The Science of Giving Da‘wa
by M. Dawud Alcox
An Invitation
Many times, when we think about
da‘wa, we think pamphlets, interfaith
dialogue and GoodWord
translations of the Qur’an. We
think of Muslim and Non-Muslim
apologetics, speaker’s corner and
people shouting on platforms trying
to win over the crowd. Can it really
be, that introducing and connecting
the human race to their Creator
could be reduced to handing out
pieces of paper or uttering a few
logical arguments? You go door to
door and deliver something with
Islam written on it, but can the
recipient really relate and connect to
the paper and ink you put in their
mailbox? It must be more complex
than that.
In this article we will explore the
reality of da‘wa, look at some of the
variables to consider when giving it
and also mention some key dos and
do nots.
The Da‘wa Connection
Let’s start out with the basic concept
of da‘wa. Da‘wa means to call
or invite someone to something.
As an Islamic term, it generally
refers to inviting non-Muslims to
believe in the oneness of Allah and
His Messengers. As a mechanism,
Allah has used angels and prophets
to represent and deliver His divine
invitation to mankind. They were
to make Allah’s message plain and
clear to the people so that they may
choose between a loving Creator or
an eternal punishment.
Representation
Representation is something that
we do constantly. In my last article,
I explained briey about the connection
between symbols and the
meanings that they convey. This
relationship is one of representation.
The symbol represents the meaning.
In a personal representation, you are
acting as a symbol for the one you
are representing. You demonstrate
their ideas in the most accurate
way possible. Let’s understand this
through an example. If someone is
hired to create a website for a professional
law rm, their task would be
to present their services, ideas and
the vibe of the company in such a
way that makes you feel that the
company themselves had designed
it. You should feel that they are
right next to you with each click. If,
on the other hand, you designed the
website with colorful clipart of cute
animals, they would claim that you
are mis-representing the company.
Prophetic Legacy
The main task of the Prophets was
to re-present Allah to the people.
Our souls already had a relationship
with Him. Their task, put simply,
was to present Allah to the people
once again and to remind them of
their prior attestation to His Lordship.
They were to make best eorts
to uncloud the of the people
so they would revert to the worship
and servitude of their Creator. rom the rst to the last prophet,
the mission of da‘wa was essentially
the same and it stood as the main
element of their prophethood.
After Allah’s nal Messenger a
left this world, the noble duty of
calling to Allah and representing
Him was passed on to the illustrious
Sahaba l They understood
the implications of this task and
eectively established da‘wa immediately.
We can see that Sayyiduna
Abu Bakr g wasted no time in
representing Allah’s will. Da‘wa
began ourishing and spreading in
all its various forms. Throughout
the centuries, the scholars and the
religiously devout carried on this
prophetic mission until the present
day. We literally, by Allah’s grace,
are Muslims due to the da‘wa eorts
of the Prophet a and his blessed
Companions l.
Who is Responsible?
The wave of da‘wa has indeed
reached us, but do we have to ride it
or can we watch comfortably from
the shore? There are dierent levels
of responsibility when it comes to
da‘wa and representing Islam. Obviously,
not everyone is ualied for
debates and engaging in advanced
Islamic topics. However, we must
10 September – October 2021 | AL-MADINAH