Islam as an Ideology
Muhammad Murshid-Aalam
Islam as an Ideology
An exploration into the comprehensive framework
ARTICLES
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
,والصلاة والسلام على سيد المرسلين
,اللهمّ اغفر المسلمين والمسلمات، والمؤمنين والمؤمنات، الأحياء منهم والأموات
:اما بعد
Islam cannot be considered like other religions. Allah (swt) says in the Quran,
“This day I have perfected for you your deen (way of life) and completed My favour upon you and have approved for you Islam as deen (way of life).”
(Surah Al-Ma’idah, 5:3)
It is not befitting to understand Islam as a mere religion like Christianity or Judaism or Hinduism, but rather an ideology that encompasses, all aspects of life, provides answers to the fundamental questions of man life and the universe, governance and politics, a way of spreading the message as well as spirituality and individual conduct. When realising that Islam is a complete way of life, it cannot be said that Islam is like any other religion, as by doing so, it takes away from the majesty of Allah (swt) and leads to suggestions that Allah (swt) sent the Prophet ﷺ without a complete message and belief system for humanity. In this article, we will explore Islam as an ideology, comparing it with other ideologies, and exploring its framework for ruling, political engagement, propagation, and its vision for the world.
The Islamic ‘Aqeedah as a comprehensive framework:
An ideology, i.e. ‘Aqeedah is a rational doctrine that is not based on weak and corrupt bonds but an intellectual bond, and it is from where a system originates. The Islamic ‘Aqeedah is a complete and comprehensive idea on man, life and the universe and man’s interaction with life itself, what came before this world and what will come after. The system which stems from the Islamic Aqeedah encompasses individual conduct and social interactions, a political system and how to govern the affairs of a society, a way of protecting the system and conveying the message of Allah (swt), a vision for the world and a way of implementing these systems. This holistic framework sets Islam apart from other religions which are purely based on personal faith and paints Islam as an ideology that aims to shape a society and spread justice, as was seen in history since the time of the Prophet ﷺ until the fall of the Ottoman Khilafah on the 3rd March 1924.
Every Muslim is obliged to believe in the Islamic Shari’ah as a whole as Allah (swt) says in the Quran,
“O believers! Believe in Allah, His Messenger, the Book He has revealed to His Messenger, and the Scriptures He revealed before. Indeed, whoever denies Allah, His angels, His Books, His messengers, and the Last Day has clearly gone far astray.”
(Surah An-Nisa 4:136)
Nurturing just governance and political principles:
Islam gives a complete way of life and gives guidance on governance and the principles of politics, justice and accountability, as can be found in the Quran and the Sunnah. Allah (swt) says in the Quran,
“And let there rise from among you a party who invite people to all that is good and enjoin the doing of all that is right and forbid the doing of all that is wrong. It is they who will attain true success.”
(Surah Al Imran 3:104)
The subject of this ayah is informing that there should be from amongst the ummah, a group of people fulfilling the task of enjoying the good and forbidding the evil. And Allah (swt) says,
“And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed — then it is those who are the disbelievers.”
(Surah Al-Ma’idah 5:44)
Likewise, it is also ordered by Allah (swt) for the ummah to adhere to correct leadership, as Allah (swt) says,
“O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. And if you disagree over anything, refer it to Allah and the Messenger, if you should believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best (way) and best in result.”
(Surah An Nisa 4:59)
The Messenger ﷺ said,
“Whoever dies without an oath of allegiance (bay’ah), dies the death of jahiliyya (ignorance).”
(Muslim 1851)
Which also further places emphasis on the requirement of the Muslims to follow the ruling system in which Allah (swt) has gifted us with.
If we look at the world today, we can identify that there are only three ideologies, Capitalism, Socialism and Islam. Unlike other ideologies, Islam has an objective viewpoint, being that the systems were given by Allah (swt) and revolves around the worship of the creator and where the ummah and it’s leadership are held accountable by Allah (swt), whereas, other ideologies such as Capitalism and Socialism are based around things conceptualised by man, making them flawed within their inception.
Propagation of the ideology and global outreach:
The spreading and propagation of an ideology is also a part of what makes an ideology. For if an ideology has no means of spreading, then it will become diminished and eventually be confined to the history books. By this reasoning, it is therefore deduced that Islam too must have a means to spread its ideology beyond its own people. The way Capitalism spread after the cold war with the defeat of Communism was through the method of divide and conquer. The powers of west realised that, to defeat the Islamic ideology, they would need to divide the ummah and place borders between them so that revival of the ummah does not occur. They achieved this by installing nationalist tendencies amongst the ummah, by fuelling wars and placing their agents as the leaders of the ummah. Christianity as a religion spread its beliefs with force, from the western powers that fuelled the crusades to the British Empire forcing conversions through conquering and the enslavement of oppressed races.
On the contrary, Allah (swt) says,
“There shall be no compulsion in (acceptance of) the religion.”
(Surah Al Baqarah 2:256)
This ayah revealed that it is not legitimate for Muslims to force individuals into Islam. However, the way Islam expanded was by war. Although the term Jihad is demonised by the western powers, it is from the shar’iah to mean fighting against the disbelievers, in both defensive applications and to propagate the Deen. Allah (swt) says in the Quran,
“Fight against those who believe not In Allah, nor in the Last day, nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and his Messenger and those who accept not the Deen of Truth from among the people of the book, until they pay the Jizyah (tax) with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.”
(Surah At Tawbah 9:29)
It was also narrated by Abdullah bin Abi Aufa that the Prophet ﷺ said,
“O people! Do not wish to meet the enemy, and ask Allah for safety, but when you face the enemy, be patient, and remember that Paradise is under the shades of swords.”
(Bukhari 2818)
The difference between Jihad and the wars engaged by the western powers is that, there are certain rules and methods in which Jihad can be performed, along with prerequisites, which was given to us by Allah (swt) and the Messenger ﷺ. Allah (swt) says,
“But do not transgress limits, truly Allah loves not the transgressors.”
(Surah Al Baqarah 2:190)
Likewise, Abdullah ibn Umar reported that
A woman was found killed in one of the battles of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, so the Prophet condemned the killing of women and children.
(Bukhari 3014, Muslim 1744)
This outlines that there are prerequisites and conditions of war placed on Muslims.
Visions for the world:
Like other ideologies, Islam too has a plan for the world and a vision for mankind, with its basis being the Islamic ‘Aqeedah and the system that originates from it. Capitalism’s plan for the world consists of shaping the Islamic world, placing borders between each nation, causing and fuelling conflicts as well as capitalising on those conflicts to ensure it remains the only superpower. Communism, although it was defeated by Capitalism after the cold war, had a vision of state owned property, with the people belonging to the state and private property to be eradicated and instead opting for a classless society whose main focus is to aid the means of production. On the contrary to these other ideologies, Islam provides a system that comes from Allah (swt) and the Prophet ﷺ. The fundamental aspect that differentiates Islam from the rest is that, its answer to what came before man, life and the universe and what comes after, and how they are linked to life is derived from the Belief in Allah (swt). This belief in the creator is the driving force for the Muslims to expand beyond their own borders and make the word of Allah (swt) the highest and to prevail over other ideologies. Allah (swt) says,
“He is the One Who has sent His Messenger with ˹true˺ guidance and the deen (way of life) of truth, making it prevail over all others, even to the dismay of the polytheists.”
(Surah At-Tawbah, 9:33)
This verse in the Quran refers to the idea that Islam is there to be a prevailing Deen and that all guidance, wisdom and all aspects pertaining to the governance of mankind refers back to Allah (swt).
Closing comments:
Islam should be seen as an ideology that encompasses not only personal belief but also a comprehensive framework for governance, politics, and global engagement. Its teachings provide guidance on matters of ruling, political systems, social justice, and spreading the message of Islam. Islam’s vision for the world revolves around establishing just societies based on the ruling system given by Allah (swt) with the ultimate purpose of striving for success in the hereafter. It is important to emphasise that Islam isn’t comparable to other major world religions and is not to be confined to the households or places of worship, rather, on the scale of things, is more comparable to ideologies, ways of life, where it shapes behaviour and governs all aspects of life, from business transactions, economic policy, punishment, a means of spreading and a means of protecting the ideology, as well as personal worships.
“This is the book revealed to you (Muhammad ﷺ), so let there be no heaviness in your heart therefrom, that you may thereby warn [the unbelievers], that it may be a reminder to the believers.”
(Surah Al-A’raf, 7:2)
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