The Causes of the Destruction of the Disbelievers from the People of Hud (peace be upon him);
Oppression/Injustice
Selections from the Book Prophet Hud (peace be upon him) And the Causes for the Demise of the Civilization of the People of Aad…
Written by Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi...
Episode (18)
Oppression is considered one of the greatest causes of the downfall of civilizations. It has a broad, comprehensive meaning, leading to the loss of balance in all aspects of life, including a person’s relationship with themselves, with Allah, and with others. From this arise pathological psychological, social, and economic phenomena, as well as corrupt perceptions of existence itself. Consequently, corruption spreads throughout human life. Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: {And your Lord would not have destroyed the cities unjustly while their people were reformers.} [Hud: 117].
And He (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: {And thus is the seizure of your Lord when He seizes the cities while they are committing wrong. Indeed, His seizure is painful and severe.} [Hud: 102].
Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) describes the people of ‘Aad as oppressors in the Holy Qur’an, along with other doomed nations: {Has there not reached them the news of those before them - the people of Noah and [the tribes of] ʿAad and Thamud and the people of Abraham and the companions [i.e., dwellers] of Madyan and the towns overturned? Their messengers came to them with clear proofs. And Allah would never have wronged them, but they were wronging themselves.} [At-Tawbah: 70].
The injustice of the people of ‘Aad became widespread in their society, and they committed it in all its forms. They continued in their oppression until divine punishment descended upon them. Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He) says: {And how many a city which was unjust have We shattered and produced after it another people.} [Al-Anbya: 11].
Indeed, destruction due to injustice is a Sunnah of Allah in the downfall of human civilizations, such as those of Noah, ‘Aad, Thamud, the people of Midian, and the overturned cities. It involves the eradication of their civilizations, which were far from the light of revelation, and the removal of the leadership of the elite who represented the political, social, and intellectual leadership of those fallen civilizations in the history of humanity.
- Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi, Prophet Hud (peace be upon him) And the Causes for the Demise of the Civilization of the People of Aad, pp. 502-504.
- The Sunnahs of the Qur’an in the Rise of Civilizations, Muhammad Haythur, p. 23.
For further information and review of the sources for the article, see:
The Book of Prophet Hud (peace be upon him) And the Causes for the Demise of the Civilization of the People of Aad on the official website of Sheikh Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi:
