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What
is Tawheed?
from the 'Invitation to Islam' Newsletter, Issue 1, May 1997.
Quick Navigation:-
1.What is Tawheed?
2. The Reality of Tawheed
3. The Unity of Allaah's Worship
4. The Unity of Allaah's Names and Attribute
5. The Unity of Allaah's Worship
6. Footnotes
The word Tawheed has by the grace of Allah, become
a word which is well known amongst the Muslims of today. But do we really know
the reality of this word?
'What is tawheed?' you ask any Muslim 'Is it
the oneness of Allah?' he would reply 'What's that?' You ask again. 'I'm not too
sure' he would say. This is the kind of scenario which the Muslims are involved
in, and what a sad state of affairs it is when we cannot even explain the basics
of our religion to those around us.
Some of us are so dedicated to completing our
studies, that we engross ourselves in the textbooks for hours. Others of us love
the western culture and lifestyle so much, that we can mimic and relay the words
of non-Muslims to such an extent that we even start to quote chapter and verse
from the latest Hollywood blockbuster! Yet upon being asked 'What is Tawheed?
' our tongues fall silent.
The cure for ignorance is knowledge, and in order
to cure ourselves we have to take time-out to learn about this beautiful religion,
even if it means reading articles such as this!
It is true that tawheed is simply the oneness
of Allah, yet at the same time it is something which is so vividly explained in
our religion, that it is a life long quest for knowledge. The detailed nature
of tawheed is something which unfortunately, is not known by the majority of the
Muslims and this is why you find many Muslims saying that Christianity and Judaism,
like Islam, are monotheistic[1] religions. Yet if these Muslims were to truly
learn about Islam they would discover that religions such as Christianity and
Judaism are forms of idol-worship, which are far from being similar to Islam.
The Reality of Tawheed
Linguistically the word tawheed means unification
(to make something one). However Islamically it is in reference to Allah being
singled out alone, in all that is particular to him. The opposite of tawheed is
'Shirk' which is to associate partners with Allah by giving that which belongs
to him, to others.[2]
Traditionally tawheed has been divided into three
categories which help us to understand why Allah alone deserves to be singled
out for worship. The division of tawheed into these three categories was something
which was not done by the prophet of Allah (saws) or any of his companions. So
is this something new that has been introduced into the religion (bida[3])? The
answer to this is no, because we find that the basis of these three categories
are to be found in the verses of the Qur'aan, hadeeth [authenticated reports]
of the prophet (saws) and the statements of his companions.
The necessity for dividing up tawheed into three
categories first came about during the early days of Islam. After the death of
the prophet (saws) Islam spread like wildfire and before long the empires of Africa,
Byzantium, Persia and India all fell under Muslim rule. Many people from these
areas became Muslims. However some of these converts to Islam also carried with
them some of their old pagan beliefs. This caused much confusion amongst people,
and the simple belief of Islam which the people had accepted, started to become
clouded. The task of opposing these new thoughts and ideas which were becoming
prevalent, fell upon the shoulders of the Muslim scholars, who rose to meet this
challenge intellectually. Amongst the first people to divide tawheed into three
categories was the famous scholar of Iraq, Abu Haneefah.[4]
Before mentioning what these three categories
are, it has to be stressed that the concept of tawheed is in no way similar to
the Christian concept of trinity except the fact that they both begin with the
letter 'T'!! The division of tawheed does not divide Allah up into three separate
parts (as does trinity), but rather it helps us to understand as
to how our Creator is unique and alone in being singled out for worship and reverence.
Unfortunately there are some Christians today[5] who seem to forget this fact
and continue to spread lies about the meaning of the tawheed of Allah.
The Unity of Allah's Lordship
This first category of tawheed is known as tawheed-ur
Ruboobeeyah or the unity of Allah's lordship. Through this we understand that
it is Allah who alone created the universe which is why one of his divine names
is AlKhaliq (the Creator). Through this we know that it is Allah alone who controls
the universe and allows things to happen. This is why Allah refers to himself
in the Qur'aan as AI-Malik (The Owner of the universe). Hence when something happens,
it only happens with the permission of Allah:
"And no calamity strikes except with the
permission of Allah"
(Surah At-Taghabun 64:11)
The prophet Muhammed (saws) further elaborated
on this concept of Allah's control over the universe by saying: "Be aware
that if the whole of mankind gathered together in order to do something to help
you they would only be able to do something for you which Allah had already written
for you. Likewise, if the whole of mankind gathered together to harm you, they
would only be able to do something to harm you which Allah had already written
to happen to you". [7]
We know that another name, which Allah chooses
to call himself by, is Ar-Razzaq (the Sustainer). It is Allah who provides us
with our food, shelter, clothing, families and friends. When our crops seem to
be dying and there is not a cloud in sight, it is Allah who sends down His rain
from the skies and sustains us.
"Allah created all things and He is the
agent upon which all things depend"
(Surah Az-Zumar 39:62)
From this you would expect that people would
turn back to Allah for good or bad fortune. However this is not the case. Today
we find people relying on all kinds of good luck charms[9], which they believe
will bring them good fortune and ward off evil.
Unfortunately, this selfish act of turning away
from the favours of Allah has hit the Muslims hard, we find in many of our societies
that the Muslims believe in all kinds of superstitions and good luck charms such
as the Tawees (amulet). These practices have absolutely no basis whatsoever
in Islam, but rather the prophet (saws) warned us by saying: "Whosoever
brings something new into Islam, something which does not belong to it, will have
it rejected".[10]
The Unity of Allah's names and Attributes
This category of tawheed is known as Tawheed-al-Asma
Wa-Siffaat or the unity of Allah's name and attributes. Allah says in the
Qur'aan:
"Allah there is no god but be. To Him belong
the most beautiful names"
(Surah Ta-Ha 20:8)
This category of tawheed helps us to understand
who our Creator is through His Names and Attributes. Through His Names and Attributes
we know that Allah is far beyond our imagination and bears no resemblance to human
beings. In fact it is this principle which makes Islam unique from all the other
religions on the face of this earth. Allah says in the Qur'aan:
"There is nothing like Him and He hears
and sees all things"
(Surah Ash-Shura 42:11)
It is in this verse that a distinction is made
between those who truly worship their Creator and those who worship the creation.
The most prominent example of this is that of the Christians. They claim that
Jesus (as) was God, this negates the Tawheed of Allah's Names and Attributes because
it degrades the Creator (whom the Christians say was Jesus) to the level of human
beings and gives Him those weaknesses which humans possess. It is known from the
bible that Jesus ate, drank, felt tired, slept and did all the things which normal
humans do. So how is it right for the Christians to say that god lowered himself
to the level of humans? As Muslims we say 'Allah is above such imperfection' (subhanallah)
and rather it is us weak humans who need to turn to this perfect lord and
Creator.
The Unity of Allah's Worship
This part of tawheed is known as tawheed-al-eebadah
or the unity of Allah's worship. It is this aspect of tawheed which it could
be said is the most important. It is through this that we learn how to worship
our Creator alone. Allah is not the kind of god who does not respond or
hear your calls. He is not the kind of god who needs some sort of middleman to
take our prayers up to Him. Rather Allah says:
"And your lord said : Call on me and I
will answer you"
(Surah Ghafir 40:60)
There is nothing to prevent a person from calling
directly upon Allah and asking for His help and forgiveness. Unfortunately this
is violated by most of mankind who believe that other men can intercede for them
and even grant them forgiveness because of their apparent special status! An example
of this is the Catholic religion which holds that the celibate priests are more
purer then normal people. This allows for them to then hear the confessions of
people's sins and subsequently grant them forgiveness. It is this kind of behaviour
which takes a person away from the worship of Allah to the worship of man.
As Muslims we too should be careful of this,
because it seems that many of our brothers and sisters are indulging in this kind
of evil and are not even aware of it. How many Muslims are there today who call
upon others besides Allah? We find that in countries such as Pakistan and India
there are millions of Muslims who go to the graves of 'saints' and ask them for
children, wealth, fame and more sadly, forgiveness. What makes this more ironic
is the fact that many of these Muslims pray five times a day, and in every rakat
(unit) of their prayer they say the following to their Creator:
"You alone do we worship and You alone
do we seek help from"
(Surah Al-Fatiha 1:4)
Learning about the tawheed of Allah is the most
important thing for the whole of humanity. For if we learn how to trust and worship
our Creator with sincerity, then -and only then- will we escape from the slavery
and captivity of this life. By worshipping Allah alone does a man achieve true
peace and success. This is the reason why when the adhaan[15] is called, the muezzin[16]
says "Haya alal Falaa" (come to success). And we ask Allah to
make us amongst those who go to this success. Ameen
Footnotes
1 Monotheistic - The belief in one God
2 The topic of Shirk will be dealt with in the next issue, Inshallah
3 Bida - The Arabic word for innovation (something new broughtinto
the religion)
4 Abu Haneefah an-Nu'man ibn Thabit was born in Kufah (Iraq) in the year
700 CE. He made his living as a cloth merchant, but devoted his entire life to
studying and teaching Islam. His refusal to he appointed the judge of Kufah resulted
in him being imprisoned and incurring punishment. He died in the year 767 CE in
prison. His rulings and reasoning became the basis of the Hanafite school of Islamic
law.
5 One of these Christians is a man by the name of Joseph Smith. Smith is
on a continuous crusade against Islam and is a regular preacher in Hyde Park (London).
A debate between Smith and Abdur-Raheem Green, entitled "The Sources of
Islam" conducted last year shows the fallacy of Smith's lies against
Islam.
6 Surah At-Taghaabun 64:11
7 At-Tirmidhee
8 Surah Az-Zurnar 39:62
9 Such as four-leaf clovers, rabbits paws and horseshoes.
10 Bukhari ( Eng. Trans Vol .3 pp 535 No. 861 ) and Muslim Eng Trans Vol.
3 pp 931 No 4266
11 Surah Ta-Ha 20:8
12 Surah As-Shura 42:11
13 Surah Ghaffir 40:60
14 Surah Fatiha 1:4
15 The call to prayer
16 The one who calls to prayer
http://www.
calltoislaam. free-online. co.uk
"No calamity befalls on the earth or
in yourselves but it is inscribed in the Book of Decrees (Al-Lauh Al-Mahfuz) before
We bring it into existence. Verily, that is easy for Allaah." "In order that you
may not grieve at the things over that you fail to get, nor rejoice over that
which has been given to you. And Allaah likes not prideful boasters"
[Translation of the meaning of Surah al-Hadid,
Ayah 22-23]
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