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we all know the Children of Prophet Ya’qub/Jacob alaihi salam (Bani Israael) developed into twelve tribes. They were strong as long as they were united but when they became enemies of each other, their own hatred of each other ruined them.

Allahu ta’aala says to the Bani Israael, in the Qur’an [ al-Bakarah -- 2:84-86 ]:

And when We made a covenant with you (Bani Israael): That you shall not shed blood among yourselves and you shall not expel your own people from your homes; you confirmed it and you are witness to it.Yet there you (Bani Israael) are, killing your own people, expelling a group amongst you from their homes, backing each other with sin and aggression; and if they come to you as captives, you trade them for ransoms whereas their expulsion was unlawful for you to begin with. Do you believe in a part of your Holy Book and reject the rest? So what other punishment do such people among you, who behave like this, deserve, than disgrace in this world and to be driven to grievous punishment on the Day of Judgment? Allah is not unaware of what you do.

Such are the people who trade the life of this world at the expense of the Hereafter; so neither their punishment shall be lightened nor shall they be helped.

Al-Qur’an [ al-Bakarah -- 2:27 ]:
those who break Allah’s Covenant after accepting it, and who cut aside what Allah has ordered to be united and cause mischief on earth. It is they who are the losers.

Allah did not help Bani Israael, when they rebelled against the Shariah (Deen) of Allah and fought with their own people. The Jerusalem is a good example for us to learn, Allah destroyed it twice and did not help Bani Israael, when they were in there. Are the Muslims not in the similar condition today? Those who neglected the Shariah (Deen) of Allah in their lives (and their ‘Islamic’ countries), they received disgrace in this world and were left out of the help of Allahu Ta’aala.

How can we Muslims today, expect that Allah will help us, when we have neglected our duties to Allah and we are fighting with our own brothers?

At the times of jahilliyah (ignorant), before Islam reappeared in Arabia by the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaho ‘alaihi wasallam), Arabs used to have many battles, fighting for silly reasons. We shall now see in brief, insha’ Allah, how the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaho ‘alaihi wasallam) turned ‘that Arabia’ into a place of peace, freedom, equity, justice, brotherhood and so on, with the help of Allahu ta’aala.

How did the Arabian tribes in Madina (al-Aws and al-Khazraj) unite? How the Muhajireen (Immigrants of Makkah) and Ansar(helpers in Medina) united? How did the whole Arabia became united?

To explain all this in simple words would be: “Allah joined their hearts with the rope of ‘true Faith/Eimaan’”. We shall now see some examples, insha’ Allah. The following ahadith are a few examples that show us how Muhammadur Rasul-lullah (sallallahu ‘alaihi wasallam) taught his companions about brotherhood.

On the authority of Abu Hurairah(may Allah be pleased with him), who said : the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) said :“Do not envy one another; do not inflate prices one to another; do not hate one another; do not turn away from one another; and do not undercut one another, but be you, O servants of Allah, brothers. A muslim is the brother of a muslim: he neither oppresses him nor does he fail him, he neither lies to him nor does he hold him in contempt . Piety is right here-and he pointed to his breast three times. It is evil enough for a man to hold his brother muslim in contempt. The whole of a muslim for another muslim is inviolable: his blood, his property, and his honor.” (Related by Muslim.)

On the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Prophet (PBUH) said:“Whosoever removes a worldly grief from a believer, Allah will remove from him one of the griefs of the Day of Judgment. Whosoever alleviates [the lot of] a needy person, Allah will alleviate [his lot] in this world and the next. Whosoever shields a Muslim, Allah will shield him in this world and the next. Allah will aid a servant [of His] so long as the servant aids his brother. Whosoever follows a path to seek knowledge therein, Allah will make easy for him a path to Paradise. No people gather together in one of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves, without tranquility descending upon them, mercy enveloping them, the angels surrounding them, and Allah making mention of them amongst those who are with Him. Whosoever is slowed down by his actions will not be hastened forward by his lineage.” (Related by Muslim in these words.)

Narrated by AbuDharr:

Allah’s Apostle (peace be upon him) said to me: Don’t consider anything insignificant out of good things even if it is that you meet your brother with a cheerful countenance. (Related by Muslim)

When the Muslims migrated to Yathrib (Medina al-Munawarah), the Prophet (alaihi slato wassalam) established a brotherhood system between Muhajir (Immigrants) and Ansar (helpers in Medina) by making a Muhajir brother of an Ansar. When we try to imagine this event happening in real life (according to our level of faith), we realise that it is not that easy for a Muslim to take a foreign Muslim as his brother. Think yourself, how many of us can take a Muslim from another country and let him live in our house and we share our things with him? Obviously, very few of us would be able to do this, in these days… But what was that, which the Sahabah had but we don’t? Obviously, it is the strong faith in Allah which we are lacking now, unfortunately. Let’s see a beautiful sayings of the Prophet, emphasising a requirement of true Faith:

On the authority of Anas bin Malik (may Allah be pleased with him), the servant of the messenger of Allah, that the Prophet (pbuh) said :

“None of you [truely] believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”

Related by Bukhari and Muslim

Those Companions of the Prophet (‘alaihi salam) would rush to help eachother, solely for the pleasure of Allah and not to get some worldly gain from any person. This is what Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, says about the brotherhood of those Companions of the Prophet (‘alaihi salato wassalam):

Al-Qur’an [ al-Anfaal -- 8:61-64 ]:

If the enemy is inclined towards peace, do make peace with them, and put your trust in Allah. He is the One Who hears all , knows all.
Should they intend to deceive you, verily Allah is All- Sufficient for you. He is the One Who has strengthened you and the believers with His help,
through putting affection in their hearts. If you had spent all that is in the earth, you could not have so united their hearts; but Allah has united them. He is Mighty, Wise.
O Prophet! Allah is all-sufficient for you and for the believers who follow you.

Those companions of the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaho ‘alaihi wasallam) had purified and enlightened their hearts with Faith/Eimaan. They would do anything to gain the pleasure of Allah. It is very saddening that some Muslims today slander against some great companions of the Prophet (‘alaihi slato wassalam) whereas Allah Almighty says the following, about them:

Al-Qur’an [ at-Taubah -- 9:100 ]:

As for the first pioneers who accepted Islam from the Muhajir (immigrants) and Ansar (supporters in Medina) and those who follow them in good deeds, Allah is well pleased with them and they are pleased with Him. He has prepared for them gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they shall live forever: that is the mighty achievement.

Al-Qur’an [ al-Anfaal -- 8:74-75 ]:

Those who believed (embraced Islam), migrated and made Jihad (exerted their utmost struggle) in the cause of Allah, and those who gave them asylum and help – they are the true believers. They shall have forgiveness and honorable provisions.
Those who believed (embraced Islam) afterwards, migrated and joined you in Jihad – they too are your brothers, although according to the Book of Allah the blood relatives have greater rights on one other. Indeed Allah knows everything.

Unfortunately, some Muslims use their own interpretations to judge the Faith of some great Sahabah and raise slanders against them. Whoever wants to know why some Sahabah had conflicts after the martyrdom of the third Caliph (Sayyidina Uthman bin Affan, may Allah be pleased with him), he/she should first get to know why a Prophet of Allah, Aadam (‘alaihi salam), ate from that tree in Paradise!

Satan is an obvious enemy of the believers and there are Shayyateen (devils) among Jinns and mankind. Hypocrites are always trying to cause trouble for the Believers, to diminish their strength. Are we still going to become a victim of those plots made by some hypocrites? Will we be asked about what those Sahabah did in their times (why they had a clash) or we will be asked about that which we do in our times! Allah has a full record about what those Sahabah did and we (Muslims) must not slander against anyone of them. All those Sahabah were the seekers of Allah’s pleasure, a Muslim must respect all of those Companions of the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaho alaihi wasallam).

Al-Qur’an [ al-Bakarah -- 2:134 ]:

That was a nation who has passed away. They shall receive the reward of what they earned and you of what you earn. And you will not be asked of what they used to do.

We, Muslims, should actually say:

Al-Qur’an [ al-Hashr -- 59:10 ]:

And those who came after them say: Our Lord! Forgive us and our brethren who have preceded us in Faith, and put not in our hearts any hatred against those who have believed. Our Lord! You are indeed full of kindness, Most Merciful.

Surah/chapter Al-Hujurat (49) is a pretty small surah but Subhaan-Allah, it contains all the fundamental guidance for the brotherhood/unity of this community. This surah should be memorised by every Muslim or at least we should go through it periodically in our own language. Let us now go through some commands, Allah commanded in the Qur’an:

Al-Qur’an [ Al-Hujurat-- 49:6-13 ]:

O believers, if an evildoer comes to you with some news, verify it (investigate to ascertain the truth), lest you should harm others unwittingly and then regret what you have done.[6]
And know that among you is Allah’s Messenger; should he obey you in many a matter, you would surely fall into distress, but Allah has endeared the faith to you and has made it seemly in your hearts, and He has made hateful to you unbelief and transgression and disobedience; these it is that are the followers of a right way.

By grace from Allah and as a favor; and Allah is Knowing, Wise.
If two parties among the believers fall into mutual fighting, make peace between them. Then if one of them transgresses against the other, fight the one who has transgressed until he returns to the commands of Allah. Then, if he returns, make peace between them with justice and be fair; for Allah loves those who are fair and just.[9]

The believers are brothers to one another, therefore, make reconciliation between your brothers and fear Allah, so that you may be shown mercy.

O believers! Let no men laugh at other men who may perhaps be better than themselves; and let no woman laugh at another woman, who may perhaps be better than herself. Do not defame through sarcastic remarks about one another, nor call one another by offensive nicknames. It is an evil thing to be called by a bad name after being a believer, and those who do not repent are the ones who are the wrongdoers.[11]

O believers! Avoid immoderate suspicion, for in some cases suspicion is a sin. Do not spy on one another, nor backbite one another (to say something about another behind ones back that if one hears it, dislikes it). Would any of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? Surely you would abhor it. Fear Allah; for Allah is the Accepter of repentance, Merciful.

O mankind! We created you from a single pair of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes that you might get to know one another. Surely the noblest of you in the sight of Allah is he who is the most righteous. Allah is All-Knowledgeable, All-Aware.[13]

Subhan Allah! Most of the things needed for a successful community are mentioned above. For example:

[6] We should not believe on some media, until we properly investigate. These days the Media is being used as a tool of causing hatred and indecencies in the world. A news was wide-spread that there are weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, but when they ful-filled their aims and did not find WMD, they changed their words and we forgot about WMD. In the end, there was shame and regret, which is still going on.

[9] We should not support any party in fighting, just because we like that party. We should support the party which stops fighting and does not transgress.

[11] Very important! Muslims should never call offensive nicknames to another sect/group of Muslim neither abuse another Muslim but we should rather seek a decent way to explain/discuss that which we find to be correct or wrong.

[13] Similar to the last sermon of the Prophet Muhammad (sallallaho ‘alaihi wasallam): “You know that every Muslim is the brother of another Muslim. You are all equal. Nobody has superiority over other except by piety and good action.” It is nice to have various colours and taste in the shapes of various tribes & nations. HOWEVER, no one can claim that his/her tradition/culture/nation is the best. No one claim that white is better than black or vice versa. Similarly, so sect can claim that they are absolute correct and better than others, we need to correct ourselves!

We shall now see that having divisions is not always bad. For example, a government is composed of several divisions, military is also divided into serval divisions, wings; even our own body is divided into different parts. The main thing we need to consider is: How they manage to work together (united).

Have you ever seen Army attacking the Air-force in the same military? If they do this, the whole nation/country will collapse for no good. So, when a group of Muslims tries to attack another group to defame it, this is where divisions cause troubles. We should avoid attacking another sect/group both physically & verbally. Remember: “Fitnah (mischief) is worse than killing” [2:217]. This is the final Ummah and Alhamdulillah we are blessed with the Book of Qur’an and Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (‘alaihi salam)! It is not appropriate for a Muslim to speak indecently about other sects and abuse them!

Dear brothers and sisters, a Muslim is the one who declares: “There is no one worthy of worship, except Allah (the One God). And Muhammad (alaihi salam) is the Messenger of Allah.” Now who has the right to call a person, who declares Shahada (testimony), as “Non-Muslim or Kafir”? So respect the one who says the Shahada and never call him/her as ‘Kafir/non-Muslim’; Allah knows best about our hearts and faith.

Muslims have One God (Allah), One Qibla (Makkah), Muhammadur-Rasullullah (sallallaho alaihi wasallam) as a Messenger & final Prophet, this Qur’an as a final revelation… why can’t we have affection for our fellow Muslim brothers & sisters? Why do we call other Muslims as Kafir, just because they don’t belong to our sect/group?

Killing a Muslim is a grave sin as Qur’an mentions a very frightening ayaah:

Al-Qur’an [ an-Nisaa -- 4:93 ]:

-Whoever kills a believer intentionally, his punishment is hell to live therein forever. He shall incur the wrath of Allah, Who will lay His curse on him and prepare for him a woeful punishment.

May Allah save us from His wrath. Our reaction with our brothers should be like the reaction of a son of Prophet Adam (alaihi salam), when Habil/Abel said to his brother:

Al-Qur’an [ al-Maa'idah -- 5:28-29 ]:

Even if you stretch your hand to kill me, I shall not stretch my hand to slay you, for I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds.
I intend to let you bear the burden of my sins as well as yours and thus become an inmate of the Fire which is the reward for wrongdoers.

Al-Qur’an [ al-e-Imran -- 3:100-110 ]:

O ye who believe! If ye listen to a faction among the People of the Book, they would (indeed) render you apostates after ye have believed !

And how would ye deny Faith while unto you are rehearsed the Signs of Allah, and among you lives the Messenger. Whoever holds firmly to Allah will be shown a way that is straight.

O ye who believe! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except in a state of Islám .
And hold fast, all together, by the Rope which Allah (stretches out for you), and be not divided among yourselves; and remember with gratitude Allah’s favor on you; for ye were enemies and He joined your hearts in love, so that by His Grace, ye became brethren; and ye were on the brink of the pit of Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus doth Allah make His Signs clear to you that ye may be guided.
Let there arise out of you a band of people inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is right, and forbidding what is wrong: They are the ones to attain felicity.

Be not like those who are divided amongst themselves and fall into disputations after receiving Clear Signs: For them is a dreadful penalty,-

On the Day when some faces will be (lit up with) white, and some faces will be (in the gloom of) black: To those whose faces will be black, (will be said): “Did ye reject Faith after accepting it? Taste then the penalty for rejecting Faith.”

But those whose faces will be (lit with) white,- they will be in (the light of) Allah’s mercy: therein to dwell (for ever).

These are the Signs of Allah. We rehearse them to thee in Truth: And Allah means no injustice to any of His creatures.

To Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and on earth: To Allah matters return.
Ye are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in Allah. If only the People of the Book had faith, it were best for them: among them are some who have faith, but most of them are perverted transgressors.

Finally, recalling again:

On the authority of Abu Hurairah that the Prophet (PBUH) said:

“Whosoever removes a worldly grief from a believer, Allah will remove from him one of the griefs of the Day of Judgment. Whosoever alleviates [the lot of] a needy person, Allah will alleviate [his lot] in this world and the next. Whosoever shields a Muslim, Allah will shield him in this world and the next. Allah will aid a servant [of His] so long as the servant aids his brother. Whosoever follows a path to seek knowledge therein, Allah will make easy for him a path to Paradise. No people gather together in one of the houses of Allah, reciting the Book of Allah and studying it among themselves, without tranquility descending upon them, mercy enveloping them, the angels surrounding them, and Allah making mention of them amongst those who are with Him. Whosoever is slowed down by his actions will not be hastened forward by his lineage.” (Related by Muslim in these words.)

“Our Lord! Forgive us and our brethren who have preceded us in Faith,
and put not in our hearts any hatred against those who have believed
and unite this Ummah as You united those brothers before us.
Our Lord! You are indeed full of kindness, Most Merciful.”
Aameen again Aameen.


May Allah forgive me for my errors.