Duty of a Commander

People of wisdom state: Anyone who cannot observe the do's and don'ts of being a commander (chief, leader, superior, head) must beware of being appointed as a commander. A commander should not see those under his command as servants or workers because there may be Allah's dear, holy slaves among them. Whoever looks down on them will take a tumble. Do not display an arrogant attitude toward them, or else Allah will destroy those who treat them so. Whoever breaks their hearts will incur a much graver sin than demolishing the Ka'ba seventy times. In a sacred hadith, Allahu ta'ala orders our Master the Prophet, "O My Beloved One! Be a servant to a person who wants Me." Who wants Allahu ta'ala? A Muslim wants Him. That is, Allahu ta'ala says so: "O My Beloved One! When you see a Muslim, be a servant to him. Do him favors. Do not attempt to exercise authority." This is Allahu ta'ala's order to His Beloved, for the sake of whom He created the universe. What people suffered and caused others to suffer stemmed from their love for becoming a head. When two or three people come together, they should appoint one of them as a commander (amir). The one who has been chosen as the commander should not be in the expectation of being served. Rather he should serve his friends. As a matter of fact, while two people were heading somewhere, each with a sack on his back, one of them said to the other: "It is sunnat that one of us should be the commander. Be the commander!" "Okay, am I a commander over you now? Will you obey my orders?" he asked. "Of course, I will. It is wajib to obey the commander," he answered.

"Then I order you to put your sack on my back," he told. "How can it be, sir?" he asked. "Do not voice an objection. The commander is I. Then put your sack on my back," he repeated. "But is it compatible with the proprieties?" he inquired. "Do not object to anything! Now all your responsibilities and duties are on me. I must provide you with whatever is necessary for your comfort. A commander is not a person who is a burden on others, but a person who lifts the burden from others and who serves them," he said. How to be successful? Allahu ta'ala looks at people's hearts. People, on the other hand, look at a person's smiling face. Therefore, in order to be successful, it is necessary to turn the heart to Janab-i Haqq (Allahu ta'ala) and to have a smiling face. These two are the secrets of success. For the services rendered in the way of Ahl as-Sunnah scholars and superiors of Silsila-i 'Aliyya to continue, to advance, and to peak, there are two conditions to be met: The first is faith and the second is love. How can one do something that one does not believe in? How can one be successful in something that one does not love? For this reason, there is certainly success wherever there are faith and love. Du'a (supplication, prayer) knocks mountains down. But the du'a of qualified people can accomplish this. We cannot know whose supplication is worthy of being answered, so we should make every effort to win du'a from everyone.