14 The Flags and Banners
The flags and banners of the State
The State has flags (Alwiyah) and banners (Rayat) as deduced from the flags and banners of the first Islamic State, which the Messenger of Allah ( PBUH) established in al-Medina al-Munawwarah. These will be as follows: .
1- Flag and banner, are linguistically called alam. Al-Qamus al-Muhit mentions under the root (r/w/y) that al-raya is ‘al-alam, plural being rayaat. It mentions under the root (l/w/y) that al-liwa' is al-‘alam, plural alwiyah Besides; The Law designated each one of these terms a shar'i meaning as follows: .
- The flag (liwaa') is white, on which it is written 'la ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasul Allah' with black script. It is tied to the amir of the army or the leader of the army. It is used as a sign of his location, and it goes along with this location. The evidence to tying the flag to the amir of the army is (that the Prophet (PBUH) entered Makkah on the day of its conquest while raising a white flag). This was narrated by Ibn Majah through Jabir. An-Nasa’i also narrated through Anas that when the Prophet (PBUH) appointed Usama ibn Zayd as amir to the army for invading the Romans, he tied his flag with his own hands. .
- The banner (rayah) is black, on which it is written 'la ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasul Allah' with white script. It is carried by the leaders of the army divisions (regiments, detachments, and other army units). The evidence is that the Messenger (PBUH) , while being the leader of the army in Khaybar, he said: "I will give the Raya tomorrow to a man who loves Allah and His Messenger, and Allah and His messenger love him; and he gave it to ’Ali". This hadith is agreed upon. ’Ali (ra) was considered then the leader of a division or a regiment in the army. Al-Harith b. Hassan b. Al-Bakri also said in the hadith, "We came to Medina and we saw the Prophet (PBUH) on the Mimbar, with Bilal standing in front of him wearing his sword. .