The most
distinctive characteristic of the mission of the Prophet (SAW) has been
brought out by the Qur’an at three places:
(Al-Tawba
9:33; Al-Fath 48:28; Al-Saff 61:9)
Deen al-Haq
Whether we take the complex locution as a relational compound and translate it as “Deen of Truth”, or take it as a qualitative compound and translate it as “True Deen” (as has been done by the majority of the translators of the Qur’an), its connotation and meaning remain essentially unchanged. Deen Al-Haq means Deen of Allah, because the true faith and the true way of life can be none else but that which comes from Almighty Allah (SWT). Similarly, the personification of “Haq” can be none other than Allah Himself, as the Qur’an says:
This is
because Allah is the Truth.
(Al-Hajj
22:6)
On that
Day (of Judgement) Allah will pay them in full their just due, and they will
come to know that Allah alone is the Ultimate Truth, manifest and manifesting.
(Al-Nur
24:25)
This
clearly shows that Deen al-Haq is, in real import and meaning, equivalent to
“Deen of Allah.” If we concentrate on the word Deen, we come to know that in
Arabic language it connotes exactly what it means in Surah Al-Fatiha, viz.,
recompense, which is, of course, rewards of the Paradise in case of good deeds
and torments of Hell-fire in case of bad ones. That explains the fact why in
the early surahs of the Makkan period the word Deen is used in its core meaning
of recompense; for instance:
Have you
seen him who belies the rewards and punishments of the Hereafter?
(Al-Ma’un
107:1)
Therefore
(O Prophet!) who can belie you after this concerning the rewards and
punishments of the Hereafter?
(Al-Teen
95:7)
Nay, but
they deny the rewards and punishments of the Hereafter.
(Al-Infitar
82:9)
In
addition to Surah Al-Fatiha, the word Deen along with yaum has appeared at
twelve other places in the Qur’an and it signifies the Day of Judgement and
Final Reckoning. Again, as recompense (both in the form of reward and
punishment) necessarily implies a law or code of conduct and its observance,
the connotation of the word Deen also extended from its literal root meaning to
a full-fledged Qur’anic term and initially meant obedience and servitude.
Consequently, we read twice the expression mukhlis sal lahud-din, once the
expression mukhlis lahu-deeni, and six times mukhlis seena lahud-din. And at
all these places, it invariably means total, unconditional and exclusive
obedience and submission to Almighty God. An element of intensity and emphasis
is added to it through the additional use of haneefan or hunafa”.
The word
Deen, however, finally assumed the full richness of meaning and implied a whole
system of obedience and servitude. The pivotal position in this system of life
is assigned to the person or being who is taken to be the supreme ruler and
with reference to whom the detailed practical commands are laid down. This
meaning of Deen is amply borne out by the following Qur’anic words:
Thus We
supported Yousuf with Our plan; for under the king’s law, he would not have
been (otherwise) able to detain his brother.
(Yousuf
12:76)
In the
kingdom prevalent at that time in Egypt, the king was the absolute sovereign
and everybody submitted to his will. The Qur’an speaks of this socio-political
system as deen al-malik. Exactly in this sense, it also speaks of Deen Allah —
the Deen of Almihgty Allah (SWT) — in the following verse:
When
God’s succour comes and victory (is attained), and you see people entering the
Deen of God in large groups.
(Al-Nasr
110:1, 2)
This
means that when Prophet Muhammad (SAW), after more than two decades of
strenuous struggle, succeeded in establishing in the Arabian peninsula the
system of life in which Allah (SWT) was accepted as the Supreme and Absolute
Sovereign and people entered into this faith in great numbers, it was referred
to by the Holy Qur’an as Deen Allah. From this perspective, it would not be inappropriate
to call the modern political set-up of Democracy (in which, at least
theoretically, the people of a country are themselves the sovereign) as deen al
jamhoor.
However,
the Holy Qur’an also employs expressions in which Deen is attributed to
somebody other than God, and this should be described as a metaphorical usage
of the possessive pronoun/adjective, e.g., deeni (my Deen), dinukum (your
Deen), or dinuhum (their Deen). This is obviously in the sense of the system or
way of life; which one has accepted and adopted. This system of life and
socio-political governance, so to say, is a person’s Deen. In this very sense,
Islam is sometimes called Deen of Muhammad; e.g., in one of the popular prayers
we supplicate thus: “O Lord, succour all those who support and promote the Deen
of Muhammad.” Of course, Islam is actually Deen of Allah, but it is also
Muhammad’s Deen as it has been revealed and given to mankind through Prophet
Muhammad (SAW).
To sum
up, Deen Allah is that system of belief and action which is based on the basic
premise of total, absolute and unconditional submission to the commands of
Almighty Allah (SWT). And this, in fact, is the Al-Meezan. After progressing
gradually through the vicissitudes of history, Divine guidance finally
culminated in the most comprehensive and balanced system of life as revealed to
Prophet Muhammad (SAW). The Islamic way of life represents the ideal system of
social justice and equity wherein the duties and rights of all are clearly laid
down, “in order that the humanity may stick to, and behave with,
Justice.”(Al-Hadeed 57:25)
To Be Continued ....
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