TAUHEED:
Tauheed or the belief in the Oneness of Allah is the first and the main
principle of Islam.
It means that Allah is the Only Creator and Sustainer of the universe.
He is Ever-Living without a beginning or an end (the first and the last).
He is Independent while others are dependent on Him for their
existence and survival.
He is the source and support of all life.
He is the only one worthy of worship. Allah is Omnipotent (having
unlimited authority or power).
He knows everything; the hidden and the manifest (obvious, apparent).
He is not bound by space and time; He is everywhere and has
knowledge of the past, present and future.
Surah Ikhlaas proclaims this in the most comprehensive way:
'' Say He is Allah, the One. Allah, the Eternal. He does not beget
nor is He begotten, and there is none like Him'' (112:1-4).
Surah Ikhlaas is also called one-third of the Qur'an which means that
one-third of the subject matter of the Qur'an revolves around Tauheed.
A person becomes a Muslim just by believing and uttering the
expression:
'' There is no god but Allah and Mohammad (pbuh) is the
Messenger of Allah''. The first part of this message occurs repeatedly in
the Qur'an in slightly different shades. For example the Verse of Throne
begins as: ''there is no God but He...'' (2:255).
The first Surah of the Qur'an begins as: ''Praise be to Allah, the Lord
of the worlds" (1:1).
According to the leading scholars of Islam, there are three kinds of
Tauheed:
1. Tauhid-ar-Rabubiya (Oneness of Lordship of Allah)
2. Tauhid-al-Auluhiya (Oneness in the Worship of Allah)
3. Tauhid-al-Asma-wa-Sifat (Oneness of the names and qualities of Allah)\
Tauhid-ar-Rabubiya refers to the belief that Allah is Self-Existent; He is
the Creator and the Sustainer of the universe.
‘’ Allah is the Creator of all things and He is the Guardian over all
things’’ (39:62). Allah is Omnipotent, the Law Giver and the Judge.
The verse of the Throne says: ‘’….who is there who can intercede in
His presence except as He permits…’’ (2:255).
It also to the belief that He is entirely immune to all forms of human
weaknesses and needs such as hunger, thirst and the need to rest or sleep
etc.
‘’…no slumber can seize Him nor sleep…’’ (2:255).
He is above the grip of space and time, ‘’ He is the First and Last, the
evident and the hidden…’’ (57:3).
Tauhid-al-Auluhiya refers to the belief that since Allah is the creator, He
is the only one worthy of worship.
All supplication, beseeching (Pleading) and imploring (begging) are due
only to Allah.
So we as Muslims, must observe all the religious practices such as
prayers, Hajj, fast and giving alms to the poor etc. for His sake only.
‘’I created Jinn and mankind only to worship me’’ (51:56).
‘’ You alone we worship and Your aid we seek’’ (1:4).
Tauhid-al-Asma-wa-Sifat refers to the belief that Allah is matchless not
only in His Essence but also in His names and Attributes.
This belief includes that we must not name or qualify Allah except with
what He and His Messenger have named or qualified Him.
None can be named or qualified with the names or qualifications of
Allah, for example Karim, Raheem, Rehman etc. ‘’And there is none like
unto Him” (112:5).
We must believe in all the qualities of Allah which He has stated in His
Book or mentioned through His Messenger without changing, twisting or
ignoring their meaning.
The acknowledgement of Tauheed is the fundamental belief in Islam
and is the basis of salvation (rescue).
The basic message of all the prophets was the same i.e. there is no god
but Allah.
All the previous scriptures preached the Unity of Allah but due to
alterations made in their text over the passage of time, the doctrine (set of
guidelines) of Tauheed was changed. Finally when the need arose for final
and universal guidance, Allah sent His last Messenger with the Qur’an to set
the people on the straight path and correct their beliefs.
We cannot see Allah but His existence is confirmed when we ponder
over the universe, that such an organized and well coordinated world could
not have come into existence on its own; just like a letter cannot be written
without an author.
‘’who created the seven heavens, one above the other. You will not
see any flaw in what the Lord of mercy creates. Look again! Can you see
any flaw? Look again! And again! Your sight will turn back to you, weak
and defeated.’’ (67:3-4).
SHIRK:
The Arabic word ‘’shirk’’ means ‘’to share’’.
In religious sense it means associating partners with Allah.
There is an Arabic proverb, ‘’things become known through their
opposites.
’’ In the light of this saying, it is necessary to understand the nature of
Shirk for the better knowledge of the oneness of Allah. The avoidance of Shirk
is the fundamental teaching of the Qur’an, because Shirk is nothing but the
reverse side of Tauheed.
Given the fact that the proclamation of Tauheed is the first pillar of Islam
and Tauheed itself is the first principle of Islam, one begins o understand why
Shirk is so strongly criticized and why.
According to the Holy Qur’an it is the only unforgiveable sin: ‘’indeed
Allah forgives not that a partner should be associated with Him, but less
than that, He forgives whomsoever He wills.’’ (4:48)
The acknowledgement of the Unity of Allah is bound in human nature,
since humans were created with the knowledge that ‘’there is no god but
Allah.’’
The prophets were sent as a reminder of what was already in their
original nature.
Hence to associate others with Allah is to go against the most basic
instincts of the human species. It is, so to speak, to go against human nature.
BELIEF IN ANGELS
Belief in the existence of angels is an article of Islamic faith.
The non-believers considered angels to be deities and Allah’s
daughters.
This article of faith purifies the belief in the unity of Allah.
Allah has appointed many of His Angels for the management of this
Universe.
Angels have been created from light and are not visible to ordinary
mortals.
They belong to the category of the unseen unless they appear in human
form.
They perform their assigned duties according to the Decree (order) of
God.
They are sent to protect men, to administer Allah’s punishments, to
carry His messages and to perform various other functions.
Allah describes their entire submission to Him in the following words:
"They never disobey Allah's Command and do as they are
commanded."(16:50)
The Angels are also called messengers in the Holy Book as they
conveyed the Divine message of Allah to the Prophets.
The Angels were also appointed duties in the human form; they
appeared before Abraham to give him the glad tidings of a son.
Hazrat Lut was also warned about impending doom of his town.
Hazrat Maryam was also blessed with the news of a Holy son by an
angel Gabriel.
Hazrat Zakriya also experienced the same experience of visiting of an
angel.
Angels are Allah's creation having necessary powers and qualities.
They are not His daughters nor are they objects of worship.
They have no knowledge except that what Allah has taught them.
They prostrated before Adam when Allah commanded them to do so.
Angels glorify and praise Allah. They never get tired.
They neither need sleep nor do they require the things needed by
human beings.
Angels are the guardians of Hell-fire.
They will welcome in Heaven all those who obey Allah's commands and
will throw the wrong doers into Hell.
The name of the angel in charge of Paradise is Rizwan while Malik is in
charge of Hell. There are many Angels like Kiram-an-katibeen i.e.
angels on our shoulders having records of our good and bad deeds.
They are many in numbers. The Qur’an says: ‘’But verily, over you
(are appointed angels) to protect you- kind and honorable, writing
down (your deeds)’’. (82:10-11)
There are also Munkar and Nakeer, they go to the graves of the newly
dead to ask them questions. Besides, there are many angels having
various assignments with them they are as under;
1. Hazrat Gabriel, who brought revelations from Allah to the
Prophets including Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) He is called
'Rooh-ul-Allah' or ‘Rooh-ul-Ameen’ because he never
changes the messages of Allah.
2. Hazrat Izrael, the angel of death. He is responsible for
taking our souls upon death.
3. Hazrat Israfeel, who will blow the trumpet at the time of the
end of the world, i.e. on the Day of Judgment. With his
second blow everyone will rise again for the Day of
Judgment.
4. Hazrat Mekaeel, who is responsible for rainfall and
distribution of ‘rizq’( means of sustenance).
BELIEF IN REVEALED BOOKS:
Human beings are the servants of Allah and need guidance to carry out
their various duties and responsibilities.
This guidance is mentioned in Books revealed to various Prophets.
So for this guidance Muslims are required to believe in the Books.
Allah says in the Holy Book:
"Those who believe in the revelation sent down to you (Mohammad) and
in what was sent before you…" [2:4]
There were several revealed books but only four out of them are
famous";
1. The Holy Quran, revealed to the Holy Prophet (pbuh).
2. Injil or the Gospels was revealed to Isa. The Christians failed to act
upon it; they distorted it and introduced the doctrine (policy) of trinity and
redemption through crucification; although Isa clearly told his followers that
Allah was his and their Lord. According to the Quran Injil confirms the Torah.
3. Zubur or Psalms, revealed to David.
4. Torah was revealed to Moses for the guidance of Bani Israel. It
contained Allah’s command, warning and mercy. The original book was
changed. Its followers distorted the words of Allah. Allah says, ‘’they change
the words from their (right) places and forget a good part of the message that
was sent.’’(5:13)
5. The Qur’an also mentions the Suhuf of Ibrahim.
Books were also revealed to other messengers, who were sent
at different times among different nations having different
languages.
Their teachings were in the language they spoke and they
were for the guidance of that particular community.
The teachings contained were, the Uniqueness and Oneness
of Allah, the concept of reward and punishment for one's deeds
in the life after death.
All the heavenly books were from Allah and whatever Allah
said in them is to be believed in. However due to changes and
alternations, their originality and purity has been brought into
question.
The preservation of the Holy Scriptures was the duty of their
respective followers.
The basic purpose of these books was the acknowledgment of
the Oneness of Allah.
These books made it clear to the people that they should
believe in the prophets of their times.
If anyone failed to do so, their faith in Allah would not merit any
rewards.
These books also testified that all the Prophets were truthful
and they should not differentiate among them.
Each Prophet (pbuh), after all, was sent by Allah with
guidance, and the primary message of each was the same.
These books also reformed the wrong beliefs of people
concerning Allah’s Essence, His Messengers, books, and the
life after death and acts of worship.
Instead of preserving the scriptures in their memories and on
tablets, they distorted them. The outcome is that these
scriptures cannot be relied upon to be the same as when they
were sent down.
Since Islam is based on the Quran, and the Qur’an is Allah’s
last book, Allah took the responsibility of preserving whatever
is contained in it.
The following holy verse testifies this, “We have sent down
the Quran Ourself and We Ourself will guard it…” (15:9)
It is the living miracle of the Quran that no one ever produced
even a verse like that of the Quran.
The Qur’an, unlike the other divine books which were meant
for a particular community, is a guide book for all communities
for all times to come.
The Qur’an is a universal book, sent to the entire mankind for
all ages.
