Surah Al-Hujurat, Ayah 10

Making Peace between Disputing Muslims

Allah commands making peace between Muslims that fight each other,

وَإِن طَآئِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُواْ فَأَصْلِحُواْ بَيْنَهُمَا

(And if two parties among the believers fall to fighting, then make peace between them both.) Therefore, Allah calls both opposing groups among Muslims, believers, although they are fighting each other. Al-Bukhari and other scholars relied on this Hadith as evidence that committing a sin does not nullify faith, no matter how major the sin is. This creed contradicts the creed of the Khawarij sect and those who accepted their idea, such as the Mu`tazilah sect. Al-Bukhari narrated that Al-Hasan said that Abu Bakrah said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gave a speech on the Minbar while Al-Hasan bin `Ali was with him. He was repeatedly looking at Al-Hasan and then at the people; then said,

Linkage

In the foregoing verses the rights of the Prophet were set out. They also laid down the mannerism in which he should be treated. The verses prohibited any act that would annoy or hurt him. Now this set of verses [ 9-10] establishes the manners, mores, injunctions, and mutual rights and obligations to be observed in individual and social life. The common value of all these rules is to avoid causing any inconvenience to the members of the society.

Occasion of Revelation

The commentators have narrated several incidents as a background of the revelation of these verses. Among them is the clash that took place between two Muslim groups. It is not inconceivable that the totality of these incidents might have been the occasion of revelation. It is also possible that one of these incidents has been the cause of revelation and the other incidents, being similar, were also termed as the occasion of revelation.

How should Muslims live and behave with each other? The short answer to this question is that they should live with each other as brothers. A religious relationship is in no way less important than a blood relationship. If two Muslims quarrel with each other, other Muslims should never add fuel to the fire. On the contrary, under the influence of brotherly feelings, they should make every effort to bring about a compromise between the two. If two Muslims quarrel with each other, one alternative is for other Muslims to adopt a neutral posture. If they do intervene, or their family or group cause them to take the side of their ‘own’ people and fight against the other ‘alien’ people, either course is contrary to Islamic principles. The right Islamic way is to investigate the real issue, and the one who is right should be supported and the one in the wrong should be compelled to accept a just solution to the problem. One who fears God can never relish the sight of people fighting with each other. In fact, he will be extremely uneasy at such a sight, and his true nature will compel him to make efforts to improve relations between the two parties. These are the people whose faith in God causes the opening of the door to God’s graces.