The first thing that Allah, the Almighty, obligated upon His servants was faith in Him and disbelieving in anything worshipped besides Him. Indeed, He sent all His messengers with this fundamental principle. Allah says: "And We certainly sent into every nation a messenger, [saying], 'Worship Allah and avoid Taghut.' And among them were those whom Allah guided, and among them were those upon whom error was [deservedly] decreed" (An-Nahl: 36), all divine laws, whether related to beliefs or rulings, follow from this faith, including the concepts of allegiance (wilayah) and support (nusr).
The Concept of Allegiance (Wilayah)
Faith in Allah, the Almighty, is not separated from another concept that the heart must attach to, and the actions must submit to: the concept of allegiance (wilayah). Allah says: "Your ally is none but Allah and [therefore] His Messenger and those who have believed - those who establish prayer and give zakah, and they bow [in worship]. And whoever is an ally of Allah and His Messenger and those who have believed - indeed, the party of Allah - they will be the predominant." (Al-Ma'idah: 55-56)
This verse establishes the concept of allegiance on three levels: love for Allah, His Messenger, and the believers. This order is logical and scriptural. If someone loves Allah, which is the essence of faith, they will inevitably love His Messenger, whom He chose to convey His religion. Consequently, they will differentiate between those who submitted to Allah’s command by believing in Him and His Messenger and those who did not. Therefore, these three levels are inseparable and cannot be imagined to exist independently.
The verse also states the reward for those who possess this allegiance, describing them as "the party of Allah," meaning those who have been granted His guardianship because they have shown allegiance to Him. They are not just ordinary people; they are Allah's chosen ones among His servants, distinct from those who have neglected allegiance to Allah, His Messenger, and the believers by not heeding the command in the subsequent verse: "O you who have believed, do not take those who have taken your religion in ridicule and amusement among the ones who were given the Scripture before you nor the disbelievers as allies. And fear Allah if you should [truly] be believers." (Al-Ma'idah: 57)
The Relationship Between Allegiance (Wilayah) and Support (Nusr)
It is a mistake to think that allegiance is purely a matter of the heart, without extending to practical support. The response to this is that those with sound minds and correct beliefs are certain that faith comprises both belief and action. Anything that is part of faith includes both doctrinal and practical levels. Just as the concepts of faith (iman) and submission (Islam) overlap to the extent that one can be used to express the other in the sacred texts, and it is unimaginable for a person to believe in Allah doctrinally while disbelieving in Him practically, the concept of allegiance implies both heartfelt love and practical support. Ibn Abbas narrated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "The strongest bond of faith is loyalty to Allah, and enmity for Allah, and love for Allah, and hatred for Allah, the Almighty" (1), in this hadith, support is expressed as loyalty, which is evidenced by the separation of love from it, as well as enmity and hatred.
The Concept of Support (Nusr)
Support in the Book of Allah, the Almighty, may come in the sense of divine decree, as in His saying: "Indeed, We will support Our messengers and those who believe during the life of this world and on the Day when the witnesses will stand." (Ghafir: 51)
This means that a believer's ultimate fate is victory, whether sooner or later. Support can also come in the sense of the divine will, which Allah desires from His servants, and its essence is the idea of trial, as Allah says: "And if Allah had willed, He could have taken vengeance upon them, but [He ordered armed struggle] to test some of you by means of others" (Muhammad: 4), so that "Allah may make evident those who support Him and His messengers unseen." (Al-Hadid: 25)
Thus, legal support is practical allegiance to the believers, and it occurs on both positive and negative levels, with varying degrees in each.
As for the positive: Support is obligatory for believers in all cases, whether the believer is obedient or sinful. Anas reported that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: " Help your brother, whether he is an oppressor or is oppressed". A man enquired, "O Messenger of Allah! I help him when he is oppressed, but how can I help him when he is an oppressor? The Prophet said, " You can keep him from committing oppression. That will be your help to him." (2)
This implies that the support, which is part of allegiance, relates to loving what pleases Allah, the Almighty. Allah, who commanded us to love believers, is pleased with their obedience and dislikes their disobedience. He is pleased that their brothers assist them in obeying Allah and avoiding sin, and all of this constitutes support, allegiance, and faith.
As for the negative: Supporting the enemies of Allah is forbidden, especially when such support harms Muslims. Allah says: "O you who have believed, do not take My enemies and your enemies as allies, extending to them affection while they have disbelieved in what came to you of the truth, having driven out the Messenger and yourselves [only] because you believe in Allah, your Lord. If you have come out for jihad in My cause and seeking My approval, [but] confide to them affection, then I know what you have concealed and what you have declared. And whoever does it among you has certainly strayed from the soundness of the way" (Al-Mumtahina: 1), Allah also described this as the behavior of hypocrites, saying: "Give tidings to the hypocrites that there is for them a painful punishment - Those who take disbelievers as allies instead of the believers." (An-Nisa: 138-139)
Shariah is aligned with human nature, so love and hatred, along with the associated practical actions of support or enmity, vary in intensity. Supporting the Prophets should be greater than supporting other believers. Even among believers, allegiance varies according to their levels of faith. This is clarified by Allah's saying: "Indeed, those who have believed and emigrated and fought with their wealth and their lives in the cause of Allah and those who gave shelter and aided - they are allies of one another. But those who believed and did not emigrate - for you there is no support from them until they emigrate. And if they seek help of you for the religion, then you must help, except against a people between yourselves and whom is a treaty. And Allah is Seeing of what you do" (Al-Anfal: 72), similarly, enmity towards those who are more hostile to the believers should be greater than towards others.
The Consequences of the Absence of Support in Reality
Muslims understood this concept early in their history, as exemplified in the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): " 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." (3)
However, later generations lost this concept to the extent that it can be said that there has never been a time in Islamic history when some Muslims were oppressed without the absence of the concept of support being a contributing factor. It is Allah's decree that He supports those who support Him and His messengers; those who do not support the believers are not supporters of Allah or His Messenger, and this is the essence of our situation.
This Ummah will not return to its former goodness until it sees the bond of faith as higher than any other differences, aligns itself accordingly, and becomes as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: " The lives of all Muslims are equal; the lowliest of them can guarantee their protection, the most distant can keep others from breaking protection he has given, and they are one band against others." (4)
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(1) Narrated by Al-Tabarani and authenticated by Al-Albani in "Sahih Al-Jami' Al-Saghir" (2539).
(2) Narrated by Al-Bukhari (6952).
(3) Narrated by Al-Bukhari (6011) and Muslim (2586), with the wording attributed to Muslim.
(4) Reported by Abu Dawud (4530), Al-Nasa'i (4734), and Ahmad (993) with a similar narration. Authenticated by Al-Albani in "Sahih Abu Dawud" (4530).
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