyah are excellent because of his
deep knowledge. This book is about the topic“Enjoining Right and
Forbidding wrong.” Allah says:
“You
are the best nation brought forth for the people of the world: you
enjoin right and you forbid wrong, and you believe in Allah.” (Qur’an 3:110)
Many other ayat and ahadith were mentioned by the Shaikh but first he explains the terms ma’ruf (right) and munkar (wrong). Ma’ruf are all the things which are ordered by the Qur’an and the Sunnah. For example the 5 pillars of Islam and the 6 pillars of Iman.
Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) gave us orders about our way of living, for example
how to sleep, how to eat etc. All these things are good as they are
parts of the Sunnah. We should teach such acts in order to revive the
Sunnah. On the other side there are acts which are munkar. Such acts comprise innovations, polytheism etc. So the du’at must have knowledge in order to know what is right and wrong. And then we can make da’wah.
“Whoever
of you sees wrong being committed, let him rectify it with his hand, if
he is unable, then with his tongue, and if he is unable, then with his
heart, and this is the weakest of faith.”
As we can see in the above-quoted hadith it
is not mentioned where we can find it: is it mentioned in the
collection of Bukhari or Tirmidhi? The student of knowledge will have
some difficulties in using such narrations. Of course we can trust Ibn
Taymiyyah but it would be better if the translator would mention the
source. But let’s have a look at our subject again. The Shaikh mentions
that there are 2 groups who behave wrong. The first group does not care
about the obligation to forbid the wrong and enjoin the right and the
second group is deficient in their aqeedah and so they act in a bad way like the khawarij or the rafidah.
The second group opposes the Islamic government but this is not
allowed. The problem is that they follow their own inclinations and
self. This is the concept of hawaa.
“And who is more astray than the one who follows his hawaa without any guidance from Allah?” (Qur’an 28:50)
So the Shaikh explains in deatail the meaning of hawaa. He mentions many ahadith and ayat in order to stress the danger of hawaa.
All our actions and feelings must be in accordance of the Qur’an and
Sunnah. We are not allowed to follow our own lusts. We must check
whether our behavior and belief is in accordance with the Sunnah. I will
give an example: For men it is not allowed to wear trousers below the
ankles. So if we know that and we still wear other trousers because we
think the Sunnah clothes are old-fashioned or bad then we follow our hawwa and such a behavior is dangerous:
“And
do not follow your hawaa such that it leads you astray from the path of
Allah. For those who go astray from the path of Allah there awaits a
terrible punishment.” (Qur’an 38:26)
In
the former times many tribes were destroyed because they followed the
evil. We know the destiny of the people of Ad or Thamud. In order to
avoid this we must know that all we love and hate must be in accordance
with the order of Allah (s.w.t.) and His Prophet (s.a.w.s.). Therefore
Ibn Taimiyyah stresses the importance of righteous deeds. And we must
know that righteous deeds are acts of obedience which are mentioned in
the Qur’an and Sunnah. So if we want to make da’wah we must possess three preconditions: knowledge, compassion and patience. Without knowledge we can’t make da’wah as
we must know what is right and wrong. Without knowledge it could be
possible that we support the evil. Compassion is necessary because the
Prophet s.a.w.s.) said:
“Compassion does not enter into anything without beautifying it, and is not removed from anything without making it ugly.” (Muslim)
Finally we must be patient:
“And be patient, as the firmly-intentioned Prophets were patient.” (Qur’an 46:35)
We must possess these qualities in order to become good du’at.
In
the following chapters the Shaikh explains in detail the character of
the human soul. There are desires, like envy which are inside the human
self. Such desires are dangerous especially the geedy desire. The
Prophet (s.a.w.s.) said:
“Beware
of shuhh(greedy desire), for verily it destroyed those who came before
you. It ordered them to be miserly and they were miserly, it ordered
them to commit oppression and they oppressed and it ordered them to cut
family ties and they cut family ties.”
In order to learn more about the nature of sins Ibn Taymiyyah writes: ...“sins are of three types:
1) Sins
which entail oppression of others, such as taking of peoples property,
or denying them their rights, or envy others (of the greater type) etc.
2) Sins
which entail only oppression of one’s self, such as drinking
intoxicants, and fornication when its harm does not affect others.
3) Sins
which entail both of the above, such as an Amir or ruler who takes the
people’s property so that he can use it for fornication or using
intoxicants, or other crimes…”
So there are also 3 types of people:
I) People
who are not contented with the things they possess. If they have the
possibility to get more they will follow an evil way and become a part
of the evil.
II) Religious and pious people who are always satisfied.
III) People which combine the above-mentioned character traits.
The
Shaikh concludes that there are three types of the human soul. The
first group of people is always following the evil (Ammara), the second
group is at peace (Mut’ma’inna) and the third group is sometimes
following the evil and desires (Lawwaaamah). We must know this if we
want to make da’wah. We must enjoin the right towards group I and III.
But if we want to be successful we should belong to the pious group of
people. But Ibn Taymiyyah stresses one important factor: The peer group:
if many people behave in a sinful way then the soul wants to be sinful
too. He writes: “This is why there are so many people who never aspire
to good nor to evil until they see someone else – especially among those
they view as ‘peers‘ – doing a particular action.” We can conclude that
enjoining right in an Islamic society is much easier than in an
un-Islamic society. The sinners want that many people are sinning so
that their soul feels tranquil. It is the duty of the du’at to prevent
that. We must show the evil intention of the sinful peer group. We must
improve our own character and convince our brothers and sisters to make
good works. Ibn Taymiyyah writes that miserliness and cowardice are sins
which are often mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah. Therefore, we must
improve ourselves although there are many temptations, for example
jihad: many people are afraid and seek reasons not to participate in it.
But the scholars and the rulers must show that the life in the
hereafter is much better than the life in this world. And they must also
make clear that a pure intention is necessary so that our deeds will be
accepted by Allah (s.w.t.). At the end of his book Ibn Taymiyyah
defines righteous actions: “Righteous action is the doing of
good...i.e., the doing of righteous deeds, and righteous deeds are those
which Allah has ordered us to do.” And we should really try to follow
the orders of Allah (s.w.t.) in order to be successful both in this
world and in the hereafter. The book of Ibn Taymiyyah is a book which is
written for the people who already know the basics of Islam. The style
and the way of argumentation is not easy and it is useful to read the
book at least twice.
The
last article of the e-book is about. “Questions and Answers Concerning
Ad-Dawatus Salafiyyah“ by Al Allaamah ‘Ubayd al-Jaabiree.” The article
contains some questions about the da'wah of the Salaf. And it is a good
collection as we can get a deeper undertanding about that subject. We
learn that the da’wah is the pure and right way as it is the way of the
Prophets and the righteous scholars. But we also learn things which are
very special like tawhid al haakimiyah. The style is good an precise and
it is nice to read it.
Concluding Remark:
The
whole e-book is a good and deep introduction into the subject of
da’wah. The book of Dr. Norlain Khadija bint Muhammad Dindang is a good
introduction and the book of Ibn Taymiyyah is good for a deeper
understanding. The other articles show us other important details about
that subject. And so it would be great if this ebook is going to be
printed so that many students could study it.
~May Allah the Most Merciful accept all our good deeds
and grant us a beautiful entry to Firdaus/Heaven near Him and His Noble Messenger Muhammad sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam. Ameen.
