Muslim

Benefits and Issues
SR Question: Can it be said that man is Allah’s khalifah (vicegerent) and deputy in this world? ER
Answer: Khalifah is an Arabic word and it is on the pattern of «فعيلة»; when one comes after another and acts in his place, the Arabs say «خلف فلان فلانا» so-and-so became the khalifah and deputy of so-and-so.

✿ Allah Almighty has said in the Noble Qur’an regarding Adam alayhis-salam:
«﴿وَإِذْ قَالَ رَبُّكَ لِلْمَلَائِكَةِ إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً﴾»
“And when your Lord said to the angels: ‘Indeed, I am going to place a khalifah on the earth.’” [2-البقرة:30]
↰ By this is meant the entire progeny of Adam, i.e., a people who will succeed one another, not that they will be Allah’s deputies (ma’adh Allah).

◈ Imam Ibn Kathir rahimahullah says:
«اي قوما يخلف بعضهم بعض قرنا بعد قرن وجيلا بعد جيل»
“By khalifah is meant that some will succeed others, one after another, and after one era, another era will come, and this sequence will continue for centuries.”

✿ As Allah Almighty has said in another place in the Noble Qur’an:
«﴿وَهُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَكُمْ خَلَائِفَ الْأَرْضِ وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَكُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجَاتٍ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِي مَا آتَاكُمْ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ سَرِيعُ الْعِقَابِ وَإِنَّهُ لَغَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ﴾»
“It is He Who has made you khalifahs on the earth and raised some of you above others in ranks, so that He may test you in what He has given you. Surely, your Lord is swift in punishment, and surely, He is Forgiving, Merciful.” [6-الأنعام:165]

✿ In another place He said:
«﴿أَمَّنْ يُجِيبُ الْمُضْطَرَّ إِذَا دَعَاهُ وَيَكْشِفُ السُّوءَ وَيَجْعَلُكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ الْأَرْضِ أَإِلَـهٌ مَعَ اللَّـهِ قَلِيلًا مَا تَذَكَّرُونَ﴾»
“Who is it that responds to the distressed one when he calls upon Him and removes the evil, and Who makes you khalifahs on the earth? Is there any deity with Allah? Little do you reflect.” [27-النمل:62]

✿ In one place He said:
«﴿وَلَوْ نَشَاءُ لَجَعَلْنَا مِنْكُمْ مَلَائِكَةً فِي الْأَرْضِ يَخْلُفُونَ﴾»
“It may be that your Lord will destroy your enemy and make you successors (khalifahs) in the land, and then see how you act.” [43-الزخرف:60]

❀ It is narrated from Abu Sa’id al-Khudri radi Allahu anhu that the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said:
«إن الدنيا حلوة خضرة وإن الله مستخلفكم فيها فينظر كيف تعملون .»
“Indeed, the world is sweet and green, and indeed Allah is going to make you khalifahs in it, so that He may see how you act.” [صحيح مسلم، كتاب الرقاق : باب اكثر اهل الحنة الفقراء 6948، مسند احمد 3/ 22]
◈ In the explanation of this hadith, Shaykh Muslim bin Mahmood al-Salafi says:
«اي جاعلكم خلفاء من القرون الذين قبلكم فينظر هل تعلمون بطاعة ام بمعصية وشهواتكم .»
“That is, He will make you the khalifahs of those who came before you, so that He may see whether you obey Him or disobey Him and follow your desires.” [تعليق على صحيح مسلم 4/ 501]

↰ From the above-mentioned verses and hadiths, it becomes clear that in «إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً» not only Adam alayhis-salam is meant specifically, but all his progeny is meant, whom Allah Almighty grants rule and succession on this earth, one after another.

◈ Imam Ibn Kathir rahimahullah says:
«والظاهر أنه لم يرد آدم عينا، إذ لو كان ذلك، لما حسن قول الملائكة: ﴿أَتَجْعَلُ فِيها مَنْ يُفْسِدُ فِيها وَيَسْفِكُ الدِّماءَ﴾ فإنهم أرادوا: أن من هذا الجنس من يفعل ذلك .»
“It is apparent that only the person of Adam alayhis-salam is not meant here. If that were the case, then the statement of the angels would not have been appropriate: ‘Will You place therein one who will cause corruption and shed blood?’ The angels intended that among the species of Adam there will be those who will cause corruption and bloodshed.” [تفسير ابن كثير : ص 49]

◈ Allamah Abu Hafs Umar bin Ali, known as Ibn ‘Adil al-Dimashqi, says:
“The commentators have differed on two reasons as to why Adam alayhis-salam was called khalifah. The first reason is that it is narrated from Abdullah bin Abbas radi Allahu anhuma that when Allah expelled the jinn from the earth and settled Adam alayhis-salam, Adam alayhis-salam became the khalifah of those jinn who had preceded, because Adam alayhis-salam came after them.”

◈ And the second reason is that Allah Almighty made him khalifah because:
«لأنه يخلف الله في الحكم بين خلقه، وهو المروي عن ابن مسعود وابن عباس والسدي، وهذا الرأي متأكد بقوله: ﴿إنا جعلناك خليفة في الأرض فاحكم بين الناس بالحق﴾» [ص: 26]
“He would implement Allah’s command among Allah’s creation, and this is narrated from Abdullah bin Mas’ud, Abdullah bin Abbas radi Allahu anhum, and the commentator Suddi, and this view is confirmed by Allah Almighty’s statement:
‘Indeed, We have made you a khalifah on the earth, so judge between people in truth.’” [اللباب فى علوم الكتاب 1/ 501، 500]

↰ From these explanations of the commentators, it is known that man is not the deputy of Allah Almighty. He is called khalifah either because some individuals succeed others, one after another, and this sequence continues from one era to another, or because man implements Allah’s law among the people on Allah’s earth and has been commanded to judge with justice and fairness.

◈ Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf hafizahullah says in the commentary of «إِنِّي جَاعِلٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ خَلِيفَةً»:
“By khalifah is meant a people who come one after another, and to say that man is Allah’s khalifah and deputy in this world is incorrect.” [تفسير احسن الكلام : ص 17]

↰ Some scholars who have called man Allah’s deputy and khalifah, by this mean the one who implements Allah’s commands.

◈ Maulana Abdur Rahman Kilani rahimahullah writes:
“Here, the word khalifah (deputy, representative) is used in an absolute sense; it cannot be explicitly known whether Adam is the khalifah of Allah Almighty or of some other creation. Some scholars are of the view that a khalifah is one who assumes authority in the event of someone’s death or absence, and Allah is «حي لا يموت» and ever-present. Therefore, Adam was not Allah’s khalifah but the khalifah of the jinn. Then there is also a narration that before the creation of man, the jinn inhabited this earth, causing mischief and bloodshed, so Allah sent an army of angels who drove the jinn towards the seas, and Adam alayhis-salam became their khalifah. Some scholars are of the view that for succession or deputyship, death or absence is not necessary; rather, an authoritative being can, even in his presence, delegate some powers to someone, making him his khalifah or deputy so that he may use those powers according to his will. In our view, the second opinion is stronger, because it is supported by a verse and also by the diplomatic system existing in the world. The translation of the referred verse is: ‘We offered the trust to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, but they refused to bear it and were afraid of it, but man undertook it. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant.’ [الاحزاب : 72] And all commentators agree that here ‘trust’ means the burden of obeying Allah Almighty, fulfilling His obligations and commands, and implementing them, and its other system is the system of khilafah.” [تيسير القرآن : 1/ 389]

↰ From this explanation of the commentators, it is known that the meaning of man being khalifah is either that he fulfills, obeys, and implements Allah Almighty’s commands, obedience, and Shari’ah rules on this earth, or that they come one after another on this earth, and this sequence has continued for centuries and will continue until the Day of Judgment, as has been mentioned above with reference to Imam Ibn Kathir and several Qur’anic verses. However, if someone takes man as Allah’s deputy or khalifah in the sense that man does Allah’s work and is His deputy in His actions, then this meaning is incorrect. May Allah Almighty grant correct understanding and keep us firm on the methodology of the Salaf al-Salihin. «آمين !»

Hadith Commentary:
Benefits and Issues:
In this world, Allah, the Exalted, has placed two characteristics:
It affects the heart and liver by being sweet, and by being lush and green it attracts the gaze,
thus both the heart and the sight are influenced by it,
even though its sweetness and greenness soon fall prey to extinction. And during the era of Musa (alayhis salam), the enemies, on the advice of Bal‘am, sent beautiful and attractive young women into the Israelite army,
with whom some soldiers committed immorality,
as a result of which the punishment of plague descended upon them.

Explanation:
1:
That is, He will make you the inheritors and successors of the previous nations.
This does not mean that man is the vicegerent or deputy of Allah; this is an incorrect notion.
Rather, Allah Himself is the deputy (khalifah) of man, as is found in the supplication of Khidr (alayhis salam): (wal-khalifatu ba‘d).

2:
That is, desire from the world only as much as is beneficial and helpful for your religious affairs,
and be wary of the cunning and deceitfulness of women.

3:
Many benefits are derived from this hadith:

(1)
Standing while delivering admonition and advice is Sunnah.

(2)
Man is prone to forgetfulness and error,
even the noble Companions (radi Allahu anhum) were not immune from this.

(3)
Fear of people should not prevent one from expressing the truth.

(4)
There is a need to be cautious regarding the world and women.

(5)
Breaking a covenant will be a cause of disgrace on the Day of Resurrection.

(6)
From birth until death, a person passes through trials of faith and disbelief.

(7)
There are various stages of anger.

(8)
How should transactions involving debt be conducted?

(9)
What should a person do in a state of anger?

(10)
How much of his share from the world remains for him?

(In the chain of narration, (Ali ibn Zayd ibn Jud'an) is weak,
therefore this hadith is weak in this context,
but there are authentic witnesses for several portions of this hadith.
See: (al-Sahihah: 486,
and 911)