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Hijrah
of Hearts: The Greatest Kind of Hijrah
Praise
be to Allah Who has ordained the hijrah (migration) of
hearts and the hijrah of bodies on His servants and has made
these two kinds of migration everlasting throughout the
ages. We Muslims should follow the example of the Prophet
(peace and blessings be upon him) by modeling ourselves
after his guidance and course of life and following in his
footsteps in terms of talking and behaving. Allah Almighty
has ordered us to do this, saying, [Verily
in the messenger of Allah ye have a good example for him who
looketh unto Allah and the last Day, and remembereth Allah
much]
(Al-Ahzab
33:21).
By
the beginning of the month of Muharram, people start talking
much about the Prophet's Hijrah in sermons, lectures, and
the mass media. Such speeches are mostly mere stories by
which people pass the time; and in a few days, the matter is
neglected and forgotten without affecting people's souls or
being regarded as a model to follow in manners and behavior.
Rather, it has become an annual custom that people speak of
without understanding or acting according to the meaning of
hijrah.
Linguistically
speaking, the word hijrah in Arabic indicates
separating oneself from others bodily, spiritually, or in
speech. Legally speaking, it means departing from
disbelieving countries, evil people, or evil deeds and
dispraised practices. The hijrah in this sense is among the
traditions of Ibrahim (peace and blessings be upon him) who
said, [Lo!
I am going unto my Lord Who will guide me]
(As-Saffat 37:99). The verse refers to Ibrahim's emigration
from the country of disbelievers, seeking faith. Some of his
offspring accompanied him to Ash-Sham, where Al-Aqsa Mosque
is located in Palestine, and then, accompanied by some
others of his offspring, he moved to Al-Hijaz, where the
Sacred Mosque is situated in Makkah. This is stated in the
invocation mentioned in the verse that reads [Our
Lord! Lo! I have settled some of my posterity in an
uncultivable valley near unto Thy holy House]
(Ibrahim 14:37).
Hijrah
was also established by Prophet Muhammad (peace and
blessings be upon him) as he twice ordered his Companions to
immigrate to Abyssinia to preserve their faith when the
disbelievers in Makkah began torturing them severely. The
Prophet, however, remained in Makkah calling people to
Allah, in spite of the great harm he received. Then Allah
Almighty permitted him to immigrate to Madinah. The Prophet
(peace and blessings be upon him) allowed his Companions to
go to Madinah, and, accordingly, they began emigrating,
leaving their homes and properties, seeking the bounties and
satisfaction of Allah, and helping Allah's cause and His
Messenger. Allah praised those Muhajirun (immigrants to
Madinah) and promised them great reward. That is why Hijrah
is mentioned in the Qur’an associated with jihad. Further,
the Muhajirun became the best of the Prophet's Companions,
as they sacrificed everything one may cherish; namely home,
property, family, and relatives, in order to preserve their
faith and to please Allah.
Emigration
has become an established fact that will not cease until
Judgment Day, as stated in the hadith that reads “Hijrah
will not end until repentance ends, and repentance will not
end until the sun rises in the west (that is
immediately before the Judgment Day).” Hence, whoever
cannot declare his religion in a particular place must move
to another place where he can freely declare his faith.
Moreover, Allah Almighty has threatened whoever can emigrate
for the above-mentioned reason and does not: [Lo!
As for those whom the angels take (in death) while they
wrong themselves, (the angels) will ask: In what were ye
engaged? They will say: We were oppressed in the land. (The
angels) will say: Was not Allah's earth spacious that ye
could have migrated therein? As for such, their habitation
will be hell, an evil journey's end; Except the feeble among
men, and the women, and the children, who are unable to
devise a plan and are not shown a way. As for such, it may
be that Allah will pardon them. Allah is ever Clement,
Forgiving]
(An-Nisaa’ 4:97–99).
This
is, in fact, a strongly worded threat to whoever neglects
emigration, when needed, without a legal excuse. Allah’s
earth is spacious, and without doubt, there are many good
places where one may practice one’s religion freely. In
accordance with this meaning, Allah Almighty says, [Whoso
migrateth for the cause of Allah will find much refuge and
abundance in the earth]
(An-Nisaa’ 4:100). Furthermore, Allah compensates those
who emigrate for the properties left behind. The Almighty
says, [To
those who leave their homes in the cause of Allah, after
suffering oppression, we will assuredly give a goodly home
in this world; but truly the reward of the Hereafter will be
greater; if they only realized (this)!]
(An-Nahl: 41–42).
Among
the different kinds of hijrah is the abandonment of
wrongdoings such as acts of disbelief, polytheism,
hypocrisy, and other evil deeds and bad morals. Addressing
Prophet Muhammad, Allah Almighty says, [And
idols, shun]
(Al-Muddaththir 74:5). Avoiding idols, as stated in the
verse, also implies denouncing them as well as the people
who glorify them. Besides, the Prophet (peace and blessings
be upon him) tells us that a Muslim is the one who avoids
harming Muslims with his tongue and hands, and an emigrant
is the one who abandons all what Allah has forbidden. The
hadith indicates that one should forsake any deed, rule,
word, food, or anything Allah Almighty has prohibited, as
well as forbidden gaze and forbidden hearing. All such
matters should be forsaken completely.
Another
kind of hijrah is to desert wrongdoers such as disbelievers,
hypocrites, immoral people, and the like, as Allah Almighty
says, [And
bear patiently what they say and avoid them with a becoming
avoidance]
(Al-Muzzammil 73:10). Here, Allah orders His Messenger
(peace and blessings be upon him) to be patient with those
foolish persons who belie him among his people, and to
forsake them without blaming them.
The
highest form of hijrah is the hijrah of the hearts to Allah
through worshiping Him sincerely in secret and in public. In
this form of hijrah, the true believer should not intend
anything with his words and deeds except gaining Allah's
pleasure and should not love except Allah and whoever is
loved by Allah. Similarly, hijrah to Allah's Messenger can
be fulfilled by following him and giving priority to obeying
his orders over anybody else's.
To
conclude, discussing hijrah cannot be fulfilled by just
narrating the stories and incidents of the Prophet’s
Hijrah, nor by holding ceremonies and then, all of a sudden,
everything ends, leaving no trace in the soul or effect on
the behavior. Unfortunately, many of those who talk about
hijrah every new year do not know its meaning or act
according its objectives. They may even act in contrast with
such meanings and objectives; and thus talking about hijrah
becomes mere words, which are of no avail.
*
A member of The Saudi Counsel of
Senior Scholars, the Permanent Committee for Islamic
Research and Fatwas and the Fiqh Academy in Makkah
affiliated to the Muslim World League.
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