The only references for muslims as far as belief and how to handle every
aspect of their lives are the Qur'an and Sunnah of the Prophet (may the
peace and blessing of Allah be upon him)
Abdul Rahman Abdul Khaliq, in his book, "The General Prescripts of Belief in
The Qur'an and Sunnah" wrote:
"The Sunnah is equivalent to the Book of Allah (SWT). We as muslims must
believe in them equally and regard their ordinances as being of equal weight
since they are both from Allah (SWT). The sole difference between them is
that Allah (SWT) made imcumbent on us the recitation of the wordsof the
Qur'an as an act of worship, but not those of the Sunnah. The Sunnah does not
contradict the Qur'an , as they are both from one source"
Allah the Exalted says of prophet Muhammad in the Qur'an:
"And he does not speak from his own desires; it is a revelation which has
been revealed to him."
(Soorah An-Najm. 53:3)
"We have sent down to you the Book in truth that you may judge between men by
that which Allah shows you, so be not a pleader for the traitirs"
(Soorah An-Nisaa: 4:105)
"And if you are in doubt about what we have revealed ( the Qur'an) to our
worshipper
(Muhammad) then produce a chapter like it, and call your witnesses
(supporters and helpers) besides God if you are truthful. And if you do not
do it, then fear the fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones. It has been
prepared for disbelievers. And give good news (O Muhammad) to those who
believe and do good deeds, that for them are gardens (Paradise) in which
rivers flow"
Soorah Al -Baqara 2: 23-25)
Therefore, when muslims discuss, explain or relay anything about the
religion, our references are the Qur'an and sunnah, which are the direct
words of Allah as relayed to the prophet Muhammad (SAS) through the angel
Gibril (Alaihi salaam) during the course of 23 years, and they are the only
sources of authority for this religion.
Likewise, learned scholars in Islam are only peopl who have studied the
Qur'an in detail and consequently what they relay should never be based on
their own opinions or derived from phylosophising or their own personal
interpretations, whims or desires to please themselves or other men. Like the
Prophet of Allah, they relay what they find in the Books of Allah (SWT).
Allah (SWT) also tells us in the Qur'an that he created Al-alamin ( i.e,
mankind, Jinns and all creation) for no other reason than to worship him
alone and no other, and he gave them the blueprint to do so and how to do it
by revelations through his prophets.
"I have only created jinns and men, that they may worship me"
(Soorah Adh-Dhaariyaat 51:56)
"And did you then think that We had created you in jest ( without any
purpose), and that you would not be returned to Us ( in the hereafter)? So,
God is exalted, the True King, None has the right to be worshipped but Him"
(Soorah Al-mu'minun 23: 115-116)
"And we did not send any messenger before you (O Muhammad)but we inspired
him (saying) La ilaha illa Ana ( none has the right to be worshipped but I
(Allah) so worship me (alone and none else)
(Soorah Al-Anbiyaa 21:25)
Therefore, when muslims discuss or give explanations about the religion, we
never speak with our own authority. We do not label anyone with any words
that the Qur'an did not label them with, and we intend no malice, but we
merely state what was revealed as the Prophet stated what was givne to him.
To pick up from where we left off last week, we will continue with Pakistan
born Abul Ala mawdudi's book ( Islamic Way of Life) based on a radio talk he
gave in 1948 on the definition of Islam.
Bismillah.
Wasalatu wasalaam, ala Rasulill kareem, wa Allah Alihi, wa sahbihi,
minastanabi Sunnahti eela yamideen.
(May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon the Prophet, his household and
his companions, and whoever follows his Sunnah until the day of judgement)
IMAN( FAITH): ITS NATURE AND CHARACTER
We have discussed above ( in part 1 ) those basic postulates of Islam which,
on the one hand, revealed God’s plan for providing guidance to man in this
world and, on the other, defined the nature, position and status of man in
it. Now, let us study the foundations on which the Qur’an wants to develop man
’s relationship with Allah and the concept of life which naturally follows
from that relationship.
The Qur’an deals with this problem on many an occasion but the entire
concept of life envisaged by it is epitomized in the following verse:
"God hath purchased of the Believers.
Their persons and their goods;
For theirs(in return)
Is the Garden(of Paradise)
They fight in His Cause,
And slay and are slain:
A promise binding on Him
In Truth, through the Law,
The Gospel, and the Qur’an:
And who is more faithful
To his Covenant than God?
Then rejoice in the bargain
Which ye have concluded
That is the achievement supreme."
(Al-Qur’an, IX:111)
In the above verse the nature of the relationship which comes into
existence between man and God because of Iman(the act of reposing faith in
Allah) has been called a "bargain". This means that Iman in Allah is not a
mere metaphysical concept; it is the nature of a contract by which man
barters his life and his belongings with Allah in exchange for Paradise in
the life Hereafter. God so to say, purchases a believer’s life and property
and promises, by way of price, the award of Paradise in the life after death.
The concept of bargain has important implications and we should, therefore,
first of all clearly understand its nature and meaning.
The fact of the matter is that each and every thing in this world belongs to
Allah. He is the real owner of them all. As such, man’s life and riches,
which are part of this world, also belong to Him, because it is He Who
created them and it is He Who has assigned them to each man for his use.
Looking at the problem from this angle; the question of any sale or purchase
does not arise at all. God is the real owner; there is no question of His
purchasing what is already His: Man is not their real owner; he has no title
to sell them. But there is one thing which has been conferred on man, and
which now belongs fully to him, and that is his free will, the freedom of
choice of following or not following the path of Allah.
As man has been endowed with free will in this respect, he is free to
acknowledge or not to acknowledge the reality of things. Although this
freedom of will and choice that man possesses, does not automatically make
him the real owner of all the energies and resources on which he has command,
nor does he acquire the title to utilize them in any way he likes, nor does
his acknowledgement of reality or refusal to do so in any way affects reality
as such, yet it does mean that he is free to acknowledge the sovereignty of
God and His overlordship on his own life and belongings or refuse himself
free from all obligations to the Lord and may think that he enjoys full
rights and powers over all that he has, and thus, may use them according to
his own wishes unfettered by any higher command.
It is here that the question of bargain comes in. This bargain does not mean
that God is purchasing something which belongs to man. Its real nature is
this: All creation belongs to God but He has bestowed certain things on man
to be used by him as a trust from God. And man has been given freedom to
honestly fulfill the trust or if he so likes, to betray it or misuse it. Now,
God demands that man should willingly and voluntarily(and not under duress or
compulsion) acknowledge those things as His which really belongs to Him and
man should use them as a trust from God and not as something his own to be
used as he pleases.
Thus, a man who voluntarily renounces the freedom even to refuse God’s
supremacy and instead acknowledges His sovereignty, so to say, "sells" his
"autonomy"(which too is a gift from God and not something which man has
acquired of his own) to God, and gets in return God’s promise of eternal
bliss that is Paradise. A man who makes such a bargain is a "Mu’min(Believer)
and Iman(Belief) is the Islamic name for this contract; while the one who
chooses no to enter into this contract, or after making such a contract
adopts a behavior in contravention thereof amounting to its gross breach, is
one who has followed the course of the devil. Thus Allah says:
"Say if it be that your fathers,
Your sons, your brothers,
Your mates, or your kindred;
The wealth that you have gained;
The commerce in which you fear
a decline: or the dwellings in
which you delight
Are dearer to you than God,
Or His apostle, of the striving
In His cause; then wait until Allah
brings about His Decision
And God Guides not the rebellious."
(Al-Qur’an, IX:24)
The attempt to avoid or abrogate this contract can lead to Kufr(total
disbelief). Such is the nature and the contract. Now let us briefly study its
various aspects and stipulations.
1. God has put us to serious trial on two counts:
(a). He has left man free, but even after giving him that freedom He
wishes to see whether or not man realizes his true position; whether he
remains honest and steadfast and maintains loyalty and allegiance to the
Lord, or loses his head and revolts against his own Creator; whether he
behaves like a noble soul, or tramples under foot all values of decency and
starts playing fantastic tricks.
(b). He wants to see whether man is prepared to have such confidence
in God as to offer his life and wealth in return for what is a promise, that
is to materialize in the next world and whether he is prepared to surrender
his autonomy and all the charms that go with it, in exchange for a promise
about the future.
2. It is an accepted principle of Islamic law that Iman consists of
adherence to a certain set of doctrines and whosoever reposes faith in those
doctrines becomes a Mu’min. No one has a right to denounce such a man as a
non-believer or drive him out of the fold of the Ummah (Islamic Community),
save when there is explicit proof of falsity or of renunciation of the
belief.
This is the legal aspect of the problem. But in the eyes of the Lord, only
that Iman is valuable which consists in complete surrender of one’s will and
choice to the Will of Allah. It is state of thought and action wherein man
submits himself fully to Allah, renouncing all claim to his own supremacy. It
is something that comes from the heart.
It is an attitude of the mind and prepares man for a certain course of
action. If man recites Kalima*, enters into the contract and even offers his
prayers and performs other acts of worship, but in his heart he regards
himself as he owner and the sovereign dispenser of his physical and mental
powers and of his moral and material resources, uses them to his own liking
and upholds his freedom of will, then, however much the people may look upon
him as Mu’min (believer), in the eyes of God he will be a non-believer, for
he has, in fact, not really entered into the bargain which according to the
Qur’an is the essence of Iman (belief).
If a man does not use his powers and resources in the way God has prescribed
for him and instead uses them in pursuits which God has prohibited, it
clearly shows that either he has not pledged his life and property to Allah,
or even after pledging them to Him, he falsifies the pledge by his conduct.
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* Kalima is a statement of the profession of faith and one enters the fold of
Islam by(pronouncing it). The Kalima is: "There is no god but Allah, and
Muhammad is His servant and Prophet. In Arabic it reads: Ash hadu An La Ilaha
Ilallah wa As hadu Anna Mohammadan wa Rasuluhu.
3. This nature of Iman makes the Islamic way of life distinct from, nay,
the very opposite of, the non-Islamic way of life.
A Muslim, who has real faith in Allah, makes every aspect of his subservience
to the Will of Allah. His entire life is one of obedience and surrender and
he never behaves in an arrogant or an autonomous way, save in a moment of
forgetfulness. And after such a lapse as soon as he becomes conscious of it,
he again re-addresses himself to his Lord and repents his error.
Similarly, a group of people or a society which consists of true Muslims can
never break away from the Law of their Lord. Its political order, its social
organization, its culture, its economic policy, its legal system and its
international strategy must all be in tuned with the Code of Guidance
revealed by Allah and must, in no way, contravene it. And if ever, through
error or omission, any contravention is committed, they must, on realizing
this, correct this immediately and return forthwith to the state of
subservience to the Law of God.
It is the way of the non-believers to feel free from God’s Guidance and to
behave as one’s own master. Whoever adopts such a policy, even though he may
bear a name similar to that of a Muslim, is treading the satanic path and is
following the way of the non-believers.
4. The Will of God, which it is obligatory upon man to follow, is the one
which God Himself has revealed for man’s guidance. The Will of God is not to
be determined by man himself. God has Himself enunciated it clearly and there
is no ambiguity about it. Therefore, if a person or society is honest and
steadfast in its contract with Allah, it must scrupulously fashion its entire
life in accordance with the Book of God and the Sunnah(practical example) of
the Prophet(peace be upon him).
A little reflection will show that these aspects and stipulations are
logically implicit in the bargain and it is also clear from the above
discussion why the payment of the "price" has been postponed to the life
after death. Paradise is not the reward for the mere profession of the
bargain, it is the reward for the faithful execution of the contract. Unless
the contract is fully executed and the actual life-behavior of the "vendor"
complies with the terms of the contract he does not become entitled to the
reward. Thus, the final act of the "sale" is concluded only at the last
moment of the vendor’s life, and as such, it is natural that the reward
should be given to him in the Life Hereafter.
There is another significant point which emerges from the study of the
verse quoted above (Al-Qur’an, IX:24) when it is read with reference to its
context. In the verses preceding it, reference has been made to the people
who professed Iman and promised a life of obedience, but when the hour of
trial came, they proved unequal to the task. Some neglected the call of the
hour and betrayed the cause. Others, played tricks of hypocrisy and refused
to sacrifice their lives and riches in the cause of Allah.
The Qur’an, after exposing these people and criticizing their insincerity
makes it clear that Iman is a contract, a from of pledge between man and God.
It does not consist of a mere profession of belief in Allah. It is an
acknowledgment of the fact that Allah alone is our Sovereign Lord and Ruler
and that everything that man has, including his life, belongs to Him and must
be used in accordance with His directives. If a Muslim adopts a contrary
course he is insincere in his profession of faith. True believers are only
those who have really sold their lives and all that they possessed to God and
who followed His dictates in all fields of activity. They stake their all in
obedience to the Commands of the Lord, and do not deviate even an inch from
the path of loyalty to God. Such only are the true believers.
THE PLAN OF LIFE
This discussion makes it clear that Islam begins with laying down the
proper lines on which man’s relationship with the Lord is to be reared; his
entire individual and social life is an exercise in developing and
strengthening this relationship. Iman, the starting point of our religion,
consists in the acceptance of this relationship by man’s intellect and will.
Thus, Islam is actual submission, the way of surrender to the Will of God on
all aspects of life and behavior. Now, we are in a position to cast a glance
over the plan of life which Islam envisages. This plan-the code of conduct-
is known as the Shari’ah.*
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* "To follow this code if conduct is the truest and the most consistent
attitude for mankind. It sets standards for the orderly behavior of man both
individually and collectively and in respect of the biggest as well as the
smallest task he may have to face. Having once accepted the philosophy of
life enunciated by "The Book" and "The Messenger" as the embodiment of
Reality, one has no justification for not obeying God’s revealed Guidance in
the sphere of one’s choice also,
This, for a host of reasons, is the most rational approach for man to follow.
Firstly, the powers and the organs through which our freewill functions, are
gifts from God and not the result of our own efforts.
Secondly, the independence of choice itself has been delegated to us by God
and not won by us through our personal endeavor.
Thirdly, all those things in which our free-will operates are not only the
property but also the creation of God,
Fourthly, the territory in which we exercise our independence and freedom is
also the territory of God.
Fifthly, the harmonization of human life with the universe dictates the
necessity of there being one Sovereign and a common Source of Law for both
the spheres of human activity-the voluntary and the involuntary, or, in other
words the moral and the physical.
The separation of these two spheres into water-tight compartments leads to
the creation of an irreconcilable conflict which finally lands not only the
individual but also the nation and the entire humanity in endless trouble and
disaster". (Islamic Law and Constitution, Lahore, 1960, p.49.)
Inshallah, in part 3, we will move into Shariah, what it is, and what it
entails.
May Allh's guidance and mercy descend upon us. Ameen
Jabou N.Joh,
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