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2 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
UNDERSTANDING ISLAM
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 3
Vx
01. Islam: The primordial religion .. 5
02. Role of Prophets .. 6
03. Islam: What does it mean? .. 7
04. Islam: The religion of peace .. 8
05. Components of Islam .. 9
06. Allah: the proper name of God .. 10
07. Islam rejects philosophy of .. 11
anthropomorphism
08. The concept of God in Islam .. 11
09. Islamic concept of worship .. 13
10. Ideology of Islam .. 14
11. Objectives of Islam .. 15
12. Message of Islam .. 16
13. Significance of acquiring knowledge in Islam .. 17
14. Islam: Easy approach .. 18
15. Islam: Easy by nature .. 19
16. Purpose of life: An Islamic perspective .. 20
17. Islam: A guideline for successful life .. 20
18. Islamic way of life: Do's and Don'ts .. 21
19. Human rights in Islam .. 23
20. Islam favours free will and choice .. 24
21. Freedom of thought and expression in Islam .. 25
22. Islam preaches universal brotherhood .. 26
23. Muhammedanism: a misnomer .. 27
24. Muslim: The believer .. 28
25. Life after death .. 29
26. Conclusion .. 31
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4 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
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Say you, Come I will rehearse to you what your Lord has
forbidden to you, that you associate not anyone with
Him, and that you do good to parents, and that you kill not
your children because of poverty. We shall provide for
you and for them, and that you approach not shameful
deeds whichever in them is open and whichever is hidden;
and slay not unjustly the life which Allah has made
sacred. This has He ordered you that you may understand.
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 5
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6 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 7
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8 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
The Qur'n declares that those who follow and practice the
guidance of the Qur'n will be called Muslims and their way of
life will be Islam i.e. living in full peace and harmony with
people of the world and also with the environment. The
traditional use of the terms 'Islam' and 'Muslim' for the
followers of the Prophet Muhammad is a
contradiction with the Qur'n. Both these terms are universal
in connotation and are meant for entire humanity through all
the ages of the history. Thus, according to the Qur'n, Allah's
reward is not reserved for any particular group but is open to
anyone who consciously accepts the oneness of Allah ,
surrenders himself to his Will, and by living righteously gives
practical effect to this attitude.
Verily the most honoured among you in the sight of Allah is (he
who is) the most righteous of you..
(The Holy Quran: Chapter 49 Al Hujurt, Verse 13)
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 9
Components of Islam
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10 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 11
Say: He is Allah, the One and Only. Allah, the Eternal, the
Absolute1. He begets not, nor is He begotten. And there is none
like unto Him.
1
The Arabic word Samad has a deeper meaning than the closest
English word Absolute. It means absolute existence, which can be
attributed only to Allah , all other existence being temporal or
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12 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
No vision can grasp Him but His grasp is over all vision: He
is above all comprehension, yet is acquainted with all things.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 6 Al Anm, Verse 103)
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 13
the heavens and the earth declares His glory; and He is the
Mighty, the Wise.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 59 Al Hashr, Verses 22-24)
But those who obey Allah's orders and keep away from what He
has forbidden will be above them (disbelievers) on the Day of
Resurrection.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 2 Al Baqarah, Verse 212)
It is not righteousness that you turn your faces to the East or the
West, but righteous is he who believes in Allah and the Last
Day and the angels and the Books and the prophets; and gives
his wealth for love of Him to kinsfolk and to orphans and the
needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask; and to set slaves
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14 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
free; and observes proper worship and pays the Zakaat. And
those who keep their treaty when they make one, and the patient
in tribulation and adversity and time of stress, such are those
who are sincere. Such are the God fearing.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 2 Al Baqarah, Verse 177)
Ideology of Islam
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 15
We have made all the signs manifest unto people who are
endowed with inner certainty.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 2 Al Baqarah, Verse 118)
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16 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
Have we not shown him the two ways [so that he could
understand the good and the evil]?
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 90 Al Balad, Verse 10)
Message of Islam
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 17
Significance of acquiring
knowledge
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18 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 19
Allah intends for you ease; and He does not want to make things
difficult for you.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 2 Al Baqarah, Verse 185)
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20 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
Did you then think that We had created you in vain and that you
shall not be returned to Us?
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 23 Al Mominoon, Verse 115)
I created the jinn and humankind only so that they worship Me.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 51 Az-Zariyat, Verse 56)
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 21
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22 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
Islam does not allow living this life selfishly, with complete
disregard for the sovereign Lord and Creator; nor does it allow
neglecting the world and devote solely to ritual worship. God-
fearing people should be the best in morals and manners. Islam
forbids any action which infringes on the rights of others or
harms oneself. Forbidden to Muslims are dishonesty, theft,
murder, suicide, corruption, forgery, interest and usury,
gambling, lottery, consumption of alcohol or pork, backbiting,
maligning, destruction of property, cruelty to animals, adultery,
fornication, etc. While forbidding these things, Islam enjoins
upon mankind the use of all clean, healthy and useful things,
and asks us not to deprive our bodies of clean food and healthy
amusement. Islam also encourages marriage and stable family
life, modesty, generosity, hospitality, respect for parents,
honourable treatment of women, helping those in need, etc. The
law of Islam forbids public nudity and orders Muslims to dress
up in a decent and dignified manner. Islam enjoins mankind to
manage his sexual desire with responsibility and seek its
fulfillment only within the bonds of marriage. Divorce, while
frowned upon, is permitted in cases where the marital
relationship is irrevocably damaged. In dealing with non-
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 23
Invite all to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful
preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most
gracious
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 16 An-Nahl, Verse 125)
Islam holds that all of creation must be respected and cared for
with love based on the sentiment that love the sinner but hate
the sin.
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24 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
In this way Allah lets go astray him that He wills (to go astray),
and guides aright him that He wills (to be guided).And none can
comprehend his Sustainers forces save Him alone: and all this is
but a reminder to mortal man.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 74 Al Mudaththir, Verse 31)
Islam specifically asks not to have blind faith, but rather use
God given gifts of reason and free will to study all of creation,
understand its glory and realise that it was not an accident. We
feel that by profoundly understanding any given discipline, one
could see the vast interconnectedness of our reality. The signs
of Allah are all around us. Think about it. If the Earth was
1% closer to the sun, we would all be burnt to a crisp and if we
were 1% farther would be freeze-dried. Our bodies are so
carefully calibrated that in every second, with every heartbeat
and every breath, all the systems of our anatomy work together
to keep us alive. Everything in this world is in balance;
everything exists in a perfectly delicate harmony. It is this
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 25
If it had been your Lord's Will, they would all have believed, all
who are on earth! Will you then compel mankind, against their
will, to believe?! No soul can believe, except by the Will of Allah.
(The Holy Quran, Chapter 10 Yoonus, Verses 99-100)
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26 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
The Islamic teaching that all Muslims are equal before Allah
, provides the basis for a collective sense of loyalty to Allah
that transcends class, race, nationality, and even
differences in religious practice. Thus, all Muslims belong to
one community, the Ummah, irrespective of their ethnic or
national background.
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 27
Muhammadanism: a misnomer
Every religion of the world has been given a name either after
the name of its founder or after the territory in which that
religion originated from. For instance, Christianity takes its
designation from the name of its prophet Jesus Christ;
Buddhism from its founder Gautam Buddha, Hindu is referred
to those people who lived in the area watered by the river
Sindhu. Many non-Muslims call the Muslims Muhammadans,
which they think is synonymous. The religion of Islam cannot
be termed as Muhammadanism because it was not a religion
that was brought by Prophet Muhammad . Islam
was there since time immemorial. Prophet Muhammad
was not the first prophet but he was the last and
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28 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
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30 Understanding Islam: An Introduction
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Understanding Islam: An introduction 31
Conclusion
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