بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
When Firawn’s Tyranny Repeats Itself: Between the Ummah’s Negligence and the Shariah Obligation for Change
(Translated)
https://www.al-waie.org/archives/article/20354
Al Waie Magazine Issue No. 479
Fortieth Year, Dhul Hijjah 1447 AH corresponding to June 2026 CE
By: Abdul Salam Al-Badri
The story of the Firawn (Pharaoh) was not an isolated historical event that ended with a tyrant drowning in the sea. Instead, Allah (swt) made it a recurring sign, its images repeated in human life whenever the meaning of truth weakens, people remain silent in the face of injustice, and nations accept submission to tyrants and the arrogant. The Noble Quran does not narrate stories for mere entertainment, but to reveal the patterns of the struggle between truth and falsehood, and to show people how tyranny arises and how nations fall when they lose the balance of truth and justice.
Firawn was not merely an arrogant man who claimed divinity. Instead, Firawn was a model of a political and intellectual order based on controlling minds, falsifying facts, and subjugating people through fear, propaganda, and force. Therefore, he said to his people,
[مَا أُرِيكُمْ إِلَّا مَا أَرَىٰ وَمَا أَهْدِيكُمْ إِلَّا سَبِيلَ الرَّشَادِ]“I do not show you except what I see, and I do not guide you except to the way of right conduct” [TMQ Surah Ghafir: 29].
This is how every tyrant acts; he behaves as if he possesses a monopoly on truth, making his opinion law, and portraying himself as a reformer and savior, while in reality, he builds his power on injustice, enslavement, and the plundering of people's resources.
The crime of Musa (as) in the eyes of Firawn was not that he spread corruption in the land, but rather that he came to awaken people from subservience, dismantle the legitimacy of falsehood, and restore the balance of servitude to Allah (swt) alone. This is why Firawn said,
[إِنِّي أَخَافُ أَن يُبَدِّلَ دِينَكُمْ أَوْ أَن يُظْهِرَ فِي الْأَرْضِ الْفَسَادَ]“Indeed, I fear that he will change your religion or that he will cause corruption in the land” [TMQ Surah Ghafir: 26].
Throughout history, despots have accused reformers of being instigators of sedition and chaos, for they fear the awakening of the nation more than they fear weapons.
The most dangerous stage of decline is not merely the presence of the oppressor, but rather the normalization of his tyranny, and the adaptation of people to oppression until they perceive subjugation as stability, falsehood as pragmatic policy, and submission as wisdom and rationality. When the balance is so severely disrupted, the media becomes a mouthpiece for tyranny, apologists and sycophants abound, and those who uphold the truth are persecuted for exposing deviation and revealing the falsity of slogans.
This is why the Noble Quran links the corruption of reality to people’s turning away from the Shariah of Allah (swt), as He, the Exalted, says,
[وَمَنْ أَعْرَضَ عَن ذِكْرِي فَإِنَّ لَهُ مَعِيشَةً ضَنكًا] “And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed (difficult) life” [TMQ Surah Ta-Ha: 124].
A life of hardship is not merely financial scarcity. Instead, it is the general state of misery that humanity experiences when governed by human whims and man-made laws. This leads to widespread economic crises, psychological distress, family breakdown, political injustice, wars, and a loss of peace of mind despite tremendous material progress.
Allah (swt) intended for humankind to live under justice, and therefore made governance according to His divine law the foundation for the well-being of the earth and the uprightness of life. Allah (swt) said,
[يَا دَاوُودُ إِنَّا جَعَلْنَاكَ خَلِيفَةً فِي الْأَرْضِ فَاحْكُم بَيْنَ النَّاسِ بِالْحَقِّ وَلَا تَتَّبِعِ الْهَوَىٰ] “O Daud, indeed We have made you a successor on earth, so judge between the people in truth and do not follow your own desire” [TMQ Surah Saad:26].
Thus, the Khilafah (Caliphate) in the concept of Islam is not about domination or tyranny. Instead, it is a responsibility to establish justice, protect rights, and carry the Risaalah message of goodness to humanity. Any system that disregards the Shariah of Allah (swt) and prioritizes human desires and interests opens the door to corruption, even if it adorns itself with slogans of freedom, development, or democracy.
This explains why the Risaalah message of Islam was one of comprehensive civilizational transformation, not merely individual admonitions. The Prophet Muhammad (saw) did not simply nurture individuals spiritually; he established a society and a state that implemented Islam and carried its message to the world. Thus, the Islamic Ummah was transformed from fragmented, weak tribes into a Ummah that led the world with justice, knowledge, and mercy.
The Companions (ra) of the Prophet (saw) understood this profound meaning. They saw Islam as coming to liberate humanity from subjugation to other human beings. Therefore, Rabi' ibn 'Amir said to the Persian commander, (ابتعثنا الله لنخرج العباد من عبادة العباد إلى عبادة رب العباد، ومن جور الأديان إلى عدل الإسلام، ومن ضيق الدنيا إلى سعة الدنيا والآخرة) “Allah sent us to bring people out of the worship of other people and into the worship of the Lord of all people, from the injustice of other religions to the justice of Islam, and from the narrowness of this world to the vastness of this world and the Hereafter.” It is a belief that liberates humanity intellectually, politically, and economically, making them servants of Allah (swt) alone, not subservient to oppressive regimes or arrogant powers.
The current state of the Islamic Ummah, with its fragmentation, weakness, foreign domination, and political and economic corruption, is inextricably linked to the absence of Islamic ruling governance. When the ruling governance of the Shariah Law of Allah (swt) was absent, it was replaced by imported systems that rendered the Muslim World subservient to others, plundering its resources, tearing apart its unity, and subjecting its decisions to the will of the superpowers. Therefore, true revival cannot be achieved through mere partial reforms or political patchwork. Instead, true revival is through the Muslim world's return to the foundation of its strength: Islam as a comprehensive system for life.
The Islamic Ummah needs an intellectual awareness that restores its belief in its Deen and exposes the falsehood of the projects imposed on Muslim lands by colonialist powers. It also needs sincere political action that connects people to Islam as a project of revival, ruling governance, and justice, not merely as individual rituals isolated from reality. The struggle today is not merely a border conflict, but a struggle of ideas, concepts, and systems. Whoever possesses the correct vision and a clear civilizational project has the power to shape the future.
In the midst of this struggle, the believers cannot remain passive or a mere spectator. Instead, they must be deeply concerned for their Ummah, enjoining what is goodness and forbidding what is evil, striving alongside the sincere to restore the rule of truth and justice. Allah (swt) says,
[وَلْتَكُن مِّنكُمْ أُمَّةٌ يَدْعُونَ إِلَى الْخَيْرِ وَيَأْمُرُونَ بِالْمَعْرُوفِ وَيَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ الْمُنكَرِ وَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ]“And let there be arising from you a group inviting to all that is good, enjoining what is goodness, and forbidding what is evil. And it is they who are the successful” [TMQ Surah Aali Imran:104]
In the midst of this struggle, the believer must not be passive or a mere spectator. The Shariah obligation upon the Islamic Ummah is not to accept the corrupt reality, nor to merely diagnose the problem and lament its decline. Instead, the Ummah must strive with sincere individuals to establish justice and implement the Shariah of Allah (swt) on earth, so that the Islamic Ummah may once again be a witness to humanity, as Allah (swt) intended, and Islam may once again be a source of mercy, justice, and guidance for all humankind. Only then will the tyranny of oppression be broken, human dignity be restored, the blessings of heaven and earth be unleashed, and Muslims regain the status they lost the day they abandoned governance according to Shariah of Allah (swt).