Rahmah among Muslim Leaders: The Case of Waqf Institutions

This study aims to expand the existing research on empathic leadership and its impact on management effectiveness within Waqf institutions in Malaysia. This aim was achieved by including the concept of Rahmah in the analysis. Empathetic leadership exemplifies the manner in which the behaviours and emotional states of followers are impacted by the leaders' comprehension and provision of support. Data analysis was conducted via the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Well-structured interviews were used to collect the opinions of the individuals entrusted with managing Waqf properties. Given the uneven distribution of Waqf employees across Malaysia, the study population was stratified into clusters based on the states. This practice ensured the suitability and sufficiency of the sample size obtained from each cluster, specifically referring to the states. The results indicated that Islamic leaders in Waqf organizations exhibit a notable degree of empathy, as seen by the mean score of 5.23 and standard deviation of 1.09, in the management of their personnel. Based on the findings, this study posits that the concept of Rahmah may have broader applicability outside the third government sector (TSO), encompassing many organizational practices. It also argues that the presence of a strong leader is crucial for the development of any organization and is not limited to TSOs, such as Waqf institutions.


Introduction
Leader plays an important role in all organizational settings.Besides leading and encouraging people, a leader also plays the key role of envisioning the way towards achieving the set objectives.
To become an effective leader, one must have good leadership traits and style that can influence followers and affect their work performance. 1Good management and leadership procedures must reflect the culture in which they are rooted.Islam places a strong emphasis on leadership.Today, however, people rely more on the western leadership style, whereby Muslim societies seem to overlook the Islamic leadership paradigm established by the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and the four significant leaders known as the khalifa ar-Rashidun who led the Muslim ummah for 50 years. 2slim scholars have constructed a list of Islamic leadership ideas.Some of them believe that the elements of patience and leniency exemplified by the Prophet (SAW) should be emulated by all leaders. 3Basically, all aspects of Islamic leadership must be established based on the teachings of Al-Qur'ān, such as understanding people and becoming a role model.The nature of Rahmah is one of the elements in Islamic leadership that remains critical to ensure the well-being of the society.It is defined as a tender sensation in the heart, a sign of full memory, and an instinct to always be merciful to others and to abstain from crime, as well as to be the source of all goodness, virtue, and security for all human beings. 4Willingness to care, paying attention, helping and tolerating each other, and taking care of welfare are among the important characteristics towards creating a harmonious society and family. 5Indirectly, Rahmah is an attribute that is highly promoted in Islam.In fact, the term Rahmah appears more than 300 times in the Qur'ān.
Rahmah is universal and encompasses all aspects. 6Muslim scholars believe that the love brought by Islam is something that must be enjoyed by every living being.This was revealed by the Prophet himself in a hadith narrated by Salman: "Indeed, I was sent as a blessing for all the worlds."The Prophet interpreted the concept of Rahmah through his daily communication with those around him, demonstrating kindness to other people, such as children, the elderly, and even the enemy. 7This attitude of doing good to others is generally acknowledged as an important characteristic of a leader.Rahmah occurs when the leader is able to show his love and consideration. 8n important trait of Rahmah is empathy, in addition to respect, kindness, and tolerance. 9mpathy can be defined as the cognitive response that arises as a result of one's ability to understand others. 10It also increases self-awareness, while experiencing and interacting with emotions.Empathy is a critical leadership concept as contended by many leadership theories. 11To become an effective leader, it is an emotional intelligence feature that one must possess. 12Empathy is required by transformational leaders in order to demonstrate to their followers that they care about their needs and success. 13When a follower requires explicit support from the leader, the latter would supply it through communication in the form of encouragement, moral support, and so on, demonstrating how empathy is shown through leader communication. 14Nevertheless, leaders frequently display hesitance to openly express sensitivity and emotions, mostly driven by concerns that such behaviour may be perceived as a sign of incompetence or vulnerability.This was supported by a survey conducted by Businessolver's on their 6 th Annual State of Workplace Empathy study.The results of the survey showed that over 68% of chief executive officers (CEOs) voiced concerns regarding the potential loss of respect if they were to demonstrate empathy in the workplace. 15Furthermore, employees in a high power distance country, such as in Malaysia, are known to maintain social distance and are willing to demonstrate deference, loyalty, and trust towards their leaders.This phenomenon may have been influenced by the colonial era and the lingering impact of the Malay feudal system. 16In instances where leaders fail to demonstrate empathy, there is an adverse consequence in the form of a toxic work environment, wherein employees experience a lack of support and appreciation.Consequently, this situation engenders a high rate of employee turnover, diminished morale, and subpar performance.
Islam places significant emphasis on the notion that its practices embody mercy, peace, and blessings.It imparts teachings on cultivating a compassionate disposition, fostering empathy, and embracing forgiveness.Empathy is commonly perceived to be intricately linked to the concept of Rahmah and is considered synonymous with love, which is regarded as a precious and benevolent blessing bestowed by Allah.
Thus, this study aims to overview how empathy among leaders can affect employees' effective job performance.It was conducted on employees in the Islamic based third government sector (TSO), specifically Waqf institutions, in Malaysia.

Literature Review
Malaysia is well-known for its etiquette and courtesy.The country has a multi-racial, multireligious, and multi-ethnic population which is classified into three major races namely Malays, Chinese, and Indians 17 , with Malays being the most populous ethnic group in Peninsular Malaysia. 18The Malay community dominates most sectors including government organisations, followed by the Chinese, Indians, and other communities.Due to this diversity, a nation with integrity, efficient governance, and trust, as well as a knowing community that is moral and courteous is required to achieve long-term and sustainable development. 19Indeed, harmony and unity must always be maintained and upheld as they are fundamental in the concept of Rahmah. 20e culture of Malays is heavily influenced by Islamic philosophy and practices. 21Islam teaches humility, particularly in the way one talks, which serves as a measure and determinant of the beauty of the Malay culture. 22This is an indication that Malays, in general, speak humbly and politely 23 and hold a high regard for ethics and empathy while communicating, as demonstrated by their courteousness. 24ahmah entails three main stages of philological analysis, namely information, socialization, and transformation. 25In the information phase, the normative definition of Rahmah is a universal affection addressed to the entire universe.In the socialization phase, the normative definition of Rahmah is socialization via teaching with the prime example of the Prophet, who declared Rahmah as the identity of Muslims regardless of whether they constitute the minority or majority group.With Rahmah, affection dominates over hatred.Lastly, in the transformation phase, Rahmah appears as a classic and contemporary 'sufistic' lifestyle that actively spreads affection to all creatures, with no insight of girded exoteric status.
The text of the Qur'ān on which the philological analysis focuses entails verses that contain the term 'mercy'.This is explicitly stated in al-Anbiya' 21:107 which represents the vision and grand narrative of Islam namely "lial-Rahmah'ālamīn", spreading affection worldwide.The term 'mercy' always appears at the beginning of each surah -other than al-Taubah -particularly al-Rahmān (the Merciful) and al-Rahīm (the Most Merciful) in the phrase Bismillah.According to Fadl (2001), the Qur'ān constantly highlights values such as justice, honesty, compassion, goodness, and truth as natural and innate human characteristics.
The actions or the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) have been the guiding source for Muslims all over the world. 26It is clearly stated in the Qur'ān in Al-Anbiya verse 107 which translates as, "And We have not sent you oh Muhammad except as a Rahmah or mercy to the world." 27In fact, the birth of the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) brought an abundance of Rahmah and mercifulness to the whole world and to all mankind.Rahmah also implicates being loving and caring.Love and care are essential to the wellbeing, happiness, and survival of human beings.Without these attributes, there would be no life, respect, or collaboration among them.
Malaysia practices a high-power distance culture, that is, "the extent to which less powerful members of institutions and organisations within a society expect and accept that power is allocated unequally".Whereby, the employees view organisational hierarchy as a form of inequity between those in higher and lower positions. 28Resultantly, these employees are more likely to just follow orders and avoid being perceived as insubordinate. 29A high-power distance culture is characterised by paternalism, whereby the leader takes on the role of a parent who is responsible for providing support and protection to those under his care. 30Little do such leaders know that empathy can bind human values.The matter of empathy in the Malaysian context has attracted the interest of multiple parties including Datuk Hussamuddin Yaacub, who holds the positions of the Head of Kumpulan Karangkraf and is also its founder and Managing Director.He emphasises the importance of leaders displaying empathy and integrity when addressing issues, especially in times of crisis.This indirectly indicates the importance of empathetic leaders in making employees feel safe and valued and, therefore, fostering their sense of trust and belonging.
Leaders with high awareness and attention to detail, an understanding of emotional aspects, and a willingness to care are needed if workers are to be successful. 31Empathetic leadership entails the highest attention and emotional regard towards the workers.Attention and awareness is a mindful leadership style 32 , one that focuses on understanding other people's emotional situations and the willingness to care and take relevant actions which is termed as empathetic leadership. 33In the home-front environment, an individual can rely on family and friends for support; at work, they can turn to their co-workers and colleagues.However, leaders can show empathy as well.By doing so, leaders create a powerful bond that encourages and sustains followers in their efforts to improve their workplace performance. 34 the same way, an empathetic leader can increase employee performance, job satisfaction, and workplace innovation due to the emotional relationship with his followers, specifically with regards to how much the former understands the latter's work situation, invests in emotional understanding, and provides emotional security for them. 35Human beings use empathy to survive because anyone who shows empathy can be trusted and be invited to work with others. 36Thus, empathy helps develop good relationships between people.The need for such a model has increased significantly as workplace performance increasingly relies on employees' cognitive and emotional labor.The model's results show that empathetic leadership has a significant and direct relationship with job satisfaction.A mindful leadership is significantly related to empathetic leadership, turnover intention, and self-regulation. 37The more mindful the leader is the more empathy he has, which leads to lower turnover intention and higher self-regulation among the followers.Based on the above discussion, the current study attempts to explore the element of Rahmah in empathetic leadership among Muslim leaders.
Basically, empathy is a component of emotional intelligence 38 and it can be expressed either verbally or non-verbally.It is effective when it communicates with people by sharing the encouragement and support.Expressing empathy through verbal communication also promotes the practise of careful listening and allows for space of various viewpoints as well as the expression of varying emotions in other people. 39This theory believes that a leader should be able to communicate with their workforce in a way that shows compassion and respect for workers.At the same time, leaders who are adept at using this style of language frequently help their teams develop strong interpersonal bonds.By utilising this language, the leader can acknowledge the employee's success and validate unfavourable employee sentiment.

Research Design
This study is explanatory in nature.Data was collected from each employee of Waqf institutions throughout Malaysia individually in their natural environment.Beyond administering the questionnaire to the employees, the researcher did not interfere with the normal activities in the institutions.The unit of analysis was the individual employee at the Waqf institutions responsible for handling and managing Waqf matters.

Population
Some information of the employees was taken from the institutions' databases or websites, whilst other was obtained directly from the employees via phone and email.Hence, the probability sampling technique was regarded as the most suitable for this study because the available data was defined for constructing the sampling frame. 40Table 1 shows that a total of 216 employees are involved in managing and handling Waqf issues in Waqf institutions throughout Malaysia.Cluster sampling was applied to sort the units in the study population into groups 41 known as clusters. 42ue to the uneven distribution of Waqf employees throughout Malaysia, the study population was clustered into groups by states.This ensured the appropriateness and adequacy of the number of samples taken from each cluster (state).

Measurement Scales
Empathetic leadership was examined via the empathetic segment of the Motivating Language scale. 43This scale focuses on the way leaders express their emotional support and understanding to their followers.Simultaneously, the Management Effectiveness scale was also adapted from a previous study. 44The Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software was used for analysing frequency, mean, and standard deviation.A 5-level mean score scale was used for this purpose. 45 This study also employed the qualitative method for enquiry using different Islamic councils to observe the patterns of attributes.The fundamental goal of using qualitative research is to conduct the in-depth analysis of an issue within its context with the aim to understand the issue from the perspective of the participants. 46Due to the limited number of studies on leaders in relation to the Rahmah concept, this study would contribute significantly in studying this phenomenon. 47e next stage involved conducting semi-structured interviews with several experts in Islamic religious councils.This was done to achieve a better understanding of the utilisation of Rahmah in their leadership style.These practitioners and leaders consisted of senior managers at the Islamic councils.The objective of the interviews and focus group discussions was to identify how Rahmah is applied within the organisation.Finally, the obtained data was transcribed and coded and was analysed. 48

Results and Discussion
The Islamic viewpoint on leadership is critical to understand excellent management in all sectors, notably for an organisation's performance, the workforce's benefit, and the hereafter.In fact, Islamic leadership must be established in accordance with Al-Qur'ān with the aim to understand people and to serve as a role model.Therefore, the concept of Rahmah is one of the most significant aspects of Islamic leadership needed to ensure the society's well-being.
The current findings showed that on average, Islamic leaders in Waqf institutions have a high empathy level, as illustrated by the mean value of 5.23 and standard deviation of 1.09 (Table 3).Hence, it can be concluded that the leaders portray Rahmah in managing their employees.This also shows that the leaders are respectful, kind, and tolerant towards their subordinates.This is in accordance with the findings of a previous study which stated that empathy is a vital leadership concept. 49Many leadership theories also claim that the ability to feel and display empathy is a crucial component of leadership.Based on the aforementioned findings which indicate the high level of empathy demonstrated by Islamic leaders in Waqf institutions in Malaysia, it can be said that the concept of Rahmah is currently applied in their management.Furthermore, non-Islamic sectors may also benefit from embedding the concept of Rahmah in their organisational management for creating a better work environment.Thus, indirectly affecting the performance of their employees.
Empathy is important because harmony and unity must always be maintained and upheld as the basis of Rahmah. 50It also increases self-awareness when dealing with emotions.As such, leaders should always try their best to understand their subordinates and be tolerant towards them.An effective leader must have empathy as part of their emotional intelligence. 51Empathy is inherently linked to the concept of Rahmah, which is particularly synonymous as a love attribute bestowed by Allah.
Finally, based on the findings, the concept of leadership should be approached from several perspectives including administrative, military, community, spiritual, and business perspectives.This is because empathic leaders could be more successful at motivating and leading their employees, as well as assisting them in alleviating workplace stress that would ultimately result in their improved performance.All this shows the significance of empathic leadership in creating a leader with better emotional intelligence.
Qualitative method was also used to gather more reliable responses from officers and leaders in Islamic religious councils in Malaysia.Structured interviews were used to interview the individuals entrusted with managing the Waqf properties.As claimed by one of the managers in Waqf development, "Even though we do not call our strategies Rahmah, empathy is one of the tools that is very important especially as we want to have a better relationship with the staff.I feel obligated [to know] the conditions of the staff and their families.Their current situation does affect their work performance.I always ask them how they are doing especially when it comes to their families.[This makes them feel] appreciated and important [in the eyes of] their superior and the organisation.Now we feel like we are one family.They do not feel any burden even though sometimes they have to work on weekends."This is in accordance with a verse from Surah At-Taghabun, which translates as "He is the One who created you, then some of you are disbelievers, and some of you are believers.And Allah is Watchful of what you do." 52 (Surah).This verse depicts that Allah SWT decrees for superiors and their staff to work together as a family, as we are all from the same source.Despite differences in the levels of authority in an organisation, the journey leads to the same organisational mission and vision.
Another officer from the Islamic council stated, "It is important to have the element of empathy; the staff feel that their existence is important and thus create values to the organisation."A verse from Surah Al-Imran states which translates as "The ones who spend (for Allah's sake) in prosperity and adversity, and those who control anger and forgive people.And Allah loves those who are good in their deeds" 53 This shows that empathy entails spending out of what Allah SWT has blessed one with and leaders have the authority to do so in abundance.Such action would purify and bring more blessings for the staff and the organisation as a whole.
Another representative from the Islamic council said that it is better for leaders to understand and solve problems rather than create anger among the staff, as the former path leads to salvation.This is in accordance with verse 133 from Al-Imran, which translates as "Race with one another towards Forgiveness from your Lord and towards a paradise the width of which spans the heavens and the earth.It has been prepared for the God-fearing." 54 officer stated that she takes about half an hour before going home to mingle with all her staff in order to keep track of their well-being and to build a better relationship with them.She found this strategy as very effective in gaining their trust and affection.She said that being a leader does not merely entail assigning tasks and making decisions.It also entails gaining the employees' trust, so that they would do their assigned jobs with greater attention and responsibility.
She also said that it is always better to say thanks and express gratitude, so that the staff members feel more appreciated.She added that leaders should identify staff members with unique specialities and make use of these specialities towards ensuring productivity.

Conclusion and Recommendations
From the results, it can be concluded that Rahmah is evident among the leaders in the State Islamic Religious Councils (SIRCs).This is because the Malay culture is heavily influenced by Islamic philosophy and practices.Islam is a monotheistic religion which professes only one divine being as the Creator of the universe.Muslims believe that Islam is the true religion of God revealed to the humanity.It is a universal religion that can be practiced by anyone at any time in any place.Islam is a complete, holistic way of living that covers every aspect of life, leaving no stone unturned as it teaches mankind how to behave individually, socially, materially, morally, ethically, legally, culturally, politically, economically, and globally.

Figure 1. Rahmah shown by the leader
The high level of empathy amongst the SIRC leaders is also due to the Malay culture that puts a high regard on respecting one's employer.Islam is a religion of peace and love, hence it teaches people to respect others of different races and beliefs.Islam teaches us to respect human dignity regardless of faith, race, ethnicity, gender, and social status.As everyone is created by the Almighty Allah, the Maker of all, we must all treat one another with full honour, respect, love, and kindness.Additionally, Muslims speak in a polite manner to others.For example, Abu Hurayrah narrated Allah's Messenger as saying, "Whoever believes in God and the Last Day should speak a good word or remain silent.And whoever believes in God and the Last Day should show hospitality to his neighbour.And whoever believes in God and the Last Day should show hospitality to his guest." 55his study hence supports the notion of Rahmah as being the key element in Islamic leadership towards ensuring the well-being of the society.The leaders of organisations should lead and motivate their staff and workers with empathy.The leader must have a high sense of selfawareness when communicating with others.This is in line with the suggestion that empathy is a critical leadership concept. 56This study hence suggests the application of the concept of Rahmah in all organisational practices and not only in the third government sector (TSO), such as Waqf institutions.This is because every organisation or group needs a good leader in order to achieve the desired success.Empathetic language, for example, allows leaders to understand their subordinates via the emphasis on emotional support, specifically the selection of words, which presumably has an effect on management effectiveness. 57It also serves as a medium of good interpersonal relationship skills among leaders, which has been proven to improve both employee and organisational performance.Today, the concept of leadership has become highly significant in financial, political, and social arenas.From smaller institutions such as the family unit to bigger ones such as business organisations, good leaders are needed to maintain and advance the postmodern civilisation.

Table 1 .
Samples Distributed by State (Cluster) Table 2 presents the interpretations.

Table 3 .
Mean level