"May the Peace and Blessings of Allah be Upon
You"
Praise
be to Allaah, we seek His help and His forgiveness. We seek refuge with
Allaah from the evil of our own souls and from our bad deeds.
Whomsoever Allaah guides will never be led astray, and whomsoever Allaah
leaves astray, no one can guide. I bear witness that there is no god
but Allaah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.
Bismillah Walhamdulillah Was Salaatu Was Salaam 'ala Rasulillah
As-Salaam Alaikum Wa-Rahmatullahi Wa-Barakatuhu
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THE BELIEF IN ALLAHThe Pillars of faith, six in total, must be based on a very sound foundation of knowledge; and what is a more solid foundation than the Last of Divine revelations: the Quran and the inspired saying of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
The first among the six major elements of faith in orthodox Islam the belief in Allah, the one and only true God.Allah, has revealed to His Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) that: He is Alone, He is the One who is turned to in repentance, ever Eternal and Perfect, absolutely faultless. He did not give birth, nor was He born. There is no valid deity other than Him. (The term deity implies a worshiped object; so there is no one worthy of worship except for Him, even though many people worship others.) He is Alive, Ever-Living; He Sustains and Protects all that exists. He does not tire or become weary; He is the Owner and complete Sovereign of all.
His Knowledge encompasses everything; and He is completely Knowledgeable about a thing even before He creates it, knowing the how of the thing and all of its conditions and stipulations, including its duration of existence. He has complete control over everything and nothing happens except by His Permission. His Footstool extends over the heavens and the earth; His Throne is over His Footstool; and He is Above His Throne. He is the High and the Mighty.
He is the First, the Last, the Highest, the Nearest, and the Knower of all things. He is Ever-Living, without end. He is the Wise, the Well Acquainted. With Him are the keys to all knowledge beyond human reach, and none knows them except Him. Nothing happens at all except that He has written it in a Clear Book. He is Capable of everything. He is the Possessor of Strength, the Unbreakable. He Has no likeness. He is the Hearing and the Seeing, always. He Loves the doer of good, the just, the upright, and the pious. He Loves the repentant and those who purify themselves. He Loves those who fight for His Cause. He Loves those who Follow His Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him). He is the Forgiving, the Loving, and the Loved.
He is the Merciful, the Mercy-Giver. He has encompassed everything with His Mercy and He is Ever-Merciful with the Believers. He has prescribed mercy for Himself; He is the Coverer of sins, the Best Protector, and Most Merciful to those who show Mercy.He is Pleased with the Believers, and they will be the inhabitants of His Paradise. He is Angry with whomever kills a faithful believer intentionally, and He curses him. He takes Vengeance on those whom He is angry with, and He punishes them. He dislikes and considers some things hateful, like the act of enjoining a thing which one does not do.
He will come, and He will arrive on the Day of Judgment in a manner that befits His Majesty. He Descends to the lowest heaven at the last third of the night answering the calls of his supplicants. He is the Possessor of Majesty and Generosity, and His Face is Everlasting. He is the Lord.
He is the Best Plotter, the Best Planner. Others may plan or plot, but His is the way that will be. He is Pardoning, Capable. He is the Might. He is Unique; the Possessor of Majesty and Nobility. He is without namesake, equal, rival, partner, son, daughter, offspring. He is the Creator of everything and He has measured all.
He speaks, and narrates, and He spoke directly to Moses (peace be upon him). He has sent the Qur’an whose words are His. He is happy with the true repentance of the faithful believer. He will Speak to His servants directly, on the Day of Resurrection, and in the Hereafter, He will be seen by the believers whom He grants this blessing to.
Belief in Allah also implies singling out Allah alone in worship and in all of the characteristics which have been mentioned in this booklet. The opposite of this is associating god with Allah. Association (shirk) is the gravest sin - it is a sin which Allah has stated He will not forgive. Likewise, denying any of the attributes of Allah is a heretical act of disbelief which may lead one to become an apostate. Belief in Allah necessitates believing in all that He has claimed about Himself, praise be to Him. -
BELIEF IN THE ANGELS
The angels are usually hidden from the senses of man, though sometimes they may be visible. Their existence is recognizable through reason, and it is proven by Divine Revelation. The following are some of the many characteristics of the angels:
Angels are shy and behave modestly; similar to people, they become annoyed by that which they dislike (like foul odors etc.). They flock to those who remember Allah and worship Him alone. Angels are created from light; they are free of the weaknesses of the flesh from which humans suffer, such as hunger, disease, illness, slumber, exhaustion, etc.,
"They celebrate His praises night and day, without exhaustion." (The Quran 21:20)
However, at the end of time, even the angels will pass away:
"And the Trumpet will be blown, and all who are in the heavens and all who are on the earth will swoon away, except whom Allah wills. Then it will be blown a second time and behold, they will be standing, looking on (waiting)." (The Quran 39:68)
Angels are in awe with their Lord, as Allah mentions in the Quran:
"And to Allah prostrate all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth of living creatures and the angels, and they (angels) are humble, fearing their Lord above them and they do as they are commanded." (The Qur’an 16:49-50)
"They cannot intercede except for him whom He is pleased. And they stand with awe in fear of Him." (The Quran 21:28)
The angels never disobey Allah: "Who disobey not the commands they receive from Allah, but do that which they are commanded." (The Quran 66:6)
"They are but honored servants; they speak not until He has spoken; and they act by His command." (The Quran 21:26-27)
Angels possess the ability to love and to show love. They supplicate to their Lord:
"Those who bear the Throne and those around it celebrate the praises of their Lord, and believe in Him, and ask for forgiveness for those who believe (They say): ‘Our Lord, you comprehend all thing in Your Mercy and Knowledge, so forgive those who repent and follow Your way and save them from the torment of the blazing Fire.’" (The Qur’an 40:77).
They cures whomever their Lord curses, as He said:
"Indeed those who disbelieve and die while they are disbelieves, for them is the curse of Allah and the angels and humanity combine." (The Quran 2:161-162)
The angels are great in their stature, some are larger than others:
"All praise is Allah's, the Originator of the heavens and the earth, the Maker of the angels - messengers flying on wings: two, three, and four. He increases in the creation what He will. Surely, Allah Has power over all things." (The Quran 35:1)
Certain angels are assigned specific functions; for example, Jibreel (Gabriel) is entrusted with delivering Allah’s Revelation to the Prophets and Messengers (peace be upon them). Mikaeel (Michael) is in charge of rain and plantation, Israfeel is in charge of blowing the Trumpet at the time of Resurrection, and Malik is the Keeper of Hell.
Some of the angels have specific tasks, but their names may be unknown, such as the one who takes the soul at the time of death. Some are in charge of them embryo in the mother's womb, others are responsible for protecting the human beings, and still others record their deeds:
"When the two angels receive (his deed), one sitting on the right and one on the left, he utters not a word but an observer is near him." (The Quran 50:18)
Two angels come to each person in his grave and ask him about his Lord, his religion, and his prophet. -
Belief in the Divine Revelations
Allah has guided and helped the human race in many ways. One of these ways was to reveal a books containing the laws prescribed for a particular people though their Prophets. Each of the Prophets who received a divinely revealed Book also received a wisdom enable them to explain and teach their people how to best implement the divinely revealed Books.
These Books explain to the people that Allah was the only one worthy of worship, and that true success in this life and the Hereafter would only be reached by worshiping Him alone, without any partners or associates. They explained laws and codes for the people to follow; they informed of life in the Hereafter, giving glad tidings to those who obeyed the Messengers, and warning of severe punishment for those who rejected their guidance.
We learn that Ibrahim (Abraham, peace be upon him) received Divine Book as well as the wisdom: "But We had already given the house of Ibrahim the Book and the Wisdom, and conferred upon them a great kingdom." (The Quran 4:54) . Today, the most famous among the Prophets are those whom Allah sent to the Israelites: "And We bestowed upon him (Ibrahim) Ishaq and Yaqub (Isaac and Jacob) and ordained among his offspring Prophet hood and Revelation..." (The Qur’an 29:27)
From this lineage of Prophets, we are aware of the following Books: the Suhuf (Scrolls) revealed to Ibrahim (Abraham), the Zaboor revealed to Dawud (David), the Tawrah (Torah) revealed to Musa (Moses), the Injeel (Gospel) revealed to Isa (Jesus), and the Qur’an revealed to Muhammad, whose lineage traces back to Abraham through Ismael (peace be upon them all).
Though there were many Prophets and Messengers sent to mankind, a relatively small number of them have been mentioned to us by name. These Prophets and their Books are to be believed in, although today humanity does not posses the actual Books that the Prophet received from Allah nor the advice that each Prophet gave to his followers.
For example, we know that the Torah was altered through time. This fact is easily accessible to all who dire to find it: "Indeed We did reveal the Torah, therein was guidance and light, by which the Prophet’s, who surrendered to Allah's Will, judged the Jews; and the Rabbis and the Priests (who judged also), for to them was entrusted the protections of Allah's Book, and they wee witness to it; therefore fear not men but fear Me and sell not My Signs for a miserable price. And who-so-ever odes not judge by what Allah has revealed, such are disbelievers." (The Qur’an 5:44) and: "Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands and then say, ‘This is from Allah’, to earn for it a cheap price! Woe to them for what their hands have written..." (The Qur’an 2:79) and: "But the transgressors changed the word from that which was sent to them to another, so We sent a wrath form the heavens upon the wrongdoers..." (The Qur’an 2:59).
Similarly, though we believe in the Injeel (Gospel) that was revealed to Jesus (peace be upon him), we know that it and some of the wisdom that Allah revealed to him have been confused and lost to the extent that today people worship him. "And (remember) when Allah will say, ‘O Jesus, son of Mary! Did you say to men, "Worship me and my mother as two gods besides Allah"? He will say, ‘Glory be to you! It was not my place to say what I had no right to say. If I said such a thing, You would surely have known it. You know what in my self though I know not what in Yours. Truly, You, only You are the All-Knower of the unknown. I never said anything to them but You commanded me to say: "Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord." And I was a witness over them only while I dwelt among them, but when You took me away, You were a watcher over them, and You are witness to all things.’" (The Qur’an 4:116-7)
The Last Revelation The Qur’an is the Last of the Revealed Books. It is preserved in the exact original form that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) uttered. This is a fact attested to by the majority of scholars and historians. The following are some important facts about the Qur’an:Allah's Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him) who was not able to read and write, received the first revelation from the Qur’an in the Cave of Hira in the year 610.-
The Qur’an was revealed to Muhammad (peace be upon him) in sections - some large than others- delivered by the Angel Jibreel (Gabriel, peace be upon him) over a twenty-two year period.
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The revealed portion were immediately memorized and written on parchment and stone under the supervision of the Prophet (peace be upon him).
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The Qur’an was collected into one book only after the passing of Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him). Abu Bakr, the first Caliph, who live only two years longer than Allah's Messenger Muhammad (peace be upon him), had the Quran compiled in book-form during his own life.
to be contd.... -
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