The Hijra of American Muslims

 The Hijra of American Muslims

M. Bakri Musa

 

Updated; originally published in Malaysiakini, April 23, 2002.

[Awal Muharram, the beginning of the Muslim lunar calendar year 1446, began after sunset July 7, 2024.]

 

American Muslims have something in common with the exalted first generation Muslims. That is, most of us have undertaken our own hijra (migration). The hijra of Prophet Muhammad and those early Muslims (praise be upon them) was such a seminal event that the Muslim calendar began with that date. 

 

            The Prophet’s message of monotheism, social justice, and egalitarianism–the essence of Islam–was very much against the prevailing social order. This was the Age of Jahiliyah (Ignorance), where idolatrous worship, outright slavery, female infanticide, and hordes of other unsavory activities were the norms. Mecca, then a flourishing trade center, was marked by gross inequities, usurious practices, and rampant materialism.

 

            Prophet Muhammad, s.a.w., knew that Islam would frontally challenge the existing social order. Even though he was committed to Allah’s cause, nonetheless he had no intention of destroying his community in order to save it, to use a Vietnam-era maxim. He was fully cognizant of the intense opposition from the existing power structure. Thus the forcing of his divine message would result only in further turmoil, a civil war. His mission was to save, not destroy society.

 

            Fortunately the pagan Arabs of Medinah saw the wisdom of the Prophet and invited him to mediate their dispute. Finding an opportunity of a welcoming reception, our prophet decided to migrate to Medinah, the hijra. From there Islam spread, eventually to win over Mecca and beyond.

 

            The Prophet chose that particular moment to migrate because of a revelation instructing him to do so. Meaning, the hijra was a positive mission to establish the first and exemplary Muslim community, and not a negative one of escaping from persecution at Mecca.

 

Saved By Many Miracles

Despite the divine directive, the migration was far from smooth. The non-believers in Mecca would prefer that the Muslims be destroyed. Thus, the Muslims had to leave in small groups and under cover of night to avoid detection. Tradition has it that the Prophet was saved in his hijra through a series of miracles. One had it that when he and his companion Abu Bakar took refuge in a cave, they could hear the footsteps of the pursuing Meccans. Just then a spider began spinning a web at the entrance of the cave. When the Meccans peeked into the cave and found the web intact, they concluded that no one could possibly be in there. Hence the special place spiders have in Islamic beliefs.

 

            Present-day non-native American Muslims are emulating the best tradition of the Prophet in undertaking our own migration. There are many reasons why we leave the land of our birth. Those can be divided basically into that of “push,” and the other, “pull.”

 

            Many are simply pushed out of their native land, ending up as refugees on American shores and elsewhere. That was the fate of Muslims from East Africa escaping the tyranny of Idi Amin; the Bosnians from the ethnic cleansing in the Balkans; and the Chiam people of Cambodia and Vietnam from the vengeful communist regimes. These were truly brave Muslims.

 

            It is the duty of Muslims to leave places where they are persecuted and suppressed even if that were to involve forsaking their homes and properties. In Surah An Nisaa, (4:97) (approximate translation), “When the angels take the souls of those who die in sin, they say, ‘In what plight were ye?’ They replied: ‘Weak and oppressed we were on earth.’ They say, ‘Was not the earth of Allah spacious enough for you to move yourselves away from evil?’ Such persons will find their abode in Hell. Allah spares only those who are weak and oppressed, men, women and children who have no means in their power, nor could they find a way to escape.”

 

Better Opportunities

The second group are those who are not pushed out but instead are attracted to the better opportunities afforded in the West. America gives us the freedom to practice our faith without interference. Its commitment to human freedom as enshrined in the Bill of Rights is very much in the spirit of Islam. America also provides unlimited opportunities to pursue knowledge and self-improvement. America has been described as a land of second chances; I believe it is the land of many chances.

 

            One particular group of immigrants is deserving of our praise–Islamic scholars. These brilliant individuals are persecuted and not allowed to develop their talent back in their native land. In America they are welcomed with open arms and given every opportunity to pursue their knowledge and spread their wisdom. As a result, America and Islam are blessed with the flowering of their scholarships.

 

            I believe that the second renaissance in Islam will occur in America. That also comports with my understanding of the Qur’anic verse alluding to nur arising from the west. I take nur to mean enlightenment and not the literal sun. Throughout history, Islam flourishes only where there is freedom. America provides that.

 

            The losers are the Muslim nations that do not value the gems within their midst. Such scholars as Ebrahim Mossa from South Africa now at Notre Dame University; Abdullah Na’im from Sudan now at Emory; and the late Pakistani-born Fazlur Rahman of the University of Chicago, bring fresh insights into Islam. They have given us a better understanding of our faith. Major American universities now have endowed Chairs in Islamic Studies. These scholars are indeed doing the cherished work of dakwah for the cause of Islam.

 

            Horrific 9-11 tragedy did and does not in any way alter the scene. American Muslims were similarly tested earlier in the 1970s during the Iranian hostage crisis.

 

            With freedom comes, naturally, differences in views and opinions. Those are healthy. Americans more than anyone else have learnt to live with our differences peacefully. Indeed, Islam teaches us to be tolerant. Allah had created this earth with its diversity of inhabitants, reminding us, “And among His signs is the creation of the Heaven and the Earth; and the variations in your languages and your colors.” (Surah 30:27). We must learn not only to accept this diversity but also to embrace and celebrate it.

 

            The democratic tradition is the very essence of Islam. Allah will not allow his community to be in error, goes a hadith. We are more likely to arrive at the right and wise decision through consensus–the essence of the democratic process–rather than by the decree of a powerful leader.

 

            For those who think that migration is unpatriotic, ponder this beautiful verse from Rumi:

 

            Muhammad says love of one’s country is part of the faith.

            But don’t take that literally!

            Your real country is where you are heading,

            Not where you are from.

            Don’t misread that hadith. . .

            It’s right to love your home place, but first ask,

            Where is that really?

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Dr M BAKRI MUSA is a surgeon in Silicon Valley, California and the author of, among others, The Malay Dilemma Revisited:  Race Dynamics in Modern Malaysia. His views on Malaysia, as well as his adopted land America, can be stated thus:  Ours is a diverse nation; we can accept and celebrate this reality or by default, it becomes a liability.