Introduction to Islam in English Language

Praise be to Allah the Lord of the worlds and may peace and blessings be upon
the leader of all the messengers our prophet Muhammad and upon his family and
upon his noble companions.

Indeed Islam is the seal of all the divine messages that were previously
revealed by Allah, it was sent down upon the seal of his prophets and messengers
Muhammad the son of Abdullah (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)
and it is the true religion and any other religion than it will not be accepted
by Allah.

Indeed Allah has made it a simple and easy way of life not containing any
difficulties or hardships, nor has He placed upon those who profess it that
which they are not able to carry out and He has not burdened them with something
they have not the capability to do. It is a religion, which has as its
foundation at-Tawheed [i.e.: To single out Allah, as the only object of worship
and this is known as “Tawheed al-Uloohiyah.” Like wise to single Allah out in
that which is specific to Him from His noble names and attributes is referred to
as “Tawheed al-Asmaa was-Sifaat”. And to single Him out in that which is related
to His Lordship (i.e.: Him being the sole creator, governor of affairs and
possessor of the creation) is referred to as “Tawheed ar-Ruboobiyah”], honesty
is its motto, revolving around justice, the truth being its backbone, and mercy
being its soul and essence.

It is that great and noble religion, which guides its worshippers to everything
that is beneficial for them in their religious and worldly affairs and it warns
them from everything harmful to them from religion and lifestyle. It is the
religion that Allah, the most high has used to rectify by it creed and
character, and has bettered (for those who adopt and act by it) their worldly
life and their life in the hereafter. He (Allah) has conciliated by it between
the hearts that were once divided and united those split by whims and desires
and purified them from the darkness of falsehood and directed them to the truth,
and guided them to the straight way. It is that religion, which is sound and
exact, the pinnacle of precision in everything that it informs of and in all of
its rulings. Thus it doesn’t inform us except with that which is correct as
true, neither does it judge except with good and justice, with its correct
belief system and sound acts of worship and virtuous moral standards and upright
manners.

Therefore the goal of Islam is to actualize the following:

To acquaint mankind with their Lord and creator, who possesses the most
beautiful names, lofty attributes and actions of perfection.

To call the servants to worship only Allah who is alone and has no partners, by
carrying out that which is incumbent upon them from the commands and
prohibitions wherein there is rectifications and betterment for them in this
life and the hereafter.

To remind mankind of their condition and destination after their death and that
they shall meet, in their graves and upon their resurrection, their giving
account (for that which they did in their lives) and their final outcome being
either in Paradise or Hellfire.

It is possible for us to summarize that which Islam calls to with the following
points:

First: Al-Aqeedah (the Islamic system of belief)

That is to have faith in the six pillars of Iman (belief).

1. Belief in Allah, this is actualized with the following:

· Belief in the Lordship of Allah. That He is the Lord, Creator, Possessor, and
governor of all affairs.

· Belief that Allah is the sole object of worship. That He is the one true god
and every thing that is worshipped besides Him is falsehood.

· Belief in Allah’s names and attributes. That He has the most beautiful names
and the most perfect and noble attributes as they occur in His book (i.e.: the
Qur’an) and in the Sunnah (i.e.: the sayings, actions and approval) of His
Messenger (may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

2. Belief in the Angels:

The Angels are the honorable servants (of Allah), that Allah the Most High has
created. They have submitted to Him completely in obedience and He has
commissioned various tasks upon them.

Indeed from among them is Jibreel (Gabriel) who is commissioned which bringing
down the revelation from Allah upon whom He (Allah) pleases from His Prophets
and Messengers. Likewise from among them is Mikaeel (Michael) the Angel
commissioned with the rain and vegetation. And from among them also is Israfeel
(Raphael) the Angel commissioned with blowing the horn on the Last Day and on
the resurrection. And likewise from among them is Malak al-Mout (the Angel of
death), commissioned with taking the souls at the time of death.

3. Belief in the books:

Allah the Most Noble and Majestic, has revealed to His Messengers books
containing guidance. Much of these good and righteous books we know of are:

· The Tauraah (Torah), which Allah, the Most High revealed to Musa (Moses) and
it is the greatest of the Books that were revealed to the Children of Israel.

· The Injeel (Gospel), which Allah, the Most High, revealed to Eesaa (Jesus).

· The Zaboor (Psalms), which Allah, the Most High, gave to Dawood (David).

· The Suhuf (Scrolls), of Ibraheem (Abraham) and Musa (Moses), may peace be upon
them.

· The Magnificent Qur’an, which Allah, the Most High, revealed upon His Muhammad
the seal of all the Prophets. And Allah abrogated by it all of the previous
books, and He has vouched to protect it and because it shall remain to be a
proof over all His creation until the last day.

4. Belief in the Messengers

Allah has sent to His creation Messengers, the first of them being Nuh (Noah)
and the last of them being Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him). Indeed all of the Messengers were men and were created and they don’t
possess any qualities of lordship. They are servants from the servants of Allah,
the Most High, except that Allah, the Most High, has enabled them with preaching
His Message. Allah has sealed the revelation with the Prophethood of Muhammad
(may peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and has sent it to all people,
thus there will be no Messenger or Prophet after Muhammad (may the peace and
blessings of Allah be upon him).

5. Belief in the Last Day:

It is the day of resurrection the like of which there will be no day after,
wherein Allah will resurrect all of mankind and bring them back to life after
their death, in order for them to reside either in a land of bliss or in painful
punishment. Believing in the Last day means to have belief in everything that
comes after death from the trials of the grave: its comforts and delights or its
punishment, and that which occurs after it like the resurrection and also the
giving of account, and then the Hellfire or the Paradise.

6. Belief in the Qadr (predecree):

Belief in Qadr is to believe that Allah has predecreed all happenings and
brought about it based upon that which his prior knowledge dictated and that
which his wisdom necessitated. All affairs therefore are known by Allah, the
Most High, and are written with Him, and Allah has willed them and created them.

Second: The Pillars of Islam.

Islam is built upon five pillars and a person is not considered a true Muslim
until he affirms them and carries them out and they are:

· The First Pillar: To bear witness that there is no god that has the right to
be worshipped in truth besides Allah, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of
Allah.

This testimony is the key to Islam and the foundation upon which it is built.
The meaning of this is that there is no deity that deserves to be worshipped
except Allah alone for He is the true God and every object of worship other than
Him is falsehood.

The meaning of the testimony that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah is to
believe in that which he informs of, and to obey him in that which he has
ordered, and abstain from that which he has prohibited and warned against.

· The second pillar: The prayer

There are five prayers that are performed five times a day. Allah prescribed
them in order to forge a bond between a Muslim and his Lord. Therein he obtains
an intimacy with his Lord and he call upon Him and it is that which repels a
Muslim from acts of lewdness and evil.

A lot of good is built upon them (for the Muslim) in his religion and it
constantly rectifies for him his faith and (brings about) Allah’s immediate and
long term reward. The servant obtains by way of them, inner and physical
tranquility and the likes of which brings him success in this life and the
hereafter.

· The Third Pillar: The Zakah (poor-due).

The Zakah charity is paid every year to those who are entitled to it from the
poor and other than them by those who possess the wealth that attained what is
known as “Nisaab” (A set amount dictated by Islamic law and is only considered
and taken from one’s wealth when it exceeds his needs and is in his possession
for the period of one year). It is not incumbent upon the poor who don’t possess
the ‘Nisaab’, rather it is incumbent upon the rich as a perfection of their
religion in order to develop and prefect their state of affairs and character,
and to repel them from any wrong concerning them and their wealth. It is a
purification for them of their sins, and a form of solace to the needy, and to
carry out for them that which is in their all around good interest. And on top
of all this, it is a very small amount to pay compared to that which Allah has
given them of wealth and provisions.

· The Fourth Pillar: As-Siyaam (fasting)

This occurs during one specific month of the year, the blessed month of Ramadan,
which is the ninth month of the Islamic year. In this month Muslims come
together and leave off their base desires from food and drink and sexual
relations during the daylight hours from sunrise to sunset. Allah will in turn
compensate them for it from His virtue and benevolence as a completion to their
religion and their faith and in order to increase them in perfection and other
than that from that which fasting contains from the good in this life and the
next.

· The Fifth Pillar: Al-Hajj (Pilgrimage)

It is to set out intending pilgrimage to the sacred house of Allah (known as the
Ka’bah. It was initially built by Adam and its buildings was completed by
Abraham and it is situated in the city of Makkah in Saudi Arabia). Allah made it
incumbent upon those who are able to do so once in a lifetime. During it Muslims
from everywhere gather in the best location on earth, worshipping one Lord, all
wearing the same (white) garb, there being no difference between a leader and
this subjects, the rich and the poor, white and the black. All of them engaged
with the specific rites (of Hajj). From the greatest of them being the standing
(for worship and supplication) upon mount Arafat to making circumbulation of the
noble Ka’bah, the like of which the Muslims from everywhere turn towards in
their daily prayers, and making the procession between the two mountains Safa
and Marwa. This too contains many great benefits connected to the religion and
worldly affairs which are too numerous to be counted.

Third:

Indeed Islam has arranged the lives of those who adopt it, whether individuals
or groups with that which will generate for them happiness and bliss in this
life and the next. It has made marriage permissible for them and has encourage
them to do so and has made illicit sexual conduct such as sodomy, adultery,
fornication, and such type of ugly acts prohibited. Islam has made joining the
ties of kinship and showing sympathy and compassion to the poor and destitute
and taking care of them compulsory upon the Muslims just as it has done so with
all good conduct and mannerism, and has prohibited any type of lowly and vile
conduct. It has made permissible for them good lawful earnings either by trade
or leasing and the likes, while at the same time making usury unlawful and ever
type of impermissible trade and everything containing fraud and deceit.

Islam has observed the varying levels of the people in regards to being
steadfast upon its way and has observed the rights of others. It has prescribed
certain punishments as deterrents to those seeking to transgress against some of
Allah’s rights such as those who commit apostasy, and illicit sexual conduct,
and indulge in drinking intoxicants and the likes of such. Just as it has
prescribed certain punishments as deterrents against the rights of people, such
as murder, theft, slander or violent assault. These punishments are a form of
retribution, which are relevant to these crimes neither exceeding the proper
bounds nor being negligent of them.

Islam has also arranged and organized the connection between society and its
rulers. It has made it incumbent upon those being ruled to obey their rulers in
that which is in accordance with obedience to Allah, and it has prohibited
revolting against the rulers because of that which is built upon such an action
from evils, general and specific.

Thus, it is possible for us to say in conclusion that Islam comprises of that
which will build and bring about the most sound and correct working link and
connection between the servant and this Lord and between a person and his
society in all affairs.

For certainly, there isn’t any good by way of mannerism or conduct, except that
Islam has guided its followers to it and has encouraged it. Neither is there any
evil mannerism nor bad conduct except that Islam warns its followers against it
and has made it prohibited. Without doubt this clarifies to us the perfect
nature of this religion and it beauty in every aspect.



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