The Demands of Worship

The Essence of Religion oath of allegiance (623 a.d.), when 75 peopl e of Madinah (73 men and 2 women) came to the Prophet and accepted Islam, they were told by the Prophet to appoint twelve leaders (Al-Bidayah wanNihayah, Vol. 3, p. 160). So they chose twelve responsible persons from among themselves. Three belonged to the Aws tribe and nine to the Khazraj tribe. Then the Prophet addressed them thus: “You are the guardians of the believers of Madinah” (Zarqani, Vol. 1, p. 382). The leadership of Jafar, who was appointed leader of the emigrants to Abyssinia was also of this nature (Seerat ibn Hisham). Similarly, whenever Muslims spread out from Arabia across the world, they endeavoured to establish their social structures. In addition to leading an Islamic life and calling others to Islam, they gave basic importance to organization, so that they were able to perform their religious duties under one leader. The last stage of Islamic organization is the formation of a political setup which, in religious terminology, is called Nasb-eImamat, the appointment of an Imam. According to all schools of religious thought, the establishment of a political and social leader of Muslims is obligatory. This matter is so important that there is not a single book on religious law and creeds which has not dealt with this issue. It is specially stated in Sharh al-Mawaqif, Sharh Maqasid and Aqaaide al-Nasafi that it is compulsory for Muslims to have an Imam. With one minor exception, no group disagrees over this issue. Ibn Hazm writes: All Sunnis, Murjea, Shia, and Khawarij (except the now extinct Najdat sect) agree on the obligatory nature of the Imamat (Al Melal wa al Nehal, p. 72). The only difference of opinion on this matter is that the people of the Ahl al-Sunnah wa al Jama’a take this to be a canonical order, while some other groups, such as Zaidiya and Mutazela, consider it necessary as being the demand of reason. But, as mentioned above, the matter of appointing a political leader is relevant only in a Muslim society which has acquired an independent status as a social group and, as such, is in a position to set up its own separate