Islamic Moral Education II: Understanding Brotherhood in Islam – SS3 Islamic Studies Lesson Note (Second Term)

Brotherhood in Islam (Ukhuwah) is the bond of solidarity and mutual support among Muslims.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. explain the meaning of brotherhood (Ukhuwah) in Islam;
2. quote and explain Quranic verses and Hadiths on brotherhood;
3. describe how brotherhood shows in the daily life of Muslims;
4. explain the Islamic teaching on religious tolerance and peaceful co-existence;
5. explain what it means to enjoin the good and forbid the evil, and why Muslims must do so.

What is brotherhood in Islam?

Brotherhood in Islam, called Ukhuwah, is a bond of solidarity and mutual support among Muslims.

• Source: the Quran and the Hadiths teach it.
• How it shows: helping one another, settling disputes peacefully, sharing joy and sorrow, and praying together.
• Wider duty: respect and tolerance for people of other beliefs.
• Moral duty: enjoining good and forbidding evil.

What do Quranic verses say about brotherhood?

Two key verses teach brotherhood: Surah Al-Hujurat (49:10) and Surah Al-Tauba (9:71).

• Surah Al-Hujurat (49:10): “The believers are but brothers, so make settlement between your brothers. And fear Allah that you may receive mercy.”
• Surah Al-Tauba (9:71): “The believing men and believing women are allies of one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong.”

What do the Hadiths say about brotherhood?

The Hadiths of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) teach that Muslims must care for and protect one another.

• Protection: “A Muslim is a brother of another Muslim. He does not oppress him, nor does he leave him at the mercy of others.” (Sahih al-Bukhari)
• One body: “The believers in their mutual kindness, compassion, and sympathy are just like one body. When one of the limbs suffers, the whole body responds to it with wakefulness and fever.” (Sahih al-Bukhari)
• Lesson: Muslims are encouraged to show deep empathy and support to one another.

Why is brotherhood important in daily life?

Brotherhood shapes the behaviour, interactions and responsibilities of Muslims towards one another.

• Support and solidarity: Muslims stand by fellow believers in need, through money, emotional support or a helping hand.
• Conflict resolution: Islam encourages open communication and peaceful solutions, which prevent discord in the community.
• Sharing in joy and sorrow: Muslims celebrate one another’s successes and share one another’s sorrows, which gives a sense of belonging.
• Collective worship: congregational prayers and acts of worship at the mosque are brotherhood in action.

What does Islam teach about religious tolerance and peaceful co-existence?

Islam teaches respect, tolerance and decent treatment of people of all beliefs, so that people can live together in peace.

Why do Muslims believe in one Creator and many prophets?

• Common Creator: God is the Creator of all people and the single source of prophets and holy books.
• Human purpose: mankind is created to maintain order on earth.
• Belief in all prophets: Muslims believe in all the prophets named in the Qur’an, including those in earlier books such as the Old and New Testaments.
• No denial: a Muslim must not deny any of these prophets.

How can religion unite people?

• Common ground: people of different religions can meet in respect for different ideas and beliefs.
• Joint action: they can work together in the service of human society.
• Peaceful life: differences in belief about God should not stop people from living peacefully on earth.
• Final judgement: only the Creator judges whether a person’s faith is right or lacking.
• God’s will: had God willed, all people would belong to one religious community.
• Many messengers: the Qur’an states that God sent more than one messenger and revealed more than one book.

The Qur’an calls on believers to accept all prophets: “The Messenger (Muhammad) believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and so did the believers. Everyone believed in Allah, His angels, His revelations, His messengers. We make no distinction between any of His messengers, and they said: We answered the call and obeyed the command. We ask for your forgiveness, our Lord! Only in You is our future.” (Al-Baqarah 2:285)

• Lesson: prophetic missions have existed from the beginning, and one God inspired all the prophets.
• Division: people divided themselves by how they accepted and understood His message.

How should Muslims treat people of other beliefs?

• Good treatment: Islam calls for good and proper treatment of all who do not share the same belief in God.
• Virtues: respect, tolerance and decent behaviour build a meaningful life and peace between people.
• No force: no one may be driven by force or violence to accept a faith. “There is no compulsion in religion.” (Al-Baqarah 2:256)
• No hatred: no one may be hated or fought because he or she follows a different belief.

What does it mean to enjoin the good and forbid the evil?

To enjoin the good and forbid the evil (in Arabic, amr bil-ma’ruf wa nahy anil-munkar) is to advise people to do right and to stop them from doing wrong.

• Enjoining right conduct: advising people to do good.
• Forbidding indecency: stopping the doing of evil.

What is the Quranic command?

﴿وَلْتَكُن مِّنكُمْ أُمَّةٌ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى ٱلْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ ٱلْمُنكَرِ وَأُولَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْمُفْلِحُونَ﴾

“And there may spring from you a nation who invites goodness, and enjoins right conduct and forbid indecency. Such are they who are successful.” (Al Imran 3:104).

• No age limit: these duties are not limited to a specific age group.
• Example of Luqman: Luqman (pbuh) told his son the same thing.

﴿يَا بُنَيَّ أَقِمِ الصَّلَاةَ وَأْمُرْ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَانْهَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ﴾

“O, my dear son! Establish worship and enjoin kindness and forbid iniquity…” (Luqman 31:17).

What are the three ways of forbidding evil?

A Hadith in Sahih Muslim gives three levels of forbidding evil, according to a person’s ability.

1. By the hand: act to stop the wrong, where one has the lawful authority and ability.
2. By the tongue: speak out and advise against it, if one cannot act.
3. By the heart: hate the wrong inwardly, if one can do neither. This is the weakest level of faith.

Why is enjoining the good and forbidding the evil important?

• Sign of love: it shows love for the faith and for people, and a desire for the wellbeing of society.
• Social role: it shows religious zeal, friendly association with others and a presence in society.
• Encouragement: it encourages those who do good.
• Awareness: it makes ignorant people aware.
• Prevention: it helps prevent offences and acts as a form of societal control.

The Holy Qur’an states:

﴿كُنتُمْ خَيْرَ أُمَّةٍ أُخْرِجَتْ لِلنَّاسِ تَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَتَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ﴾

“You are the best nation ever brought forth to men, bidding to honour, and forbidding dishonour” (Al Imran 3:110).

• Imam Ali (pbuh): he states that enjoining the good and forbidding the evil is in the interest of the public.1
• Another narration: anyone who does not stand against evil is like someone who leaves an injured person on the road until he dies.
• Earlier prophets: David and Jesus (peace be upon them) cursed those who did not stand against evil.

﴿لُعِنَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ عَلَىٰ لِسَانِ دَاوُودَ وَعِيسَى ابْنِ مَرْيَمَ﴾

“Cursed were the unbelievers of the Children of Israel by the tongue of David, and Jesus, Mary’s son” (Maida 5:78).

• Imam Hussein (pbuh): his stand was for enjoining the good and forbidding the evil: “I want to enjoin good and forbid evil.”3

What happens when we stay silent?

Silence and indifference in the face of sin lead to the following results.

• Normal sin: sinning becomes normal.
• Bold sinners: those who sin find courage.
• Heavy heart: we become heavy-hearted.
• Satan: Satan finds contentment.
• Displeasure: Allah ﷻ will be displeased with us.
• Growing corruption: corruption grows step by step, and corrupt individuals end up governing society.

• Leaving bad company: the Holy Qur’an says that if you are with people who insult the Qur’an, you should leave in protest until the talk changes.
• Shared reward: if one invites another to do good deeds, a partnership in reward is formed.
• Action: at the start of sin, one should show displeasure with the tongue and also use all available legal means to end the evil.

What excuses do not remove the responsibility?

Enjoining the good and forbidding the evil are two divinely ordained laws, and the following excuses cannot lift this responsibility.

• “The sin that others do has nothing to do with me.” Believers are partners, so society’s wrongs concern everyone.
• “We should not take away the freedom of others.” Advising against evil is a duty, not a loss of freedom.
• “I am a shy and scared person.” Fear and shyness do not cancel the duty.
• “One change won’t make any difference anyway.” Every effort counts in the sight of Allah.
• “Jesus has his religion and Moses has his religion, we won’t be buried in the same grave.” The duty still stands.
• “There are others, why should I be the one forbidding evil?” The duty rests on every believer.
• “By forbidding evil, friends and customers will walk away.” Worldly loss does not remove the duty.

Evaluation

1. What is Ukhuwah?
2. Quote Surah Al-Hujurat (49:10) and state the lesson it teaches.
3. List four ways in which brotherhood shows in the daily life of Muslims.
4. What does Islam teach about the treatment of people who do not share the same belief in God?
5. State three results of silence and indifference in the face of sin.

Assignment

Explain what it means to enjoin the good and forbid the evil. Quote one Quranic verse on the topic and give two excuses people make for not doing it.