My Advice to the Ulama

MY ADVICE TO THE ULAMA I n various traditions, Prophet Muhammad observed that in later times due to the law of degeneration, rulers would become tyrannical and unjust. At such times he advised religious scholars to continue to discharge their duties peacefully in non-political fields without confronting rulers. While distinguishing between the roles of ‘men of politics’ and the ‘men of learning’, the politicians are charged with carrying out administrative duties, while the Ulama have been given the role of educators to people. In the generations that followed the Companions of the Prophet, this division of spheres of activity was maintained. People were engaged in various fields of knowledge, and there came to be the Quran reciters, Hadith scholars (muhaddithin), fuqaha (jurists), Ulama, dayees (those who conveyed God’s message to people) and Sufis. All of them focused on their respective spheres of activity. No matter how corrupt the system of governance appeared, the Ulama never confronted them under any circumstance. As a result, the Ulama never deviated from the work they had been entrusted with. This division of work resulted in a glorious history of scholarship and dawah work, which is the most precious legacy of the Muslim community.