This is Introduction about Islam from the fantastic book:
THE LIGHT
OF
ISLAM
MUHAMMAD ALI ALKHULI
INTRODUCTION
TO ALL LOVERS OF TRUTH
Some individuals through out the world have not heard of the word Islam. Some others have heard of the word Islam, but know nothing about what it stands for. Some know only a little about the religion of Islam. Some have received distorted ideas about Islam. To all these individuals and to those interested in knowing more about the religion of Islam, it is hoped that this site will be helpful.
Islam, not Muhammadanism
Some historians in the west call Islam Muhammadanism. But Islam is Islam and not Muhammadanism. A believer in Islam is called A Muslim and not Muhammadan. Those who mislabel Islam as Muhammadanism do this in analogy to Christianity, Confucianism, and Buddhism, which are called after Christ, Confucius, and Buddha respectively.
The literal Meaning of Islam
The root of the word Islam is silm, i.e., peace, which denotes peace with God and Man. Further, Islam means submission to God and obedience to His orders. In this sense, Islam is the religion of all prophets, who submitted to the word of Allah, i.e., God.
Islam as the Last Religion
Islam is the last religion revealed by Allah. Not only that, but it is an all-inclusive one: a Muslim must believe in all religions revealed before Islam. The Holy Quran ( 2:136 ) mentions: "Say we believe in Allah and that which has been revealed to us and which was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and in that which was given to Moses and Jesus and in that which was given to the prophets from their Lord; we make no difference between any of them and unto Him we have surrendered ." (1)
Islam and Other Religions
A Muslim believes in all prophets and all Revealed Books, because Islam includes all revealed religions. And this one of the characteristics of Islam.
Islam is thus the last religion and an all-inclusive religion. Further, it is the perfect expression of the Divine Will. In the Holy Quran ( 5:3 ), there is "This day have I perfected for your religion and completed My favor on you, and chosen for you Islam as a religion."
Islam and Morality
Revealed religion is a force in the moral development of man. All noble ideals are initiated or reinforced by religion and all international problems are caused by going away from true religion. All the ideals of honesty, truth-telling, loyalty, sympathy for the weak, and dozens of other moral and ethical ideals are established by religion: by Abraham, Moses, Christ, and Muhammad, peace be upon them. All social, ethical, or political crises are caused by going against religion. To take an example, let us examine racial discrimination. There is no revealed religion that allows such discrimination. All revealed religions in their true forms are based on brotherhood and love.
Islam and world Unity
Islam is the greatest unifying force in the world. It is a religion to all humans regardless of color, race, and language. It is a religion that tolerates other religions and orders its followers to respect and protect all humans. It is a religion of moderation and thus devoid of any extremism. It is a religion of practicality and simplicity. It is a religion of fraternity of all humans. Islam has never created the problems of imperialism or racial discrimination, which are created by some non-Islamic countries when they left religion aside and sought for gold and power regardless of ideals.
Islam as a Spiritual Force
Islam is the greatest spiritual force. It has never happened in history that a country has occupied territories twenty times as large as its own in twenty years and its religion and language have spread into those territories since then as it happened in the case of Arabia at the advent of Islam fourteen centuries ago. The purpose of Muslims in those days was not to imperialize or invade for collecting spoils. The purpose was spreading Islam only. Muslims did not utilize occupied countries for economic or selfish advantages. The proof is simple: most occupied countries remained Islamic and never thought or tried to rebel. All citizens were equal under Islam regardless of color, race, and religion. This explains how many racial minorities and religious minorities lived in the Muslim world in security and safety. Even the Jews, who usurped Palestine to establish so-called Israel and rendered millions of Muslims and Christians homeless, still live in some Islamic countries in security as they did for thousands of years.
Islam and Moderation
Islam is a religion of moderation. It strikes a balance between spiritualism and materialism, a balance between the spirit and the body, and a balance between individualism and collections.
Thus Islam has solved the problems of the world. No people or race is superior all men are from Adam and Eve. As a result, there is no room for racial superiority. No man is superior to other men except in piety and good deeds. No man is to be worshipped, no matter who he is. Therefore, there is no room for deifying humans. The only being to be worshipped is the Divine Being, i.e., Allah. No human is to be obeyed if Allah is disobeyed. This means that to solve life problems, Allah's orders are to be followed first. This means that the rule in Islam is in the hands of Allah. The main source of authority is Allah's legislation. Where there is Divine legislation, man has no say.
Islam and Comprehensiveness
Islam is a comprehensive religion in the sense that it deals with all the major aspects of human life: mind, body, soul, economy, family, politics, ethics, penal laws, worship, inheritance, foods, drinks, marriage, divorce, and all the other major aspects of human life.
The reason behind the comprehensiveness of Islam is that since Islam is the last religion it must solve the main problems of man. If man is left without Allah's guidance, the result is chaos: men do not agree on what is good and what is bad; what is good in a country may be bad in another. How can the world be brought into unity or security if people do not agree to the right and the wrong? This is why Islam made to be comprehensive. The comprehensiveness of Islam is made to be comprehensive. The comprehensiveness of Islam aims at helping man solve his own problems. It also aims at unifying the ethical values of humans in all places. It also aims at unifying all peoples and all races through unifying their ethical frame of reference.
However, it is important to add that not all the acts performed by some Muslims are Islamic, because it is a fact that Muslims vary in the degree of abiding by Islam. In other words, not all that Muslims do can be related to Islam.
(1) In Arabic, Abraham is Ibrahim, Ishmael is Isma'el, Isacc is Ishaq, Jacob is Ya'qoub, Moses is Mousa, and Jesus is 'Issa.
Typed By:
Muhammad( Website Master )
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