Meaning of Da’awah
First of all we need to understand the meaning of Da’wah.
Basically, it means to call someone.
Islamically, it means to call someone towards Tawheed, i.e. towards the correct Aqeedah and beliefs.
After having an understanding of the word; let’s have a look at “Why are you doing da’wah?”What will it benefit you? What are the goals that you want to achieve? Are you certain that your friend (whom you want to guide)is doing a wrong act? Have you fully researched the four madhabs and know the different fatwas given? Becauseyou might see something to be wrong but actually the Prophet did it in another narration. (Or we can say: “Are the researches you made authentic ?”) Lastly, “Have you asked Allah to help you guide that person?”
“For his sake there are angels following one another, before him and behind him, who guard him by Allah’s commandment; surely Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change their own condition; and when Allah intends evil to a people, there is no averting it, and besides Him they have no protector.” – Surah Ar-Rad, Verse 11:
لَهُ مُعَقِّبَاتٌ مِّن بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ يَحْفَظُونَهُ مِنْ أَمْرِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ وَإِذَا أَرَادَ اللَّهُ بِقَوْمٍ سُوءًا فَلَا مَرَدَّ لَهُ وَمَا لَهُم مِّن دُونِهِ مِن وَالٍ
“Surely you cannot guide whom you love, but Allah guides whom He pleases, and He knows best.” – Surah Al-Qasas, Verse 56:
إِنَّكَ لَا تَهْدِي مَنْ أَحْبَبْتَ وَلَٰكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَهْدِي مَن يَشَاءُ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِالْمُهْتَدِينَ
That’s the fact my dears, it is Allah who guides, and we sincerely need to ask Allah to help us achieve our goals in guiding this human, as it will be like guiding the whole humanity.
These are some of the questions that we need to ask ourselves before we proceed to open up a discussion.
Take a moment to reflect, and answer these questions.
After having Yaqeen (Certainty) that Allah will surely help you, and having your authentic sources right at hand, then that’s when we proceed to opening the floor.
But how will I convey my message? How can I convince him or her without making THAT PERSON ANGRY and never listen to you again?
Well let’s look at these tips…
First, have a look at the prophet Musa (AS) , what were the words he uttered before he confronted Fir’aun who had the most ego?
He said: O my Lord! Expand my breast for me. -Surah Taha, Verse 25:
قَالَ رَبِّ اشْرَحْ لِي صَدْرِي
Until the end of the surah.
If Musa was able to confront Fir’aun, then normal human beings shouldn’t be a problem in shaa Allah. This is a way of motivating ourselves, dua is the power.
Let’s have look at these ayat:
Surah An-Nahl, Verse 125:
ادْعُ إِلَىٰ سَبِيلِ رَبِّكَ بِالْحِكْمَةِ وَالْمَوْعِظَةِ الْحَسَنَةِ وَجَادِلْهُم بِالَّتِي هِيَ أَحْسَنُ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَن ضَلَّ عَن سَبِيلِهِ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِالْمُهْتَدِينَ
“Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortation, and have disputations with them in the best manner; surely your Lord best knows those who go astray from His path, and He knows best those who follow the right way.”
There we go, right there is our answer!
الحكمة و الموعظة الحسنة” او بإستعمال اللين
This is the key that our beloved prophet used.
Wisdom and using leen (which means using nice words and using leniency to convince that person)
After having all that in mind, let’s now begin..
1.Never begin by telling directly to that person that what he/she is doing is Haram!
Example : “You know mawlid is bid’aah which is haram?” This is wrong.
Why?
Because once you do that you have totally blocked that person’s mind and he or she won’t listen to you anymore. So you might be talking but it’s of no use.
So how should we begin?
- By using positive words.
- Creating a kind of friendship so that that person will be open with you, making him/her comfortable.
- Here comes the action!
Let’s reflect on Rasul’s way of doing Da’awah, he had almost 20 different ways. One of them was asking the sahabas a question, for example -“Who is a Muflis (the bankrupt person)..?”
Do you mean to say that he didn’t know the answer? Of course he knew it, but he was using different methods of conveying the message so that there doesn’t occur any monotony.
So,
You might pretend that you are not sure of the ruling behind a certain topic and might request her to help you in finding it out. You might pretend it’s an assignment which needs to be done and you are asking for help.
So share the websites or books with her that you are sure she will certainly find out the truth with…by HERSELF.
Sometimes letting someone find out on her own works more than you explaining it, because she might think your understanding of the matter is wrong and you are just getting involved in her life, and you are supposed to mind your own business.
Now that’s what I call using Hikma and leen!
So here comes the story!
Once upon a time…
You might mention an incident that happened to you, and you finally got to know that mawlid is bid’ah!
- People have different ways of learning things and you need to know it. Whether you are close to that person or not you can try different ways.
Allah tells us-
“Do not lose hope in the mercy of Allah.”
Some people listen, some read, some need to watch, and some need actions…it’s a whole bunch of different ways of conveying the message.
- Don’t ever conclude the ruling for her; let her conclude it on her own.
You might say: “What do you think? I guess this is isn’t a joke; the seriousness in it is so deep. May Allah forgive us because we really were in darkness.”
Let her pronounce the final wording on her own, that it is in fact a bid’ah.
I believe this way you will have captured her fully.
Doing Da’awah is actually trying to capture that person’s heart. Once you capture it then it is very easy to play with the mind (not in a bad sense).
Let’s look at Rasul’s example, he actually first captured the people’s hearts by being a service to them and finally he won! Look at how sahabas used to love him and listen to him with full attention! The secret lies behind capturing that person’s HEART.
Isn’t Rasul our role model in every aspect of our lives? Then let’s follow him in this aspect too.
Don’t get sad if it doesn’t work out the first time!
As always, practice makes perfect.
Finally,
Allah knows best.
Written by: Sr. Amatullah B.M.
TEAM IR
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