The concept of the jama’ah is very difficult and understudied, but it has a lot of relevance for our present situation. Part of the reason this concept is neglected in modern Islamic discourse may be due to the depoliticization programs currently affecting Islamic curriculum worldwide. The concept is central to Islamic political thought, however, so deserves close attention.

 قَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم ‏”‏ وَأَنَا آمُرُكُمْ بِخَمْسٍ اللَّهُ أَمَرَنِي بِهِنَّ السَّمْعُ وَالطَّاعَةُ وَالْجِهَادُ وَالْهِجْرَةُ وَالْجَمَاعَةُ فَإِنَّهُ مَنْ فَارَقَ الْجَمَاعَةَ قِيدَ شِبْرٍ فَقَدْ خَلَعَ رِبْقَةَ الإِسْلاَمِ مِنْ عُنُقِهِ إِلاَّ أَنْ يَرْجِعَ وَمَنِ ادَّعَى دَعْوَى الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ فَإِنَّهُ مِنْ جُثَا جَهَنَّمَ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ فَقَالَ رَجُلٌ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ وَإِنْ صَلَّى وَصَامَ قَالَ ‏”‏ وَإِنْ صَلَّى وَصَامَ فَادْعُوا بِدَعْوَى اللَّهِ الَّذِي سَمَّاكُمُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ عِبَادَ اللَّهِ ‏”‏ ‏.‏ هَذَا حَدِيثٌ حَسَنٌ صَحِيحٌ غَرِيبٌ ‏.‏ قَالَ مُحَمَّدُ بْنُ إِسْمَاعِيلَ الْحَارِثُ الأَشْعَرِيُّ لَهُ صُحْبَةٌ وَلَهُ غَيْرُ هَذَا الْحَدِيثِ ‏.‏

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: “And I command you with five that Allah commanded me: Listening and obeying, Jihad, Hijrah, and the Jama’ah. For indeed whoever parts from the Jama’ah the measure of a hand-span, then he has cast off the yoke of Islam from his neck, unless he returns. And whoever calls with the call of Jahiliyyah then he is from the coals of Hell.” A man said: “O Messenger of Allah! Even if he performs Salat and fasts?” So he (ﷺ) said: “Even if he performs Salat and fasts. So call with the call that Allah named you with: Muslims, believers, worshipers of Allah.”

Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2863

These elements are integral to Islam, as articulated by Umar ibn al
Khattab, radhi Allahu anhu.

لا ِإسلام ِإلا بجماعة ولا جماعة ِإلا بِإمارة ولا ِإمارة ِإلا
بسمع وطاعة

“There is no Islam without unity (jama’ah), no jama’ah without leadership, and no leadership without obedience.”

Sunan ad-Darami, 251

Listening, obeying, hijra, jihad, and the jama’ah are all interconnected. Listening and obeying are formalized by the bay’ah. This is how the first Islamic state was formed, when the Ansar gave bay’ah to Rasulullah ﷺ at al-‘Aqabah. Once the state was formed, it was strengthened by means of hijra and expanded and preserved by means of jihad.

Listening and obeying preserves the unity of the jama’ah, and the unity of the jama’ah is the loyalty and support necessary for success in jihad. Hijra strengthens the jama’ah not only by increasing the numbers of the Muslims, but also by building bonds across tribes, so that the identity of the community remains firmly based in faith rather than tribalism or factionalism.

So the issue of jama’ah is very fundamental, such that Islam itself depends on it. Jama’ah is important enough that Rasulullah ﷺ also gave specific instructions on what to do in its absence.

حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ مُوسَى، حَدَّثَنَا الْوَلِيدُ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي ابْنُ جَابِرٍ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي بُسْرُ بْنُ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ الْحَضْرَمِيُّ، قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي أَبُو إِدْرِيسَ الْخَوْلاَنِيُّ، أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ حُذَيْفَةَ بْنَ الْيَمَانِ، يَقُولُ كَانَ النَّاسُ يَسْأَلُونَ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم عَنِ الْخَيْرِ، وَكُنْتُ أَسْأَلُهُ عَنِ الشَّرِّ مَخَافَةَ أَنْ يُدْرِكَنِي‏.‏ فَقُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ إِنَّا كُنَّا فِي جَاهِلِيَّةٍ وَشَرٍّ، فَجَاءَنَا اللَّهُ بِهَذَا الْخَيْرِ، فَهَلْ بَعْدَ هَذَا الْخَيْرِ مِنْ شَرٍّ قَالَ ‏”‏ نَعَمْ ‏”‏‏.‏ قُلْتُ وَهَلْ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ الشَّرِّ مِنْ خَيْرٍ قَالَ ‏”‏ نَعَمْ، وَفِيهِ دَخَنٌ ‏”‏‏.‏ قُلْتُ وَمَا دَخَنُهُ قَالَ ‏”‏ قَوْمٌ يَهْدُونَ بِغَيْرِ هَدْيِي تَعْرِفُ مِنْهُمْ وَتُنْكِرُ ‏”‏‏.‏ قُلْتُ فَهَلْ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ الْخَيْرِ مِنْ شَرٍّ قَالَ ‏”‏ نَعَمْ دُعَاةٌ إِلَى أَبْوَابِ جَهَنَّمَ، مَنْ أَجَابَهُمْ إِلَيْهَا قَذَفُوهُ فِيهَا ‏”‏‏.‏ قُلْتُ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صِفْهُمْ لَنَا فَقَالَ ‏”‏ هُمْ مِنْ جِلْدَتِنَا، وَيَتَكَلَّمُونَ بِأَلْسِنَتِنَا ‏”‏ قُلْتُ فَمَا تَأْمُرُنِي إِنْ أَدْرَكَنِي ذَلِكَ قَالَ ‏”‏ تَلْزَمُ جَمَاعَةَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ وَإِمَامَهُمْ ‏”‏‏.‏ قُلْتُ فَإِنْ لَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ جَمَاعَةٌ وَلاَ إِمَامٌ قَالَ ‏”‏ فَاعْتَزِلْ تِلْكَ الْفِرَقَ كُلَّهَا، وَلَوْ أَنْ تَعَضَّ بِأَصْلِ شَجَرَةٍ حَتَّى يُدْرِكَكَ الْمَوْتُ وَأَنْتَ عَلَى ذَلِكَ ‏”‏‏.‏

The people used to ask Allah’s Messenger ﷺ about good, but I used to ask him about evil for fear that it might overtake me. Once I said, “O Allah’s Messenger (ﷺ)! We were in ignorance and in evil and Allah has bestowed upon us the present good; will there by any evil after this good?” He said, “Yes.” I asked, “Will there be good after that evil?” He said, “Yes, but it would be tained with Dakhan (i.e. Little evil).” I asked, “What will its Dakhan be?” He said, “There will be some people who will lead (people) according to principles other than my tradition. You will see their actions and disapprove of them.” I said, “Will there by any evil after that good?” He said, “Yes, there will be some people who will invite others to the doors of Hell, and whoever accepts their invitation to it will be thrown in it (by them).” I said, “O Allah’s Messenger ﷺ! Describe those people to us.” He said, “They will belong to us and speak our language” I asked, “What do you order me to do if such a thing should take place in my life?” He said, “Adhere to the group of Muslims and their Chief.” I asked, “If there is neither a group (of Muslims) nor a chief (what shall I do)?” He said, “Keep away from all those different sects, even if you had to bite (i.e. eat) the root of a tree, till you meet Allah while you are still in that state.”

Sahih al-Bukhari 3606

This leaves the question if there is no imam and no jama’ah, how are they reestablished? There are two approaches here.

The first holds that leadership can only be established with the consent of the majority of the leaders of the Muslims. Since the Muslim lands are currently in a state of occupation, it is not possible to hold assemblies to choose a leader. First, the Muslim lands must be liberated, and the capacity to select leadership must be established.

Another view holds that it is not necessary to consult a majority of the people of authority, but rather it is sufficient to consult those who are present. This view was formulated at a time where khilafa was established as a system, and usually the leader was selected in the same administrative capital where the previous leader had died.

So the logic of this view is that anyone who is able to appoint a khalifa, regardless of their ability to consult with the rest of the ummah, becomes a legitimate leader, as long as they consult with those present in a given area. This view can be justified by the notion that it is from the sunnah for the Muslim community to unite under a single spiritual and political leader, and that it is necessary to return to the sunnah as a precondition to victory.

While there are many conditions for the appointment of a khalifa, it seems that there are very few, if any, for the establishment of a khilafa. However, the political body of the Muslims is only one of the meaning of the jama’ah as understood by the scholars of Islam. It may also refer to the righteous scholars of the ummah, or the main body of the Muslims, whether or not they are united in a single political entity. Furthermore, it can also refer to the first generation of the Muslims.

The hadith of Hudhaifa bin Yaman, radhi Allahu anhu, indicates that the jama’ah, in the context of leadership, refers to a unified polity of the Muslims, because of the possibility of there being no jama’ah. This is also the meaning intended in the statement of Umar, radhi Allahu anhu, about the nature of Islam. This doesn’t mean it’s the only possible meaning of the jama’ah, but it’s certainly a very important meaning which is integral to Islam