Allah takes an oath on time, to show its importance in attaining our goals. Every moment lost is a moment we will never get back. You cannot go back in time and make up for your teenage years or your early twenties. They are gone, and all that is left to use the time remains wisely.
I have been studying history all my life. It has always been a passion of mine and one of my favorite subjects. However, as a history teacher at a university, I noticed that my students don’t always share my passion for history. Often they are baffled, puzzled and horrified by the events of history. Some even lose faith in their religion when they study the histories of related empire.
There are three main reasons why this happens, and I will explain all three in this article. My hope is that by the end of this article, you will be able to study any part of history without it shaking your faith in the least.
The first major problem for Muslim students, in particular, is that the history of the Muslim Empires is often labeled Islamic History. This mislabelling of events creates unrealistic expectations in the mind of the student, as they assume whatever they are going to study represents the religion of Islam. They also may take this history as a source of Islamic legislation as it is labeled as Islamic.
The label itself is a problem. Classically, Muslim scholars divided history into two subjects, known in Arabic as Sīrah and Taʾrīk̲h̲. Sīrah focused on the life of the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) only. His life would be studied religiously, and various lessons extracted from it upon which the foundations of the religion were built.
Any book focusing on events after his time is called a Taʾrīk̲h̲ book. Generally, these books narrated all historical events for that time period without comment or judgment.
If we had to invent similar labels in English for these two parts of history, then we can say that the life of Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) is Islamic History, and whatever came after his time is Muslim History. The difference is very important.
The life of Prophet Muḥammad (peace be upon him) represents Islam at its best. His life is to be studied in detail, analyzed for lessons, taken as a proof of the truthfulness of his message, and used as a basis for forming our understanding of Islam. It is truly Islamic History is that his actions were guided by revelation and represent the perfect role model of Islam for the world.
Anything that occurred after his life is actually Muslim History. It is the history of people who believe in Islam but are subject to human temptation, corruption, and error. They may at times accomplish amazing things in the name of Islam. And they may at times fall to the deepest of lows due to temptation or human error. Their lives do not represent Islam. Rather their lives represent the struggles, highs, and lows of the average Muslim.
Just as the Muslim world today is full of sinners, saints and everything in between. So was the case in every century of Muslim history. The difference being that the sinners and saints often made it into the history books, while everybody else was left out. This is because the life of the average person is probably too boring to write a history book about, but the life of a tyrant king or a saintly king is the topic of a bestseller.
If we approach the life of an individual after the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him) as Muslim History, this will lower our expectations and help us appreciate history better. We will be able to appreciate their struggles, understand their errors, and marvel at their accomplishments because this is the history of Muslims.
Continuing on the topic of Muslim History, the second issue that people often overlook is just how human Muslims throughout history have been.
Many Muslims approach history with the misconception that we are living at the worst point in history, and that every era before us was full of saintly Muslims representing the religion properly.
Reality is that every generation of Muslims had their saints, sinners and everything in between. The average Muslim general, king, merchant, and governor were just that; average.
They weren’t all saints. Their lives were a complex mix of good deeds, sins, and permissible deeds. They experienced highs and lows, moments of greatness and moments of weakness. They passed some tests of life and failed others. So it is perfectly normal to study the life of any individual in history and learn that he at some points in his life was a righteous worshipper, while at some other point murdered his enemies. This is because of the complexity of human life, and especially leadership and governance which often forces people to make extremely difficult decisions between life and death.
The correct approach to studying the life of anybody after the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is to accept their humanity. The first generation of Muslims was the best, but they were still human and still erred. Each generation after that fell into different types of sins and mistakes. Just as we do today.
When you realize that every historical figure was struggling with desires and temptation just as we do, you become more understanding of their mistakes, and you approach history with more realistic expectations.
The final thing that confuses people when studying history is that there are some fundamental differences between the cultures we live in and that of the ancient world.
A lot of young people have not been exposed to anything outside the modern culture and they assume that that is the way the world always was. As a result, when they study history they are shocked to find things that contradict their norms and it shakes their faith.
We live in a time that is very unique to human history. We live in the only century in human history without child marriages, slavery, or military expansion of empires. These things are foreign concepts to our times and many people wrongly assume that people always considered these things immoral or wrong.
Reality is that the bulk of human history, including almost all major cultures, civilizations, and religions, had no problem with any of these. Slavery, child marriages, and military expansion were global norms in the ancient world. This is simply a reality. As soon as we accept these as historical realities, then history makes a lot more sense. We must approach history with this understanding in order to understand it in its proper context.
If we accept this reality, then history makes a lot more sense. We shouldn’t be surprised by any of these concepts when we find them in the history of any civilization, because these were the norms of that time. To judge ancient cultures and civilizations by 21st-century norms is illogical and unfair. Historical incidents should be understood within the context of the places and times they took place in. If history is studied in light of these three facts, it becomes much easier to understand and interact with. We should not expect perfection from the people of the past, present or future. We should not project our cultural norms onto past civilizations. And we should not judge Islam by the actions of Muslims. Because Islam is the revelation from God, but Muslims are humans who struggle to follow that revelation to various degrees. Keep these three points in mind whenever studying any aspect of Muslim History.
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For some reason, a lot of people online get upset when they hear scholars in the West saying that they need to formulate their own Fiqh and not blindly follow the Fiqh of India/Saudi/Mauritania. They take it as an attack on traditional scholarship and a type of deviation.
This is a misunderstanding about what Western scholars intend when they say this. It is also a misunderstanding of the nature and history of Fiqh itself. In this short article, I want to highlight four things;
Fiqh (understanding and interpretation of Islamic Law) is not set-in-stone, as Shariah is. Fiqh, by its nature, is meant to be localized and personalized. Throughout history, Muslim scholars have changed their verdicts based on the culture, customs, norms, and traditions of the people they were dealing with. This is completely normal and very practical. The opposite, importing Fiqh from foreign countries, is impractical and makes the religion unnecessarily difficult.
Let me provide an example from my community. I live in South Africa, but the majority of Islamic scholarship in my community has roots in India. As a result, a lot of the local Fiqh is imported from India and not relevant to the local community. One such fatwa is the idea that practicing Muslim men should wear the Kurta (traditional Indian dress, similar to the Thowb) and the Topi (Indian headgear). Some ʿulema declare it Sunnah, and others even declare it Wajib. Some go as far as to label Muslim men who don’t wear Topis as Fāsiqs. (Open Sinners)
There are several problems with this fatwa. The first problem is that it imports Indian culture and enforces it upon a traditional African community. The second problem is that it is not clearly addressed in the Quran and Sunnah. The third problem is that it makes life difficult for Muslims in an area in which the Shariah left things open and relaxed. They importing this fatwa from India to Africa, many traditional Africans are forced to dress like Indians in order to be considered religious.
The above case is a clear example of a Fiqh issue that is need of localization. Islamic dress codes should take into consideration local dress norms, while of course maintaining the boundaries of Hijāb that are clearly outlined in the Shariah. This brings me to the misunderstanding a lot of people have.
When scholars in the USA, for example, say that they need their own localized Fiqh, a lot of Muslims in the East are angered by this. This is because of two false assumptions. Some assume that Western scholars are saying that Eastern Fiqh is not good enough. Others assume that this means changing the fundamentals of Islam. Both assumptions are wrong.
Basing one’s opinions on local customs is not an insult to other cultures, it is the way Fiqh has always worked even during the time of the Ṣaḥāba. A clear example of this was the different clothing choices and lifestyles of Ṣaḥāba living in Syria, compared to those living in Madina. Both groups dressed and lived according to the culture of their lands within the boundaries of Shariah. Neither took it as an insult to their culture or opinions.
A simple fact that the first assumption overlooks is that there is no such thing as Eastern Fiqh. The Fiqh of Saudi Arabia differs greatly with the Fiqh of India, Turkey or Malaysia. Each of these ‘Eastern’ lands has its own localized Fiqh which is exactly how Fiqh is supposed to be. Muslims in Malaysia are not expected to follow Saudi fatwas, neither do Muslims in India follow Turkish Fiqh. So why then are Muslims in South Africa, U.K. or U.S.A. expected to follow Indian or Saudi fatwas, instead of deriving their own fatwas based on the local culture?
The second assumption is also wrong. None of these scholars are calling for changing the principles of the religion or matters of consensus. If anybody is doing this, then that individual is wrong and heading down a deviant path. Rather, all these scholars are calling for is changing the verdicts that are based on cultural norms in Saudi Arabia or India (or wherever) and replacing them with new verdicts based on the cultural norms of their own countries. And they plan to do all of this utilizing the principles (Uṣūl) of Fiqh and agreed upon Fiqh maxims. This brings me to the third point.
One of the primary maxims of Fiqh is “Local Custom is the deciding factor”. This maxim is found in all math’habs and has been the basis of fatawa for the bulk of Islamic History. It is the core reason why the Fiqh of North Africa is so different from the Fiqh of Indonesia, or why the Fiqh of India is different from the Fiqh of Turkey. The true scholars of any community have always localized their Fiqh based on principles like ʿUrf (local culture), Maṣlaḥa (focusing on the greater benefit for society) and ʿAdāt (local customs).
This has been the case throughout history in every culture and country. So why shouldn’t it be the case for Muslims living in South Africa or the U.S.A. where the ʿUrf and ʿAdāt of society are so different from “back home”? The above-stated maxim makes it the duty of scholars to localize Fiqh. So not only is it something good, it is actually something necessary for Islam to remain practical in every place and time.
Scholars in India, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey, and every other Muslim country already localize their Fiqh. All of these scholars are wary about importing fatwas from other cultures and urge their followers to follow local fatwas instead. So why should scholars in the U.S.A. or South Africa be any different? Why should they import fatāwa from foreign countries that have no relevance to their lands and make life unnecessarily difficult?
As Muslim communities are still new and relatively young in many of these countries, they are still formulating their local Fiqh. What is needed is for young bright minds to travel to Muslim countries, study Islam intensely under scholars there, then come back and…not repeat whatever they learned verbatim. Rather, they need to utilize the Uṣūl that they studied to think over, discuss and formulate the right Fiqh for their people. This means engaging with the tradition, instead of simply memorizing and narrating it. It means going against the opinions of your teachers on many issues. Not because they are wrong, but because their opinions are for their lands, and you need opinions suitable for your land.
I end with a simple question: Why is it so controversial that scholars in these lands (Africa, America, Europe, etc.) want to localize their Fiqh? Think about it.
It can happen to anybody. One day you are earning well, the next day you are deep in debt and out of a job. Life is a test, and we all go through different stages in the tests of life. One test that almost everybody faces at some point in their life (or multiple) is losing a major source of income. Whether it is a job, a business or an investment, losing a large source of your monthly revenue can be a depressing and stressful event. In such cases, do the following:
In Islam, we have a concept called Tawakul (trusting God) which simply means that we believe Allah’s plan is best for us and we live our lives with full trust in that plan. This means when things don’t go our way it is usually for the best and there is some benefit in that for us, even if we can’t understand it immediately. This belief helps a Muslim get through any difficulty with optimism and hope.
I have experienced this at multiple points in my life. In 2008, I lost my job as a school teacher. As a result of that, I got a much better job at the Islamic Online University which I still work today. In 2014, I got conned by a scammy book dealer, as a result, I learned to self-publish my books and am earning a decent profit from ongoing book sales. And then this year, in 2019 I lost a major contract that was making up 50% of my income. As a result, I had to dig deeper and invent a new source of income for myself. So I became a freelance writer and was able to make up that income through freelance projects. In fact, I am enjoying those freelance projects a lot more than the job I lost.
The point is that Allah’s plan is best. If I hadn’t lost in the above three cases, I wouldn’t have gained much better sources of income in return. The losses were necessary to push me in the right direction. The same applies to you. So trust Allah’s plan, He knows best.
One of the reasons I was able to overcome major financial hurdles in my life is because I don’t keep my eggs in one basket. This means I don’t restrict myself to one source of income. If you have only one source of income and it goes downhill or gets taken away, you are left in a very difficult situation. This is what happened to me in 2008 and since I have been very careful to ensure I always have multiple streams of income. You should too.
If you are working a job, set up side streams of income like online businesses, a second after-hours jobs, investment accounts or freelance work in the evenings. Do whatever is necessary to protect yourself and your family from financial loss. Yes, it isn’t possible to never experience financial problems if that is what Allah has destined for you, but having side streams of income helps to cushion the fall. So prepare for the difficulties by working on as many side streams of income as possible.
The majority of people I meet are grateful for the hardships they faced in life. This is because these hardships shaped their personalities and pushed them in the direction that led to their eventual success. A difficult situation is simply an opportunity to dig deeper and find something better for yourself. It is a chance to reinvent yourself, find your true calling and emerge a better person. Take every obstacle as a challenge to do better and to be better. Do this and you will always find yourself rising after every challenge.
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Every single one of us will face difficulties at different points in our life. Allah had promised to test us with restricting our finances, so when we should be spiritually, financially and mentally prepared to handle such tests. By having firm Tawakul in Allah, building multiple streams of income and using every difficulty as an opportunity to be better, we can come out of every financial difficulty on a higher level.
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In light of recent events which I won’t mention (Cough* insta-celebrity fraud, theft, lying *Cough) here are a few simple rules for being able to spot the fake celebrities who plague our social media sites.
If your favorite Instagramer/Tweeter/Facebooker/YouTuber is posting all kinds of ‘my life is so happy’ pictures and videos. And shows no signs of real human emotion, tests, and feelings, then they probably lying about how happy and perfect their lives really are. Real people have good days and bad days, struggles and victories, and don’t feel the need to prove the world how happy they are on social media all the time.
Islam teaches us to keep certain aspects of our lives private. In the age of social media, we just don’t seem to get that. So let me spell it out in plain simple English: “Don’t post overly personal and private pictures and videos all over the internet.” and don’t follow the accounts of people who do. Stick to that which is beneficial, and you will be safe.
There are genuine social media accounts that raise funds for great causes. No doubt about it. These accounts and transparent and will show you exactly where your money is going. Then there are random Insta-couples asking for donations for ‘charity’. That’s a red flag. Never give money to anyone who can’t show you where the money is going.
Riya – the Hidden Shirk. Showing off is a major sin and a minor Shirk. So if someone is obsessed with likes, followers and subscribers, and not so much with truth especially when it is not popular, then run away. They are not worth following.
Qualifications aren’t everything. Sometimes people become experts through experience and private study. But I doubt a young twenty-something has enough experience and private study to suddenly be an expert in whatever Islamic field he/she claims to be an expert in. Take your knowledge from qualified Islamic teachers, and not random ‘celebrity YouTubers’.
So that’s it, folks. Pretty straightforward. Stick to people of knowledge, avoid the glitz and glamour of unqualified social media stars, and don’t give money away to strangers. Do this and you won’t be conned by any fakers out there in shaa Allah.
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