In Arab society, which had a social structure based on tribal solidarity, it was very important for a person’s ancestry and lineage to be known. Tribal law, based on lineage, determined matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, and the relationships and responsibilities toward relatives. An individual was identified, above all, with their tribe. A person who had no tribe or who could not find a place for themselves in a tribe by agreement had no security.
Thus, in a sense, the tribe was the individual’s social and legal assurance. All of this demonstrates that knowledge of lineage was of vital importance. This was because the determination of a child’s paternity had many legal consequences, above all with respect to inheritance. Moreover, it was not always easy to determine a person’s ancestry. In fact, there were those who practiced the science of physiognomy, which was called qiyafa, and who could, when necessary, determine lineage. Based on physiological and physiognomic similarities, the physiognomist, who was called a qa’if, decided if someone was related to one person or another.
In a society whose social structure was based on the tribe, a confused lineage gave rise to unfavorable consequences, morally as much as legally. The Prophet (saw), who was aware of these possible consequences, warned in strong terms those who did not accept his own family, that is, the lineage to which he belonged. In fact, he said in a hadith that anyone who alleged that his lineage was connected to another lineage would be ungrateful to Allah (swt) (Ibn Hanbal, II, 215). If we take into account that all laws related to tribal society came into being on the basis of the tribe, then this strong warning from the Messenger of Allah (saw) intended for those who denied biological reality and the social structure attached to it is extremely significant.
In this respect, there is another Prophetic warning which seems to have been recorded in a legal text from the time of the Prophet (saw) and which is known as a written document belonging to Ali (ra). It states, “And whoever claims someone else to be his father, or claims wala’ (attached by proximity, affiliation) to someone other than his mawali (a person linked by proximity to another: former master of a freed slave), then upon him is the curse of Allah, the angels, and the people. On the Day of Judgement, Allah will not accept either his repentance or excuse.” (Muslim, Hajj, 467; T2127, Tirmidhi, Wala’, 3)
At the time of the Prophet (saw), determining identity or lineage had very great importance, especially in such matters as marriage, inheritance, and criminal law, for it could frequently open the way to disputes. But in every instance, the Prophet (saw) decided according to legal legitimacy. As for the legal consequences of lineage, it would appear that children only had a relationship with the father. In other words, in determining identity, the basis of one’s relationship was not the mother but the father. For instance, in a hadith in which the Prophet (saw) condemned those who denied their lineage, he said, “May a place in Hell be prepared for one who claims that he belongs to someone other than his father.” (Bukhari, Manaqib, 5) and in another hadith he said, “Whoever claims to be the son of a person other than his father, and he knows that person is not his father, then Paradise will be forbidden for him.” (Bukhari, Fara’idh, 29) Thus he indicated that the relationship in fact depended on the father.
The Prophet (saw) was trying to dismantle the mentality of the Arabs of the Jahiliyya which was based on tribal solidarity and to establish a perspective grounded in the brotherhood of faith (Hujurat, 49:10) and the notion that they were all the children of the same father. All humanity was created from one male and one female (Hujurat, 49:13). The wisdom in creating different tribes, races, colors, and languages (Rum, 30:22), was not to divide people and make one group superior to another but for them to get to know each other (Hujurat, 49:13) and to compete in doing good work (Ma’idah, 5:48). These divine messages state that He determines the value of humans not from their biological strain or lineage but from values of faith and morality, such as goodness, charity, justice, and piety. In our time in particular when we are experiencing global disasters for the sake of regional interests and identities are threatened by mass murder and genocide, humanity is in greater need to heed these commandments of the Holy Qur’an than ever before. The following message of the last Prophet, who was sent to humanity 1,400 years ago in an environment in which there was inter-tribal competition for superiority, has much greater importance today than in his time: “Allah has removed the pride of the Jahiliyya (period) from you and boasting about lineage. (A person is either) A pious believer or a miserable sinner, and people are the children of Adam, and Adam is from dirt.” (Tirmidhi, Manaqib, 74)
People have psychological and social ties to the family, clan, or tribe to which they belong. It is quite natural that they sense a need to identify themselves with the social structure to which they are connected. As for the transformation of the sense of belonging into a concern that is much different from need, it incites discrimination and opens the door to all kinds of divisions. The warning of Allah’s Messenger to those who, while expressing themselves, wanted to give priority to the blood ties to which they belonged because of various concerns such as tribal solidarity and social anxiety was intended to prevent such fragmentation.
All of this, of course, does not mean that lineage or a person’s ancestry is meaningless. On the contrary, lineage is one of the basic rights that Islam aims to protect. There are many reasons for this. For example, lineage is a factor that cannot be ignored in marriage. Islam encourages people to have a knowledge of their lineage with respect to its effect on kinship relations. This is because the protection of kinship ties, to which Islam gives great importance, in an orderly and strong manner depends on a knowledge of one’s lineage. Indeed, according to Abu Hurayra (ra), our Prophet said, “Learn enough about your lineage to facilitate keeping your ties of kinship. For, indeed, keeping the ties of kinship encourages affection among relatives, increases wealth and the lifespan.” (Tirmidhi, Birr, 49; Ibn Hanbal, II, 374)
While on the one hand, Islam forbids preoccupation with claims of lineage, which is the cause of division and conflict, on the other hand, it encourages knowing one’s lineage in order to open the path to social cohesion and solidarity. It requires one to accept his family and adopt his identity but not to assume any sense of superiority as a result. We can understand from all of this that lineage and the sense of belonging have nothing to do with superiority with respect to religious, legal, political, or social status and is only of great significance in social and civil relations. Today in particular when the borders between countries have begun to lose their importance and international relations bring together a variety of identities, the measures that Islam takes against ethnic discrimination take on new importance. While the Holy Qur’an states, “On the day when the Trumpet is blown, the ties between them will be as nothing and they will not ask about each other” (Mu’minun, 23:101) the Prophet (saw), parallel to this, addressed his people, whose lives in the Jahiliyya period had been built on an obsession with tribe and racism, saying, “...He who is slow paced in doing (good) deeds, his (high) lineage does not make him go ahead.” (Muslim, Dhikr, 38; Tirmidhi, Qira’at, 10) Thus, he basically stated that what was fundamental was not ancestry or ethnicity but good deeds, that is, good behavior.
