Lets begin with some
introspection - if we face a situation, where a small innocent child is
running barefoot towards fire and is unaware of its perils, what will be
our reaction to it? Won’t you consider it to be your moral
responsibility to save the child by picking him up in your arms? And
won’t you feel peaceful after doing this good deed? On similar lines, if
any person gets severely burnt then you feel both sympathetic and
concerned towards him.
But, have we ever wondered the
reason behind it. It’s due to the fact that the entire human race is a
family of one father (Adam) and mother (Eve). Everyone has got a heart
that has love, compassion and sympathy owing to which we share the joys
and sorrows of others.
Hence, a true human being is the one
whose heart is an infinite source of love for entire human race, whose
every action is meant for service of others, who cringes at someone
else’s sufferings and who seeks the purpose in help of others.
In this world, the life is
temporary; post death the life granted will be everlasting. Without
acknowledging and submitting to the true God one will never achieve
Heaven and will have to burn in Hell Fire for eternity.
These days, millions of people
with their own inactions are moving towards the hell fire. Hence, the
onus is on those, who love humanity that they come forward and try to
save others from the eternal perils of Hell Fire.
We are grateful that Maulana
Mohammed Kaleem Siddiqui, has presented some beautiful insights in the
book, which are representative of his love towards humanity. It is also a
reflection of his responsibility to show the right path to the
non-followers/ignorants, which essentially is hallmark of a true Muslim.
With these words, I will like to present your legacy to you. Wasi Suleiman Nadvi Editor, Urdu Monthly Letter
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Please Forgive Me
My dear readers, I would like to seek
your forgiveness for my Muslim brothers and me. Under influence of the
archenemy of mankind – Satan, we have failed to convey your own legacy
to you. Satan has corrupted our hearts such that there is hatred for the
Sinners rather than Sins. Under its influence people have waged
innumerable wars making this whole world a battlefield. In order to put
things in correct perspective, I intend to selflessly convey your own
legacy to you. Lord ,who knows what is in the heart of a person, is
witness of the fact that in bringing the legacy to you, I am both
selfless and sympathetic. The burden, of not being able to convey it to
you till date, has lain heavily in my heart and has left me sleepless
for many a nights.
A Message of Love
I would request you to receive the message with love. I would also seek Allah
to be the witness of my actions that I have tried to convey the legacy
to my brothers and sisters as my responsibility. Please try to read,
think and reason for the Lord, the sustainer of this world. After
arriving in this world, it is essential that a human identifies and
follows the real truth. It is his biggest responsibility. I would like
to share the same message of love with you.
The Biggest Truth
The biggest truth of the world,
rather universe is that the creator and the preserver of the world and
entire universe is one and only one God. He is the only one of his type.
There is no partner of Him in creating, preserving and destroying the
world. He is everywhere, He listens to everyone and sees everything. Not
even a single leaf can flutter without his command. Every human being,
irrespective of his religious background, even if he is an idol
worshipper will agree to the fact that there is only one God.
If a person contemplates
logically then he can easily conclude that there can be only one Lord.
For example, if any institution has two heads then there will always be
quarrel between them and the institution cant function then. If there
cannot be two kings of the same kingdom then how can there be more than
one master of the world?
Quran, which is the speech of
God, has challenged the world: “If you doubt that Quran is not the true
revelation of the God, then try writing even a small chapter which can
parallel its Grace. You can summon the entire world to help you in the
task” For the past 1400 years, many human beings, Science and Computers
have challenged and were defeated. None could prove that Quran is not Allah’s Book.
In this holy book, God has shared
many arguments and examples so that the human mind can grasp the truth.
For example, “Had there been many masters on Earth and Sky then chaos
would have been let loose on Earth.” It’s quite clear; if there were
many masters then it would have led to arguments and infighting amongst
them. One would
have commanded for night while the
other for day, one for 6 months a year other for 3 months a year, one
for Sun rising in the East while other in the West. If there were other
deities working with the Supreme lord as partners then it may happen
that while they have blessed people for Rains, the Supreme God wants
famine. Essentially it will lead to chaos and disaster.
True Witness
In real sense everything in this
world; the efficiently and perfectly running order of the world is a
witness of the fact that there is one and only one master. He is free to
do anything anytime. With our limited mind, we can neither imagine him
nor can make idols of him. The God has created the entire world for the
service of mankind. The Sun, Air,Earth, Fire, Water, Plants, Animals,
everything - all are meant for the service of mankind. They are made
subservient to Humans while the latter’s existence is meant for sole
purpose of worshipping the God alone and following his wishes.
It’s only justified that a true human
being acknowledges the fact that our Life, Death, Food, Shelter and
other necessities of life are provided by the blessings of the God.
Hence, our life should be in accordance with His Wishes. Any person who
is not leading his life as per the that one true God’s wishes then his
existence is futile.
An Indomitable Truth
In the Holy Quran, the true Lord has
mentioned an indomitable truth: “Every life has to taste death, after
which you will have to return to us” The verse has two truths in it. The
first is that everything alive is mortal and will have to face death.
Any believer or non-believer can’t deny this fact. Even animals
acknowledge this law, which can be seen from their behavior- a mouse
runs away from a cat, a dog is afraid of cars on the roads. It’s because
they believe in death.
After Death
The second part of verse introduces
the mankind to a powerful truth,which if understood and followed can
change the entire world. The Lord says that after death, you will return
back to me and based on your actions in the world you will be rewarded
or punished accordingly. After death, you would neither perish nor will
enter the endless cycle of rebirths. This viewpoint won’t be accepted by
any logical mind. The very first argument is that such kinds of rebirth
cycles aren’t
mentioned in Vedas. In Puranas, which
came later, such cycles are mentioned, according to which man’s
characters are passed on to the progeny through his semen. Satan (The
Evil), who on religious pretext had divided the human society in upper
and lower caste, has created the myth, owing to which lower caste people
were openly exploited
and ill-treated. When these lower
caste people questioned that when our Creator has made us equal in all
senses, be it eye, ear, nose, hands then why have you positioned
yourself superior to us. The Upper Caste people justified their actions
based on Law of Karma. They said that the Shudras have to pay penance
for the Sins committed in their previous life. As per this belief, all
the souls are reborn and take birth as per the actions committed in
previous life. Sinners take form of animals and those who commit the
worst sins take form of vegetation. The good doers attain liberation.
Three Arguments again Cycle of Rebirth
1. The biggest argument against the
common belief of rebirth is the scientific findings and conclusions,
which state that the very first life form on earth was that of
vegetation, followed by animals and after millions of years human beings
were born. Since, the population of the former two can not be dependent
on sins of humans, which came to life after a gap of millions of years,
the argument for rebirth fails.
2. The second argument is that as
souls attain liberation, the population of humans, animals and
vegetation should reduce but on the other hand opposite is true.
3. Also there is a huge disparity
between the birth and death rate. The total; number of births is much
higher v/s the total number of deaths. Many a times innumerable insects
take birth and very few humans die and vice versa.
There are many people who have
claimed that they can identify a place which they had never seen in this
life, or they can tell the name of their past life. This leads to a
wrong belief that people are taking rebirth. But essentially these are
all doings of Satan who influences others in order to corrupt their
belief. The truth will be revealed to all after death. Everyone has to
return back to the Lord and on the Day of Judgment he will be punished
or rewarded based on his deeds on earth.
Punishment or Reward for the Deeds
As an award for the good deeds and
correct path, a soul will be rewarded with the heaven, where he will
receive everything in plenty. The comfort and abundance of Heaven is
unimaginable and unparallel. And the best part of heaven will be that
those residing there will get to see the Lord from their own eyes. There
is nothing comparable to it.
Similarly, the non-believers, who
commit sins, by not following Lord’s commands, they will eternally burn
in Hell Fire. They will be punished for each and every sin committed and
the biggest punishment will be that they will be deprived of their
Lord’s presence and love. And on them there will be wrath of their Lord.
The Biggest Sin –Making Partner with God
In the Holy Quran, God has mentioned
that the virtues or sins can be big or small. He has specifically
mentioned that the biggest sin, for which a soul would never be
forgiven, is to make partners with God. The non-believers will burn
eternally in Hell Fire for not following the Commands of Allah.
He has commanded that one should not bow in veneration to any idol,
Sun, Moon or Prophet. One should not consider anyone besides Him as
sustainer, controller of life, death and worthy of worship. Shirk
(associating partners with Allah)
will not be forgiven; He may forgive any other sin if he wills.
Committing of Shirk is the biggest Sin and people should guard
themselves against it.
An Example
We can appreciate this sin by usage
of an Example. Lets assume there are two women. One is very
argumentative; who fights every now and then with her husband and never
pays heed to his sayings. In spite of these shortcomings she is
essentially loyal to her husband and would never leave her true home. In
this case, irrespective of her behavior,
her husband will be forced to
(because of her love) to live with her. On the other hand, there is a
docile wife, who is very caring, loving and obedient, she waits for her
husband till late evening and serves him hot food. If one day she
declares that she can’t live only with one husband and needs even her
neighbor as her husband what will be you
make of the lady’s character? Inspite
of all other talents she will be considered as Sinner and will be
punished for the same. If we contemplate on this example and think on
broader perspective, then we can appreciate why God can’t bear humans
praying to anyone else but Him. If we, who are made from a tiny sperm,
don’t like to be paralleled to anyone else, how can the infinite Lord,
who has created the whole world, the earth, the sea, the air, the sun,
the moon, the angels, who has given us innumerable resources for our
sustenance can accept any partners to him? A human who indulges in
worshipping any other deity other than Him, stands in front of Lord
worst than a prostitute, who has given up her self-respect for some
paltry gains.
Idol Worship prohibited in Holy Quran
There is an example presented in Holy Quran which is worth reflecting on:
“O mankind! A similitude has been coined, so listen to it (carefully): Verily! Those, on whom you call besides Allah,
cannot create (even) a fly, even though they combine together for the
purpose. And if the fly snatched away a thing from them, they would have
no power to release it from the fly. So weak are(both) the seeker and
the sought.
They have not estimated Allah His Rightful Estimate; Verily, Allah is All-Strong, All-Might”
To think of, the creator is always
stronger than the creation, hence instead of humans worshipping idols
(his creation); the idols should have worshipped humans. Thus it is
impertinent to worship idols instead of the Supreme Lord.
A Thought to Ponder On
Many a people worship the Gurus who
have shown the path of God to them, owing to which they claim they have
received mercy of the Lord.It is akin to a situation, where you enquire
regarding a train from a porter and once you received the information
you alight on him instead! Hence, those who guide us regarding the right
path are the intermediaries only who help us in our search of
knowledge, but should never be confused with real God. There is only one
God without any Parallel or Partner or any Subordinate or any
Intermediary.
Few brothers also claim that the
idols are used for lesser humans to concentrate on the Godhead. The
argument is very shallow – can anyone look at a dog and claim that he
uses it to think of his father. If one tries to limit the Merciful,
Strongest and most Gracious Lord in weak idol of clay will it strengthen
or weaken once faith?
The conclusion is that those who
make any partner to Supreme Lord are committing biggest sin for which
they will never be forgiven and will have to spend an eternity in Hell.
The Biggest Virtue is Faith
The biggest virtue, best deed and
best act is “Faith”. After death, all the materialistic gains will be
rendered useless but what will matter the most will be the fruits of
Good Deeds we have done in the name of Allah.
Virtuous is the one who shares with others what is rightfully theirs.
One who steals or snatches from others is a wrongdoer. Similarly, on
humans there is only one benefactor, Allah,
hence only he should be revered and no one else. He is the one who is
Lord of our destiny, our gains and losses. When he alone is worthy of
worship then only he should be worshipped. We should spend life given by
Him the way He wills. Hence, a meaningful life is the one where we
follow what
He has commanded and those who do not follow can’t be called truthful.
Our creator has right of our
worship and he shouldn’t be denied of the same. One who does that and
act to be a virtuous person is like a bandit robbing someone of his
riches and then returning measly amount in order to look honest.
Honesty and Virtue is in
believing and worshipping the sole creator and spending every precious
moment of the transitory life given by Him in fulfilling his commands.
True Religion
Right from beginning there was
only one religion, which states that only the Supreme Lord should be
worshipped and we should follow his commands. The Holy Quran has stated:
“There is only one religion of Allah,
which is Islam. Other than that, all others are irrelevant” The
frailness of human is in his limitation – of sight, hearing, tasting
and feeling. Owing to the limitations
of his senses his mind is also limited – it can’t imagine or understand
beyond a boundary. What kind of Life God wants us to lead, how should
we worship, what is life after death, which are the deeds, which will
lead to Heaven or Hell? Such questions can’t be answered by human mind.
Prophet of God
Considering human’s shortcomings,
God has been kind to send his messengers on Earth who preached How to
Live and Worship the God,which couldn’t have been thought correctly by
human’s limited mind. Such great people are called as Prophets or
Messengers. They are also termed as Avtaars, which means those who come
to Earth but not
Manifestations of God. To assume them
to be God or God has manifested himself as human is superstition and a
great sin. This creates a rift in your faith and one ends up worshipping
the prophets/avatars instead of the Supreme Lord.
Such Messengers / Prophets are
selected by God specially for conveying his message for benefit of
Humankind. They have taken birth in al towns, regions and century. All
of them taught to believe and worship the only Lord and asked to live
our lives as per His Laws and Commands (Shariat). None of the Prophets
have propagated anyone else’s worship other than His. On the other hand
they have tried to stop the biggest Sin, Worshipping anyone else other
than Lord, from hands of mankind time and again.
The Beginning of Idol Worship
Those innumerable prophets who had
graced this earth and their followers both were mortals as other humans.
They were governed by God’s Law of Life and Death; hence they perished
like other humans. After their demise, the followers in their ignorance
missed them and used to grieve. Satan saw this as a great opportunity to
corrupt the
believers. He went to people and
showed his fake sympathy. He also volunteered to make clay idols of the
Prophets as their remembrance. Initially the people would come to see
the idol whenever they missed their Prophets. As the time passed, Satan
declared that if you your head in reverence in front of the idols then
they would bless you.
Till then people already started
loving the idol and they started worshipping them. Owing to this they
got corrupted by Satan and started indulging in Shirk (i.e. associating
partners with God). When a human, for whom the world has been made by
Creator, bows to an idol of clay then he loses the mercy of Lord
spending his afterlife in Hell. The merciful Lord sent many a Prophets
to correct the human behavior; those who understood the sin and stopped
it received God’s forgiveness while others perished.
Messages of Prophets
All the prophets who came had
same base for the religion - there is only one God. They have time and
again maintained that none should be made His partners; none but He
should be worshipped; all the prophets should be believed in; the
revelations, which you have received via them, should be revered and
followed; believe in the
eternal life after this temporary
life on Earth; our destiny is only determined by our Lord’s wish and
finally the Shariat (Law of Life)which has been reveled should be lived.
All the prophets and the
revelations they disclosed were true and one should have faith on the
same. It is only essential, that the prophets, who have time and again
preached about one Lord and warned us against committing Shirk, should
not be worshipped. Hence, those religious leaders who have propagated
idol worship or polytheism were not prophets or their message got
corrupted with time. Prior to Prophet Mohammed’s time all the
revelations have got corrupted and many a times scriptures have also
been changed.
The Last Prophet – Hazrat Mohammed
It’s an invaluable truth that all
the prophets and the scriptures foretold about the last Prophet. They
also warned that after the revelations brought by last prophet all the
previous revelations will be rendered meaningless and one should follow
only what has be preached by him. It is an argument for the truth of
Islam that inspite of all the corruption, which has happened in various
scriptures this prophecy has been intact in them. This is the grace of
God so that not even a single human can claim ignorance of this truth.
In Vedas he has been mentioned as Narashansh*, in Purana as Kalki, in
Bible as Pharkleet and Ahmat and in Buddhism as last Buddha.
*For further details please read
Pt Vedprakash Upadhyay’s books –Kalki Avtaar aur Muhammed Saahab and
Narashansh aur Antim Rishi. In these scriptures the birth time, place
and other signs were revealed.
An Introduction of Hazrat Mohammed
Almost 1400 years back, the last
saint Mohammed Rasulallah Sallallahu Allahi Wa Sallam (peace be upon him
- pbuh) was born in Makkah in South Arab. His father died few months
before his birth and mother too died after some time. His grandfather
and his uncle looked him after. He was loved by one and all in Makkah.
As he grew older he
was known for his honesty and virtue.
People would leave behind their valuables with his safekeeping. He
would often resolve arguments between people. Kaaba, which is a holy
place of Allah
was being rebuilt at that time, the people suggested those who would be
virtuous should get the honor to place the Holy Stone in the corner of a
wall. Many a
people jumped for the opportunity and
they started infighting amongst them. It was subsequently suggested
that the first person visiting Kaaba will get to do the honors. By God’s
grace, Prophet Mohammed was the first person to visit Kaaba that day,
on seeing him everyone cheered in unison and accepted him to place the
Holy Stone. But Prophet Mohammed, true to his nature, spread a sheet and
placed the stone on it. Further, he requested Leader of every group to
hold a corner of the sheet and carry it towards the wall. Once they
reached there, he picked the stone and placed it. He was a unanimous
leader, whenever he went on a journey people grieved on his absence and
overjoyed on his return. During that time, in Arab, there were 360 idols
of various deities. Class discrimination, women exploitation,
indulgence in gambling and alcohol, exploitation of poor by high
interest rates, infighting among people and many other issues were
prevalent . When he turned 40, then Allah started revealing the Quran to him via an angel. With this he was made a prophet with the responsibility to spread command of Allah regarding monotheism.
The Voice of Truth
He once stood on a peak of
mountain and called everyone. People came running to his invite since
the call came from a true and honest person. Further, he asked everyone,
will they believe if he said that there was a very strong army behind
the mountain who is ready to attack them? Everyone cried back in unison
that they will believe him. Later he called them towards Islam and asked
them to shun idol worship, which is a sure path towards Hell.
A Human Weakness
Humans have an essential weakness
that they end up blindly following the right and wrong actions of their
ancestors. They turn deaf to arguments, which try to break age-old
myths. This leads to their ultimate downfall.
Hurdles and Tests
Owing to the above-mentioned
weakness, the residents of Makkah who respected the prophet Mohammed
(pbuh) for 40 years turned against him when he started the preaching.
The more he called people towards the truth; more the animosity grew in
their hearts. The nonbelievers tortured his followers by beating, making
them lie on hot sand, by putting a noose on their necks and stoning
them, Still he always prayed to Allah
for their well being. Once in grief, when he went to the town of Taeef
he was humiliated by the inmates who cussed and stoned him. Whenever he
tried to rest the kids running behind him would stone him more. Inspite
of such humiliations and pain he always prayed for their forgiveness. He
would pray that they are ignorant and are unaware of their actions. Due
to the hostile environment in Makkah he had to leave it and go to
Madina, there too he faced many a hurdles.
Truth Prevails
End of the day, truth always
prevails and even in this case was no exception. After 23 years of
sincere and selfless efforts put in by Prophet Mohammed (pbuh), Islam
was accepted by majority in Arab. It brought with it a revolution in the
rest of the world, which marked the end of idol worship and class
discrimination while the true followers increased in numbers.
The Last Legacy
Few years before his death,
Prophet Mohammed went for Hajj with approximately 1.25 Lacs people. Then
he gave his last legacy to everyone, saying after death when the
audience will be asked whether he could spread God’s Religion (Deen) and
Truth to all, what will be their reply? Everyone said, without doubt he
could achieve what he had intended to. At that he pointed his finger
towards sky and said it thrice that “Oh God, you be the Witness!” Then,
he ordered others to take Islam to those who were still ignorant of the
truth. He also specified that he was the last prophet and there won’t be
any other after him. That he was the last Narashansh and last Kalki
avatar that everyone was waiting for. It is mentioned in Quran that
those who have received the books recognize him as a mother will
recognize her son. Though few corrupts would try to hide the truth from
others.
Every Human’s Responsibility
Every human is bound by the
religious and humanitarian responsibility that he follows only one Lord,
doesn’t make partners to him and who believes Prophet Mohammed to be
the last messenger and follows the revelation he had brought with him.
It is called as Faith in Islam and one who doesn’t practice the same
will burn in Hellfire for an eternity.
Two Questions
Many a people will think now,
that we can’t see any life after death and subsequently any Hell or
Heaven. Hence why should one believe it? In this relation, all the
religion and scriptures have explained regarding Hell and Heaven from
which it can be concluded that the concept of Heaven and Hell is
endorsed by all religions.
We can also understand it with an
example of an infant in womb. If you reveal to the infant that after
coming out of womb he will cry, will drink milk, will get to see a lot
of world still he will never believe it. Nevertheless, once he is born
he will get to see everything as said. Similarly, this world can be
considered as a womb and with out death we are born in the eternal life
where we will get to see everything in front of us.
The description of Heaven and
Hell has been revealed to us by that honest man whose archenemy also
never dared to call him a liar. Further, the truth is endorsed by Quran
whose validity has been accepted both by believers and non-believers
equally.
Second Question
`The second question which may occur
to you is that if all the other religions and scriptures were true then
why one needs to accept Islam. There is a very simple answer to that, if
you think of Indian Parliament and Constitution, there were many real
prime ministers – Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shashtri, Indira
Gandhi, Rajeev Gandhi, V P Singh and others. They reigned during various
time frames and they brought in new rules and policies based on the
requirements at that time. All of the policies were true still an old
rule or policy is overridden by a new one. All Indians are supposed to
follow the latest rules. Any Indian, who says he would follow Indira
Gandhi’s rules and not the new rules, will be considered a criminal in
the eyes of law. Similarly, all the religions and religious scriptures
were true and all of them points to the last prophet and final
revelation. Inspite of the previous revelations, the mankind was
forgetful in remembering the truth and ended up innovating new methods
of worshipping while deviating from truth. By God’s grace we received a
final revelation and the onus is on humankind to make the most of it.
There Is Only One True Religion
It won’t be wrong to say that all the
religions lead to the same God. There maybe more than one ways but only
a single destination. There can be innumerable lies but only one truth,
various shades of darkness but only one glorious light. Right from
beginning, there has been only one true religion. The religion never
changed even though the laws
changed with time as per God’s
commands. Entire human race is one and their lord is only one. It is
clearly mentioned in Quran that there is only one faith of Allah which is Islam.
One More Question
Skeptics may also ask that is there any proof that Hazrat Mohammed (pbuh) was a Prophet and the last messenger of Allah?
The truth is obvious; first of
all, Quran is God’s Book. The arguments put forward by it couldn’t be
challenged by anyone. It clearly declares Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) to be
the last Prophet. Also, Prophet Mohammed’s life is open for scrutiny by
all.
No one in this world had a life,
which has been as transparent as his. Even his enemies and non-believer
historians never claimed that Prophet Mohammed ever lied to anyone.
Residents of his town would swear by his name. The person, who never
lied in his personal life how can he lie to anyone regarding God. He
himself said that he was the
last Prophet and no one will come
after him. All the previous prophesies mentioned by earlier Prophets and
Scriptures pointed at him.
Thoughts of Pd Shri Ram Sharma
Pt Ved Prakash has written that
one who doesn’t accept Islam and doesn’t believe in Prophet Mohammed
can’t be considered to be a Hindu. Since, it is clearly mentioned in
Vedas and Puranas that one should follow the religion revealed by
Narashansh and Kalki (respectively). Hence, a true Hindu who believes in
his scriptures should surely follow Islam.
The Need of Faith
Islam and Faith are needed both for
this world and Life Hereafter. It is human’s responsibility to be true
to his lord and be loyal and steadfast towards him. One who pursues
anyone else other than him is worse than a dog, which inspite of being
an animal is at least loyal to his master.
The faith is more important for
the afterlife, since there is no return after Day of Judgment. He will
never get another chance and worst still he will not even get another
death even if he pleads for that. At that time he will repent for the
sins he had committed in the worldly life. If a man dies without faith
in this world then he would always burn in Hell Fire. If a single spark
touches our body then we shriek in pain, then we can imagine the
enormity of Hell Fire, which seventy
times hotter than fire. Once one layer of our skin is burnt we will receive a new skin. This torture will last for eternities.
Dear Readers
My dear readers, this life is
unreliable- you never know when the death will arrive. Before death It
is our responsibility that we fulfill the biggest responsibility given
to us. Without faith both this life and the life hereafter will be
futile. One day, everyone has to go in front of the Lord; at that time
we will be questioned and judged on our faith. Even I have a hidden
interest that when I would be judged on my efforts to spread the truth. I
hope that the true words which I have shared with you are agreeable and
acceptable to you. So lets make our Lord our witness and pray to the
God:
“Ashahdu Allah Ilaha Illallahu Wa Ashadu Anna Muhammed
Abdhu Wa Rasuluhu, Sallallahu Allahi Wa Sallam”
Meaning:
I am the Witness that there is no one else worth worshipping other than
the God, he has no partners and Hazrat Mohammed Sallallahu Allahi Wa
Sallam is a real Prophet and true believer of God.
Let’s now shun from atheism,
associating partners with him and all other sins and also resolve to be
obedient to the Lord’s commands and follow Prophet Mohammed’s path.
My dear readers, I will also pray to our Merciful and Gracious Lord that we follow the right path till our last breath.
Now readers, if you lead your life with true faith then you will get to know regarding the beautiful returns.
Test of Faith
Due to your Faith and Islam, you
may be tested but believe me - Truth Prevails. Even if in this whole
life you face tremendous hurdles and obstructions keep patience for Life
Hereafter will bring in bounties of Heaven and the everlasting joy of
being able to see the Lord. For those fruits the tribulations of this
world don’t even matter.
Your Responsibility
One more thing, Faith and Islam
are rights of every human even though he may be currently ignorant about
it. Hence it’s your duty to bring this truth to them in the most
selfless and sincere manner so that they would be saved from the perils
of Hell Fire. Also pray from your lord that everyone is blessed with
this truth. Can you consider yourself a human if a blind falls into a
pit in front of you and you never even warned him? If a blind is
forewarned then he will take an
alternate course and be saved. Similarly, it’s only human to save our brothers from Hell Fire.
A true believer, who has received the
revelations of Quran and the Prophet, should sincerely put in efforts
to show true light to nonbelievers so that they get to correct their
path. A truth told from a sincere heart and when told with full
compassion brings in change in the hearts of people. If a single
non-believer finds the right path then you have done justice to your
responsibility. God is most pleased with the one who becomes a medium to
spread Faith to others.
After You Receive Faith
Once you have accepted Islam,
then you should perform Salat (Namaz) five times a day. One should learn
it and practice it. It will bring peace and will increase love towards Allah. In the holy month of Ramadan, one should fast daily. Those who can afford should go for Hajj once in his lifetime.
Be warned, that you shouldn’t bow in front of anyone else but Allah.
Further, Alcohol, Gambling, Pork Meat, Interest, Bribery and other
unlawful things are banned and you should never indulge in the same.
Also, cherish all the lawful things commanded by Allah.
One should read Quran regularly
and follow the laws of Hygiene and Cleanliness. One should also pray
that our relatives, friends and all the humans residing in this Earth
should die after accepting the Faith. Since faith is the only hope we
have for this life and Life Hereafter. Abraham (pbuh) could jump into
fire only because of his faith hence
he came out unscathed. The same faith can help us in crossing every hurdle and help us in achieving our final destination
Misconceptions About Islam
By Mufti Ismail Ibn Musa Menk
Develpoing an Islamic Personality By Mufti Ismail Ibn Musa Menk
Who is a good Muslim? By Mufti Ismail Ibn Musa Menk
In Islamic theology, God (Arabic: الله Allāh) is the all-powerful and all-knowing creator, sustainer, ordainer and judge of the universe.[1] Islam emphasizes that God is Single (wāḥid ), that means there is no god besides Him; and that God is One (aḥad ),
that means oneness of His names and attributes. In Islam God exists
without a place as he is the creator of place. Nothing is similar/like
him as mentioned 4 times in the Quraan (112:4)(42:11)(16:74)(19:65), so
why do people say "he is in the sky/ above the throne". This is kufr, as
this belies some explicit ayats of the Quraan. Where as for the other
ayats they give Allah the humanly attributes, they have more than one
meaning according to the Arabic language. [2][3]
The belief that Allah, ta^ala, exists without a place is the creed of
the Messenger of Allah sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, the Companions, and
those who graciously followed them, and it shall so be until the Day of
Judgment. The proof of this precious statement is what Allah said in
the Qur'an, in Surat ash-Shura, ayah 11: قال الله تعالى: )لَيْسَ كمثلهِ شىءٌ وهوَ السَّميعُ البصيرُ( [سورة الشورى] which means: <<Nothing resembles him in any way whatsoever, and
He has the attributes of Hearing and Seeing.>> This ayah
absolutely clears Allah of resembling the creations. It comprises that
Allah, ta^ala, is absolutely different from the creations in the Self,
Attributes, and Actions. Hence, it shows that Allah, ta^ala, exists
without a place, because whatever exists in a place is, by nature, i.e.,
composed of particles, i.e., it is a body, occupying a space. Allah,
ta^ala, is clear of occupying spaces. God existed when there was nothing and still exists now without a
place as how he was before. By the sane mind it is known that God is not
attributed with change as he has attributes of perfection (16:60). If
something/someone changes for the better it means that God was not
perfect and if someone changes for the worst this is mentally impossible
because the one who is imperfect does not deserve to be worshipped. In Islam, there are 99 known Names of God (al-asmāʼ al-ḥusná lit. meaning: "The best names"), each of which evoke a distinct attribute of God.[4][5] All these names refer to Allah, the supreme and all-comprehensive divine name.[6] Among the 99 names of God, the most familiar and frequent of these names are "the Compassionate" (al-raḥmān) and "the Merciful" (al-raḥīm).[4][5]
Creation and ordering of the universe is seen as an act of prime mercy
for which all creatures sing God's glories and bear witness to God's
highness and lordship. God responds to those in need or distress
whenever they call. Above all, God guides humanity to the right path.
Allah is the term with no plural or gender used by Muslims and Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews meaning the one God, while ilāh (Arabic: إله) is the term used for a deity or a god in general.[7][8][9] It is related to ʾĔlāhā in Aramaic, the language of Jesus. Other non-Arab Muslims may or may not use different names as much as Allah, for instance "Tanrı" in Turkish, Khodā in Persian, Yakush in Berber, Arebi or Sidhabi in Riffian, and "Zot" in Albanian.
Evidence
The Islamic concept of God is formulated from the Quran and hadith. The Quran is believed by Muslims to be the verbatim word of God as revealed to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. Hadith are the records of Muhammad's sayings and example. Hadith Qudsi
is a sub-category of hadith, which Muslims regard as the words of God
repeated by Muhammad. According to as-Sayyid ash-Sharif al-Jurjani, the
Hadith Qudsi differ from the Quran in that the former are "expressed in
Muhammad's words", whereas the latter are the "direct words of God".
Islam's most fundamental concept is a strict monotheism called tawhid, affirming that God is one and incomparable (wāḥid). The basic creed of Islam, the Shahada[10] (recited under oath to enter the religion), involves لا إله إلا الله(lā ʾilāha ʾillallāh),
or, "I testify there are no deities other than God alone." The Quran
asserts the existence of a single and absolute truth that transcends the
world; a unique and indivisible being who is independent of the entire
creation.[11]
Say: He is Allah, the One and Only; Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He
begetteth not, nor is He begotten; And there is none like unto Him.
Thy Lord is self-sufficient, full of Mercy: if it were His will, He
could destroy you, and in your place appoint whom He will as your
successors, even as He raised you up from the posterity of other people.
Muslims reject the Christian doctrine of the Trinity and divinity of Jesus (ʿĪsā), comparing it to polytheism. In Islam, God is beyond all comprehension or equal and does not resemble any of his creations in any way. Thus, Muslims are not iconodules and are not expected to visualize God. According to Vincent J. Cornell, the Quran also provides a monist
image of God by describing the reality as a unified whole, with God
being a single concept that would describe or ascribe all existing
things: "He is the First and the Last, the Evident and the Immanent: and
He has full knowledge of all things."[11][14]
Some Muslims have however vigorously criticized interpretations that
would lead to a monist view of God for what they see as blurring the
distinction between the creator and the creature, and its
incompatibility with the monotheism of Islam.[15] The indivisibility of God implies the indivisibility of God's
sovereignty which in turn leads to the conception of a universe as a
just and coherent moral universe rather than an existential and moral
chaos. Similarly the Quran rejects the binary modes of thinking such as
the idea of duality of God by arguing that both good and evil
generate from God's creative act and that the evil forces have no power
to create anything. God in Islam is a universal god rather than a
local, tribal or parochial one; an absolute who integrates all
affirmative values and brooks no evil.[16] Tawhid constitutes the foremost article of the Muslim profession.[17] To attribute divinity to a created entity is the only unpardonable sin mentioned in the Quran.[16] Muslims believe that the entirety of the Islamic teaching rests on the principle of Tawhid.[18]
God is described and referred in the Quran and hadith by certain names or attributes.[4] The Quran refers to the attributes of God as God's "most beautiful names".[19] According to Gerhard Böwering,
They are traditionally enumerated as 99 in number to which is added as the highest Name (al-ism al-ʾaʿẓam), the Supreme Name of God: Allāh. The locus classicus for listing the Divine Names in the literature of Qurʾānic commentary is 17:110[20] “Call upon God, or call upon The Merciful; whichsoever you call upon, to Him belong the most beautiful Names,” and also 59:22-24,[21] which includes a cluster of more than a dozen Divine epithets."
The most commonly used names for god in Islam are:
The Most High (al-Ala)
The Most Glorious (al-ʻAziz)
The Ever Forgiving (al-Ghaffār)
The Ever Providing (ar-Razzāq)
The Ever Living (al-Ḥayy)
The Self-Subsisting by Whom all Subsist (al-Qayyūm)
The Lord and Cherisher of the Worlds (Rabb al-ʻĀlamīn)
The Ultimate Truth (al-Ḥaqq)
The Eternal Lord (al-Bāqī)
The Sustainer (al-Muqsith)
The Source of Peace (As-Salām)
Highness
Furthermore, it is one of the fundamentals in Islam to believe that
God is over the seventh heaven/ throne in power (subjugated). For
Muslims the name of God Most High means that God is above everything He
created. God has no resemblance to His creations.
The most commonly used names in the primary sources are Al-Rahman, meaning "Most Compassionate" and Al-Rahim, meaning "Most Merciful".[4]
God is said to love forgiving, with a hadith stating God would replace a
sinless people with one who sinned but still asked repentance.[23]
Omniscience
The Quran describes God as being fully aware of everything that
happens in the universe, including private thoughts and feelings, and
asserts that one can not hide anything from God:
In whatever business thou mayest be, and whatever portion thou mayest
be reciting from the Qur'an,- and whatever deed ye (mankind) may be
doing,- We are witnesses thereof when ye are deeply engrossed therein.
Nor is hidden from thy Lord (so much as) the weight of an atom on the
earth or in heaven. And not the least and not the greatest of these
things but are recorded in a clear record.
Muslims believe that creation of everything in the universe is brought into being by God’s sheer command, "..."Be," and it is."[25] and that the purpose of existence is to worship God.[26][27] He is viewed as a personal God who responds whenever a person in need or distress calls him.[28] There are no intermediaries, such as clergy,
to contact God who states in the Quran, "It was We Who created man, and
We know what dark suggestions his soul makes to him: for We are nearer
to him than (his) jugular vein."[29]Muhammad al-Bukhari, in his Ṣaḥīḥ Bukhārī, narrates a ḥadīth qudsī' that God says, "I am as My servant thinks (expects) I am."[30][31]
The names of God in Islam (or the 99 names of Allah; Arabic: أسماء الله الحسنى ʾasmāʾ allāh al-ḥusnā) are the names by which Muslims regard God. Among other places, they are described in the Quran and Sunnah.[1][2] There is, according to hadith,
a special group of 99 names, but no enumeration of them. Thus the exact
list is not agreed upon, and the names of God (as adjectives, word
constructs, or otherwise) exceed a total of 99 in the Quran and Sunnah.
According to a hadith narrated by Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, some of the names of God have also been hidden from mankind.[3]
According to Islamic tradition,[4]Muhammad is said to have invoked God by a number of names. The most common hadith
used to cite the 99 names is considered weak, though there are less
commonly cited hadith which are considered authentic and also support
the same point.[5] A widely accepted hadith in Sahih Muslim states:
Abu Hurairah reported Allah's Messenger [Muhammad] (may peace be upon him) as saying: "There are ninety-nine names of Allah; he who commits them to memory would get into Paradise. Verily, Allah is Odd (He is one and it is an odd number) and He loves odd numbers. And in the narration of Ibn 'Umar [the words are]: "He who enumerated them"."
Over time, it became custom to recite a list of 99 names, compiled by al-Walid ibn Muslim,[citation needed] as an addendum to the hadith. In 2005, Mahmoud Abdel-Razek compiled an alternative list, endorsing only 69 from the al-Walid list.[7] The Quran refers to the names of God as God's "most beautiful Names" (al-ʾasmāʾ al-ḥusnā).[8] According to Gerhard Böwering:
They are traditionally enumerated as 99 in number to which is added as the highest Name (al-ism al-ʾaʿẓam), the Supreme Name of God: Allāh. The locus classicus for listing the Divine Names in the literature of Qurʾānic commentary is 17:110, “Call upon God, or call upon The Merciful; whichsoever you call upon, to Him belong the most beautiful Names,” and also 59:22-24, which includes a cluster of more than a dozen Divine epithets.
Mystic philosopher Ibn Arabi surmised that the 99 names are outward signs of the universe's inner mysteries.[5][9] Most, though not all, of the 99 names appear in the Quran with a smaller number appearing exclusively in the hadith.[5][9][10][11] The total number of all names in both the Quran and the hadith actually add up to more than 99,[9][12][13] though only 99 are supposedly those which are referred to in the hadith as the exclusion of others.
Lists of names
There isn't universal agreement among Muslims as to what exactly
counts as a name and what does not. Additionally, while some names are
only in the Quran, and others are only in the hadith, there are some
names which appear in both. Different sources give different lists of
the 99 names.[5][9]
This section includes inline links to audio files. If you have trouble playing the files, see Wikipedia Media help.
The Exceedingly Compassionate, The Exceedingly Beneficent, The Exceedingly Gracious (to all of humanity and all creatures)
Ar-Raḥmān
Beginning of every Surah (chapter) except one, and numerous other
places. The first verse ('ayat) of Surah ar-Rahman (Surah 55) consists
only of this Name.
a Can vary based on context. b D = Direct; V = from Verb; A = from Adjective or Adjectival Phrase; I = from Indefinite noun; P = from Plural noun; O = Other
The 99 names point to the inherent unity of the all-embracing Greatest Name (Ismi Azam).[22]
In Islamic traditions, it is stated "The Greatest Name of Allah is the
one which if He [Allah] is called (prayed to) by it, He will Answer."[23]
According to Islamic tradition,[24] a Muslim may not be given any of the 99 names of God in exactly the same form. For example, nobody may be named al-Malik (The King), but may be named Malik
(King). This is because of the belief that God is almighty, and no
human being is the equivalent of God, and no human being will ever be
the equivalent of God. Muslims are allowed to use the 99 names of God
for themselves but should not put 'Al' at the front of them.[25] However the names of God can be combined with the word "‘Abd-" which means "servant/Worshiper" (of God) and are commonly used as personal names among Muslims. For example ‘Abd ar-Raḥmān
("Servant of the Most Compassionate/the Beneficent"). The two parts of
the name may be written separately (as above) or combined as one
transliterated name; in such a case, the vowel transcribed after ‘Abd is often written as u when the two words are transcribed as one: e.g., Abdurrahman, Abdul'aziz, "Abdul Jabbar", or even Abdullah ("Servant of God"). (This has to do with Arabic case vowels, the final u vowel showing the normal "quote" nominative/vocative case form: ‘abd-u.) Some Muslim people have names resembling those 99. Examples include:
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