Liberalism: Misleading Unrestricted Freedom
In this modern era, the word “freedom” has transformed into a kind of sacred mantra worshipped by millions of humans. In the name of freedom, moral boundaries are breached, sacred religious values are challenged, and traditional family structures are destroyed. The ideology that drives this limitless worship is Liberalism.
At a glance, liberalism offers a very intoxicating promise: absolute individual independence. However, if we look deeper with the clarity of reason and the guidance of revelation, we will find that liberalism is actually leading humanity toward the most humiliating abyss of servitude—servitude to desires. This article will invite us to dismantle the illusion of liberal freedom, delve into its destructive impacts based on Mafahim Hizbut Tahrir and Nizhamul Ijtima’iyyah fil Islam, and rediscover the true meaning of freedom in the embrace of Islam.
1. Introduction: Lulled by the Illusion of Freedom in a Golden Cage
Dear readers, let us reflect for a moment. Have we ever felt that the world today is increasingly “free,” yet ironically, humans feel increasingly lonely, anxious, and directionless? In countries that claim to be champions of freedom, we instead see high rates of depression, suicide, and the destruction of family institutions.
Liberalism arrives offering freedom from all religious and traditional rules, promising that humans will achieve maximum happiness if left to do whatever they want. However, this promise is merely a mirage. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala has reminded us over a dozen centuries ago about the danger of pursuing unchecked desires:
أَرَأَيْتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ إِلَٰهَهُ هَوَاهُ أَفَأَنْتَ تَكُونُ عَلَيْهِ وَكِيلًا
“Have you seen the one who takes his own desire as his god? Then would you be responsible for him?” (QS. Al-Furqan: 43)
This verse very sharply describes the core of liberalism. When someone rejects God’s rules, they do not then become free. They merely change gods; from serving the Creator, to serving their own desires. This kind of freedom is like placing humans inside a golden cage with an open door, but outside that cage lies an abyss of destruction ready to swallow them.
Let us dissect in depth what liberalism is and how it works to poison common sense and human civilization.
2. Dissecting the Meaning of Liberalism: When Freedom Is Made a New God
In Islamic tsaqofah, particularly as explained in the book Mafahim Hizbut Tahrir, every thought must be placed in its proper definition so we can assess it objectively.
اللِّيْبِرَالِيَّةُ: هِيَ مَذْهَبٌ يَجْعَلُ الْحُرِّيَّةَ الْفَرْدِيَّةَ فَوْقَ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ
“Al-Liberaliyyah (liberalism) is a doctrine that places individual freedom above everything.”
Liberalism is the offspring of secularism (separation of religion from life). If secularism removes religion from the public sphere, then liberalism fills that empty space with one supreme value: Individual Rights and Freedom.
The core of this ideology is: “Every individual has full sovereignty over themselves and is free to do anything, as long as it does not harm others (harm principle).”
Does that sound reasonable? Wait a moment. The critical question is: Who has the right to determine the boundaries of “harming” or “not harming”?
In liberalism, human intellect determines it. As a result, standards of right and wrong become highly relative and constantly changing. To see the contrast, let us examine the following comparison table of truth standards:
| Assessment Aspect | Liberalism View | Comprehensive Islamic View |
|---|---|---|
| Source of Law | Human intellect and social consensus (relative) | Allah’s Revelation (Qur’an and Sunnah) which is absolute |
| Center of Sovereignty | Individual (Sovereignty in the hands of the people/individual) | Sharia (Sovereignty in the hands of Allah’s law) |
| Moral Standard | Material happiness and desire satisfaction | Halal and Haram according to the Creator’s decree |
| Action Boundary | As long as it does not physically/financially harm others | As long as it does not violate Allah’s Sharia boundaries |
| Ultimate Goal | Maximizing worldly pleasure | Attaining Allah’s pleasure and salvation in the hereafter |
From the table above, it is clear that liberalism makes humans gods over themselves. They are free to make laws that legalize what Allah has forbidden, and forbid what Allah has made lawful.
3. Traces of Liberalism’s Birth: A Reaction to Oppression That Overstepped Boundaries
Like secularism, liberalism was not born in a vacuum. It is a specific product of European history. To understand why this ideology so deifies freedom, we must look back at the condition of Europe in the Middle Ages.
At that time, European society lived under double oppression: Church Authority that constrained freedom of thought (even sentencing scientists who disagreed to death), and Absolute Royal Power that claimed to rule in God’s name (Divine Right of Kings), which squeezed the people with high taxes and oppressed them as slaves.
This suffocating condition gave birth to fierce resistance from thinkers like John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Voltaire in the 17th and 18th centuries. They challenged that absolute power by shouting the slogan: “Humans are born free!”
They demanded freedom from church dogma and freedom from royal tyranny. These demands then crystallized after the French Revolution (1789) and gave birth to the capitalism-democracy system based on liberal values.
ظَهَرَ الْفَسَادُ فِي الْبَرِّ وَالْبَحْرِ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِي النَّاسِ لِيُذِيقَهُمْ بَعْضَ الَّذِي عَمِلُوا لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ
“Corruption has appeared throughout the land and sea by [reason of] what the hands of people have earned so He may let them taste part of [the consequence of] what they have done that perhaps they will return [to righteousness].” (QS. Ar-Rum: 41)
The main problem is that the solution offered by Western thinkers was reactionary and extreme. Because of the trauma of being oppressed by religious rules (the Church), they ended up throwing away all religious rules and worshipping absolute freedom. They thought they had escaped from the mouth of the tiger, but they actually entered the mouth of the crocodile. They forced this wrong medicine upon the Muslim Ummah, even though Muslims never experienced a history of oppression by scholars or a Khilafah that rejected science!
4. The Wild Horse and Rudderless Ship Analogies
To illustrate how destructive the liberal ideology is, let us use two strong and easy-to-understand visual analogies.
First Analogy: The Strong Wild Horse
Imagine human potential (intellect, emotion, and desires) like a wild horse that is very strong, agile, and runs fast.
- In the Islamic view: That wild horse must be fitted with reins (Islamic Sharia) and controlled by a skilled rider (intellect that submits to revelation). With those reins, the horse can run fast yet remain directed, not hitting others, and safely arrive at its destination.
- In the Liberal view: Liberalism releases those reins and says, “Let the horse run freely wherever it wants! Restraining it is a violation of human rights!” What happens? The horse may run very fast because it feels free, but before long it will fall into a ravine, hit a wall, or injure itself and those around it.
Second Analogy: The Tanker Ship Without a Rudder
Imagine a society is a giant tanker ship sailing in the vast ocean.
- The Islamic System provides an accurate compass (Qur’an) and a captain (Khalifah) who holds the helm (Sharia) to direct the ship toward the port of safety.
- The Liberal System comes, removes the ship’s rudder, throws the compass into the sea, and says to all passengers: “Everyone is free to direct this ship in any direction they wish!” The result is not freedom, but chaos, collisions, wasted fuel, and eventually the ship is wrecked by a storm.
This is the reality of liberalism: freedom without direction that ends in collective destruction!
5. The Four Deceptive Pillars of Freedom: Dismantling the Human Rights Myth
In the book Mafahim Hizbut Tahrir, Sheikh Taqiuddin an-Nabhani explains that the Capitalist-Secular ideology stands on four pillars of freedom (Al-Hurriyyat Al-Arba’). These four pillars are the main weapons of liberalism to destroy the foundations of the Muslim Ummah’s life. Let us dismantle them one by one.
1. Freedom of Religion (Hurriyyah Al-‘Aqidah)
Liberalism claims every human is free to choose religion, be non-religious (atheist), or change religions (apostasy) at will. Religion is considered like clothing that can be changed at any time. Islamic View: Islam does not force disbelievers to enter Islam. However, for a Muslim, leaving Islam (apostasy) is a great crime of betrayal against absolute truth.
وَمَنْ يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ الْإِسْلَامِ دِينًا فَلَنْ يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ وَهُوَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
“And whoever desires other than Islam as religion - never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers.” (QS. Ali ‘Imran: 85)
2. Freedom of Opinion (Hurriyyah Ar-Ra’y)
In the name of freedom of expression, liberalism legalizes insulting the Prophet, religious desecration, spreading pornography, and campaigning for deviant thoughts (such as LGBT). Islamic View: Islam encourages freedom of opinion to voice the truth (enjoining good and forbidding evil) and to correct oppressive rulers (muhasabah lil hukkam). However, Islam forbids freedom of opinion used to insult Islamic symbols, spread slander, or promote immorality.
مَا يَلْفِظُ مِنْ قَوْلٍ إِلَّا لَدَيْهِ رَقِيبٌ عَتِيدٌ
“Man does not utter any word except that with him is an observer prepared [to record].” (QS. Qaf: 18)
3. Freedom of Ownership (Hurriyyah Al-Milkiyyah)
This is the economic pillar of liberalism (Capitalism). Every individual is free to amass wealth as much as possible by any means—including usury, gambling, monopoly, and privatization of public natural resources. Islamic View: Islam acknowledges individual ownership, but limits it with Sharia-compliant causes of ownership. Usury is forbidden, natural resources (such as mines, water, forests) are designated as public property that cannot be controlled by individuals/corporations, and there is an obligatory zakat for those who are able.
4. Freedom of Behavior (Hurriyyah Asy-Syakhshiyyah)
This is the most morally destructive pillar. Liberalism legalizes adultery, cohabitation, LGBT, abortion, and hedonistic lifestyles, as long as done on the basis of “mutual consent” (consent). Islamic View: Islam regulates the interaction between men and women strictly to protect honor and lineage. Adultery and homosexuality are major sins threatened with firm punishment in this world (hudud) and painful torment in the hereafter.
وَلَا تَقْرَبُوا الزِّنَا ۖ إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَاحِشَةً وَسَاءَ سَبِيلًا
“And do not approach unlawful sexual intercourse. Indeed, it is ever an immorality and is evil as a way.” (QS. Al-Isra’: 32)
6. The Destructive Impact of Liberalism on Social Order and Family
The book Nizhamul Ijtima’iyyah fil Islam (The Social System in Islam) explains in detail how liberalism has destroyed the smallest and most important institution in society: The Family.
When freedom of behavior is glorified, the sexual instinct (gharizah an-nau’) of humans is no longer channeled through the sacred path of marriage, but is unleashed wildly. The result is a terrifying humanitarian disaster.
Let us look at data on the impact of liberalism on families in Western countries:
| Social Damage Indicator | Facts in Liberal Countries | Solution in the Islamic System |
|---|---|---|
| Divorce Rate | Reaches 40-50% due to loss of sacred marriage values and strong individual egoism. | Marriage is a mitsaqan ghalizha (solemn covenant). Divorce is a last resort, not a trend. |
| Fatherless Children | Millions of children born out of wedlock and raised by single parents, vulnerable to drugs and criminality. | Lineage is strictly guarded. Children must be born from legitimate marriage, where the father is obligated to provide sustenance and protection. |
| Exploitation of Women | Women’s bodies are commodified in the pornography, advertising, and prostitution industries in the name of “freedom of expression.” | Women are honor (‘irdh) that must be protected. Exploitation of women’s bodies is absolutely forbidden. |
| LGBT Epidemic | Sexual deviation is legalized and celebrated (Pride Month), destroying human fitrah and stopping human regeneration. | Sexual deviation is treated, perpetrators are educated, and LGBT propaganda is strictly forbidden in public spaces. |
Unlimited freedom is like opening the gates of a giant water dam. At first only drops of water come out (small violations), but eventually the dam breaks and a flood drowns the entire city. Muslim youth exposed to this liberal virus will lose their identity. They are ashamed to display their Islamism, reluctant to wear hijab, and more proud of imitating Western hedonistic lifestyles. This is the most successful form of ghazwul fikri (intellectual warfare) that destroys the Ummah from within.
7. The Failure of Liberal-Capitalist Economics: Suffocating Inequality
The third pillar of liberalism, namely freedom of ownership, has given birth to an economic monster named Capitalism. With the motto “Laissez-faire” (let the market work on its own), liberal economics claims it will bring welfare to everyone. But what are the facts?
In reality, economic freedom without Sharia intervention only produces suffocating inequality. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer. A handful of oligarchs and multinational corporations control the livelihoods of many, while millions of people struggle just to eat once a day.
كَيْ لَا يَكُونَ دُولَةً بَيْنَ الْأَغْنِيَاءِ مِنْكُمْ
“…so that it will not be a perpetual distribution among the rich from among you…” (QS. Al-Hashr: 7)
Let us compare the results of liberal capitalist economics with the Islamic economic concept:
| Economic Aspect | Liberal-Capitalist Economics | Islamic Economic System |
|---|---|---|
| Wealth Distribution | Accumulates among a handful of conglomerates (1% of the population controls 50% of national wealth). | Evenly distributed through zakat mechanisms, prohibition of usury, and prohibition of wealth hoarding (ihtikar). |
| Natural Resources (SDA) | Privatized and handed over to foreign companies for exploitation for personal profit. | Abundant natural resources are public property (milkiyyah ‘ammah) managed by the state for the people. |
| Monetary System | Based on usury (interest) and paper money (fiat) that creates inflation and recurring economic crises. | Based on gold and silver (Dinar and Dirham) or gold-backed currency, thus stable and anti-inflation. |
Liberal economics has turned humans into greedy money-printing machines, sacrificing environmental sustainability, and oppressing laborers in pursuit of efficiency and maximum profit. This is clear proof of the bankruptcy of liberal ideology in prospering humanity.
8. The Concept of Freedom in Islam: Free by Submitting to the Creator
If liberalism is deceptive freedom, then what is the true concept of freedom in Islam? Does Islam restrain humans?
Not at all! Islam gives true freedom. In Arabic, freedom is called Al-Hurriyyah. However, hurriyyah in Islam is not freedom to follow desires, but freedom from servitude to creatures, toward servitude only to Allah SWT.
The companion Rib’i bin Amir radhiyallahu ‘anhu, when facing the Persian commander Rustum, summarized Islam’s liberation mission in a very magnificent statement:
اللَّهُ ابْتَعَثْنَا لِنُخْرِجَ مَنْ شَاءَ مِنْ عِبَادَةِ الْعِبَادِ إِلَى عِبَادَةِ اللَّهِ، وَمِنْ ضِيقِ الدُّنْيَا إِلَى سَعَتِهَا، وَمِنْ جَوْرِ الْأَدْيَانِ إِلَى عَدْلِ الْإِسْلَامِ
“Allah has sent us to bring out whom He wills from the servitude of servants (humans) to the servitude of Allah alone; from the narrowness of the world to its expansiveness; and from the injustice of religions (ideologies other than Islam) to the justice of Islam.”
A liberal human is actually a slave. He becomes a slave to fashion trends, a slave to his sexual desires, a slave to wealth, and a slave to public opinion. He is not free. Conversely, a Muslim who submits to Allah’s Sharia is the most free human. He does not fear human opinion, he does not submit to the pressure of oppressive rulers, and he is not enslaved by material. He only submits to the Most Magnificent Being.
In Islam, freedom is regulated by five Sharia laws (Obligatory, Recommended, Permissible, Disliked, Forbidden). The Mubah area is a very wide area of freedom for humans to innovate, create, and enjoy worldly life, as long as they do not violate the Haram boundaries set by Allah for the good of humans themselves.
9. Answering Doubts: Refuting the Propaganda of Unlimited Freedom
Agents of liberalism often throw syubhat (confused thinking) to attack Islam and frighten the Ummah from implementing Sharia. Let us refute these doubts with intelligent evidence.
Doubt 1: “Islam restrains human rights and is outdated. Liberalism is more modern and humane.” Refutation: What is called “human rights” by liberalism is often the right to destroy oneself and society (such as the right to abortion, the right to adultery, LGBT rights). Is legalizing acts that destroy families and spread deadly diseases “humane”? Islam forbids adultery not to restrain, but to protect human honor. Islamic rules are eternal (timeless) because they were created by Allah who knows human fitrah best, while liberal moral standards change absurdly every decade.
Doubt 2: “If everyone does not disturb others, why should the state interfere in personal moral matters?” Refutation: This is the illusion of “private space.” In society, no action truly stands alone without a domino effect. Someone who gets drunk or consumes drugs in their own room will eventually damage their intellect, become a burden to their family, and potentially commit crimes in public space. The Khilafah State intervenes to prevent damage from its roots, not merely to put out the fire after the blaze has occurred.
Doubt 3: “We must rationalize Islamic teachings to align with current universal (Western) values.” Refutation: This is the core of the Liberal Islam project (JIL). Subordinating revelation (Qur’an) under human intellect (Western) is arrogance. Western values are not a universal standard of truth; they are merely a product of human history full of flaws. The true universal standard is revelation from the Creator of the universe. If there is a conflict between Islam and Western values, then Western values must be corrected, not Islam revised!
وَأَنِ احْكُمْ بَيْنَهُمْ بِمَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ وَلَا تَتَّبِعْ أَهْوَاءَهُمْ وَاحْذَرْهُمْ أَنْ يَفْتِنُوكَ عَنْ بَعْضِ مَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ إِلَيْكَ
“And judge, [O Muhammad], between them by what Allah has revealed and do not follow their inclinations and beware of them, lest they tempt you away from some of what Allah has revealed to you.” (QS. Al-Ma’idah: 49)
10. Conclusion: Liberating Ourselves Toward the Light of Islamic Sharia
Dear readers who long for the glory of Islam, our exploration of liberal ideology leads us to one very clear awareness: Liberalism is a shortcut to the destruction of civilization. It is not freedom, but a new style of slavery packaged with a human rights ribbon.
The Muslim Ummah today stands at a crucial crossroads. Will we continue to follow a Western civilization that is morally bankrupt and rotten from within? Or will we return to firmly grasp Allah’s religion, be proud of our Islamic identity, and make Islamic Sharia the only guide to life?
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ
“O you who have believed, respond to Allah and to the Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life.” (QS. Al-Anfal: 24)
Islamic Sharia is the source of life. It protects our intellect, honor, life, wealth, and religion. However, this noble Islamic Sharia will not be perfectly realized within the framework of secular-liberal nation-states. It needs a strong political institution that makes Islamic aqidah the foundation of the state. That institution is the Khilafah Rasyidah ‘ala Minhajin Nubuwwah.
The Khilafah is what will protect the Ummah from the onslaught of liberal thought, close the doors of immorality, distribute wealth fairly, and carry the message of Islam to the entire world as a mercy to all worlds.
Let us unite our ranks, enlighten the Ummah with pure Islamic tsaqofah, and struggle tirelessly to discard liberal ideology into the trash bin of history, while welcoming the dawn of the promised Islamic revival. Allahu Akbar!
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