The Hejaz Railway

 

A century ago, the Ottoman empire came to and end and so did the caliphate. With that came to an end the singularity of the ummah (the followers of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ). I dare not say unity of the ummah, because it was the gnawing away, by the enemies of Islam, at this singularity that caused division in Muslim lands. The enemies needed to end the caliphate.

How is this important to us in Cape Town. Firstly, we are part of the global ummah. Now that word “global” with reference to “ummah” is redundant because a Muslim naturally is attached to the body of Muslims. Secondly, as an illustration of our connection to the Caliphate, the Muslims of South Africa, although under British rule in the early twentieth century, sent a monetary contribution towards the Hijaz railway project. Now, we (our forebears of the time) were not going to benefit from this project because it was from Istanbul to the Hijaz. However, that singularity in that when the Caliph (Abdul Hamid II) called for financial assistance, Muslims the world over responded, even those who were not under the Ottoman Empire.  Two things become important in our discussions. Firstly, it is the singularity that we are one when we have a single leader. This is something clearly seen through a “political” structure. Unity is the manifestation in our hearts and minds of this singularity and that this ummah is a single brotherhood. The caliphate fell because the unity was disturbed when love and understanding became secondary to selfish interests – to put it in a simplistic way. While the unity was brittle, the singularity gave hope that this unity can be mended. Today, we have neither learned from history, largely because we are ignorant and oblivious of the past, nor have we a sense of moving beyond the yoke of what these same colonisers have placed upon us. Accepting a system which challenges our morals, our values and our beliefs means that we are not preparing for this singularity. All this is possible because unity is a mere ball being kicked around and its benefits have not translated beyond lip service.

Your intention is what matters most and then which team you join. If you want South Africa great or America great, then that’s your intention. Ultimately, you can only join one team. You decide but the right team will win, with or without you. Our forefathers sent money for the Hijaz Railway Project because they wanted to be part of the right team.

 

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Picture courtesy: https://commons.wikimedia.org