28 Mahmoud Mohamed Taha

of lslam
The SecondMessage

M a h m o u dM o h a m e dT a h a( S u d a nc i r c a l 9 l 0 l 9 8 5 ) r e c e i v e dh i s u n i v e r s l tdye g r e ei n
K h a r t o L - rSmu.d a na, n dw o r k e df o ' m a n y y e a . sa sa c i vI e n g i n e e sr .p e c , a l i z i inngr r i g a t r o n .
A t t h e s a m et i m e ,h e w a sa c t i v ei n t h e S u d a n e s e
n d e p e n d e n cm e o v e m e n tl.n 1 9 4 5 h ,e
h e , n e d lL ov fr vou ., r nr ud tr h' r !e D
rrL'p!u
^ ^ , t - 1 , - - ^D
I\CPUUIlLdll
. - ' , d-l ^l U, r tL h
I dl t/
^ ^ > U^C^l ^ rl L .) U^V' E ^I - .d 1r . . ^ - - )- rl i ^I : - r rd->- c-1 -I C^>-U l t O f h i S
l lcl | "
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actrvism. After rndependence, hisfollowersfoundedthe Republrcan Brothers, whichTaha

. hefoundrng
l e d u n t i lh i se x e c u t i o ni n 1 9 8 5T d o c u m e no t f t h r so r g a n i z a t r of nl r,s td r a f t e d
in the early l95Osand publishedtn 1967-excerptedhere presentsTaha'sunortho-
dox view that the eadierQur'anicrevelations(revealedin lYeccabeforethe Prophet
g a n e d p o l t i c a lp o w e r )s h o u l db e g r a n t e dg r e a t e ' i m p o r l a ^ cteh a nt h e l a t e rr e v e l a t r o n s .
which refer more narrowlyto the conditionsof the Prophetsrule in lYedinaThrsvrew
t i t h t h e S u d a n e sgeo v e r - n m e n ti 'm
b r o u g h tT a h a r n t o c o n f l i c w s p l e m e n t a t r oonf m o r e
o r l h o d o x l s i a m i cl a w s n t h e l 9 8 O s H . i s p r o t e s ta g a i n st th e s ep o l i c i e sl e d t o h s a r r e s t
anoexeculon,

I n t r o d u c t i o nt o t h e T h i r d E d i t i o n R a m a d a n 1 3 8 6 n . H . T h e s e c o n de d i t i o n w a s p u b -
lished in April 1968n.o., in the month of Muharram
This is the introduction to the third edition of The 1388a.H.At the time of the secondedition we were.
SecondMessag,eof Islam. The first edition was pub- however,preoccupiedwith other businessand could
lished in January l96J a,.o.,in the reveredmonth of not give that edition an introduction of its own.
This book,The SecondMessageof Islant, is neu
in every respect.. . . Besides being new, it is also
l. AbdullahiAhmedAn-Na'im."Translator's lntroduc-
totally "strange," that is. unexpected,since it pro-
tion." in Mahmoud Mohamed Taha, The SecondMessageof
/ . s / r r r r( S y r a c u s e ,N . Y . : S y r a c u s eU n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1 9 8 7 ) ; claims the return of a renewedIslam. Such
"strange-
K h a l i d D u r a n . " A n A l t e r n a t i v et o I s l a m i s m :T h e E v o l u t i o n - n e s s , " h o w e v e r , i s t o b e e x p e c t e d ,e s p e c i a l l y b 1 '
ary Thought of Mahmud Taha," Cross Currenls, volume 42. informed Muslims. The Prophet is reportedto have
nunrber4, Winter 1992-1993,pp.453167; Paul J. Magna- said: "Islam startedas a stranger,and it shall return
rella. "RepublicanBrothers,"in John L. E,sposito.editor,The
as a strangerin the same way it started.Blessedare
Otf'ord Ency-clopedict oJ'the Modern Islantic lV'or'ld(New
Y o r k : O x f o r d U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s ,1 9 9 5 ) ,v o l u m e 3 , p p . 4 2 9 - the strangers!They asked: Who are the strangers.
130. O Messengerof God? He replied: Those who revive

)70
 r H E S E C O N DI . l E S S A GOEF I S L A I Y 77I
aha my sLtnna[practice of the prophet] after it had been
capabilities,therebyrequiring them to act within
abandoned." their
capacities. Sunna is his prophethood,while shari,a
Thus, the return of a revived Islam is by nature i s
h i s m e s s a g e .W i t h r e s p e c tt o h i s m e s s a g e ,t h e
strange,that is to say, mysterious and unexpected.
Prophet said: "We the prophetshave been instructed
Those who criticize this book for its ,,strangeness,,,
to addresspeople in accordancewith the level of
therefore, reveal both a lack of understanding and their
understanding."
of patience. We need not concern ourselves here
with those who oppose this book,s messageout of
misunderstandingand deliberate distortion out of A l - l s l a mc n d A l - r m a n
bad faith. But we must emphasizethat the apparent
There is a common failure to appreciatethe fine
"strangeness"of this messageis inherentin
the na_ distinction between islant
ture of Islamic revival. Understandingthis book re_ 'iman [submission to God] and
'lman
lfaith]. is widely and misrakenly be_
quires patience,diligence,and close scrutiny.If the
lieved to be superior to islam. This mistaken
reader is able to persist, his mind shall be open to a belief
is due to an inability to appreciatethe circumstances
new understandingof the eur'an and Islam, and he
of the time. The time when such belief sufficed
shall be rewarded for his perseverance,God willins. is
over, as we have now reacheda point when the
under_
standingof religion has developedand evolved
from
S u n n ac n d S h a r r ' a the level of iman to the level of islam. The distinc_
tion can be explainedas follows:
In the above quoted hadith Itradition of the propher],
Islam is an intellectual processby which the dili_
the Prophet referred to the strangers and said they gent worshiper proceedson a ladder of seven
were those who revive his slzrzn steps,
a after it had been the first being islam, secondly 'imett,
thirdly ihsan
abandoned.Those who call for such a revival become
fbeneficence], fourthly' itm al-yaqin,fifthly, ilm, ayn
strangersamongsttheir own people,becausesuch a
al-yaqin, sixthly 'ilm haqq al-v-aqin,and seventhly
call involves a divergence from what people are
islam once more.2 But islam at the higher stage
accustomedto. They are strangersby virtue of their dii_
fers in degree from islam at the initial stage.
adherenceto the truth amongst people for whom the At the
initial stage, islam is merely external or apparent
truth is a stranger.If people have experiencedfalse_
submission, while in the final state it is both
hood for so long, then becauseof their long unfamil_ exter_
nal and internal (genuine) submission. Islam
iarity with the truth, they come to accept falsehood at the
initial stageconcernsspeechand action, while in
as the truth. the
final stageit is intelligent surrenderand submission
It is mistakenly believed by some that the sunna and
acceptanceof God both in private and in public.
consists of all the acts and words of the prophet, as
At the initial stageislam is inferior to ,iman, while
well as his approval of the action of others.This is
at the final stage it is superior to ,iman Many theo_
not true, becausehis teachingsto others and approval
logians whom we know today are unable to make
of their conduct relateto shari,a [Islamic law]. Only this
distinction.
the Prophet's personal deeds,and his utterancesthat
Religious scholars have been confused by the
reflect the stateof his heart in its knowledge of God,
hadith involving Gabriel, reported by ,Umar ibn
constitute sunna. The prophet's statementswhich al_
Khattab [Companion of the propher, 592_644).w,ho
were designed to teach the people their religion are
said:
shctri'a.The difference betweenshari.a and sr,tnna
is the difference between the Message and the As we wereseatedwith theMessengerof God. peace
Prophethood. In other words, it reflects the difference b e u p o n h i m , t h e r ec a m e a m a n w e a r i n g
[ c i ea n ] ,
between the standard of the generality of Muslims
of all levels, and the standardof the prophet, which
2. [These somewhat technical terms rcfer
t t t 1 1 c -l a r i o u s
is a tremendousdifference indeed. degrees of piety and perfcction of conduct
r r r . r dr i t e s r r r c . . i n
Sunrta relates to the personal practice of the accordance with religious and ntoral nornr.
and ethics._
Prophet, while in shari'a the prophet descendsfiom Translatorl

the level of his own personalpracticeto the level of 3 . [ T h e b r a c k e t e d u . o r c l si n t h i s q u o r a r i o l . ]

and rhrou-eh_
out this chapter. with se'eral L,\ception\.
his people in order to teach them accordins to their har e been insertecl
by the t1nnsl3101.-Eclitorl

a
77) Mahmoud Mohamed Taha
rec
The levels of dogma areislam,'iman, and ihsan'
white clothes.with very dark hair' None of us knew 'ilm 'ilnt bes
while the levels of knowledge are al-yaqin'
him, yet he did not show the signsof travel' He sat
'
nearthe Messengerof God, peacebe upon him' and at'n al -raqirt, and' ilm haqclal- v-aqin'Finally'there
placedhis kneesnext to his lthe Prophet'slknees' is a seventh stage in the ladder of evolution, which
and placedhis handson his fthe Prophet's]thighs is islam,which completesthe cycle' The end of reli-
Th
''
and said: O, Muhammad,tell me about islant' ' gious evolution resemblesthe beginning, yet they are
He lthe Prophet] said:islant is to declarethat there not identical. The beginning rs islant and the end is Nc
is no god but God' andthat Muhammadis the Mes- islam.but there is a vast difference between islam at
sengerof God; to say the prayers pay :akat taxesi the beginning of religious evolution and islam at the
Wr
'in
fast the month of Ramadan,and do pilgrima-qeto 'aqida is the stageof the nation of
end. The stage of
the House lof God], if you can afford it' He said: pa
Mti minin [Believers]' which is the nation of the First
You areright. We wonderedhow he could askhim wu
and then confirm he was right' Then he [the man] Messageof Islam'
vit
said:Tell me about
'iman.He
lthe Prophet]replied: The stage of knowledge is the stage of the na-
wl
' i m a n i s t o b e l i e v ei n G o d , H i s a n g e l s H
' is Books' tion of Muslintin [Muslims, literally Those Who
on
Messengers, fate whethergood or bad' and thehere- Submitl, which is the nation of the SecondMessage
Then he ad
after. He [the manl said: you are right' of lslam. This nation has not come yet, although its
He Prophetl re- of
asked: tell me about iltscttt' Lthe vanguard have appeared individually throughout
plied: ihsan is to worship God as if you seeHim'
1Tl
human history, in the form of prophets, with the
w
and althoughyou do not see Him, be certainthat final prophet being the Prophet Muhammad ibn
He can seeyou. He [the manl said: you are right' Abdullahi, may he receive the highest blessing and
at
He
Then he said: Tell me when is the final hour? rh
being askeddoesnot utmost peace. It was Muhammad who prophesied
[the Prophet] replied: the one rh
the coming of the nation of Muslimin and brought
know of it more than the one who asks' He [the m
rnanl said: Tell me of its signs?He lthe Prophet] its message.as contained in general terms in the
bt
When the na-
replied: When the woman gives birth to her mis- Qur'an, and detailed it in the sunna' n(
shall begin at the same
tress,and when you seethe bare-footedand naked tion of Muslimin comes, it
S
shepherds practiceextravagance' He said:You are point as the nation of Mu'ntinin, namely at a stage
'aqida. But it shall not stop at the third tI
right. Then he left. We stayed a while' then the of dogma or
'Umar' do tC
said: O
Messenger, peace be upon him, step of the ladder, where Gabriel stopped in his
I V
you know the one who was askingthe questions? questions.It shall continue to evolve to the end of
ieplied, God and His Messenger know better' He
your the ladder, thereby combining both dogma as well
said:This is Gabriel,who came to teachyou s
as knowledge. In other words, the coming nation is
religion.
a nation of both Muslintin as well as Mu'minin at
n
Many religious scholars interpreted this to mean one and the same time, while the first nation was
that Islam proceedsin threestages:islant"iman'and oneof Mti ntinin (believers)and not Muslimin (sub- (
ihsan. Since it is said in the Qur'an' concerning
the mitters) in the final senseof islant [as total and in-
S
Bedouins. "The Bedouins saida manna (we believe); telligent surrenderto Godl.
I
tell them you have not believed, but sayaslamna
(we It must be noted that Gabriel stoppedin his ques-
I

submit) and
'intan (true belief) did not enter your tions at the end of the level of do gma,'aqidd, because
c
heartsyet" (Sura 49, Verse 14), it seemsobvious
to he had come to explain religion to the nation of
(
these scholars rhar
'intctnis higher in degree than Mu'ntinin, and not to the nation of Muslimirr' which
the
islant. Those scholars failed to appreciatethat had not Yet come.
issue needs close consideration' Muhammad is the Messengerof the First Mes-
sage, and he is also the Messenger of the Second
Message.While he explained the First Messagein
The Truth of the Motter d e t a i l , h e o n l y o u t l i n e d t h e S e c o n d M e s s a g e 'I t s
elaborationnow requiresa fresh understandingof the
Thetruthofthematteristhatislam,asconveyedin
That is the purposeof this book'
the Qur'an, comes in two stages:the stageof dogma Qur'an.
Those who approachthis book with an open mind
('aqida) and the stageof the truth (haqiqa) or knowl-
will be guided along the right path' We ask God for
edge. Each of these two stageshas three levels'
 T H ES E C O N IDY E S S : :::. :_-, _-l
'unan,
and ihscttt. rectification and successin our endeavor; He is the as that is good for yourselves.and those\\ hrr lre nJ
t l r t ta l - y a q i n , ' i l n i bestLord.... of their own selfishnessare the trulir successfuloflr:.
1irt.Finally, there (Sura 64, Verse 16)
evolution, which When the verse,"Those who believe u ithout
:. The end of reli- obscuringtheir belief with unfairnesshave securitr.
The First Messageof lslam
rning,yet they are and they are truly guided" (Sura 6, Verse 82) rias
ril and the end is revealed,people found it too difficult to comply with.
Notionof l'1u'minin
betweenislam at and they said: "O Messengerof God, which one of
t and islane at the We have said that the Qur'an was divided between us is not unfair to himself?" He replied: "It is not what
e of the nation of 'iman
and islam, as well as being revealed in two you mean. Did you not hear what God's true slave
ration of the First parts as Meccan and Medinese. The Meccan Qur'an (Luqman) said: O son, do not disbelievein God, such
was revealed first. In other words, people were in- disbelief is great unfairness.The verse means disbe-
\tage of the na- vited to adopt Islam [in the ultimate sense]first, and lief." The believerswere relieved becausethey knew
r l l y , ' T h o s eW h o when they failed to do so. and it was practically dem- that they had not disbelieved since the time they
SecondMessage onstratedthat they were below its standard,they were came to believe. In fact the Prophet explained the
r et. although its addressedin accordancewith their abilities. This verse to them at the level of mlr'ntinin, knowing that
ally throughout offer of the higher standard is the conclusive argu- its explanationat the level of the muslimin was above
r p h e t s ,w i t h t h e ment againstpeople referredto in the verse:"And We their ability, because"unfairness" then means subtle
tluhammad ibn will surely try you until We make manifest those polytheism in the sensementioned in the verseof the
e s t b l e s s i n ga n d among you who strive [for the cause of God] and sir al-sir. "All shall submit to the living and all-
,rho prophesied those who are steadfast.And We will make known sustaining God. And he indeed has failed who holds
'ttrt and brought the truth about you." (Sura47, Verse 3 I ) This experi- i n i q u i t y . " ( S u r a2 0 , V e r s e l 1 l )
-al terms
in the ment and consequentpractical experience is for the It is reported about the verse,"Those who believe
r. When the na- benefit of mankind becauseGod's knowledge does without obscuring their belief with unfairnesshave
sin at the same not occur afresh (hadith).4The phrase "those who security, and they are truly guided," that the prophet
.nrelyat a stage strive" meansmajor .iihad, namely, striving to con- said: "I was told that I am one of them." The prophet
:top at the third trol the self.5 "And those who are steadfast" refers is not merely one of the believers(mu'minin), as he
s t o p p e di n h i s to enduranceof the stateof distancefrom God. "And is the first of the true submitters to God (muslimin\:
e to the end of We will make known the truth about you" means to "Say: 'My prayer and my worship and my life and
dogmaas well extract thoughts that are repressedin your subcon- my death are [all] for God the Lord of all creation.
rnting nation is scious-your sir al-sir. He has no partner. And so am I commanded. and I
t> Mu'minin at The verseswhich demonstratedescentfrom ulti- am the first of thosewho submrt (muslimin)."' (Sura
irst nation was mate Islam to the level of iman are numerous-for 6, Verse 163)
lluslimin (sub- example, the verse, "O believers (mu'minin), fear We have said that the nation of the First Message
as total and in- God as He ought to be feared, and become true are muslimin. While the Qur'an describedmuslimin
submitters(muslimin) before you die." (Sura 3, Verse at the time of Moses as the Jews. and at the time of
r e di n h i s q u e s - 102) When the believers(mu'minin) said "which of Jesusas Christians,it describesthem at the time of
ttclida,because us can fear God as He ought to be feared?"the Qur'an t h e F i r s t M u h a m m a d a n M e s s a g ea s m u ' n t i n i n o r
the nation of descendedin another verse to the level of "Fear God "those who believed." Listen to the eur'an: "Surely,
uslimin, which as much as you can, listen and obey and pay alms, those who believe and the Jews and the Christians
and the Sabians who so believe in God and the Last
the First Mes- Day, and do good deedsshall have their reward with
4. [Godin His comprehensive
andall-preceding
knowl-
of the Second edge already knew that Islam would be rejecteclwhen first their Lord, and no f'ear [shall comel upon them, nor
'st Message
in offered in Mecca, but He conductedthe experimentfor our shall they grieve." (Sura 2, Verse 62) Again, it says,
M e s s a g e .I t s s a k e ,s o t h a t w e s h o u l dk n o w w i t h c e r t a i n t y .G o d ' s k n o w l - "Surely, thosewho have believed,and the Jews.and
standingof the edge is ancient and external beyond time. qaelim and not
the Sabians,and the Christianswho so believe in God
,ok. hadirh.-Translatorl
-5. [Referencehere is to the hadith where the prophet and the Last Day and do good deeds-on them fshall
L a no p e nm i n d describesself-controlas the primary and najor jihad or self'- come] no fear, nor shall they grieve." (Sura 5, Verse
'e
ask God for exertion.-Translator] 69) Another instructiveversereads:
774 Mahmoud Mohamed Taha

guided ones" (Sura 16, Verse 125) and many other over
O b e l i e v e r s( m u ' m i n i n ) ,b e l i e v ei n G o d , H i s M e s -
"excl
senger,and the Book that He revealedto His Mes- similar verseswere revealed.This approachwas coll-
senger,and the Book revealedpreviously.He who tinued for 13 years,during which time much of the God
disbelievesin God, His angels,books'messengers, miraculous Qur'an was revealed, and many men. Vers
and the Final Day, has grossly strayedfrom the women. and children were transformed under the you'
p a t h .( S u r a4 , V e r s e 1 3 6 ) guidance of the new discipline. The early Muslims and ,
curtailed their own aggressionagainst the unbeliev- minc
So He calls them nttt'minin (believers) and yet
'intntt. ers. endured hurt, sacrificed their comforts sincerely God
invites them to further belief, more
and self-denyingly in the cause of spreadingtheir in ht
The verses:"O believerc (mu' minin), feat God as
religion, without weakening or submitting. Their Wet
He ought to be feared, and become true submitters
lives were the supremeexpressionof their religion 25-t
(muslimin) before you die," and "Fear God as much
a n d c o n s i s t e do f s i n c e r e w o r s h i p , k i n d n e s s , a n d repe
as you can, and listen and obey and pay alms. as that
peaceful coexistencewith all other people. the I
is good for yourselves,and those who are rid of their
God says:"I have ueatedjin rr [spirits] and people prin
own selfishnessare the truly successfulones" clearly
for no reason except that they may worship Me." repe
have two different meanings-one setting an origi-
(Sura 51, Verse 56) And He favored people with the exce
nal precept and the other a subsidiary one. It is also
mind, body, and comforts that enable them to wor- the t
clear that the real objective is the achievementof the
ship Him and appreciateHis Grace. He also says: ity tr
original precept.When it was shown that it was im-
'adl time
practicable to do so, it was postponed and the inter- "God enjoins llustrcel.ihsan, the doing of good
mediate objective of implementing the subsidiary to others, and benevolence to the next of kin; and
I
preceptwas sought.When the conditionsnecessary forbids indecency,lewdness, manifestevil, and trans-
d
for achieving the original objective, that is to say, g r e s s i o n .H e a d m o n i s h e sy o u t h a t y o u m a y t a k e I
when both individual as well as collective human heed." (Sura 16, Verse 90) Again, God says: (
capacities are sufficiently mature, the original pre- t
and that you slay not your children for fear of
cept shall be restored. This is the reason why the t
poverty-it is We who provide for you and for
original precepts of religion were postponed, and them-and that you approach not foul deeds. s
the subsidiarypreceptswere implemented Ias tran- whether open or secret;and that you slay not the wer
sitional measureslas shall be explained below. self, which God has forbidden save in accordance prol
(with the demandsot) justice.That is what He has
Orit
enjoineduponyou, thatyou may understand'(Sura
J i h a d/ s N o t c n O r r g i n o l P r e c e pr n
t lslom
6. Versel5 I )
Inf
free
Islam's original view is that a person is free until it
All this the Qur'an produced in the new religion, I
is shown, in practice,that he or she is unable to prop-
and the Prophet and his Companions delivered by ing
erly dischargethe duty of such freedom. Freedom is
their words and example, all to the best interest and the
a natural right corresponding to a duty, namely, its
advantageof their people. cha
proper exercise.Once a free person is unable to ful-
Nevertheless,their people persistedin worship- this
fill the duty of his or her freedom. such freedom shall
ing the stone they carved, severing relations with gua
be withdrawn under a law which is consistent with
the next of kin, destroying life, and burying girls em
the constitution. that is, a law which reconciles the
alive,6 thereby abusing their freedom, and render- ofl
need of the individual for absolute individual free-
ing it liable to be withdrawn. Since at that time there anc
dom. and the need of the community for total social
the sword, the sword was used SUS
justice. As alreadystated,this is the law of mu'avt'Qda was no law except
to that effect fabridging freedom]. Thus, implemen- acc
(reciprocity).
tation shifted from the verse, "Then remind them, Isli
This was Islam's original and fundamental prin-
as you are only a reminder. You have no dominion typ
ciple. The propagationof Islam beganwith the verses
of persuasionin Mecca where the verse "Propagate
SCT
the path of your Lord in wisdom and peaceablead- days.the Arabsusedto bury their
6. [In pre-Islamic kn
vice, and argue with them in a kind manner. Your aliveto avoidanyshametheymightcauseto them.
daughters an
Lord is more knowledgeable of those who stray if taken by their enemies, and to avoid having to defend and
fie
from His path, and He is more knowledgeable of the feed them generally.-Translatorl

over them" (Sura 8, Verses2l-22), to the verse.
" e x c e p t h e w h o s h u n s a n d d i s b e l i e v e s .o n w h o m
God shall inflict the greatestsuffering." (Sura gg,
Verses23-24) It is as if God said,,,Wehave granted
you, Muhammad, dominion over anyonewho shuns
and disbelieves, so that God shall subject him to
minor suffering at your hands through fighting, then
God shall also subject him to the greatestsuffering
in hell." "It is to Us that they shall return. Then
W e s h a l l h o l d t h e m t o a c c o u n t . "( S u r a g g , V e r s e s
25-26) Thus the two first verseswere abrogatedor
repealedby the two second verses.In this way, all
the versesof persuasion,though they constitutethe
primary or original principle, were abrogated or
repealedby the versesof compulsron Qihad). This
exception was necessitatedby the circumstancesof
the time and the inadequacyof the human capabil_
ity to dischargeproperly the duty of freedom at that
time. Hence the Prophet said:
I have been instructedto fight people until they
declarethat "There is no god but God," and that
Muhammad is the Messengerof God (et cetera).
Oncethey do, they will havesecuredtheir lives and
property, unlessthey violate the law. And I leave
their sincerityto be judged by God.
Some Muslim scholarsbelieve that Islamic wars
were purely defensive wars, a mistaken belief
prompted by their keennessto refute claims by the
Orientaliststhat Islam spreadby meansof the sword.
In fact, the sword was used to curtail the abuse of
freedom.
Islam used persuasionfor l3 years in propagat-
ing its clearly valid messagefor the individual and
the community. When the addresseesfailed to dis_
chargeproperly the duties of their freedom, they lost
this freedom, and the Prophet was appointed as their
guardian until they came of age. However, once they
embracedthe new religion and observedthe sanctity
of life and property, and the social claims of their kith
and kin, as they had been instructed, the sword was
suspended,and abuses of freedom were penalized
according to new laws. Hence the development of
Islamic shari'a law, and the establishmentof a new
type of government.
In justifying the use of the sword, we may de-
scribe it as a surgeon's lancet and not a butcher's
knife. When used with sufficient wisdom, mercy,
and knowledge, it uplifted the individual and puri_
fied society. God said to this effect:
T H ES E C O N DM E S S A GOEF I S L A I . I 775
We have sentOur Messengerswith the clear signs,
and revealedwith them the Book and the scales,so
that people should maintain the fair balance.and
decreediron with much hardshipand benefitsto
people.so that God may discoverwho supportsHim
and His Messengerssincerely.God is All_powerful
and Self-Sufficient.(Sura57, Verse25)
"We have sent Our Messengerswith the clear
signs" indicates the conclusive proof of the valid_
ity of their messages;"and revealedwith them the
Book" refers to the principle that ,,There is no gocl
but God." "The scales"means theshari,a to adjudi_
cate between slave [man] and the Lord on the one
hand, and betweenone slave and anotheron the other
hand, "so that people should maintain the fair bal_
ance," that is to say, be fair in their dealings.
The part "and decreediron with much hardship
and benefits to People" signifies that God has en_
acted fighting with the sword in order to curtail the
freedom of those who abuse it, so that the sword
brings them to their senses,thereby allowing them
to earn their freedom and benefit from their life.
That is. of course,besidesother benefitswhich may
be derived from iron, which we need not enumer_
ate here. The part "so that God may discover whcr
s u p p o r t sH i m a n d H i s M e s s e n _ q e sr si n c e r e l y ' .i s t o
d i s c o r , ' eor u t o f p r a c t i c a le r p e r i e n c ef o r m a n . s o w n
benefit. becausefighting is hateful anclclifficult. In
other words. the object u'as to seeu,ho n ould en_
dure the hardship of war for the sake of God and in
s u p p o r t o f t h e o p p r e s s e d .b v m a i n t a i n i n g t h e f a i r
balance between each individual and himself. and
between himself and others. "God is All-powerful
and Self-Sufficient" implies that He is so powerful
that He needs no support from anyone else. and
nothing can be gained from Him except through His
own Grace.
What can be gained from Him in this context is
victory. So the verserefers in a subtle way to another
verse:"O believers,if you support fthe causeofl God,
He will help you and will make your steps firm.,,
(Sura 47, Verse 7) So if you support the causeof God
by supporting His Prophet in order to maintain the
balance, God shall help you and give you victory
over your own lower selves. In other words, if you
stand by the cause of God in minorii had (fighting),
He shall support You and give you victory in the
major jihad (self-control) where one is helplesswith_
out God's help, and no one can give you victory
except Him. To "make your stepsfirm" means tran_
276 Mahmoud Mohamed Taha

quillity and peace of mind, and includes, of course, ship of iron, while to the transgressors,the law of peace fie
physical courage in battle. and adjudication of rights. This is the meaning of the sla
In treating ailments of the heart it is wise to begin expression "then there can be no hostility except in
with gentle means, and to resort to strict measures againstthe wrongdoers."
only when absolutely necessary,deferring drastic Postponementfrom the original principles to the the
treatment to the very end. Suffering death by the subsidiaryprinciples signifies descentfrom the level vit
sword in this life is really an aspectof suffering hell of islam to the level of iman. This is referred to in fur
in the next lif'e, since both are punishments for dis- the verse "And We have revealed to you the Re- ca
belief. Whoever adds to his own disbelief by incit- minder [the Qur'an] so that you may explain to man- to
ing othersto disbelief or to shun the path of God must kind that which has been sent down to them, and that co
be suppressedbefore he takes up arms in the cause they may reflect." (Sura 16, Verse 44) The phrase inl
of disbelief.God says: "we have revealed to you the Reminder" means the A S

whole of the Qur'an including the original prin- fre

Those who spendtheir money in order to shun the
ciple-is/om-as well as the subsidiary('iman). mi
path of God shall spendit, achieveonly sorow, and
"So that you may explain to mankind that which has Gr
still be defeated.The infidels shall be gatheredin
from the been sentdown to them" meansto detail through leg- an
hell, so that God may distinguish the bad
good and set the bad apartand castthem all in hell. islation,and to explain, in various other ways, to the Ve
These indeedare the losers.Tell the infidels that if believers(mu'minin) what has been brought down to
they repent,they shallbe forgivenfor what they have their level. "[T]hat they may reflect," means that
done,but if they persist,then they shallbe dealtwith perhapssuch reflection, while implementing the sub- Tt
as were similar people before them. Fight them to sidiary principle,may lead them to the original prin-
prevent chaos,and so that all religion is rendered ciple they were unableto implement at the beginning.
unto God; if they give up, then God has insight in Here is a subtle reference to the ascent up the vari- se
what they do. (Sura8, Verses36-39) tic
ous levels of Islam, starting with initial Islam, and
When we considerGod's expression,"the infidels ascendingby meansof clear thinking, guided speech. Fir
shall be gatheredin hell, so that God may distinguish a n d s i n c e r e a c t i o n : " u n t o H i m a s c e n d st h e p u r e hu
the bad from the good." we can readily appreciatethat w o r d s , b e i n g e l e v a t e db y g o o d d e e d s . " ( S u r a 3 5 . G(
the causeof suffering is disbelief. "God has no need Verse l0) yo
for your suffering if you are thankful and believing, Thus we reach an extremely important conclu- Is
God is All-Thankful and All-Knowledgeable." (Sura sion: many aspectsof the presentIslamic shari'a are wi

4, Verse 147)The part of the above text, "Fight them not the original principles or objectives of Islam. Hi

to prevent chaos." means so that there will be no dis- They merely reflect a descent in accordancewith thr

belief, its propagation, or the shunning of the path the circumstancesof the time and the limitations of is

of faith. "[S]o that all religion is renderedunto God" human ability. th,

reflects the original purpose of fighting: "Your Lord

commanded lthat you] worship none but Him." (Sura mi
Slovery/s Not an OrrginolPrecept rn lslom
17, Verse 23) This is the design which He shall by
accomplishregardlessof the wishes of the infidels. Islam's original principle is freedom. But the lslamic Ht
q
In anotherverse God says:"Fight them to prevent religion was revealed to a society in which slavery
chaos,and in order to render religion unto God; if they was an integral part of the socioeconomic order. It
desist,then therecan be no hostility exceptagainstthe was also a society that was shown in practice to be ha

wrongdoers."(Sura2, Verse 193)The wrongdoersare incapable of properly exercising its freedom, and rh
of two levels. On one level there are those who wor- therefore its individual members needed guidance; or
ship other than God, and persistin doing so, while on hencethe consequentenactmentof jihad.ln Islamic VE

the other level there are those who appearto submit
to God in obedience,but transgressupon the rights of
other people and do them injustice.The versedecrees
that freedom be withdrawn from those who abuse it,
such withdrawal being proportionateto the degreeof
abuse:for the disbelieversthe law of war, and hard-
iihad. the Muslims first had to offer to the unbeliev- m
ers the new religion. If they refused to acceptit, they dc
had the second option of paying jiz,,-a [tax] and liv- to
ing under Muslim government,while practicing their
own religion and enjoying personal security. If they
also refused the option of jiz,-a, the Muslims would be
 T H ES E C O N DM E S S A GOEF I S L A M 777

fight them and if victorious take some of them as conclusively explained.Nothing, however, is further
slaves,thereby adding to the number of thosealready from the truth than this view. ,,Explanation" of the
in slavery.
Qur'an has been only in terms of fexpedient] legis_
The rationale of such servitude is to be found in lation, the shari'a, and interpretation to the extent
the principle of reciprocity (mu'au'acla).If an indi- appropriate for the time of such explanation and in
vidual is invited to becomethe slave of God but re_ accordancewith the capacity of the audienceand the
fuses, such ref-usalis symptomatic of ignorance that abilities of the people.
calls for a period of training. The individual prepares The Qur'an can never be finally and conclusively
to submit voluntarily to the servitudeof God by be_ explained.Islam, too, can
never be concluded.pro_
coming the slave of another person, thereby learn- gressin it is eternal:"Surely,
the [true] religion with
ing obedienceand humility, which are becoming of God is Islam." (Sura3, Verse l9) ,.With God"
[is
a slave.Reciprocity (mu'av,ado)here rules that if a eternal]beyond time and
space.progressinto Islam
free person refuses to become the slave of God. he by means of the
Qur'an is progress towards God in
may be subjugatedand made the slave of a slave of infinitude (itlaq). As such it has not been. and can
God, in fair and just retribution: "And whoso does never be, fully and conclusively
explained.It is its
an atom's weight of evil will also see it" (Sura 99. revelation into ntashaf'[Arabic
text] as a Book that
VerseS).... has been concluded,but its explanationhas not.
This is how one should understandthe difference
between "revealed" and "explain" in the verse ,,And
T h e S e c o n d M e s s a s eo f l s l a m we have revealed to you the Reminder [the
eur'an]
so that you may explain to mankind that which has
The SecondMessageis Islam. The prophet him- been sent down to them, and they may reflect.', Ac_
self impartedthis SecondMessagewithout elabora- cording to the prevailing
understandingof Muslim
tion or detail, except for such overlaps between the scholars,the two notions
are synonymous,while in
First Messageand the SecondMessageas'ibaclat and. fact they are not. The level
of understanding in the
hudud fworship practicesand the specifiedpenaltiesl. phrase"that which has been
sentdown to them" cloes
God says:"Today I have perfectedyour religion for not refer to the whole of the eur'an but only to the
you, completedMy grace upon you, and sanctioned part subject to explanation,
namely, the First Mes_
r r t t t ,i,lll l l r r
N,lr,--' Islam as your religion." (Sura 5, Verse 3) That day sage.and sectionswhere
the First and the Second
W! l .ilill]1"t' was the day of 'araJa fninth day of the month Dhu'l- M e s s a g e so v e r l a p .
:lllI ,;,iulllult,, Hijjal onha.iaral-wada' (the farewell pilgrimage) of T h e Q u r ' a n w a s r e v e a l e dw i t h d u a l m e a n i n g s .
.i.:, '' _.*-r... :: ir lililllll the eighth year A.H..which was a Friday. This verse God says in this connection:
R ]]:* *r | ilr.:ilt ilt is the last verse of the Qur'an to be revealed.and is
God hasrevealedthe bestspeechin a Book of similar
the ultimate word of the Divine Message.
and dual meanings,fiom which the skin of those
God has accepted Islam for mankind so that we who fear their Lord creepsl Then their skin and
ii,rt,,,ll-
may accept it, becauseanything that is not initiated heartssofien to dhikr [remembrancethrough wor-
by Him cannot be undertakenby us. God says:,,Then ship of Godl. Thar is the -euidanco ef God with
h|;[ :",rr,,,riiiullrflnuul He forgave them in order that they may repent." (Sura which He guideswhomsoeverHe wishes.and he
mi:... .."" .,* 1r,,,*" 9, VerseI l8;z whom God misguidedhasno otherguicle.(Sura30.
Imf r'"':;lut::' 11l
Many people considered the phrase, .,Today I Verse23)
:.,.,.'t i,lllilt1"
ip!||l::]u. have perfected your religion for you," as irnplying The word "similar" implies that there is some
ilhn:r -r, n= ,iutltttllttll. that Islam itself has beenfully achievedby mankind similarity between the Qur'an at its base and at its
ruiii ::*. *iliiulillillliiilulll: on earth on that day. The verse "And We have re- peak, its front and back. Its zohir and,botin,,,dual
3& ..1,,.iiilllilllllJlilllilll, vealedto you the Reminder [the eur'an] so that you meanings,"refer to its two levels of meaning: a dis_
Itrrtflfr|f,-i:'T)rur::
u|l'* may explain to mankind that which has been sent tant meaning with the Lord, and a nearermeaning that
rl[!]ll;:";t]5r : lilililti"* down to them" (Sura 16, Verse 44) was also taken has come down to the slave [of God].
I iffqu,.tt "iun1iirlr"r,, to mean that the Qur'an has already been finally and The whole of the Qur'an is of dual meanings:
|]fllti iilllililllllill,
llu!u:::.1rr,..
every verseand word and even every letter has a dual
!0mfi":" t: xlllillil$
7. fThatis to say,people's
repenrance
is initiated
by God meaning. The reason for this is that the
hffi;.,r:t:lL'r{'' :ttttttlllltltlllll,
eur'an is
befbreit canbe undertakenby them.-Translatorl the Lord's speechto His slave.The similarity in the
-- a \{ahmoud MohamedTaha
Qur'an is due to the similarity between the Lord and
the slave, expressedby the Prophet in the hadith,
"God has createdAdam [man] after His Own image."
God expressesthe same meaning in the verse: "O
people, fear your Lord, Who has createdyou from a
single Self." (Sura 4, Verse l) That "single Self"
means His Own Blessed and Exalted Self.
The word Islam, for example, has a near meaning
exposedby the Qur'an in the verse."The Bedouins
said amanna lwe believe]; tell them you have not
'intan
believed, but say aslamna [we submit] and
ftrue belief] did not enter your hearts yet," (Sura 49,
Verse 14) This is what we tetmed initial lslam which,
we said, is not taken by God as significant. Islam has
a further meaning which lies with God in infinity. To
this further meaning comesthe referencein the verse:
"Oh believ ers fmu' mininf , fear God as He ought to
be feared and become true submitters lmuslintinl
before you die." (Sura 3, Verse 102)
It goes without saying that no one fears God as
He ought to be feared except God Himself. This is,
therefore, a methodology of ascent to God through
many levels of servitude.humility, and submission.
Servitude is infinite, just like Lordship. Absolute
servitude to God requires absolute knowledge of
God, and this only God can achieve. "Say no one
knows what is in heaven and earth, the Unknown,
except God." (Sura 27, Verse 65) The Unknown here
means God Himself. so it is as if He said, "No one
k n o w s G o d e x c e p t G o d H i m s e l f . " I n o u r b o o k haustedbefore the words of my Lord were exhausted.
Rasalat al-salah lThe Message of Righteousnessf, even if a similar amount is brought as additional sup-
which may be consulted in this context, we have ply." (Sura 18, Verse 109) For this reasonit is false
shown how servitude fto God] is freedom.
Islam is a method of ascentto servitude,and the sively explained. The Qur'an is God's dhat lSelf or
Qur'an is the Book which leadsthe way. This quality
of the Qur'an is the reasonit was revealed,as indicated levels comprehensibleby the slaves,thereby becom-
in the verse, "And, indeed, We renderedthe Qur'an
for the sake of dhikr, remembrance through worship,
is there anyonewho would take heed?" (Sura -54,Verse
17) The Qur'an remindsus of servitudewhich we have
accepted and then forgotten:
And [remember]when thy Lord broughtforth from
Adam's children-out of their loins-their offspring
and madethem bearwitnessagainsttheir own selves
saying,"Am I not your Lord?" They said:"Yes, we
admitthis." lThis He didl lestyou shouldsayon the
Day of Resurrection,"we were surely unawareof
t h i s . " O r [ e s t ] y o u s h o u l ds a y , [ i t w a s ] o n l y o u r
fathers [whol associatedco-partners[with God] in
the pastandwe were merely a generationafterthem.
Will Thou then destroyus for what those,who lied. ha
did? And thusdo We makeclearthe Signs,[thatthet thi
may be admonishedland that they may return [to m(
G o d f. ( S u r a7 , V e r s e s1 7 2 - 1 7 4 ) thr
pli
So that they may return to God in servitude and sub-
wi
mission, through Islam.
As the Qur'an is the methodology of ascent to
God, "We said: Go forth hence, all of you. And ii
by
m
there comes to you guidance from Me, then whoso
hc
shall follow My guidance, on them [shall come] no
ge
fear, nor shall they grieve." (Sura 2, Verse 38) Since
da
the Qur'an is that guidance, then it has its beginnin-s
fe
with God, and its end with us. If we proceed prop-
uI
erly through its levels, we shall recover the paradise
rS
we lost through the sin of Adam, and ascend into
infinity (itlaq). God said of the Qur'an: "Alif' lartt
m
min.8That is certainly the Book which containsguid-
ance for the God fearing." (Sura 2, Verses 1-2) Of
rh
w
those who fear God who are guided by the Qur'an.
at
He said: "Those who fear God are in paradise,and a
ar
river, on a seatof truth, with the Most Able King."
(Sura 54, Verse 54) These are levels or grades,be- ol
ginning with paradise, then the river, then the seat c(
of truth, and finally with the Most Able King in lr
infinity. Such levels vary from physical paradise-
6
al
which is the paradise lost through sin, to the Abso-
gi
lute in Hrs itlaq. The Qur'an guides to all this, hence
m
it is inexhaustible:"Say, if every seabecameink for
the words of my Lord, surely, the sea would be ex-
to assertthat the Qur'an may be finally and conclu-
Soul] which has descended,out of pure grace, to
ing the Qur'an in its various levels of descent dhikr.
Qur'an, andfw'qan.e Furqan was the most effective
form of Arabic expressionto indicate the two levels
of Qur'an and dhikr. The Qur'an was rendered into
the form of Arabic expressionso that we might under-
standfrom God. God says in this respect: "We have
renderedit into Arabic so that you may understand."
(Sura 43, Verse 3) This verse and other similar verses
8. [Threelettersof theArabicalphabet. 28 of I l4 suras
of the Qur'anbeginwith letters.-Editorl 1
9. [Thesetermsreferto theQur'anat differentlevelsof
knowledge andunderstanding of thetruthin itshatin,beyond
t
:ahir meaningof the text.-Translatorl t
the superficial
 T H ES E C O N DI Y E S S A GOEF I S L A M
779
lhtr. i
have misled many Muslim scholars into
Sr_:n. believins promise is fulfilled: ,,And he who
that the Qur'an itself is Arabic. in rhe seeksa relision
lll .r
-' sensethat itl other than Islam, it shall not be accepted
meaningsmay be exhaustivelyunderstood of him and
throush in the Hereafterhe shall be among
the Arabic language. It is not so, as the losers.,,(Sura
*e haue e-*_ 3, Verse 85) On that day all people
plained when discussing shall embrace
eur'anic chaptersstarting religion and find no alternative,
with letters of the alphabet, above. becausereligion
provides the only answers.
Being so supreme,Islam has never been
achieved We believe that the earth is preparing
by any nation up to the presentday. The for the
nation of emergenceof the Islamic shari,a
muslimin has not yet come. It is expected of the true sub_
to come, mitters (muslimin), which shall establish
however. in the future of humanity. Its the new
day of emer_ civilization. In view of the bankruptcy
gence shall be the day of the ultimate of contempo_
pilgrimage, the rary social philosophies,there is
day when the Divine statement,,Today no alternative.As
I have per_ statedat the outsetof this book, the
fected your religion fbr you, completed whole of human_
My grace ity today is in an ideorogicarwirderness,
upon you, and sanctionedIslam as your with west-
religion,, ern civilization lost anclbankrupt,r0
(Sura 5, Verse 3) is realizedin practice. and with issues
of democracy, sociarism, and individuar
Muhammad, in his time, was the pioneer freedom
of the persistentlydemandinganswers.yet
muslimin to come. It was as if he came to there is no an-
his nation, swer exceptthrough the cross-f'ertilization
the nation of the ntu,minin from the of westem
future. He civilization. or to be more precise,Western
was not one of them, as he was the material
only Muslim progress, with a new spirit, namely,
amongst them. ',Say: My prayer and the spirit of
my worship lslam. Islam appearsto be the only
and my life and my death are ideology capable
[all] for God the Lord of resolving the existing conflict between
of all creation. He has no partner. And the indi_
so ant I vidual and the community and between
.'" I ',,iiillllllli commanded, and I am the first of those the individual
who subntit and the universe, as we have already
r- -
:il fmuslimin]." (Sura 6, Verse 163) Abu Bakr demonstrated.
[died We should not confuse the name Muslims
6341,the secondbest man, was the most with
superiorof the traditionalnanregiven to the present
a l l t h e b e l i e v e r s( n t u , m i n i n ) ,y e t t h e r e w a s nation. We
a huge have alreadystatedthat the p."r.nt
I i::t:- 1.,.,:lli gap between him and the prophet. It nation derivesits
was to future name from the initial Islanr.Actually.
-
rh lll' muslimin that the prophet referred, when presentMus_
he said: l i m s o c i e t vi s t h e n a t i o no f t h en t t t , , t t i t t i , t
"|:'i.i' [believersJ.
"How I long for my brothers who No nation up to now has desen,edthe
have not come namenur.srintirt.
yet." And Abu Bakr said:,,Arewe not your Any mention of Islam with respect
, .ll[: -
brothers, to pl.eviousna_
._
O Messengerof God?" He replied:,.No.you tions refersmerely to initial Islam.
aremy exceptfbr the
*"litlillil' Companions!"Then he saidagain:,,How I lone pioneersof humanity who achieved
for ultimate Islam.
i [. . ]lllf'
m y b r o t h e r sw h o h a v e n o t c o m e y e t l , , T h e n - A b u or rather a degree of the urtimate Isram,
.\i :. ,l1l1l' Bakr said:"Are we not your brothers,O as the ulti-
Messenger mate Islam can never be exhaustively
for God?" He said:,,No,yoll aremy Companions!,, achieved.Such
pioneers are, therefore, the pioneers
Then He said for the third time: .,How I long of the nation of
for my muslimin which has not come yet.
ti'*;: brotherswho havenot comeyetl,,Theyasked:.,Who God says in this
are your brothers,O Messengerof God?,, connection:
nu* He said:
"A peoplewho come at the
(e :' end of time, of whom And [remember the time] when Abraham
t h e a c t i v eo n e s h a l l h a v e s e v e n t yt i m e s and
if.i&l :' -'u::"",:"'-millill as much Ishmael raised the foundations of
reward as you have.',They asked:,.Seventy the House
i to-: ri lll'ffit times [praying]:"Our Lord, acceptIthisJfrom us fbr Thou
a s m u c h a s w e h a v e o r t h e y h a v e ? , ,H e
:ti{ilrr iv' : :,;ilip,il11
replied: art the All-Hearing, the All_Knowing.
"As you have." They asked:,,Why?,, Our Lord,
He replied: make both of us submissiveto Theeand
u .4.1 [h, "Becauseyou find assistancein doing makeof our
good. and offspring a people submissiveto Thee.
[tr .* .--- ,'1:'rillP!ll
they find no assistance." And show
us our ways of worship and turn to us with
mercy;
fbr Thou art Oft-Returning
[with compassion.and
ul T h e M u s l i m s( M u s l i m i n ) art] Merciful. And, Our Lord, raise up
amons then_r
1
":-t The Muslims, as a nation,have not yet
1,,-,I,r illl come, but the
im' ,il[," ,illilillllllti Prophet prophesiedtheir coming, towards 1 0 . [ A s i n d i c a t e de a r l i e ri n h i s b o o k ,
the end of r h e a u r h o ri n c l u t ] e s
both the Marxist anclliberal traditionswhen
il ,,,rll "l time, when circumstancesare suitable, he ref.crsro West_
and God,s e r n c i v iIi z a t i o n . - T r a n s l a t o r l
280 Mahmoud Mohamed Taha

a Messengerfrom among themselves.who may in the senseof the ultimate Islam. They merely sur- by pr
recite to them Thy Signs and teachthem the Book renderedin the senseof the initial Islam. ment
and Wisdom and may purify them; surely,Thou art The disciples were Muslims in the senseof ini- fthe r
the Mighty, the Wise." And who will turn awayfrom tial Islam, since even the first stageof ultimate Islam sible
the religion of Abraham but he who makesa fool of requiresmoving out of the law for the community as accu
himself. Him did We choosein this world. and in
a whole, and entering upon shari'a .farcliya,the law A
the next he will surelybe amongthe righteous.When
for the individual. Individuality is achievedonly after ion, 1
his Lord saidto him, "Submit," he said,"I [herebyl
perfectcompliancewith the law for the community. long
submit to the Lord of the worlds." The samedid
Abraham enjoin upon his sons-and Jacob [also- until one is able to properly exercise his absolute Pr
s a y i n g , ]" O m y s o n s ,t r u l y G o d h a s c h o s e nt h i s individual freedom. The ultimate Islam is the level abov
religion fbr you: so let not deathovertakeyou except of individualities. than
when you are in a stateof completesubmission." Individuality cannotbe achievedby anyonewho fende
Were you presentwhen deathcameto Jacob,when is divided within himself. When the consciousmind type r
he said to his sons,"What will you worship after is no longer in conflict with the subconscious.unitl' so on
me?" They answered,"We will worship thy God. of being is attained, and this is characterizedby resul
the God of thy fathers,Abraham and Ishmaeland wholesomenessof the heart, clarity of thought, and or hy
I s a a c .t h e O n e G o d : a n d t o H i m w e s u b m i t o u r -
beauty of body. thereby realizing a full and compre- acted
selves."(Sura2. Verses127-133)
hensiveintellectual and emotional life. "The next life stitut
The phrase"Our Lord, make both of us sub- is the ultimate life if they only know." (Sura 29, Verse recor
missive to Thee" refers to ultimate Islam, and they 64) Ultimate life. free from defects, disease,and freed
fAbraham and Ishmael] were in fact ntuslintin lrn death, indeed the oppositeof death. justi<
t h i s s e n s eo f u l t i m a t e I s l a m ] . B u t t h e p h r a s e" a n d To restoreunity to one's being is for an individual
make of our offspring a people submissiveto Thee" to think as he wishes, speak what he thinks, and act
Politt
indicates.in the short run. a Muslim nation in the according to his speech. This is the objective of
s e n s eo f i n i t i a l I s l a m . w h i c h s h a l l e v o l v e a n d d e - Islam: "O believers,why do you say what you do not Agai
v e l o p i n t o t h e u l t i m a t e I s l a m . T h e i r p r a y e r sh a v e do? It is most hateful to God that you say what you as it
been answered.Abraham advisedhis sonsthat there d o n o t d o . " ( S u r a6 1 , V e r s e s2 - 3 ) crati'
is no god exceptGod, and so did Jacob:"O my sons, of th
truly God has chosenthis religion for you; so let not nots'
The Cood Socrety
death overtake you except when you are in a state uct o
of complete submis5i6n"-1fiat is to say. remain This superiorstatecan only be reachedthrough a two- the p
holding fast to the creed and maintain that "there fold method: first, the good society,and secondly,the pow(
is no god but God" until your death. Their answer, scientific educational method to be adopted by the two r
"we will worship thy God, the God of thy fathers individual in order to liberate himself from inherited not f
Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac,the One God; and f-ear. wing
to Him we submit ourselves." ref'ersto the initial The good society is one that is based on three S
Islam. equalities:economic equality, today known as social- NESS
God also said: "As I inspiredthe disciplesIof ism, or the sharing of wealth: political equality or ning
Jesuslto believein Me, and in My Messengers.they democracy,or sharing in political decisionswhich indiv
said:We do believe.and You shall bear witnessthat affect daily life; and social equality which, to some the r
w e h a v e s u b m i t t e d( m u s l i m i n ) . "( S u r a5 , V e r s e I I 1 ) extent,resultsfrom socialismand democracy,and is adva
'intan
Their Islam here is synonymouswith lfaith], by a lack of socialclassesand discrimi-
characterized socia
as required in the revelation.God in the revelation nation basedon color, faith, race.or sex. In the good D
requiredthem to believe.When they did believeand society,people are jud_qedaccording to their intel- ally i
'iman lectual and moral character,as ref'lectedin their pub-
declaredthis, they thoughtthat their was Islam. citie
so they said: "You shall bear witness that we have lic and private lives and demonstratedin the spirit city-
submitted(muslinitt)." A knowledgeablepersoncan of public service at all times and through every latio
hear the Lord replying: "Do not say we have surren- means. Social equality aims at removing social ASSCI

dered,but say we believe." They had not sumendered classesand diff-erencesbetween urban and rural life dem<

by providing equal opportunities for cultural refine_
ment. The criterion of social equality is that marriage
fthe most fundamental and intimate relation] is pos_
sible betweenany man and any woman. This is the
accuratetest of social equality.
A good society also enjoys tolerant public opin_
ion, permitting different life-styles and manners, as
long as theseare beneficial to society.
Public opinion has its own judgments over ancl
above those of the law and may be more effective
than legislation itself in deterring deviants and of_
fenders.Public opinion may, of course,condemn any
type of conduct it disapproves,but it must always do
so only by nonviolent means,sinceviolence usually
resultsin one of two evil responses:counterviolence
or hypocrisy. Sometimespublic opinion can be en_
actedas legislationif this is consistentwith the con_
stitution as describedabove fthat is. legislationthat
reconcilesthe individualneedfor absoluteinclividual
freedom and society's need for complete social
justicel.. . .
Jt --- -.u..,.:
PolrticoI Equo Itty: D em ocrocy
' L l l
Again, we will not discussdemocracyin detail here,
itL
as it will be discussedin our book Islam Is Demo_
cratic and Sot,ialisl.Just as socialismis the product
of the struggle between the ,,haves',and the ,.have
nots" in the material sphere,democracy is the prod_
uct of the strugglebetweenthose same extremesin
I
the political sphere. Its purpose is the sharin-eof
:, :tlill,
power. Democracy parallels socialism: they are as
"
]'tL,: " :':ltllt
two wings of society.In the sameway that a bird cloes
n not fly with one wing, so does society need the two
wings of democracyand socialism.
"; '
1""':llr
Socialism, which requires greater social aware_
"ll -.
" ,...,,*lx.
ness,is precededby democracywhich, in the begin_
ning, may be exercisedby only a few enlightened
individuals.Scientificsocialismalso needs,as a base.
"::t . ril-rilll,
",
the riches of developed capitalism as well as the
llljr- -., t- I
advancesof modern technology. primitive, native
-:-.,'
d -
socialism,however.has its origins in ancienthistory.
l l l l l , ' r - , j r i l
Democracy was born in Athens, the most cultur_
'.r-,:r
ll'lllr:
ally advancedof the Greek city-states.Each of those
-
I lli r -,:'''-
cities had its own independentgovernment.As the
r l- '
city-stateswere small, it was easyfor the entire popu_
lt : "
lation to participate in government through public
.lll,..- , . ,illr
assemblies.Greek democracywas, therefore,direct
L[.
--'--
!':
democracy,with no need for an electedhouseof rep_
T H ES E C C N DY l E S S A GOEF I S L A M 78I
resentativesor executivesof modem democraticgov_
ernments.In Greece officials were elected annually,
and elections were often conducted by poll. The
Athenians believed that participationin public affairs
was the right and duty of every citizen. (However,
they did not regard women and slavesas citizens).
Pericles fcirca 495429 e.c.], their greatest orator,
speaking on behalf of Athenian democracy in the
funeral oration following the war against Sparta in
the year 430 e.c., describedAthenian democracvas
follows:
[Our -eovernment] favorsthe many insteadof the fewl
this is why it is calleda democracy.If we took to the
laws.they afford equaljusticeto all in their private
differences;if to social standin-e, advancementin
public lif'e falls to reputation for capacity,class
considerations not being allowed to interferewith
nterit:nor asaindoespovertybar the way; if a man
is able to servethe state,he is not hinderedby the
obscurirrof his condition.The freedomwhich we
enJo\in our governnlentextendsalsoto our ordinary
lit'e.There.far fiorn exercisinsa jealoussurveillance
or er eachother.u e do not feelcalleduponto be angry
n ith our neighbortbr doin-eu hathe likes,or evento
indulgein thoseinjuriouslooksu,hichcannotfail to
be of-fensive. althouehther inflictno positivepenalty.
But all thiseasein our prir aterelations doesnot make
us lawlessas citizens.Asainstthis f-earis our chief
saf-eguard, teachin-tus to obe\ thenragistrates andthe
laws,particularlysuchasregarcl theprotcctionof the
injured,whethertheyareactuallron the statutebook,
or belongto thatcodewhich. althou-qh unrir.itten.1,et
cannotbe brokenwithout acknouledgedclisgrace.
Further,we provideplenty of meansfor the mind
to refreshitself from business.We celebrategantes
and sacrificesall the year round, and the ele-eance
of our privateestablishments forms a daily source
of pleasureandhelpsto banishthe spleen;while the
magnitudeof our city drawsthe produceof the world
into our harbor,so that to the Athenian the fruits of
other countriesare as familiar a luxury as thoseof
his own.
. . . W e c u l t i v a t er e f i n e m e n tw i t h o u t e x t r a v a _
ganceand knowledgewithout effeminacy;wealth
we employ more tbr use than for show, and place
the real disgraceof poverty not in owning to the fact
but in decliningthe struggleagainstit. Our public
men have, besidespolitics,their private alfhirs to
attendto, and our ordinarycitizens,thoughoccupiecl
with the pursuitsof industry,are still fair jucigesof
public matters,for, unlike any othernationwe regard
him who takesno part in theseduties not as unam_
787 Mahmoud Mohamed Taha
bitiousbut asuseless. We Atheniansareableto judge
at all eventsif we cannot originate.and insteadof
lookingon discussionasa stumbling-blockin theway
preliminaryto
of action,we think it an indispensable
any wise actionat all."
Athenian democracy, as describedby Pericles,con-
tinued to grow and develop in various parts of the
world after the city's demise.This type of democracy
manifested certain principles and a distinctive ap-
proach to life-recognizing the dignity of man and
attempting to manage human affairs in accordance
with justice, truth, and popular acceptance.Modern
democracy has establishedcertain principles, the most
important of which may be summarizedas follows:
l. Recognitionof basicequalitybetweenall indi-
viduals.
2. The value of the individual as abovethat of the
state.
3. Governmentas the servantof the people.
4. The rule of law.
5. Appeal to reason,experiment,and experience.
6. The rule of the majority, with utmostrespectfor
r i g h t so f t h e m i n o r i t y .
7. Democratic method and proceduresused to
achieveobjectives.
Democratic methods and proceduresare not an end
in themselves, but rather means to an end that lies
behind them. The object of democracy is not simply
to establish legislative, executive, and judicial or-
gans, since all theseare but means to realize the dig-
nity of man. Democracy is not merely a way of gov-
ernment;it is also a way of life. The individual human
being is the end, and everything else is a means to
that end. The respect and high regard which people
have for the democratic approachto government are
due to the fact that it is the best approach to achiev-
ing the dignity of the individual.
There remain, however, some inadequaciesin the
present democratic approach, although these are
much lesspronouncedthan the deficienciesof Marx-
ism. We leave its detailed examination for our com-
ing book, Islam Is Democratic and Socialist.
The dignity of man is derived from the fact that
he is the most capable of all living things in learning
corresponding
I l. Theseextracts, roughlyto the part
quotedby theauthorin Arabic,arequotedhereastranslated
by Joseph inTheComplete
Govorse, Writingsof Thuc'v-dides:
ThePeloponne.sianWar'(NewYork:ModernLibrary.1934), the Prophet was appointed as a guardian to prepare
oo.104-105.
and developing. The value of democracy is that it is free,
the type of government most capable of providing insis
opportunities for man to realize his dignity and whe
honor. In a dictatorship, howevet, the government hard
deniesindividuals the right to experimentand assume then
responsibility, thereby retarding their intellectual, cien
emotional, and moral growth. In contrastto dictator- God
ship, democracy is based on the right to make mis- A
takes.This doesnot mean that individuals are encour- k
aged to make mistakes for the sake of making h
mistakes, but rather it is recognition of the fact that f'
freedom requires a choice between various modes of n
action. Democracy implies learning how to choose, r(
choosingwell, and correctingpreviousmistakes.In l(
fact, all self-discipline and the true exercise of free- \
dom are a series of individual actions in choice and T
implementation.In other words, freedom of thought, sult
freedom of speech,and freedom of action all require or ir
that one acceptsresponsibility for mistakesin speech call
and action in accordancewith law that is consistent affa
with the constitution. and
Democracy is therefore the right to make mis- ( Su
takes, as we learn from thehadith of the Prophet: "If Shu
you do not make mistakes,and then ask for forgive- tion
ness, God shall replace you by people who make s
mistakes, ask for forgiveness, and are forgiven." rath
Human dignity is so dear to God that individual rath
freedom is not subject to any guardianship,not even pret
that of the Prophet, irrespectiveof his impeccable orig
morality. God says: "Then remind them, as you are "Th
only a reminder. You have no dominion over them."
( S u r a 8 8 , V e r s e s 2 l - 2 2 ) R e f e r e n c eh e r e i s m a d e
to the polytheists who refused to worship God and
tended the idols, worshipping them and sacrificing
to them. Even the Messenger Muhammad, who
was not seeking power for himself and whom God
described in the Qur'an: "You are of great moral
character" (Sura 68, Verse 4) [was not allowed to
have dominion even over such a backward people].
This indicated that no man is perfect enough to
be entrusted with the freedom of others, and that
the price of freedom is continuous individual vigi-
lance in safeguarding such freedom. In fact, indi-
vidual freedom is a fundamental right with a corre-
sponding duty, namely, the proper exerciseof such
freedom.
Since the society of mu'minin was incapable of
exercising individual freedom in choice and action,
them for the responsibility of absolute individual
 T H ES E C O N DI Y E S S A GOEF I S L A I Y )83
freedom. While exercising such
-euardianship,he You have no dominion over thent." (Sura gg.
Verses
insistedon giving them the right to make mistakes.
2t-22)
wheneverpossible,without subjectingthem to undue
By the same token, zakat flslamic taxation] is not
hardship or difficulty. In that way he was preparing
a socialistpractice;it is rathercapitalistand is
them for democracy, for which they had to be suffi_ based
on the verse, "Take alms out of their wealth. so
ciently mature and intelligent.Such was the order of that
you may cleansethem and purify them thereby.
God when He said: Ancl
pray for them; your prayer indeed is
[a source of]
And it is by the Great Mercy of God that you are tranquillity for them. And God is All_Hearing,
All_
kind towardsthem, anciif you had beenrough and Knowing." (Sura 9, Verse 103)
Thus,zakat is not an
h a r d - h e a r t e dt,h e y w o u l d s u r e l y h a v e d i s p e r s e t i original preceptof
Islam, but rather a subsicliaryone.
from aroundyou. So pardonthem and ask forgive_ Its purpose
is to prepare people psychologically and
nessfor them.and consultthem: and rvhenyou are
materially for socialism in due course.The original
resolved.then put your trust in God. Surely. God
precept which the verse of :akat abrogated
l o v e st h o s ew h o p u t t h e i r t r u s t f i n H i m 1 . ( S u r a3 . is that
which reads,"When they ask you what to give away,
Verse I 59 )
say all that you do not need" (Sura 2, Verse 219),
This is the verseof sltura fconsultationl,and con_ explained as
above.
sultation,whenevermentioned,whetherin this verse
The Second Message calls for a return from the
or in the following yslss-.,1fuose who answeredthe
subsidiary versesto the original verses,which
call of their Lord, and perform the prayer, and their were
temporarily abrogatedbecauseof circumstances
affairs are [decided] by shura fmutual consultation] and
material and human limitations. We must now
and pay alms from what We have provideclfor them,, ele_
vate legislationby evolving and basingit on the
(Sura 42, Verse 3S)-does not refer to democracy. origi_
nal Qur'anic verses.In this way we shall welcome
Shura, however, was a necessarystagein prepara_ the
age of socialismand democracyand open the way
tion for democracy, in due course. to absoluteindividual freedom through worship
and
S h u r a i s n o t a n o r i g i n a l I s l a m i c p r e c e p t , b u t humarre
dealing with other people.This is Iheshari,a
r a t h e r a s u b s i d i a r y o n e . I t i s n o t d e m o c r a c y , b u t law
of the nation of the Muslims (muslintin)that is
r a t h e r t h e r u l e o f t h e m a t u r e i n d i v i d u a l w h o i s yet
to come. as the earth is now preparingto receive
preparing the nation to become democratic. The
it. It is the duty of the people of the
original preceptof democracyis basedon the verse. day eur'an [present_
Muslimsl to pave the way for ntuslintLt.And that
"Then remind them, as you are only
a reminder. is the purposeof this book. . . .