Principles upon the Path of Hijrah (2/3)

Fifthly, the believing muhajir should move from where he is to that which is better than where he is. He should go to a place that is free from the sins that plagued the area that he is migrating from. Otherwise, if he cannot find such a place, he is not obliged to make hijrah. So, he should migrate from Dar al-Kufr to Dar al-Islam, or from a land of oppression and sin to a land of justice and goodness. As for the migration from one evil to another, or from a land of sin to a land of equal sin, this is nothing but exhaustion for the self, lack of benefit, and a waste of money. If he is unable to find a land that is pure, and finds that sin is widespread in all lands,[1] he must migrate from the place in which sins are practiced openly to a land that is lighter in sin than his own, or from a land in which there is evil to a land in which the obligatory acts are abandoned. For example, if he is in a land in which fornication and adultery are widespread, in addition to there being injustice and oppression, and another land contains the oppression without the fornication, he must move to this land, as it contains only one of the two evils, as opposed to both of them.

And I ask: is it correct for us to now obligate hijrah upon the believer from a land which - although its condition is unclear – the shirk in it is more hidden than it is in the land to which he desires to migrate? And the condition of this land to which he desires to migrate is not as clear as it should be, except that you might see and hear the sincerity of its leaders in implementing Islam, with the true vision of Islam not having yet become evident, especially in regards to the issue of the shirk of graves, which we are constantly in a state of anxiety over. And my reference to the shirk of graves is not to be taken as disregard for the shirk of legislation with Allah – the Exalted – or the shirk of the exaltation and worship of the disbelieving nations, or the shirk of putting off Jihad in response to the desires of the mighty disbelieving nations – all of which are manifest in many of the nations that claim Islam. And I hope that this reference to the shirk of graves is not taken as a jab at those who are truthful in implementing and acting by the Shari’ah of Allah. Rather, this was merely to point out the picture that must be clear in the mind of the muhajir before his hijrah, so that he would not end up being hindered and turned back by any potential confusion.

Sixth, it is not permissible for the one who has migrated to turn back from his hijrah without a legitimate Shar’i excuse. Otherwise, he has committed one of the major sins. And Shaykh ‘Abdillah bin ‘Abd al-Latif said in his advice to the people of al-Artawiyyah: “And the Messenger (peace be upon him) was informed of a man who had migrated then returned from his hijrah to live with the bedouins. So, he said to him: “This is minor apostasy. Whoever does this is cursed, and the one who stays with the bedouins and perfects his Islam is better than the one who migrated then turned back from his hijrah.”[2] And it has reached me that from the people of al-Artawiyyah are those who migrated and established themselves, and now desire to turn back from their hijrah, moving with the bedouins. And this is a great disaster, and the one who does so is not safe from falling into apostasy[3] and from being of those who turned back on their heels after the guidance was made clear to them. So, be warned of this, and be patient. Endure, be watchful, and remain firm upon the Command of your Lord, and do not be of those who have exchanged the blessing of Allah for disbelief. And I ask Allah to guide me and you…”[4]

And due to this, Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani said: “His (al-Bukhari’s) titling of the chapter: ‘Moving With the Bedouins in Times of Fitnah’ is in regards to the muhajir who has moved from the land that he has migrated from to live with the bedouins, thereby returning to becoming a bedouin after his hijrah, and this was forbidden except with an excuse from the Legislator. And he (al-Bukhari) specified the time of fitnah, indicating that this is one of the situations that constitute an excuse in doing so. It has also been said that ‘…in Times of Fitnah’ is in reference to the fact that this (moving in with the bedouins) constitutes a betrayal of the people of truth. However, the Salaf differed in their understanding of this concept, as some of them protected and secluded themselves from any fitnah – such as Sa’d, Muhammad bin Maslamah, and Ibn ‘Umar – and some of them engaged in fighting, and they were the majority…and an-Nasa’i reported that Ibn Mas’ud said: “The one who consumes riba, the one who pays riba, the one who knowingly writes down the transaction…and the one who turns back as a bedouin after his hijrah – all are cursed from the tongue of Muhammad (peace be upon him), until the Day of Resurrection.”[5] ”[6] (end of Ibn Hajar’s words)

In ‘as-Sunan al-Kubra,’ al-Bayhaqi reported the same narration of Ibn Mas’ud. However, he then titled a chapter: ‘What Has Been Narrated Regarding the Allowance of Doing So (Living With Bedouins After Hijrah). During Times of Fitnah,’ and brought the following narration under it:

Yazid bin Abi ‘Ubayd reported that Salamah bin al-Akwa’ entered upon al-Hajjaj bin Yusuf. So, al-Hajjaj said to him: “O Ibn al-Akwa’! Have you returned to being a bedouin?” Salamah replied: “No. Rather, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) allowed me to remain with the bedouins (in times of fitnah).”[7]

So, the difference of opinion left to address is in regards to the permissibility of the muhajirin remaining for more than three days in Makkah after completing their Hajj rituals. This is in regards to the muhajir who left for Madinah and migrated to it in order to give victory to the religion of Allah, as was reported that al-‘Ala’ bin al-Hadrami heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) say: “The muhajir has three days to remain after finishing in Makkah,”[8] and it’s as if he was instructing to not stay beyond this. So, it was not permissible for one to return to his homeland (Makkah), and this was in regards to the time before his land was conquered. However, after Makkah was conquered and became Dar al-Islam, some of the scholars saw that this ruling had changed, and whoever wishes to read into this issue, let him review it in the book of ‘The Virtues of the Ansar’ in the chapter ‘The Muhajir’s Remaining in Makkah After Completing His Rituals’ in Ibn Hajar’s explanation of ‘Sahih al-Bukhari.’[9]

Regarding this, Ibn Hazm also said: “Malik, ash-Shafi’i, and their followers all use as proof the authentic narration from the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) by way of al-‘Ala’ bin al-Hadrami: “The muhajir can remain for three days after completing his rituals.”

They said that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) hated for the muhajirin to remain in Makkah - which was their homeland that they were expelled from for the sake of Allah – until they meet their Lord while they are strangers from their own homelands, all for the Face of Allah – the Mighty and Majestic. After this, he allowed them to remain in it for three days after completing their rituals.

After this, it becomes clear to us the danger of the desire that can afflict the one who makes hijrah from Dar al-Kufr or Dar al-Harb, and follows that by returning there without any Shar’i excuse, while it is upon what it is upon of kufr.

(Continued)