Accountability in an Islamic Organization Ehtesab, Muhasabah

1. COLLECTIVE
EHTASAB OR ACCOUNTABILITY
IN AN ISLAMIC ORGANIZATION

2. Surah Baqarah,2:284
Whether you show what is in your minds or
conceal it Allah shall call you to account for it.
He shall forgive whom He pleases and punish
whom He pleases. For Allah has power over all
things.

3. Surah Hashar,59:18
O ye who believe! Fear Allah and let every
soul look to what (provision) he has sent
forth for tomorrow.
Fear Allah: for Allah is well-acquainted with
(all) that ye do. Hashar 59:18.

4. What is Muhasabah?
 To assess our own actions with total honesty, which
requires of us genuine (and frequent) meditations and
self-criticism.
 Verbalizing unpleasant realities about our deeds is
invaluable in our muhasabah sessions
 The next step entails planning to correct these unfavorable
tendencies until they are altogether eliminated.
 Without self-honesty, genuine desire for betterment there
is no muhasabah.
 A famous French proverb puts it: "A fault denied is twice
committed."

5. Significance of Muhasabah
Sayyidina Umar ibn al-Khattab RA (May Allah
be pleased with him) once said:
“Take account of yourselves before you are
brought to account, and weigh your deeds before
they are weighed before you, and prepare
yourselves for the Day of Revelation.”

6. Maymun ibn Mahran (R)
"A pious person cautiously examines and
adjudges himself more than he would a
tyrant ruler or a tight-fisted partner!“

7. Al-Hasan Al-Basri (RA)
 "A believer polices himself [or one might say, his own
soul].
 He assesses and adjudges [himself] for the sake of
Allah.
 The Final Judgment [of God] may end up mild for
some simply because they were quick to adjudge
themselves in this life.
 Or the Final Judgment on the Day of Resurrection may
end up a tough ordeal for some who were unconcerned
about what they did in this life, thinking they would
not be called to account."

8. Dhu'l-Nun (RA)
 Dhu'l-Nun was asked: "What causes a devotee to be
worthy of entrance to paradise?" He said: "One merits
entrance to paradise by five things:
1. Unwavering constancy,
2. Unflagging effort,
3. Meditation on God in solitude and society,
4. Anticipating death by preparing provision for the
hereafter, and
5. Bringing oneself to account before one is brought to
judgment."

9. Abul A’la Maududi (RA)
 I regard it (Muhasabah) indispensable for the stability
of the Islamic Movement.
 I am sure that the day this healthy process of
Muhasabah is stopped, the Movement would succumb
to various ills, resulting in its destruction

11. Accountability (Muhasabah)-is
vital for Islamic Organization
 Every individual is accountable in an Islamic Jama’ah.
 Practice of giving reports helps everyone to stay on
the straight path and be fully conscious and alert about
their respective duties.
 Effective system of checks and balances remains in
place to identify mistakes and correct them
appropriately and in a timely manner.
 This brings out the best in each individual with
regards to performance and furthers excellence in the
work of the Jama’ah.

12. Muhasabah for both commissions
and omissions

13. 3 Dimensions of Accountability

14. Etiquette's of Muhasabah
 1) Muhasabahshould not be made every
time and everywhere.
 2) Before doing Muhasabah , one must
make sure, it is done out of sincerity.
This can be done by examining one’s
own heart by taking Allah (SWT) as
one’s witness.

15. Etiquette's of Muhasabah (contd.)
 3) Words and manner of Muhasabah should make
everyone feel that you really want reform and
betterment.
Remember, this should be for the betterment of the
Jamaah.
 4) Be sure that your Muhasabah is based on real &
hard facts. Baseless Muhasabah is a sin and creates
distance in the hearts.

16. Etiquette's of Muhasabah (contd.)
 5) The personsubjected to Muhasabah
should listen calmly , then ponder over it
without any prejudice.
He should concede to the truth plainly and
counter the wrong with impassionate
reasoning.
Remember, to get annoyed on Muhasibah shows
arrogance & vanity.

17. Etiquette's of Muhasabah (contd.)
 6) The Muhasabah and its rebuttal should
not prolong and turn into a permanent
altercation.
 Discussion is worth till both viewpoints are
duly elaborated but if the matter is not
settled, postpone discussion and let both of
them reconsider the whole matter separately
and with calmness.

18. TRANSPARENCY IS VITAL FOR
ACCOUNTABILITY

19. Significance of presenting Reports
1- It is a way of Muhasabah
 Report is a way that we implement Muhasabah or
accountability in an Islamic organization.
 Through reports, members can realize their own
shortcomings when they prepare their report

20. 2- Correction of mistakes and
moving to excellence
 They are able to correct their mistakes
 They move towards excellence in their work
 They can compete with others in the path of excellence

21. 3- Sense of Responsibility
 Everyone in the Jamaah ( leader or the worker) is
responsible to others.
 Preparation and presentation of reports creates and
strengthens the sense of responsibility in the
members.

22. 4- Jamaah Leadership can be
updated
 Reports provide status of the members performance to
the leadership.
 Leadership comes to know the positive and negative
qualities of the members.
 Members can be assigned tasks according to their
capabilities.
 Leadership can do better planning for the organization

23. 5- Importance of Sama and Ta’ah
O ye who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Apostle and
those charged with authority among you.
If ye differ in anything among yourselves refer it to Allah
and His Apostle if ye do believe in Allah and the Last Day:
that is best and most suitable for final determination. Nisa, 4:59.

24. Report presentation provides
training for sama and ta’ah
 It is very important that strong discipline is
maintained in an Islamic Jamaah.
 Following the collective decisions and the decisions of
the leadership is compulsory in Shariah
 Presenting reports provides the training for this
listening and obeying the leadership.

26. What makes reports ineffective?
 Some members do not realize the importance of
personal reports and question their need.
 Members do not prepare the reports in timely manner
 Prepared reports are incomplete or meaningless.
 Leadership does not read the report and/or does not
give its evaluation and advice.

27. Model Report Form
 Name:__________________________
 Unit/ Region_________________________________ Month: ___________________________
 • % of Salaah in Jamah : _________ % of Salaah as Qadah : ________________
 • % of Fajr Salaah in Jamah : See above_________ % of Fajr Salaah as Qadah
 Study of Quran, Tafseer & Hadith
 Quran recitation (15 min) :
 Hadith Study (10 min) :
 Tafseer Study (15 min) :
 (Rarely: 1-10 days / month Often: 11-20 days / month Regularly: 21-30 days / month
 Did you read one of the books from prescribed syllabus ?
 If yes, which book:____________________________ Did you complete? Yes / No

28. Model Report Form
 Meetings with Muslims and non-Muslims for the purpose of
Dawah:
 Personal (Face to face):Yes ______ Phone calls: Yes ___________
Emails : ____________

 Distributed Islamic literature/CD’s/Audio tapes/Books & Other
Dawah material_____________________________________
 Monthly Contribution & Subscription
 Paid monthly contribution to the organization
 Are you on monthly “auto-deduction”?
 Subscriber to “Message” or other Islamic magazines Y/N

29. Model Report Form
 Brotherhood (Ukhuwah)
 Visited / met brothers (other than meetings)
 Phone Calls: Yes .If yes, how many (approximately):____________
 Physical Activity (Exercise)
 Participated in physical activities for 20 minutes a day (at least 3-4 times a week)
 Organization ( Tanzeem )
 Attended Member’s Meetings:
 Accomplished any assigned responsibility:
 Participated in other organizational activities:
 COMMENTS:

30. Dua

Allahumma Hasibni Hisaban Yasiraa
 O’Allah! Take my account an easy account. Ameen

O’Allah! Forgive my sins of past and future, what I did in
secret or in open and my transgressions, and you know
more about these than me. You are from eternity and for
eternity. There is no God except you.

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