RAJAB 22, 1429 A.H.
FRIDAY JULY 25 2008
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The principles of Islam (II)
By Mahmoud Murad
KNOWING THE MESSENGERS
You have known that the Messengers are the men responsible for conveying the laws and commands of Allah. What are the means of recognizing the Messengers and the proofs of their veracity ‘?
Proofs of the Messengers' veracity We have, after that, to recognize the proofs of Prophethood. Among such proofs of the Messengers' veracity are:
1- They do not seek anything for their personal interest, rather they seek things for the public interest by warning their people against what may harm them.
2- What the Messengers reported to their people about the unseen world, no one can conceive through his intellect, and yet the reality always verified their statements.
3- Every Messenger is supported by a miraculous sign that his people could not challenge or match. Noah, for example, challenged his people to kill him, yet they were unable to do so, although he was living amongst them without guards, surrounded by the disbelievers hatred. Similarly, neither the people of Ibraheem and Hood were able to harm them. Allah, the Exalted, supported Musa, peace be upon him, by making his cane to change into a snake whenever Musa wanted it to be so. While Issa, peace be upon him, healed the blind, and the leper, and revived the dead with the permission of Allah. Muhammad, peace be upon him, received the great Qur'an. Bearing in mind that he was unlettered, and did not study under the instruction of any person, yet his people were unable to produce a book similar to the Qur'an as a whole, nor were they able to produce ten chapters the like thereof. Finally, Allah challenged them to produce a single chapter similar to that in the Qur'an, but they failed to meet the challenge. Never will any one be able to do so.
Allah says:
If mankind and the jinn gathered together to produce the like of this Qur'an, they would never be able to do so even if they helped each.
Allah sent a Messenger to every nation, and supported him with a miracle that suited the nature of his people. And since Allah sent every Messenger with a Message concerning that particular nation, and because those Messages were not final nor permanent, those
Messages faded away along with the nations to whom they were sent. But the Message with which Muhammad, peace be upon him, was sent is the last and perpetual. Hence, the miracles of the previous Messengers were, generally, of materialistic nature, whereas the Qur'an is an intellectual and scientific Miracle, thus to suit the human intellect throughout the ages.
Now that you have known the merits of recognizing the deen of Allah, Islam, what then is this Islam which Allah approves of, and accepts from His slaves? Let us explore Islam in detail. Islam as you have already known, means, submitting to the will of Allah, the Exalted with obedience. It means worshipping only Allah, ascribing no partners to Him. Islam consists of rites and actions fulfilled by man out of obedience to Allah, and in conformity with the Message of the Messengers, the last of whom is Muhammad, peace be upon him. Muhammad's set of laws conclude all previous divine laws. Any other laws that disagree with his are null and void, because they disagree with Allah's final and permanent legislation.
These rites express the iman, (faith) in the heart of the believer, for whatever is based on faith and certainty, externally or internally is the true deen of Islam. Islam is the means by which man acquires the pleasure of his Rubb, his Creator, and the means of salvation that delivers him from the torment of the Day of Resurrection.
Islam is based on five Pillars:
1- The testimony of faith:
"There is no true god except Allah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah”.
The requirements of this Testimony is the submission and declaration that Allah is the true God, and that all other deities are false, and are not capable of neither harming or benefiting, nor do they deserve to be worshipped.
Allah is also the Ruler who has a free hand in the disposal of the affairs of the universe. People must rule by His laws and commands.
It is only the Book of Allah to Whom men should refer their disputes and affairs. Any judicial decision other that Allah's is a decision based on ignorance or pre-Islamic era, which entails injustice and deviation.
All legitimate rites of worship must be dedicated to Allah alone.
Among other requirements of the Testimony of Faith is that no one should bow down, or lower his head humbly to anyone, nor supplicate another human asking him to fulfill his needs, for only Allah is capable of fulfilling man's needs.
As for the requirements of the Testimony: 'Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah', it entails recognition of Muhammad as the true Messenger of Allah. This Testimony also attests to his veracity, trustworthiness and infallibility in everything that he related about Allah, the Exalted, about the past, the future, and the unseen world. Because everything he related is only revelation from Allah.
It is obligatory to obey his commands and to refrain from his prohibitions because obeying him is in fact obeying Allah. The Prophet, peace be upon him, is the one commissioned by Allah to convey His message, laws, and commands. Therefore, it is not permissible to disobey the Messenger, peace be upon him, for disobeying him means disobeying Allah.
2- As-Salah:
As-Salah, or prayer is the second pillar of Islam. It begins with the purification of the body and ends with the purification of the soul. It is performed five times in the day and the night. Prayer may be considered as an energizing charge man needs whenever he tends to be heedless of the remembrance of his Rubb.
In order to renew the contact with his Rubb, the first thing man starts off his day with, is prayer. The time of the first prayer of the day begins with the dawn and ends with the sunset. Having spent the first half of the day working, heedlessness is apt to befall man; by then the mid-day salah or prayer becomes due for which the Muslim renews purification, and his contact with his Rubb asking His help, mercy, and success throughout this life, and forgiveness in the Hereafter to efface his sins and errors. Thus man moves from one prayer to another until he meets with his Rubb. The Messenger, peace be upon him, said:
Consider a river running by your door in which you wash yourself five times a day. Would that spare any soiled spot on your body? (His listeners) said: "Certainly not" He said: So do the five daily prayers with which Allah effaces the sins.
Performing prayer in the masjid helps Muslims maintain strong relation with one another in a brotherly atmosphere, and promotes among them love and mercy.
Prayer deters reprehensible and evil deeds. It also helps the slave in all his affairs.
Allah says:
And seek help through patience and prayer.
3- Az-Zakat
Zakat is the third pillar of Islam. It is a financial act of worship, which is due on the wealth kept in possession for one year. A certain percentage is taken from every kind of property to be given out to the poor to enable them meet their needs. The Zakat fulfills the poor's needs, and purifies the donors from selfishness, a natural tendency in men.
Allah says:
And you love wealth with exceeding love.
The Zakat augments the wealth, and adds barakah to it.
The Prophet, peace be upon him said: "Never will charity diminish the wealth, rather it augments it. "
Thus the Zakat is a means of augmenting the wealth, and purifying the souls from miserliness, stinginess and selfishness. It is a manifestation of social mutual responsibility among the Muslims, that the wealthy among them may sympathize with the poor and the poor among them may love the wealthy.
After all, the zakat is an act of worship dedicated to Allah and a positive response to His command and a means of gaining His pleasure.
