Introduction
In the 21st century, we are continually surrounded by new and out-of-ordinary scenarios that we face. Like every other religious group, Muslims, too, have a challenge of trying to contexualise principles, narrations and verses from text (which is usually hundreds, if not thousands of years old) into the current century. Perhaps more so, as Muslims living in the west, we are continually battling with identity, ideology and culture clash. Many a time, Muslim Clerics have issued fatawa (verdicts) or replicated fatawas based on a different region, time or cultural environment, not acknowledging the different issues or cultural dilemmas we go through in a diverse, multi-cultural, multi-religious and liberal society.
As Muslims, we need to learn to contextualise the principles of Islam and the Holy Quran into the present. Too many a time we read our historical books by prominent figures from hundreds of years ago, but then we apply their fatawas (verdicts) to our completely different contexts. This does not say, by any way, that our prominent Imams and Scholars of the past were incorrect, but they gave their verdicts and did their ijtihad (gave their independent reasoning based on legal maxims) according to the contexts of their time and place.
I was born in the United Kingdom and spent my whole childhood, adolescence and adulthood in the United Kingdom, like many ‘jus soli Muslims’ we consider Britain to be our homes. However, we have come across life scenarios where we are invited to an event or to participate in a national event or celebration, and we are stretched between two decisions in our minds; “does my faith allow me to participate or not.” Having this thought pass through your neurons, should not be perceived as negative, as it is a sign of strong imaan (faith) and demonstrates a person’s strong integrity to do or not do anything if Allah has willed it to do so. There are many righteous and well-established Muslims who are battling within themselves daily as their local Imam, a cleric they follow or a book/article they read has told them that being a part of a certain national event in Britain is “haram or prohibited” to attend. Before we delve into the topic of Remembrance Day there are a few things to highlight. First of all, the opinion of the majority of the scholars and the overwhelming population of Muslims in the United Kingdom deem it Halal (permissible) and accepted to celebrate and remember those who died in the Great Wars (WW1 and WW2) [1] and it is only a minority of Muslim individuals who have tried to make it “haram” to wear a poppy or to participate in any national event related to “Remembrance Day.” [2]
Muslims and Remembrance Day in Britain
Generally, surveys have consistently shown that British Muslims identify themselves as part of the country and have an active role to play in British society. According to a 2009 Gallup survey, the proportion of Muslims who identify with Britain is higher than that of the general population. It has been found that 77 per cent of Muslims identify with Britain, compared to 50 per cent of the population. At the time, Muhammad Yunus, a senior analyst at Gallup, said: “British Muslims are more likely to identify strongly with their nation and to express stronger confidence in their democratic institutions, while maintaining a high degree of religious identity.” [3]
In short, we perceive “Britain as our home.” And home means, we share the happiness, the sorrows,the gains as well as the losses of this home. Furthermore, the UK has an increasing convert population who have no country other than Britain that they can call home. It is extremely unfair, if we expect these individuals to abandon all their cultural or national traditions, events and celebrations merely for reasons that are far-fetched. It was not the Prophet’s Sunnah (Prophetic way) to come into the area and eradicate the memories or culture of the area. Infact, it is quite the opposite. The Prophet (ﷺ) or the religion of Islam would allow the people to celebrate their days of remembrance, would respect them and many-a-time he would even involve himself in them, if they were beneficial for the peace and community and not have jahiliyyah (ignorant) tendencies. Like incidents such as the ‘Al-Fudoul Confederacy’[4], the ‘sacrifice of Aqiqa’[5] and even circulating the Kaaba[6] were all practices that occurred before the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) or before he declared his prophethood, but the Prophet ﷺ continued and participated in the practice. In fact, when the Prophet (ﷺ) arrived to Madinah, a pluralistic society housing Jews, Christians, non-Muslims, Muslims, Arabs and non-Arabs, the first thing he did was set up guidelines and pledges to grant rights and freedoms to the minorities of the city. These reciprocal agreements have succeeded in establishing a healthy and progressive environment for the development of both spiritual and material growth of the different groups living under the Prophetic law.
The Prophet (ﷺ) and the days of Remembrance
In Madinah, where the Prophet (ﷺ) was invited as a legislative ruler of the region, there was a recorded occasion when the Prophet (ﷺ) was engrossed in a conversation with someone from the Jewish-Arab community, upon which he came to know that the Jews were fasting in remembrance of a special day. Upon enquiring about it, the Jew says to the Prophet (ﷺ), “we fast because on this day Moses freed the Jews from the clutches of the Pharaoh.” In response to this, the Prophet (ﷺ) replied, “I have more right on Moses, as he is my brother (i.e. they were both Prophets coming from the same source), so I will fast for two days[7].” Today, both Muslims and Jews are in unification of the celebration of this day. In the Jewish tradition it is known as Yom Kippur or Yom Asura, and in the Muslim tradition it is known as Yawm-e-Ashura (The 10th day). From this, we can conclude that the Prophet, (ﷺ) firstly, spoke to the minority of the residents of Madinah and upon finding out about the day, and that it was a “day of mercy and blessings” as the Jews were liberated from slavery, the Prophet (ﷺ) also decided to remember it and encouraged his followers to do so. Today, Muslims around the world fast on the 9th and 10th or the 10th and 11th (minimum two days) to commemorate and remember the blessings bestowed upon mankind on that day.
Quran on the days of Remembrance
In actuality, the Prophet (ﷺ) was demonstrating the wisdom of the Qur’an and doing his duty perfectly as the Prophet of God (ﷺ), which is to practically demonstrate the teachings of the revelations revealed to us by Allah. The Qur’an is not silent about celebrations, in reality there are ayaat (verses) in which God commands or encourages mankind to remember and celebrate special days.
وَلَقَدۡ أَرۡسَلۡنَا مُوسَىٰ بِـَٔايَـٰتِنَآ أَنۡ أَخۡرِجۡ قَوۡمَكَ مِنَ ٱلظُّلُمَـٰتِ إِلَى ٱلنُّورِ وَذَڪِّرۡهُم بِأَيَّٮٰمِ ٱللَّهِۚ إِنَّ فِى ذَٲلِكَ لَأَيَـٰتٍ۬ لِّكُلِّ صَبَّارٍ۬ شَكُورٍ۬ (٥)
“And We certainly sent Moses with Our signs, [ordering him], "Bring out your people from darkness into the light and teach them to remember the days of Allah." Indeed, in that are signs for everyone patient and grateful.”
Quran – 14:5[8]
This ayah (verse) of the Qur’an, Allah commands Moses, and through this narrative commands all humanity (as the Qur’an is a book of guidance for all humanity) to teach the people to remember and recall the days of God, and to be grateful for the mercy and bounty He bestowed on them. In another place of the Qur’an, Allah says:
قُلۡ بِفَضۡلِ ٱللَّهِ وَبِرَحۡمَتِهِۦ فَبِذَٲلِكَ فَلۡيَفۡرَحُواْ هُوَ خَيۡرٌ۬ مِّمَّا يَجۡمَعُونَ (٥٨)
“Say: In the bounty of Allah and in His mercy (bestowed on them): therein let them (all) rejoice. It is better than (the wealth) what they accumulate.”
Quran – 10:58
The verse cannot be any clearer, noting how God did not specify (khas) any particular event, but left it open (aam) to rejoice or celebrate the mercies (Rahma) and bounties (Fadl) of the Lord. The mention of mercies and bounties is important here. As the former would include any event or occasion in which Allah has saved mankind from any calamity, and the latter would suppose us to celebrate anything God has granted or bestowed upon mankind. In the case of The Remembrance Day (November 11th), the world war coming to an end would be a sign of mercy from the Lord, and something to rejoice and remember.
Quran on the mention of wars
Quran is considered a book of guidance. Its each verse (regardless of whether you believe the verse is abrogated or not) will still be a verse filled with wisdom and guidance. We just lack the eye, mentality, or spiritual insight to see it. Allah does not waste our time by mentioning things that are unimportant or pointless. It is not the attribute of God to do this. For some, one verse is sufficient to prove a certain point, whereas others may require more, or a scenario that spells it out for them that the remembering or recalling the events of a war is something accepted by God. For the latter that want a specific (khas) proof from the Quran there are multiple occasions where Allah has made the mention of a Ghazwa (Battle):
قَدۡ ڪَانَ لَكُمۡ ءَايَةٌ۬ فِى فِئَتَيۡنِ ٱلۡتَقَتَاۖ فِئَةٌ۬ تُقَـٰتِلُ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَأُخۡرَىٰ ڪَافِرَةٌ۬ يَرَوۡنَهُم مِّثۡلَيۡهِمۡ رَأۡىَ ٱلۡعَيۡنِۚ وَٱللَّهُ يُؤَيِّدُ بِنَصۡرِهِۦ مَن يَشَآءُۗ إِنَّ فِى ذَٲلِكَ لَعِبۡرَةً۬ لِّأُوْلِى ٱلۡأَبۡصَـٰرِ (١٣)
“Already there has been for you a sign in the two armies which met (at Badr) – one fighting in the cause of Allah and another of disbelievers. They saw them (to be) twice their (own) number by (their) eyesight. But Allah supports with His victory whom He wills. Indeed in that is a lesson for those of vision.”
Quran [3:13]
وَإِذۡ غَدَوۡتَ مِنۡ أَهۡلِكَ تُبَوِّئُ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ مَقَـٰعِدَ لِلۡقِتَالِۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ (١٢١)
إِذۡ هَمَّت طَّآٮِٕفَتَانِ مِنڪُمۡ أَن تَفۡشَلَا وَٱللَّهُ وَلِيُّہُمَاۗ وَعَلَى ٱللَّهِ فَلۡيَتَوَكَّلِ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ (١٢٢)
“And (remember) when you, (O Muhammad), left your family in the morning to post the believers at their stations for the battle (of Uhud) – and Allah is All Hearing and All Knowing – ‘When two parties among you were about to lose courage, but Allah was their ally; and upon Allah the believers should rely.’
Quran [3:121-122]
يَـٰٓأَيُّہَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ ٱذۡكُرُواْ نِعۡمَةَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيۡكُمۡ إِذۡ جَآءَتۡكُمۡ جُنُودٌ۬ فَأَرۡسَلۡنَا عَلَيۡہِمۡ رِيحً۬ا وَجُنُودً۬ا لَّمۡ تَرَوۡهَاۚ وَڪَانَ ٱللَّهُ بِمَا تَعۡمَلُونَ بَصِيرًا (٩)
O believers! Remember Allah’s favour upon you when ˹enemy˺ forces came to ˹besiege˺ you ˹in Medina, so We sent against them a ˹bitter˺ wind and forces you could not see. And Allah is All-Seeing of what you do.
Quran [33:9]
In all these verses, the contextual scenarios refer to battles fought during the time of the Prophet (ﷺ), namely the Battle of Badr and the Battle of Uhud, and the third verse, referring to the Battle of Khandak, and Allah is not only making a mention of them, but also asking the believers directly to “remember” them. In fact, not only was the Battle of Khandak mentioned in the chapter, but the title of the chapter (Al Ahzab – The Campaign of the Confederates) is dedicated to the war, which demonstrates God’s emphasis placed on remembering the days and the favors He has bestowed upon us.
Although, being a good human, which is encouraged by all religious and irreligious societies, naturally celebrate, rejoice or show happiness on morally good occasions. For instance, if a person saves a woman being raped or someone from being attacked, this would be appreciated in the community by applauding the person, sharing his story with our children to inspire them to be like this ‘hero’. Similarly, the ceasing of the world war and bringing the bloodshed to an end was morally a good act. Hence to show gratitude on this occasion would be a good act. Furthermore, remembering the sacrifices of lives, both innocent or soldiers is also a good moral act, hence this should also be included within the remembrance.
Irrespective of the aforementioned, there will still be some sceptics who raise objections, such as “yes, but these are battles that involved Muslims, and occurred at the time of the Prophet, (ﷺ) therefore, remembering these are fine, but WW1 or WW2 does not involve Muslims and did not happen during the time of Prophet (ﷺ), so we cannot make remembrance of them.”
Let us look at this objection systematically. Firstly, the world wars that occurred in the 20th century did involve both Muslims and non-Muslim countries. In fact, according to Materia Islamica, “Between 5,034,987—5,434,987 Muslim soldiers participated as volunteers on the allied side of the war during World War II, with 1,545,005—1,679,005 soldiers killed in action. [9]” According to BBC, “400,000 Muslims fought in the British Indian army alone. [10]” However, for arguments sake, let’s just say zero Muslims were involved in the war. Even then the remembrance of it would be desirable and not prohibited or disliked.
Quran on the mention of previous wars
One of the objections some of the sceptics raise is that “we should only remember the wars fought during the time of the Prophet (ﷺ), but not previous or later ones.” This objection is made only by them and has no foundation in the Qur’an. On the contrary, I would call this viewpoint un-Quranic, because the Quran not only mentions the battles involving Muslims or present at the time of the Prophet (ﷺ), but it also mentions the past ones:
فَلَمَّا فَصَلَ طَالُوتُ بِٱلۡجُنُودِ قَالَ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ مُبۡتَلِيڪُم بِنَهَرٍ۬ فَمَن شَرِبَ مِنۡهُ فَلَيۡسَ مِنِّى وَمَن لَّمۡ يَطۡعَمۡهُ فَإِنَّهُ ۥ مِنِّىٓ إِلَّا مَنِ ٱغۡتَرَفَ غُرۡفَةَۢ بِيَدِهِۦۚ فَشَرِبُواْ مِنۡهُ إِلَّا قَلِيلاً۬ مِّنۡهُمۡۚ فَلَمَّا جَاوَزَهُ ۥ هُوَ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ مَعَهُ ۥ قَالُواْ لَا طَاقَةَ لَنَا ٱلۡيَوۡمَ بِجَالُوتَ وَجُنُودِهِۦۚ قَالَ ٱلَّذِينَ يَظُنُّونَ أَنَّهُم مُّلَـٰقُواْ ٱللَّهِ ڪَم مِّن فِئَةٍ۬ قَلِيلَةٍ غَلَبَتۡ فِئَةً۬ ڪَثِيرَةَۢ بِإِذۡنِ ٱللَّهِۗ وَٱللَّهُ مَعَ ٱلصَّـٰبِرِينَ (٢٤٩)
“When Talut (Saul) marched forth with his army, he cautioned: “Allah will test you with a river. So whoever drinks ˹his fill˺ from it is not with me, and whoever does not taste it—except a sip from the hollow of his hands—is definitely with me.” They all drank ˹their fill˺ except for a few! When he and the ˹remaining˺ faithful with him crossed the river, they said, “Now we are no match for Goliath and his warriors.” But those ˹believers˺ who were certain they would meet Allah reasoned, “How many times has a small force vanquished a mighty army by the Will of Allah! And Allah is ˹always˺ with the steadfast.
Quran [2:249]
Here, God mentions and recalls for the benefit of mankind, the events that took place at the time of Talut (Saul) and then the battle between Prophet David (as) and Goliath. For the sceptical, this may still not be enough, and their contention will still echo: “these are battles involving Prophets though” so remembering these are fine but not political battles between two empires or great forces that occurred in WW1 and WW2.
Firstly, Talut (Saul) was not considered a Prophet of God, but a general of an army. The fact that God mentions him by name positively is sufficient to demonstrate the acceptance of a day such as “Remembrance Day.” However, for arguments sake, lets delve deeper.
Quran on the mention of Non-Muslim wars
Secondly, we have a far more specific war and event that has been mentioned in the Qur’an and does not involve Prophets or even Muslims. This topples any argument held by the sceptics against celebrating or participating in ‘Remembrance Day.’ There is a chapter in the Qur’an titled ‘Surah Ar-Rum (The Romans), which was named such, as the opening verses speak about the great empires of Rome and Persia. During the life of the Prophet (ﷺ) there was an ongoing war between two biggest (non-Muslim) empires at the time; the Roman and Persian empires. This war was probably quite similar to the World Wars we suffered in the 20th century, in that it affected many nations and inhabitants around the globe, even those not part of the war. The consequence of the Roman-Persian war was so great that God made a mention of it in the Quran:
غُلِبَتِ ٱلرُّومُ (٢)
فِىٓ أَدۡنَى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَهُم مِّنۢ بَعۡدِ غَلَبِهِمۡ سَيَغۡلِبُونَ (٣)
فِى بِضۡعِ سِنِينَۗ لِلَّهِ ٱلۡأَمۡرُ مِن قَبۡلُ وَمِنۢ بَعۡدُۚ وَيَوۡمَٮِٕذٍ۬ يَفۡرَحُ ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنُونَ (٤)
بِنَصۡرِ ٱللَّهِۚ يَنصُرُ مَن يَشَآءُۖ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَزِيزُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ (٥)
The Romans have been defeated,
in a nearby land. Yet following their defeat, they will triumph
within three to nine years. The ˹whole˺ matter rests with Allah before and after ˹victory˺. And on that day the believers will rejoice,
at the victory willed by Allah. He gives victory to whoever He wills. For He is the Almighty, Most Merciful.
Quran [30:2-5]
The above are very famous verses of the Qur’an, for they were miraculous prophecies that came to pass later during the time of the Prophet ﷺ. The first few ayahs (verses) speak about the war between the Romans and the Persians, namely the Battle of Antioch (613AD) in which the Romans were defeated, weakening the armies to such an extent that it was thought to be the collapse of the Roman (Byzantine) empire. However, God then revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) that within ten years the Persians would be defeated by the Romans. At the time the Meccans that opposed the Prophet (ﷺ) never thought this would to be possible, but then in 622AD Heraclius led a campaign and defeated the Persians (Sassanid) in Anatolia. By revealing this, God actually drew to the people’s attention or remembrance to a war in the future that had not yet been waged.
Conclusion
It is evident, that God deemed it important to mention a war between two great empires in the Book of Guidance and recall the events (make dhikr of it). If we were to contextualize what was occurring at the time of the Prophet (ﷺ) to now, then the recent great world wars, which involved over 30+ countries would not be far off. The war between the Persians and Roman empires were very saddening events as two great empires were fighting head on, lives and livestock were being destroyed, the effects of which were being felt all over the world. Similarly, in world war 1 it is reported that over 40 million lives were lost and in World War 2 more than double this amount (+85 million). This is not a small phenomenon and remembering these horrific events on the day the war came to an end is advised to do, so that humanity can refrain from repeating these events ever again. Remembrance Day is also dedicated to the lives lost during the war (soldiers and innocent) and remembering them would also be advised as well, as remembering death and the dead was advised by the Prophet (ﷺ) on numerous occasions. Visiting graveyards, memorials, paying respect to the dead are all traditions upheld in the Islamic faith and encouraged by the Prophet. There are chapters or books within the corpus of hadith (Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi etc) which are titled كتاب الجنائز which means “Book of Funerals”[11] and has numerous ahadith covering the topic of visiting and remembering the dead.
The preservation and sanctity of life is and should be at the foremost importance in Islam. The Quran clearly says “…Saving one human life is like saving the whole of mankind” (Quran 5:32). War is a saddening concept, the Prophet (ﷺ) would avoid it at all costs. We should advise our future generations to heed what the Quran is saying and remember the wars that affected you and your community (yearly at the least) so we can teach our future generation to not repeat the mistakes we or our forefathers made. Ibn Arabi (ra) who was one of the greatest theologians and mystics of the Islamic world rightly says “Loving our homeland is part of our faith”. Naturally it is a human attribute to love and respect the homeland we are from. As a citizen of Britain, we have the right to vote, the right to benefits (free education and healthcare), the right to human rights and the right to live peacefully. In response, the country also has rights, and one of the rights is that her inhabitants be an active member of society and participate in the cultural/national/historical events that it upholds dearly, unless these events are inhumane or harming to society.
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REFERENCES
[1] https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/muslims-hate-poppies-and-five-other-ridiculous-misconceptions-about-people-who-follow-islam-a6721351.html [2] https://islam.stackexchange.com/questions/9924/is-it-haram-to-wear-a-remembrance-day-poppy [3] https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/muslims-hate-poppies-and-five-other-ridiculous-misconceptions-about-people-who-follow-islam-a6721351.html [4] Mubarakpuri, S., 2013. Ar-Raheeq Al-Makhtum (THE SEALED NECTAR). India: Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, p.p40. LINK [https://www.muslim-library.com/dl/books/English_ArRaheeq_AlMakhtum_THE_SEALED_NECTAR.pdf] [5] Sunan al-Tirmidhi, hadith #1522–152 / Muhammad ibn Ya‘qub (2015). Al-Kafi (Volume 6 ed.). NY: Islamic Seminary Incorporated. ISBN 9780991430864. [6] Ahmad Ibrahim Sharif, Malckah wa l-Madlnah fi 1-Jahiliyah wa 'ahd al-Rasul, p.188. [7] Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 3216, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1130 [8] http://corpus.quran.com/translation [9] http://materiaislamica.com/index.php/Muslim_Soldiers_During_World_War_II [10] https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-46124467 [11] https://sunnah.com/bukhari/23/5
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