واعتصموا بحبل الله جميعا ولا تفرقوا
Wa-ʿtaṣimū bi-Ḥabli’llāhi Jamīʿan wa lā Tafarraqū
Hold fast, all together, to the rope of Allah and do not separate (Quran 3:103); a call to Muslim unity
What it means
These words are from the Quran: “And hold firm to the rope of Allah, all together, and do not separate” (3:103). The verse goes on to remind the believers that they had been enemies and that Allah joined their hearts, so that they became brothers. Commentators have understood the rope of Allah as the Quran, as the religion of Islam, or as the covenant with Allah. The verse is often quoted in appeals for unity among Muslims. It calls for common attachment to the shared source, and the schools of law have long accepted that scholars may differ within it.
Often misunderstood as
That it demands identical opinions, when it calls for unity around the Quran while the law recognises scholarly difference.
Term and Arabic as listed in Ismail al Faruqi, Toward Islamic English (International Institute of Islamic Thought, 1995), p. 64, listed as WA I‘TAṢIMŪ BI ḤABL ALLAHI JAMĪ‘AN WA LĀ TAFARRAQŪ.. The definition is restated here.