The Pride of the Muslim in the Face of Global Hypocrisy
Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah, and may Allah bless you with goodness, dear guests. There is a long topic that I intended to present within the series "Be Proud with Your Islam," but the reality of the events happening these days cannot be passed over without comment, and it is the topic that I had postponed. I have been delayed in going to work, but the word is "standing in my throat" as they say, so let me say it to you without much arrangement and preparation.
You are not unaware of what we see these days in the global devaluation of the value of Muslims, especially with the Ukrainian crisis; where you see many statements from politicians and media saying: "These are not Afghan, Syrian, Iraqi, or Middle Eastern refugees, these are white Europeans, blue-eyed, middle-income, they have cars like ours."
We Muslims have become the epitome of humiliation, insignificance, and unimportance. Well, since that is the case, let us remember in this word our true value to Allah the Almighty, which concerns us because it is what affects our lives in this world and the hereafter, then we give these people their true size, and we remember the true size of the disbelievers who fight and demean Muslims.
Western Hypocrisy
Notice, my friends, how the Western world has destroyed the lands of the Muslims, plundered their wealth, and appointed a group that oppresses the peoples and subjects them to severe torment, giving the wealth of the Muslim lands to the lands of the disbelievers at the cheapest prices and sharing the profits, while the Islamic peoples come out "from the womb without chickpeas." They support this group imposed on the sons of Muslims, and after some Muslims flee to their countries, they insult them and bestow favors upon them and set the example of humiliation for us; so look to what extent the audacity has reached!
Notice how the news that passed so easily was the matter of America's hand on Afghanistan's resources (7 billion dollars for Afghanistan in Western deposits), the news passed with ease despite threatening the lives of more than ten million people, while the Ukrainian crisis takes multiples of the echo that this news took.
The Value of the Individual in the Muslim State
You must know your value as a Muslim. Remember that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) sent armies for individuals; there is no one more precious or more honored than the Muslim individual in the Muslim state.
- The Prophet (peace be upon him) expelled the Banu Qainuqa for a woman whose private parts a Jew had exposed, and for the Muslim who was killed.
- The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) pledged the companions to death in the "Pledge of Ridwan" when it was rumored that the polytheists had killed Uthman (may God be pleased with him).
- He sent the army of Mu'tah when the Ghassanids killed his envoy to Busra, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) knew that it was an unequal war (3,000 against the Ghassanids and the Romans), but he wanted to send a message to the world and to the generations until the Day of Judgment that the value of the Muslim individual is great in the Muslim state, and that the state will rise if this individual is attacked.
- He prepared the expedition of Usama bin Zayd to take revenge on the Romans who killed the governor of Ma'an (Furwa bin Amir al-Judhami) for his Islam, and he advised (peace be upon him) to carry out the expedition of Usama while he was in the throes of death to take revenge for this individual.
In Islamic history, armies were also sent for a woman, such as the conquest of Amuria in the days of al-Mu'tasim, and as the vizier al-Mansur sent an army for three Muslim women prisoners. There is no human being more precious or more honored than the Muslim in the Islamic state. If the countries that call themselves "advanced" boast that they move armies to avenge individuals, then the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) preceded them in that.
Therefore, when you hear about "the establishment of Sharia" - that Sharia which they have distorted in schools, curricula, and media - know that among its most important and greatest meanings is that the Muslim individual becomes honored, the state avenges him, takes his right, and preserves his dignity.
The Measure of Value with Allah the Almighty
Let us remember our true value. Remember the saying of Allah the Almighty: "And whoever kills a believer intentionally, his recompense is Hell to abide therein, and Allah is angry with him and curses him and has prepared for him a great punishment." And the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "The passing of the world is easier for Allah than the killing of a Muslim man." And one day Ibn Umar (may God be pleased with him) looked at the Kaaba and said: "How great you are and how great is your sanctity, and the believer is greater in sanctity with Allah than you."
Someone may say: "How can the Muslim be honored and dignified with Allah, and yet Allah allows what happens to Muslims of killing, torture, and imprisonment?"
The answer is simply that this world is a place of trial, not a place of reward. If it were worth a wing of a mosquito to Allah, He would not give a disbeliever a sip of water from it. This is the truth that we must repeat and increase; this world is a place of trial, and in the Hereafter there is "a severe punishment and forgiveness from Allah and pleasure. And the life of this world is not but the enjoyment of delusion."
Allah the Almighty sets the scales of justice for the Day of Judgment, so no soul is wronged in anything. The disbeliever who wronged the Muslim or insulted him or harmed him will be held accountable for that, and the believer will be honored. "And do not think that Allah is heedless of what the wrongdoers do. He only defers them for a Day when the eyes will stare."
O people, the promise of Allah is true, so let not the life of this world delude you, nor let the delusion of Allah delude you. This world, my friends, is fleeting, so when you become accustomed to reading the Quran and the biography of the Prophet (peace be upon him) every day, you put things in their right place and give them their true weights. This world is deceptive and illusory, and the Quran is essential to give you the true measure; what matters is the value of the human being with Allah the Almighty, not with the enemies of the Muslims, "and he was with Allah honorable."
Liberation from Psychological Defeat
When we say this, a "choir" or "chorus" of those without identity and those with crushed psyches, poets of inferiority, come out saying: "Do not speak of disbelief and faith, we are all alike!" No, we are not all alike; the Muslim is not like the disbeliever, and this is one of the most present meanings in the Quran after monotheism.
We say this to liberate ourselves from psychological defeat, to create noble morals that befit our value as Muslims, and to look with the eye of mercy and compassion at humanity, which needs us to save it from the claws of the oppressors and criminals, "And We have not sent you except as a mercy to the worlds." We speak of the value of Islam against the baseness of disbelief to know that these are sick people in need of rescue from the confusion that humanity lives in.
The Enormous Difference in the Scale of Revelation
If we look at the verses of the Quran, you will hardly find two facing pages without this meaning being present: the enormous difference between the believer and the disbeliever:
- The believer's book is in Illiyyin: "Nay! Verily, the record of the righteous is (kept) in Illiyyin." (83:18)
- For the believer, the gates of heaven are opened, while for the polytheist: "And whoever associates others with Allah, it is as if he had fallen from the sky, and the birds would snatch him away, or the wind would throw him into a place far off." (22:31)
- Man without faith is among the lowest of the low: "We have certainly created man in the best of stature. Then We return him to the lowest of the low, except those who believe and do righteous deeds." (95:4-6)
Look at how Allah describes the believers upon entering Paradise with words of honor: "Enter it in peace, secure." (15:46), "Those are in Gardens of Honor." (25:15) Perhaps this believer was greatly humiliated in this world, but on the Day of Judgment, his Lord will restore his dignity and make him content. While Allah speaks of the disbelievers entering the Fire with words of humiliation and degradation: "So they were thrust into it, they and the misguided." (25:34), "That Allah may distinguish the wicked from the good and place the wicked some of them upon others and heap them all together, then put them into Hell." (8:37)
Our view of the general public is one of compassion, mercy, and an attempt to save them. We honor the human soul and want it to have the dignity of faith. But if someone insists, rebels, and then despises us, we say to him what Allah said: "Is he who is cast into the Fire better, or he who comes secure on the Day of Resurrection? Do as you will; indeed, He is Seeing of what you do." (27:8-9)
The Reality of the Arrogant on the Day of Judgment
In the hadith narrated by At-Tirmidhi, who said it is good and authentic, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "The arrogant will be gathered on the Day of Judgment like the size of ants in the forms of men, and humiliation will cover them from every place." This is their true size on the Day of Judgment.
And we return to say to those who claim that we respond to mistakes with mistakes: We do not make mistakes; we determine the facts of Islam. This pride and distinction is not based on the color of one's skin, nor on one's eyes, nor on being European or having a middle income as they use these words in the media today; rather, the Muslim is noble by his faith in Allah and his righteous deeds, no matter his origin or color.
The Muslim himself, if he takes pride in a pagan value, is despised by Allah, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) said in the good and authentic hadith: "People are the children of Adam, and Adam was created from dust. Some men will take pride in their ancestors, but they are nothing but fuel for Hell, or they will be more despised by Allah than the beetles that push filth with their noses."
This includes the Muslim who boasts about the previous pagan civilizations that were not on faith, just as criminals in every country try to take people back to pre-Islamic times to cut their connection with their religion; so if the believer enters into the competition of boasting about his disbelieving ancestors, he becomes more despised by Allah than "the beetles."
Conclusion and Educational Advice
Notice, my friends, how everyone in the world is allowed to be proud of their identity, nationality, or gender, but the Muslim is forbidden to be proud of his Islam and distinction. You find the psychologically defeated saying: "No, we are all human beings regardless of religion." No, not regardless of religion! We must feel our distinction, dignity, and high status as Muslims.
And I say in conclusion: It is not only our enemies who have instilled in us the feeling of inferiority, but we sometimes instill it in our upbringing of our children through mockery, punishment, and insults. Teach your child these meanings; let your children hear them. We do not want to instill a sense of inferiority in ourselves, in our homes, and in our schools. We need to plant these meanings in our children, and the best way to do that is to continue reading the Quran, which gives the true size of the believer and the true size of the disbeliever, the warrior, and the mockers.
Feel your value and pride as a Muslim. Peace be upon you, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.