AbooHurayrah(may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that he heard Allah's Messenger ﷺ saying, "We are the last (i.e., the Muslim Ummah) but will be the foremost to enter Paradise." The Prophet ﷺ added, "He who obeys me, obeys Allah, Exalted is He, and he who disobeys me, disobeys Him. He who obeys the Imaam (i.e., ruler), obeys me, and he who disobeys the Imaam, disobeys me. The Imaam is like a shelter for whose safety Muslims should fight and where they should seek protection. If the Imaam orders people with righteousness and rules justly, then he will be rewarded for that, and if he does the opposite, he will be responsible for that.”
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Commentary :
The religious and worldly affairs of a given community or group of people are not duly governed and put in order except by appointing an Imaam or ruler to shoulder this vital task, by managing people’s affairs, settling their disputes, and obliging people to abide by the obligations and prohibitions. Therefore, the appointment of the Imaam is inevitable, and his obedience is also entailed.
In this hadeeth, the Prophet ﷺ underlined that Muslims’ obedience to him, i.e., complying with his commands and prohibitions, is entailed by their obedience to Allah, Exalted is He, and compliance with His commands and prohibitions. Similarly, disobeying the Prophet ﷺ implies disobeying Allah, Exalted is He, because the Prophet ﷺ conveyed to us the divine commands and prohibitions.
Moreover, the Prophet ﷺ underlined that Muslims’ obedience to their Imaam or ruler is entailed by their obedience to Allah, Exalted is He, and to the Prophet ﷺ, and their disobedience to him involves disobedience to Allah, Exalted is He, and to the Prophet ﷺ. This general principle applies to all just Muslim rulers. The people of Quraysh and the neighboring Arab tribes did not accept rulers from outside their own people (i.e., other than the chiefs of their tribes). After the advent of Islam, whenever a ruler from a different tribe was appointed over them, they would develop an aversion towards him and some may have defiantly refused to obey him, and therefore, he ﷺ made this statement to edify them on the fact that their obedience to the appointed ruler was entailed by their obedience to the Prophet ﷺ, and to urge them to obey their rulers and governors whom he ﷺ appointed and refrain from defiantly disobeying them.
One of the purposes and benefits gained by appointing the Imaam warranting their obedience is that they serve as shields and a protection, safeguarding Muslims from the harm of their enemies and also from the harm that may be afflicted by some of them on the others. Allah's Messenger ﷺ said, "The Imaam is like a shelter for whose safety Muslims should fight and where they should seek protection,” meaning that Muslims fight against the disbelievers, the unjust, and the makers of mischief in general under the leadership of their Imaam, who is a source of protection and strength for them, and to whom they turn for judgment and governance of their affairs. Whenever he commands them to be mindful of Allah, Exalted is He, and establishes justice among them, he earns rewards for fulfilling the rights of Allah over him. However, if his governance is not informed by the enjoined mindfulness of Allah and justice, and he likes and chooses to do so, being inclined to it, such a choice would incur his ruin as he bears the whole sin for it.The commanded person would not bear a sin for it if he were excusedby coercion or the like, otherwise he bears a share of the sin.
In conclusion, obedience to the Imaam is obligatory as long his commands are informed by and in accordance with the Islamic law, otherwise they are not required to obey him, yet they must not rebel against him, to foster the unity of Muslims. Dissension is a reason for the corruption of their religious and worldly affairs, and both the ruler and ruled are bound by what was mentioned at the beginning of the hadeeth, i.e., obedience to Allah, Exalted is He, and His Messenger ﷺ.
It is deduced from the hadeeth that Muslims are enjoined to obey their rulers, and that disobeying them is forbidden.
The hadeeth urges Muslims to patiently endure the unjust rulers and enjoins them to obey them and refrain from rebelling against them.
It is inferred from the hadeeth that Muslims must fight under the leadership of an Imaam or ruler..