Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Is monarchy/kingship wrong?

بسم الله والحمد لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله ، وبعد

1. If monarchy/kingship is wrong, then why did Allaah تعالى appoint Taaloot as a king?

{And their Prophet said to them, "Indeed Allaah has appointed Taaloot as a king over you."} [Surah al-Baqarah (2): 247]

2. If kingship is wrong then why were Prophets Dawood and Sulaimaan عليهم السلام ruling as kings?

3. If kingship is wrong in itself, then why did the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم not warn against it when he said:

“The Caliphate of Prophecy will last thirty years; then Allaah will give the Kingdom or His Kingdom to anyone He wills.” [Sunan Abu Dawood (4646, 4647) and Sunan al-Tirmidhee (2226) and graded as “Hasan Saheeh” by Shaikh al-Albaanee]

This was a perfect opportunity for the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to warn against monarchy, but he didn't; whereas he صلى الله عليه وسلم clearly warned against being ruled by a woman:

Narrated Abu Bakrah رضي الله عنه: During the battle of Al-Jamaal, Allaah benefited me with a Word (I heard from the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم). When the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم heard the news that the people of the Persia had made the daughter of Khosrau their Queen (ruler), he صلى الله عليه وسلم said: “Never will succeed such a nation as makes a woman their ruler.” [Saheeh al-Bukhaaree (4425, 7099)]

4. What about this Hadeeth? Why did the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم mention Sultaan, instead of Khaleefah?

Ziyaad bin Kusaib Al-`Adawi said: I was with Abu Bakrah رضي الله عنه near the Minbar (pulpit) of Ibn `Amir while he was giving a Khutbah (Friday sermon) wearing a fine garment. Abu Bilaal said: Look at our Ameer wearing clothes of wickedness! So Abu Bakrah said: Be quiet! I heard the Messenger of Allaah صلى الله عليه وسلم saying: “Whoever insults Allaah’s ruler on the earth, Allaah will disgrace him.” [Sunan al-Tirmidhee (2224) and graded as “Saheeh” by Shaikh al-Albaanee]

5. If establishing Khilaafah is the reason why Allaah تعالى sent the Prophets, then why did Yusuf عليه السلام cooperate with the king? Why did he عليه السلام ask to be the guardian of the storehouse instead of working to establish the Khilaafah?

If a ruler/king has done something wrong, then this is a completely different subject.

**No matter what type of rulership it is, the sole purpose is to establish WORSHIP of Allaah:

Messenger of Allaah صلى الله عليه وسلم said: “I have been commanded (by Allaah) to fight people until they testify أن لا إله إلا الله وأن محمدا رسول الله and perform Salaah and pay Zakaah. If they do so, they will have protection of their blood and property from me except when justified by Islaam, and then account is left to Allaah”. [Saheehain]

Allaah’s promise is that whoever establishes His Worship, Allaah will give them authority, make it easy for them to practice their religion and provide them safety. But some people try to do the opposite, saying we will first establish Khilaafah and then we will work on Tawheed. AJEEB!

وَعَدَ اللَّـهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنكُمْ وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ كَمَا اسْتَخْلَفَ الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ دِينَهُمُ الَّذِي ارْتَضَىٰ لَهُمْ وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُم مِّن بَعْدِ خَوْفِهِمْ أَمْنًا ۚ يَعْبُدُونَنِي لَا يُشْرِكُونَ بِي شَيْئًا ۚ وَمَن كَفَرَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَـٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ

{Allaah has promised those among you who believe, and do righteous good deeds, that He will certainly grant them succession to (the present rulers) in the earth, as He granted it to those before them, and that He will grant them the authority to practice their religion, that which He has chosen for them (i.e. Islaam). And He will surely give them in exchange a safe security after their fear (provided) they (believers) WORSHIP Me and do not associate anything (in worship) with Me. But whoever disbelieved after this, they are the Fasiqoon (rebellious, disobedient to Allah). } [Surah al-Noor (24): 55]

1 comment:

  1. One of the major factors which leads the people to believe that the present rulers are Kaafir is because of their ignorance. Many only believe that the only legitimate form of government is Khilaafah.

    No doubt that Khilaafah (Caliphate) is the best, but that does not mean that it is the only form that is permissible in Islaam. There is no text which prohibits or condemns monarchy or kingship. Rather, there are text stating otherwise, as mentioned in the post.

    And all praise is for Allaah alone.

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