Approaching the West — Page 20
A pproaching the West—20 should lead thee astray from the way of All ā h. ’ … (38:27) This verse of the Qur’ ā n makes it clear that establishment of justice, abstaining from vain desires, and staying on the path of God are essential for a Khal ī fah. A Khal ī fah being a political leader is required not to go astray from the moral and spiritual path. For the non-political leadership, Adam is repeatedly called a Khal ī fah in the Qur’ ā n: And when your Lord said unto the angels: ‘I am about to appoint a vicegerent [Khal ī fah] in the earth,’ they said: ‘Wilt Thou place therein such as will cause disorder in it, and shed blood?—and we glorify Thee with Thy praise and extol Thy holiness. ’ He answered, ‘I know what you know not. ’ (2:31) In Isl ā mic theology, Adam is understood to be the first Prophet of God, but not necessarily the first human being. The use of the title of Khal ī fah for him indicates that Adam may not be the first human being created by God upon the earth some seven thousand years ago, as he was a “successor” a “Khal ī fah” to others who had gone before him. It opens up the possibility to consider that there were other humans who might have lived and perished. The eminent Muslim scholar and mystic Mu ḥ ayyudd ī n Ibni ‘Arab ī has referred to a saying of the Prophet of Isl ā m that God had brought into being no less than a hundred thousand Adams. (al-Fut ūḥā t al-Makkiyyah, iii. 607. )