The common understanding is that our ruling system entered the phase of kings immediately following the Khulafah Rashideen.
There are two reasons for this. First of all, we know this because Rasulullah ﷺ said,
“The khilaafah after me in my Ummah will last for thirty years. Then there will be kingship after that.”
“الخلافة بعدي في أمتي ثلاثون سنة ثم ملك بعد ذلك”
Reported in the Musnad Imaam Ahmad, by at-Tirmidhi, Musnad Abi Ya’laa, and Ibn Hibbaan. Saheeh al-Jaami’ as-Sagheer, and Albaani graded it Sahih. Regarding this, Sa’eed bin Jamhaan stated:
“Safeenah told me: ‘the khilaafah of Abu Bakr (radiallaahu anhu) was two years, and [that of] Umar (radiallaahu anhu) was ten years, and [that of] Uthmaan (radiallaahu anhu) twelve years, and [that of] Alee (radiallaahu anhu) six years.'”
“قال سفينة: امسك، خلافة أبي بكر رضي الله عنه سنتين، وعمر رضي الله عنه عشراً، وعثمان رضي الله عنه اثنتي عشر، وعلي ستّاً”
Secondly, we know this because it was under Mu’awiyyah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Khilafah adopted a monarchical system of passing control from father to son, or between brothers.
The system of government, and every individual ruler we had under that system, until the end of the Ottoman Empire, is categorized as being from the “kings” phase described by Rasulullah ﷺ. There was both good and bad, justice and injustice, adherence to Shari’ah, and non-adherence to Shari’ah. Some rulers were better than others, like Umar bin Abdul-Aziz, and some, many actually, were terrible.
With the end of the Ottoman Empire, we entered the next to last, and worst phase; the Mulk Jabryy era.
In my opinion, this phase is the phase in which there is no unified government, no imaam; and what we have are territorial rulers who are subordinate to external powers, and they are imposed upon us by force.
That is a reasonable interpretation linguistically of Mulk Jabryy, and it is an accurate appraisal of observable reality. In this phase, Rasulullah ﷺ advised us to distance ourselves from all the various factions, even if we ‘have to bite the root of a tree until death overtakes us’.
As I have said, there very well may be a system of government that defines itself as an Islamic Khilafah prior to the advent of the Mahdi, just as there was a system of government that defined itself as an Islamic Khilafah after the end of the Khilafah Rashida. An Islamic Khilafah like those that persecuted our greatest scholars and collaborated with the Rafidah and Crusaders; an Islamic Khilafah like the one that continuously imprisoned Ibn Taymiyyah, etc, etc. They can claim as they like, but they are in reality what Rasulullah ﷺ said they would be.
Of course there is evidence that the Khilafah ‘ala minhaj Nubuwwa will not preceed the arrival of the Mahdi, because Rasulullah ﷺ said that the Mahdi will fill the earth with fairness and justice as it had been filled with oppression and injustice prior to his coming.
“… يملأ الأرض قسطاً وعدلا، كما ملئت ظلماً وجوراً..”
Oppression and injustice engulfing the world is not consistent with Khilafah ‘ala minhaj Nubuwwa, so clearly this will not exist before the appearance of the Mahdi. What will exist is oppression and injustice, and that is consistent with Mulk Jabryy.
Furthermore, Rasulullah ﷺ said that the Mahdi will arrive at a time when the sons of the ruler are fighting over power.
“…Three men, all of them sons of Khalifah, will fight over your treasure and none of them will take it…”
“…يقتتل عند كنزكم ثلاثة كلهم ابن خليفة…”
Ibn Kathir explained that the “treasure” refers to the Ka’aba, so it means, the sons of the ruler will be fighting for control, for power over the Muslims. This is not consistent with Khilafah ‘ala minhaj Nubuwwa. It may be a “Khilafah” but it will be from the Mulk Jabryy, imposed by force, oppressive and unjust.
It is our duty to disassociate ourselves from the factions, even if they call themselves states. It is our duty to oppose injustice and oppression, and struggle for justice and fairness. That is our relationship to any faction that becomes part of the Mulk Jabryy system.
#الملك_الجبري
#Mulk_Jabryy