Dawah Movements and Extreme Attitudes
[Ilyas] My next question is regarding preaching and
the different religious and social missions and movements.
A large number of people are associated with these movements.
And it has been seen that sometimes they ignore the official duties
that are their primary responsibility and focus all their attention
on religious preaching and the movement.
My question is this: has Islam defined any limits or conditions
for a person’s involvement in this matter
to what degree one can put one’s abilities into it
and to what degree must one focus on one's own responsibilities.
With respect to Islamic movements, people usually give the example of the Companions
that they left their households, gave away all their wealth,
and we too must step forward and do everything to serve and to assist Islam.
[Javed Ahmad Ghamidi] These are two distinct matters.
One is your everyday life and that must be lived in a balanced manner.
You have your family, your parents, your kids, and your friends and relatives
and you must render what is due to them.
And one must not overstep the boundaries of the natural order created by Allah.
Nothing can be greater than the teachings of the Prophet (pbuh) and
the model and example he set for us.
And this is the model: people got married, they had kids,
they gave their rights of their relatives
and fulfilled their responsibilities toward them.
In fact, beyond that, with their friends and acquaintances
they did whatever good deeds were possible to do.
And this is the right thing to do because the foundation
of human society rests on it.
You know the degree to which our religion emphasizes on maintaining kinship ties.
And it has been said that the person who does not maintain relations with his kin,
or who breaks relations with his kin, he, in fact,
disrupts the order created by Allah.
Therefore, your children, your parents,
and your family are a part of the scheme created by Allah.
And one must not, at any point, in any manner interfere with the scheme.
Rather, whatever service you are rendering,
or if you are learning about religion,
or you are a student, you need to put everything in its right place
and proceed with balance and moderation in whatever you have to do.
This is the first and fundamental point.
Beyond this, there may, at times, develop an emergency situation.
In such a scenario, it is demanded of you to actively sacrifice and show generosity.
However, did such a demand [for sacrifice] emerge as a necessity
in the life of the Prophet (pbuh)?
In the famous story from the Prophet’s (pbuh) life,
when Umar (ra) presented half of his wealth
and Abu Bakr (ra) presented all if it,
the Prophet (pbuh) inquired if they had left something for their families.
Thus, the Prophet (pbuh) turned their attention (and ours)
toward the fact that one must always fulfill one’s responsibilities.
Even though, it was a situation of great alarm!
If there was a drought in the society or a plague has spread through it
in such situations, we empty our houses and give away everything we have.
Thus, these are two totally different scenarios.
A sage once commented on this matter – and his comment, in fact, pertained to the
organizational structure of a specific Islamic party – and he said:
“If you make war-like demands of people under ordinary circumstances,
you are starting a fight against nature”.
Therefore, one point is what you have to do in the ordinary circumstances?
In the ordinary circumstances, people should be taught
to live with moderation and balance.
And the conversation should be guided by
the principle fixed by Allah for rights and responsibilities…
Toward the end of Surah al-Anfal the relationships are mentioned
and their nature and place along a gradual continuum are specified.
It is fixed in Allah’s Book!
Therefore, the primary responsibility that you have pertains
to your family, your relatives and friends, and your neighbors, etc.
And along with this, with Allah’s grace, you may also serve Islam and
invite people to Allah.
Similarly, if, for instance, someone wants to make inviting other people to Islam,
or teaching and learning of Islam, or writing about Islam
the main task of his life…
then it should not be the case that he replaces his friends and family
with this task.
No, it should be slotted in the place for making a living…
simply because everybody has to struggle for making a living.
If Allah creates some means for him, he can give all his time to the task.
And when we look at the life of the great elders in our tradition,
they too had a similar approach.
It is quite different, however, if someone to follow his passion,
whether it is science or business, refuses to marry…
What does it mean?
It means that a responsibility that Allah had kept in his control,
he refused to shoulder that responsibility.
And this is, of course, not something which is admirable.
However, under certain conditions, it can be tolerated.
Nonetheless, despite the decision, what is one going to do about
the relationships ordained by Allah?
There are the parents; there are siblings; and friends and family.
You, of course, cannot bid farewell to them.
However, if, suppose, you get married: a woman has become
the part of your household and now she has some rights over you.
You have to fulfill them under all circumstances.
To reason that since I am leaving to serve Islam, now Allah
would Himself take care of my family.
The question is Allah has put the responsibility on your shoulders!
So, you are leaving to serve Allah in His own task,
while overlooking the responsibility he has put on your shoulders.
Therefore, we must serve Allah’s religion with poise and
we must also follow our interests.
And when you hurt this balance, you trample on people’s rights
and commit injustice.
And it produces such disturbance in the society
and in culture that when its results become clear, one realizes that
Allah’s law is the most appropriate law.
[Ilyas] Alright, Ghamidi Sahib, please briefly clarify one last aspect.
Oftentimes it has been seen, especially because of the mobile phones,
that while people are apparently spending time with their families,
they keep listening to religious sermons, lectures,
or something or the other on their phones.
So, this phenomenon of being absent while being present
too is trampling on one’s family members’ rights, is it not?
[Ghamidi] Absolutely, there is no doubt about it.
In fact, it has other bad consequences and effects as well.
In this matter, one should try to fix some time for oneself.
And if one cannot fix it in one domain,
if there is some unavoidable responsibility,
they must do it in the other.
In other words, one must specify, for instance, that one has
to give this period of time to one’s kids, that period to one’s family, etc.
They have rights over us.
It are not a matter of gratuitousness that you would do it if you like
and forego if you do not.
When a man gets married, the rights of the wife are instituted.
As soon as a woman gets married, the rights of the husband are instituted.
What style does Allah adopt in the Quran? Walla’hunna mislul’lazi allaihi’nna…
Just as there are duties on women, similarly they have rights as well.
And the same goes for men.
So, these rights have to be fulfilled under all circumstances
because the Quran refers to trampling people’s rights as ithm (sin).
It is totally unlawful and forbidden.
So, in order to fulfil your obligations, you need to fix a time, you must do it.
If you need to spend your wealth, you must prioritize it.
This is the religion made by Allah.
We cannot amend it according to our whims.
And we shouldn’t even dignify such arguments with your attention,
that if you are part of a religious movement and
if you dedicated yourself to it,
now you can choose not to procreate, or ignore your parents’
and your wife’s rights over you, or cut off relations with your kinsfolk.
Respectfully, I would say that it is totally against Islam.