Friday, May 25, 2012

April Tarbiyyat Topic - Majlis-e-Shura

Majlis-e-Shura

(Consultative Body)

 

  • “Shura” is an Arabic word that means “Consultation”.
  • There is clear mention of Shura in the following verse of Surah Ash Shura in the Holy Quran:
  1. “And those, who hearken to their Lord, and observe Prayer, and whose affairs are decided by mutual consultation, and who spend out of what We have provided for them.”
  • Surah Al-Imran: verse 160 describes how the Holy Prophet (saw) would seek consultation and confer with others. The verse says:
  1. “And it is by the great mercy of Allah that thou art kind towards them, and if thou hadst been rough and hard-hearted, they would surely have dispersed from around thee. So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them, and consult them in matters of administration; and when thou art determined, then put thy trust in Allah. Surely, Allah loves those who put their trust in Him.”
  • Shura is an important feature in the institution of Khilafat. Hadrat Umar (ra) once related:
    “There is no Khalifa without consultation”.
  • The purpose of Majlis-e-Shura is to help Nizam-e-Jamaat, Nizam-e-Khilafat and serve as a consultative body.
  • While Shura plays a key role is Islam, it can never be used as a tool to abrogate a Divine Commandment of Almighty Allah.
  • Majlis-e-Shura helps Khalifatul Masih (aba) in the following ways:
    i. He comes to know the views of his followers,
    ii. He gets help to arrive at the correct decision,
    iii. He is able to judge the moral and spiritual condition of his community,
    iv. He is able to judge the mental and administrative capabilities of various individuals.
  • Voting on a proposal is by show of hands only. There is no secret ballot. Everyone must vote, either for or against the proposal.
  • After Majlis-e-Shura makes a decision on a proposal, the decision is sent to Khalifatul Masih (aba) for evaluation and final decision.
  • The majority or the unanimous decision of Shura body is not binding on the Khalifa. 
  • Majlis-e-Shura is different from a Parliamentary system in that it is a “No party” system and all findings are implemented at the discretion of the Khalifa. 
  • When you decide to vote in favor of someone to be elected as Shura delegate, the best quality to look for in that person is “Taqwah”.
  • The Shura delegates are elected for one year to serve as a consultative body to the administration. Shura delegates always have to be elected and cannot be nominated or appointed.
  • Some of the requisites of attending Majlis-e-Shura are:
    i. To spend time engaged in prayers.
    ii. To try to listen to all opinions and do not be easily swayed by oratory.
    iii. To spend time engaged in Istighfar    .

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