In the name of Allah most
gracious most merciful
Assalaamu alykum wa
rahmatuallahi wa barakatuhu,
Khalifa is an
Arabic word literally meaning "one who replaces
someone else who left or died" (English: caliph). In
the context of Islam, however, the word acquires a
narrower meaning. The Muslim Khalifa is the
successor (in a line of successors) to Prophet
Muhammad's position as the political, military, and
administrative leader of the Muslims. The prophetic
role of Muhammad is strictly not included in this
definition, as the Qur'an and Hadith clearly state
that Muhammad was the last of the prophets. Khilafa
is a related Arabic word which, in the context of
Islam, is used to denote the government of the
Muslim state, of which the Khalifa is the head. A
workable analogy of Khalifa and Khilafa is president
and presidency or king and monarchy. The Khilafa is
a fard kifaya on the ummah.
The Khalifa of the
Muslim ummah must strive to:
-
Safeguard
Islam in its original form, and to protect
against the introduction of new things (bid'a)
into Islam.
-
Establish
justice (including punishments for crimes) among
the people.
-
Ensure the
protection of the ummah. People within the
boundaries of the Muslim state (regardless of
whether they are Muslims or not) should feel
secure enough to be productive.
-
Protect the
physical boundaries of the state through the use
of arms and other methods.
-
Defend the
rights of Muslims abroad, and to see to it that
Islam can spread freely in non-Muslim lands
(including the use of force).
-
Organize
jihad against any non-Muslim government which
prevents Muslim da'wah from entering its land.
-
Collect and
distribute zakat and the spoils of war according
to the Qur'an and Sunnah (and ijtihad, if
necessary). This must be done without the use of
fear as an incentive (unless a person refuses to
pay). Zakat is not to be taken from the best or
worst of people's possessions, but rather from
the middle.
-
Pay the
salaries of Bayt-ul-Mal employees, i.e., those
people whose job is the collection of zakat and
other state-levied taxes. Their salaries should
be reasonable and be paid on time.
-
Hire honest
people as helpers, aides, governors, etc. The
Khalifa must appoint to public office those who
are competent and who can give good advice. This
especially applies to Bayt-ul-Mal officials.
-
Be heavily
involved personally in the acts of governing.
The Khalifa must be actively checking and
overseeing the duties of the government, and
constantly be guarding against internal
corruption.
Muslim scholars
have determined certain criteria which any possible
candidate for the Khalifa must meet to be considered
legitimate.
-
The Khalifa
must be Muslim.
-
He must be
a man. This condition is based on the hadith
where the Prophet states that a nation would not
profit under a woman as its leader.
-
He must be
knowledgeable in Islam, and be able to make
independent decisions if necessary.
-
He must be
just, have good morals, and be trustworthy.
-
He must be
physically able (non-handicapped), spiritual,
brave, and helpful to protect the ummah against
its enemies. His eyes, ears, tongue, and body in
general should be in working condition. The
point here is to stress an independent, dynamic
leader for the sake of the ummah, not to
discriminate against the physically handicapped.
Today, for example, an artificial limb could be
used to offset an otherwise crippling injury.
-
He must be
politically, militarily, and administratively
experienced.
-
He must be
from the tribe of Quraish because they used to
be the leading tribe, the majority. The Prophet
has said, "The Khalifas are Quraishi." However,
many Muslim scholars have commented on this
prerequisite. Al-Mawardi has written that the
Khalifa should be Quraishi based on the saying
of Abu Bakr that the Khalifas are Quraishi and
their ministers are non-Quraishi. The majority
of scholars are of this opinion. Other scholars
have arrived at a different conclusion. Abu Bakr
Al-Baqlani has said that the leader of the
Muslims simply should be from the majority.
Muhammad Riya-Ad-Deen and Abu Hanifa wrote that
the leader must come from the majority to make
it easy to follow him.
There are three
ways in which the Muslim ummah may choose a new
Khalifa. However, in all three cases, the people are
obligated to give the new Khalifa their bay'a once
the process of choosing him is over. People can send
representatives to give their bay'a if the
population is large. The three ways of choosing the
Khalifa are by selection, by nomination, and by
force.
-
By
selection. The Khalifa is selected by a group of
the best, most Islamically knowledgeable people
in the society (not by a general vote of
everyone). This group is called the
Majlis-Ash-Shura (Arabic for "consultative
council"). The members of the Majlis-ash-Shura
are chosen from experts who are learned in
Islam, and they in turn choose the Khalifa. If
the society as a whole rejects their choice, the
Majlis-ash-Shura must find out why, perhaps
negotiate with the people, and in general try to
resolve the problem - however, this situation
has never occurred. The Majlis-ash-Shura must
have at least three people by the definition of
a jama'a (a group of three or more people). The
Muslim scholar Al-Mawardi has noted that in the
emergency case of no Khalifa and no
Majlis-ash-Shura (the situation today), the
people should create two parties: one being the
Majlis-ash-Shura, and the other being a list of
candidates for the Khalifa. The Majlis-ash-Shura
then selects a Khalifa from the list of
candidates.
-
By
nomination. The current Khalifa may nominate his
successor, the next Khalifa (as Abu Bakr did
with Umar). The people have to accept him just
as in the first case. If the old Khalifa
appoints someone unworthy out of ulterior
motives, the people must reject that appointee.
-
By force.
If the current Khalifa forces someone on the
people to be the next Khalifa, but that person
is righteous, the people must accept him as long
as he remains righteous. Similarly, if there is
no Khalifa (again, the situation today), it is
permitted for someone to forcibly seize power
and declare himself the Khalifa if he guarantees
to abide by his responsibilities under Islam.
There is no fixed
size for this group, however, it is generally agreed
that it should not be too large. Muslim scholars
have established some basic prerequisites which the
members of the Majlis-ash-Shura should have to
become part of that group. All agree that the
members must be adults (in Islam, this means anyone
who has entered puberty), and of sound mind. These
members are chosen by the various communities in the
ummah. Other prerequisites, while generally agreed
upon, differ slightly from scholar to scholar.
-
Al-Mawardi
has written that each member should satisfy
three conditions: he must be just, he must have
enough knowledge of Islam to differentiate
between a potentially good Khalifa and a bad
one, and he must have sufficient wisdom and
judgment to select the best leader.
-
Al-Juwayni
has four conditions for the Majlis-ash-Shura:
each member must be a man, knowledgeable, above
average relatively, and Muslim.
-
Abdul-Jabbar is of the opinion that the members
must have enough knowledge to select he who can
be Khalifa - enough Islamic knowledge in
particular, and wisdom and judgment in general.
-
Muhammad
Rida wrote that the Majlis-ash-Shura should be
the best of the ummah, composed of the scholars,
leaders, soldiers, businessmen, and respected
people of the society. All the members should
have deep knowledge of Islam as a basic
prerequisite. They must be people whose opinions
and decisions are obeyed and respected. The
Majlis-ash-Shura should have people from many
fields of expertise to ensure a broad base of
support and knowledge.
-
Faiyadh has
written that the Majlis-ash-Shura serves as an
intermediary between the people and the Khalifa.
The most qualified people to be in the
Majlis-ash-Shura are the leaders of the
different 'tribes', the Muslim scholars, and
those experienced in life (i.e., experts in
non-Islamic fields like economics, engineering,
medicine, etc.). These are also the ones who
represent the ummah and who can speak against
the ummah.
-
Al-Baghdadi
believed that the Khalifa and the
Majlis-ash-Shura should be selected from amongst
those who can choose wisely.
There are four
conditions which must be met for the
Majlis-ash-Shura to legitimately select a new
Khalifa.
-
There must
currently be no existing Khalifa.
-
A qualified
and willing individual must accept his
nomination by the Majlis-ash-Shura.
-
The nominee
must have been selected freely by the
Majlis-ash-Shura - and the members of the
Majlis-ash-Shura must give him their bay'a.
-
The bay'a
must be given to the nominee by the general
populace - though some scholars say this is
optional.
Some scholars
believe that the bay'a should be given in the
presence of two witnesses, whereas other scholars
believe this is unnecessary since selecting the
Khalifa is a public matter.
When the
Majlis-ash-Shura votes for the Khalifa, the members
must formally select one of the candidates, and
there must be no objection against that candidate
which can be supported by evidence. However, Muslim
scholars have differed on the number of members in
the Majlis-ash-Shura needed to select a Khalifa from
the list of candidates.
-
Some
scholars say that at least a majority of the
Majlis-ash-Shura must agree on the new Khalifa.
-
Al-Ashari
believes the Khalifa could be given to an
eligible person even by a single vote if he
comes from the Majlis-ash-Shura and has a good
Islamic character. There must also be no valid
objection supported by evidence or witnesses.
-
Another
group of scholar's opinion is that the Khalifa
must have two votes for him in the
Majlis-ash-Shura who are good Muslims (two
because the Majlis-ash-Shura is a jama'a which
is at least three people).
-
A fourth
opinion is that the Khalifa must have four votes
(with no countering objection) because
witnessing to a charge of adultery in Islam
requires four witnesses.
-
A fifth
opinion holds that at least three votes are
necessary to make the decision have the strength
of a jama'a behind it.
-
A sixth
opinion is that at least five votes are needed
to make an even stronger decision.
-
Finally, a
seventh group of scholars believes that it
requires 40 members of the Majlis-ash-Shura to
vote for the same candidate for him to become
the new Khalifa since Friday prayer requires 40
people to be valid (according to some scholars).
One way the Khalifa
may be chosen is through the use of force. Many
Muslim scholars say that if a person has already
seized power, then to avoid Muslim bloodshed that
person should be accepted if he upholds his duties
as the Khalifa of the Muslim ummah.
-
Ibn Hanbal
wrote that if a Khalifa has seized power, it is
haram to fight him. However, he must meet his
responsibilities under Islam.
-
Ash-Shafi'i
believed that a person who seizes power and then
is accepted by the people is a legitimate
Khalifa.
-
An-Nawawi
believed that if someone forces himself on the
ummah, but is qualified, then he should be
accepted by the people to avoid Muslim bloodshed
and to preserve Muslim unity. An-Nawawi also
claimed that if the new Khalifa subsequently
does not follow the sunnah of the Prophet
precisely, it would be still be questionable to
fight against him because of the paramount
importance of avoiding Muslim bloodshed and
disunity.
-
Ibn
Khaldun, Al-Asqalani and Al-Juwayni all believed
that forceful seizure of power by someone is
legitimate as long as he follows Islam as the
new Khalifa.
-
Ibn Taymiya
wrote that after someone has seized power, he is
legitimate so long as he follows the Qur'an and
Sunnah.
All scholars are in
unanimous agreement that using force to displace an
already established Khalifa who is meeting his
responsibilities is forbidden.
The above scholars
rely on the following ahadith to support their
opinions.
-
From Sahih
Muslim: A companion of the Prophet named
Hudhayfah asked the Prophet about what the
future holds for the Muslims. The Prophet
replied that they will be led by devils at some
point. The Prophet then added that the Muslims
should obey these leaders.
-
From Sahih
Bukhari and Sahih Muslim: The Prophet noted that
there will come leaders whom the Muslims will
not like - that is, they will not follow the
Sunnah precisely. The Prophet continued and
ordered the Muslims to "give your right to them,
and ask God for your right," or in other words
be patient.
-
From Sahih
Muslim: The Prophet asked people for their bay'a
in which he asked for obedience during weakness
and strength, wealth and poverty. This request
for obedience from the people applies to the
Khalifas as well unless they exhibit signs of
kufr.
Many Muslim
scholars have commented on when it is permissible to
disobey or remove the Khalifa, which is normally
forbidden when the Khalifa is meeting all his
responsibilities under Islam.
-
Al-Mawardi
believed that if the Khalifa has followed the
Qur'an and Sunnah, the people must follow and
support him. On the other hand, if he becomes
either unjust or handicapped to the point of
ineffectiveness (such as blindness or an
amputation), then he must be removed.
-
Al-Baghdadi
believed that if the Khalifa deviates from
justice, the ummah needs to warn him first to
return to the straight path. If this fails, then
he can be removed.
-
Al-Juwayni
held that since Islam is the goal of the ummah,
any Khalifa who steps away from this goal must
be removed.
-
Ashighistani wrote that if the Khalifa is found
to be ignorant, oppressive, indifferent, or a
kafir after his selection, then he must be
removed.
-
Al-Ghazali
believed that an oppressive Khalifa must be told
to desist from his crimes. If he does not, then
he must be removed.
-
Al-Iji
believed the ummah has a definite list of
permissible reasons to remove the Khalifa.
-
Al-Asqalani
wrote that if the Khalifa starts to act as an
unbeliever, it is prohibited to obey him and
obligatory to fight him. It is obligatory to
stand against him if one can - and this entails
a big reward. Those people who choose to ignore
the situation are in sin, whereas those who
cannot fight should emigrate (to organize
resistance). Al-Asqalani used two ayahs from the
Qur'an in particular to support his position.
The first is from surat Al-Ahzab 67-68, "...And
they would say, 'Our Lord! We obeyed our chiefs
and our great ones, and they deceived us as to
the right path. Our Lord! Give them a double
penalty and curse them with a very great
curse'...", and the second is from surat Al-Baqara
167, "...And those who followed would say, 'If
only we had one more chance, we would clear
ourselves of them, as they have cleared
themselves of us.' Thus will Allah show them
(the fruits of) their deeds as (nothing but)
regrets. Nor will there be a way for them out of
the Fire..."
-
Muslim
reported that Ibn Umar said the Prophet ordered
every Muslim to obey their leader unless
commanded to do something bad, in which case
they must neither obey nor listen. Muslim also
reported that Ibn Malik said the best leader is
the one where mutual love exists between him and
the people, and the worst leader generates
mutual hate. However, even in the latter case,
fighting the Khalifa is prohibited unless he
enters kufr by stopping prayers or zakat for
example.
-
Ibn As-Samit
reported that the Prophet said to obey him in
all things and situations, and not to remove the
leaders unless they openly practice kufr.
-
Abu Daud
reports from Ibn Ujrah that the Prophet entered
a masjid, and said there will come leaders after
him who disobey the Qur'an and Allah. Those who
help them are not of the Muslims, but if someone
opposes them, he or she is of the Prophet's
people.
The Khalifa must be
seriously and unrepentantly off the straight path if
he is to be accused of kufr. Actions like neglecting
prayers, ignoring the fast, and claiming that the
Qur'an and Sunnah are outdated are the types of
crimes that indicate kufr on the part of the Khalifa.
In such circumstances, he must be warned quietly
first before taking any physical action against him.
However, in cases where the Khalifa is not a kafir,
but is simply very belligerent (e.g., seizing the
land of others unjustly), the people are obligated
to yield their rights (including possessions) to
avoid bloodshed. Instead, they should pray to Allah
to restore their rights.
In a the event of a
bad Khalifa, the Majlis-ash-Shura must be the voice
of the ummah which steps forward and orders the
Khalifa to step down (although they must warn the
Khalifa first of his crimes). If there is no
Majlis-ash-Shura, the general populace must create
one first by nominating and appointing people to
form it. No individuals should rise up alone in
protest against the Khalifa. Muslim scholars have
elaborated on this subject extensively.
-
Al-Juwayni
has written that if the Khalifa acts strangely
and is leading the Muslims to weakness, the
ummah should not allow individuals to step
forward and challenge the Khalifa because this
leads to anarchy. Rather, any change must go
through the Majlis-ash-Shura.
-
Al-Mindad
believed that an oppressor cannot be the Khalifa,
a judge, imam for prayer, or even a simple
witness. However, if he is already the leader,
then we must go through the Majlis-ash-Shura
first to remove him.
-
Ash-Shahastani
believed that the Khalifa is very important, so
in case of disagreement between him and the
people, no individual should go about creating
turmoil. Instead, the people should go through
the Majlis-ash-Shura.
-
Al-Ash'ari
noted that the first fitnah or dispute after the
Prophet's death was the dispute over the Khilafa.
-
Ibn Taymiya
believed that an oppressive Khalifa should not
be fought against immediately, but rather after
going through the Majlis-ash-Shura first (and
failing).
-
An-Nawawi
wrote that a sinning, oppressive Khalifa should
be removed by the Majlis-ash-Shura. However, if
much bloodshed among the Muslims is forthcoming,
then the ummah should avoid the fighting and
bear him.
-
Ghazali
believed that a bad Khalifa should be borne to
avoid the possible killing of Muslims. However,
the Majlis-ash-Shura should warn the Khalifa
quietly at first. If the Majlis-ash-Shura is
unsuccessful, and fighting is threatened, then
the ummah must weigh the possible cost of many
deaths against oppression. Sometimes the
bloodshed warrants that the oppressive Khalifa
should be tolerated.
The
Majlis-ash-Shura is the body which has the authority
to remove the Khalifa if he behaves contrary to
Islam. At first, the Majlis-ash-Shura must advise
the Khalifa of his deviant behavior, and warn him to
stop. If the Khalifa does not change, then he must
be told to resign. If he refuses and threatens to
use physical force to stay on (e.g., a corrupt army
backs him), then the Muslim ummah has three options
available to it at that point:
-
Fight him
according to some scholars.
-
Be patient,
and let him lead, to avoid Muslim bloodshed.
This is the strongest opinion: the majority of
the ahl-ul-hadith and scholars of the Sunnah
advocate this view including Malik, Ash-Shafi'i,
and Ahmad.
-
Depending
on the circumstance, either fight or be patient
according to some scholars.
When should the
ummah have to fight? Muslim scholars all agree that
fighting is obligatory on the ummah when the Khalifa
starts to alter Islamic doctrine and practice. This
makes him a clear kafir. Some scholars say that the
Khalifa can be fought even when he becomes only a
fasiq - e.g., he believes in prayer, but does not do
it regularly. The majority of scholars say that this
particular offense (neglecting prayer) is kufr
anyway - not just fisq.
The method by which
Abu Bakr became Khalifa was by selection (ikhtiar)
though there is a difference of opinion on whether
the selection was carried out by a Majlis-ash-Shura
or the general populace. There are certain actions
of the Prophet which implied that he wanted Abu Bakr
to be the first Khalifa.
-
A woman
asked the Prophet who to come back to for help
should the Prophet not be there (i.e. if the
Prophet had died). The Prophet stated Abu Bakr.
-
The Prophet
said, "Follow the best successors after me: Abu
Bakr and Umar."
-
When the
Prophet became ill, Aisha said that he asked her
to call in Abu Bakr to write a letter "so that
people will not dispute."
-
The Prophet
asked Abu Bakr to lead the prayer in his
absence.
-
The Prophet
informed us of a dream he had in which he pulled
some water out of a well, followed by Abu Bakr,
then by Umar.
-
During a
khutba, the Prophet said, "If I were to choose a
best friend from the people, I would choose Abu
Bakr."
-
A man had a
dream where the Prophet and Abu Bakr where
weighed against each other, and the Prophet was
found to be heavier. Then Abu Bakr and Umar were
weighed - Abu Bakr being heavier. Then Umar and
Uthman were weighed - Umar being heavier.
Allah knows best
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