Where is the Salvation?

In the Holy Qur’an, Allah the Most High says:

“You are a good community of believers that have emerged from among the people; you encourage the good, discourage the evil, and believe in Allah. If People of the Book were to embrace (Islamic) faith, it would be good for them. There are some believers among them, but most are infidels.” (Ali Imran, 110)

Allah the Almighty created mankind as His vicegerent on this earth and entrusted the world to us. In addition, our very existence in this life is a trust from Him; He assigned the duty of taking care of one’s self to the person itself. Every person is responsible for complying with the obligations of this trust and performing their duties of worship for our worship of Him is the central pillar that supports our growth into mature, prudent believers. This has been so since Adam (alayhissalam) and will continue to be so until the end of days.

No matter what humans go through, be it wars, disasters, or unrest, Islam is the only right path, and salvation lies with only it under all circumstances. This is a truth that will never change. The duty to show the right way to the masses that have gone astray belongs to the believers whose hearts have been illuminated by the light of iman.

In the above verse’s translation, “encourage the good, discourage the evil” refers to the Arabic expression “al-amru bi’l-ma’ruf, wan-nahyu ani’l-munkar,” which is a compulsory duty. Islamic scholars have written thousands of books on how to perform this duty. The common point of all these books is the principle of doing and encouraging others to do what is right and good and preventing what is wrong and evil while considering the circumstances.

Of course, this duty will take many forms depending on the time and situation. What will, however, never change is a believer’s commitment to living a life with good morals and encouraging others to do the same while discouraging the opposite. In other words, the very existence of an ideal Muslim propagates the message of Islam.

Let’s remember: Even though our religion began under daunting circumstances, it conquered people’s hearts due to the exemplary lives and morals of the Blessed Companions, spreading its roots across three continents in a very short amount of time. This spread continued during the following two generations, known as Tabi’in and Tabi’u’l-Tabi’in. In subsequent centuries, righteous people who have embraced the faith of Islam and lived by its principles were instrumental in breathing new life and truth into large geographic regions by being living examples.

In the meantime, many books have been written on iman and the truth of Islam, detailing the exemplary practices, words, and morals of the Blessed Companions and their followers. Through this method, the straight path has been kept in records and protected from corruption over time.

Therefore, we are never helpless when walking the true path, shunning evil, and encouraging others to do the same. The truth of iman and Islam is obvious. And as long as there is a single believer, there is hope.

We should never despair because many Islamic institutions have disappeared in the last two centuries or because many Islamic societies have been changed, transformed, or assimilated away from their true identity. Our original sources, principally the Holy Qur’an and the blessed sunnah, are still standing pure and clear. Our salvation is in our close adherence to these sources.

Another fact that keeps our hope alive is that there have been and always will be awliya who closely follow in the footsteps of our Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam). We have the valuable opportunity to know them, love them, and rejoice in them so as to consistently walk the path of truth and spread Islam to the masses.

Shah-i Naqshband (quddisa sirruhu) once said, “Our path is a path of sohbat (companionship, close association, and togetherness),” in order to highlight the importance of the camaraderie and brotherhood of believers as they walk the path of truth.

We must recognize the value of standing side by side, shoulder to shoulder, becoming brothers in helping each other walk to the horizon of eternity, maintaining our direction, and actualizing the purpose of our creation despite the worldly temptations of our time. We must show our utmost respect, kindness, good manners, and sincerity to all believers.

In his masterpiece, Ihyau Ulumi’d-Din, Hujjatu’l-Islam, Imam Ghazali (quddisa sirruhu), relates the following account from Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) regarding human relations:

Muadh bin Jabal (radiyallahu anh) narrates: “The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) advised me as follows: ‘O Muadh, I advise you to always be pious toward Allah, always speak the truth, keep your promises, protect the entrustments of others, abstain from betraying people, get along with your neighbors, have compassion for the orphans, speak nicely, spread greetings, do good deeds, reduce worldly desires, strongly hold on to your faith, have a deep understanding of the Holy Quran, love the Hereafter, fear the Day of the Judgment, and have kindness for all people.

I warn you against speaking against people of wisdom, rejecting (the words of) a truthful person, following a rebellious person, rebelling against a just ruler, and instigating unrest in society.

I advise you to fear Allah wherever you are, under every tree, by every stone, on every hill, and to repent for your secret sins in secret, and for your public sins in public.’”

There’s little room for anything else to be said after this. If only we could apply this advice to our lives, we would be a “good community of believers.” We would find ourselves on the true path and accomplish our duty of encouraging the good and discouraging the evil. This way, we could also find a solution to the deep crises that humanity is wading through now.

With His tawfiq and inayah…

Sheik Sayyid M. Mübarek Elhüseyni