Ummah Identity
The
word ‘Ummah’ is basically a Qur’anic term which is mentioned fifty one times in
the Qur’an and its plural ‘Umam’ thirteen times. It is as [Watt in his book
Muhammad (ﷺ) at Madina;
Oxford, 1955. pp 161 ff..] suggests “the community formed by those who accept
the Messenger and his message”. In the same connotation the term ‘Ummah’ has
been used at least in 303 traditions of the prophet.
Prophet
Muhammad (ﷺ) after his migration to Madina in 622 C.E established a new society
and state on the concept of Ummah. The origin of this concept may be traced
back to the first meeting at Aqabah probably in the early days of 620 when
twelve Muslims from Madina; nine from the Khazraj tribe and three from the Aws
tribe worked in collaboration for a common cause of propagating the new faith.
It was symbolic of the role that Islam was to play in the history of the city
torn by dissentions and disputes.
In
the second meeting of Aqabah which is known as ‘Bai’at Al-Harb’’ nearly seventy
five persons pledged themselves not only to obey the prophet ﷺ and follow him but also to fight for him and defend him against all
enemies.
It
served as the corner-stone for the new Ummah in Madina. Now in Madina, through
the concept and application of Muakhaat (fraternity) Islamic Ummah was shaped
by a definite ideology and a distinct political philosophy. The affinity of
faith replaced all other ties which had their roots in tribal traditions of
Arabs. The Islamic Ummah was organized on the basis of ideology throwing into
shade all considerations of blood relationship.
After
the Prophet’s (ﷺ) migration to Madina, Muakhaat assumed a new
dimension. Since the majority of the immigrants were in a state of penury and destitution,
the Prophet (ﷺ) summoned all Muhajireen and Ansars who,
according to one report numbered 45, in the house of Anas ibn Malik (رضی اللہ عنہ) and paired
every Muhajir with an Ansari as his brother. Ansar readily accepted the
arrangement and shared their property, movable and immovable, with brothers in
Islam. Some of them even offered to divorce one of their two wives to marry her
with their Muhajir brothers. But this offer they did not accept. This Muakhaat
in fact aimed at consolidating the Muslim community into a well-knit and
cohesive Islamic Ummah.
Muakhaat was followed by Kitab (document) of the Prophet (ﷺ) which bound the whole population whether
Muslim or non-Muslim into a social and political organization. Kitab or
‘Constitution of Madina’ was promul-gated after the migration. Article 1 of the
Constitution declared Muhajir and Ansar Muslims as one Ummah (single
comm-unity) distinct from rest of the mankind. The same spirit is found in the
articles 15, 16, 25, 37 and 38. Therefore, the view that non-Muslims, Jews and
pagans of Madina, were not excluded from Ummah is not only against the
docu-ment’s spirit but also contrary to the very concept of Ummah based on
ideology. A study of the Constitution makes it abundantly clear that Muslims of
Madina alone were included in Ummah. All the non-Muslims, pagans, Jews or for
that matter, Christians of Madina were given the status of Dhimmis (protected
people), or at the most that of Haleefs. The Prophet’s (ﷺ) emphasis on this Ummah-based fraternity continued till
his farewell sermon at the last pilgrimage (Hajjatul-Widaa) just a couple of
months before his death, when he reaffirmed the Islamic concepts of equality,
fraternity, freedom and justice.
Today with 57 Muslim states showing the unity of ranks
and strengthening the 1.5 billion Muslims all over the world having a diverse
range of culture, languages, races, and varied national interests have an
enhanced identity consciousness of Ummah among the faithful across the globe.
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