Stages And Levels Of Islamic Da'wah - Calling People unto Allah

Stages And Levels Of Islamic Da’wah

Inviting people to Deen or “Call them to Allah” is by no mean a simple or single-phased action. Rather it involves a plurality of variegated steps and progressive stages. Beginning from the very person of an individual Muslim and his family:

Save yourself and your family from the hell - fire  (66:6)

it extends to kith and kin, and tribe or the groups, and further:

and warn your nearest kinsmen  (26:214)

and still further it goes to one’s total social group or polity:

0 people, worship Allah  (11:50),

and finally at the widest possible level it relates to the whole of humanity:

….so that you may be witness for mankind (2:143)

Again in its initial stages, the obligation of propagating Islam and inviting people to Allah consists only in admonishing and warning people against the grave consequences of their wrong beliefs and evil deeds:

0 you who are clothed! Arise and warn  (74: 1-2)

but its ultimate goal is to proclaim and establish the supreme greatness and sovereignty of the Lord in the whole of universe:

And your Lord do magnify  (74:3)

Considered from the point of content and approach, the Da’wah work admits of several types and levels according to the taste and competence of the audience it is addressed to. For example, if call people to Allah is sounded out to highly educated people and intellectuals, it must necessarily be made in strictly academic and rationally cogent manner. Otherwise it will have no impact on them, as the Quran says:

Call people to the way of your Lord with wisdom (16:125)

And if the occasion demands, it might be couched in simple and plain phraseology. In other words, it might consist in a sort of exhortation or sermon delivered in a heart - moving tone:

…and with goodly exhortation  (16:125)

Again, a preacher during the course of his work may come across an obstinate and fussy person. There he has to resort to debate and logical argument as the Qur’an says:

…and argue with them in a way that is the best (16: 125)

That is to say, even in dialectical argument or debate the Qur’an enjoins one to be nice and polite, and not harsh and foul-mouthed. And, finally, if the need arises, a holy war also becomes the highest stage of the religious obligation of “calling people to Allah”:

And fight with them until there is no persecution and total religion freely professed for Allah.  (8:39)

so that Almighty Allah’s word is exalted, only His orders reign supreme in the world and people act with justice and equity:

…so that people act with justice  (57:25)

In today’s discourse I shall not discuss these higher stages of Da’wah which necessitate collective effort on the part of Ummah, and which, as an essential aspect of the Universal prophethood of Muhammad (SAW), is undoubtedly an obligation to be fulfilled by the Ummah as  a  whole. Nor shall I  concern myself with the total social and religious revival and re- awakening of all Muslims which cannot be accomplished without organized and sustained efforts of well - organized groups working for this noble cause. Rather, I shall today concentrate on those initial and basic stages and levels of Islamic Da’wah which are both obligatory as well as possible for each Muslim in his individual capacity.

Source: Calling People unto Allah (A Book by Dr Israr Ahmad)

To be continued....