Nationalism: Glass Barriers That Shatter Ummah Brotherhood
“The believers are but brothers, so make settlement between your brothers and fear Allah that you may receive mercy.” (QS. Al-Hujurat: 10)
Dear readers, may Allah’s mercy be upon you. Let us imagine a deeply heartbreaking scene: In one corner of the earth, a Muslim mother weeps while embracing her child who is starving or martyred by a colonizer’s bomb. In another corner of the earth, perhaps separated only by an imaginary line on a map, other Muslims live in luxury, watching their brothers’ suffering on television screens as if it were a documentary about strangers.
Why does the Muslim Ummah, numbering nearly two billion, possessing abundant natural resources, and inheriting a glorious history of achievement, now appear so weak and divided? Why is suffering in Palestine, Syria, Rohingya, or Uyghur often considered merely a “domestic issue” of each respective country?
The answer converges on one intellectual disease that has penetrated the veins of the Muslim Ummah for more than a century: Nationalism. Nationalism is often wrapped in beautiful narratives about “love of homeland” and “national pride.” However, if we examine it through the lens of pure Islamic aqidah, nationalism is actually invisible glass barriers that have shattered the true brotherhood of Muslims worldwide.
This article will thoroughly examine the birth of nationalism, dissect its philosophical flaws, expose its status as a modern form of forbidden ashabiyah, unveil its role as a colonial tool, and finally present the solution of Ummah unity through the Khilafah system. All of this we discuss with reference to the clear tsaqofah from Hizbut Tahrir’s books, such as Mafahim Hizbut Tahrir and Nizhamul Hukm fil Islam.
1. Introduction: Reflecting on the Meaning of Torn Brotherhood
As Muslims, we are taught that the highest bond uniting humans is not skin color, not language, and not the place where we were born. The highest bond is the shahadatain: the acknowledgment that there is no Ilah except Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ described the Muslim Ummah as one body:
مَثَلُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ فِي تَوَادِّهِمْ وَتَرَاحُمِهِمْ وَتَعَاطُفِهِمْ مَثَلُ الْجَسَدِ إِذَا اشْتَكَى مِنْهُ عُضْوٌ تَدَاعَى لَهُ سَائِرُ الْجَسَدِ بِالسَّهَرِ وَالْحُمَّى
“The parable of the believers in their mutual love, mercy, and compassion is like one body. When one part of the body aches, the rest of the body responds with sleeplessness and fever.” (HR. Bukhari and Muslim)
However, today’s reality is far from this parable. That body has been mutilated into 57 or more nation-states. When one part of the body is hurt, other parts of the body instead say, “Sorry, that is not our national concern. We must respect the sovereignty of the neighboring state.”
How could such a magnificent teaching about global brotherhood be replaced by national egoism? To answer this, we must go back to the past and see where the seeds of division came from.
2. Unveiling the Historical Veil: The Birth of Nationalism in the West
Many Muslims assume that the concept of “Nation-State” and Nationalism is something natural, something that has existed since humans were created. In fact, this is a very specific product of European history born from long trauma of conflict on the Blue Continent.
The Treaty of Westphalia (1648)
The history of modern nationalism stems from the Thirty Years’ War (1618–1648) in Europe. This war was a bloody conflict between Catholic and Protestant kingdoms that killed millions. To end this religious war, European countries signed the Treaty of Westphalia (1648).
This treaty gave birth to the concept of modern state sovereignty: that each territory has the right to determine its own laws and religion without interference from supranational authorities (such as the Pope in Rome or the Holy Roman Empire). This was the origin of rigid state boundaries.
The French Revolution and 19th Century Romanticism
This nation-state concept was then strengthened by the French Revolution (1789) that overthrew absolute monarchy. The French people began to feel united not by king or religion, but by shared language, culture, and “homeland” (patrie).
In the 19th century, the Romanticism movement in Europe further nurtured the idea that every ethnic or nation (nation) sharing common language, history, and blood had the right to have its own country. This movement triggered the unification of Germany and Italy, and sparked the breakup of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
| Period | Key Event | Impact on Nationalism |
|---|---|---|
| 1648 | Treaty of Westphalia | Birth of rigid sovereign state boundary concept. |
| 1789 | French Revolution | Birth of popular sovereignty and national pride (Patriotism) concept. |
| 19th Century | Romanticism Movement | Birth of Ethnic Nationalism (shared blood and language). |
| 20th Century | Decolonization | Spread of nation-state concept worldwide, including the Islamic world. |
So, nationalism was a Western solution to resolve their internal problems (religious wars and king oppression). The question is: Why was this Western solution forced upon the body of the Muslim Ummah which has an entirely different history, aqidah, and political system (Khilafah)?
3. Dissecting the Meaning of Nationalism: Love of Homeland or Association?
To understand the danger of nationalism, we must define it precisely based on reality (waqi’) and its underlying thought. Sheikh Taqiyuddin an-Nabhani in the book Mafahim Hizbut Tahrir explains the fundamental differences between various types of bonds that unite humans.
الْقَوْمِيَّةُ: هِيَ إِعْلَاءُ شَأْنِ الْأُمَّةِ أَوِ الْبَلَدِ عَلَى حِسَابِ الدِّينِ وَالْعَقِيدَةِ
“Al-Qoumiyyah (Nationalism) is elevating the affairs of a nation or country above religion and aqidah.”
Love of Homeland (Patriotism) vs Nationalism
Many people equate nationalism with love of homeland (wathaniyyah/patriotism). However, the two are different.
Loving one’s birthplace, longing for one’s hometown, or enjoying regional cuisine is human fitrah that is permissible (mubah). The Messenger of Allah ﷺ also loved Makkah as his birthplace. When he migrated, he looked back toward Makkah and said:
مَا أَطْيَبَكِ مِنْ بَلَدٍ وَأَحَبَّكِ إِلَيَّ، وَلَوْلَا أَنَّ قَوْمِي أَخْرَجُونِي مِنْكِ مَا سَكَنْتُ غَيْرَكِ
“How good you are as a land, and how dear you are to me. Had my people not driven me out of you, I would have never settled anywhere else.” (HR. Tirmidhi)
However, Nationalism is more than mere love of homeland. Nationalism makes homeland, descent, or nation the standard of truth, source of law, and starting point of loyalty (Al-Wala wal Bara’).
In nationalism, a Muslim Indonesian is considered closer and must be defended more than a Palestinian Muslim, simply because of passport similarity. Even worse, in the nationalist bond, a non-Muslim from the same country is considered a “brother of the same nation,” while a Muslim from another country is considered a “foreigner” (alien/foreigner). This is the point where love of homeland turns into association against aqidah.
4. The First Logical Flaw: The False and Emotional Bond
In the book Mafahim Hizbut Tahrir, it is explained that humans attempt to bind themselves to one another in various ways. However, the bonds of nationalism (qoumiyyah) and patriotism (wathaniyyah) are flawed, low, and highly emotional bonds.
Why Is the Nationalist Bond Flawed?
- Emotional and Instinctual (Gharizah Baqa’): Nationalist bonds arise from the survival instinct to group together for security. Because it comes from emotion, this bond is very easily shaken. When economic or political interests clash, brothers of the same nation can kill each other (like civil wars).
- Not Born from Intellect (Thought): Nationalist bonds have no deep intellectual foundation. Someone becomes Indonesian, Arab, or Turkish not by choice of intellect, but merely by “coincidence” of being born in that territory. How can something coincidental (birthplace) become the standard of truth and life’s honor?
- Narrow and Discriminatory: This bond limits human compassion to specific geographical boundaries. It fails to unite all of humanity because inherently it differentiates “us” (our nation) and “them” (other nations).
| Type of Bond | Basis of Bond | Nature | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Family/Tribe | Blood / Descent | Emotional | Very narrow, prone to conflict |
| Nationalism | Homeland / Language | Emotional | Narrow, man-made, discriminatory |
| Interest | Economic / Political | Pragmatic | Fragile, dissolves if interests disappear |
| Mabda (Ideology) | Aqidah / Thought | Rational & Spiritual | Broad, eternal, unites without physical boundaries |
Only the Mabda (Islamic Ideology) bond, born from a rational thinking process about the creation of the universe and bound by faith in the Creator, is capable of uniting humans of various races, skin colors, and languages justly and eternally.
5. Nationalism as Modern Ashabiyah: The Strict Warning of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ
In the Islamic view, nationalism is nothing but a modern form of Ashabiyah (factional/tribal fanaticism) that was strongly condemned by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
In the Jahiliyyah era, the Arabs were very proud of their respective tribes (kabilah). Their slogan was: “Support your brother, whether he is an oppressor or oppressed.” They supported their tribe blindly without looking at whether their tribe was on the side of right or wrong.
That is the essence of Ashabiyah. Today, that slogan has changed to: “Right or wrong, is my country.” The essence is the same, only the scale has been enlarged from tribal level to state level.
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ warned his Ummah very strictly about the danger of this Ashabiyah:
لَيْسَ مِنَّا مَنْ دَعَا إِلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ وَلَيْسَ مِنَّا مَنْ قَاتَلَ عَلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ وَلَيْسَ مِنَّا مَنْ مَاتَ عَلَى عَصَبِيَّةٍ
“He is not of us who calls to ashabiyah (factional fanaticism/nationalism), he is not of us who fights for ashabiyah, and he is not of us who dies for ashabiyah.” (HR. Abu Dawud)
When a dispute occurred between the Muhajirin and Ansar, and each began to call their group’s name, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was very angry and said:
أَبِدَعْوَى الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ وَأَنَا بَيْنَ أَظْهُرِكُمْ؟ دَعُوهَا فَإِنَّهَا مُنْتِنَةٌ
“Are you calling with the call of Jahiliyyah while I am still among you? Leave that call of ashabiyah, for it is something rotten!” (HR. Bukhari)
Nationalism is a “rotten corpse” inherited from the Jahiliyyah era. It makes a Muslim feel more noble than other Muslims merely because of differences in flags and national anthems. Yet Allah ﷻ has affirmed:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ مِنْ ذَكَرٍ وَأُنْثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَاكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَائِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوا ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ أَتْقَاكُمْ
“O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you…” (QS. Al-Hujurat: 13)
6. Visual Analogy: Barbed Wire Fences in the Same Garden
To better grasp how destructive nationalism is to Islamic brotherhood, let us use a visual analogy.
Imagine a very large and fertile Grand Garden. In this garden grow various kinds of trees, flowers, and fruits. All plants in this garden are watered by the same water source (symbolizing the Qur’an and Sunnah) and breathe the same air (symbolizing Tawhid Aqidah). Their roots underground are intertwined, strengthening each other so the garden stands firm against storms.
This is the parable of Muslims during the Khilafah era. They stretched from Morocco to Merauke, consisting of various nations (Arab, Persian, Kurdish, Malay, African), yet they lived under one leadership, one law, and mutually protected each other.
However, one day, a group of foreigners (Western colonizers) came and convinced the garden’s inhabitants that they were different. Those foreigners began building tall and sharp Barbed Wire Fences in the middle of the garden. Those fences divided the garden into dozens of isolated small boxes.
What happened next?
- Egoism: Plants in box A no longer cared if plants in box B died of drought, because “that is outside our fence.”
- Weakness: When fierce pests attack box C (like colonization in Palestine), plants in other boxes can only watch from behind the barbed wire. They want to help, but are blocked by the rule “Respect the fence boundaries (sovereignty)!”
- Hostility: Sometimes plants in box A and B throw stones at each other merely over an inch of land near that barbed wire fence (border conflicts between Muslim countries).
That barbed wire is Nationalism. It is a man-made barrier that cuts off the flow of compassion, aid, and military strength among fellow Muslims. It makes an Ummah that was once like a giant respected by the world, now become weak dwarfs easily trampled upon.
7. A New Colonial Tool: The Divide et Impera Strategy in the Islamic World
History records that nationalism did not grow naturally in the Islamic world. It was deliberately injected by Western imperialist countries (Britain and France) as a weapon of mass destruction to destroy the Ottoman Khilafah from within. The West realized they would never defeat Muslims as long as this Ummah was united under one leadership.
The Poison of Nationalism in the Khilafah’s Body
In the late 19th century, Western intelligence and missionaries began spreading nationalist ideas to Arab and Turkish youth.
- To the Turkish people, they injected Turkism Nationalism (Turkification), whispering that the Turkish nation was more noble and should dominate the Arabs.
- To the Arab people, through figures like Lawrence of Arabia, Britain injected Arabism Nationalism, whispering that the Arab nation had more right to lead because Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was an Arab, and provoked them to rebel against the Ottoman Khilafah accused as “Turkish colonizers.”
The peak of this conspiracy was the Arab Revolt (1916) led by Sharif Hussein from Makkah who cooperated with Britain to stab the Ottoman Khilafah from behind during World War I.
The Sykes-Picot Agreement (1916)
After Muslims were divided, did the West grant the promised independence to the Arabs? Of course not! Britain and France secretly signed the Sykes-Picot Agreement, which divided the Middle East region like cutting a birthday cake.
| Colonized Territory | Controlled By | Resulting Artificial States |
|---|---|---|
| Northern Levant | France | Syria, Lebanon |
| Mesopotamia | Britain | Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait |
| Palestine | International/Britain | Handed to Zionist Jews through the Balfour Declaration (1917) |
This is irrefutable evidence that nationalism is a colonial tool (divide et impera). By dividing Muslims into more than 50 small countries, the West ensured that Muslims would never have sufficient military, economic, and political power to challenge the hegemony of global Capitalism.
8. Humanity’s Tragedy: The Bitter Fruit of Nationalism in the Modern Era
A bad tree will surely produce poisonous fruit. Nationalism not only brought down the Khilafah institution, but also continues to claim lives from the Muslim Ummah to this very day.
Let us look at the bitter fruit of nationalism in the modern era:
- The Palestine Tragedy: For decades, the Zionist entity has massacred Muslims in Palestine. Surrounding Palestine are Arab and Muslim countries with millions of soldiers and sophisticated weaponry. Yet why do those soldiers remain in their barracks? Because nationalism teaches that the Egyptian army’s duty is only to protect Egypt, the Jordanian army’s duty is only to protect Jordan. The liberation of Palestine is not considered their “national interest.”
- Rohingya and Uyghur Genocide: When millions of Uyghur Muslims were put into concentration camps by the Communist Chinese regime, Muslim-majority countries instead remained silent, and some even supported China to maintain trade relations (national interest).
- Racism and Xenophobia: In various parts of the world, nationalism breeds hatred toward immigrants or refugees, even though they are fellow Muslims. Syrian refugees are rejected in some European countries and at the borders of other Muslim countries. Within nations too, racist sentiments between tribes are often fanned by politicians seeking power.
Nationalism has killed the conscience of humanity. It has replaced the Tawhid phrase Laa Ilaaha Illallah with national slogans empty of divine values.
9. Aqidah Contradiction: Placing Homeland Above Revelation
For a Muslim, the greatest danger of nationalism is not merely physical division, but damage at the aqidah level. Nationalism forces a Muslim to rearrange his loyalty (Al-Wala wal Bara’).
In Islam, loyalty (love and defense) is absolutely given only to Allah, His Messenger, and the believers.
إِنَّمَا وَلِيُّكُمُ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا الَّذِينَ يُقِيمُونَ الصَّلَاةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ الزَّكَاةَ وَهُمْ رَاكِعُونَ
“Your ally is none but Allah and [therefore] His Messenger and those who have believed - those who establish prayer and give zakah, and they bow [in worship].” (QS. Al-Ma’idah: 55)
However, in nationalist ideology, the highest loyalty is given to the state and man-made constitution.
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ LOYALTY CONFLICT: ISLAM VS NATIONALISM │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ ISLAM: "If your Muslim brother at the end of the world │
│ is oppressed, you are obligated to help him with your │
│ soul and wealth." │
│ │
│ NATIONALISM: "Do not interfere in other countries' │
│ affairs. Prioritize our own country's economic │
│ development first." │
│ │
│ ISLAM: "Allah's law is above all laws." │
│ │
│ NATIONALISM: "Positive law (National Law) is │
│ the highest law in this country." │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘When a Muslim loves his national identity more than his Islamic identity, when he is angrier at his country’s flag being burned than at the Qur’an being desecrated, then the virus of nationalism has indeed corroded his aqidah.
10. Islam’s Solution: Islamic Brotherhood and Ummah Unity in the Khilafah
Dear readers, we must not despair at the current condition of the Ummah. Islam as a sound Mabda (ideology) always has practical solutions for every human problem.
The solution to cure the disease of nationalism consists of two main steps:
1. Intellectual Change (Fikriyyah): Reviving Islamic Brotherhood
We must uproot the intellectual roots of nationalism from the Ummah’s minds and replace them with a correct understanding of Islamic Brotherhood. We must make the Ummah aware that Muslims in Palestine, Syria, Yemen, and Indonesia are one big family. Their suffering is our suffering. Their blood is our blood.
We must reject all forms of propaganda that pit Islam against love of homeland. We love our birthplace, but we refuse to make homeland a new god that regulates our loyalty and law. (For deeper discussion on this brotherhood, please read the article Islamic Brotherhood).
2. Political Change (Siyasiyyah): Re-establishing the Khilafah
The brotherhood of Muslims will never be perfect if it is limited to prayers, donations, and tears. This brotherhood needs a real political vessel capable of erasing the imaginary boundaries created by colonizers (Sykes-Picot) and uniting the entire potential of the Ummah. That political vessel is the Islamic Khilafah.
In the book Nizhamul Hukm fil Islam, Sheikh Taqiyuddin an-Nabhani affirms that Muslims worldwide are forbidden from having more than one state and one leader (Khalifah).
إِذَا بُويِعَ لِخَلِيفَتَيْنِ فَاقْتُلُوا الْآخَرَ مِنْهُمَا
“If two Khalifahs are pledged allegiance, then kill the latter of them.” (HR. Muslim)
This hadith, though it sounds harsh, shows how greatly Islam preserves the unity of the Ummah and forbids division (political separatism).
The Khilafah is not a threat to humanity. On the contrary, the Khilafah is a protective institution (Junnah) that will:
- Unite 1.8 billion Muslims into an independent global power.
- Expel colonizers from Muslim lands.
- Implement Islamic Sharia justly for all citizens, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, without discrimination of race, language, or skin color.
Let us struggle together, discard the glass barriers of nationalism that shrink our souls. Let us reweave torn brotherhood, and struggle to continue Islamic life under the shelter of the Khilafah that follows the prophetic method (Khilafah ‘ala Minhajin Nubuwwah).
May Allah ﷻ unite our hearts and grant victory to this religion above all man-made ideologies. Wallahu a’lam bish-shawab.
To address doubts about the clash between the Khilafah and modern state concepts such as NKRI, please study the article Khilafah and NKRI and understand the destructive impact of nationalist ideology in The Dangers of Nationalism for the Muslim Ummah.