[12] Prophethood - Prophethood and It’s Relevance Today

A series of discussions on the teachings of Imam Sadiq (sixth Imam of the Muslims), from the book Misbah ash-Sharia (The Lantern of the Path)

In His Name, the Most High

This is part twelve of an ongoing series of discussions on the book by Imam as-Sadiq titled ‘Misbah ash-Sharia’ (the Lantern of the Path). This is also the seventh part of our discussions on prophethood.

It is strongly recommended that the previous parts are read, before proceeding with this one; to avoid any confusion or misunderstanding within the subject matter.

The nature of the subject matter, and the style of discourse requires that each part build upon those that came before it, so once more, I strongly recommend that the reader, read the previous parts, and then continue with this one.

The previous parts, can be found here:

The Lantern of the Path - Index

Video of the Majlis (Sermon/Lecture)

This write up is a companion to the video majlis (sermon/lecture) found below:

Contents

• Majlis - Misbah ash-Sharia - Servitude - Part 12

• Nasheed: Sobh-e-Omid (The Morning of Hope) - Hamed Zamani (English Subtitles)

• Munajaat: Munajaat Sha'baniyyah - Shaykh Husayn al-Akraf

• Ziyarah: Ziyarat Aal-i-Yaseen

Recap

In the previous sessions - we continued our journey of discovery regarding the subject of Prophethood. We had previously discussed the philosophy of prophethood, the mission of the prophets, the prophetic resurrection of society. the goal of the prophets, the starting point of the prophetic mission and in the last session we discussed opposition to the prophetic mission.

In this and the next session, we will be examining the outcome of prophethood, what the result of prophethood were and are, and what are the promises of God to the prophets and to those who sincerely follow them.

We will also be learning about the lessons we can garner from prophethood, and how they have a great relevance and importance to us in the 21st Century, amid the global situation, and the desperate need that humanity has - whether it realises it or not - for salvation, and a return to a true tawheed-oriented society, as taught and espoused by all of the prophets of God.

This subject will be covered over two sessions due to the depth of this subject, this one and the one next week, God willing.

We pray that the One who sent all the prophets shows His kindness to us, and grants us the ability (tawfeeq), the patience, and resolve to understand His way, and that He ensure that we are always upon the Straight Path, moving always towards His perfection, and upon the road taught by the prophets, that we may - with His permission and grace - be able to gaze lovingly into His (metaphorical) beautiful face.

We pray that He always guide us, and ensure that we never falter, and He is the best of all protectors.

In His most beautiful of Names, we begin, and in His support and help, do we eternally rely, and He is the best of those who are relied upon.

Nubuwwah (Prophethood) - Part 7

قُلْ مَن رَّبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ قُلِ اللَّهُ ۚ قُلْ أَفَاتَّخَذْتُم مِّن دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَاءَ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنفُسِهِمْ نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا ۚ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الْأَعْمَىٰ وَالْبَصِيرُ أَمْ هَلْ تَسْتَوِي الظُّلُمَاتُ وَالنُّورُ ۗ أَمْ جَعَلُوا لِلَّهِ شُرَكَاءَ خَلَقُوا كَخَلْقِهِ فَتَشَابَهَ الْخَلْقُ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ قُلِ اللَّهُ خَالِقُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَهُوَ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَّارُ
أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَسَالَتْ أَوْدِيَةٌ بِقَدَرِهَا فَاحْتَمَلَ السَّيْلُ زَبَدًا رَّابِيًا ۚ وَمِمَّا يُوقِدُونَ عَلَيْهِ فِي النَّارِ ابْتِغَاءَ حِلْيَةٍ أَوْ مَتَاعٍ زَبَدٌ مِّثْلُهُ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْحَقَّ وَالْبَاطِلَ ۚ فَأَمَّا الزَّبَدُ فَيَذْهَبُ جُفَاءً ۖ وَأَمَّا مَا يَنفَعُ النَّاسَ فَيَمْكُثُ فِي الْأَرْضِ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ
لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَجَابُوا لِرَبِّهِمُ الْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ وَالَّذِينَ لَمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا لَهُ لَوْ أَنَّ لَهُم مَّا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا وَمِثْلَهُ مَعَهُ لَافْتَدَوْا بِهِ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ لَهُمْ سُوءُ الْحِسَابِ وَمَأْوَاهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ ۖ وَبِئْسَ الْمِهَادُ

Say, ‘Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth?’ Say, ‘God!’ Say, ‘Have you then taken others besides Him for guardians, who have no control over their own benefit or harm?’ Say, ‘Are the blind one and the seer equal? Are darkness and light equal?’ Have they set up for God partners who have created like His creation, so that the creations seemed confusable to them? Say, ‘God is the creator of all things, and He is the One and the All-paramount.’
He sends down water from the sky whereat the valleys are flooded to [the extent of] their capacity, and the flood carries along a swelling scum. And from what they smelt in the fire for the purpose of [making] ornaments or wares, [there arises] a similar scum. That is how God compares truth and falsehood. As for the scum, it leaves as dross, and that which profits the people stays in the earth. That is how God draws comparisons.
For those who answer [the summons of] their Lord there shall be the best outcome. But those who do not answer Him, even if they possessed all that is on the earth and as much of it besides, they would surely offer it to redeem themselves with it. For such there shall be an adverse reckoning, and their refuge shall be hell, and it is an evil resting place.

- Quran, Surah ar-Ra’d (the Chapter of the Thunder), #13, Verses 16 to 18

And

وَلَقَدْ سَبَقَتْ كَلِمَتُنَا لِعِبَادِنَا الْمُرْسَلِينَ
إِنَّهُمْ لَهُمُ الْمَنصُورُونَ
وَإِنَّ جُندَنَا لَهُمُ الْغَالِبُونَ
فَتَوَلَّ عَنْهُمْ حَتَّىٰ حِينٍ
وَأَبْصِرْهُمْ فَسَوْفَ يُبْصِرُونَ
أَفَبِعَذَابِنَا يَسْتَعْجِلُونَ
فَإِذَا نَزَلَ بِسَاحَتِهِمْ فَسَاءَ صَبَاحُ الْمُنذَرِينَ
وَتَوَلَّ عَنْهُمْ حَتَّىٰ حِينٍ
وَأَبْصِرْ فَسَوْفَ يُبْصِرُونَ
سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ

Certainly Our decree has gone beforehand in favour of Our servants, the apostles, that they will indeed receive [God’s] help, and indeed Our hosts will be the victors.
So leave them alone for a while, and watch them; soon they will see [the truth of the matter]!
Do they seek to hasten Our punishment?
But when it descends in their courtyard it will be a dismal dawn for those who had been warned.
So leave them alone for a while, and watch; soon they will see!
Clear is your Lord, the Lord of Might, of whatever they allege [concerning Him].

- Quran, Surah as-Saffat (the Chapter of the Rangers) #37, Verses 171 to 180

Introduction

In our previous session, we discussed the opposition to the mission of the prophets, and prior to that we have also discussed the goals of prophethood.

Today, in the 21st Century, a time we are told is a time of ‘learning and enlightenment’, a time of ‘artificial intelligence’ and even ‘artificial general intelligence’, a time of the the rise of technology, and such things.

But though all of this, we can see that these goals seem all the more important.

In practical terms, the goal of the prophets was to abolish the existence of different social classes, to make all men truly equal, and to free all men from the evils of ignorance, poverty, tyranny, inequality and exploitation.

Indeed, it is for these important and lofty goals that the prophets were sent to their societies.

Furthermore, we can also see, how the various classes of opponents to the prophetic missions at the time of God’s prophets, are still continuing their heinous plans and schemes in our time.

This is why, it is absolutely critical, that all the free people of the world, those who wish to remove the yoke of tyranny, of oppression and abasement from their necks, and to soar free as a bird, understand the outcomes of the prophetic missions, the lessons that can be garnered from these outcomes and the missions themselves; such that - with God’s eternal support (which we know is always with the oppressed) - they can break down these idols, remove the tyrants, destroy the false priests and clerics, break the back of the elite, and the opulent, and move towards the perfection that is God’s desire in the creation of humanity.

Understanding Prophethood and Its Relevance Today

When we look at the lives of the prophets, we see a long series of efforts and struggles. From the moment a prophet is raised-up by God, there is no rest for him, there is no time for leisure, there is no time for frivolity or comfort.

There is only the struggle. This is the destiny of all of God’s prophets and messengers.

We know, from our religious texts, that some of these prophets met their end in their confrontations with the tyrants and oppressors of their day, having their heads removed from their shoulders. We are told that some of the prophets were cleft in two from heel to crown. Some died alone and in pain.

None of then amassed wealth, no matter how little.

Unlike the political and religious leaders we have today, none of them, at the end of their lives, enjoyed a comfortable home, in which to retire with a generous pension.

That is what we know about the lives of the prophets, God’s emissaries to humanity.

But this raises an important question.

The Question of Success or Failure

Based on what we read about the lives of the prophets we see that many of them became martyrs for God. Does this mean that their missions were ultimately fruitless and without benefit? Does history teach us that the prophets were defeated?

Is it really, as some naive people of the world imagine, and as anti-prophetic forces want people to imagine, that the efforts of the prophets were all in vain?

Was it really the case that throughout history, wrongdoing, injustice, inhumanity, corruption and disbelief have always triumphed?

We do not believe this is the case.

We believe that these divine emissaries, beginning with Adam, Noah, and Abraham, who were the best of God’s creation and came in succession, one after the other, not only were they not defeated, not only did they not fail, not only were all there words and deeds not in vain, but that of all human beings, of everyone who has ever pursued some goal in life, there is no-one who has enjoyed the level of success achieved by these prophets!

This is what we believe. We believe that the outcome of prophethood and the results of all the prophet’s missions throughout history have been exactly as intended, and they will continue to be in the future too. This is what we will be attempting to discuss today.

To that end, there are two questions we must answer.

Firstly, this series of individuals who had the status of ‘prophethood’ (nubuwwah or sometimes referred to as risalah) - this caravan which began with Adam and ended with the Prophet Muhammad, the final messenger of God, what did they do?

As a whole, what did they achieve? Did they succeed or fail? This is one question.

The other question is what God’s great prophets did in their own times as individuals - did they triumph or were they defeated?

These are the two questions that we must answer, and we will attempt - God willing - to answer them both in this session.

These are questions that we should want to answer because their answers will be useful to us, but not only because they will increase our knowledge, because there are many things that increase people’s knowledge without being useful.

For example, there is no harm in everyone knowing the composition of moon rocks. Is this bad to know this? Of course not! But is it useful? No, it is not useful either.

There is so much knowledge we pursue as human beings; we sit, listen, speak, study, research, write and spend all of our lives pursuing knowledge, only to realise when we look back at it, that it is of no use to us or anyone else.

Such knowledge has not brought us - or anyone - a step closer to Heaven or God’s pleasure, nor has it brought us any closer to creating a genuinely Islamic society in this world.

It’s only use has been to make us feel pleased with ourselves and to allow us to show off to others as to how ‘learned and well-read’ we are. That no-one can teach us anything we don’t know already!

This is the only use of such knowledge.

However, the subject that we want to discuss in this session, is actually useful (mufid) in the truest sense of the word. It is not just knowledge, but knowledge that leads to action. It is like the kinds of belief we have spoken about previously in these sessions.

The first question we must answer is:

This series of individuals who we call prophets, what did they do for the human race?

The answer is that the prophets came to a being that was little more than an animal, who barely knew his head from a hole in the ground, a being whose instincts were not able to guide him either, and they raised this being to such a level that even the angels in Heaven would come to learn from him!

They took humanity from the depths of depravity, bestiality and ignorance and raised them to the level of human beings who, if they acted on what they knew, would see manifested in their lives the highest expressions of beauty and eloquence in all of creation.

The Prophets as Teachers of Humanity

To put it simply, the prophets came as teachers to mankind, who were like children on the first day of their first year in school. They knew nothing, not even the alphabet, and the teachers worked so hard to get them to the second year of school that they died in the process.

Then, in the second year of school, a new teacher came and raised the students to the third year, and this teacher gave their life also.

So, yet another new teacher came for the third year, and so on and so forth.

Now, you see this students level of understanding, knowledge and sensitivity have increased manifold since he began his studies, until he reached the apex of growth and development.

Now, imagine, that each of these teachers, after spending a year teaching this class of students, are killed by some of their own students. Each teacher comes and delivers his lesson and dies - but has he failed?

Think very carefully about this. Has the teacher failed?

What was the goal of the teacher? Was it not to raise the students up to the heights of learning and enlightenment?

If this is the case, then the teacher did not die as a failure. Certainly, it is true, he did not have an easy life in this world. True, he may not see the fruits of his labour.

But did he fail in his mission? Most certainly he did not!

As a teacher, his goal was to ensure that his students graduated to the next year of their studies and, with struggle and perseverance, they did.

This is how the prophets were:

Adam, Noah (Nuh), Lot (Lut), Hud, Salih, Jethro (Shuayb), Abraham (Ibrahim), Ishmael (Ismail), Isaac (Ishaaq), Jacob (Ya’qub), Joseph (Yusuf), Moses (Musa), Zachary (Zakariyyah), John (Yahya), Jesus (Isa) and thousands of other prophets who have graced this world throughout history.

They came to raise humanity up. To deliver knowledge and enlightenment, to prepare them for the next life and to give them everything they need to make this journey.

Even though some of these prophets gave their lives before they could arrive at the destination and before they could see the outcome of their efforts, they were still successful in their missions.

Today, more than at any other point in the last thousand years of human history, the world is ready to hear the true call of Islam. Today, more than at any point in the last thousand years, mankind is ready for divine governance. A thousand years from now, it will be readier still.

Lessons from the Imam of Our Age

When the Imam of our Age, may God hasten his return, and may our souls be his ransom, went into occultation, mankind was not ready to accept a revolutionary leader who had come with a sword in his hand to set the world right. Had he attempted to bring about this revolutionary change at that time, it is almost certain that he would not have been able to bring about the society that he envisaged, on account of the unfavourable conditions of that age.

The experience of the Imams from the household of the Prophet Muhammad was that society had become so completely ruined at the hands of the tyrants and dictators from the houses of the Umayyads and the Abbasids, and the grounds had become so completely poisoned by their deeds, that nothing healthy could grow there.

That is why the Imam had to go into hiding - into occultation - until the time was right.

And how will it be on the day when he returns? We don’t know whether this will be ten years from now or a thousand years from now. What we do know, however, is that when he returns, mankind will be ready for him.

They will be ready to hear the true call of Islam, and they will accept it.

They will be ready to build a better society. An Islamic society. A tawheed-oriented society.

They will be ready to bear the burdens of this undertaking. They will be ready to follow the Quran on that day.

However, when our Imam went into hiding, the time was not ripe. But what ultimately prepares the grounds for his return?

The teachings of the prophets and the Imams who came after them. When we get into the subject of Imamate and Wilayah, which will be in about three weeks from now, God willing, we will discuss the wisdom of Imamate and why it is that we need an Imam.

Therefore, we can understand now, that it is not the case that the prophets failed in their missions. With the passing of each moment, the human race takes another step on it’s path to enlightenment.

Every moment, the human race comes ever closer to attaining its full potential.

Did the prophets want anything other than this?

God wanted this raw material to follow its natural course of development. This is what God intended for mankind, and one day mankind will certainly reach the pinnacle of its perfection.

This is the inescapable conclusion we draw from history. This is the destiny that history lays out for mankind, and this is entirely correct and accurate.

Now, these are detailed discussions, and we must pay attention, pay close attention to the meaning of words and terms.

Destiny leads the human race on the forward path of development and refinement, towards the Paradise that is promised in this world; that is that day when humanity will be on display, when there will be no oppression, no evil, no suffering - everything will be in accordance with true human values.

This is how the human being and the world was created; this being will ultimately follow its own path towards perfection, which is its ultimate destination.

At a time when everything the human race needs to attain perfection is present, humanity will rapidly ascend on the arc of spiritual growth and maturation towards God, towards absolute perfection.

It is a truth of history that from the very beginning, the human race has been on its journey towards perfection, because yearning for perfection is part of what it means and what it is to be human.

This is how God created the human being, whether the human being knows this or not, is another matter; whether the human being accepts this or not, this too is another matter.

In Quran, God says that He has guided humanity towards the most perfect way, towards the right way, and it is upon humanity to accept, to be thankful and to follow this way; or for him to reject, and thereby become from the rebellious:

إِنَّا هَدَيْنَاهُ السَّبِيلَ إِمَّا شَاكِرًا وَإِمَّا كَفُورًا

Indeed We have guided him to the way, be he grateful or ungrateful.

- Quran, Surah al-Insan (the Chapter of Humanity) #76, Verse 3

However, while this is in some sense inevitable, as has been said previously and as indicated in the verse above, the human being still has a choice in all of this, and this will become clearer still as we progress on this series of discussions.

Indeed, it is only possible for the human being to attain perfection through his own will and desire.

This is a fundamental doctrine of Islam and an integral part of the Islamic worldview, that a happy future lies in store for the human race. Why?

Because God created the heavens and earth in accordance with truth, and the human beings very nature (fitrah) is to pursue truth, furthermore, since the human being has free will, he must choose the path that accords with this nature in order to arrive at his intended destination.

But who can show him this path? Who can show him what he must do if he is to act in accordance with this nature? The prophets.

This is why the prophets were sent.

They were sent to show human beings the path of humanity, of true human nature.

They were sent to help him on his journey towards this happy future.

Therefore, human beings are advancing every day, every moment, and moment by moment, the human race is coming closer to this happy future.

This is because of the efforts of the prophets. It is the prophets who sent man along this path. If there have been delays and setbacks along the road, or at different stages of human history, this is because people have strayed from the teachings of the prophets.

However, even then, the journey continued. This is a general point that must be kept in mind.

The Two Questions

So with regard to the first question, we draw the conclusion that even though God’s prophets may have suffered hardships and even death, their efforts to guide mankind towards perfection and growth have been successful when we look at the grand scale of things.

It was the prophets who turned the human beings towards this happy future and showed him how to reach it, and helped him along the way.

As for the second question, this is exceedingly important to understand. The second question is this: When a prophet begins an awakening in the world, when a prophet starts a revolution or a social resurrection, can we say that this revolution has a good outcome or not? Can we expect it to produce a positive result? Or can we not be so optimistic? What is the general rule here?

There are some who would say that, looking at history, wherever the truth is proclaimed, wherever its call reaches the people, it is ultimately fruitless and without result. The truth is suppressed.

They are not wrong in the experience they point to. The experience of human history shows us that the prophets have always been persecuted and oppressed, and the revolutions they initiated do not appear to have been successful. The government of truth could not be established and falsehood could not be effaced.

So, what should we do with this? Does this mean that we should not raise our hands in protest? That we should stay silent and not follow the path of the prophets?

After all, even in their own times, the prophets were not able to achieve anything and, ultimately it seems that falsehood always prevails over the truth, even if we say that this is only a temporary state of affairs.

Therefore, the truth seekers, the truth promoters, the truth proclaimers of this world should keep their swords sheathed, sit down, and do nothing, because taking action is pointless.

And if they must do anything, then they must do it in secret.

This is the logic that many people follow, and it is this logic, that is pleasing to the tyrants of the world.

This is the logic that bullies want people to believe in and to make part of their creed.

They want people to believe that there is no possibility for change, that none of their actions ultimately matter, and that nothing they do will produce any positive or lasting results.

This is precisely what the tyrants want.

The worlds newspapers and news websites are filled with the lies of many national leaders, across the collective West, but also across the entire world, for this very reason.

A person who has only a few hours, or at most days, left before his or her government is removed from power, and he or she is reduced (if they are fortunate) to the status of an ordinary citizen, will lie to the very end.

They will say that they are defeating their enemies, overcoming their opponents, that everything is under control, and that their government will continue to rule regardless.

How often have you seen with your own eyes in recent years even, folk like this brought down from their high castles?

Till the very end, they claimed that no-one could remove them from power, that they would rule forever.

This is, exactly why they make such lies and deceptions.

They want the people to believe that no matter what they do, nothing will change, that the tyrants will remain in power permanently.

They want people to believe that their power is so great, that it is beyond comprehension, that they ‘hold all the cards’, that they have all the power, and the people have nothing they can fight or resist them with.

Do you believe this is a new state of affairs?

Of course not!

This is something that has been happening throughout history, for millennia even, and this is why studying history is so amazing, and so important.

Historical Lessons of Faith and Perseverance

We have two important examples.

The first is that of the Abbasid Caliph al-Mansour. He was arguably the most powerful of the Abbasid caliphs, and the second of that dynasty to rule.

During his time, there was serious opposition to his reign from sections of the religious community. He had to face an uprising led by Muhammad ibn Abdullah (known as an-Nafs az-Zakiyyah or the Pure Soul) and Ibrahim ibn Abdullah, the two great grandsons of Imam al-Hasan, the second Imam of the Muslims.

For some time, these two led such a powerful movement that al-Mansour could not do anything about them.

Even though he had all the power, in the face of the relentless struggle and resistance of these two dedicated brothers, who had nothing but their faith, their belief and a few of their believing followers.

Al-Mansour was left powerless.

So, instead, al-Mansour instigated the spread of rumours and propaganda about his great power and strength, for the sole purpose of discouraging the faithful from joining their movement.

As an example, al-Mansour spread the rumour that he had ‘an enchanted mirror’ that showed him all of Muhammad and Ibrahim’s movements, and also who was sheltering, collaborating with or joining them.

Ironically, this story of the ‘enchanted mirror’ is very similar to the one used by the Persian king Jamshid, who claimed to have an ‘enchanted cup’ from whence he could see all the secrets of the world, in order to frighten his enemies into believing they couldn’t do anything without this king knowing about it. Jamshid was more than two thousand years before the time of al-Mansour.

The second example is that of the victory of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, that we commemorate the 46th anniversary of in these days.

This too was an uprising against a tyrant, both the local - but imposed by the hegemon - but also against the hegemony of the hegemon, the US regime.

This too, saw the now dead Pahlavi Shah, make up all sorts of stories and fictions, and naturally the media of the west also demonised and made claims of the weakness of the uprising.

The president of the United States at the time, Mr Jimmy Carter - who died recently - even went so far as to say, just months before the victory of the Islamic Revolution led by Imam Khomeini, may God bless his pure soul, that:

“Iran is a island of tranquillity in a very volatile region”

Now, while the Islamic Revolution was, and continues to be successful, the rise of the Nafs az-Zakiyyah was less so - at least overtly - but the lies of the tyrants (and their backers) continued nevertheless.

The Islamic Revolution was victorious because of the faith and belief of the people of Iran, they placed their reliance and trust in Him, they worked hard, gave many sacrifices, and ultimately they attained victory.

This victory didn’t happen overnight, it didn’t happen in just 1978-79, rather this was started years prior to that, with the rise of the Martyr, Sayyed Nawwab Safavi in the 1940s, or perhaps even earlier from the time of Mirza Kuchek Khan in the 1910s.

Indeed, some have said that the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran has its roots in the revolution led by Prophet Muhammad at the very start of Islam, that it has roots in the revolutions of Abraham, Moses, and Jesus against the tyrants of their time.

Even to this day, there is always constant demonisation and vilification of the Islamic Revolution, the tyrants and their mouthpieces, try to hide the truth about the victory of the Islamic Revolution, and what its principles were.

And what were they?

The Islamic Revolution, led by Imam Khomeini, was designed to build and establish a tawheed-oriented society. Parts of this task have been accomplished, with His grace, and parts of this task remain to be completed, remaining incomplete because of the crimes of the enemies amongst other things - other things - that will become clear as we proceed through this discussion.

So, what the tyrants want from God - a God, incidentally, in whom they do not believe - is for people to believe that His prophets and messengers of truth were always oppressed and were always defeated.

What they want from God, is for people to believe that no cry of truth ever prevailed against the evil nature of this material world.

What they want from God, is for people to be accustomed to the idea that no uprising over falsehood or oppression could ever succeed in producing a lasting positive result.

We can see this, when they talk about the Islamic Revolution and the Islamic Republic, they constantly spewing the lies that the system is collapsing in Iran, that everything is falling apart. We see this every day, day in day out, from the media of the collective West and their minions across the world.

The real question, that we must ask, is: Are they right?

Perhaps, there are some people who are under the influence of these tyrants, or who lack the ability to think critically and see beyond the lies and propaganda, who might believe that the prophets and their followers, and the Imams were always defeated, and that every uprising in this world is always defeated.

Indeed, they spread this narrative about the honourable people of Palestine - both in the past and in the present day - suggesting that the al-Aqsa Flood operation was somehow a failure. That all it has done is destroyed the people.

Superficially, certainly this would be believed by the weak and those who don’t really understand nuances; but the fact remains that even with all the sacrifices - and we will come to the meaning behind them shortly - have the honourable people of Palestine been defeated? Has the Resistance Axis been defeated? Has the Islamic Republic of Iran been defeated?

Should we be obliged to agree with such sentiments?

Rather, should we not examine the Quran, should we not study the Quran, and see if this is actually the case, rather than taking the analysis of secular folk and those with ulterior motives or who are funded by the hegemon and tyrants?

When we examine the Quran, we can see that it propounds an opinion that is diametrically opposed to that which is spewed by the tyrants and their mouthpieces, regardless of how such tyrants and their mouthpieces present the situation.

Should we ignore the Quran and listen to tyrants and the legacy media?

Of course not!

We should refer to the Quran and learn from it, because when we do that, we see what the true outcome of prophethood was, and what the real fruits of the revolution started by the prophets and their followers can be.

So, firstly, we shall study this principle from the Quran, then we shall turn back to the text of history and see whether or not historical experience agrees with what the Quran says.

Parables from the Quran: Truth vs. Falsehood

In the verses that we started our session with (reproduced below):

قُلْ مَن رَّبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ قُلِ اللَّهُ ۚ قُلْ أَفَاتَّخَذْتُم مِّن دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَاءَ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنفُسِهِمْ نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا ۚ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الْأَعْمَىٰ وَالْبَصِيرُ أَمْ هَلْ تَسْتَوِي الظُّلُمَاتُ وَالنُّورُ ۗ أَمْ جَعَلُوا لِلَّهِ شُرَكَاءَ خَلَقُوا كَخَلْقِهِ فَتَشَابَهَ الْخَلْقُ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ قُلِ اللَّهُ خَالِقُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَهُوَ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَّارُ
أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَسَالَتْ أَوْدِيَةٌ بِقَدَرِهَا فَاحْتَمَلَ السَّيْلُ زَبَدًا رَّابِيًا ۚ وَمِمَّا يُوقِدُونَ عَلَيْهِ فِي النَّارِ ابْتِغَاءَ حِلْيَةٍ أَوْ مَتَاعٍ زَبَدٌ مِّثْلُهُ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْحَقَّ وَالْبَاطِلَ ۚ فَأَمَّا الزَّبَدُ فَيَذْهَبُ جُفَاءً ۖ وَأَمَّا مَا يَنفَعُ النَّاسَ فَيَمْكُثُ فِي الْأَرْضِ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ
لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَجَابُوا لِرَبِّهِمُ الْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ وَالَّذِينَ لَمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا لَهُ لَوْ أَنَّ لَهُم مَّا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا وَمِثْلَهُ مَعَهُ لَافْتَدَوْا بِهِ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ لَهُمْ سُوءُ الْحِسَابِ وَمَأْوَاهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ ۖ وَبِئْسَ الْمِهَادُ

Say, ‘Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth?’ Say, ‘God!’ Say, ‘Have you then taken others besides Him for guardians, who have no control over their own benefit or harm?’ Say, ‘Are the blind one and the seer equal? Are darkness and light equal?’ Have they set up for God partners who have created like His creation, so that the creations seemed confusable to them? Say, ‘God is the creator of all things, and He is the One and the All-paramount.’
He sends down water from the sky whereat the valleys are flooded to [the extent of] their capacity, and the flood carries along a swelling scum. And from what they smelt in the fire for the purpose of [making] ornaments or wares, [there arises] a similar scum. That is how God compares truth and falsehood. As for the scum, it leaves as dross, and that which profits the people stays in the earth. That is how God draws comparisons.
For those who answer [the summons of] their Lord there shall be the best [of rewards]. But those who do not answer Him, even if they possessed all that is on the earth and as much of it besides, they would surely offer it to redeem themselves with it. For such there shall be an adverse reckoning, and their refuge shall be hell, and it is an evil resting place.

- Quran, Surah ar-Ra’d (the Chapter of the Thunder), #13, Verses 16 to 18

We can see the Quran strikes a parable for us, which tells us that in this world where there is truth and there is falsehood, but ultimately, it is truth that endures while it is falsehood that vanishes.

In these verses, God speaks about the water that flows down from the mountains into rivers. He says that as the water flows, a froth appears on it, but that this froth disappears while the water remains.

Falsehood is this froth that will eventually vanish, while truth is the water that remains.

Here, the Quran is teaching us a reality, that is attested to by history.

Each of the prophets who appeared in this world, from the first to the last - over and above the fact that the whole series of prophets throughout history, acted with a single goal in mind and took mankind forward step by step, each of them by themselves also had he possibility of succeeding.

The truth is not the propaganda that al-Mansour, or that the legacy corrupt media pour into the ears and eyes of the people; propaganda that says that there is nothing that the people can do about the ‘powers that be’.

This is not the case. It is not the case that, as the powerful have told people throughout history, truth can do nothing against falsehood. That truth will always be smothered out of existence by evil.

On the contrary, the opposite is true.

The prophets were able to succeed wherever they went, and their followers were able to succeed too, and they were indeed successful.

However, there are two conditions that must be met for this result to transpire. -previously we had mentioned that human free will has an important role to play in shaping the future of the human race - and whenever these two conditions are met, all the uprisings that have taken place throughout history on the basis of religion, on the basis of Islamic and Quranic thought, have been successful and will be successful until the end of time.

There is no need for miracles either.

Faith and Perseverance: The Keys to Victory

There is no need for miracles for the supporters of religion and truth to succeed. Without any supernatural intervention or acts, there are two practical conditions that must be met in order for Islam, the Quran, religion, and Quranic ideals to be realised.

What are these two conditions?

The first of these conditions is faith (iman), belief on the basis of understanding, accompanied by a sense of moral duty and practical action. This is the first condition.

The second condition is perseverance (sabr) - sometimes called patience. It means to resist, not to withdraw, to be able to take action at the critical juncture.

When you look at the history of the prophets, you see that those of them that were defeated by the taghut (tyrant) of their day, was because their followers and supporters either lacked sufficient faith or sufficient patience.

Whenever you see the truth victorious, it is because these followers had sufficient faith and patience.

Is there any evidence in the Quran for this? Of course. There are several examples of this in the Quran. The verses that we mentioned earlier today, are the conceptual foundations of this principle, but there are many other verses that elucidate this principle further.

وَلَا تَهِنُوا وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا وَأَنتُمُ الْأَعْلَوْنَ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

Do not weaken or grieve: you shall have the upper hand, should you be faithful.

- Quran, Surah Aal-i-Imraan (the Family of Imraan) #3, Verse 139

For example, the verse above. This is a verse from the Quran, it is not a narration, the validity of which could be open to scrutiny or question. It is also not an ambiguous (mutashabih - متشابه) verse, the meaning of which could be in doubt.

No, it is clear and explicit in its meaning. It tells the believers to not slacken their efforts, nor to give into grief, because they will have the upper hand, they will be superior and victorious over their enemies. On one condition. What is that condition:

If you are true believers, if you have iman (إيمان - faith). This is the condition for your success.

Now, one might say, that Imam as-Sadiq, the sixth Imam of the Muslims, struggled against the tyrant of his time, and he didn’t succeed in establishing his government. This is true, this is correct. But the reason for this, is because many of his followers - people who claimed to be from his partisans (shia - شيعة) - were like you and me.

They lacked faith and patience.

Do we expect Imam as-Sadiq to go against a divine precedent to take power at all costs, even by miraculous means?

This itself shows us that the successes of the prophets and their followers did not, and do not, depend on divine intervention. If the prophets were supposed to depend upon miracles, then Imam as-Sadiq would have performed a miracle to take power, but instead, we see that he was assassinated at the hand of the tyrant of his time.

His son, Imam al-Kadhim - the seventh Imam of the Muslims - met with the same end for the same reason. Too few of his supporters and followers had the necessary patience and faith; the necessary belief, coupled with a sense of moral duty.

Today, the situation is the same and the result is the same. Defeat. The defeat of Islam. The defeat of the Quran. The subjugation of the monotheists.

But, if today, we were like those at the time of the prophet - if we were true monotheists with sure and unshakable conviction, with perseverance to humble the most dedicated of Heaven’s angels, the kind of perseverance that means you can fight your enemies or dig a trench even while fasting in the blessed month of Ramadhan, in the heat of the Arabian desert; then things would be very different.

The Power of Patience and Prayer

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ ۚ إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ

O you who have faith! Take recourse in patience and prayer; indeed Allah is with the patient.

- Quran, Surah al-Baqarah (the Chapter of the Cow) #2, Verse 153

God says in the Quran: “Take recourse in patience and prayer”. With the weapon of patience, of perseverance, you will overcome your enemies. With the weapon of patience, you will attain your goals.

This is one of the miracles of patience, of perseverance.

But unfortunately, we misunderstand the meaning of patience, of perseverance. We believe that it means that we should sit and wait to see what the outcome will be like. But as we have discussed at length in our previous series on patience, if you actually understand what patience is, what perseverance is, then you will not have to wait and see.

If you do not take action, if you do not make an effort, if you do not get up and do something, you will suffer misfortune, humiliation and poverty, you will lose your religion, and your will lose your world also.

وَمِنَ النَّاسِ مَن يَعْبُدُ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ حَرْفٍ ۖ فَإِنْ أَصَابَهُ خَيْرٌ اطْمَأَنَّ بِهِ ۖ وَإِنْ أَصَابَتْهُ فِتْنَةٌ انقَلَبَ عَلَىٰ وَجْهِهِ خَسِرَ الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةَ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ هُوَ الْخُسْرَانُ الْمُبِينُ

And among the people are those who worship God on the [very] fringe: if good fortune befalls him, he is content with it; but if an ordeal visits him he makes a turnabout, to become a loser in the world and the Hereafter. That is the manifest loss.

- Quran, Surah al-Hajj (the Chapter of the Pilgrimage) #22, Verse 11

This is the outcome that the Quran foretells us. Reflect on the following verses of Surah al-A’raaf and ponder on their meanings:

وَمَا تَنقِمُ مِنَّا إِلَّا أَنْ آمَنَّا بِآيَاتِ رَبِّنَا لَمَّا جَاءَتْنَا ۚ رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَتَوَفَّنَا مُسْلِمِينَ
وَقَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ أَتَذَرُ مُوسَىٰ وَقَوْمَهُ لِيُفْسِدُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَيَذَرَكَ وَآلِهَتَكَ ۚ قَالَ سَنُقَتِّلُ أَبْنَاءَهُمْ وَنَسْتَحْيِي نِسَاءَهُمْ وَإِنَّا فَوْقَهُمْ قَاهِرُونَ
قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِ اسْتَعِينُوا بِاللَّهِ وَاصْبِرُوا ۖ إِنَّ الْأَرْضَ لِلَّهِ يُورِثُهَا مَن يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ ۖ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ

You are vindictive toward us only because we have believed in the signs of our Lord, when they came to us.’ ‘Our Lord! Pour patience upon us, and grant us to die as Muslims.’
The elite of Pharaoh’s people said, ‘Will you leave Moses and his people to cause corruption in the land, and to abandon you and your gods?’ He said, ‘We will kill their sons and spare their women, and indeed we are dominant over them.’
Moses said to his people, ‘Turn to God for help and be patient. The earth indeed belongs to God, and He gives its inheritance to whomever He wishes of His servants, and the outcome will be in favour of the Godwary.’

- Quran, Surah al-A’raaf (the Chapter of the Heights) #7, Verses 126 to 128

What we are discussing here, we should apply to our lives as a religious way of thinking. Pay close attention to see whether it is really compatible with the standards of Islam, as a way of thinking.

The verses we are looking at, particularly verses 126 to 128 (as shown above), are about what took place between Moses and Pharaoh. When Moses came and invited him to God and Pharaoh not only rejected his invitation but proceeded to threaten Moses.

After their debate, Pharaoh’s magicians came and worked their magic against Moses’s miracles, but realised that they were powerless against him, and declared their belief in Moses and more importantly the God of Moses.

Pharaoh then threatened them with death as clearly stated in the Quran:

وَقَالَ مُوسَىٰ يَا فِرْعَوْنُ إِنِّي رَسُولٌ مِّن رَّبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
حَقِيقٌ عَلَىٰ أَن لَّا أَقُولَ عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَّ ۚ قَدْ جِئْتُكُم بِبَيِّنَةٍ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ فَأَرْسِلْ مَعِيَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ
قَالَ إِن كُنتَ جِئْتَ بِآيَةٍ فَأْتِ بِهَا إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّادِقِينَ
فَأَلْقَىٰ عَصَاهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ ثُعْبَانٌ مُّبِينٌ
وَنَزَعَ يَدَهُ فَإِذَا هِيَ بَيْضَاءُ لِلنَّاظِرِينَ
قَالَ الْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَسَاحِرٌ عَلِيمٌ
يُرِيدُ أَن يُخْرِجَكُم مِّنْ أَرْضِكُمْ ۖ فَمَاذَا تَأْمُرُونَ
قَالُوا أَرْجِهْ وَأَخَاهُ وَأَرْسِلْ فِي الْمَدَائِنِ حَاشِرِينَ
يَأْتُوكَ بِكُلِّ سَاحِرٍ عَلِيمٍ
وَجَاءَ السَّحَرَةُ فِرْعَوْنَ قَالُوا إِنَّ لَنَا لَأَجْرًا إِن كُنَّا نَحْنُ الْغَالِبِينَ
قَالَ نَعَمْ وَإِنَّكُمْ لَمِنَ الْمُقَرَّبِينَ
قَالُوا يَا مُوسَىٰ إِمَّا أَن تُلْقِيَ وَإِمَّا أَن نَّكُونَ نَحْنُ الْمُلْقِينَ
قَالَ أَلْقُوا ۖ فَلَمَّا أَلْقَوْا سَحَرُوا أَعْيُنَ النَّاسِ وَاسْتَرْهَبُوهُمْ وَجَاءُوا بِسِحْرٍ عَظِيمٍ
وَأَوْحَيْنَا إِلَىٰ مُوسَىٰ أَنْ أَلْقِ عَصَاكَ ۖ فَإِذَا هِيَ تَلْقَفُ مَا يَأْفِكُونَ
فَوَقَعَ الْحَقُّ وَبَطَلَ مَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ
فَغُلِبُوا هُنَالِكَ وَانقَلَبُوا صَاغِرِينَ
وَأُلْقِيَ السَّحَرَةُ سَاجِدِينَ
قَالُوا آمَنَّا بِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ
رَبِّ مُوسَىٰ وَهَارُونَ
قَالَ فِرْعَوْنُ آمَنتُم بِهِ قَبْلَ أَنْ آذَنَ لَكُمْ ۖ إِنَّ هَٰذَا لَمَكْرٌ مَّكَرْتُمُوهُ فِي الْمَدِينَةِ لِتُخْرِجُوا مِنْهَا أَهْلَهَا ۖ فَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ
أُقَطِّعَنَّ أَيْدِيَكُمْ وَأَرْجُلَكُم مِّنْ خِلَافٍ ثُمَّ لَأُصَلِّبَنَّكُمْ أَجْمَعِينَ
قَالُوا إِنَّا إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا مُنقَلِبُونَ

And Moses said, ‘O Pharaoh, I am indeed an apostle from the Lord of all the worlds.
It behooves me to say nothing about God except the truth. I certainly bring you a manifest proof from your Lord. So let the Children of Israel go with me.’
He said, ‘If you have brought a sign, produce it, should you be truthful.’
Thereat he threw down his staff, and behold, it became a manifest python.
Then he drew out his hand, and behold, it was white to the onlookers.
The elite of Pharaoh’s people said, ‘This is indeed an expert magician; he seeks to expel you from your land.’ ‘So what do you advise?’
They said, ‘Put him and his brother off for a while, and send heralds to the cities, to bring you every expert magician.’
And the magicians came to Pharaoh. They said, ‘We shall indeed have a reward if we were to be the victors?’
He said, ‘Of course! And indeed you shall be among those near [to me].’
They said, ‘O Moses, will you throw [first], or shall we throw?’
He said, ‘Throw [yours].’ So when they threw, they bewitched the people’s eyes and overawed them, producing a tremendous magic.
And We signalled to Moses: ‘Throw down your staff.’ And behold, it was swallowing what they had faked.
So the truth came out, and what they had wrought was reduced to naught.
Thereat they were vanquished, and they retreated, humiliated.
And the magicians fell down in prostration.
They said, ‘We have believed in the Lord of all the worlds, the Lord of Moses and Aaron.’
Pharaoh said, ‘Do you profess faith in Him before I may permit you? It is indeed a plot you have devised in the city to expel its people from it. Soon you will know [the consequences]!
Surely I will cut off your hands and feet on opposite sides, and then I will surely crucify all of you.’

- Quran, Surah al-A’raaf (the Chapter of the Heights) #7, Verses 104 to 124

“Why did you believe in Moses’s sorcery?!”

After all these events involving Moses and the magicians, Pharaoh’s elite tell him: “Will you leave Moses and his people to cause corruption in the land, and to abandon you and your gods?” What are you going to do about them?

Endurance and Divine Testing: Lessons from Moses

Pharaoh responds that he has a plan for dealing with Moses and his followers once and for all: “We will kill their sons and spare their women, and indeed we are dominant over them”.

He says he won’t leave Moses. He will not let Moses act freely in the land. On the contrary, he will adopt a new policy - killing their sons and sparing their women.

After taking every possible measure to confront Moses and expecting Moses to be defeated, Pharaoh realises that even his magicians believe in Moses and the God of Moses, and that their magic is no match for his miracles.

Therefore, he has to find another way of applying pressure on Moses and his followers.

So, he decides he will kill the youth who have gathered around Moses. Meanwhile, he will spare the womenfolk and keep them alive.

This is either with the intent of committing indecency or destroying the identity of the Israelites through intermarriage or something akin to this.

Now, this is an extremely difficult situation for Moses and his followers. They are facing a new level of persecution from Pharaoh. This is a situation where even the steadiest of hearts quiver. Someone with Pharaoh’s power says he is going to torment them. He says he is not going to leave a single one of their young men alive.

“We will kill their sons”. But it is as this precise moment that Moses and his followers cannot lose heart. It is at this moment that they should not allow themselves to feel defeated!

This leads me to what has taken place in recent times, and many people have been extremely upset and feel that they have been defeated. Of course I am talking about the events in Lebanon, in Gaza and of the occupation of Syria by what can only be described as the agents of the hegemon known as al-Qaeda (but by a different name).

Sometimes, as part of the divine tradition, we learn that victory is not always immediately granted to the righteous, to the faithful. God sometimes, allows falsehood to prevail - as we can see in the case of Pharaoh being allowed to prevail over Moses and the Israelites by way of their threat and actions to murder their young men.

The Period of Purification

There is sometimes in the wider scheme hatched by God is the notion of the Period of Purification (dawraane tamhees - دوران تمحیص).

In the context of enduring hardships, for example, how the Israelites were being oppressed by Pharaoh and the threats meted out by Pharaoh against them.

This, as well as the threats meted out by the hegemon and his lackey’s against the people of Palestine, of Lebanon, of Yemen, of Iraq, and of course of the Islamic Republic of Iran; indeed also the occupation of Syria by the agents of the hegemon, and indeed against all believers across the world.

This term ‘period of purification’ this is a time when believers undergo hardships and trials in order to build and purify their faith, their belief as well as their character.

In other words; to build their faith and to strengthen their resolve, and build their perseverance.

Such periods are divine tests that strengthen the community and individual believers, ensuring their sincerity and commitment to the truth. Believers are reminded that these struggles prepare them for future challenges and contribute to their spiritual growth.

Indeed, God speaks of this in the Quran also:

وَلِيُمَحِّصَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَيَمْحَقَ الْكَافِرِينَ

And so that Allah may purge [the hearts of] those who have faith and that He may wipe out the faithless.

- Quran, Surah Aal-i-Imraan (the Chapter of the Family of Imran) #3, Verse 141

Indeed, with regard to the recent events in the world, both Imam Khamenei as well as Ayatullah Shaykh Mohsen Araki, one of his senior representatives, have both spoken extensively on this subject; and what has been said here, reflects what they had and have taught.

As we had said, the key to success of the prophetic mission is that the believers must have strong faith, and they must have real perseverance, real patience; and sometimes, when the tyrants create huge pressures on the believers, and oppress them more - such as what Pharaoh was inflicting on the Israelites, and what the latter-day Pharaohs were and are inflicting on the masses, this should not be taken by believers to be a means of becoming despondent in the help of God.

Victory through Faith: Lessons from David and Goliath

Rather, these trials are such that they strengthen the resolve and belief, and enhance the true perseverance and true patience of the believers, and this too is evidenced in the Quran, when we examine the even of David and Goliath:

فَلَمَّا فَصَلَ طَالُوتُ بِالْجُنُودِ قَالَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ مُبْتَلِيكُم بِنَهَرٍ فَمَن شَرِبَ مِنْهُ فَلَيْسَ مِنِّي وَمَن لَّمْ يَطْعَمْهُ فَإِنَّهُ مِنِّي إِلَّا مَنِ اغْتَرَفَ غُرْفَةً بِيَدِهِ ۚ فَشَرِبُوا مِنْهُ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا مِّنْهُمْ ۚ فَلَمَّا جَاوَزَهُ هُوَ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مَعَهُ قَالُوا لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا الْيَوْمَ بِجَالُوتَ وَجُنُودِهِ ۚ قَالَ الَّذِينَ يَظُنُّونَ أَنَّهُم مُّلَاقُو اللَّهِ كَم مِّن فِئَةٍ قَلِيلَةٍ غَلَبَتْ فِئَةً كَثِيرَةً بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ
وَلَمَّا بَرَزُوا لِجَالُوتَ وَجُنُودِهِ قَالُوا رَبَّنَا أَفْرِغْ عَلَيْنَا صَبْرًا وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَنَا وَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ
فَهَزَمُوهُم بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ وَقَتَلَ دَاوُودُ جَالُوتَ وَآتَاهُ اللَّهُ الْمُلْكَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ وَعَلَّمَهُ مِمَّا يَشَاءُ ۗ وَلَوْلَا دَفْعُ اللَّهِ النَّاسَ بَعْضَهُم بِبَعْضٍ لَّفَسَدَتِ الْأَرْضُ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ ذُو فَضْلٍ عَلَى الْعَالَمِينَ

As Saul set out with the troops, he said, ‘God will test you with a stream: anyone who drinks from it will not belong to me, but those who do not drink from it will belong to me, barring someone who draws a scoop with his hand.’ But they drank from it, [all] except a few of them. So when he crossed it along with the faithful who were with him, they said, ‘We have no strength today against Goliath and his troops.’ Those who were certain that they would encounter God said, ‘How many a small party has overcome a larger party by God’s will! And God is with the patient.’
So when they marched out for [encounter with] Goliath and his troops, they said, ‘Our Lord, pour patience upon us, make our feet steady, and assist us against the faithless lot.’
Thus they routed them with God’s will, and David killed Goliath, and God gave him kingdom and wisdom and taught him whatever He liked. Were it not for God’s repelling the people by means of one another, the earth would surely have been corrupted; but Allah is gracious to the world’s people.

- Quran, Surah al-Baqarah (the Chapter of the Cow) #2, Verses 249 to 251

When they were tested with the stream, and when they felt that Goliath’s army was too big to be destroyed, but as their belief increased, their faith increased, as they developed their perseverance, their patience; they saw and understood, that the promise of God is true.

Victory through Faith: Lessons from Abraham

When Abraham was thrown into the fire, the scheme to end him failed, and he, Abraham, founded the House of God in Makkah - a symbol of divine unity, a symbol of tawheed - that would endure for centuries and indeed for millennia.

Victory through Faith: Lessons from Moses and the Israelites

Coming back to Moses and the Israelites; Moses used this new plan, this scheme by Pharaoh to mobilise the Israelites - just as the Israelites felt they were doomed because Pharaoh had decided to massacre all the young men.

Just as Pharaoh had unveiled a new plan to his advisors, Moses now unveiled a new plan to his people.

What did he say to them as they were confronted with this new situation?

Moses said to his people:

Don’t leave your work half-finished. Hold onto the rope and resist!

And why should they do this? Because:

We are God’s servants, Moses tells his people, it is Pharaoh’s servants whose work will bear no fruit.

This is what the Quran says, but history testifies to the truth of this as well.

Moses and the Israelites suffered under the yoke of Pharaohs oppression, but they did ultimately enter the Holy Land and created a tawheed-oriented society as promised by God:

وَإِذْ قَالَ مُوسَىٰ لِقَوْمِهِ يَا قَوْمِ اذْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ جَعَلَ فِيكُمْ أَنبِيَاءَ وَجَعَلَكُم مُّلُوكًا وَآتَاكُم مَّا لَمْ يُؤْتِ أَحَدًا مِّنَ الْعَالَمِينَ
يَا قَوْمِ ادْخُلُوا الْأَرْضَ الْمُقَدَّسَةَ الَّتِي كَتَبَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ وَلَا تَرْتَدُّوا عَلَىٰ أَدْبَارِكُمْ فَتَنقَلِبُوا خَاسِرِينَ

When Moses said to his people, ‘O my people, remember Allah’s blessing upon you when He appointed prophets among you, and made you kings, and gave you what none of the nations were given.
O my people, enter the Holy Land which Allah has ordained for you, and do not turn your backs, or you will become losers.’

- Quran, Surah al-Maidah (the Chapter of the Table Spread) #5, Verses 20-21

Victory through Faith: Lessons from Jesus

During his short ministry, Jesus, the son of Mary, peace and blessings be upon them both, did not yield any tangible results, but after just two centuries, one of the greatest empires in the world was under the sway of his followers.

The Emperor of Rome - the head of the Empire - fell under the influence of Christianity before himself becoming a Christian.

Victory through Faith: Lessons from Prophet Muhammad

In Makkah, Prophet Muhammad suffered thirteen years of persecution before he came to Madinah and founded a new tawheed-oriented society. A new system which would guide people towards perfection and ultimately overcome its enemies.

But what allowed him to do this?

Faith and Perseverance.

Whenever Faith and Perseverance is combined, then you will be victorious.

بَلَىٰ ۚ إِن تَصْبِرُوا وَتَتَّقُوا وَيَأْتُوكُم مِّن فَوْرِهِمْ هَٰذَا يُمْدِدْكُمْ رَبُّكُم بِخَمْسَةِ آلَافٍ مِّنَ الْمَلَائِكَةِ مُسَوِّمِينَ

Yes, if you are steadfast and Godwary, and should they come at you suddenly, your Lord will aid you with five thousand angels sent in [to the scene of battle].

- Quran, Surah Aal-i-Imraan (the Chapter of the Family of Imraan) #3, Verse 125

This is one of the divine principles at work in the cosmos and in human history.

It was true yesterday, it is true today, and it will be true tomorrow.

Whenever the powers of religion have managed to establish themselves and endure, it is only because of faith and perseverance.

Today, those who want to see the principles of Islam, of the Quran, of divine unity, of tawheed, and of prophethood manifested in the world today. Those who want to see a way of life built upon the fundamental doctrines of Islam, and those who want God to govern affairs, must cultivate these two qualities within themselves:

Faith and Perseverance.

Because, when these two qualities are combined in us, we become powerful:

Answering the Two Questions

So, this is how we answer the two questions we asked at the beginning of this session.

The first question was whether the prophets as a whole were successful or not? We said that the institution of prophethood was successful. That all of the prophets taken together succeeded in their mission because they wanted to lead mankind toward progress.

We drew an analogy of children in a school with a series of teachers, to explain this.

The prophets were, as a whole, successful in their missions. They were not defeated. However, when we look at each of the prophets as individuals, when we study each of their divine movements and uprisings for tawheed, do we draw a different conclusion or not?

We said that there is a general rule at work here, and that this general rule is that wherever the prophets found followers of sufficient faith and perseverance, they were successful, but wherever they did not find such followers, they were not.

The Parable of Truth and Falsehood - An Exegetic Discussion

قُلْ مَن رَّبُّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ قُلِ اللَّهُ ۚ قُلْ أَفَاتَّخَذْتُم مِّن دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَاءَ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنفُسِهِمْ نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا ۚ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الْأَعْمَىٰ وَالْبَصِيرُ أَمْ هَلْ تَسْتَوِي الظُّلُمَاتُ وَالنُّورُ ۗ أَمْ جَعَلُوا لِلَّهِ شُرَكَاءَ خَلَقُوا كَخَلْقِهِ فَتَشَابَهَ الْخَلْقُ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ قُلِ اللَّهُ خَالِقُ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ وَهُوَ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَّارُ

Say, ‘Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth?’ Say, ‘God!’ Say, ‘Have you then taken others besides Him for guardians, who have no control over their own benefit or harm?’ Say, ‘Are the blind one and the seer equal? Are darkness and light equal?’ Have they set up for God partners who have created like His creation, so that the creations seemed confusable to them? Say, ‘God is the creator of all things, and He is the One and the All-paramount.’

- Quran, Surah ar-Ra’d (the Chapter of the Thunder) #13, Verse 16

God is the creator of all things, therefore only He can say what the outcome of all things will be. Because God is going to speak about the outcomes of truth and falsehood in a moment, He prepared the ground by reminding the audience that, He is the creator of the world and, therefore, that He understands the principles on which the world and human history operate better than we do.

Then he strikes a parable:

أَنزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَسَالَتْ أَوْدِيَةٌ بِقَدَرِهَا فَاحْتَمَلَ السَّيْلُ زَبَدًا رَّابِيًا ۚ وَمِمَّا يُوقِدُونَ عَلَيْهِ فِي النَّارِ ابْتِغَاءَ حِلْيَةٍ أَوْ مَتَاعٍ زَبَدٌ مِّثْلُهُ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْحَقَّ وَالْبَاطِلَ ۚ فَأَمَّا الزَّبَدُ فَيَذْهَبُ جُفَاءً ۖ وَأَمَّا مَا يَنفَعُ النَّاسَ فَيَمْكُثُ فِي الْأَرْضِ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الْأَمْثَالَ

He sends down water from the sky whereat the valleys are flooded to [the extent of] their capacity, and the flood carries along a swelling scum. And from what they smelt in the fire for the purpose of [making] ornaments or wares, [there arises] a similar scum. That is how God compares truth and falsehood. As for the scum, it leaves as dross, and that which profits the people stays in the earth. That is how God draws comparisons.

- Quran, Surah ar-Ra’d (the Chapter of the Thunder) #13, Verse 17

“He sends down water from the sky”. There is a beauty to the way in which these verses are phrased, which perhaps, is lost in translation, and therefore perhaps, can only be appreciated by those who are familiar with the Arabic language.

Regardless, notice, that God does not begin by saying He is going to draw a parable. The audience hearing this, do not know that what they are hearing or reading now, is a parable, or where it is going to lead them.

It is only when they reach the end of the parable, that they understand what it was about.

God begins by saying: “He sends down water from the sky whereat the valleys are flooded to [the extent of] their capacity,” whether they are big or small, “and the flood carries along a swelling scum”.

The floodwaters in the valleys carry a froth on their surface. When you stand next to a flooded river, what you see first is not the water, but the scum and the froth that floats up to the top of it. The water is underneath. It is the froth that is visible first and foremost. That water is hidden.

Then the analogy changes suddenly. “And from what they smelt in the fire for the purpose of [making] ornaments or wares”, when they smelt metals such are iron or copper in order to make tools, or precious metals such as gold to make jewellery, something similar happens.

There arises a similar scum - very similar to the froth floating on the river.

When you smelt a metal such as iron or gold in a furnace, the scum or dross begins to float on the molten metal.

So, there was the froth on the water, but what was the origin? What is the original life giving substance? Is it the water or the froth?

Of course it is the water!

But what do we see? The froth which obscures the water.

Therefore, what shows itself more? The froth.

Now consider, what is the desired material when a smith or a jeweller smelts metal? Is it the iron or the scum? Is it the gold or the scum? Of course it is the iron or the gold, nobody wants the scum!

But what is it you see on the surface? It is the scum, rather than the pure metal beneath.

Then, with this imagery in place, God immediately says:

This is how God makes you understand the difference between truth and falsehood. In the same way you understand the difference between water and froth, or metal and scum.

What you see, is not what is really there!

Now that you understand that there is a parable being struck, you want to hear the conclusion. Therefore, God says:

The scum disappears and becomes nothing. There is not always froth on rivers. It is there for a moment, then it is gone.

When a river is used to irrigate the fields of a farm, it is the water that is used, not the froth, because the froth disappears.

God says: “that which profits the people stays in the earth”, meaning the water, meaning the metals, the iron or the gold - these are what remain, the scum and accretions disappear.

“That is how God draws comparisons” for you. He wants to show you that the truth always endures.

The mission of the prophets is truth. The uprisings of the prophets are truth. The falsehoods that stand against the prophets vanish. They fade away. They collapse. they are the scum. The dross. The froth on the water. When you examine them, you see that they are really nothing.

لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَجَابُوا لِرَبِّهِمُ الْحُسْنَىٰ ۚ وَالَّذِينَ لَمْ يَسْتَجِيبُوا لَهُ لَوْ أَنَّ لَهُم مَّا فِي الْأَرْضِ جَمِيعًا وَمِثْلَهُ مَعَهُ لَافْتَدَوْا بِهِ ۚ أُولَٰئِكَ لَهُمْ سُوءُ الْحِسَابِ وَمَأْوَاهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ ۖ وَبِئْسَ الْمِهَادُ

For those who answer [the summons of] their Lord there shall be the best outcome. But those who do not answer Him, even if they possessed all that is on the earth and as much of it besides, they would surely offer it to redeem themselves with it. For such there shall be an adverse reckoning, and their refuge shall be hell, and it is an evil resting place.

- Quran, Surah ar-Ra’d (the Chapter of the Thunder) #13, Verse 18

The verse that follows this analogy turns to the social struggles of the believers. It says: “For those who answer [the summons of] their Lord there shall be the best outcome”.

So, it is those who join the uprising of the prophets, who will find their efforts bearing fruit.

“But those who do not answer Him”, and follow the path of falsehood, “even if they possessed all that is on the earth and as much of it besides, they would surely offer it to redeem themselves with it”and deliver themselves from their plight.

Have you not seen this in history? Have you not seen how, in the clashes between truth and falsehood, the leaders of falsehood are curled up like an old map? And when this happens, they are ready to give up everything they have and everything in the world besides to preserve their lives and their status?

“For such there shall be an adverse reckoning, and their refuge shall be hell, and it is an evil resting place”.

God’s Decree Regarding the Prophets and their Missions

Then we look at the verses from Surah as-Saffat:

وَلَقَدْ سَبَقَتْ كَلِمَتُنَا لِعِبَادِنَا الْمُرْسَلِينَ
إِنَّهُمْ لَهُمُ الْمَنصُورُونَ
وَإِنَّ جُندَنَا لَهُمُ الْغَالِبُونَ
فَتَوَلَّ عَنْهُمْ حَتَّىٰ حِينٍ
وَأَبْصِرْهُمْ فَسَوْفَ يُبْصِرُونَ
أَفَبِعَذَابِنَا يَسْتَعْجِلُونَ
فَإِذَا نَزَلَ بِسَاحَتِهِمْ فَسَاءَ صَبَاحُ الْمُنذَرِينَ
وَتَوَلَّ عَنْهُمْ حَتَّىٰ حِينٍ
وَأَبْصِرْ فَسَوْفَ يُبْصِرُونَ
سُبْحَانَ رَبِّكَ رَبِّ الْعِزَّةِ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ

Certainly Our decree has gone beforehand in favour of Our servants, the apostles, that they will indeed receive [God’s] help, and indeed Our hosts will be the victors.
So leave them alone for a while, and watch them; soon they will see [the truth of the matter]!
Do they seek to hasten Our punishment?
But when it descends in their courtyard it will be a dismal dawn for those who had been warned.
So leave them alone for a while, and watch; soon they will see!
Clear is your Lord, the Lord of Might, of whatever they allege [concerning Him].

- Quran, Surah as-Saffat (the Chapter of the Rangers) #37, Verses 171 to 180

We read: “Certainly Our decree has gone beforehand in favour of Our servants, the apostles”. Meaning that God has already made a firm decision regarding his prophets.

What was his decision?

“That they will indeed receive [God’s] help”. Only they will receive divine assistance. “And indeed Our hosts will be the victors”.

We had mentioned previously, that the condition for the success of the prophets is that their followers, possessed sufficient faith and perseverance.

In battles, Prophet Muhammad, may the peace and blessings of God be upon him, his pure family and righteous companions, enjoined people to persevere.

In battles, the Commander of the Faithful, Imam Ali, the first Imam of the Muslims, enjoined people to persevere.

They were always telling people:

What does it mean to persevere on the battlefield? It means not to hold back from the fight. It means never to cease one’s efforts. Not to leave anything half done. This is the meaning of perseverance.

If only the Muslims, the believers of the world would culture in themselves these two qualities. The qualities of faith - of belief, and of perseverance - of patience, in the cultural sphere, in the economic sphere, in the political sphere and indeed, in all spheres.

Had they done this, the Islamic world would have already triumphed over its enemies and adversaries, and the schemes of the hegemon to keep the people oppressed would have been entirely foiled.

Muslims, believers, must not allow themselves to be led to believe, that the brand of ignominy, backwardness, poverty, and abasement is burned onto the forehead of faith and the faithful.

No, do not believe, that the enemies of religion, the enemies of Islam, and the enemies of humanity, throughout the world, should always trample the believers and enslave them, should always trample the oppressed and whip them.

This is certainly not the case.

If the Muslims, if the believers, if the oppressed of the world, the Muslims nations of the world, so-called third-world nations of the world, the free people of nations whose regimes are entirely occupied by the hegemon and his minions.

If they could find their faith and fortify them with perseverance, they could triumph against all the despots of the world, they could overthrow the hegemon and all its minions across this entire world; something that would usher in a true golden age for humanity.

This is the advice of the Quran to all the Muslims, to all the oppressed, to all the believers, at all times.

Indeed, as we celebrate the 46th anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran, we can see that this is evidence even in recent history.

Indeed, as we see the resistance of the people of Palestine against the genocidal entities that seek to destroy them, when we see the resistance of Lebanon, of Yemen, of Iraq, of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and indeed of all the free people of the world who have stood firm against the tyranny and injustice of the Pharaonic powers of this age, we can see that the profound perseverance and faith of all of these people; has rendered their enemies impotent and useless.

Their enemies flail around engaging in futile plot after futile plot. Certainly their enemies, the enemies of all of humanity, will murder many, will massacre countless, but they will achieve nothing. Like the froth or scum we mentioned earlier; they too will disappear, vanish into obscurity as footnotes in history; while the truth, while the oppressed will always be supported and will inherit the world.

This is the promise of God, the Mighty, the Wise, we had discussed this previously:

وَنُرِيدُ أَن نَّمُنَّ عَلَى الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَنَجْعَلَهُمْ أَئِمَّةً وَنَجْعَلَهُمُ الْوَارِثِينَ

But we desire to show favour to those who were abased in the land, and to make them leaders and to make them heirs.

- Quran, Surah al-Qasas (the Chapter of the Narrations) #28, Verse 5

This is the conclusion we want to draw from our discussion today.

We wanted you to know that the outcome of prophethood is always good. We wanted you to know that the Quran has promised victory to the prophets and their uprisings, their revolutions.

Today, we are following in the footsteps of these prophets, so why do we feel weak? Why? Why do we feel abased?

Why do we think that the enemies of religion, the enemies of humanity are alway able to defeat the oppressed and the Muslim nations? Why? No, not at all, this is not the case!

The truth is the exact opposite to what we have been told. However, the conditions for our success, are faith and perseverance.

So, let us make sure that we understand the real meaning of perseverance, or patience, and let us ensure we understand our beliefs, that with His grace, we can be from the successful.

If nothing else is gained from today’s session, let us at least strive to fully embody the true essence of patience, perseverance, and faith within ourselves.

Conclusion

This concludes the first part of our two-part session on the ‘outcomes of prophethood’.

The points discussed herein are extremely important and we should try to apply them and incorporate them into our lives, that perchance we can be from the successful.

We must reflect on the lessons given by the missions of the prophets and apply these lessons in all spheres of our lives, from the personal, to the familial, to our friends and loved ones, to our neighbourhoods, to our communities, our towns and villages, our countries and indeed to the entire world.

The prophets came to liberate humanity from the yoke of bondage, to free the human race from the plague of superstitions and deception, and to let humanity soar, as free as a bird, to reach the heights that God had desired for them to reach.

In the coming session, we will continue to discuss the outcomes of prophethood, as these points are not the only outcomes of prophethood; there is much more than need to be discussed.

We pray to the Lord of the Universes, who sent so many prophets to guide humanity, that He give us the ability, the inspiration, the strength, the belief and the patience to walk the footsteps of the prophets, to follow in their teachings, and to work to build - even if within ourselves - that pure and beautiful tawheed-oriented mindset that moves us towards Him.

We pray that He help us to work with all our friends, family and loved ones to develop and work towards a tawheed-oriented society, so that the oppression of people by way of superstition, cultural confusion and other such non Godly traits are removed, and that societies are governed and managed in a true Godly manner, in a tawheed-oriented manner.

And from Him alone is all ability and He has authority over all things.

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, make us followers of the prophets!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, enrich us with faith and perseverance!

Oh Lord! Grant us the fruits of faith and perseverance!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, give victory to the believers and the oppressed people all across the world over their enemies and the enemies of humanity!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, thwart those who want to subjugate and weaken the believers, who want to humiliate the believers, and who want to keep the believers backwards, no matter where they are, or how they are doing it!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, lend your strength to any person, wherever they are in the world, who is striving for the sake of the oppressed, for the sake of Truth and for the sake of the higher ideals of Islam, and grant them success!

Oh Lord! Keep the hands of the enemies of religion off the people of the world and the lands of the earth!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, restrain the hands of the most implacable enemies of religion, enemies of the believers, enemies of all of humanity!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, make us true followers of Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad!

Oh Lord! Make each new day of our lives wiser than the last. And increase our knowledge, determination, faith, perseverance and love for You, and our fellow believers, in it!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, take all of the oppressed and persecuted people of the world under your protection, and throw down all the oppressors and tyrants of the world!

Accustom and habituate our souls to your remembrance.

Make our intentions and goals for our speaking, our listening, our sitting and our standing purely for you, and keep us away from idolatry, hypocrisy and eye-service (performative work)!

Oh Lord! By Muhammad and the Family of Muhammad, hasten the freedom of the innocents who have been imprisoned, wherever they are in the world, and show special concern for them.

And please alleviate all the personal and individual troubles of the believers.

And please hasten the return of our beloved Master, the Master of the Age, and alleviate our sufferings.