The Principles of Islam
Creator: Sheikh Hmoud M. Al-Lahim
Date: 2006-03-30
Format: text
Identifier: http://islamworld.net/resources/cache/26
Language: en
Subject: Non-Muslims
Title: The Principles of Islam
Created on: Sat Jun 27 01:28:38 -0400 2009
Updated on: Mon Sep 25 13:21:11 -0400 2006
Version: 3
Abstract: ... r with whom He concluded their line. Peace be upon them all. A person who acknowledges some of the Messengers, and denies the others is as though he has broken their chain. The Qur'an mentions the names of only twenty-five Messengers. Allah says: And We sent Messengers whom We have already mentioned to you, and some Messengers whom We have not mentioned to you. The belief in the Messenger is indispensable due to the fact that it is impossible to know the Message of Allah without the Messengers, for it is they who conveyed His message. It is obligatory to believe in them indiscriminately. As for the privileges with which Muhammad, peace be upon him, has been distinguished, they are as follows: All of the Messengers that preceded him were sent to their own peoples in particular, where as, Muhammad, peace be upon him, was sent to mankind at large, for he would be succeeded by no Prophet, or Messenger. The teachings of the preceding Prophets, and the signs of their veracity had vanished along with them. The proof of Mohammed's veracity, is still and will remain effective until the end of time. His teachings are preserved in the books that are available to public. The Message of Mohammed, peace be upon him, includes the Messages of the preceding Messengers. The Message and the teachings of the Messengers are like a palace which is erected by the joint efforts of men; each constructed a section thereof, and Muhammad, peace be upon him, has completed the whole structure. 5- The belief in the Final day. This belief necessitates: Believing that this world and all that is in it has an end. Allah, the exalted, will resurrect the creatures once again. The people will be held accountable for their deeds. He who does good, it will be good for him, and he who errs, will suffer the consequences. Everyone will be held responsible for his own deeds. Mankind's deeds are being recorded and will be reviewed by them on the Day of Reckoning. The Muslim will eventually be admitted to Jannah, (the heavenly garden), and the unbeliever will be admitted to Hell Fire. Hence, it is obvious that death is not the end of life, rather it is a borderline between the short transitional life, and the eternal life. But will all men lead the same life? Certainly not! They are not alike. Those who obey Allah will certainly be rewarded; and those who disobey Him will be punished. Believing in the Last Day is an intellectual necessity, for man in this world to do things, the results of which, do not appear, or may not exist. Query! Would this world terminate in the same manner? Would the oppressor get away with his oppression, while the oppressed to be left unprotected? This surely would have been unwise and unfair. Hence, justice is indispensable, but in a world other than this; the world to come. The Prophet's authentic traditions pertaining to the world to come are sufficient to confirm this fact. The ultimate purpose of believing in the Day of Resurrection is to motivate the believers to make vigorous efforts to achieve good deeds, and discourage others from committing imperious deeds and acts of disobedience, and the results of the tests and afflictions in this world will become evident in the next world. 6- The belief in Al-Qadar. Believing in Al-Qadar is one of the central fundamentals of Islam. Allah does not accept any good deed from a person until he believes in the Al-Qadar, even if he observes fasting, performs prayers, and claims to be a Muslim, because he did not maintain sound belief in Allah. He who does not believe in Al-Qadar, implies that Allah is incapable, unaware of the events taking place in the universe, and impotent. Such is not fit to be a god; for among the intrinsic attributes of Allah the Ever-living, the One Who sustains and maintains the creatures, the Omnipotent, the All-Hearing, All-Seeing – The Perfect. Disbelieving in Al-Qadar necessitates denying Allah all of these attributes of perfection. Far is Allah removed from every imperfection. The belief in al-Qadar necessitates believing that: Allah has known all things and recorded them before bringing them into existence. When Allah, the Exalted, wills something to take place, He would only say to it: "Be". and it is. If Allah wants something to exist, it will exist, and if He does not want it to exist, it will not exist. Every existing thing, other than Allah is created by Allah, be it good or evil, and that He has brought it into existence for a wise purpose known to Him. Therefore, there is nothing in the universe that exists without a wise purpose. Allah is the All-Knowing, All-Wise. Nothing occurs, or takes place in this universe without the will of Allah, and His permission. Allah is capable of preventing what He does not permit to take place. It should be borne in mind however, that this does not mean that Allah approves of everything in existence. Allah, for instance, does not approve of disbelief, nor does He enjoin mankind the commission of the abominable, nor does He love corruption. In fact, He does not prevent these things to exist for a wise purpose known to Him. The purpose of believing in Al-Qadar is that it provides man with the capability of achieving good deeds knowing that life and death are in the hand of Allah, the Exalted. Hence, no one else can prolong or shorten his life-term by a single second. Once his term is over, there is none to withhold its termination. Allah says: And when their term has come, they cannot remain behind a single moment, nor can they get ahead of it. This belief provides man with the sense of security and contentment when he knows that nothing would befall him except that which has already been assigned for him. If all mankind gather to ward it off him, they would not be able to do so, nor would they be able to grant him what Allah has withheld from him. And because man knows that his duty is to pursue all available legal means to earn his living, he also knows the results remain Allah’s Hands. Among the issues discussed earlier, in which we are obliged to believe, are things that are neither tangible nor can they be defined by the senses. What is our attitude towards these things? The Belief in al-Ghaib Believing in al-ghaib is also a central fundamental in Islam. Allah has endowed us with the ability to believe in it. Man cannot perceive the essence of Allah, His nature, or attributes with his senses, nor can he imagine them in his mind, and yet he sees the effects of Allah's existence, and His disposal of the affairs of the universe. Of the greatest graces that Allah conferred on man is enabling him to believe submissively in the issues of al-ghaib. Among the issues of al-ghaib in which we submissively believe without conceiving their nature is the soul. If the belief in al-ghaib is not acquired, man would have lost many fundamentals of his faith. Man would have lacked the belief in Allah, His angels, the Final Day, and other ghaib matters. Belief in al-ghaib is important enough that Allah considers it as one of the most particular characteristics of the God-fearing people. Allah says: This is the Book, wherein there is no doubt, a guidance to those who are God-fearing. Who believe in the ghaib, perform prayer, and spend out of what We have provided them. It is good enough reason for us to believe in al-ghaib as it is Allah, the Exalted, Who has informed us about it by the tongue of His Messenger, peace be upon him. Consequently, one who does not believe in al-ghaib denies Allah and His Messengers, peace be upon them all. The Shari’ah and the Deen The Shari'ah is part of the Deen, or faith. The application of which is an act of ibadah, (worship) in itself, for ibadah signifies obedience to Allah by adhering to His commands, and refraining from His prohibitions. Allah has commanded us to adhere to what He has sent down to us. Allah says: Adhere to what has been sent down to you from your Rubb. And He says: And (say) this is My path leading straight. So follow it, and do not follow other ways lest they lead you away from His way. Allah has made manifest in His Book everything mankind needs, and has been interpreted and expounded perfectly, and sufficiently by His Messenger, peace be upon him. All of which is preserved, and made available to all at all times and places. The main objective of Islam is to preserve the following basics: 1- The Deen Allah has passed the laws and ordinances, sent the Messengers, and revealed His Books to preserve the deen, and guard it against deviation, and to dedicate all acts of worship to Allah alone. He has prescribed the Jihad in order to keep His Word supreme, and to efface the barriers that bar men from worshipping their Rubb. 2- The Intellect Islam prohibits everything that incapacitates the intellect whether it is food, drink, or the like. Allah says: Verily, the liquor, gambling, the idols, and divining arrows are only abomination of Satan's work. 3- The Individual Islam prohibits too, everything that destroys the individual. A person is not allowed to inflict any harm upon himself, or to commit suicide, Inflicting harm upon others is also prohibited, and so is killing others or giving them what may weaken them physically. Hence requital in the cases of homicide is legitimized for the protection of man's life. Executing an evil person is better than sparing his life to kill more people. There is no sense in showing mercy to the murderer, and depriving the victimized of it, i.e. the victim's family. 4- The Property Earning one's own living, and making money are legitimate quests, and so is preserving them. Wasting wealth is unlawful, and spending it extravagantly on lawful things is prohibited in Islam. Allah says: Eat and drink, and do not be wasteful. It is unlawful for a person to abuse his own wealth, or abuse the wealth of others. It is not permissible for any one to help himself to others' properties without their consent. It is prohibited to possess people's property illegally. It is for this reason that the thief's hand is amputated as a punishment. Similarly, usury is prohibited to safeguard people's properties against abusiveness. 5- The Honor Islam protects man's honor, and prohibits libeling, or abusing the honor, or reputation of the others. Therefore Islam preserves the right of people to protect their honor, and renders it inviolable, and the abuse of which is made punitive. After this review of the five basic necessities that Shari'ah purposed to preserve, we must know the sources of the Shari'ah from which we deduce the laws, and rulings. The Shari'ahs' Sources (Sources of Legislation) The sources of the Shari'ah are the Qur'an, and the Sunnah of the Messenger, peace be upon him, which is the explanation of the Qur'an. The scholars have exerted great efforts for the deduction of rulings from these two great sources. Since the Islamic Shari'ah is the last of all divine laws, it is designed to suit every age and place; Hence, the judicial rulings deduced by the jurists are not alike, because such rulings are based on their understanding of the texts. The deduced rulings referred to as al-fiqh, or jurisprudence, were later compiled by different imams. There are four renowned madthahibs, or schools of thought established by different imams or scholars, whose teachings were widespread, and adhered to by large number of students. The four schools of thoughts are: Al-Hanafi madth'hab, by Imam Abu Hanifa, (d.150/767). Ash Shafi'ee, by Imam Muhammad bin Idrees ash-Shafi'ee (d 205/820). Al-Malikee, by Imam Malik bin Anas (d 179/795). Al-Hanbali, by Imam Ahmad bin Hanbal (d 241/855). A person who is incapable of comprehending rulings, or deducing them from the Book and the Sunnah, he may consult any trustworthy man of knowledge who is known to be adhering to the correct conviction of ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah. Al-Jihad In order to preserve Islam, and convey it to people at large, and to remove the obstacles in its way, Allah, the Exalted, has decreed jihad as a legitimate institution or warfare. Jihad also is meant to deliver men from those who enslave them, and from submissiveness to men, such as rulers, and shaiks, and to stop them from grave, tree, stone worshipping, and from all other idols, and make them submit to Allah alone after having lived in the darkness of ignorance bereft of the light of the truth. In other words, jihad is legitimized to help people shun worshipping their fellow men to worship the Rubb of men, and replace them the tightness of this world with the ampleness of the world to come. Having reviewed the principles of Islam, we realize that it is incumbent upon us, individually and as a whole, to apply them all. The Duties Incumbent on the Individual Every individual in the community has rights, and is charged with duties. In brief, the rights that are due on individuals are four: 1- The rights of Allah. 2- The person's own Rights. 3- The rights of human beings. 4- The rights of the creatures, and all that is in the possession of man that are lawful to use, or utilize. It is the duty of every true Muslim to know these four types of rights, and to fulfill them truthfully and sincerely. The Shari'ah has clearly defined each type of these rights separately, and has directed man to the methods and ways of fulfilling these rights in such a manner that none of these rights may be neglected within the scope of man's ability. The Rights of Allah: The first of Allah's rights is believing in Him, as the only true God, Who deserves to be worshipped alone, associating no partner with Him, nor taking gods or lords beside, or instead of Him. This right may be fulfilled by believing in the declaration of faith which means: “There is no true god except Allah”. The second of Allah’s rights is to submit completely to the truth, and guidance that came down from Him by following His Messenger, Muhammad peace be upon him, and this is the meaning of “Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah”, the second part of the Testimony of Faith. The third of Allah’s rights is that He must be obeyed by adhering to His laws that are made manifest in the Glorious book of Allah, and expounded by the Sunnah, of the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him. The fourth of Allah's rights is the fulfillment by man the above-mentioned duties with which Allah has charged him. One must sacrifice his own as well as the rights of his fellow-human beings for the sake of this right, When a Muslim for instance, performs prayer, or observes fasting, he in fact, sacrifices many of his particular requirements. He wakes up early in the morning to perform ablution for the dawn prayer. He leaves behind many of his important occupations more than once during the day and night to perform his prayer. He also refrains from eating and drinking, and restrains himself just to observe fasting throughout the month of Ramadhan. A Muslim gives preference to the love of Allah over his love of wealth when giving out the Zakah, and he endures hardships of the Pilgrimage trip, leaving behind his beloved ones, and his business, and expends from his wealth.to perform this duty. He also sacrifices his wealth and life in the jihad for the sake of Allah alone. Besides that, a Muslim sacrifices many of his possessions, i.e. slaughtering sacrificial animals, as well as expending in charity. Allah, the Exalted, on the other hand, has put limits to the fulfillment of His rights so that He may not overburden His slaves. Take prayer for instance, Allah does not impose hardship on His slaves for performing it. If water is not available, or if a person is sick, he may perform tayammum. A traveling person may shorten some of the obligatory prayers. Or if a person is sick, he may perform his prayer while sitting, or even lying down. The Qur'anic recitation during the course of prayer, on the other hand, does not have to be long. If a person is not in a hurry, he may take his time reciting longer chapter such as surat al-Baqarah, Aali Imran, an-Nisa, or any other long chapters. It is not permissible though for an imam, who leads the prayer, to prolong praying period by reciting longer chapters, for there may be behind him those who are sick, or weak of whom he must be considerate. Allah loves that His slaves perform supererogatory prayers following the obligatory prayers, but not to the point of depriving them of sleep and rest, or on account of earning one's living, nor to the point of neglecting one's own rights altogether, or the rights of other slaves of Allah. The same applies to fasting. Allah has made obligatory observing fast of the month of Ramadhan only. Even then, when a person happens to be sick, or on a journey during that month, it is permissible for him to defer observing fast until he is well again, or when he returns home. He may make up the number of days that are missed out after Ramadhan. On the other hand, it is not permissible to add an extra minute to the fasting period of the day, nor to delete a minute there from. The fasting person may, during the night in Ramadhan, eat and drink until the white thread becomes distinct to him from the black thread of the dawn. Once it is sunset, a person must break his fast right away. Although Allah loves His slaves to observe voluntary fasting, He does not like them to continue fasting for more than one day without taking food or drink. Such observance drains the energy, and incapacitates man. Islam has imposed as Zakah only a small percentage to be given out in charity. It is only imposed on those who are liable for Zakah. Although Allah loves those who expend in His cause, yet He does not want His slave to forfeit his rights, or his wealth for charity and be left empty handed. Rather a person must keep within the reasonable limits when it comes to expending in charity. Now consider the fardh of Hajj, or pilgrimage. It is obligatory only on those who can afford it financially and health-wise, and can endure the hardship of the journey. To make it even easier, Allah has made this rite obligatory once in a lifetime. Moreover, if a person is worried about his safety, or does not have ready funds, he may defer the trip until such time when the trip becomes affordable. It is also imperative that the person who intends to perform Pilgrimage that he should seek his parents' permission lest they may be inconvenienced by his absence, due to their old age or disability. It has thus, become clear that Allah has given consideration to many rights of His slaves on account of His Own. Glory be to Allah. The greatest sacrifice man offers is in the jihad. Man in the jihad, sacrifices his as well as the others' wealth and lives just seeking the pleasure of Allah, keeping His word the supreme. Even then, Allah commands the mujahid to kill only those who must be killed, not to attack the disabled, women, children or the wounded. He also commands them to fight only those who fight them from the people of falsehood, and not to act injuriously and corruptly in the enemy's land unnecessarily, or insensibly. Moreover, they must apply justice in dealing with the enemy if they conquer their land, and to observe any treaty they enter with them. If the enemy has given up fighting and resisting the truth, and cease to support the falsehood, the mujahideen must stop fighting them. All this signifies that Allah, the Exalted, permitted only this indispensable sacrifice on the part of His slaves in order that they fulfill His right. The Individual's Own Rights We now discuss the second part of rights man owes himself. Man may afflict injustice upon himself more than afflicting it upon others, because every one feels and believes that his own self is dearer to him than anyone else. There is no one who believes that he is his own enemy. But if you reflect upon this issue, the truth becomes clear to you.One of the most distinctive, and innate point of weakness, is that when man is possessed by a desire, he would entirely succumb to it unmindful of whatever harm he may encounter, whether being aware of it or not. An alcoholic may suffer greatly jeopardizing his health, wealth, and reputation for the sake of satisfying his addiction. Another, has been enslaved by h... [Full Article...]
