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
The word “uluhiyyah” in Arabic is derived from the word “ilaah”, which means “deity”. A deity is someone or something one submits to on the basis of love and glorification. People obey a deity and humble themselves to him, fear him and wish for him, turn to him in times of trouble and invoke to him in the most important moments of life, rely on him hoping for the blessing and seek refuge with him. All these feelings develop in a human heart towards a god because a deity embodies every quality of perfection and sublimity, which are not present in a human soul, nor in any other creation.
The Oneness of Divinity (Tawheed al-Uluhiyyah) refers to the conviction of the heart that Allah is the One True God alone and only He alone is worthy of worship. Indeed, if Almighty Allah is the Only Lord, and if the perfect names and attributes of a divine nature are exclusively His, then none but He alone is the true deity.
Almighty Allah said, “And verily, We have sent among every nation a Messenger proclaiming: “Worship Allah Alone, and keep away from false deities.” Surah “An-Nahl”, ayah 36.
Almighty Allah said, “That is because Allah — He is the Truth, and what they invoke besides Him, it is falsehood. And verily, Allah — He is the Most High, the Most Great.” Surah “Al-Hajj”, ayah 62.
Almighty Allah told us in the Qur’an that all objects of people’s worship, which they mistakenly take for deities, are nothing more than a falsehood. That is to say, people will not gain anything if they worship them by submitting to them, invoking to them, setting hopes on them, fearing them, asking them for help or relying on them. As Almighty Allah said, “Do they attribute as partners to Allah those who created nothing but they themselves are created? No help can they give them, nor can they help themselves.” Surah “Al-A‘rāf”, ayahs 191-192.
“And those whom you call upon besides Him cannot help you nor can they help themselves.” Surah “Al-A‘rāf”, ayah 197.
“He merges the night into the day, and He merges the day into the night. And He has subjected the sun and the moon: each runs its course for a term appointed. Such is Allah, your Lord; He is the kingdom. And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even the skin over a date-stone. If you invoke them, they hear not your call; and if they were to hear, they could not grant it to you. And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them. And none can inform you like Him Who is the All-Knower.” Surah “Fātir”, ayahs 13-14.
The majority of people recognize Allah as the Lord, the Creator, the Sustainer, the Sovereign — and these terms refer to the Oneness of Lordship, — yet at the same time they ascribe as partners to Him in worship all sorts of idols, statues, departed righteous people, angels, stars and trees that can neither harm nor benefit anyone, nor are they capable of giving something or taking something away.
As Almighty Allah said, “And most of them believe not in Allah except that they attribute partners unto Him.” Surah “Yūsuf”, ayah 106.
The pagans of the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, recognized Allah as the Lord, the Creator, the Sustainer, the Sovereign, but their idolatry was manifested in worshipping someone or something along with the Lord of the worlds. They attributed equals and partners to Allah invoking to them, asking for salvation and praying for help.
Almighty Allah pointed out in many parts of His Holy Scripture that the polytheistic tribes of Arabia acknowledged the Sovereignty of Allah, that is to say Tawheed al-Rububiyyah; yet at the same time they attributed partners to Him in worship. Thus, Almighty Allah said, “And if you were to ask them: ‘Who has created the heavens and the earth and subjected the sun and the moon?’ they will surely reply: ‘Allah.’ How then are they deviating?” Surah “Al-‘Ankabūt”, ayah 61.
Allah, Glorified and Exalted, also said: “And if you were to ask them: ‘Who sends down water from the sky, and gives life therewith to the earth after its death?’ they will surely reply: ‘Allah.’ Say: ‘All the praises and thanks be to Allah!’ Nay, most of them have no sense.” Surah “Al-‘Ankabūt”, ayah 63.
He also said: “And if you ask them who created them, they will surely say: ‘Allah.’ How then are they turned away?” Surah “Az-Zukhruf”, ayah 87.
He also said: “Say: ‘Whose is the earth and whosoever is therein? If you know!’ They will say: ‘It is Allah’s!’ Say: ‘Will you not then remember?’ Say: ‘Who is the Lord of the seven heavens, and the Lord of the Great Throne?’ They will say: ‘Allah.’ Say: ‘Will you not then fear Allah?’ Say: ‘In Whose Hand is the sovereignty of everything? And He protects, while against Whom there is no protector, if you know?’ They will say: ‘All that belongs to Allah.’ Say: ‘How then are you deceived and turn away from the truth?’ ” Surah “Al-Mu’minūn”, ayahs 84-89.
The polytheists of Arabia of the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, did not hold that idols sent down rain from the sky by themselves, sustained the world or possessed governorship over all things. On the contrary, they were convinced that only the Lord, the Exalted, was capable of performing these acts and admitted that the idols they directed their prayers to instead of Allah were creations themselves and therefore were unable to bring benefits or do harm on their own either to themselves or to those who worshipped them. They knew that those idols were uncapable of giving life, causing death or resurrecting, nor were they capable of hearing or seeing. They believed that such power belonged exclusively to Almighty Allah and that no one shared this power with Him, and they thought that neither they nor their statues were capable of this.
They recognized Allah the Exalted as an only Creator and all the rest creatures as His creations, and believed that He was the unique Lord whereas the rest were His servants totally belonging to Him. Yet they attributed partners and intermediaries to Him from among His creations, asking them to intercede with Allah and thus trying to become closer to Him. Almighty Allah commented on them in this way: “And those who take other protectors and helpers besides Him say: ‘We worship them only that they may bring us near to Allah.’ ” Surah “Az-Zumar”, ayah 3.
In other words, they asked idols to intercede with Allah on their behalf so that they should earn help and sustenance and get their temporal affairs in proper order.
As we can see, basically polytheists recognized Allah as the unique Lord of all existence; yet, despite this fact, the Almighty did not name them Muslims. Quite the opposite, Allah, Glorified and Exalted, said that they were polytheists and non-believers, threatened them with eternal torments in Hell and made their lives and their possessions lawful for His Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, for they failed to fulfill the mandatory condition of the Oneness of Lordship, that is to say, they worshipped other gods alongside Allah.
From all of the above it becomes clear that recognizing Allah as the One True God without worshipping Him alone is not sufficient to be a Muslim and does not save one from Allah’s punishment. What is more, such recognition of the Almighty’s lordship without an exclusive worship of Him is a cogent argument against man himself for the sole reason that acknowledging Allah obliges him to serve the Almighty alone in a most sincere manner, without attributing partners to Him, and makes it His responsibility to worship Allah alone.
The classification listed above does not mean that there are three independent types of monotheism, not connected with each other, and that it is enough to practice any of them paying no regard for the other two, and that there are more important or less important ones among them. A person is considered to be professing the Oneness of God as long as he affirms all the three of its types.
Attributing partners to Allah in one of the types is like attributing partners to Him in all of the three types of Tawheed, because they are interconnected. A good example in this regard is the one who invokes other than Allah asking for something that Allah alone is capable of. This way this person ascribes partners to Allah in all the three types of Tawheed. He attributes partners to Him in worship as he offers prayers, which is a kind of worship, to someone other than Allah, hence questioning Allah’s Oneness of Divinity. In terms of the Oneness of Allah’s Lordship, this person calls upon other than Him, hoping to gain benefit or ward off harm, because he is sure that the one he invokes can hold the balance in the realm of Allah and satisfy his request. Regarding the Oneness of Allah’s divine names and perfect attributes, his actions imply that the one he invokes is the hearing and the close, and hears everyone who calls upon him and is capable of fulfilling their wishes and granting them all they ask for.
The fact that Allah is the One True God alone is reflected in the words of the testimony “La ilaha illa Allah” — “there is no deity worthy of worship, except Allah”. The essence of this great testimony lies in claiming that no one but Allah has the right to be worshipped by the creations, as no one but Allah possesses divine attributes — the attributes of perfection and sublimity, and only He alone is the Lord Almighty and the Creator of all existence. He alone has control over the Universe, He alone possesses all qualities of perfection, being far from deficiency of any kind, therefore He is the only one to succumb and humble oneself to.
Allah Almighty alone makes creations initially and recreates them, and He has no coparticipants. And this means that He alone is worthy of worship and no one has the right to be His partner in it.
In order for these great words, pronounced to declare one’s intention to embark on the path of Islam, to come from the heart and be beneficial for the one who utters them, seven conditions of the testimony (shahadah) of faith should be fulfilled. References to them can be found in the Qur’an and the Sunnah, but what is meant here is not to memorize the corresponding conditions, but to adhere to them in their meaning, as it can happen so that one person will comply with all these obligations but will fail to enumerate all of them, whereas another one will remember all the conditions but do the opposite of what they indicate.
It implies knowing the meaning of this testimony which entails both negation and affirmation. Almighty Allah said, “So know that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah.” Surah “Muhammad”, ayah 19.
Almighty Allah also said, “…except for those who bear witness to the truth knowingly, and they know.” Surah “Az-Zukhruf”, ayah 86.
This verse refers to those who declared that there is no deity who has the right to be worshipped but Allah, knowing by their hearts the meaning of the words they had affirmed by the tongue.
Almighty Allah also said, “Allah bears witness that none has the right to be worshipped but He, as do the angels, and those having knowledge; He maintains His creation in justice. None has the right to be worshipped but He, the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 18.
It means that whoever pronounces these words must have full confidence in what he is saying, without experiencing any doubt. Allah Almighty said, “Only those are the believers who have believed in Allah and His Messengers, and afterward doubt not but strive with their wealth and their lives for the Cause of Allah. Those! They are the truthful.” Surah “Al-Hujurāt”, ayah 15.
In this manner, the Almighty declared absence of doubt one of the conditions of sincerity of their faith in Allah and His Messenger.
“As-Sahih” records a hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah, Allah be pleased with him, who reported Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, as saying: “I testify that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah, and that I am the Messenger of Allah! Whatever servant of Allah meets Allah with these two testimonies, without doubting their truth, he will surely enter Paradise!”
It implies acceptance in the heart of what this testimony requires, expressed in word and fulfilled by deed, and rejection of everything that contradicts the meaning of the testimony. Not in this manner did the people rejecting the words of Allah’s Messengers act, whom the Almighty characterized in this way:
“We sent not a warner before you to any town but the luxurious ones among them said: ‘We found our fathers following a certain way and religion, and we will indeed follow their footsteps.’ ” Surah “Az-Zukhruf”, ayah 23.
As for those who denied the testimony, in their respect Almighty Allah stated the following:
“Truly, when it was said to them: ‘None has the right to be worshipped but Allah,’ they puffed themselves up with pride. And they said, ‘Are we going to abandon our gods for the sake of a mad poet?’ ” Surah “As-Sāffāt”, ayahs 35-36.
In “As-Sahih” it is narrated on the authority of Abu Musa al-Ashari, Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “The similitude of that guidance and knowledge with which Allah, the Exalted, the Glorious, has sent me is that of rain falling upon the earth. There is a good piece of land which receives the rainfall eagerly and as a result of it there is grown in it herbage and grass abundantly. Then there is a land hard and barren which retains water, and the people derive benefit from it and they drink it and make the animals drink, and utilize it for irrigation of the land for cultivation. Then there is another land which is barren. Neither water is retained in it, nor is the grass grown in it. And that is the similitude of the first one who develops the understanding of the religion of Allah and it becomes a source of benefit to him, with which Allah sent me. The second one is that who acquires the knowledge of religion and imparts it to others. Then the other type is one who does not pay attention to the revealed knowledge and thus does not accept guidance of Allah with which I have been sent.”
It refers to the compliance to the requirement of being sincere in worshipping Allah, dedicating all acts of worship to Him alone, as the words of the testimony indicate, and refusal to worship any other deity.
Allah, the Almighty, the Sublime, said, “And turn in repentance and in obedience with true faith to your Lord and submit to Him…” Surah “Az-Zumar”, ayah 54.
And Allah Almighty also said, “And whosoever submits his face to Allah, while he is a good-doer, then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold.” Surah “Luqmān”, ayah 22.
In this context the reference is to the words “There is no other god worthy of worship, except Allah.” With regard to the words “submits his face”, the meaning is that one submits himself and does good.
What is meant here is when one makes the announcement of the testimony, he has to say it sincerely from his heart.
Almighty Allah said, “Alif, Lâm, Mîm. Do people think that they will be left alone because they say: “We believe,” and will not be tested? And We indeed tested those who were before them. And Allah will certainly make known those who are true, and will certainly make known those who are liars.” Surah “Al-‘Ankabūt”, ayahs 1-3.
As for the hypocrites, Almighty Allah said about them in this manner: “And of mankind, there are some who say: ‘We believe in Allah and the Last Day,’ while in fact they believe not. They seek to deceive Allah and those who believe, while they only deceive themselves, and perceive it not! In their hearts is a disease and Allah has increased their disease. A painful torment is theirs because they used to tell lies.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayahs 8-10.
The two “Sahihs” recorded from Muadh ibn Jabal, Allah be pleased with him, that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “Whoever witnesses that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah’s Messenger, Allah forbids the Fire from touching him.”
This refers to purifying all matters from any traces of idolatry by means of the purity of intent to adhere to the acts of worship only for the sake of pleasing Allah.
Almighty Allah said, “And they were commanded not, but that they should worship Allah, and worship none but Him Alone, and be sincere in their faith…” Surah “Al-Bayyinah”, ayah 5.
Allah the Almighty also said, “So worship Allah by doing religious deeds sincerely for Allah’s sake only. Surely the religion is for Allah only.” Surah “Az-Zumar”, ayahs 2-3.
“Sahih Al-Bukhari” reports a hadith on the authority of Abu Hurairah, Allah be pleased with him, who narrated that the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “The most blessed of people to have my intercession on the Day of Resurrection are those who say there is no god but Allah, sincerely from the heart.”
It refers to the love of both the words of the testimony and of what they require and what indicate, as well as to the devotion to those who act according to its meaning, fulfilling all the necessary obligations. It also implies hatred of idolatry, which is incompatible with the meaning of the words of the testimony, and disdain of the idolaters. Almighty Allah said, “And of mankind are some who take for worship others besides Allah as rivals (to Allah). They love them as they love Allah. But those who believe, love Allah more.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 165.
The two “Sahihs” report from Abu Hurairah, Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “None of you will attain perfect faith until I am more beloved to him than his child, his parent, and all people.”
The two “Sahihs” report from Anas, Allah be pleased with him, that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “There are three things, whoever attains them will find therein the sweetness of faith: when Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, and His Messenger are dearer to him than all else; when he loves for the sake of Allah and hates for the sake of Allah; and when a huge fire be lit and he fall into it, than associate anything with Allah.”
As mentioned before, “ilaah” (“deity”) is someone or something one submits to on the basis of love and glorification. And this submission based on love and glorification is what worship is, which in Arabic is denoted by the word “ibadah”. A path can be described as being “mu’abbad” (it is derived from the word “ibadah”), which means that it is smooth and well-trodden, that is to say it has been smoothed out, or subordinated. And that is where the word “ibadah” comes from, meaning subordination, submission to Allah.
Submission to Allah means obeying Allah by doing that which He has commanded and avoiding that which He has forbidden, whilst loving and glorifying Allah. Love and glorification appear in a servant’s heart when he knows his Lord, knows Allah’s Unity in Lordship and Allah’s Unity in His perfect names and attributes.
Love for Allah is an essential condition of worship. If a person submits to someone humbly and servilely, yet bears hatred towards him, is it fair to say that the person worships him? No, it is not!
The Almighty commented on the love the believers feel for Him in this way:
“And of mankind are some who take for worship others besides Allah as rivals (to Allah). They love them as they love Allah. But those who believe, love Allah more.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 165.
The two “Sahihs” report that Allah’s Messenger, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: “There are three things, whoever attains them will find therein the sweetness of faith: when Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, and His Messenger are dearer to him than all else; when he loves for the sake of Allah and hates for the sake of Allah; and when a huge fire be lit and he fall into it, than associate anything with Allah.”
In addition to love, worship of Allah must necessarily include fear and hope.
Fear of Allah. Man submits to Allah in order to do that which He has commanded and avoid that which He has forbidden also due to fear of Allah. Indeed, Allah frightens us by His punishment for disobedience. This fear of Allah that one feels in the heart is connected with breaking Allah’s orders and violation of His bans, and is mandatory.
Allah has commanded all humans to have fear of Him.
“So fear them not, but fear Me, if you are true believers.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 175.
“…and fear none but Me.” Surah “Al-Baqarah”, ayah 40.
Fear of Allah can also be related to the preoccupation that a person’s act of worship will not be accepted by Allah. As Allah the Almighty said, “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 that hasten in the good deeds, and they are foremost in them.” Surah “Al-Mu’minūn”, ayahs 57-61.
At-Tirmidhi and Imam Ahmad recorded from Aisha, Allah be pleased with her, who asked the Messenger of Allah about this ayah: “O Messenger of Allah! Are ‘…those who give that which they give with their hearts full of fear…’ the ones who steal and commit adultery, and drink alcohol?” The Prophet replied: “No, O daughter of Siddiq! They are the ones who pray and fast, and give charity, while fearing that their deeds will not be accepted.”
Hope in Allah. Almighty Allah commands us to put our hopes on Him. Hope in a person’s heart is mandatory when performing acts of worship. As the Almighty 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.
Human hope can be connected with the expectation of Allah’s forgiveness of the acts of disobedience, when a person repents of the sins he has committed and hopes that Allah will forgive him.
“Say: ‘O my slaves who have transgressed against themselves! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: verily, Allah forgives all sins. Truly He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’ ” Surah “Az-Zumar”, ayah 53.
“And those who, when they have committed an indecency or wronged themselves with evil, remember Allah and ask forgiveness for their sins; — and none can forgive sins but Allah.” Surah “Āl-‘Imrān”, ayah 135.
“Why seek you not the forgiveness of Allah, that you may receive mercy?” Surah “An-Naml”, ayah 46.
Human hope can be connected with the expectation that Allah will accept the acts of worship performed by a person and reward them for their devotion, as He has promised.
“Is one who is obedient to Allah, prostrating himself or standing in prayer during the hours of the night, fearing the Hereafter and hoping for the Mercy of his Lord…?” Surah “Az-Zumar”, ayah 9.
“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.
Scholars called these three types of matters of heart the pillars of worship, as they must be present in the heart of all people who worship Allah.