Morocco have won the hearts of the Ummah, which is more important than the World Cup anyway.
You may be reading this before Morocco’s historic semi-finals match against France or after, but regardless of the outcome the Moroccan team have done something special.
I am no football fan, watching grown men running around a field kicking a ball for 90 minutes isn’t my idea of time well spent, but the World Cup is a different ball game.
For those who look, there have been some very interesting opportunities to learn from the World Cup this year, but also from the Moroccan’s themselves.
We can sum up a few of them here:
The global ummah
If there was doubt in the power of the ummah, it was restored. The Muslims around the world are backing this majority Muslim team. Whether you have been to Morocco, whether you like the food or the culture, it doesn’t matter. If you are a Muslim you are supporting them. What is interesting is that many French nationals, who are Muslim, are also standing behind Morocco. If England were playing Morocco I think that most, if not all, Muslims living in England would support Morocco. Why? We have a natural affinity towards our own and this is beyond the issue of nationhood and statehood (alien concepts in Islam). We have this internal desire to support Muslims and may this continue and last outside of the game of football. It reminds me of the hadith:
The parable of the believers in their affection, mercy, and compassion for each other is that of a body. When any limb aches, the whole body reacts with sleeplessness and fever.
Regardless of the future success of the Moroccan team, let this be a reminder about the importance of the ummah. We may not be reviving a Caliphate from a bygone era but we can have at the forefront of our minds, how do we show affection, mercy and compassion for our Muslim brethren whether in the UK or around the world.
Mothers
A lot has been said about the mothers of the Moroccan players in the World Cup. It is stated in The Guardian:
Involving players’ parents in the tournament is a deliberate morale-building strategy on Regragui’s part. Upon taking the job in August, he said: “Our success is not possible without our parents’ happiness.”
Of course we know that the duah of the mother is so powerful and important as well as happiness of our parents.
Abdullah ibn Amr reported: The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The pleasure of the Lord is in the pleasure of the parents, and the displeasure of the Lord is in the displeasure of the parents.”
This is a timely reminder to all children out there, no matter how old. Parents are not always right but listening to their general advice and receiving their blessings can be more beneficial than you realise.
Knowledge
Something you may not take from the World Cup is seeking knowledge. As Muslims we seek any opportunity to learn, I may as well put the link for our Roots Course starting in January which is a great opportunity to seek knowledge right here in Milton Keynes https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/roots-intermediate-course-tickets-479777616767 for any questions email us by clicking here.
An interesting point of learning stemming from Morocco v Portugal is the Portugal flag.
The 7 yellow castles on the red part represent the 7 castles that Portugal took back from the Moors during battles. These were captured under Afonso III in the Algarve in 1249.
The 5 smaller blue shields in the white area of the shield represent the 5 Moorish kings that were killed by Afonso I, the first King of Portugal.
As we know, Moors here means Muslims so the Portugal flag is in reality a celebration of defeating the Muslims – think about that next time you wear a shirt with the Portugal flag! We read about Muslims and the loss of the Iberian peninsula at our monthly book club when we read Blood and Faith, The Purging of Muslim Spain. Our monthly book club is a means to broaden minds by reading a wide range of books from history, fiction, “self-help”, spirituality etc. If you are interested in joining our monthly book club (we meet on the first Saturday of each month) email us here.
Whilst there is a lot more we can take, this should suffice as some reflections on how Morocco has already won the “real” World Cup.
Lote Tree 