Question: Several authentic Hadiths have been narrated regarding the "Victorious Group" (at-Ta'ifah az-Zahirah). What is the interpretation of these Hadiths? Does it apply to the scholars of Usul or the scholars of Hadith, as mentioned in some opinions? Furthermore, we sometimes hear this or that group claiming to be the Victorious Group; how can we discern this? May Allah bless you.
Answer: The answer to your question consists of two parts:
First: The interpretation of the Hadiths regarding the Victorious Group. Second: How to deal with these Hadiths.
As for the first part, several Hadiths have been narrated concerning the Victorious Group:
Bukhari narrated via Al-Mughirah bin Shu'bah that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
لَا يَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي ظَاهِرِينَ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَهُمْ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ وَهُمْ ظَاهِرُونَ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to be manifest until the command of Allah comes to them while they are manifest." (Narrated by Bukhari)
Muslim narrated via Thawban that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي ظَاهِرِينَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ خَذَلَهُمْ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ وَهُمْ كَذَلِكَ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to be manifest upon the truth; those who desert them will not harm them until the command of Allah comes while they are in that state." (Narrated by Muslim)
Muslim narrated via Jabir bin Abdullah who said: I heard the Prophet (saw) saying:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي يُقَاتِلُونَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ قَالَ فَيَنْزِلُ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَيَقُولُ أَمِيرُهُمْ تَعَالَ صَلِّ لَنَا فَيَقُولُ لَا إِنَّ بَعْضَكُمْ عَلَى بَعْضٍ أُمَرَاءُ تَكْرِمَةَ اللَّهِ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةَ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to fight upon the truth, being manifest until the Day of Resurrection. He said: Then Jesus, the son of Mary (as), will descend, and their leader will say: 'Come and lead us in prayer.' He will reply: 'No, some of you are leaders over others, as an honor from Allah to this Ummah.'" (Narrated by Muslim)
Muslim also narrated that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
وَلَا تَزَالُ عِصَابَةٌ مِنْ الْمُسْلِمِينَ يُقَاتِلُونَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ عَلَى مَنْ نَاوَأَهُمْ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ
"A group of Muslims will continue to fight upon the truth, manifest over those who oppose them until the Day of Resurrection." (Narrated by Muslim)
Muslim narrated via Uqbah bin Amir who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw) saying:
لَا تَزَالُ عِصَابَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي يُقَاتِلُونَ عَلَى أَمْرِ اللَّهِ قَاهِرِينَ لِعَدُوِّهِمْ لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ خَالَفَهُمْ حَتَّى تَأْتِيَهُمُ السَّاعَةُ وَهُمْ عَلَى ذَلِكَ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to fight upon the command of Allah, overpowering their enemy; those who oppose them will not harm them until the Hour reaches them while they are in that state." (Narrated by Muslim)
Muslim narrated via Muawiyah who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw) saying:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي قَائِمَةً بِأَمْرِ اللَّهِ لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ خَذَلَهُمْ أَوْ خَالَفَهُمْ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ وَهُمْ ظَاهِرُونَ عَلَى النَّاسِ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to stand by the command of Allah; those who desert them or oppose them will not harm them until the command of Allah comes while they are manifest over the people." (Narrated by Muslim)
Tirmidhi narrated via Thawban that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ يَخْذُلُهُمْ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to be manifest upon the truth; those who desert them will not harm them until the command of Allah comes." (Narrated by Tirmidhi)
Abu Dawud narrated via Imran bin Husayn that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي يُقَاتِلُونَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ عَلَى مَنْ نَاوَأَهُمْ حَتَّى يُقَاتِلَ آخِرُهُمُ الْمَسِيحَ الدَّجَّالَ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to fight upon the truth, manifest over those who oppose them until the last of them fights the False Messiah (Al-Masih ad-Dajjal)." (Narrated by Abu Dawud)
Imam Ahmad narrated via Jabir bin Abdullah who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah (saw) saying:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي يُقَاتِلُونَ عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to fight upon the truth, manifest until the Day of Resurrection." (Narrated by Ahmad)
Ahmad also narrated that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said:
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ لَعَدُوِّهِمْ قَاهِرِينَ لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ خَالَفَهُمْ إِلَّا مَا أَصَابَهُمْ مِنْ لَأْوَاءَ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَهُمْ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ وَهُمْ كَذَلِكَ قَالُوا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَأَيْنَ هُمْ؟ قَالَ: بِبَيْتِ الْمَقْدِسِ وَأَكْنَافِ بَيْتِ الْمَقْدِسِ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to be manifest upon the truth, overpowering their enemy; those who oppose them will not harm them, except for the hardship that strikes them, until the command of Allah comes while they are in that state. They asked: 'O Messenger of Allah, where are they?' He said: 'In Jerusalem (Bayt al-Maqdis) and the surrounding areas of Jerusalem.'" (Narrated by Ahmad)
Al-Tabarani (in Al-Kabir):
لَا تَزَالُ طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ أُمَّتِي عَلَى الْحَقِّ ظَاهِرِينَ عَلَى مَنْ يَغْزُوهُمْ قَاهِرِينَ لَا يَضُرُّهُمْ مَنْ نَاوَأَهُمْ حَتَّى يَأْتِيَهُمْ أَمْرُ اللَّهِ وَهُمْ كَذَلِكَ قِيلَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَأَيْنَ هُمْ قَالَ بِبَيْتِ الْمَقْدِسِ
"A group of my Ummah will continue to be manifest upon the truth, manifest over those who invade them, overpowering; those who oppose them will not harm them until the command of Allah comes while they are in that state. It was said: 'O Messenger of Allah, where are they?' He said: 'In Jerusalem.'"
In the Hadith of Abu Umamah in Ahmad, it is mentioned that they are in Jerusalem. Al-Tabarani narrated something similar from the Hadith of Al-Nahdi. In the Hadith of Abu Hurairah in Al-Tabarani's Al-Awsat: "They fight at the gates of Damascus and its surroundings, and at the gates of Jerusalem and its surroundings; those who desert them will not harm them, being manifest until the Day of Resurrection." (From Fath al-Bari)
"A group of my Ummah will continue to fight at the gates of Damascus and its surroundings and at the gates of Jerusalem and its surroundings; the desertion of those who desert them will not harm them, being manifest upon the truth until the Hour is established." (Kanz al-Ummal by Al-Muttaqi al-Hindi)
By contemplating these Hadiths and combining them, the following becomes clear regarding this group:
- It is a part of the Muslims and not all Muslims, because linguistically, at-ta'ifah means a piece or a segment of a thing. Every piece of a thing is a ta'ifah of it. It is stated in Al-Qamus: "The ta'ifah of a thing: the piece of it."
- It is upright upon the truth, meaning Islam: "Standing by the command of Allah."
- It fights for it, i.e., in His cause: "Fighting upon the truth," "Fighting upon the command of Allah."
- It possesses power and strength (shawkah), fighting the enemy's army, overpowering them, and defeating them decisively with a manifest and witnessed victory: "Fighting upon the truth, manifest over those who oppose them," "Fighting upon the command of Allah, overpowering their enemy."
- This group "fights at the gates of Damascus and its surroundings and at the gates of Jerusalem and its surroundings." Thus, they fight the enemy and are victorious over them in the regions of Ash-Sham and its surroundings.
These descriptions indicate that this group stands upon Islam, fights in its cause, and possesses the strength that enables it to defeat the enemy decisively and manifestly. Enemies consist of states and armies, and the group that overpowers them must be a strong Muslim army within an Islamic state, led by the Khalifah or the army commander, fighting the enemy and inflicting a crushing defeat upon them, prevailing over them. It originates from Ash-Sham and its surroundings, establishing a state and an army, fighting the enemy, and prevailing. This means that this group is either the owner of a state and an army that defeats the enemy, or it is working to establish a state and an army and then defeats the enemy and prevails over them.
I believe this applied to the era of the Messenger (saw) and his Companions in fighting the enemy and prevailing over them.
I also believe it applied to the early period of Islam in fighting the enemy and prevailing, and to every Khalifah and army leader in the Islamic State who fought the enemy and was victorious.
I believe this applied to Salahuddin and his army in defeating the Crusaders, as well as to Qutuz, Baibars, and their army in defeating the Tatars.
I also believe it applies to us because we are working to establish a strong Islamic State—the Rightly Guided Khilafah—that fights the disbelieving enemy, defeats them, prevails over them, and achieves a witnessed victory. It will eliminate the Jewish entity and conquer Rome, as the Messenger of Allah (saw) gave us the glad tidings.
This is what I believe and consider most likely.
However, this group does not apply to any group that is not an Islamic state or an army within an Islamic state because, without a state and an army, it cannot overpower the enemy or achieve a witnessed prevalence. Without a state or an army within a state, it cannot eliminate the Jewish entity or defeat America or Britain...
Consequently, it does not apply to groups, without a state or an army, that fight the enemy, because the description of the Victorious Group is not merely fighting, but fighting that overpowers the enemy and prevails over them. The enemy is a state and an army, and groups without a state and an army do not overpower them. Likewise, it does not apply to any group that does not work to establish an Islamic state—a Khilafah—because if they are not such, they will not overpower states and armies. Therefore, fighting and prevailing over the enemy, whether already existing or being prepared for, is a fundamental description of this group.
Accordingly, it does not apply to the scholars of Hadith or Usul unless they are working to establish a state that fights and prevails over the enemy, overpowers them, and achieves victory.
As for what was mentioned in Sahih al-Bukhari:
(Chapter: The statement of the Prophet (saw): "A group of my Ummah will continue to be manifest upon the truth, fighting, and they are the people of knowledge"), the phrase "and they are the people of knowledge" is from the words of the author (Bukhari) and not from the words of the Messenger (saw). It was stated in the commentary on the chapter by Al-Asqalani in Fath al-Bari:
"...His saying: 'and they are the people of knowledge' is from the words of the author."
It is worth noting that any group that fights the enemy with sincerity (ikhlas) has a reward even if they are unable to prevail over the enemy and defeat them. Even individual fighting against the enemy with sincerity carries a reward. Any group that carries out any good deed has a reward, even if it is an individual act. Any group engaged in the sciences of Islam, whether in Usul or Hadith, has a reward even if it is individual work.
However, the issue here is not about that, but about describing this or that group as the Victorious Group.
Describing it as the Victorious Group must fulfill what was mentioned regarding it in the Hadiths of the Messenger of Allah (saw).
The interpretation of these Hadiths, after collecting and contemplating them together, is what I mentioned earlier. This is what I prefer and see as correct.
As for the term "will continue" (la yazalu), it does not mean non-interruption; rather, it means that the prevalence over the enemy will occur successively at intervals until the Day of Resurrection. That is, their victory over the enemy will not happen once and then the enemy returns to defeat us forever; rather, our victory will recur at intervals until the Day of Resurrection. This is what has happened: we prevailed over the disbelievers and were victorious in the early days of Islam, then it followed thereafter that we were defeated and then victorious: {And these days [of varying fortunes] We alternate among the people}. There were the Crusaders, and then came their defeat; there were the Tatars, and then came their defeat; then we weakened, then we returned and conquered Constantinople and it became Islambol... then the Khilafah was destroyed, and it is returning by the will of Allah, and it will eliminate the Jewish entity that occupied Palestine, and it will conquer Rome by the will of Allah. That described group will remain fighting for the truth until the last of them fights the False Messiah. One of the striking things in the Hadith is that when Jesus (as) descends shortly before the Day of Resurrection, he finds a state and a leader for the Muslims, and subsequently, victory over the enemy and a witnessed prevalence.
Thus, "will continue" does not mean non-interruption, but rather that the world will not be devoid of periods in which Muslims defeat the enemy with a decisive and witnessed victory until the Day of Resurrection.
This is similar to the Prophet's (saw) statement narrated by Bukhari:
لَنْ يَزَالُ أَمْرُ هَذِهِ الْأُمَّةِ مُسْتَقِيمًا حَتَّى تَقُومَ السَّاعَةُ
"The affair of this Ummah will continue to be upright until the Hour is established."
This does not mean that the uprightness of the Ummah will remain continuous, for the uprightness of the Ummah's affair was interrupted at periods, especially after the destruction of the Khilafah.
Rather, it means that this world will not be devoid of the uprightness of this Ummah's affair until the Day of Resurrection. Its affair will not become "crooked" and then never return to uprightness, nor will its Khilafah vanish and then never return; rather, it returns, and whenever it becomes crooked, it returns. Thus, uprightness for the Ummah is recurring at intervals until the Day of Resurrection.
This is the first part of the answer, and this is what I prefer in the matter, but I do not state definitively that there is no other interpretation; however, I prefer that this is the correct one.
As for the second part, handling these Hadiths:
It must be handled practically, just as the Companions (ra) and the Successors (Tabi'un) handled the Hadiths of the Messenger (saw) that gave glad tidings and news of matters containing good for the Muslims. When they heard and read the Hadith of the Messenger of Allah (saw) about the conquest of Constantinople and Rome, each one was keen for this glad tiding to be fulfilled at his hands until Allah willed that Muhammad al-Fatih (rh) attained the virtue of conquering the first, which became Islambol. They heard the Hadith and set out to work diligently so it would be realized at their hands to attain the good Allah described for the conqueror: "What a wonderful leader that leader shall be, and what a wonderful army that army shall be." Many Caliphs sent armies to conquer Constantinople, and many Companions, even the elderly among them like Abu Ayyub (ra), participated in those armies to attain this great virtue.
Likewise, the Hadith of the Victorious Group: the Messenger of Allah (saw) informed us of its descriptions and explained its virtue, and that it will fight the enemy, be victorious, overpower them, and prevail manifestly. This only occurs with an Islamic state and a Muslim army that defeats the disbelieving states and their armies. So, let us roll up our sleeves, gird our loins, and hasten our pace to establish the State of Islam, the Rightly Guided Khilafah, and be in its army, fighting the enemy, overpowering them, being victorious, and prevailing manifestly. By this, we hope from Allah (swt) that we will be among that group mentioned by the Messenger (saw) in his noble Hadiths.
Furthermore, there is a matter of utmost importance: the issue is not for this group to say it is the Victorious Group or that group. Rather, the issue is that whoever wishes to be the Victorious Group must realize its described characteristics. He must work to establish an Islamic state and an Islamic army that fights the disbelieving enemy—America, Britain, the Jews, etc.—overpowers them, and prevails over them. Then he will be pointed out as being from the Victorious Group. Whoever wants to be from the Victorious Group must do what leads him, by Allah's permission, to realizing its descriptions of overpowering the enemy and achieving victory and prevalence.
We ask Allah (swt) that we be among them, that we witness the establishment of the Islamic State, the Rightly Guided Khilafah, and that we be among the soldiers of Islam who defeat the enemy, overpower them, and prevail.
And Allah (swt) is the Helper of whoever helps His cause, and He (swt) is the All-Powerful, the Almighty.
7th Ramadan 1425 AH
21/10/2004 CE