An Affliction that Befalls the Ummah is Many Times Worse for the Rest of Humankind

The human is both, an individual and social creature, as such, any affliction has an individual and a social affect upon him. The Qur'an states that the human will be tested with afflictions like old age, torment, thirst, hunger, fatigue, fear, the loss of wealth, life and items. There is also the affliction within the Deen, which is leaving the path of the Deen and violating Allah's orders and restrictions. For example, hesitating on faith matters is the biggest affliction in Deen. Not doing the prayer (salah), not fasting, usury, backbiting and lying is all of an affliction in Deen. So far, all of these were examples of affliction on an individual level. Alongside this, there is affliction on a social level, which affects every person in society, those who fail and those who are innocent, in the same way. Any idea that harms the essence of Islam, which distracts people from Islam is an affliction. Scholars, who fail to speak out the truth; rulers, who do not rule by Islam, are an affliction. Not implementing Islam as a system, kuffar having power and dominance over the Muslims, while banning the system of Allah to history, is all of an affliction. Not being aware of this affliction, or being aware without rejecting it, or even supporting it, is the kind of

[وَمَا أَصَابَكُم مِّن مُّصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ]

“affliction, for what your hands have earned” [Ash-Shurah: 30]. Afflictions on a social level have always been sent to nations due to their sins, their heresy; for refusing, and oppressing their prophets and those who supported the prophets. This kind of affliction has always resulted in the destruction of that nation. The nations of Nuh, Thamud, Lut, are a warning and lesson to humankind.

Today's Coronavirus can be seen as a warning, testing or even punishment of Allah. Hence, a virus, which brings illness or death to an individual, is an affliction for the individual. On the other side, the inadequate medical response and all the erroneous decisions like lock-downs taken by governments due to the virus, which push individuals and societies into economic hardship and destroy the psyche of individuals and society alike, are an affliction of social dimension. Congregational prayers (of every religion), attending funerals, visiting the ill, gathering for births and weddings are vital needs, necessities for every society. Depriving people of these is an affliction of social dimension, which befell not only the Ummah but the entire humankind.

We are witnessing that the predicted harm of the COVID-19 has by far not reached the harm caused by the merciless and senseless governments, who utilized the virus for their own plans. The death tolls have not been as high as they predicted, and hospitals did not exceed their capacities. The number of infected persons is many hundredfold higher than the number of those who became ill. The number of deaths was a thousandth of the expectations. So, the true affliction is the increased and accelerated cruelty towards humankind of the colonialist capitalist powers across the world. More precisely, the true affliction is the deprivation of humankind from the just, merciful and blessed system of Allah the Exalted. Even though Muslims do sense this calamity much more than the rest of humankind, for them it is only a test, which will result in success in this world and the Hereafter. However, the effects of this affliction will last on the non-Muslims in this world and the Hereafter. Thus an affliction that befalls the Muslims is multiple times worse upon the rest of humankind. The great scholar Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya said, "A calamity upon a Believer, is much lighter than the calamity upon a nonbeliever".

For almost a century now, the Muslims and the entire humankind, is suffering under the exploitation, wars, invasions and all kinds of oppression and calamities inflicted by the kufr colonialist powers, just because the Muslim Ummah lost the shield that was to protect itself and humankind against all kinds of afflictions. The abolition of the Khilafah (Caliphate) from the surface of this planet is the biggest affliction on both, the Ummah and the rest of humankind. It is due to this, that the Muslim Ummah, the beacon of humankind, is unable to save itself and humankind from darknesses. In fact, Rasulallah (saw) informed us about the arrival of these days:

«لَيُنْقَضَنَّ عُرَى الْإِسْلَامِ عُرْوَةً عُرْوَةً فَكُلَّمَا انْتَقَضَتْ عُرْوَةٌ تَشَبَّثَ النَّاسُ بِالَّتِي تَلِيهَا وَأَوَّلُهُنَّ نَقْضًا الْحُكْمُ وَآخِرُهُنَّ الصَّلَاةُ»

“The knots of Islam will be undone one by one, each time a knot is undone the next one will be grasped, the first to be undone will be the Ruling and the last will be Prayer.“ (Hakim, Ahmed)

Thus the first knot, our political system was undone, leaving our Deen and us, its members, without protection, robbing us from our Khalifah, our shield. Moreover, throughout the last few months, we have been robbed of our prayers (salah) on the pretext of a simple virus... Of course we continue our individual prayers, but we lost our congregational prayers, our prayers in the form of an entire Muslim society! They robbed us from our Friday Prayers, Taraweeh Prayers and Eid Prayers!!!

Imam Gazali (rh) said in his book, Al-İktisad Fi'l-İtikad: "Religion and State are twins. Thus religion is the foundation and the sultan (ruler) is the guard: that which has no foundation collapses and that which has no guard is lost." This means that whenever the religion of Islam and the ruling of Islam are separated both, the Muslim Ummah and the entire humankind, remain defenceless and vulnerable. In fact, it is obvious for every sane Muslim and non-Muslim today that a handful of globalists seek to minimize the world population. People across the rich capitalist world, including the USA, Britain, Germany and many other European countries, are protesting against being deprived of their freedoms, democracy and even constitution, which they were made to believe in until today. Moreover, their protests are being suppressed by police. These uprisings, which increase in number across the world, are not shown or shown in a distorted way on mainstream media, which is a tool of the ruling governments.

The action and reaction of an individual towards affliction is in the form of pleading to his Lord with invocation and prayer, and to show sabr (patience and steadfastness), as this is what our Lord wants us to do:

[يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱسْتَعِينُوا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ وَٱلصَّلَوٰةِ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ مَعَ ٱلصَّٰبِرِينَ]

“O you who have believed, seek help through patience and prayer. Indeed, Allah is with the patient.” [Al-Baqara: 153].

But this is not a society's action and reaction towards afflictions! The sabr, invocation and plead of a society is in the form of "enjoining the good and forbidding the evil" to the rulers. A society's sabr is calling the rulers to renounce from the kufr systems and instead to rule with what Allah has revealed! A society's reaction towards afflictions is through its struggle to change what is harmful and the causes of the faultiness within itself. This struggle is an obligation upon the Muslim society and it is the crown of all obligations! When Allah (swt) says in Surah Ar-Ra’d 11,

[إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا۟ مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ]

“Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” He (swt) orders the Muslim society to change itself. Thus, as long the Muslim society does not remove the causes of the disorder in itself, Allah will not remove the afflictions upon it, and will not enable it to become the saviour of humankind.

Oh Muslims! It is Islam, that will dispel all kinds of afflictions! It is Islam, that cures all kinds of illnesses, and puts an end to slaughter, invasions, poverty, helplessness, cowardice, loneliness, abandonment, despair, treason, etc! This Ummah holds the prescription with the remedy against selfish and merciless rulers who only serve the interests of a handful of capitalists! Islam is the only power, the only hand, the only fist that is able to rescue humankind from the clutches of ignorance and Kufr!

[ٱلْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّكَ فَلَا تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ ٱلْمُمْتَرِينَ]

“The truth is from your Lord, so never be among the doubters!” [Al-Baqarah: 147]

 Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by

Zehra Malik

Member of the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir

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