Islam: Basic Principles and Characteristics

 

☆Islam: Basic Principles and Characteristics

Islam is the religion of truth. It is the embodiment of the code of life that Allah, the Creator and Lord of the universe, has revealed for the guidance of mankind.

For the proper development of human life, man needs two elements: (a) the resources to maintain life and to fulfill the material needs of the individual and society, and (b) knowledge of the principles of individual and social behavior to enable man to fulfill himself and to maintain justice and tranquillity in human life. The Lord of the universe has provided for both of these in full measure. To cater to the material needs of man, He has put all of nature's resources at his disposal. To provide for his spiritual, social, and cultural needs, He has raised His prophets from among men and has revealed to them the code of life that can guide man's steps to the right path. This code of life is known as Islam, the religion preached by all of the prophets of Allah.

Allah said:

Say, "[0 Muhammadﷺ] we believe in Allah and in the Revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac Jacob and the Tribes. We believe in the Revelation that was sent to Moses, Jesus and all other Prophets from their Lord. We make no distinction between them, and to Him we surrender." (3:83; 2:136)

He has revealed to you (O Muhammad) the scripture with truth, confirming that which was revealed before it even as He revealed the Torah and the Gospel before as a guide to mankind and has revealed the Criterion (for judging between right and wrong). (3:3-4)

All of them called humanity to the way of the Lord, the way of submission to Allah. All of them gave the same message, and all of them stood for the same cause: Islam.

Islam is an Arabic word that denotes submission, surrender, and obedience. As a religion, Islam stands for complete submission and obedience to Allah - that is why it is called Islam. The other literal meaning of the word "Islam" is "peace." This signifies that one can achieve real peace of body and of mind only through submission and obedience to Allah. Such a life of obedience brings peace of the heart and establishes real peace in society at large.

Those who believe and whose hearts find rest in the remembrance of Allah-indeed it is in the remembrance of Allah alone that the heart of man finds rest-those who believe and act righteously, joy is for them, and a blissful home to return to. (13: 28-29)

This message was preached by all the Prophets of Allah, who guided man to the right path. But man not only veered away from the right path again and again but also lost or distorted the code of guidance that the prophets had bequeathed. That was why other prophets were sent to restate the original message and guide man back to the right path. The last of these prophets was Muhammad, who Presented Allah's guidance in its final form and arranged to preserve it for all time. It is this guidance that is now known as Islam and is enshrined in the Qur'an and the life example (Sunnah) of the Prophet.

The basic Islamic concept is that the whole universe was created by Allah, whom Islam calls Allah, and who is the Lord and the Sovereign of the universe, which He Alone sustains. He created man and appointed for each human being a fixed period of life that he is to spend on the earth. Allah has prescribed a certain code of life as the correct one for mankind, but has, at the same time, conferred upon man the freedom of choice as to whether or not he adopts this code as the actual basis of his life. One who chooses to follow the code revealed by Allah becomes a Muslim (believer) and one who refuses to follow it becomes a kafir (disbeliever).

A man joins the fold of Islam by honestly believing in and professing faith in the oneness of Allah and the prophethood of Muhammad. Both of these beliefs are epitomized in the kalimah (the article of faith):

La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasul Allah. (There is no Allah except Allah; Muhammad is His Prophet.)

The first part of the kalimah presents the concept of tawhid (the oneness of Allah) and its second part affirms the prophethood of Muhammadﷺ.

"I have always held the religion of Muhammadﷺ in high estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion that appears to me to possess that assimilating capacity to the changing phases of existence that can make itself appeal to every age. I have studied him - the wonderful man - and in my opinion far from being an Antichrist, he must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much-needed peace and happiness. I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of today."

The question is, what are those characteristics of Islam which have won millions of followers to the Faith in the past and which make it so appealing to the modern age? Some of the major characteristics of Islam are given in the following pages.

Simplicity, Rationality, and Practicality. Islam is a religion without any mythology. Its teachings are simple and intelligible. It is free from superstitions and irrational beliefs. The oneness of Allah, the prophethood of Muhammad, and the concept of life after death are the basic articles of its faith. They are based on reason and sound logic. All of the teachings of Islam flow from those basic beliefs and are simple and straightforward. There is no hierarchy of priests, no farfetched abstractions, and no complicated rites and rituals. Everybody may approach the Qur'an directly and translate its dictates into practice. Islam awakens in man the faculty of reason and exhorts him to use his intellect. It enjoins him to see things in the light of reality. The Qur'an advises him to pray: O, my Lord! Advance me in knowledge (20:1 14). It asserts that those who have no knowledge are not equal to those who have (39:9), that those who do not observe and understand are worse than cattle (7:179), that the meanings of revelation become manifest to those who have knowledge (6:97) and who have understanding (6:98), that whosoever has been given knowledge indeed has been given an abundant good (2:269), that the basic qualifications for leadership are, among other things, knowledge and physical strength (2:247), and that of all things it is by the knowledge that man is superior to angels and has been made vicegerent of Allah on earth (2:30).

The Prophet of Islam said: "He who leaves his home in search of knowledge walks in the path of Allah" (Tirmidhi and Darimi) and "To seek knowledge is obligatory for every Muslim" (Ibn Majah and Bayhaqi). This is how Islam brings man out of the world of superstition and darkness and initiates him into the world of knowledge and light.

Again, Islam is a practical religion and does not allow indulgence in empty and futile theorizing. It says that faith is not a mere profession of beliefs, but rather that it is the very mainspring of life. Righteous conduct must follow belief in Allah. Religion is something to be practiced and not an object of mere lip service. The Qur'an says:

For those who believe and act righteously, joy is for them, and a blissful home to return to. (13: 29)

The Prophet Muhammadﷺ said:

"Allah does not accept belief if it is not expressed in deeds, and does not accept deeds if they do not conform to belief." (Tabarani)

Thus Islam is a simple, rational, and practical religion.

Unity of Matter and Spirit. A unique feature of Islam is that it does not divide life into watertight compartments of matter and spirit. It stands not for denial of life but for the fulfillment of life. Islam does not believe in asceticism. It does not ask a man to avoid material things. It holds that spiritual elevation is to be achieved by living piously in the rough and tumble of life, not by renouncing the world. The Qur'an advises us to pray as follows:

"Our Lord! Give us something fine in this world as well as something fine in the Hereafter." (2:201)

Allah strongly censures those who refuse to benefit from His blessings. The Qur'an says:

Say: "Who has forbidden Allah's finery which He has produced for His servants and the wholesome things from (His) provision?" (7:32)

Islam's injunction is:

Eat and drink, but do not be extravagant. (7:31)

The Prophet said:

"A Muslim who lives during society and bears with patience the afflictions that come to him is better than the one who shuns society and cannot bear any wrong done to him."

And:

"Keep fast and break it (at the proper time) and stand in prayer and devotion (in the night) and have sleep - for your body has its rights over you, and your eyes rights over you, and your wife has a claim upon you, and the person who pays a visit to you has a claim upon you."

On another occasion, he said:

"These three things are also enjoined upon the faithful: (a) to help others, even when one is economically hard-pressed, (b) to pray ardently for the peace of all mankind, and (c) to administer justice to one's own self."

Thus Islam does not admit any separation between "material" and "moral," "mundane" and "spiritual" life, and enjoins man to devote all of his energies to the reconstruction of life on healthy moral foundations. It teaches him that moral and material powers must be welded together and that spiritual salvation can be achieved by using material resources for the good of man in the service of just ends and not by living a life of asceticism or by running away from the challenges of life.

The world has suffered at the hands of the one-sidedness of many other religions and ideologies. Some have laid emphasis on the spiritual side of life but have ignored its material and mundane aspects. They have looked upon the world as an illusion, a deception, and a trap. On the other hand, materialistic ideologies have totally ignored the spiritual and moral side of life and have dismissed it as fictitious and imaginary. Both of these attitudes have resulted in disaster, for they have robbed mankind of peace, contentment, and tranquillity. Even today, the imbalance is manifested in one or the other direction. The French scientist Dr. De Brogbi rightly says: "The danger inherent in too intense a material civilization is to that civilization itself; it is the disequilibrium which would result if a parallel development, of the spiritual life were to fail to provide the needed balance."

Christianity erred on one extreme, whereas modern Western civilization, in both of its variants of secular capitalistic democracy and Marxist socialism, has erred on the other. According to Lord Snell:

"We have built a nobly-proportioned outer structure, but we have neglected the essential requirement of an inner order; we have carefully designed, decorated, and made clean the outside of the cup; but the inside was full of extortion and excess; we used our increased knowledge and power to administer to the comforts of the body, but we left the spirit impoverished ."

Islam seeks to establish an equilibrium between these two aspects of life - the material and the spiritual. It says that everything in the world is for man, but man was created to serve a higher purpose: the establishment of a moral and just order that will fulfill the will of Allah. Its teachings cater to the spiritual as well as the temporal needs of man. Islam encourages man to purify his soul and to reform his daily life - both individual and collective - and to establish the supremacy of right over might and virtue over vice. Thus Islam stands for the middle path and the goal of producing a moral man in the service of a just society.

A Complete Way of Life. Islam is not a religion in the common and distorted sense, for it does not confine its scope to one's private life. It is a complete way of life and is present in every field of human existence. Islam provides guidance for all aspects of life - individual and social, material and moral, economic and political, legal and cultural, and national and international. The Qur'an enjoins man to embrace Islam without any reservation and to follow Allah's guidance in all areas of life. In fact, it was an unfortunate day when the scope of religion was confined to the private life of man and its social and cultural role was reduced to naught, as has happened in this century. No other factor, perhaps, has been more important in causing the decline of religion in the modern age than its retreat into the realm of private life. In the words of a modern philosopher:

"Religion asks us to separate things of Allah from those of Caesar. Such a judicial separation between the two means the degrading of both the secular and the sacred ... That religion is worth little if the conscience of its followers is not disturbed when war clouds are hanging over us all and industrial conflicts are threatening social peace. Religion has weakened man's social conscience and moral sensitivity by separating the things of Allah from those of Caesar."

Islam totally denounces this concept of religion and clearly states that its objectives are the purification of the soul and the reform and reconstruction of society. As we read in the Qur'an:

We have sent our messengers with explanations, and sent the book and the balance down with them, so that mankind may conduct themselves with all fairness. We have sent down iron wherein is great violence as well as benefits for mankind, so that Allah may know who is supporting Him and His messenger even though (He is) unseen. (57:25)

Discretion belongs only to Allah. He has ordered you to serve Him alone; such is the right religion, even though most men do not realize it. ( 1 2: 40)

(Muslims are) those who, if We establish them in the land will keep up prayer (salah) and pay the welfare due (zakah); command what is proper and forbid what is improper. (22:40-41)

The Holy Prophet said:

"Each of you is a keeper or a shepherd and will be questioned about the well-being of his fold. The head of the state will be questioned about the well-being of the people of the state. Each man is a shepherd to his family and will be answerable to every member of it. Each woman is a shepherd to the family of her husband and will be accountable for every member of it. And each servant is a shepherd to his master and will be questioned about the property of his master." (Bukhari and Muslim)

Thus even a cursory study of the teachings of Islam shows that it is an all-embracing way of life and does not leave out any field of human existence to become a playground for the forces of evil. The balance between the Individual and Society. Another unique feature of Islam is that it establishes a balance between individualism and collectivism. It believes in the individual personality of man and holds everyone personally accountable to Allah. It guarantees the fundamental rights of the individual and does not permit anyone to tamper with them. It makes the proper development of the personality of man one of the prime objectives of its educational policy. It does not subscribe to the view that man must lose his individuality in society or in the state.

According to the Qur'an:

Man shall have nothing but what he strives for. (53:39)

And whatever suffering you suffer, it is what your hands have wrought. (42:30)

Allah does not change what any people have until they change what is in themselves. (13:11)

Allah only assigns to a soul what it can cope with: in its favor stands whatever it has earned, while it is held responsible for anything it has brought upon itself. (2:286)

For us are our deeds and for you are yours. (28:55)