Quran might not be clear in a lot of ways but then in a lot of other ways it IS quite clear, we just have to ‘try’ and understand it. Long time ago, I was once reading Quran and came across a verse in surah An’am, verse 159:
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ فَرَّقُواْ دِينَهُمْ وَكَانُواْ شِيَعًا لَّسْتَ مِنْهُمْ فِي شَيْءٍ إِنَّمَا أَمْرُهُمْ إِلَى اللّهِ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا كَانُواْ يَفْعَلُونَ
At that time, I did understand what it actually meant but today I was just searching around and found an Imam’s answer to a particular question that leads to discussing this verse in detail.
**Question: **
Isn’t it prohibited in Islam to divide into sections of the ummah as it says in the Qur’ an: And hold fast, All together, by the rope Which ALLAH (stretches out for you), and be not divided amoung yourselves;"[Al Qur’an 3:103]?
**Answer: **
We would like to state the following points:
**1. Muslims Should be United **
It is a fact that Muslims today, are divided amongst themselves. The tragedy is that such divisions are not endorsed by Islam at all. Islam believes in fostering unity amongst its followers.
The Glorious Qur’an says:
“And hold fast,All together, by the rope Which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves;” [Al-Qur’an 3:103]
Which is the rope of Allah that is being referred to in this verse? It is the Glorious Qur’an. The Glorious Qur’an is the rope of Allah which all Muslims should hold fast together. There is double emphasis in this verse. Besides saying ‘hold fast all together’ it also says, ‘be not divided’.
Qur’an further says,
“Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger” [Al-Qur’an 4:59]
All the Muslim should follow the Qur’an and authentic Ahadith and be not divided among themselves.
**2. It is Prohibited to make sects and divisions in Islam **
Qur’an says:
“As for those who divide Their religion and break up Into sects, thou hast No part in them in the least: Their affair is with Allah: He will in the end Tell them the truth Of all that they did.”
[Al-Qur’an 6:159]
In this verse Allah (swt) says that one should disassociate oneself from those who divide their religion and break it up into sects.
But when one asks a Muslim, “who are you?”, the common answer is either 'I am a Sunni, or ‘I am a Shia’. Some call themselves Hanafi, or Shafi or Maliki or Humbali, Salafi etc. Some say ‘I am a Deobandi’, while some others say ‘I am a Barelvi’.
**3. Our Prophet was a Muslim **
One may ask such Muslims, “Who was our beloved prophet (pbuh)? Was he a Hanafi or a Shafi, or a Humbali or a Maliki?” No! He was a Muslim, like all the other prophets and messengers of Allah before him.
It is mentioned in chapter 3 verse 52 of Al-Qur’an that Jesus (pbuh) was a Muslim.
Further, in chapter 3 verse 67, Al-Qur’an says that Ibrahim (pbuh) was not a Jew or a Christian but was a Muslim.
**4.Qur’an says call yourselves Muslim **
If anyone poses a Muslim the question who are you, he should say “I am a MUSLIM”. Surah Fussilat chapter 41 verse 33 says
"Who is better in speech Than one who calls (men) To Allah, works righteousness,
And says, ‘I am of those Who bow in Islam (Muslim)?’ " [Al-Qur’an 41:33]
The Qur’an says “Say I am of those who bow in Islam”. In other words, say, “I am a Muslim”.
The Prophet (pbuh) dictated letters to non-Muslim kings and rulers inviting them to accept Islam. In these letters he mentioned the verse of the Qur’an from Surah Al-Imran chapter 3 verse 64:
Say ye: “Bear witness That we (at least) Are Muslims (bowing To Allah’s Will).” [Al-Qur’an 3:64]
**5. Respect all the Great Scholars of Islam **
We must respect all the great scholars of Islam, including the four Imaams, Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam Shafi, Imam Humbal and Imam Malik (may Allah be pleased with them all). They were great scholars and may Allah reward them for their research and hardwork. One can have no objection if someone agrees with the views and research of Imam Abu Hanifa or Imam Shafi, etc. But when posed a question, ‘who are you?’, the reply should only be ‘I am a Muslim’.
The Glorious Qur’an mentions in several verses, “Obey Allah and obey His Messenger”. A true Muslim should only follow the Glorious Qur’an and the Sahih Hadith. He can agree with the views of any scholar as long as they conform to the teachings of the Qur’an and Sahih Hadith. If such views go against the Word of Allah, or the Sunnah of His Prophet, then they carry no weight, regardless of how learned the scholar might be.
If only all Muslims read the Qur’an with understanding and adhere to Sahih Hadith, Inshallah most of these differences would be solved and we could be one united Muslim Ummah
I’m not sure if this verse has been discussed before, and if it has been, I guess mods must have closed that thread down by referring it to be offensive to some particular people. I’m not sure if this is offensive in a way, but we’re here to learn and bring knowledge upon those who post questions here and there is nothing wrong with that I guess.
So, regarding this information; I was wondering if our sunni/shia and other alims, such as those who show up in Alim Online show, who are so educated and knowledgable, have given this verse a thought? I have seen them giving quranic verses as examples but then no one in that show questions this fact.
I was with this friend of mine two years back and she asked me what kind of muslim are you? and I paused for a sec and smiled back and said…doesn’t being just a “muslim” explain to you well enough that i AM a muslim and nothing else? because that is what followers of islam are called. She got so confused that she kept asking me that how can that be…are you sunni or shia or ahmadi or anything else? I told her to give this topic a stop because I am none of that and NO I am not a wahabi if that is what you’re thinking of asking me but then again just to make it clear to you, I’m closer to being a sunni.
I often wonder that why do people follow the footsteps of their ancestors and parents when it comes to religion? They read quran, they do what Allah tells them to do but Allah also says in quran to not follow your ancestors blindly without questioning their religious deeds. People don’t go and read everything themself rather than just hearing things from their parents and following it. Even if my mum tells me to read this this and if im still not satisfied I go find it in quran. What’s wrong with questioning? Why are people offended when you question your religion? That’s another broad topic but lets just stick with what I want to discuss here; unity in Islam and how religious sects and groups disunite muslims.
Any thoughts?
[Mods, please be fair. I really want to know what people have to say about this]
