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The true faithful Muslim believes in the following principal articles
of faith:
1. Belief in one God (Allah), Supreme
and Eternal, Infinite and Mighty, Merciful and Forgiving, the Creator
and the Provider, He begets not, nor was He begotten, and there
is none equal or comparable unto Him.
2. Belief in all Messengers of Allah
(Ar-Rusul) without any discrimination among them, as every known nation
had a Warner or Messenger from Allah. They were chosen by Allah to
teach humanity and deliver His Divine message. The Qur'aan mentions the
names of some of them, and Muhammad (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
stands as the Last Messenger and the crowning glory of the foundation
of prophethood.
3. Belief in all original scriptures and
revelations of Allah(Al-Kutub), accepting them as the guiding
light that the messengers received to show their respective people
the right path to Him. In the Qur'aan, special reference is made
to the books of Abraham, Moses, David and Jesus ('alaihimus salaam),
but long before the revelation of the Qur'aan to Muhammad (sallAllahu
'alaihi wa sallam) some of these books and revelations had been
lost or corrupted. The only authentic and complete book of Allah
in existence today is the Qur'aan, which has been preserved as it
was revealed to Prophet Muhammad (sallAllahu 'alaihi wa sallam)
in its pristine, pure form.
4. Belief in the Angels (malaa-ikah) of
Allah, recognizing them as spiritually pure and splendid
beings whose nature requires no food, drink or sleep. They are honored
servants who are assigned certain functions, and spend their days
and nights in the worship of Allah. They do not speak before Allah
does, and they act only by His command.
5. Belief in the Last Day (Yaum
Al-Qiyaamah) and the Hereafter
(Al-Aakhirah), acknowledging that this world will end someday, and that
the dead will rise to stand for their final and fair trial. People with
good records will be generously rewarded and warmly welcomed to the
Heaven of Allah, and those with bad records will be punished and cast
into Hell and none will be treated with injustice.
6. Belief in Fate (Qadr), whether
good or bad, which Allah, measured and ordained for all creation
according to His previous knowledge, and as deemed suitable by His
wisdom. And in the timeless knowledge of Allah, and in His power
to plan and execute His plans, nothing could happen in His Kingdom
against His will. His knowledge and power which are always in action
command over His creation. He is Wise and Merciful, and whatever
he does must have a meaningful purpose. If this is established in
our minds and hearts, we should accept with good faith all that
He does, although we may fail to understand it fully, or think it
is bad.
Faith without action and practice
is a dead end as far as Islam is concerned, for faith by nature
is very sensitive and can be most influential. When it is out of
practice or out of use, it quickly loses its liveliness and
motivational power.
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