The mission of the messengers of Allah, as presented in the Qur’an and the authentic traditions of Prophet Muhammad, is neither ...
The mission of the messengers of Allah, as presented in the Qur’an and the authentic traditions of Prophet Muhammad, is neither confined to ritual instruction nor reducible to private spirituality. Rather, it is an all-encompassing moral, intellectual, and socio-political vocation aimed at transforming the human being and society in accordance with divine justice. A careful survey of the Qur’anic discourse reveals that the duty of every messenger revolves around a few interconnected principles: the call to absolute monotheism (tawḥīd) to the establishment of justice, the freedom of humanity from oppression, and the upholding of moral accountability.
The Qur’an repeatedly emphasizes that messengers were sent not merely to convey abstract theology, but to reorder unjust social realities. In numerous passages, the call of prophets such as Nūḥ, Ibrāhīm, Mūsā, and ʿĪsā is framed as a confrontation with entrenched systems of oppression and tyranny. The message is consistent: “Worship Allah, you have no deity other than Him,” but this theological proclamation is inseparable from its social implications. To affirm tawḥīd is, in essence, to negate all false authorities that claim absolute power over human beings. Thus, shirk is not only a metaphysical error but also a political and ethical disorder, wherein human tyrants assume a status that belongs only to Allah the Divine.
The Qur’anic narrative of Prophet Musa and Firʿawn (Pharaoh) stands as perhaps the most vivid illustration of this dynamic. Mūsā is commanded to confront one of history’s most archetypal tyrants, not with passive resignation but with moral clarity and unwavering resolve. The Qur’an does not depict silence in the face of oppression as neutrality; rather, it presents it as complicity. Firʿawn’s crime was not merely personal arrogance but the systemic degradation of an entire people—“he divided its people into factions and oppressed a group among them.” The prophetic response was therefore necessarily confrontational, rooted in truth and justice.
This pattern extends across all prophetic missions. The Qur’an states that messengers were sent “with clear proofs, the Book, and the Balance, so that mankind may establish justice.” Justice here is not an abstract virtue; it is an active, lived reality that must be struggled for. The prophets did not withdraw into spiritual isolation when confronted with moral decadence; rather, they engaged, resisted, and endured persecution. Their call was inherently disruptive to unjust orders because it exposed the illegitimacy of tyranny.
The sayings of Prophet Muhammad (SAWA) further crystallize this principle. Among the most profound is the declaration that “the best form of jihad is a word of truth spoken in the presence of a tyrannical ruler.” This statement redefines struggle not as mere physical confrontation but as moral courage—the willingness to articulate truth even when it carries personal risk. In another tradition, the Prophet warns that when people see oppression and fail to change it—whether by hand, speech, or at least inward rejection—they risk collective moral decay. Silence, therefore, is not neutral; it is ethically charged.
From this perspective, knowledge in Islam is not an ornamental possession but a responsibility. The Qur’an repeatedly condemns those who possess knowledge yet fail to act upon it, likening them to those who carry burdens without understanding. Knowledge divorced from action becomes, a calamity. It legitimizes oppression by providing it with a veneer of intellectual or religious justification. Historically, oppressive regimes have often relied on compliant scholars who restrict religion to ritual while ignoring its transformative, justice-oriented core.
This brings us to the philosophical heart of the matter: why must tyranny be challenged? In Islamic thought, tyranny represents a violation of the ontological order established by Allah. Human beings are created with dignity (karāmah) and entrusted with vicegerency (khilāfah) on earth. Tyranny negates both, it degrades human dignity and usurps divine sovereignty. To oppose tyranny, therefore, is not merely a political act; it is an act of servitude to Allah. It is an affirmation that ultimate authority belongs only to Him.
Conversely, aligning with oppressors, or even passively accommodating them, constitutes a form of betrayal: betrayal of divine trust, of humanity, and of the prophetic legacy. The Qur’an warns against inclining towards those who do wrong, lest one be touched by the Fire. This is a deeply ethical warning: moral compromise, even when subtle, erodes the integrity of faith.
In the contemporary period, the intellectual and practical legacy of Ayatullah Ruhollah Khomeini (QS) offers a significant case study in the effort to revive this prophetic paradigm. His thought was grounded in the conviction that Islam is not a passive religion but a movement and establishment of the religion, a religion that demands the realization of justice in societal structures. Whether one agrees with all aspects of his methodology or not, his central insistence was unmistakable: that scholars MUST NOT remain aloof from the struggles of their time, and that religious knowledge must culminate in transformative action.
For contemporary scholars, this raises a profound question: what does it mean to inherit the legacy of the prophets? It certainly cannot mean mere preservation of texts or repetition of inherited forms. Rather, it entails a dynamic engagement with reality, guided by the ethical imperatives of the Qur’an and Sunnah. It requires courage, intellectual honesty, and a willingness to confront injustice, even when such confrontation is costly.
Ultimately, the path to Allah, as illuminated by the messengers, is not a path of passive spirituality but of active moral striving. It is a path where monotheism translates into justice, where knowledge becomes action, and where faith manifests as resistance to oppression. In this light, silence in the face of tyranny is not merely a missed opportunity; it is a negation of the very purpose for which revelation was sent.
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