From the past to the present, the way Islam has to be practised never change. What has changed is the meanings or definitions that every Muslim gives to Islam. What Islam is to individual, determines the level of such one’s activities and contribution to its propagation and development.
One of the reasons that many give which determines the level of those one’s activities is traced to the source of their Islam or perhaps, the types of Islam embraced. After the era of Sahabah-the companions of the Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W), their followers continued the struggle from where they had stopped. They did a lot to preserve the teachings of Islam as expounded by the Prophet and his companions. Then, after their era, the struggle continued from the students left behind. They managed to preach, teach, preserve and transmit the religion in its pristine form.
These beautiful periods are the glorious periods in Islamic history and later followed by another generations of Muslims who were divided into right followers and heretics. Many heretical sects sprang up. Each sect managed to hoist part of the whole pure Islamic teachings. Interestingly, each sect gained large followers, while the practical teaching and explanation of rightly guided flag bearers of true Islam started to lose credibility.
After the passing away of these glorious periods, Islam spread to various regions, such as Africa, China, Indian as well as Byzantine; Persian and Roman Empires and then the existing unislamic beliefs of these people came to be mixed with pure Islam. At this point, many heretic scholars sprang up, and they gained much prominence. Not only that, Christian and Jewish doctrines were mixed with Islamic doctrines. Gradually, the Ummah started weakening morally, spiritually and academically.
What affected the academic must certainly have affected the spiritual. No aspect was spared. People started transmitting false hadeeths. Quranic exegesis was expounded to suit heretic beliefs. Inundations in the religion became widespread. There was mass moral decay. The rulers became less spiritual. The Caliphacy unfortunately became monarchy. The scholars became stooges of the rulers. The whole Ummah was into confusion and chaos.
Islam In Yorubaland Needs Rebranding – Sheikh Daood Imran Molaasan
During this period, Nigerian Southerners; especially the Yoruba came in contact with Islam and that tells much of what types of Islam they embrace and practise. But in the north the story was different. The struggle Yoruba had, was mainly on Education, to free themselves from the group of Christian missionary and their schools that served as platforms through which Muslims were converted to Christianity.
Their fathers in the North established “near to complete” Islam, created a religious milieu similar to what obtained in Africa countries, such as Egypt, Songhai, Mali and the rest. They continually protected the Islam and its empire on their soil from heresies and foreign domination.
Even, when their Islam was finally adultereated, Uthman Dan Fodio led the struggle to purify it, to eradicate idol worship and purge all forms of distortion and heretical innovation from the Religion.
He preached the teachings of the Quran and Sunnah and encouraged the Muslims of that time to return to orthodox Islam. This jihad did not only have a religious undertone, it was also political in the sense that it was able to unify the Hausa states under one government (the Sokoto caliphate) administered and governed by the totally purified Shariah law.
This continued until the partition of the caliphate in 1903 and its eventual incorporation into Nigeria; thereby the Sultan’s power was transferred to the High Commissioner. However, many aspects of the caliphate structure, including the Islamic legal system, were retained and used in the colonial era.
As regards the structure of the caliphate, he established central bureaucracy which was limited to a loyal and honest vizier, judges, a chief of police, collector of taxes and local administration which were all in the hands of governors (Emirs) who were selected from scholarly class based on their piety, integrity and sense of justice.
What we are trying to establish here is that, in the Northern part of Nigeria, Islamic revival, Islamic structure/establishment, a call for Islamic awakening and struggle against imperialist are part of their history. But here in the Southern part, especially the Yorubas, from the past to the present, there has never been a trace of any Islamic struggle or generations who have ever championed the cause of Islamic revival that would have given the Muslim freedom in all aspects.
So, if the past generation had failed, we are expecting the present generation of Yoruba Muslims to channel a new path for Islamic awakening. This is what Oluwo, the Emir of Yorubaland, Oba Abdul Rasheed Adewale Akanbi has begun. Unanimously, let us make Iwo our Medina, the headquarters of Yoruba Islam.
Sheikh Daood Imran Molaasan,
Ameer Taawun and the Grand Mufti of Yorubaland.
