Interesting Islam

 

1: Belief in the Oneness of Allah

 Five Pillars of Islam:

In a Nutshell… (NOTE: Some Muslims may disagree with me regarding this, however this is what I have derived from the example of the Prophet (s) and from the Quran)

A pious Muslim must ensure that they practice the Five Pillars of Islam. (The fifth pillar is only for those who can afford it). These are: 1) Shahadah: declaration of faith, 2) Salaah: praying five times everyday, 3) Zakaah: giving 2.5 percent of yearly earnings to the poor as charity, 4) Sawm: fasting in the month of Ramadhan, 5) Hajj: annual pilgrimage to Makkah.

Along with this, Muslims follow the Seven Beliefs mentioned in Imaan-e-Mufassal. The translation is: “I believe in Allah and His Angels and His books and His Messengers and the Last Day, and in Taqdeer – the bad thereof and the good thereof – which is from Allah, the Most High, and I believe in the raising after death.”

(Taqdeer is predestination)

Shahadah: The First Pillar of Islam

Shahadah is the declaration of faith and is the basis upon which a person becomes a Muslim. It is a non-actional Pillar but is the most important without which a Muslim cannot believe in or practice the other Pillars. When a person converts to Islam, when a person dies or when a baby is born, the first thing that should be done is that the Shahadah must be declared.

The Shahadah is pronounced in Arabic as follows: “ash-hadoo-an-la-ila-ha-illalla-hoo-wa-ash-hadoo-unna-muhammad-durra-soola-allah.”

The literal translation of the Shahadah is: “I bear witness that there is no God but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad (s) is his messenger.” This is also known as a Kalimah.

This immediately removes the idea of Shirk (claiming there is anyone equal or partner to Allah) as Allah is one and only. Tawhid is the word used to describe the Oneness of Allah. Muslims believe that there are no other Gods. As a Muslim Magazine ‘786’ says in the May 2002 issue, “Muslims believe in the Absolute Oneness of God, Who is a Supreme Being free of human limitations, needs and wants. He has no partners in His divinity. He is the Creator of everything and is completely separate from His Creation.”

The second part of the Shahadah states that Muhammad (s) is the messenger of Allah and nothing but the messenger. He was not a God. He was not the son of God or relative of God. He was just another human being like everyone else, and he never ever claimed to be more than that. Again, this removes the sin of Shirk. As 786 also quotes: “Associating anybody with Allah and disobedience to parents are the worst of all sins…”

Concept of Tawhid

Tawhid is NOT a pillar of Islam but is linked to the First Pillar: Shahadah. It is the concept and belief that Allah is one and alone and when a Muslim says this, they are declaring their monotheism. Tawhid means ‘oneness’ or ‘unity’.

Tawhid affects a Muslims’ life as follows:

If there is One God, who is greater than anything we could ever imagine…

Then there is One Universe created by Allah, ordered and arranged by Allah, which despite its unimaginable, massive scale is still much less than Allah…

There is One Will that rules the Universe and only One Will. If there was more than one God, each with an independent will, there would be chaos…

There is One Earth created by Allah. There is a purpose to Allah’s creation, and a purpose for the presence of the human race on Earth…

There is One Humanity whose members are all equal before Allah, with no barriers of gender, race or religion to divide from one another. There is not ‘my God’ and ‘your God,’ there is One God: Our God…

There is One Basic Aim for Humanity: to worship the One God, and resist the worship of false Gods…

There is One Message To Humanity: all Prophets bring the same message of ‘One God’ therefore they are brothers…

Then there is One Plan for every person’s life. All people are part of Allah’s plan and live their lives accordingly.

Surah al-Ikhlas (112:1-4): Purity of Faith

Surah al-Ikhlas is a chapter in the Quran, which explains the Nature of Allah as being One, Merciful and Compassionate. The Creativity and Power of Allah is shown through the sections of the Quran: Surah 1, 2:115-117, 30:20-25, 40:61-68.

The literal translation of the title ‘al-Ikhlas’ is Purity of Faith and the translation of the Chapter/Surah is:

Say: He is Allah, The One and Only; Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He begot none, nor was He begotten; and there is none like Him.”

In this Surah, Muslims are immediately reminded that the Nature of Allah is so far beyond our limited minds that the best we can do is feel He is a personality, not an abstract concept. He is near us; He cares for us; we owe our existence to Him.

Muslims believe that Allah is the only one to worship; all other things or beings we can think of are His creation and in no way comparable to Him. He is without beginning or end and that He is not limited by time or place or circumstance.

The final verse: “And there is none like Him” sums up the whole argument and warns Muslims especially against anthropomorphism, the tendency to describe Allah in human terms, a tendency that creeps in at all times and among all people.

The fact that all Muslims are united in their belief in Tawhid: One God, brings about a complete and utter unity of creation. That is why Muslims are called One Ummah: the worldwide Muslim community. There would be no Ummah if there was no Tawhid. Tawhid is the core. Islam comes from Tawhid and total submission to Allah.

UNITY - One God… One Creator… One Mankind… One Unit… One Ummah

The Sin of Shirk:

Shirk is the term used to describe associating partners with Allah. It is a major sin in Islam and contradicts the Concept of Tawhid and everything Muslims believe in. That is why Mosques are kept simple and never have any images of animals or humans. In an ideal Mosque, there are no pictures, statues and very little Calligraphy. This is protection for a Muslim to prevent them from getting distracted and from worshipping anyone other than Allah.

Similarly, Muslims are forbidden to try and create a portrait of the Prophet (s), because he is considered a role model for all Muslims, but this could easily develop to such an extent that people would start to worship him. That would be Shirk. The Prophet (s) was indeed far superior in being pious and he was guaranteed Paradise, but even so, as the Shahadah clearly states, “And I bear witness that Muhammad (s) is His messenger,” the Prophet (s) was no more than a human who was given the gift of Prophet hood. He was not a God, nor was he a relative of God. He was only Allah’s creation.