Be on the side of Allah and His Messenger Even If All The People Are On The Other Side

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Imam Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy upon him, said:

When Allah and His Messenger ﷺ are on one side [of a matter], beware of being on the other side, for indeed, that leads to opposition and contention. This is the basis of these terms and the origin of their derivation: mushāqqah (opposition) is to be on one side while the one whom you oppose is on the other, and muḥāddah (contention) is to be on one boundary while the other is on another. Do not take this matter lightly, for its beginnings lead to its ultimate end, and a little of it leads to much more.

And be on the side on which Allah and His Messenger ﷺ are, even if all people are on the other side. For indeed, that has outcomes that are the most praiseworthy and the best, and nothing is more beneficial to a servant than that in his worldly life prior to his Hereafter.

Most of creation will be on the other side, especially when desire and fear become intense. At such times, you will hardly find anyone on the side on which Allah and His Messenger are. Rather, people would regard him (i.e. the one adhering to truth) as deficient in intellect and as one who makes bad choices for himself, and might even attribute insanity to him. This is one of the legacies of the enemies of the Messengers, for indeed they attributed insanity to them because they were on one side, while the people were on another.

However, whoever resolves himself to this (i.e. adherence to truth) will need firmly grounded knowledge of what the Messenger brought, such that it becomes certainty for him, with no doubt about it; and he (will need) complete patience while facing the hostility of those who show him hostility and the blame of those who blame him. And he cannot attain this except through a strong fervent desire for Allah and the home of the Hereafter, such that the Hereafter becomes more beloved to him than this world and preferred by him over it, and such that Allah and His Messenger ﷺ are more beloved to him than anything besides them.

And there is nothing more difficult for a person than this (resolve) at the beginning of this affair, for indeed his own self, his desires, his natural inclinations, his Satan, his brothers, and those with whom he associates—all those on that side—call him toward what is immediately (seen as something of advantage). Then, when he opposes them, they rise to wage war against him. But if he exercises patience and is steadfast, help comes to him from Allah, and what was difficult becomes easy, and what was painful becomes a source of delight. For indeed, the Lord is Ever-Appreciative; therefore, He must cause him to taste the delight of taking his stand with Allah and His Messenger and show him the honour that comes from it. Thus his joy and happiness become ever greater, his heart rejoices in it, and he attains strength, delight, and happiness.

Those who had been waging war against him over this will then be left among those who fear him, make peace with him, assist him, or leave him alone. His forces become stronger, while the forces of the enemy weaken.

Do not consider opposing the people and taking your stand with Allah and His Messenger to be too difficult, even if you are alone. For indeed, Allah is with you (by His knowledge), and you are under His watchful care, protection, and preservation. He is only testing your certainty and patience.

And the greatest aid to you in this, after Allah’s help, is to free yourself from greed (covetousness) and fear. Once you have freed yourself from both, taking your stand with Allah and His Messenger will become easy for you, and you will always be on the side on which Allah and His Messenger are. But whenever greed and fear overcome you, neither hope for this nor even think about it.

Al-Fawaa’id 167