Second Step
The next ayah
(ayah 103) of Surah Aal-e-Imran explains the second practical step that the
Muslim Ummah is urged to undertake. All those who have accomplished to the
maximum possible degree the requirement of the preceding ayah and attained the
driving force of Taqwa (i.e., God-consciousness) in their lives — are called
upon to unite and join together for the cause of Islam. Until and unless they
join hands together and become like a solid steel-ribbed structure, they cannot
achieve the supremacy and ascendancy of Islam at the global level. It is a
well-established truth that any influential and wide-ranging mission, be it a
moral or an immoral one, requires the concerted efforts of a group of people.
The noblest and loftiest end — to make humanity surrender to one God — that Prophet Muhammad (SAW) achieved in his life time was only achieved with the selfless, dedicated, and cooperative efforts of his Companions (RAA). But the Prophet (SAW) himself could achieve this within the boundaries of Arabian Peninsula and the task of disseminating Islam and making it dominant in the entire world was put on the shoulders of Muslim Ummah. This gigantic duty obviously calls for a united and organized struggle.
Now, just as a strong and solid wall requires strong blocks or bricks, the individual members of the Islamic Jihad movement should also be men of deep inner conviction and noblest character, who strive together to bring all power and all powers under God. If the individual Muslim suffers from lack of commitment to the Islamic cause and is not a dedicated worker, the Islamic Ummah cannot accomplish its Divinely ordained mission. In other words, each Muslim must first himself become a sincere, wholehearted, and authentic believer in order to play his role in the discharge of Ummatic obligations. The consolidation and invigoration of Iman or Taqwa in the individual person is the subject which has been dealt with most fully yet succinctly in the preceding ayah of the Holy Qur’an. Now, we move on to the second step.
We have seen that it is of utmost urgency for Muslims to join hands together for the realization of Ummah‘s destiny as the standard-bearer of truth, the establishment of Divine Order of social justice and equity on earth; in other words, bringing God’s earth under God’s rule. The most important question that arises here is: What is that bond or cementing material which would bind the Muslims into a strongly united group or collectivity? The Qur’anic ayah under discussion provides answer to this very question: “And hold fast, all together, the cord of Allah (that he stretched out for you), and be not divided among yourselves"
The simile used
here is that of people struggling in deep water, to whom a benevolent
Providence stretches out a strong and unbreakable cord or rope of rescue. If
all hold fast to it together, their mutual support adds to the chance of their
safety. One may wonder here as to what habl Allah — the cord of Allah (SWT) —
really means. Mention of a few methodological points with regard to the
commentary on, and understanding of, the Holy Qur’an will be in the fitness of
things!
to be continued....
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