Triggered to Thinking

The Second Message of Islam reflects the thought of the Sudanese reformer and scholar Maḥmūd Muḥammad Ṭāhā. Ṭāhā was executed by the former president of Sudan, Jaʿfar Numayrī, on January 18, 1985. The book opens with an introduction by the translator, ʿAbdullāh Aḥmad An-Naʿīm, a prominent scholar of Islamic law and human rights. In the introduction, An-Naʿīm notes, “It was during the second term of imprisonment, and the subsequent period of self-imposed religious seclusion in his hometown of Rufaʿah, that Ustadh Mahmoud undertook the rigorous program of prayer, fasting, and meditation that led to his insights into the meaning of the Qur’an and the role of Islamic law” (Ṭāhā, 1996, p. 4). The introduction recounts Ṭāhā’s imprisonment on spurious charges and the eventual execution of a committed advocate of peace. It also raises significant human rights concerns associated with traditional interpretations of Sharia. Central to Ṭāhā’s project is a proposal to reconceptualize Islamic law.

Ṭāhā grounds his argument in the division of Qur’anic revelation between Meccan and Medinan periods. Scholars of the Qur’an commonly use this distinction to classify Meccan and Medinan surahs (Sinai, 2017). Ṭāhā argues that the differing content of these revelations reflects the distinct audiences to which they were addressed (Ṭāhā, 1996). In chapter five, he explains that the peaceful verses of persuasion revealed in Mecca were later abrogated by verses revealed in Medina that addressed a more conflict-oriented social context (An-Naʿīm, 1996). Classical Qur’anic interpretation often understood the so-called “sword verses” as superseding earlier verses advocating peaceful engagement with non-Muslims (Peters, 2005). The verses later associated with jihad emerged primarily from the Medinan period (Ṭāhā, 1996). As Ṭāhā writes, “Though they constitute the primary or original principle, these verses were abrogated or repealed by the verses of jihad” (Ṭāhā, 1996, p. 134). On this basis, he contends that jihad was not intended to be an original or permanent precept of Islam, arguing that “the present Islamic Shariʿa [is] not the original principles or objectives of Islam” (Ṭāhā, 1996, p. 137).

Ṭāhā’s position stands in sharp contrast to classical Islamic legal theory. In traditional jurisprudence, Islam and shirk—the association of other deities with God—were viewed as incompatible within the same political order (Khadduri, 2010). The doctrine of jihad developed a communal dimension in which some believers provided material support while others engaged directly in combat (Khadduri, 2010). Muḥammad ibn Idrīs al-Shāfiʿī, the founder of the Shāfiʿī school of jurisprudence, asserted, “God has imposed the duty of jihad as laid down in His book and uttered by the Prophet’s tongue” (Khadduri, 1987, p. 82).

Modern scholars have emphasized the radical implications of Ṭāhā’s reinterpretation. Mohammed Mahmoud (2015), a professor of religion at Tufts University, observes that, “As a first message, Islam operated on the level of the subsidiary: it denied the polytheists their religious freedom and instituted jihad, it accepted a measure of discrimination against women, and it tolerated slavery and class distinctions. As a second message, Islam operates on the level of the essential, embracing economic, political, and social equality” (p. 178). Ṭāhā likewise maintained that inequality between men and women and the tolerance of slavery were not original Islamic principles but contextual accommodations (Ṭāhā, 1996). An-Naʿīm praised Ṭāhā’s revolutionary approach, arguing that contemporary Islamic law should prohibit slavery despite its historical accommodation within Sharia. He notes that “when slavery was eventually abolished in modern Muslim states, in some cases as late as the 1960s and after, that result was achieved through secular law, not Shariʿa” (An-Naʿīm, 1996, p. 173).

Ultimately, The Second Message of Islam calls for a return to verses that many classical jurists regarded as permanently abrogated. Ṭāhā argues that the second message of Islam “calls for a return from the subsidiary verses to the original verses, which were temporarily abrogated because of circumstances and material and human limitations” (Ṭāhā, 1996, p. 161). His work challenges the discriminatory dimensions of classical Sharia and offers a vision of Islam grounded in equality and moral universality. Ṭāhā’s thought remains a compelling contribution for both Muslims and non-Muslims concerned with justice, human rights, and religious reform.

References

An-Naʿīm, A. A. (1996). Toward an Islamic reformation: Civil liberties, human rights, and international law. Syracuse University Press.

Khadduri, M. (1987). Al-Shāfiʿī’s Risāla. Johns Hopkins University Press.

Khadduri, M. (2010). War and peace in the law of Islam. Lawbook Exchange.

Mahmoud, M. A. (2015). Quest for divinity: A critical examination of the thought of Mahmud Muhammad Taha. Syracuse University Press.

Peters, R. (2005). Jihad in classical and modern Islam: A reader. Markus Wiener Publishers.

Sinai, N. (2017). The Qur’an: A historical-critical introduction. Edinburgh University Press.

Ṭāhā, M. M. (1996). The second message of Islam. Syracuse University Press.