The Machiavellian Motto "The End Justifies the Means" Is Totally Against Islam

Was published in Arabic in December 4, 2015

Translated by Ahmed Fathy

He said to me: During my incarceration term in 2000, I met with an inmate who has been a leader-member in the terrorist MB group. We got to talk, and when I asked him about the terrorist MB illicit and illegal ways and dealings within the Egyptian society, he told me that the end justifies the means; as long as their noble and honorable end is establishing the Islamic caliphate, any available means of any type could be used. What do you think of that?

I told him: Their end is by no means noble or honorable.

He said: Do you mean to tell me that establishing the Islamic caliphate is neither noble nor honorable?

I said: Their end is reaching rule, power, and authority in order to control the wealth of nations. They aim at controlling citizens in any given country falsely under the name of Islam. This is an evil, vile, and ignoble end, my friend.

He said: Let us assume that they could have aimed, in Egypt, to establish the Islamic caliphate and rule without aiming to reach absolute power and limitless wealth. Is not that a noble end?

I said: Impossible; this terrorist MB group aims at nothing but absolute power, authority, control, rule, and money. The terrorist MB group members do not hesitate to use all sorts of conspiracies, assassinations, dirty work, rigged elections, and all any other illicit dealings to realize the MB agenda. Moreover, this terrorist group ascribes its criminal acts to Islam! This is an unpardonable sin against God; the terrorist MB members claim they are chosen by God to rule nations! You can never suppose that such terrorists would possibly work for someone else outside the MB to make him reach the post of a caliph within a caliphate.

He said: Let us suppose that another group of people aim at establishing the caliphate. Is not that an honorable and noble end? Would they be allowed to use whatever means to realize this end?

I said: A noble, honorable end has to be realized via honorable and noble means. Evil ends require mean, ignoble, and vile means. This is a rule for you to learn.

He said: Please explain to me further.

I said: We, Quranists, desire to establish an Islamic type of rule; this is a noble end springing from our faith that real Islam, i.e. the Quran alone, is a divine religion inspired by God. Islam, within its Quranic values, calls for the establishment of secular rule with no theocracy or clergymen of any type. This type of rule is based on absolute religious freedom, political freedom via direct democracy, court justice for all within equality for all before the law, social justice that includes care for the needy, equal opportunity for all citizens, human rights, and human dignity. The major mission of Islamic rule in any state is not to guide people in matters of faith and creed. Guidance of such type is an individual and personal responsibility. The major mission of any state is serving and protecting its citizens, not to rule and dominate them. This is what we call a noble end.

He said: I agree with you whole-heartedly, but what about the means to realize this end?             

I said: The means ought to be as noble and honorable as the end itself. The means begin with individuals who have neither personal nor political ambitions who aim only at the welfare of the nation. They engage themselves in peaceful reform by raising the awareness of people. A democracy cannot possibly be established without the spread of the culture of democracy within all citizens. Absolute religious freedom for every citizen in having or not having a creed/religion, the liberty to call for any creed, the liberty of acts of worship, and finally, the liberty building houses of worship cannot be established without total removal of fanaticism and extremism within minds of people. Hence, establishing a real Islamic rule, as a noble end, entails a noble reformist methods or means. We need reform in culture, education, as well as religious discourse. We need first political reform to be able to reform all other fields. Reformation is a noble means for a noble end. Otherwise, the base and vile end entails evil dishonest means like revolts, conspiracies, and wars within the culture of tyranny, enslavement, and exclusion. Those who reach their end, ruling nations, via committing the acts of killings are readily using vile, evil means to maintain their rule: they terrorize, torture, quell, and divide people and they crush peaceful opposition which has nothing but spreading ideas in a written form. Tyrants maintain their rule via a façade or a sham décor of democracy, rigged elections in parliaments, and terrorist exceptional laws. The list of vile, base, and dishonest means is known, familiar, and agreed on within all states ruled by tyrants in the Middle East: military dictatorships, party dictatorships, Shiite theocracies, and Wahabi/Sunnite theocracies. These types of tyrannical rule lead nations to civil strife.

He said: I conclude then that you oppose to include the motto "the end justifies the means'' within values of Islam, right?

I said: This motto has one meaning for me; the dishonest, base, evil means need justification via the end or aim. In Islam, i.e. the Quran alone, there can be no justifications possible for any crimes. Islam includes repentance that entails acknowledging one's sin first and then the will not to commit the sin again and giving people back their rights and dues. Hence, we see the contradiction between real Islam and the motto ''the end justifies the means''.

He said: What is the end within Islam?

I said: In a word, piety.

He said: What are its means?

I said: Piety in dealing with the Almighty means believing in Allah as the only God with no other partners/deities/gods. A believer ought to worship God alone with no sanctity/deification/worship of any mortals. This is what we call being faithful in acts of worshipping God alone. Piety in dealing with human beings entails values of justice, mercy, morals, charity, philanthropy, etc. Hence, piety is a noble end with noble means. All acts of worship dedicated to God alone in faith are means of attaining piety: giving alms (zakat), prayers, fasting, pilgrimage, and glorification of God.

He said: But I perceive that those who mix politics with religion are mostly people who maintain prayers on time and perform all acts of worship. What do you think?

I said: Do they have real faithfulness or are they hypocrites, in your opinion?

He said: How could I possible know that?!

I said: Judging by their demeanor; if their prayers and any other acts of worship lead to goodness in their behavior and dealings with other people, this is an indication of their faithfulness. Otherwise, if their deeds are intentionally evil, then we conclude they are deceitful hypocrites with an evil end of obtaining the transient possession of this world. Their evil means to reach this end is abusing Islam to deceive and swindle.

He said: Please explain your point further.

I said: Those hypocrites use appearances of moustache-less beards, the veil (the so-called hijab), and the full veil (the so-called niqab) and the acts of worship as means to control, govern, and influence others. Such hypocrites have not an iota of piety. They do not fear God and the Day of Judgment. Their minds and hearts are controlled by sheer madness: the love of the material possessions and wealth of this transient world; they aim for nothing by wealth and power. Real believers give away money and even their souls for the love of God, whereas the hypocrites disregard religion and the Afterlife for the sake of wealth and power while declaring that their crimes are jihad for God's sake! Prophet Muhammad, like all prophets before him, never asked people to give him anything or any money. The same applies to every caller for peaceful reform who acts voluntarily without asking others for anything. On the contrary, the hypocrites I have mentioned disregard their Afterlife by abusing the Holy Writ, the Quranic verses, for transient, illicit, and temporary worldly possessions.

He said: Did Prophet Muhammad during his lifetime use the motto ''the end justifies the means'' while he established his state in Yathreb?

I said: Establishing a state was never the prophet's purpose or mission; his sole mission was to convey the message of the Quran and to call people to the testimony of Islam (La Ilah Ila Allah: There is no God but Allah). Changing conditions led the prophet to establish a state in Yathreb when he was driven away from Mecca, along with his followers, to immigrate into Yathreb. Polytheists fought him in Yathreb, and thus, defensive battles were necessary as well establishing a state for believers.

He said: The query raised is exactly the following: did the prophet apply the Machiavellian motto with his foes and opponents?

I said: Never. God ordered him to follow the straight path; i.e., piety in dealing with God and with people, with candor and frankness. God says in the Quran: "So be upright, as you are commanded, along with those who repented with you, and do not transgress. He is Seeing of everything you do." (11:112). Hence, Prophet Muhammad never deceived, flattered, or mocked his foes: "They would like you to compromise, so they would compromise." (68:9). God forbade the prophet from obeying the disbelievers and hypocrites, the latter in particular used to follow the Machiavellian motto. God says in the Quran to the prophet: "And do not obey any vile swearer. Backbiter, spreader of slander. Preventer of good, transgressor, sinner." (68:10-12). "So be patient for the decision of your Lord, and do not obey the sinner or the blasphemer among them." (76:24). "And do not obey the blasphemers and the hypocrites, and ignore their insults, and rely on God. God is a sufficient protector." (33:48).

He said: What about during the battles of the prophet against aggressors?                          

I said: He never used this bad motto; he used to deal justly and piously with his foes and enemies. Some of them used to breach written pacts: "Those of them with whom you made a treaty, but they violate their agreement every time. They are not righteous." (8:56), and God ordered the prophet to make them examples when he was fighting them back to stop their aggression: "If you confront them in battle, make of them a fearsome example for those who follow them, that they may take heed." (8:57), and that if he feared their treachery, he would declare clearly that the pact or treaty is annulled: "If you fear treachery on the part of a people, break off with them in a like manner. God does not like the treacherous." (8:58).  

He said: What does the Quran mean by the term ''treachery''?

I said: It is the contrary term of piety and the righteous path. Islam entails both piety and the righteous path and against treason, transgression, and treachery. Islam urges peace: "But if they incline towards peace, then incline towards it, and put your trust in God. He is the Hearer, the Knower. If they intend to deceive you-God is sufficient for you. It is He who supported you with His aid, and with the believers." (8:61-62). God commands the prophet to release POWs and He will shield him from possible treachery: "O prophet! Say to those you hold prisoners, "If God finds any good in your hearts, He will give you better than what was taken from you, and He will forgive you. God is Forgiving and Merciful." But if they intend to betray you, they have already betrayed God, and He has overpowered them. God is Knowing and Wise." (8:70-71).

He said: Do you have anything further to say?

I said: I have only to add that these verses that I have mentioned here apply in my opinions to the case of the terrorist MB group and every other group mixing and merging religion with politics who support and defend the terrorist MB group; their intentions are inevitably and undoubtedly evil: "And do not argue on behalf of those who deceive themselves. God does not love the deceitful sinner. They hide from the people, but they cannot hide from God. He is with them, as they plot by night with words He does not approve. God comprehends what they do. There you are, arguing on their behalf in the present life, but who will argue with God on their behalf on the Day of Resurrection? Or who will be their representative?" (4:107-109).

He said: God says nothing but the truth.