In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful!
The Foundations of Faith (Iman). Part 1
Contents
Part 1. Introduction.
Part 2. Belief in Allah. Oneness of Lordship (Tawheed al-Rububiyyah)
Part 3. Belief in Allah. Oneness of the Divine Names and Attributes (Tawheed al-Asma’ wa as-Sifaat)
Part 4. Belief in Allah. Oneness of Divinity (Tawheed al-Uluhiyyah)
Part 5. Belief in Allah. Idolatry, disbelief, hypocrisy
Part 6. Belief in the Angels
Part 7. Belief in the Revealed Books
Part 8. Belief in the Messengers
Part 9. Belief in the Last Day
Part 10. Belief in Divine Decree, Whether Good or Bad
Introduction Religion Is a Set of Rules for Worshipping Allah
Almighty Allah, the Creator, the Maker, the Omniscient, the Wise, thanks to His all-embracing knowledge, His wisdom, and His omnipotence has created this great Universe and established in it an order to bring into reality His Divine purpose, and not in vain, not for mere play or for the sake of entertainment. Almighty Allah said,
“And We created not the heavens and the earth, and all that is between them, for mere play. We created them not except with truth, but most of them know not.” Surah “Ad-Dukhān”, ayahs 38-39.
He created the jinn and the mankind informed them about the great wisdom and the higher purpose of their creation. He said,
“And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me. I seek not any provision from them, nor do I ask that they should feed Me. Verily, Allah is the All-Provider, the Owner of Power, the Most Strong.” Surah “Adh-Dhāriyāt”, ayahs 56-58.
“O, Mankind! Worship your Lord (Allah), Who created you and those who were before you, so that you may become Al-Muttaqûn (the pious), Who has made the earth a resting place for you, and the sky a canopy, and sent down water from the sky and brought forth therewith fruits as a provision for you. Then do not set up rivals unto Allah while you know (that He Alone has the right to be worshipped).” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayahs 21-22.
Lord displayed His great mercy by facilitating the understanding and helping mankind to comprehend the ultimate truth, the truth that Allah exists, being the only Creator of all things, and that man is His creation; the truth that the purpose for which humankind was created is the worship of Allah as the One True God Alone. This is what Almighty Allah has obliged every human to, and that is why all humans, regardless of their will, are Allah’s servants. This facilitation and help that Allah has bestowed on people consist in the following:
1. Allah created humans with an innate disposition to feel that there is only one God they need to worship, i.e. surrender their will by following His orders. If it was not for the influence of other people, humans would definitely follow their natural instinct. Yet certain human flaws or imitation of one or another turn them away from it. Allah Almighty said,
“So set you your face towards the religion of Hanîf (worship none but Allah Alone), Allah’s Fitrah (the pure Allah’s Islamic nature) with which He has created mankind. No change let there be in the religion of Allah: that is the straight religion, but most of men know not.” Surah “Ar-Rūm”, ayah 30.
Abu Hurairah reported that Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Every child is born with a true faith [to worship none but Allah Alone], and then his parents convert him to Judaism or to Christianity or to Magianism, as an animal delivers a perfect baby animal. Do you find it mutilated?” Then Abu Hurairahh read Allah’s statement: “The pure Allah’s Islamic nature with which He has created mankind” Al-Bukhari 1359, 1385, Muslim 2658.
Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Indeed Allah has commanded me to inform you of what you are unfamiliar with, and what He has told me today: ‘Every wealth I have conferred upon a slave is lawful for him. Indeed, I have created My slaves being true in Faith, but the devils approached them and turned them away from their religion. They made unlawful for them what I had made lawful for them, and they ordered them to associate with Me in worship that for which I have revealed no evidence…” Muslim 4/2197.
2. Allah endowed humans with intelligence by virtue of which they understand that there exists a creator of all things. By means of intelligence a man can observe the surrounding signs and reflect on them. Anyone who possesses intellect, who ponders over the parts of the world and the sky, over the Earth, which is arranged in the universe, over the stars, the planets, the sun and the moon, the mountains, the trees, the seas and the rivers of the earth, the day and the night which shroud them, and over the absolute cosmic order which was established in the world and which regulates operation of everything, will surely comprehend that the Universe has an Almighty and All-Powerful Maker Who created it and is ruling it. Almighty Lord said,
“We will show them Our Signs in the universe, and in their own selves, until it becomes manifest to them that this is the truth. Is it not sufficient in regard to your Lord that He is a Witness over all things?” Surah “Fussilat”, ayah 53.
3. Allah sent Messengers to various nations to reveal to people that they had been created by Allah and that He Alone had the right to be worshipped by people, as well as to warn them against worshipping anyone or anything else except Allah. Almighty Allah said,
“And verily, We have sent among every Ummah (community, nation) a Messenger [proclaiming]: ‘Worship Allah, and keep away from Tâghût (all false deities)’.” Surah “An-Nahl”, ayah 36.
Allah also said, “And We did not send any Messenger before you but We revealed to him (saying): ‘None has the right to be worshipped but I (Allah), so worship Me’.” Surah “Al-Anbiyāh”, ayah 25.
Thus, thanks to such help from Allah humans feel in their hearts that they should worship one deity only and they understand it through reason and intelligence they have been endowed with. And it was through His Messengers that Almighty Allah communicated to people the way His creatures should worship Him.
Submission to Allah means obeying Allah by doing that which He has commanded and avoiding that which He has forbidden. Any action a person takes becomes manifest either in word or in deed. Deeds in turn can be outward, apparent, in other words noticeable to others, or they can be inward, hidden, or rather exist in the heart of man.
The notion of worship can also be defined like this: worship is a concept that includes all words and deeds, both outward and inward, that Allah loves and is pleased with.
Allah informed us of the words and deeds He loves by revealing His orders and prohibitions in the Qur’an and the Sunnah.
Thus, religion is a set of rules for worshipping Allah Alone, which contain orders and prohibitions of Almighty Allah.
Allah named His religion Islam:
“Truly, the Deen (religion) with Allah is Islam.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 19.
“And whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will never be accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 85.
The word “Islam” literally means submission to Almighty Allah, supreme surrender, resignation and humbling oneself in obeying the orders and heeding prohibitions revealed by the Lord.
Deeds of the Heart are the Basis of Worship
We have already mentioned that worshipping Allah manifests itself in words and in deeds, both inward and outward, which were indicated to us by Allah the Almighty.
Among the outward, or apparent, deeds are daily prayers (salah), the pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj), charity (sadaqah), filial piety and deference to the ruler, helping the people of faith, offering sacrifice and many other actions.
As for the inward, or hidden, deeds, these are deeds of the heart, which no creation is aware of. Only Lord, the Great, the Almighty, alone knows and encompasses all that is in people’s hearts.
“Allah knows what is in their hearts.” Surah “An-Nisā’”, ayah 63.
Deeds of the heart include belief in Allah, belief in His angels, belief in His Holy Books, belief in His Messengers, belief in the Day of Judgement, belief in the Divine Decree, whether good and bad, love of Allah, trust in Allah, fear of Allah’s punishment, hope in Allah’s mercy, asking Allah for help, seeking refuge with Allah, repentance to Allah, sincerity towards Allah, invocation to Allah.
The core basis of deeds of the heart and the religion on the whole is belief in Allah and belief in what has been ordered to believe in by Almighty Allah, otherwise the deeds would not make any sense. Almighty Allah has commanded us to believe wholeheartedly in the following six aspects:
1. Belief in Allah.
2. Belief in His angels.
3. Belief in His Books.
4. Belief in His Messengers.
5. Belief in the Day of Judgement.
6. Belief in the Divine Decree, whether good or bad.
Scholars have named these articles “the six pillars of faith (eemaan)”.
“O you who believe! Believe in Allah, and His Messenger, and the Book which He has sent down to His Messenger, and the Scripture which He sent down to those who were before.” Surah “An-Nisā’”, ayah 136.
“It is not Al-Birr (piety) that you turn your faces towards east and west; but Al-Birr is the quality of the one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, the Prophets…” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 177.
“…whosoever disbelieves in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, then indeed he has strayed far away.” Surah “An-Nisā’”, ayah 136.
Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said, “Faith is to believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, His Messengers, and the Last Day, and to believe in divine decree, both good and bad.”
In Arabic the word “eemaan” — “faith, belief” — is formed from the verb “amana”, which means “to believe”, “to be faithful”, “to be trustworthy”.
Arabists have pointed out that the meaning of the word “eemaan” is acceptance, approval. Having faith in these six pillars implies acknowledging them within the heart, being convinced in heart. It is for this reason that belief in these six pillars of faith is related to the deeds of the heart.
Belief in these six pillars of faith is the basis of the religion upon which all human worship is built. When a man adheres to a certain act of worship, believe in these pillars is always present in his heart. It is this faith that acts as a driving force for a person when he intends to perform both outward and inward deeds of the heart. Next we will see that any deed of the heart is rooted in the faith in Allah and is inseparable of it.
Types of Deeds of the Heart
Love of Allah
Love is one of the most important deeds of the heart, as we should love Allah the Almighty merely because He exists. The affection that believers feel towards their Lord will only grow stronger after they have entered the abode of bliss, while their fear will fade away with the disappearance of the conditions which cause it, for those who find themselves in Paradise will know no fear and no sorrow.
Both Almighty Allah and His Messenger talked about the love of faithful believers for Allah. Thus, for instance, Almighty Allah said,
“And of mankind are some who take (for worship) others besides Allah as rivals. They love them as they love Allah. But those who believe, love Allah more.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 165.
Almighty Allah also said, “…whom He will love and they will love Him…” Surah “Al-Mā’idah”, ayah 54.
The two “Sahihs” report a hadith which narrates that Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said, “Whoever possesses the following three qualities will taste the sweetness of faith: The one to whom Allah and His Apostle become dearer than anything else; who loves a person, and he loves him only for Allah’s sake; who hates to revert to atheism (disbelief) after Allah has brought him out from it, as he hates to be thrown into Fire.”
Besides, Almighty Allah has said that He, in turn, also loves those servants of His who worship Him. For example, Almighty Allah said, “And Allah did take Ibrâhîm as a Khalîl (an intimate friend)!” Surah “An-Nisā’”, ayah 125.
Almighty Allah also said, “Do good. Truly, Allah loves the good-doers.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 195.
Almighty Allah also said, “…verily, then Allah loves the pious.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 76.
Many other examples of this kind can also be cited.
Almighty Allah has pointed out that there exists a measure of truthfulness for those who declare their love for Allah. The Lord Almighty said, “Say: ‘If you love Allah, then follow me, Allah will love you…” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 31.
In other words, Almighty Allah has explained that love of Him necessarily implies following Allah’s messenger, and following a messenger will necessarily lead to Allah’s affection for His servant.
The true essence of love resides in the eagerness to please the loved ones, which is reflected in displays of affection towards whatever they love and manifestations of hatred towards whatever they detest.
Fear of Allah’s Punishment
Almighty Allah made it everyone’s duty to fear, as He said, “…so fear them not, but fear Me, if you are true believers.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 175.
Almighty Allah also said, “…and fear none but Me!” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 40.
Almighty Allah also said, “Fear not men but fear Me.” Surah “Al-Mā’idah”, ayah 44.
Almighty Allah gave praise to those who stand in awe of Him, saying, “Verily those who live in awe for fear of their Lord; and those who believe in the signs of their Lord; and those who join not anyone (in worship) as partners with their Lord; and those who give that which they give with their hearts full of fear, because they are sure to return to their Lord; it is these who hasten in the good deeds, and they are foremost in them.” Surah “Al-Mu’minūn”, ayah 57–61.
At-Tirmidhi and Imam Ahmad quote a hadith reported from Aisha, Allah be pleased with her, who said: “Once I asked, ‘O Messenger of Allah, do the words of Allah: ‘…who give that which they give with their hearts full of fear…’, indicate the ones who fornicate, drink wine and steal?’ Upon this the Prophet answered: ‘No, daughter of As-Siddiq, rather they are the ones who pray and fast, and give charity, yet fear that it will not be accepted from them.’ ”
Hope in Allah
Allah Almighty said, “Verily, those who have believed, and those who have emigrated and have striven hard in the Way of Allah, all these hope for Allah’s Mercy. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most-Merciful.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 218.
Allah Almighty also said, “Whoever hopes for the meeting with Allah, then Allah’s Term is surely coming; He is the All-Hearer, the All-Knower.” Surah “Al-‘Ankabūt”, ayah 5.
Allah Almighty also said, “So whoever hopes for the Meeting with his Lord, let him work righteousness and associate none as a partner in the worship of his Lord.” Surah “Al-Kahf”, ayah 110.
“Sahih Muslim” reports a hadith on the authority of Jabir, Allah be pleased with him: “I heard Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say three days before his death: “None of you should die but hoping only good from Allah.”
In “Sahih al-Bukhari” a hadith, narrated on the authority of Jabir, Allah be pleased with him, reports that Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Allah the Almighty says, ‘I am just as My slave thinks I am, and I am with him as he remembers Me.’ ”
Almighty Allah gave praise to those who stand in awe of Him and at the same time cherish hope for Him, saying:
“Those whom they call upon desire for themselves means of access to their Lord, as to which of them they should be the nearest; and they hope for His Mercy and fear His Torment. Verily, the Torment of your Lord is to be afraid of!” Surah “Al-Isrā’”, ayah 57.
Almighty Allah also said, “Is one who is obedient to Allah, prostrating himself or standing during the hours of the night, fearing the Hereafter and hoping for the Mercy of his Lord… ?” Surah “Az-Zumar”, ayah 9.
Almighty Allah also said, “Their sides forsake their beds, to invoke their Lord in fear and hope…” Surah “As-Sajdah”, ayah 16.
From all this it follows that every muslim should possess them both, that is to say feel fear and have hope. One of the people who devoted himself to the service of Allah said: “Fear and hope are like the two wings of a bird: if they are equal to each other, the bird will be able to stay in the air and its flight will be immaculate; if either of the wings is shorter than the other one, the bird will not be able to fly as it should; and if the bird loses both its wings, it will be on the verge of death.”
Fear is sure to result in the rising of hope; if it was not the case, man would definitely fall in despair. Hope, in its turn, brings about the emergence of fear, since otherwise man would have a sensation of being completely safe; however, both despair and the feeling of complete safety are equally reprehensible.
Almighty Allah said, “…and never give up hope of Allah’s Mercy. Certainly no one despairs of Allah’s Mercy, except the people who disbelieve.” Surah “Yūsuf”, ayah 87.
Almighty Allah also said, “And who despairs of the Mercy of his Lord except those who are astray?” Surah “Al-Hijr”, ayah 56.
Almighty Allah also said, “None feels secure from the Plan of Allah except the people who are the losers.” Surah “Al-A‘rāf”, ayah 99.
Such fear which prevents a person from doing something that is prohibited by Allah is really worthy of praise. As for hope, two kinds of it deserve praise:
1. The hope of those who were fulfilling their religious obligations guided by Allah’s light and got their hopes up for Allah’s reward.
2. The hope of those who used to commit sins but later confessed them to Allah and got their hopes up for His forgiveness and blessing.
Such hope indicates that a servant is aware of the generosity and mercy of Allah and expects Him to manifest them, and also that he is looking forward to the broadness of Allah’s grace.
Invocation to Allah
Allah, the Almighty and the Glorious, said, “Your Lord said, ‘Invoke Me, I will respond to your invocation. Verily, those who scorn My worship will surely enter Hell in humiliation.’ ” Surah “Ghāfir”, ayah 60.
Almighty Allah also said, “Invoke your Lord with humility and in secret. He likes not the aggressors.” Surah “Al-A‘rāf”, ayah 55.
Almighty Allah also said, “And when My slaves ask you concerning Me, then, I am indeed near. I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me. So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be led aright.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 186.
“Sunan At-Tirmidhi” quotes a hadeeth reported from An-Nu’man bin Bashir, Allah be pleased with him, who narrated that once the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said, “Verily, supplication is itself the worship”, and then he recited the ayah which stated: “Your Lord said: ‘Invoke Me, I will respond to your invocation. Verily, those who scorn My worship will surely enter Hell in humiliation.’ ” Surah “Al-Ghāfir”, ayah 60.
Asking Allah for Help
Allah, the Great, the Almighty, said, “You Alone we worship and You Alone we ask for help.” Surah “Al-Fātihah”, ayah 5.
As to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, it is known that once he said to Ibn Abbas, Allah be pleased with both of them, “If you ask, then ask Allah, and if you seek help, then seek help from Allah.”
Seeking Refuge with Allah (isti’adha)
Almighty Allah said, “So when you want to recite the Qur’ân, seek refuge with Allah from Shaitân (Satan), the outcast.” Surah “An-Nahl”, ayah 98.
Almighty Allah also said, “Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of the daybreak, from the evil of what He has created…’ ” Surah “Al-Falaq”, ayahs 1–2.
Almighty Allah also said, “Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of mankind, the King of mankind, the God of mankind, from the evil of the whisperer who withdraws…’ ” Surah “An-Nās”, ayahs 1–4.
Asking Allah for Help in times of trouble (istighatha)
Almighty Allah said, “…when you sought help of your Lord and He answered you…” Surah “Al-Anfāl”, ayah 9.
As it is known, Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, invoked Allah for help with these words, “O Living, o Existing, o Possessor of Majesty and Honour, o Creator of the heavens and the earth! In Your Mercy do I seek relief!”
Trust in Allah (tawakkul)
In other words, trusting the heart to Allah which manifests itself in the confidence in His protection.
Allah the Almighty and the Glorious said, “Put your trust in Allah if you are believers indeed.” Surah “Al-Mā’idah”, ayah 23.
Almighty Allah also said, “And in Allah let the believers put their trust.” Surah “Ibrāhīm”, ayah 11.
Almighty Allah also said, “And in Allah let those who trust, put their trust.” Surah “Ibrāhīm”, ayah 12.