Unity

[ابوالوليد المسلم]

Unity (1/2)

Dr. Asra Rasheed




One God
If it is accepted that there is a Creator, it is necessary to understand who He expects of human beings. The Qur’an reveals much about the nature of God, and Muhammad (peace be upon him), the final messenger to mankind, has explained in the great details the qualities and attributes of God. But to have complete knowledge of God is beyond man’s ability. Man is finite, and Allah is infinite, and Allah has revealed only limited amount of knowledge about Himself. Created beings cannot comprehend the Creator. God states:
“They (humans) cannot encompass Him (Allah) with their knowledge.” [Qur’an, Surah Ta-Ha (20):10]
Islam teaches that humans should only refer to God in terms in which He has referred to Himself. There is no scope whatsoever for inventing new ideas about Him in a matter that suits our personal opinions. Humankind must adhere to the knowledge about God as conveyed in authentic revealed text, since innovation in such matters corrupt the purity of the knowledge and will likely impart to God attributes which are not His.
Divine Mercy
One of the most prominent qualities of God, mentioned time and time again in the Qur’an and by Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in his oral traditions, is that of mercy. For example, God says:
“O my servants who have wronged your own souls.[1] Do not despair of the Mercy of Allah can forgive all sins. He is oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.” [Qur’an, Surah Az-Zumar (39):53][2]
Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was also quoted as saying, “Allah says: My mercy supersedes My wrath.” [3]
But will God shower His Mercy on every human beings on the Day of Judgement regardless of his/her deeds on earth? Much is mentioned in the Qur’an about that Day so that people can try to understand how terrible it will be. The following are a sampling of the descriptions:
“When the sky is torn apart in obedience to its Lord-as indeed it must be, the earth will be flattened, casting its content until it becomes empty in obedience to its Lord-as indeed it must be.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Inshiqaq (84):1-5]
“When the sun is enveloped in darkness, the stars will fall and the mountains will vanish...” [Qur’an, Surah At-Takwir (81):1-3]
“When the seas are burst forth.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Infitaar (82):3]
“When the earth is shaken with its [final] convulsion and it throws out its contents, man will cry out, “What is the matter with it?” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Zalzalah (99):1-3]
On this day, all of humankind will resurrected as God said: “When the graves are overturned,” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Infitaar (82):4] “and the souls will be joined with their bodies.” [Qur’an, Surah At-Takwir (81):7]
God will assemble all human beings who existed on the earth in the past, present and future:
“Remember the Day on which I will cause the mountains to vanish and you will see the earth flattened. I will gather them all together without any of them behind.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Kahf (18):47]
God will then judge men and women for what they did in his life:
“I have fastened every human’s deed around his neck and on the Day of Resurrection I will bring out a book for him, which he will find wide open. He will be told, “Read your book. Today your own self is enough to hold to account.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Isra' (17):13-14]
Shirk [Idolatry]
On that day, only a few will receive God’s mercy. Most will not warrant God’s mercy and forgiveness because they indulged in the great sin of inventing lies against the Creator. The biggest of these lies against God is that of assigning Him partner who helped or helps Him create, govern, sustain, or judge His creatures. The severity of the assigning partners to God is so immense that it is the only unforgivable sin. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) explained:
“Allah says: The descendants of Adam tell lies against Me through they have no right to do so, and they abuse Me, though they have no right to do so. As for telling a lie against Me, it is their claim that I cannot re-create them as I created them before (on earth). And as for abusing Me, it is their claim that I have a son. No, Glorified be Me! I am far beyond taking a wife or a son...”[4]

(Continued)

[1] Because the harm of committing sins ultimately affects the sinner, God refers to it as wronging oneself.

[2] See also Surah An-Nisa’, 4:110

[3] Sahih Muslim, vol. 4 no. 6627

[4] Sahih Al-Bukhari, vol. 6, no.9.

[ابوالوليد المسلم]

Unity (2/2)

Dr. Asra Rasheed




Giving Allah a partner is a derogation of His Magnificence
The Qur’an appeals to human logic in its explanation of why Allah cannot have partners.
“Allah did not give birth to a son nor is there any God besides Him. [If there were], each god would have become an independent ruler over it creation and some would have tried to over-rule others! May Allah be exalted above all they attribute to Him.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Mu'minun (23):91]
If there were to be a partner with Him, then the power would be shared between them and neither would have complete authority. This is turn would lead to irresolvable disagreement and chaos. Such corruption is not fitting for the majesty of the Creator. Consequently, the Qur’an offers a further logical argument for the absolute unity of God.
“It is not fitting that Allah give birth to a son. May he be exalted above all they associate with Him. When He decides something, He only tells it, “Be” and it is.” [Qur’an, Surah Maryam (19):35]
“(He is) the originator of the heavens and the earth. How could He have a son when He had no wife? He created everything and is aware of all things.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-An’am (6):101]
These and other similar verses[1] confirm the omnipotence of God. Whatever He wishes, He commands in into existence. Its existence does not require the process of process of procreation as in the case of His creatures. Allah does not “beget” because He alone has the power to create from nothing.
Whereas humans and animals beget-they cannot create themselves. The gravity of the insult of attributing a son or a partner of God is so immense that Allah describes it in the responses of the heavens, the earth, and the mountains.
“Indeed you made an evil claim almost causing the heavens to tear, the earth to crack and the mountains to fall in ruins. To claim that the Most Beneficent [Allah] has a son when it is not fitting that the Most Beneficent should have a son!” [Qur’an, Surah Maryam (19):89-92]
According to the teachings of Islam, God created Jesus, son of Mary, without a father. His was virgin birth, a miracles and a sign from God. But the Qur’an reminds humankind that Allah also created Adam without a father or mother.
“The example of Jesus, in Allah’s sight, is like that of Adam. He created him from dust, then told him, “Be!” and he was. This is the truth from your Lord, so do not be among the doubtful.” [Qur’an, Surah Al-‘Imran (3):59-60]
The Qur’an repeatedly refers to the vastness of Allah’s creation in order for humans to realise that if He can creates all this splendour and diversity by a mere command, there should be no difficulty for Him to create a man without a father. The Qur’an emphasizes in great details the supreme and absolute unity of God because any compromise of that unity is the gravest of sins.
“Indeed, Allah does not forgive the worshipping of other besides Him, but He forgives sins less than that for whoever He wishes. And whoever worships others besides Allah has certainly invented a tremendous sin.” [Qur’an, Surah An-Nisa' (4):48]
By informing humankind about gravest sin and the reason for its gravity they are given a chance to rid themselves of this sin. They may invoke Allah’s mercy and carefully avoid the unforgivable crime of worshipping others besides Allah. If this is sincerely done, they become among those who deserve to receive God’s forgiveness on the Day of Judgement. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:
“Allah says: “O son of Adam, as long as you call upon Me [Alone] and ask of Me, I will forgive you of whatever you have done-regardless. O son of Adam, even if your sins reached the clouds and you and you met Me, I would forgive you .O son of Adam, if you came to Me with sins of nearly as great as the earth and you met Me without worshipping anyone besides Me, I would grant you forgiveness nearly as great as the earth.”[2]
The Day of Judgement
The other categories of damned people are those who do not believe in the Day of Judgement.
“They say, ‘There is no other life besides our present life in this world and we will never be resurrected.’ ” [Qur’an, Surah Al-An'am (6):29]
These people mockingly question the belief of another life after death.
“They say, ‘What! We will be raised up after being reduced to bones and dust?’ ” [Qur’an, Surah Al-Isra' (17):49]
The Qur’an answers their mockery with divine wisdom.
“The real losers are those who denied their meeting with Allah until the Hour suddenly catches them and they say, ‘It is too bad for us that we gave it no thought.’ They will bear burdens on their backs and burdens they will bear will certainly be evil.”[Qur’an, Surah Al-An'am (6):31]
Islam teaches that God allows everyone to see his signs so that they may contemplate and reflect, seek out the reason for existence, and then believe in Him. Despite self-evident divine mercies, most humans continue to reject them. May deny their meetings with God on the Day of Judgement and others ultimately deny existence of God Himself.
“I will show them My signs in the universe and in their own selves, until it becomes manifest to them that this is the truth. Is it not enough that your Lord witnesses all things! Indeed, they are doubt about the meeting with their Lord. It is He who surrounds everything.” [Qur’an, Surah Fussilat (41):53-54]


[1] See Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:117; Surah Ya-Sin, 36:82; Surah Ghafir, 40:68

[2] At Tirmidhi, An Nawawi’s Forty Hadith, No.4