ISLAMIYAT (2058)

NOTES

Articles of Faith and Jihad

By: Talha Afzal

Belief in Tawhid
• Belief in the oneness of God (tawhid), first and most essential article of faith, is the
fundamental teaching of Islam. It literally means ‘Unification.’
• Belief in the oneness of God has been the basis of all Abrahamic religions and all scriptures
Allah sent down laid emphasis on Tawhid.
• “So know that there is no deity except Allah…” (47:19)
• A person becomes a Muslim just by believing and uttering the Shahadah: “There is no god but
Allah and Mohammad (pbuh) is the Messenger of Allah.” This shows the importance of
believing in Tawhid.
• ''Say He is Allah, the One. Allah, the Eternal. He does not beget nor is He begotten, and there
is none like Him'' (112:1-4). Surah Ikhlaas is considered one-third of the Quran, and since it is
about Tawhid, it shows us the importance of believing in Allah’s oneness.
• The three kinds of Tawhid:
o Tawhid-e-Rububiyah (Onbeness of Lordship of Allah)
▪ There is One Supreme God, Allah.
▪ “praise is to Allah, Lord of the worlds.” (1:2)
▪ He is the creater and sustainer of everything that exists in this universe.
▪ “Allah is the Creator of all things and He is the Guardian over all things” (39:62)
▪ Being the Most Powerful, it is Him who provides us weak humans with everything
we need to survive in this world (shelter, food, water, sustainable environment).
▪ “As for the earth, We have spread it out, set firm mountains on it, and made
everything grow there in due balance.” (15:19)
o Tawhid-e-Auluhiyah (Oneness in the Worship of Allah)
▪ Allah is the only one worthy of worship and praise
▪ All our prayers are directed towards Him and we seek help only from Him.
▪ We observe all religious practices (Hajj, Zakat, Fasting) for His sake only.
▪ He sent over a hundred thousand Prophets down to us to convey the message
that He is the only God and only He must be worshipped.
▪ “I created Jinn and mankind only to worship me” (51:56)
▪ “You alone we worship and Your aid we seek” (1:4)
o Tawhid-e-Asma-wa-Sifaat (Oneness of the names and qualities of Allah)
▪ There are 99 names of God known to mankind and each one highlights a quality
of God that nobody else possesses.
▪ These attributes are exclusive to Him, the Lord of the Worlds.
▪ He is the only Aleem, all-knowing.
▪ He is the only Muh’Yi (Giver of Life) and the only Mumeet (Giver of Death).
Nobody/nothing is able to match those qualities.
▪ “And there is none like unto Him” (112:5)
• Allah doesn’t want us to believe in Him blindly. He wants us to ponder upon the signs He has
shown us ie. the orderly funcitoning of the universe, and understand that nobody possesses
the power to do this but Him.
• “Had there been gods beside Allah, in the heavens and the earth, both of them would have
fallen in disorder.” (21:22)
 • Shirk:
o Means to “associate”, refers to associating partners with God or assigning His qualities
to any other creature in Islam.
o Shirk isn’t limited to believing in multiple Gods or worshipping someone other than
Allah, assigning any other creature any of his 99 attributes is also a form of Shirk.
o Common to see the name Abd-ur-Rehman (Servant of the Gracious) but impermissable
and Shrik if one is called Ar-Rehman, that is exclusive to Allah.
o Shirk is the only unforgivable sin and we should avoid it, conciously or subconciously.
o “Indeed, Allah does not forgive association with Him…” (4:116)
o There are three aspects of Shirk that can be elaborated upon which are the Shirk of
Lorship of Allah, Shirk of Worship of Allah, and Shirk of Names/Qualities of Allah.
Belief in Angels
• The belief in Angels is the second, and a very essential Article of Faith in Islam.
• We believe Allah has three main types of creations, Humans and Jinn, Shayateen, and Angels.
• Characteristics of Angels:
o They are made of divine light (Nur), aren’t visible to the naked eye (only Allah’s chosen
humans are able to see them), also known to have wings
o Agnels do not sin, only have the capacity to do good deeds.
o They have been given supernatural powers and keep the universe functioning orderly.
o Assisted the Prophets and Muslims in their struggles to spread the word of Allah.
o They don’t have their own free will, follow commands given to them by Allah only.
o Glorify and praise Allah, never getting tired.
o “…We said to the angels: ‘Prostrate yourselves before Adam’; all of them fell
prostrate…” (18:50)
o “They never disobey Allah's Command and do as they are commanded." (16:50)
• A common belief among polytheist Arabs was that Angels were the daughters of God.
However, since the Arabs preferred sons for themselves and labeled Angels as the daughters
of God, this was more of an insult to Islam.
• Four Archangels:
o Mikael controls weather and supervises all creatures in the world
o Israfeel will blow the trumpet on the day of Judgement
o Izrael is the Angel of Death and takes the souls of people and keeps them
o Jibraeel (Ruh-al-Amin), the most powerful archangel, was tasked with the revelation of
the Quran and has the continuous duty of conveying Allah’s messages to humans.
• Other Angels:
o Munkar and Nakir, interrogaters in the grave.
o Ridhwan, caretaker of Heaven. Maalik, caretaker of Hell.
o Kiraman Katabin (honorable recorders), Raqib and Atid, record a persons deeds.
• Examples of Angels meeting Prophets/performing duties:
o Allah sent down Angels to inflict fear into the Quraish during the Battle of Badr.
o Maryam was also blessed with the news of a Holy son by an angel Gabriel.
o Appeared before Abraham to give him the glad tidings of a son in human form.
• The specific number of Angels that exist is unknown, but a Hadith says each day 70,000
Angels visit the Bait-ul-Ma’moor and leave, never to return again. This gives us an idea of how
many Angels actually exist.
Belief in the Holy Books
• Belief in Allah’s books is the thind and very essential Article of Fatih in Islam.
• Iblis challenged Allah saying he would misguide mankind when Allah created Adam and Allah
told Iblis that he may keep doing that; Allah would send Messengers and Books to guide them.
• 4 main books were revealed along with unnamed scriptures such as that of Ibrahim.
• “He has sent down upon you, [O Muḥammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it.
And He revealed the Torah and the Gospel.” (3:3)
• Content and Need:
o Books revealed by Allah contain guidance and solutions pertaining to all aspects of life
such as moral, spiritual, social, economic, physical, mental, and political.
o All contain teachings on Tawhid, Prophethood, Judgement day, Resurrection, Heaven
and Hell, and motivation for doing good deeds and avoiding bad deeds.
o “and We have revealed the Book to you explaining clearly everything” (16:89)
o Knowledge contained in these books, especially the Quran, doesn’t get outdated.
o “Recite Quran, it contains the knowledge of the past and future” (Abdullah bin Abbas)
o Since life is just a test for us, Allah has given sent down his Prophets and given us His
scriptures over time with divine guidance to lead us onto the right path.
• Allah sent His Prophets to specific nations who brought their scriptures for their regions with
their own respective languages, we are to believe in all of them since Allah sent them down.
• “We did not send any messenger but (speaking) in the language of his people, so that he
might clearly convey the message to them.” (14:4)
• The Quran approves of the scriptures and books which came before it.
• “We have sent down to you the Book with truth, confirming the Book before it, and a protector.
• Books:
o Torah:
▪ Given to Moses (Musa).
▪ Sent to the Israelites.
o Pslams (Zabur):
▪ Sent to David (Dawood).
o Gospel (Injil):
▪ Sent to Jesus (Esa).
▪ Contains life story of Jesus.
▪ Gives some ethical advice but doesn’t have legal arrangements.
▪ Christians combine Torah (Old Testament, for legal arrangements), Gospel (New
Testament), and Psalms and consider it their Holy Book.
o Quran:
▪ Last Holy book, sent to Prophet Muhammad, revealed over 23 years.
▪ The Quran was the final scripture to be sent down by Allah and it abrogated all
previous books.
▪ Its laws are universal and for all time to come.
▪ “This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you
and have approved for you Islam as religion.” (5:3)
• Allah claimed the responsibility of safe guarding the Quran which ensures that there won’t
even be a minor change in it. Unlike other books which have been altered due to not being
properly guarded by their people, the Quran is still in its original form, word for word.
Belief in Prophets
• The belief in Prophets is the fouth article of faith and an integral part of Islam.
• Allah accepted Iblis’s challenge that he will misguide men and said that He would send
messengers and divine books to guide mankind.
• Prophets were sent down to guide people and to convey Allah’s message and all Prophets
sent down carried the same basic messages.
• Allah never punished a nation before sending a Prophet to guide them.
• “And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.” (17:15)
• Technical difference between Messenger and Prophet:
o A Messenger (Rusul) received new law and revelations; Hazrat Musa is an example of
a messenger since he received the Old Testament.
o A Prophet (Nabi) did not receive any new law or book and followed the book/law of the
previous Messenger; An example of a Prophet is Hazrat Haroon.
• Characteristics and Qualities:
o Allah chose His Prophet’s and nobody was a Prophet at their own will.
o “That is the bounty of Allah, which He gives to whom He wills, and Allah is the
possessor of great bounty.” (62:4)
o Prophets were normal humans in almost every aspect; they ate, talk, and slept just like
any other human. They had families and relationships, and most were born naturally.
o They were, however distinguished by their traits; They were innocent, never committed
a sin and were more knowledgeable than the people around them. Even before getting
the rank of Prophethood, their early lives were perfect (eg. Prophet Muhammad).
• Miracles:
o A few Prophets had miracles and their miracles dominated the trend of their eras.
o Moses had a magical rod that turned into a snake and he parted the red sea.
o Jesus was able to cure incurable diseases and resurrected the dead on Allah’s
command.
o Muhammad broke the Arabs’ pride of linguistic superiority by the Quran
o David had the ability to understand the language of birds
• The Quran contains stories of 26 Prophets sent over time. In total, Allah sent down 124,000
Prophets, according to a Hadith.
• Prominent Prophets :
o Ibhrahim: Had to sacrifice his son and was put in a fire, Grandfather of Prophets.
o Musa: Had to face the Pharoah and was sent to the ungrateful nation of Bani Israel.
o Isa: Persecuted by Bani Israel’s people, was almost crucified but Allah raised him alive.
o Muhammad: Seal of Prophethood, Quran sent down to him, most respected.
o Nuh
o “Those are the messengers some of whom We have given excellence over some
others.” (2:253)
• Each Prophet is equally respected to us, we can’t compare them with each other, one can’t be
a muslim without believing and respecting each Prophet.
• “We make no difference between any of them, and to Him we submit ourselves.” (2:136)
• Prophets were sent for every region of the world as everyone needed equal divine guidance.
• Their books or stories might be extinct but we must believe in them and keep in mind that they
carried the same fundamental message of belief in Tawhid, Oneness of Allah, and life after
death.
Belief in the Day of Judgement
• Belief in the Day of Judgement and Resurrection is the fifth article of faith and its importance is
shown by how much the Quran discusses it with the belief in Allah himself.
• “Allah, there is no god but He – He will most certainly gather you together on the resurrection
day...” (4:87)
• Everything that has a starting has an ending, every creation has extinciton, Only Allah is
eternal and everlasting, everything and everyone else is unstable.
• Barzakh:
o When an individual dies, they go to Barzakh.
o This is a sort of middle ground where a person’s soul remains before Qiyamah.
o Immediately after one’s death, their Qiyamah-e-Sughra (lesser judgement) begins. Two
angels, Munkar and Nakir, will visit the person who died and ask them questions about
who that persons God, Religion, and Prophet are.
o Based on the answers provided by the person, it will be decided whether the persons
stay in Barzakh will have a reward or punishment.
o Hadith: “The grave is one of the gardens of paradise, or one of the pits of Hell.”
• Day of Judgement:
o The Day of Judgement will come on a day that nobody knows the exact timing of.
o “People ask you ˹O Prophet˺ about the Hour. Say, “That knowledge is only with Allah.
You never know, perhaps the Hour is near.” (33:63)
o This day (Qiyamah) will take place after several minor and major signs from Hadith.
o Minor signs:
▪ Children will be spoiled.
▪ There will be much killing and murder.
▪ Adultery/Vulgarity will be prevalant.
▪ Arrogance will increase in the earth.
▪ Female singers and musical instruments will become popular.
▪ Episodes of sudden death will become widespread.
o Major signs:
▪ A black cloud (dukhan) will cover the earth.
▪ Dajjal will come presuming himself as an apostle of God.
▪ Hazrat Isa will return to kill Dajjal.
▪ Gog and Magog will ravage the earth.
▪ The sun will rise from the west.
o Events:
▪ Qiyamah will start with the blow of a trumpet by Hazrat Israfeel. At this time,
there will be horrible scenes happening everywhere and everything in this
universe will get destroyed.
▪ “When the earth is shaken with its [final] earthquake…” (99:1)
▪ For an unspecified amount of time, nothing will exist except Allah.
▪ Then at the second trumpet blow, everyone to ever live will rise and gather at the
ground of Arafat and this gathering is known as Hashr.
▪ “The Hour is coming, there is no doubt about it. Allah (God) will raise up whoever
are in [their] graves.” (22:7)
▪ This day will last for a very long period; Some sources say as long as 50,000
years. Nobody would be thinking about things such as friends and family.
 ▪ Accounts of the deeds done by a person which were previously compiled be
angels (Kiraman Katibeen) will be uncovered.
▪ “So, whoever does an atom's weight of good shall see it; and whoever does an
atom's weight of evil shall see it.” (99:7-8)
▪ Whoever is given their record in their right hand from the front will be in Heaven
and whoever is given it in their left hand from the back will be sent to Hell.
▪ When everyone is placed in heaven/hell, death will be brought forward in the
form of an animal and will be slaughtered. This will mark the death of death.
Belief in Predestination and Decree
• Belief in divine Decree is the 6th article of fatih. It is mentioned in the Iman-e-Mufassil and
without believing in it, the faith of Muslim is incomplete.
• The Prophet was sitting in the company of some people, Jibraeel came and asked, "What is
faith?" Allah's Messenger replied, 'Faith is to believe in Allah, His angels, His Books,
Messengers, the Last Day and in divine Preordainment, both the good and bad of it."
• Everything is ordained by Allah and he determines the fate of every individual in the universe.
• The word ‘Qadar’ means the predistination of Allah and the word ‘Qadha’ means decree.
• “Indeed We have created everything with predestination.” (54:49)
• Allah has stored the details of everything that will ever happen in a tablet, the Lauh-e-Mehfooz.
• Every soul to ever exist took an oath at Alam-e-Arwah and there, details about a person’s
livelihood, marriage, death, and what good and bad they do were decided.
• Predestination is the belief that everything happens on the command of Allah, his knowledge
encompasses everything.
• Allah, the all-knowing has control over all aspects of this universe and everything thats within.
o “Allah has encompassed all things in knowledge.” (65:12)
o “Whenever He wills a thing, He just commands it ‘Be’ and it is.” (36:82)
• Shayateen can only do evil, Angels are can only do good and can’t sin, Humans can do both
and are given a chance to choose their way wisely by being guided by Messengers, Books,
and their own common sense. This is why they are the supreme beings.
• Believing in predestination doesn’t mean humans don’t have a choice; If a person reads dua
before leaving his house, he may not be in an accident which he may have been in had he not
read the dua. This is an example of “Taqdeer-e-Muallaq”, which can be changed with
invocation.
• But it also doesn’t mean we have complete free will either; If it is predetermined by Allah that
this individual will have an accident at that specific time, no matter what he does, he will have
an accident and his free will does not play a role in that. This is known as “Taqdeer-e-
Mubram”, and cannot be changed with invocation.
• We are not 100% bound, the Prophet said: “Invocation can even alter your destiny.”
• Someone asked Ali about predestination to which Ali replied, “Lift your right leg” the man did it
and then he was told “that is free will”. Then Ali said to “lift the other as well.” which obviously
the man could not to which Ali replied, “That is your predestination.”
• Predestination and decree are an essential part of Muslim faith. Without belief in it, one cannot
be considered a Muslim.
Jihad
• Jihad’s literal meaning is to struggle or exert oneself to achieve a particular goal.
• In Islamic terms, Jihad is a struggle in the way of Allah to achieve righteousness and shun evil.
• The scope of Jihad is very broad, it isn’t just limited to physical fighting, that’s just one method.
• Broadly, Jihad is classified into two types:
o Greater Jihad (Jihad Al-Akbar).
o Lesser Jihad (Jihad Al- Asghar).
• Jihad can also be divided into:
o Jihad bin Nafs (Greater Jihad, Spiritual):
▪ This is when a muslim makes a special effort to be a pure muslim, or fights
against his or her own selfish desires.
▪ It’s every Muslims personal struggle to obey Allah, follow shari’ah and become a
better Muslim.
▪ It is a tough spiritual struggle, lasts throughout a lifetime, and affects every
aspect of life.
▪ The Prophet said: “The greatest Jihad is to fight against the evil passions of
oneself.”
o Jihad bil Lisan (Lesser Jihad, Physical):
▪ This is the Jihad of the tongue (speaking and upholding the truth) and speaking
against what is wrong and immoral.
▪ It also includes spreading the word of Allah and the teachings of Islam.
▪ The Prophet said: “The best jihad in the path of Allah is a word of justice to an
oppressive ruler.”
o Jihad bil Yad (Lesser Jihad, Physical):
▪ This is also known as Jihad by the hand.
▪ It refers to choosing to do what is right and to combat injustice and what is wrong
with action.
▪ It is to stand up for what is right.
o Jihad bil Maal (Lesser Jihad, Physical):
▪ This Jihad refers to using ones financial resources in the way of Allah.
▪ Examples include improving the social conditions of the people around one and
helping the needy.
o Jihad bis Saif (Lesser Jihad, Physical):
▪ This is the Jihad by the sword and refers to Qital (armed conflict) in Allah’s way.
▪ Qital is done to remove hindrances in the propagation of Islam, not impose Islam.
▪ This term has been exploited and misused as a ‘Holy War.’
▪ It must be fought only as a last resort when all other options are explored and
exhausted.
• Military Jihad:
o It’s justified if it will bring about freedom from tyranny, restore peace, combat
oppression, or correct injustice. According to the Qur’an, if the enemy ceased hostilities
and sought peace, Muslims were to seek peace as well.
o “If your enemy inclines towards peace, then you should seek peace and trust in Allah.”
(8:61)
o Waging war to convert people to Islam at the point of a sword is not allowed in Islam.
o “Let there be no compulsion in Religion.” (2:256)
o The Prophet laid down various rules of engagement in Military Jihad:
▪ Jihad must be in the name of Allah and according to His will.
▪ The Muslims were instructed to fight in self defense and not to be the first ones to
initiate fighting. Jihad should not be undertaken to gratify one’s whims.
▪ “Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress. Indeed. Allah
does not like transgressors.” (2:190)
▪ The sick, elderly, women and children should not be harmed.
▪ The natural world (trees, animals) must not be damaged
▪ Places of worship e.g. Churches, synagogues are not be demolished.
▪ The prisoners of war shall not be tortured.