At the beginning of Islam and the Islamic Revolution, pre-Islamic Arabs and their socio-political organisations, which defined social goodness and humility, were based on tribe, race and language. Blood relations and tribal ties were the key to their unity. It was an aberration of modern nationalism and racism. Language was also considered a symbol of social superiority.
The Islamic Revolution abolished this idea and the tribal organising system. The profound slogan La ilaha illah dominated all relations based on blood, land and language. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) who founded a classless global Islamic community wiped out tribalism and united many nations. Three disciples of the Blessed Messenger from three different nations namely, Salman from Persia, Bilal from Rome and Suhaib from Ethiopia, were referred by Gais Ibn Mutataba as foreigners.
The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) said, “He who propagates his faith in the unity of the tribe and fights for it and sacrifices his own life is not one of us.” The dominance of nationalism and the tribal prejudices have been a huge wall against the Dawah praxis of Islam. That prompted the Quraish and other nations to oppose the Prophet of Islam. They asked why the Qur’an was not given to the nobles of Makkah and Ta’if. They asked: Why did this Qur’an not reveal itself to a prominent person in two cities?
The Arab tribesmen, who had a limited tribal outlook, wondered why the Prophet did not favour the tribes and wanted to be greater than his own tribe. Even Abujahl explicitly said that: “We are equal in kindness. How then can they claim prophethood and divine revelation?” Thus, the inbuilt and intrinsic racial and tribal prejudice of the Jew community also led the long-awaited Prophethood to stand against Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him). So they rejected the truth. They wondered why the Prophet was not from Ismail’s lineage and not of Israel’s lineage. So they gathered the disbelievers and the polytheists against the believers.
The hypocrites of Madinah also used nationalism as an evil weapon to blow fire against Muslims. Abdullah bin Ubayyi, the leader of the pseudo-Muslims of Madinah, was a keen nationalist. He was a constant inspiration to the people of Madinah in the name of nationalism. He told the people in Medinah: “Some fellows have come from other nations. They are attacking us. They are like dogs barking at us for violence. It’s wrong to make those foreigners partners of your country and wealth. If you stop helping them, they’ll leave today.” “They are the ones who say, “Do not spend on those who are with the Messenger of Allah until they disband.”
And to Allah belongs the depositories of the heavens and the earth, but the hypocrites do not understand. They say, “If we return to al-Madinah, the more honoured [for power] will surely expel therefrom the more humble.” And to Allah belongs [all] honour, and to His Messenger, and to the believers, but the hypocrites do not know”. (63:7,8) This Qur’anic ayah was revealed in response to this false statement.
Following are the dangerous dimensions faced by Islam on the basis of tribal and nationalist sentiments. After the denial of God and polytheism, Islam’s biggest enemy is hatred based on blood relations, land, pride and tribal sentiment. The Prophet struggled until these obstacles in the way of Islamic divine guidance were removed. This animosity between Islam and nationalism is not a new phenomenon. It emerged in the very first times of Islam. Tribal worship and tribalism have always been a threat to Islam. National Arabs pride themselves on being Arabs, rather than Muslims. Thus the very existence of Islam is threatened. That is why Islam has always been against nationalism.