Leisure reading from the world of Islam is a not-to-be-missed experience! Here are some very enjoyable books, both classic and modern, to feast your mind upon: Al-Ghazali, Abu Hamid Muhammad. The Alchemy of Happiness. London: The Octagon Press, 1983. Al-Jahiz, Abu Uthman ibn Bahr. The Book of Misers. Translated by R.B. Serjeant. London: Garnet Publishing Limited, 1997. Asad, Muhammad. The Road to Mecca. Gibralter: Dar Al-Andalus, 1980. Atiyeh, George N. The Book in the Islamic World. Albany: State University of New York, 1995. Attar, Fariduddin. The Conference of Birds. New York: Penguin, 1995. Baig, Reshma. The Memory of Hands. New York: International Books and Tapes Supply, 1999. Burton, Sir Richard. The Arabian Nights. New York: The Modern Library, 1932. Hafiz, Shamsuddin Muhammad. The Gift: Poems by Hafiz. Translated by Daniel Ladinsky. New York: Penguin, 1999. Haley, Alex. The Autobiography of Malcolm X. New York: Ballantine Books, 1978. Helminski, Kabir and ...
BELIEF IN THE DAY OF JUDGMENT
All Muslims must believe, without doubt, in the Day of Judgment and the physical resurrection when the body will be recreated and the soul will be reunited with the body by God’s Unlimited and Amazing Power. Just as God Created us the first time, He is surely Able to Bring us forth from death to stand in Perfect Judgment before Him. From the Day of Judgment, death will be no longer; our existence will be forever. The Day of Judgment is when each and every individual will stand before The Creator and be Questioned about his or her deeds. On that climactic day, we will each see in detail the results of even the smallest good and the smallest evil we have set forth in this life. On this day, lying and deception will be impossible. The ultimate reward is Paradise and the penalty is Hell. Heaven and Hell are literal places of existence, not a figment of imagination.
God’s Infinite Justice is Absolute and Perfect. On the Day of Judgment, all deeds will be revealed, and everyone will be justly treated. We will not enter Paradise because of our deeds alone, but by God’s Majesty and Unlimited Grace.
BELIEF IN DIVINE DECREE
God, in His Timelessness, Knows everything that goes on in His creation and when it occurs. From the perspective of temporal beings like us, this means that God Knows everything that happened in the past through His All-Encompassing Knowledge, everything that is now taking place by His Supreme Power, and everything that will happen in the future by His Infinite Wisdom. God’s Divine Knowledge is Perfect. He Knows all, and all that He Knows will come to pass.
God Has Absolute Sovereignty over His creation. Everything that exists within His creation and every event that occurs is a direct result of His Creating it. Nothing happens in creation except by His Power, His Will, and His Knowledge.
THE FREE WILL OF THE HUMAN BEING
An important aspect of Islam is that every human being has the free will to choose between right and wrong. God has Honored humanity with this great gift. It carries grave responsibility, and, on the Day of Judgment, we will be accountable for our use of this gift.
Human free will does not in any way contradict the fact that God Knows everything that will ever occur in creation. Someone might ask: “If God Knows that I am going to commit a sin tomorrow, then it is unavoidable that I do so because God’s Knowledge is Infallible and what God Knows will come to pass.” God’s Knowledge of this person’s decision does not mean that he or she is being forced to make that decision.
Human free will does not in any way contradict God’s Absolute Sovereignty over everything in creation. Nor does it contradict the fact that nothing happens in creation except what God Wills. Some might say, “Therefore, I have no free will. My free will is but an illusion.” God Created within each of us the ability to formulate an intention. God Wants us to be able to make our own choices. When a person makes a choice, God, by His Divine Will, Creates the actions and circumstances that allow the person’s intention to be carried out. It is God’s Will that human beings have free will. God is not always Pleased with the decisions people make, but He Wants them to be able to make these decisions from their own free choice. An example is a person’s will to do a good deed. The good deed may never be carried out, but God May Reward the person for his or her intention to do a good deed. If the good deed comes to pass, God’s Will Allowed it to take place and God Will Reward for both intent and action. God may reward you for good deeds willed but not carried out; He does not Punish for bad intent not acted upon. God Allows us choice (which we often squander).
THERE IS NO COMPULSION IN RELIGION
It follows from this emphasis on free will that Islam can only be accepted by free choice. The purpose of human life is to worship God of one’s own free will. Therefore, matters of faith only have value if they are accepted on the basis of choice. If a person is coerced into accepting any religion, that acceptance is false and has no value. God Says: “There is no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clear from error: whoever rejects evil and believes in God has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that never breaks. And God Hears and Knows all things.” [Qur’ān 2: 256]
THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM
There are five obligatory acts of worship that every Muslim must dutifully carry out. Failure to do so is a grave sin. The edifice of Islam rests upon these pillars. One cannot be considered a Muslim if he or she denies that any one of these acts is obligatory.
The five obligations of Muslims are:
1. The Declaration of Faith, to “Testify that there is no deity except God, and
that Muhammad is His Messenger”, “Shahada”
2. To Pray five times a day, “Salat”
3. To Pay the yearly Alms, “Zakat”
4. To Fast during the month of Ramadhan, “Sawm”
5. To Make a pilgrimage to Makka, “Hajj”
THE QUR’ĀN
The Qur’ān is the final, infallible, and direct Word of God brought down by the angel Gabriel (often referred to as the holy spirit) and firmly implanted into the heart of His final Messenger Muhammad (Peace be upon him). The Qur’ān was learned and memorized by his companions, and passed down to us via meticulous oral (primary) and written (secondary) preservation through the centuries.
The books that came before the Qur’ān, through God’s Prophets and Messengers (Peace be upon them), were also Sent by God. The Qur’ān is unique in a number of ways. God has Perfectly Preserved the Qur’ān and Guaranteed it from corruption until the end of time. The Qur’ān is regarded, not just by Muslims but also by historians of religion, as the most authentic holy text among the world’s religions.13 None of the other revealed books have reached us in their original form. Some of them, like the scrolls that were revealed through Abraham (Peace be upon him), have not reached us at all. Over the course of time, parts of other scriptures were rewritten and some parts removed, contaminating their message. These books were not preserved because God Did not Take it upon Himself to Preserve them.
God Did not Allow this to happen to the Qur’ān since it is His final book for all of the humanity until the Day of Judgment. No new Prophet or Messenger is going to be Sent. If the Qur’ān were corruptible, God’s Message would be lost to humanity for all time. For this reason, God Did Not Entrust human beings with preserving the Qur’ān.
THE SUNNAH OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD
The Sunnah15 refers to the sayings, actions and tacit approvals of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). Like the Qur’ān, the Sunnah is Inspired by Revelation from God through the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). Unlike the Qur’ān, it is not the direct, literal Word of God. The teachings were from God and the words were from Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). The Sunnah was also meticulously preserved.
It is obligatory for Muslims to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). In the Qur’ān, God Orders the believers to Obey the Messenger (His representative). God Says: “Obey God, and Obey the Messenger.” [Qur’ān 4:59]
One of the reasons that God Sent human Messengers to mankind is so they could be living, practical examples of how people should submit to God. God Says: “You have indeed in the Messenger of God a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in God and the Final Day, and who engages much in the praise of God.” [Qur’ān 33:21]
All Muslims must believe, without doubt, in the Day of Judgment and the physical resurrection when the body will be recreated and the soul will be reunited with the body by God’s Unlimited and Amazing Power. Just as God Created us the first time, He is surely Able to Bring us forth from death to stand in Perfect Judgment before Him. From the Day of Judgment, death will be no longer; our existence will be forever. The Day of Judgment is when each and every individual will stand before The Creator and be Questioned about his or her deeds. On that climactic day, we will each see in detail the results of even the smallest good and the smallest evil we have set forth in this life. On this day, lying and deception will be impossible. The ultimate reward is Paradise and the penalty is Hell. Heaven and Hell are literal places of existence, not a figment of imagination.
God’s Infinite Justice is Absolute and Perfect. On the Day of Judgment, all deeds will be revealed, and everyone will be justly treated. We will not enter Paradise because of our deeds alone, but by God’s Majesty and Unlimited Grace.
BELIEF IN DIVINE DECREE
God, in His Timelessness, Knows everything that goes on in His creation and when it occurs. From the perspective of temporal beings like us, this means that God Knows everything that happened in the past through His All-Encompassing Knowledge, everything that is now taking place by His Supreme Power, and everything that will happen in the future by His Infinite Wisdom. God’s Divine Knowledge is Perfect. He Knows all, and all that He Knows will come to pass.
God Has Absolute Sovereignty over His creation. Everything that exists within His creation and every event that occurs is a direct result of His Creating it. Nothing happens in creation except by His Power, His Will, and His Knowledge.
THE FREE WILL OF THE HUMAN BEING
An important aspect of Islam is that every human being has the free will to choose between right and wrong. God has Honored humanity with this great gift. It carries grave responsibility, and, on the Day of Judgment, we will be accountable for our use of this gift.
Human free will does not in any way contradict the fact that God Knows everything that will ever occur in creation. Someone might ask: “If God Knows that I am going to commit a sin tomorrow, then it is unavoidable that I do so because God’s Knowledge is Infallible and what God Knows will come to pass.” God’s Knowledge of this person’s decision does not mean that he or she is being forced to make that decision.
Human free will does not in any way contradict God’s Absolute Sovereignty over everything in creation. Nor does it contradict the fact that nothing happens in creation except what God Wills. Some might say, “Therefore, I have no free will. My free will is but an illusion.” God Created within each of us the ability to formulate an intention. God Wants us to be able to make our own choices. When a person makes a choice, God, by His Divine Will, Creates the actions and circumstances that allow the person’s intention to be carried out. It is God’s Will that human beings have free will. God is not always Pleased with the decisions people make, but He Wants them to be able to make these decisions from their own free choice. An example is a person’s will to do a good deed. The good deed may never be carried out, but God May Reward the person for his or her intention to do a good deed. If the good deed comes to pass, God’s Will Allowed it to take place and God Will Reward for both intent and action. God may reward you for good deeds willed but not carried out; He does not Punish for bad intent not acted upon. God Allows us choice (which we often squander).
THERE IS NO COMPULSION IN RELIGION
It follows from this emphasis on free will that Islam can only be accepted by free choice. The purpose of human life is to worship God of one’s own free will. Therefore, matters of faith only have value if they are accepted on the basis of choice. If a person is coerced into accepting any religion, that acceptance is false and has no value. God Says: “There is no compulsion in religion. Truth stands out clear from error: whoever rejects evil and believes in God has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that never breaks. And God Hears and Knows all things.” [Qur’ān 2: 256]
THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM
There are five obligatory acts of worship that every Muslim must dutifully carry out. Failure to do so is a grave sin. The edifice of Islam rests upon these pillars. One cannot be considered a Muslim if he or she denies that any one of these acts is obligatory.
The five obligations of Muslims are:
1. The Declaration of Faith, to “Testify that there is no deity except God, and
that Muhammad is His Messenger”, “Shahada”
2. To Pray five times a day, “Salat”
3. To Pay the yearly Alms, “Zakat”
4. To Fast during the month of Ramadhan, “Sawm”
5. To Make a pilgrimage to Makka, “Hajj”
THE QUR’ĀN
The Qur’ān is the final, infallible, and direct Word of God brought down by the angel Gabriel (often referred to as the holy spirit) and firmly implanted into the heart of His final Messenger Muhammad (Peace be upon him). The Qur’ān was learned and memorized by his companions, and passed down to us via meticulous oral (primary) and written (secondary) preservation through the centuries.
The books that came before the Qur’ān, through God’s Prophets and Messengers (Peace be upon them), were also Sent by God. The Qur’ān is unique in a number of ways. God has Perfectly Preserved the Qur’ān and Guaranteed it from corruption until the end of time. The Qur’ān is regarded, not just by Muslims but also by historians of religion, as the most authentic holy text among the world’s religions.13 None of the other revealed books have reached us in their original form. Some of them, like the scrolls that were revealed through Abraham (Peace be upon him), have not reached us at all. Over the course of time, parts of other scriptures were rewritten and some parts removed, contaminating their message. These books were not preserved because God Did not Take it upon Himself to Preserve them.
God Did not Allow this to happen to the Qur’ān since it is His final book for all of the humanity until the Day of Judgment. No new Prophet or Messenger is going to be Sent. If the Qur’ān were corruptible, God’s Message would be lost to humanity for all time. For this reason, God Did Not Entrust human beings with preserving the Qur’ān.
THE SUNNAH OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD
The Sunnah15 refers to the sayings, actions and tacit approvals of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). Like the Qur’ān, the Sunnah is Inspired by Revelation from God through the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). Unlike the Qur’ān, it is not the direct, literal Word of God. The teachings were from God and the words were from Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). The Sunnah was also meticulously preserved.
It is obligatory for Muslims to follow the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him). In the Qur’ān, God Orders the believers to Obey the Messenger (His representative). God Says: “Obey God, and Obey the Messenger.” [Qur’ān 4:59]
One of the reasons that God Sent human Messengers to mankind is so they could be living, practical examples of how people should submit to God. God Says: “You have indeed in the Messenger of God a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in God and the Final Day, and who engages much in the praise of God.” [Qur’ān 33:21]
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