Meanwhile, some Muslims in Islamic countries such as Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, and Iran are calling to their own rule and nurturing the dream of the Islamic caliphate! Undoubtedly, they are in manifest error; because, as has become clear, sovereignty belongs to Allah, and their rule—even if carried out with good intentions—is not considered the Islamic caliphate, given that Allah has not appointed them on His behalf, nor has He commanded Muslims to follow them, and they themselves know and acknowledge this reality. Therefore, their acts of possession on the Earth and the borders they establish within it are aggressive; because the Earth belongs to Allah, and He grants it to whomever of His servants He wills; as He has said: ﴿إِنَّ الْأَرْضَ لِلَّهِ يُورِثُهَا مَنْ يَشَاءُ مِنْ عِبَادِهِ ۖ وَالْعَاقِبَةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ﴾[1]; “Indeed, the Earth belongs to Allah; He grants it as inheritance to whomever of His servants He wills. And the (good) end belongs to the pious.” Similarly, public assets belong to Allah and His appointee, and no one has the right to take possession of them without Their permission, and accordingly, it is permissible for Them to remove these assets from the possession of others; as He has explicitly said: ﴿يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَنْفَالِ ۖ قُلِ الْأَنْفَالُ لِلَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ﴾[2]; “They ask you about the Anfal (i.e., natural assets). Say: ‘The Anfal belong to Allah and the Prophet,’” and: ﴿وَلَكِنَّ اللَّهَ يُسَلِّطُ رُسُلَهُ عَلَى مَنْ يَشَاءُ ۚ وَاللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ﴾[3]; “But Allah gives His Prophets authority over whomever He wills, and Allah has power over all things.”

From here, it is understood that none of the current movements and governments in the Islamic world have legitimacy, and that the only path for Muslims to return to Islam is to turn away from all of them and to prepare the ground for the movement and government of a man from the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet, whom Allah has appointed on His behalf and commanded to be followed. This is something that can be achieved by knowing him, and knowing him—as I will explain, InShaAllah—is possible.

2. The Sovereignty of Other Than Allah

The second cause for the non-establishment of Islam after the Messenger of Allah is the failure to realize Allah’s sovereignty after him;