If you haven’t noticed already, we Muslims have a problem of disunity, and we seem to remain divided even though Allah commands us to not to become divided.

Allah says “And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided”. so then why are Muslims divided? Even though the Quran advises against this? The underlying cause for the dividing and disunity of the Muslims is the lack of adherence to the Quran and Sunnah. This is implied in the Quranic Verse as Allah commands the believer to stick to and hold firmly to the rope of Allah. The meaning of this verse is explained by the scholars of the Quran to mean, act upon the guidance of the Quran and the Sunnah. To know what the Quran contains is not sufficient if one does not act upon that knowledge.

This is only a general answer. However, there is more to this problem that I will outline in this article with a practical solution insha’Allah.  First I suggest that there are 3 things that you must do to hold fast to the rope of Allah.

1. You need to read the
2. You need to read the Sunnah of the messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)
3. You need to act upon what you’ve learnt. Taking action means living according to what you have learnt.

Now that’s the general answer for why Muslims become divided as is implied in the statement of Allah, but it seem far too simplistic, right? NO

Let me elaborate on this as we look at the possible solution. In the following, I will outline 7 ways that you can change this situation and change the problem of disunity.

Just so we don’t misunderstand, Allah is talking to you and I directly in this verse when He says hold tight, as strongly as you can to the rope of Allah and do not be divided. Although Allah is commanding all of us, you and I are responsible for our own actions.

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The Roote of Disunity or Difference amongst Muslims

Now, before we get into how to resolve this problem and help the Muslims to reunite, I want to point out a very important factor underlying the problem of disunity. It’s demonstrated in a very clear way in the following verse, where Allah says:

“Oh mankind, indeed, I have created you from the male and the female and made you nations and tribes so that you may get to know each other. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most God conscious of you. Indeed, Allah is All Knowing and All Aware”.

Quran,Surah Al-Hujurat, verse 13. 

It’s important to understand that Allah is telling us the root cause for why humans become disunited. In this verse, Allah addresses all of mankind, He says, “Oh Mankind” Oh people, Indeed, I have created you into men and women.

Just that in itself is sufficient to tell us how different we are as people. Allah created us completely different to one another. And so, He the Most Wise, points out that we are male and female, and then on top of that, He then goes on to further explain that He made us into nations and tribes. Allah gives us a very clear reason why he created us so different from one another, “So that you may get to know one another”.

The creator of humanity is informing us in this verse that we were created different right from the offset, so then your opinions will be different, your thoughts will be different, your taste will be different, what you enjoy will be different, and with whom you align or group together with will be different.

We as humans are different and should celebrate our differences by getting to know one another. We need to understand the very foundation of our creation is, that we are all different, not one of us is the same as the other. We may have similarities and it’s upon those similarities that we group together. However, even then we will find we have differences.

So my question to you is, do you think that these differences will not remain with us even if we are from one group of people, for example, we come from one family. We find that as parents, every child is different and they love to play with each other, and they love to bicker and fight. These children are drawn together by their family ties, yet sometimes you can enjoy their company and other times they frustrate you. This is the case within one family. So what about a nation or a tribe which is built up of many, many hundreds of thousands of families.

So the differences that exist amongst us are natural and we were created to be that way. However, Allah gives us a very clear solution here and insha’Allah we will talk about that in the following points. So here goes…

7 Ways to resolve the Disunity amongst the Muslims

1. Allah commands us to hold firmly to the rope of Allah.

This is the foundation of unity because it gives us a common understanding and a common set of rules by which we can live and this will create a sense of harmony amongst us.

The rope of Allah as the Quranic scholars have explained is the Quran and the Sunnah.  We find in the Quran, that Allah has given us a set of rules, universal rules that will help us live with each other in harmony. So, if we abide by these rules, then we end up upholding each other’s rights and not transgressing and harming each other

Sometimes we are feel emotionally low and our behaviour, then reflects. However, if at that time, when you are feeling an emotional low you remember how Allah taught us to behave, then you’re more likely to be on guard of your own behaviours. This is why Allah says: Indeed, the most noble of you is the one who is most God-conscious. Because if you are aware of Allah as much as possible, then you will be aware of your actions and curb your actions when they are going to hurt someone else.

Allah says, “do not become divided”

This is a command and the fact that your Creator is telling you not to be divided means that you may incline towards dividing with others and disuniting with them. It’s in our nature that we tend to cling to our differences and believe that the way we think, or the way we do things, is better or more superior to the way others think and behave

When you are aware of Allah and remember this statement (do not be divided), then you will be careful that you don’t do something that causes friction between you and someone else. You cannot control other people. Which brings us onto the next point.

2. Change yourself first

The greatest influence that we have in this world is over our own selves. You may also have influence over your family and the people closest to you, but that influence is always going to be limited. We as humans have our own minds and we are open to influence but we will serve our own interests in the end.

So, the question is, are you spending your time trying to fix everyone else? or are you spending time trying to change who you are and taking ownership of your life and your actions?  As an individual, you have the power to change your world. But that change. It begins with the most fundamental and the greatest change that you will ever make, which is to your own life.

You have to trust Allah because He says:

“Indeed, Allah will not change condition of people until they change that which is within themselves”.

You know what this implies, this implies that if you change yourself, then Allah will change everything else. You may go on to become the agent of change in everyone else’s life, but you can’t do that until you yourself have changed.

3. Allah created us all different

You have to accept that people will be different and you will not always see eye to eye with everyone. When you accept this, it will make you more flexible and more empathetic so that you’re able to understand how someone else is feeling, or even able to put yourself in their situation.

When you can think yourself into someone else’s situation, it will help you to understand why they behave the way they do. This is a skill that needs to be nurtured, practised, practised and practised even further. When we become empathetic humans, we will understand how to change the world.

4. Take Ownership

Take ownership of your actions and let others do that for their own actions. This is a bit of an overlapped point, however, it’s so important that I need to re-emphasise this. Take ownership of your actions. Whether your actions are good or bad, it will have every effect on your life and also the relationships that you have with others.

The knowledge that you learn from the Quran and the Sunnah is a knowledge that will help you to shape your life. However, if you don’t use it, you’ll be like the book on your shelf collecting dust and not bringing about any positive contribution to the world. By the way, when I talk about the world, I’m talking about your world. If you want your world to be a nice place, then you have to be a nice person.

5. Stop wasting time.

Stop waiting for the world to change, and for people to become reunited and live happily ever after. If you don’t like seeing the disunity and the discord, then become the change that you want to see in the world. You have limited time, like the rest of us. So, if you focus your time on positive change, then you will see positive change around you.

Allah commanded us to hold fast and firm to the Quran and the Sunnah, so use your time to read it and understand it. It’s important to understand what Allah is giving us in the Quran and the Sunnah, so that we know how to remedy this situation.

6. Don’t judge unless you’re a Judge.

Look, don’t judge others because they are only human and they will fall short. You know perfectly well, how we as individuals we all fall short. I know my shortcomings, even if the rest of the world doesn’t. So, I should focus my time on changing myself and trying to be an agent of goodness in this world.

Being a part of the Muslim Ummah, is one of the greatest blessings that Allah has blessed us with and so if we are going to aid the people into a good situation, then we can only do it with good intentions and good actions.

My job is not to judge anyone else for their actions, because Allah is all Hearing and all Seeing and He will judge everyone according to their actions. So, my concern should be to change my own deeds so that when I am judged by the Almighty, I am safe with what I have done.

7. Lastly Don’t be a self-hater

I’ve met many Muslims, all sorts, from different backgrounds, different nations and found that we are all different. Allah revealed the Quran and the Sunnah as a system of life that is flexible and caters for those difference between us. When you understand that Muslims are different and they come from different backgrounds with different baggage, then you have to be compassionate and you have to be merciful.

Don’t be a Muslim that hates Muslims and always scorns at them and belittles them due to what you view as floors or shortcomings that they have. Hating on people will not change the problem, it will just add to the problem

Understanding will change the people and change our circumstance. If you want to change the situation, then it begins at home with understanding and then acting upon the understanding. Don’t hate the Muslims, we are human and not perfect.

I’ll leave you with one Question every Muslim should ask themselves, Did the Prophet (saw) do what I’m doing?

This will always be a sobering question.

I pray and hope (positively) that Allah the Most Loving brings our hearts together and establishes us upon the Quran and the Sunnah.