Sunday 31 October 2010

Obedience to the ruler




Obedience to the ruler

( Part No : 9,Page No:103)

Q: Many questions raised about the statement that Your Eminence declared: "Obeying the ruler is Obligatory" and the Hadith: He who obeys the commander (appointed by me) obeys me. Should we obey the ruler in everything?


A: This is a Hadithrelated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim in the Two Sahih (authentic) Books of Hadith (i.e. Al-Bukhari and Muslim)on the authority of Abu Hurayrah in which the Prophet (peace be upon him) stated, Whoever obeys the commander (appointed by me) obeys me and whoever disobeys the commander disobeys me. Moreover, Allah (glory be to Him) states in His Glorious Book, O you who believe! Obey Allâh and obey the Messenger (Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم), and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority.

This ruling is general and its meaning is qualified by other Hadiths from the Sunnah, as both the Quran and the Sunah are integrated and their rulings restrict each other. That is to say, the general meaning in the book of Allah can be defined by a Hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and vice versa. Thus, the Ayah under discussion is among the positions which the Sunnah confines its meaning. Allah (Exalted be He) stated, and those of you (Muslims) who are in authority. It is reported in the authentic Sunnah of the Prophet, Obedience is obligatory only in what is good. Those in authority should not be obeyed except in lawful matters. Similarly, parents, a husband, etc., should not be obeyed except in lawful matters as stated in aforementioned Hadith and the statement of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in the other Hadith, No one is bound to obey a creature in defiance to the Creator. When the Prophet (peace be upon him) said to the Sahabah (the Prophet's companions, may Allah be pleased with them), You will be ruled by leaders and you will find from them good matters and abominable matters.

( Part No : 9,Page No:104)

They asked, "O Allah's Messenger, what do you command us to do? Should not we declare war on them?" He (peace be upon him) said, "No, fulfill the rights due to them and ask Allah for the rights due to you." According to another narration, he (peace be upon him) stated, Give them their due rights and ask Allah for your rights. According to another wording: No, unless you see an evident infidelity on which you have a proof from Allah. Another narration states: No, so long as they establish Salah (prayer) among you. Accordingly, submission and obedience to rulers are established by the authentic Hadiths but are restricted to the lawful matters.



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