Fostering a Sense of Unity

"Faytoum Şehri", Paul Renoir, Mathaf Galerisi, Londra.

Unity requires awareness, devotion, allegiance, and loyalty. Allah prescribes unity for Muslims and reveals that satan will attempt to create conflict in order to prevent this unity. Muslims are obliged to refrain from hurtful words, anger, disrespectfulness, and all other behavior that could damage this sense of unity when dealing with fellow Muslims. Each Muslim is required to be devoted to others, patient, work for the good of others, and loyal and true. All Muslims must adopt these superior qualities.

A good example of this is the relationship between those Muslims who emigrated to Madinah with our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and those Muslims who were already settled there. The Muslims who pledged their allegiance to our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) in Madinah welcomed the Meccan migrants in the cause of Allah in the nicest possible way and took good care of them. These two different communities, which had no mutual tribal bonds, considered loyalty to Islam to be the only important yardstick. The Muslims of Madinah proved their loyalty by opening their homes, sharing their food, and considering the migrants' needs before their own. Our Lord reveals their good conduct in the Qur'an:

Those who were already settled in the abode, and in faith, before they came, love those who have emigrated to them; do not find in their hearts any need for what they have been given; and prefer them to themselves, even if they themselves are needy. It is the people who are safe-guarded from the avarice of their own selves who are successful. (Surat al-Hashr: 9)

The exemplary and superior character demonstrated in this verse reveals how the relationship between two Muslim communities should be. Our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) describes solidarity in the following hadith:

Muslims are like one body. If the eye is sore, the whole body aches; if the head aches, the whole body aches.¹²

The love between Muslims and the absence of any ill-will are great gifts of Allah. Allah says the following about this gift, which will be completely fulfilled in Paradise:

We will strip away any rancor in their hearts—brothers, resting on couches face-to-face. (Surat al-Hijr: 47)

Obey Allah and His Messenger and do not quarrel among yourselves lest you lose heart and your momentum disappear. And be steadfast. Allah is with the steadfast. (Surat al-Anfal: 46) "Interior of the Mosque of the Metwalys," by British painter David Roberts.

Therefore, Muslims must act with the awareness that solidarity, fraternity, and a sense of belonging are gifts that must be protected by means of patience and strong will. Allah also reveals the importance of this unity in the following verse:

So heed Allah and put things right between you. Obey Allah and His Messenger if you believe. (Surat al-Anfal: 1)

Our Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) states the importance of unity in the following hadith:

Do not envy one another, do not hate one another, do not turn away from one another, and do not undercut one another. Rather, O servants of Allah, be brothers…¹³

Muslims are always obliged to be forgiving, but if the other party consists of Muslims, the first party must be even more patient. They must remember that the second party consists of fellow Muslims, and that both parties fear Allah, obey the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and abide by the Qur'an's definitions of right and wrong. All Muslims know that they must have only goodwill toward their fellow Muslims; that they should be considerate; and that they should respond with patience, compassion, and love when disagreements arise. Allah reveals the prayer of Muslims for their fellow Muslims:

Those who have come after them say: "Our Lord, forgive us and our brothers who preceded us in faith, and do not put any rancor in our hearts toward those who believe. Our Lord, You are All-Gentle, Most Merciful." (Surat al-Hashr: 10)

Just as Muslims are obliged to mediate in friendship between their each other, they are obliged to resolve any dispute between two Muslim communities. Allah says:

The believers are brothers, so make peace between your brothers and heed Allah, so that hopefully you will gain mercy. (Surat al-Hujurat: 10)

Clearly, this mentality creates a very strong sense of belonging and unity, for our Lord states:

Allah loves those who strive in His Way in ranks like well-built walls. (Surat as-Saff: 4)

The prevalence of violence and cruelty reveals dimensions of the responsibility upon Muslims.

This ideological struggle against irreligious philosophies and ideologies is a duty of all Muslims. No doubt, it is a historical mistake to develop a closed community struggling with internal affairs instead of shouldering the responsibility of this ideological struggle to bring light to an otherwise dark world. At present, humanity, especially the oppressed Muslims, is looking for a way out of this situation and is awaiting the arrival of a guidance that will bring peace, happiness, and justice to the world and remind all people of the true purpose of their existence. This guidance is the responsibility of the Islamic community, and all Muslims are obliged to act with awareness.

The fact that violence, terror, cruelty, fraud, dishonesty, immorality, conflict, and poverty are common proves that the world is full of "corruption." In the face of this reality, many issues that have become a problem among Muslims lose their importance. All of this cruelty and degeneration feeds off the false systems established by those who deny Allah's existence and unity and do not believe in the Hereafter. Therefore, people of conscience must unite in righteousness.

This unity will be one of the most important phases in the defeat of irreligious ideologies. Our Lord points out the nonbelievers' alliance and reveals the necessity of Muslim friendship and solidarity in order to rid the world of cruelty. Allah says:

Those who do not believe are the friends and protectors of one another. If you do not act in this way [protect each other], there will be turmoil in the land and great corruption. (Surat al-Anfal: 73)

Given that the Muslims have such a large responsibility, they must unite. If situations prevent them from doing so, they should consider the following questions:

We purified their sincerity through sincere remembrance of the Abode. In Our eyes they are among the best of chosen men. (Surah Sad: 46-47)

"Is this issue more important than the unity of Islam?"

"Is it beyond resolution?"

"Is it acceptable to dispute with another Muslim community instead of working against irreligious ideologies?"

Everybody who answers these questions conscientiously will know that the higher priority is to refrain from endless disputes and to establish a union based on the Qur'an's values.

Muslims must never forget that satan is always working to cause enmity between Muslims in order to prevent their unity and solidarity. Our Lord warns believers of this danger:

Say to My servants that they should only say the best. Satan wants to stir up trouble between them. Satan is an outright enemy to man. (Surat al-Isra': 53)

With this verse, Allah advises Muslims to avoid directing hurtful, mocking, harsh, and accusing words against other Muslims and points out the need for decent conduct in the pursuit of unity.

In the Qur'an, Allah also points out that such disputes and other damaging behavior impair one's sense of belonging and weaken the Muslims' power. Our Lord says:

Obey Allah and His Messenger and do not quarrel among yourselves, lest you lose heart and your momentum disappear. And be steadfast. Allah is with the steadfast. (Surat al-Anfal: 46)

As stated earlier, this is true for Muslim individuals as well as Muslim nations. If the Islamic world wants to erect a powerful, stable, and prosperous civilization that guides and illuminates the world in every aspect, it must act in union. The lack of such a union is responsible for the Islamic world's discord and separation, the absence of a common voice, and the defenselessness of innocent Muslims. Countless poor women, children, and elderly people are desperately in need of rescue from oppression in Palestine, Kashmir, East Turkistan (home of the Chinese-ruled Muslim Uighur people), the southern Philippines (home of the Muslim Moro people) and many other regions. The responsibility for these people belongs to the Islamic world before anyone else. Muslims must never forget the Prophet's (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) following words:

A Muslim is a Muslim's brother. He does not wrong him or abandon him.¹⁴

The Islamic world must put its various disputes aside and remember that all Muslims are "brothers" and "sisters" so that it can provide role models who reflect the true character of Islam and its ideals. This unity of the believers is a gift and grace of Almighty Allah. Sincere Muslims must thank our Lord for these benefits and obey His command "not to separate":

Hold fast to the rope of Allah all together, and do not separate. Remember Allah's blessing to you when you were enemies, and He joined your hearts together so that you became brothers by His blessing. You were on the very brink of a pit of the Fire, and He rescued you from it. In this way Allah makes His Signs clear to you, so that hopefully you will be guided. (Surah Al 'Imran: 103)

AN INTERVIEW WITH MR. ADNAN OKTAR BY AL BAGHDADIA TV, AUGUST 5th, 2008  Adnan Oktar: You know my ideas. I am a follower of the creed of the Ahl al-Sunnah. … For one thing, we must eliminate all sectarian differences. These are completely unconscionable. Wahhabism, Shiism and Sunnism are all fraternal sects. We all live together. We are all brothers. Muslims must never be one another's enemies on the pretext of sectarian differences. They are all sects of great piety. They are all sects that scrupulously abide by the faith. There is no division among us. We all believe in the same Allah and the same Prophet. We face the same direction in prayer. We love the same prophets. We are the same in just about everything. A spirit of opposition caused by differences of minor detail would be very ugly. It would mean falling into satan's trap. My brothers must take great care over this. All Muslims must love one another. For example, when a Shiite meets a Sunni he must embrace him and ask how he is doing. When he meets Wahhabist brothers, for example, he must go to their homes and embrace them and dine with them and even pray with them. I sometimes hear people say they do not pray behind each other, and that is totally out of order. They must be happy to pray behind them. Be they Shiite or Wahhabist or Sunni… It makes no difference, as we are all brothers… This ill becomes any Muslim.