Oppression
﴿ وَجَزَٰٓؤُاْ سَيِّئَةٍ سَيِّئَةٌ مِّثْلُهَا ۖ فَمَنْ عَفَا وَأَصْلَحَ فَأَجْرُهُۥ عَلَى اللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّهُۥ لَا يُحِبُّ الظَّـٰلِمِينَ ﴾
The recompense of an evil is an evil like it. But whoever pardons and makes reconciliation, then his reward is on Allah f. Indeed,
He does not like the wrongdoers. [42:40]
Allah f detests oppression. The detrimental effects and the evils of oppression are mentioned both in the Qur’ān and Ḥadīth of Prophet Muḥammad g. Allah f Himself does not oppress; He is not a tyrant – He is the Most Just. Allah f says:
﴿ وَلَا يَظْلِمُ رَبُّكَ أَحَدًا ﴾
And your Lord does not deal
unjustly with anyone. [18:49]
﴿ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَظْلِمُ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ ۖ ﴾
Indeed, Allah does not oppress
even the weight of an atom. [4:40]
﴿ ولَا يُظْلَمُونَ نَقِيرًا ﴾
And they will not be oppressed even as much
as the speck on a date-seed. [4:124]
Allah f does not oppress anyone, He is Most Merciful. How then can we have the audacity to oppress and be rebellious to others?
Oppression can be put into three categories:
- Being unjust and oppressive to Allah f.
For example, Allah f says:
﴿ إِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيم ﴾
Indeed, associating partners (with Allah)
is surely a great injustice. [31:13]
Associating partners with Allah f is oppression against Him. Allah f mentions in another verse:
﴿ أَلَا لَعْنَةُ اللَّهِ عَلَى الظَّالِمِين ﴾
No doubt! The curse of Allah
is on the wrongdoers. [11:18]
- To oppress other people.
For example, usurping the rights of the orphans. Allah f says:
﴿ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَأْكُلُونَ أَمْوَٰلَ الْيَتَـٰمَىٰ ظُلْمًا إِنَّمَا يَأْكُلُونَ فِى بُطُونِهِمْ نَارًا ۖ وَسَيَصْلَوْنَ سَعِيرًا ﴾
Indeed, those who consume wealth of the orphans wrongfully, they only consume fire in their bellies, and they will be burned in a Blazing Fire. [4:10]
This also includes oppression towards our spouses and those weaker than us. We may believe that their weakness is our strength, but we are wrong in doing so.
We mustn’t forget that the Prophet g said,
« هَلْ تُنْصَرُونَ وَتُرْزَقُونَ إِلاَّ بِضُعَفَائِكُمْ »
You receive no aid or livelihood except through
(the blessings and invocations of) the weak amongst you. [1]
Allah f grants us help and our sustenance because of those who are weak, ill or disabled. They may not have any value in society but in the eyes of Allah f, their status is great.
- The third type of oppression is to oppress ourselves.
Allah f mentions:
﴿ وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيَظْلِمَهُمْ وَلَـٰكِن كَانُوٓا أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ ﴾
And Allah f did not wrong them but they were
themselves doing wrong. [29:40]
This verse is regarding those people who did not follow the teachings and commands of their Prophets p.
STORY OF NAMRŪD
Let us not forget the story of Namrūd. He was the king at the time of Ibrāhīm n. Namrūd believed that he was the most powerful being that existed – he claimed to be God just like Fir‘awn did. He tried to protect himself from death, enclosing himself in a palace so that death wouldn’t reach him.
He didn’t realise that death comes to man wherever he is. Allah f says:
﴿ أَيْنَمَا تَكُونُوا يُدْرِككُّمُ الْمَوْتُ وَلَوْ كُنتُمْ فِى بُرُوجٍ مُّشَيَّدَةٍ ﴾
Wherever you may be, death will overtake you,
even if you are in lofty towers. [4:78]
This man who claimed to be God was brought down by a tiny mosquito!
A mosquito entered the brain of Namrūd through his nose and started eating it. The intensity of the pain drove Namrūd mad, and he started getting his head beaten with a thick stick.
When his head was beaten with a thick stick, the mosquito would stop biting, but when his head was not beaten with a thick stick, it would start biting.
Namrūd was in a disgraceful situation. The person who would slap his head hard was regarded as his sympathizer!
It is said that four hundred years passed in this same situation, with his head being beaten with a thick stick and slapped hard. Finally, Namrūd died in disgrace. [2]
This is just one example of how Allah f destroys a tyrant in this world. Allah f makes mention in the Qur’ān of the different tyrants in history and explains how they were destroyed. He says for example:
﴿ وَقَـٰرُونَ وَفِرْعَوْنَ وَهَـٰمَـٰنَ ۖ وَلَقَدْ جَآءَهُم مُّوسَىٰ بِالْبَيِّنَـٰتِ فَاسْتَكْبَرُوا فِى الْأَرْضِ وَمَا كَانُوا سَـٰبِقِينَ فَكُلًّا أَخَذْنَا بِذَنْبِهِۢۦ ۖ فَمِنْهُم مَّنْ أَرْسَلْنَا عَلَيْهِ حَاصِبًا وَّمِنْهُم مَّنْ أَخَذَتْهُ الصَّيْحَةُ وَمِنْهُم مَّنْ خَسَفْنَا بِهِ الْأَرْضَ وَمِنْهُم مَّنْ أَغْرَقْنَا ۚ وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيَظْلِمَهُمْ وَلَـٰكِن كَانُوٓا أَنفُسَهُمْ يَظْلِمُونَ ﴾
And Qārūn, and Fir‘aun and Hāmān (We destroyed). And Mūsā certainly came to them with clear proofs, but they were arrogant in the earth, and they could not outstrip Us. So, each We seized for his sin. Then of them was he who upon whom We sent a violent storm, and of them was he who was seized by the awful cry, and of them was he who We caused the earth to swallow him, and of them was he who We drowned. And
Allah did not wrong them, but they were themselves doing wrong. [29:39]
May Allah f save us from all types of oppression. We ask Allah f to save us from oppressing others and from being oppressed by others. Āmīn.
[1] Bukhārī, 2896.
[2] Al-Ṣan‘ānī, A. R. Muṣannaf ‘Abd al-Razzāq, 8:367; Ibn Kathīr, Tafsīr al-Qur’ān al-‘Aẓīm, 4:566.
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“The best among you (Muslims) are those who learn the Qur’an and teach it.”
The Prophet (peace be upon him)
