Dawah in the West
All praise is due to Allah, and may Salah and Salam be upon the Messenger of
Allaah, to proceed:
Know, my Muslim brother, that from the principles of the religion of Islam is disbelieving in the Taghut, and this is half of tawheed; its other half being belief in Allah, as Allah the Most High says:
فَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِالطَّاغُوتِ وَيُؤْمِن بِاللَّهِ فَقَدِ اسْتَمْسَكَ بِالْعُرْوَةالْوُثْقَىٰ لَا انفِصَامَ لَهَا
{“Whoever disbelieves in the Taghut and believes in Allah, then he has held unto the firm hand hold.”} [2:256]
And He said:
وَلَقَدْ بَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ أُمَّةٍ رَّسُولًا أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ وَاجْتَنِبُوا الطَّاغُوتَ
{“And we have sent to every nation a Messenger, proclaiming believe in Allah and abstain from Taghut.”} [16:36]
And from disbelief in the Taghut is: declaring (ones) disavowal from Kufr and its people, and hating them, and having enmity towards them, as Allah the Most High says:
قَدْ كَانَتْ لَكُمْ أُسْوَةٌ حَسَنَةٌ فِي إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ إِذْ قَالُوا لِقَوْمِهِمْ إِنَّا بُرَآءُ مِنكُمْ وَمِمَّا تَعْبُدُونَ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ كَفَرْنَا بِكُمْ وَبَدَا بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَكُمُ الْعَدَاوَةُ وَالْبَغْضَاءُ أَبَدًا حَتَّىٰ تُؤْمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَحْدَهُ
{“There has been a good example in Ibrahim and those who were with him, when they said to their people: “We are free from you and what you worship besides Allah, we have disbelieved in you, and enmity and hatred has begun between us and you until you believe in Allah alone.”} ,” [Mumtahanah: 4]
Shaykh ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said: {“For Allah has ordered us to follow in the way of Ibrahim and those who were with him, as they declared Bara’ah (innocence, disavowal) from the Mushrikin and what they worship besides Allah, and al-Khalil (Ibrahim) said: “I am free from what you worship, except the One who created me. Indeed He shall guide me,” and having Bara’ah is opposite of allegiance, and the foundation of Bara’ah is hatred, and the foundation of allegiance is love, and this is because the reality of tawheed is to not love except Allah, and to love what Allah loves, thus he doesn’t love except for Allah, and does not hate except for Allah.”}
Many of the Muslims have been tested by living in the lands of the Kafirun (disbelievers), for various reasons; however the hukm (Islamic ruling) upon living in the lands of the Kuffar has various details which the people of knowledge have mentioned, generally compromising three categories;
The First Category: If the Muslim is capable of openly declaring his religion, as well as declaring publicly his disbelief and rejection of the Taghut, then it is permissible for him to reside there, and if he is a public caller (daa’i) to Allah whilst living between Kuffar, then it may even be praiseworthy and recommended for him to reside there, and this was the condition of the Prophets when they lived amongst their people.
The Second Category: If he is unable to openly declare his religion, and is able to migrate to a land where he can openly declare his religion in it, then it becomes obligatory to do so.
The Third Category: If he is unable to openly declare his religion, and is unable to migrate, then he is from the weak excused ones, but he must refrain from interacting with the Kuffar and mixing with them as much as possible. And, all this has been explained elsewhere.
For this reason, it is obligatory upon those Muslims who reside in the land of the Kuffar (Daar ul Kufr) to actualise the Millah of Ibrahim (as) by declaring Bara’ah from the Kuffar and their religion, and to openly show them hatred and enmity. However, I wish to make two issues related to this matter clear;
The First Issue: Actualising the Millah of Ibrahim does not mean leaving calling the Kuffar to Islam in a nice manner, for the Messenger (saw) was open to the Kuffar from his people in his declaration of their Kufr, and his enmity and hatred towards them, and this did not prevent him (saw) from calling them to Islam by softness, mildness, and with good reminders. In this matter two types of people have fallen into misguidance,
1. Those who see nothing except softness in calling people to Islam, so he left openly showing enmity and hatred to the disbelievers, and thus fell into having allegiance (towards them).
2. Those who see nothing but hatred and enmity towards them, so they ignore inviting them to Islam by mildness.
The Second Issue: The actualisation of the Millah of Ibrahim does not mean being treacherous to the Kuffar or cheating them or their wealth if they give a contract of passage (or safety) to the Muslim, for the Muslim, if he is granted a contract of protection and passage by way of an agreed upon contract with the Kafir, even if only by way of custom, then it becomes prohibited on him to be treacherous or deceive them.
I ask Allah, the Glorified the Most High to forgive the ones who wrote, translated, published and read it from amongst the Muslims, and I ask Him the Glorified to help us all to that which He loves and is pleased with, and to grant us sincerity, and to accept from our actions, and to keep us firm until we meet Him, and may Salah and Salam be upon our Messenger Muhammad, and upon his family and Companions
Sunday, 10/3/1424H