Da’wa remains exhortation while amr bil ma’ruf can legitimate physical force

Evidence

Sometimes the terms are used synonymously, as in the case of someone off verbal advice or admonishment. At other times, dacwa is commonly understood as a kind of vocation (like that of a preacher, or a mosque teacher), while amr bil macril is regarded as a duty that a Muslim undertakes in the context of normal life. Finally, while both can be under.. stood as involving enjoinders to piety, the notion of enjoining as it is used in amr bil macril extends beyond acts of encouragement to the use of force in prohibiting undesirable conduct ( as suggested by the second part of the in.. junction, “the forbidding of evil and wrong”) . Some have understood this to mean that the use of violence is justifi in order to bring about moral good, as was the case when members of the militant group Takftr wa Hijra killed Pres.. ident Anwar Sadat in 1981 for his alleged immoral conduct as a Muslim ruler. Thus, we fi that amr bil macruf is more likely to be used to legitimate the use of physical force than is dacwa; the latter remains primarily an instru.. ment of moral exhortation and reform. — Saba Mahmood, Politics of Piety, 431

Categorization

• DEFINE: Distinguishes da’wa from amr bil ma’ruf wal-nahi ‘an al-munkar as separate moral devices with different force relations.