Question Summary:
Happy British Muslims Video

Question Detail:

 
There's been a recent video released and participated in by many notable British 'practising' Muslims termed 'Happy British Muslims'.
Perhaps the most concerning feature (for some of us at least)  is that a prominent UK scholar is featured in it. He has since gone on record to say,"I'm delighted to see the outcome of the Happy British Muslims video, which has unlocked a remarkable tide of goodwill around the world, and significantly tilted the image of Muslims among many sceptics. Islamophobes must be grinding their teeth to see Muslims of different races and age-groups united by happiness. No one will produce a Sharia argument against jumping for joy!" 
Could you please explain if there are any 'sharia arguments' that are violated in this video?

Answer :

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh. 
The Happy British Muslims video is an unfortunate example of the moral ambivalence of many of today’s Muslims and their detachment from the true tradition and spirit of Islām. The Shar‘ī violations contained in the video are not in need of any explanation as they are obvious to anyone with even a cursory knowledge of Islām. The bigger problem that lies at its heart is the unfortunate reality that common Muslims today are at a crossroads between accepting the beautiful and pristine orthodox teachings of Islām and succumbing to the pressures of accepting western liberal values. Due to an entrenched inferiority complex in many Muslims, they capitulate to this pressure, and believe that the norms and values promoted by western liberal society are superior to those of Islām. This is not to claim that there is always a clash between Islāmic values and those of western liberalism, but that there are certainly some areas where they are at odds. A few examples are as follows:

Due to the obvious clash between liberal western values and Islāmic values in these and other aspects, many people will find Islām’s view “strange” or even “backwards” and “immoral”, because all people, religious or otherwise, are pressured (covertly and overtly) into accepting western liberal norms, by means of the media, and through other channels (legal, political etc.). The standard of morality is therefore shifted to these so-called “enlightened values” and not what our revealed source call us towards. Islām is a religion that is conducive to a sound human nature that has not been contaminated by corrupt external influences[5]. Allāh Ta‘ālā says:
أفحكم الجاهلية يبغون، ومن أحسن من الله حكما لقوم يوقنون
“Is it the decree of ignorance that they seek? And who is more beautiful in decree than Allāh for people with true conviction?” (Qur’ān, 5:50)
Rasūlullāh (sallAllāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) prophesised this reality in the following words:
بدأ الإسلام غريبا وسيعود كما بدأ غريبا فطوبى للغرباء
“Islām began as something strange and it will return, just as it began, to something strange. So blessed are the strangers!” (Sahīh Muslim)
Muslims have adopted two approaches to this imposition of western liberal values:

The Happy British Muslims video and other acts of Muslim appeasement to the west are a consequence of adopting the first mistaken attitude. What is the solution to this trend? Certainly we must educate and explain to the common Muslims that these things are impermissible in the Sharī‘ah. Musical instruments are certainly prohibited according to clear texts of Sharī‘ah and the unanimous view of Muslim jurists.[6]  Similarly, the vast majority of scholars regard dancing impermissible for men.[7] Moreover, the prohibition of women without hijāb dancing in the presence of non-relative men needs no explanation. These are obvious factors that make the video impermissible in light of the Sharī‘ah. Furthermore, although it may be argued from one angle that this video challenges stereotypes about Muslims, from another perspective, the video plays right into western stereotypes of what is viewed as the standards of happiness, which assume that those who do not dance to pop music are somehow grumpy or unhappy. Islām does not support the view that happiness rests in dancing to pop music. Rather, true happiness rests in the heart of a believer who is connected to Allāh at all times. Dancing in this way to pop music is not an expression of true internal happiness but of a short-lived fulfilment of base pleasure. Islām discourages vain acts of amusement because human beings are created as creatures of purpose, intellect and wisdom and vain acts of amusement have no purpose, rationale or wisdom.
Educating Muslims about this, however, is only one small step that conscientious Muslims must make. This needs to be accompanied by a sustained effort to connect the common Muslims to their local mashāyikh and ‘ulamā’. Efforts of tasawwuf and tablīgh need to be extended to the masses to reconnect them with the true legacy of their dīn, so the spirit and joy of carrying out each and every order of Allāh Ta‘ālā, and acting on the Sunnah of Rasūlullāh (sallAllāhu ‘alayhi wasallam) and his noble Sahābah, permeates the heart. Moreover, books like Pearls from the Path and Hayāt al-Sahābah, which relate incidents from the lives of purified souls of a bygone time, should be promoted, so Muslims are able to see and take inspiration from examples of how Islām is truly internalised and practised.
The dīn of Islām is the purest expression of humanity, balancing the spiritual and bodily dimensions of human nature, without extremes or pretentions. It is a religion that exhorts its adherents towards compassion, gentleness, honesty, justice, moral consciousness and good character. If it is embraced without succumbing to pressures to “reinterpret” dīn, it will fill one’s life with beauty and happiness. Allāh Ta‘ālā says:
منْ عَمِلَ صَالِحًا مِّن ذَكَرٍ أَوْ أُنثَى وَهُوَ مُؤْمِنٌ فَلَنُحْيِيَنَّهُ حَيَاةً طَيِّبَةً وَلَنَجْزِيَنَّهُمْ أَجْرَهُم بِأَحْسَنِ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ
“Whoever, male or female, has acted righteously, while being a believer, We shall certainly make him live a good life, and shall give such people their reward for the best of what they used to do.” (16:97)[8]
We make du‘ā that Allāh Ta‘ālā brings the love of His dīn into our hearts and keeps us steadfast on haqq.
And Allah Ta‘ālā Knows Best
Zameelur Rahman
Student Darul Iftaa
UK
Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.
www.daruliftaa.net