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Muslims: Bearers of the Banner of Truth

Muslims are the bearers of truth and good news to the world – to all of humanity, regardless of race or religion. The world may not know this, and the Muslims themselves may not realize this, but they are.

Muslims are the people who are duty-bound to bring to the world the twin-truths of Laa Ilaaha Illallah and Muhammad Rasulullah – Tauheed and Risaalat, respectively.

And these two truths – “There is no God but Allah!” and “Muhammad is the messenger of God!” – are the nucleus of human existence on earth. They constitute the essence of human life in this world – and in the next world.

They are the twin keys that can lay open the secrets of the universe to the world of human experience. For, they are the ultimate truths about the universe and creation. About reality, that is.

That means this world of ours has a maker and master. And that master is God. Almighty! Glory, glory, glory to him!

Hallelujah!

Subhaanal Malikil Quddoos!

Paraphrase: Glory to the King, the Holy!

God and His Messenger: A Connection between Heaven and Earth

In a sense, this is an abstract statement. By that I mean it pertains to the part of reality that is hidden from our senses. It belongs to the domain that the Qur’an refers to as Ghaib – the Unseen and the Unknown.

That means in the ultimate analysis the belief in the truth of this statement will have to come from inside you. Does or does not God exist, the final choice is going to be yours. It is you, all by yourself, who will have to make up your mind – on your own – one way or the other.

Nothing you see or experience in the world is going to give you one hundred percent certainty either way. Nothing will give you testable, verifiable, incontrovertible, irrefutable proof, beyond a shadow of doubt, as scientists would say, about the existence or non-existence of God.

At some point in your life and in the course of your search, you will have to close your eyes and say: Yes, I believe! He is out there and I know it. Nothing will make me believe otherwise.

That final and categorical assertion will have to come from deep down in your own soul.

It also means Muhammad, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, is the connection between God in heaven and human beings on earth. May God Almighty bless him and all the other prophets and messengers of God such as Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Solomon, David and Joseph. That is what it means to say: Muhammad Rasulullah!

Muhammad the Messenger of God: Combining Abstract with Concrete

This second declaration has elements of both the abstract and concrete in it. It is the connection between heaven and earth.

To the extent it refers to God and to Muhammad Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam‘s divine messengership and prophethood, it belongs to the realm of Ghaib that lies beyond the purview of our senses.

But when the focus shifts to the earthly facts and realities of Muhammad, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, as a historic individual who occupied certain known space-time coordinates in this world, this statement falls squarely within the realm of the visible and the verifiable.

It becomes the property of human experience.

That means no reasonable person can deny that Muhammad, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, existed in this world 1400 years ago as surely and certainly as you and I exist today. It also means that no one can seriously doubt or question the validity of the fact that he did all the wonderful things that historical records indicate he did.

As a result, this particular aspect of this statement belongs to the world, not of Ghaib, but of what the Qur’an calls Shahaadah – that is, the visible and manifest world; a world that you can see with the naked eye as it were; a world that is open to investigation and verification using our senses.

It means a world whose presence or absence and the details of whose nature and character in this world can be attested and testified to by our own senses, logic, analysis, data and facts.

Some Implications of of Tauheed

The assertion that there is no God but God has some serious implications. Among them are the following:

1. This world has a maker and it did not come into being all by itself. And the maker of the world is who you refer to as God Almighty. Also, God is where the buck of this reasoning stops. He is the point at which the story of creation comes to an end. Therefore, the question “Who created God?” does not make sense because God is the point where all creation ends.

2. God is the repository of all beautiful names and attributes.

3. God is one in whom all wonderful qualities converge – an infinite number of them, each infinite in its own right. As a result, God can neither be fully comprehended nor adequately described. He is exactly what he says he is. Not an iota more, not a whit less.

   As the Qur’an says: Wa lahul asmaa-ul husnaa. Paraphrase: To him belong all beautiful, pure and perfect names and attributes in their most perfect sense.

4. There is nothing and no one like him. Or in the words of the Qur’an: Laiysa kamithlihee shaiy.

5. Therefore, it does not matter by what name you call him, so long as that name is beautiful; so long as it reflects purity and perfection to an infinite degree; and so long as you are clear in your mind that it is him you are referring to, and not to this or that petty creature or concoction or apparition of your own desire, imagination or creativity.

6. After this it is only logical and sensible to assume – to believe, that is – that such a God in whom all perfection, purity and beauty inhere, and who creates everything and who is not created by anything or anyone, can only be one. There cannot be two such Gods, or a whole multiplicity of such Gods, each more perfect, more complete, more beautiful, more loving, more wonderful than the other.

   That is a contradiction in terms. For, God is the one beyond whom your thinking tires, atrophies and dies. That is why the Qur’an says: “Qul Huwallahu Ahad.” Paraphrase: “Say, he, God, is one.”

   For, he cannot be two or three or more. Elsewhere the Qur’an says: Laa shareeka lahu. Paraphrase: He has no associates or partners.

   How can he, given all we have said thus far? It would make no sense.

7. God Almighty, by virtue of his being the only designer, maker, keeper and provider of this world, is also its sole owner, master and proprietor. No one else can lay claim to true ownership of any part or aspect of this world.

Some Implications of Risaalat

As we said earlier “Muhammad Rasulullah!” is the connection between heaven and earth. It is the link that connects God to his creation. And it has a wide range of implications, among which are the following:

1. Prophet Muhammad, Sallallahu Alaihi wa Sallam, is God’s messenger to God’s creation.

2. He is the source from which the world must derive its ultimate and real knowledge of the world.

3. He is the one the world must take as its guide, example and role model in all aspects of its life, both individual and collective.

4. The world must accept his leadership and authority in all matters of importance to it, from the most mundane to the most spiritual.

5. Those who accept him as God’s messenger to the world and therefore as their leader, guide and example, must dedicate their lives to doing what he did during the course of his own life and mission on earth.

For example, they must devote themselves to:

i. Serve God’s creation on earth in every way they can;

ii. Help their parents, relatives, neighbors and others in every way possible;

iii. Feed the hungry, comfort the sick and assist the needy

iv. Go to the aid of the downtrodden and the oppressed;

v. Work tirelessly to educate the community and uplift the society as a whole;

vi. Help society to combat crime and corruption at all levels;

vii. Invite humanity to God and to his messenger;

viii. Spread the message of love, peace, justice and equality around the world; and

ix. Do everything in their power to take the Qur’an to every home and heart that needs it.

END

Copyright © Syed Husain Pasha

 

Write to the author at DrSyedPasha@aol.com

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