Ala-Maududi
(4:59) Believers! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger, and those from among you who are investedwith authority; and then if you were to dispute among yourselves about anything refer it toAllah and the Messenger[89] if you indeed believe in Allah and the Last Day; that isbetter and more commendable in the end.[90]
89. This verse is the cornerstone of the entire religious, social and political structure ofIslam, and the very first clause of the constitution of an Islamic state. It lays down thefollowing principles as permanent guidelines:
(1) In the Islamic order of life, God alone is the focus of loyalty and obedience. A Muslim isthe servant of God before anything else, and obedience and loyalty to God constitute the centreand axis of both the individual and collective life of a Muslim. Other claims to loyalty andobedience are acceptable only insofar as they remain secondary and subservient, and do notcompete with those owed to God. All loyalties which may tend to challenge the primacy of man’sloyalty to God must be rejected. This has been expressed by the Prophet (peace be on him) in thefollowing words: ‘There may be no obedience to any creature in disobedience to the Creator.’(Muslim, ‘Iman’, 37; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, vol. 3, p. 472 – Ed.)
(2) Another basic principle of the Islamic order of life is obedience to the Prophet (peace beon him). No Prophet, of course, is entitled to obedience in his own right. Obedience toProphets, however, is the only practical way of obeying God, since they are the only authenticmeans by which He communicates His injunctions and ordinances to men. Hence, we can obey Godonly if we obey a Prophet. Independent obedience to God is not acceptable, and to turn one’sback on the Prophets amounts to rebellion against God. The following tradition from the Prophet(peace be on him) explains this: ‘Whoever obeyed me, indeed obeyed God; and whoever disobeyedme, indeed disobeyed God.’ (Bukhari, ‘Jihad’, 109; ‘I’tisam’, 2; Muslim, ‘Amarah’, 32, 33;Nasa’i, ‘Bay’ah’, 27; etc. – Ed.) We shall see this explained in more detail a little further onin the Qur’an.
(3) In the Islamic order of life Muslims are further required to obey fellow Muslims inauthority. This obedience follows, and is subordinate to, obedience to God and the Prophet(peace be on him). Those invested with authority (ulu al-amr) include all those entrusted withdirecting Muslims in matters of common concern. Hence, persons ‘invested with authority’ includethe intellectual and political leaders of the community, as well as administrative officials,judges of the courts, tribal chiefs and regional representatives. In all these capacities, those‘invested with authority’ are entitled to obedience, and it is improper for Muslims to causedislocation in their collective life by engaging in strife and conflict with them. Thisobedience is contingent, however, on two conditions: first, that these men should be believers;and second, that they should themselves be obedient to God and the Prophet (peace be on him).These two conditions are not only clearly mentioned in this verse they have also been elucidatedat length by the Prophet (peace be on him) and can be found in the Hadith. Let us consider, forexample, the following traditions: A Muslim is obliged to heed and to obey an order whether helikes it or not, as long as he is not ordered to carry out an act of disobedience to God(ma’siyah). When ordered to carry out an act of disobedience-to God he need neither heed norobey.
There is no obedience in sin; obedience is only in what is good (ma’ruf). (For these traditionssee Bukhari, ‘Ahkam’, 4; ‘Jihad’, 108; Muslim, ‘Amarah’, 39; Tirmidhi, ‘Jihad’, 29; Ibn Majah,‘Jihad’, 40; Ahmad b. Hanbal, Musnad, vol. 2, pp. 17 and 142 – Ed.)
There will be rulers over you, some of whose actions you will consider good and othersabominable. Who even disapproves of their abominable acts will be acquitted of all blame, andwhoever resents them he too will remain secure (from all blame); not so one who approves andfollows them in their abominable acts. They (i.e. the Companions) asked: ‘Should we not fightagainst them?’ The Prophet (peace be on him) said: ‘No, not as long as they continue to pray.’(See Bukhari, Jihad’, 108 – Ed.)
This means that their abandonment of Prayer will be a clear sign of their having forsakenobedience to God and the Prophet (peace be on him). Thereafter it becomes proper to fightagainst them. In another tradition the Prophet (peace be on him) says:
Your worst leaders are those whom you hate and who hate you; whom you curse and who curse you.We asked: ‘O Messenger of God! Should we not rise against them?’ The Prophet (peace be on him)said: ‘No, not as long as they establish Prayer among you: not as long as they establish Prayeramong you.’ (See Muslim, Amarah’, 65, 66; Tirmidhi, ‘Fitan’, 77; Darimi, ‘Riqaq, 78; Ahmad b.Hanbal, Musnad, vol. 6, pp. 24, 28 – Ed.)
In this tradition the position is further clarified. The earlier tradition could have createdthe impression that it was not permissible to revolt against rulers as long as they observedtheir Prayers privately. But the latter tradition makes it clear that what is really meant by‘praying’ is the establishment of the system of congregational Prayers in the collective life ofMuslims. This means that it is by no means sufficient that the rulers merely continue observingtheir Prayers: it is also necessary that the system run by them should at least be concernedwith the establishment of Prayer. This concern with Prayer is a definite indication that agovernment is essentially an Islamic one. But if no concern for establishing Prayer is noticed,it shows that the government has drifted far away from Islam making it permissible to overthrowit. The same principle is also enunciated by the Prophet (peace be on him) in another tradition,in which the narrator says: ‘The Prophet (peace be on him) also made us pledge not to riseagainst our rulers unless we see them involved in open disbelief, so that we have definiteevidence against them to lay before God’ (Bukhari and Muslim).
(4) In an Islamic order the injunctions of God and the way of the Prophet (peace be on him)constitute the basic law and paramount authority in all matters. Whenever there is any disputeamong Muslims or between the rulers and the ruled the matter should be referred to the Qur’anand the Sunnah, and all concerned should accept with sincerity whatever judgement results. Infact, willingness to take the Book of God and the Sunnah of His Messenger as the common point ofreference, and to treat the judgement of the Qur’an and the Sunnah as the last word on allmatters, is a central characteristic which distinguishes an Islamic system from un-Islamic ones.Some people question the principle that we should refer everything to the Book of God and theSunnah of the Prophet (peace be on him). They wonder how we can possibly do so when there arenumerous practical questions involved, for example, rules and regulations relating to municipaladministration, the management of railways and postal services and so on which are not treatedat all in these sources. This doubt arises, however, from a misapprehension about Islam. Thebasic difference between a Muslim and a non-Muslim is that whereas the latter feels free to doas he wishes, the basic characteristic of a Muslim is that he always looks to God and to HisProphet for guidance, and where such guidance is available, a Muslim is bound by it. On theother hand, it is also quite important to remember that when no specific guidance is available,a Muslim feels free to exercise his discretion because the silence of the Law indicates that GodHimself has deliberately granted man the freedom to make his decision.
90. Since the Qur’an is not merely a legal code, but also seeks to instruct, educate, admonishand exhort, the earlier sentence which enunciates a legal principle is followed by another whichexplains its underlying purpose and wisdom. Two things are laid down. First, that faithfuladherence to the above four principles is a necessary requirement of faith. Anyone who claims tobe a Muslim and yet disregards the principles of Islam involves himself in grossself-contradiction. Second, the well-being of Muslims lies in basing their lives on thoseprinciples. This alone can keep them on the straight path in this life, and will lead to theirsalvation in the Next. It is significant that this admonition follows immediately after thesection which embodies comments about the moral and religious condition of the Jews. Thus theMuslims were subtly directed to draw a lesson from the depths to which the Jews had sunk, as aresult of their deviation from the fundamental principles of true faith just mentioned. Anycommunity that turns its back upon the Book of God and the guidance of His Prophets, thatwillingly follows rulers and leaders who are heedless of God and His Prophets, and that obeysits religious and political authorities blindly without seeking authority for their actionseither in the Book of God or in the practice of the Prophets, will inevitably fall into the sameevil and corruption as the Israelites.