SPIRITUAL POWER NOT POLITICAL POWER

SPIRITUAL POWER NOT POLITICAL POWER Goal of Islam Say: “O God! Lord of power, You give power to whom You please, and You take away power from whom You please.” (THE QURAN 3: 26) T HE concept of the state in Islam can be understood from the above verse of the Quran. Some points are made here very clearly: one being that the actual possessor of power is God and that it is He who grants power on earth to whom He wants, and it is God who takes away power from whoever He wants. So the whole matter in this regard rests with God. If someone receives power, it is not due to his own effort: it is given to him by God alone. Similarly, when power is taken away from him, it is done by God alone. Thus the dominance or subjugation of any group is ultimately for God to decide. According to this verse, no human being has any power whatsoever. The theory that comes to light is that political power is totally governed by God, just as the entire universe is running in accordance with the divine plan. It is like saying that God alone is the controller of the universe and that He alone has the final word as to who is going to be given political power. Just as God exercises full power over the setting and rising of the sun, so also has He full power over the granting of political ascendancy. This is an incontrovertible fact. There is another verse in this connection which throws further light on the issue: And He will bestow upon you other blessings which you desire; help from God and a speedy victory. (61: 13) In this verse “other blessings” means political power. This has been characterized as something secondary. When we take this verse in its literal sense, it transpires that the status of political power has a secondary rather than a primary position in Islam. Primary position is given to the purification of the self through intellectual and spiritual development. Another point made clear in this verse is that the receiving of political power depends solely upon divine succour. Victory and defeat