The Deen (Religion) of Islam
The Deen (religion) of Islam: It is the way of life that Allah (The One & Only God) sent the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) with. By it, Allah (The One God) terminated the validity of all other religions, perfected this religion for His worshippers, completed His favor upon them and has chosen only this religion for them - no other religion will be accepted by Him from anyone. Allah - the Most High - said:
"Muhammad is not the father of any man amongst you. Rather he is the Messenger of Allah and the Khatam (last and final) of the Prophets." [Noble Quran 33:40].
"This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion." [Noble Quran 5:3]
"Indeed the religion with Allah is Islam." [Noble Quran 3:19]
"Whosoever seeks a religion other than Islam, never will it be accepted from him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the losers." [Noble Quran 3:85]
And Allah - the Most High - obligated all of mankind to take Islam as their religion. So Allah (The One God) said, whilst addressing His Messenger peace and blessings be upon him:
"Say: O Mankind! Indeed I have been sent to you all as the Messenger of Allah; to Whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. None has the right to be worshipped except Him; it is He who gives life and cause death. So believe in Allah and His Messenger - the Prophet who can neither read nor write - who believes in Allah and His Words. So follow the Messenger of Allah so that you may be rightly-guided." [Noble Quran 7:158]
And in Sahih Muslim (1/93), from Abu Hurairah that Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said: "By Him in whose Hand is the life of Muhammad! There is no one from this nation, be he a Jew or a Christian, who hears of me and dies whilst not having Iman (faith) in what I have been sent with, except that he will be one of the companions of the Hellfire."
And Iman (faith) in the Prophet implies: affirming that which he was sent with, along with acceptance of it and submission to it. Without these two matters, mere affirmation is not sufficient. This is why even though Abu Talib (the Prophet's uncle) affirmed what was sent to the Prophet peace be upon him and that Islam was the best of religions, yet he did not accept his message nor submit to it; and thus he did not have Iman in the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him).
The religion of Islam contains all that was beneficial from the previous religions. It is suitable for implementation in any age, any where and by any nation. Allah – the One & Only God - said, whilst addressing His Messenger (peace be upon him):
"And We have sent down to you the Book in truth, confirming the Scripture that came before it, testifying to the truth contained therein whilst exposing the falsehood that has been added therein." [Noble Quran 5:48]
That Islam is suitable for implementation in any age, any where and by any nation does not mean that it becomes submissive to nations - being altered and changed by them - as some people falsely think. But rather it means that whenever it is truly adhered to then it brings benefit and goodness to that nation, as well as reforming and correcting it - in whatever age or place.
The religion of Islam is the religion of truth. It is the way of life that Allah – the One God - guaranteed His help and victory to those who truly adhere to it, and that He would make it dominant over all other religions. Allah – the One God - said:
"It is He who has sent His Messenger with the guidance and the religion of truth, that it may prevail over all other religions, even if the pagans detest it." [Noble Quran 9:33]
And Allah – the One & Only God - said:
"Allah has promised to those amongst you who truly have Iman (true faith and belief) and act in obedience to Allah and His Messenger, that He will grant them ruler ship upon the earth, just as He granted it to those before them, and that He will establish their Religion for them and grant them the authority to practice their Religion which He chose and ordered them with. And He will certainly change their situation to one of security, after their fear. Providing that they worship and obey Me, not associating anything else in worship with Me. Then, whoever rejects this favor by disobedience to their Lord - then they are the rebellious transgressors." [Noble Quran 24:55]
The religion of Islam is a complete religion comprising both 'Aqidah (beliefs) and Shari'ah (laws).
It commands them with taw heed (to single out Allah alone for worship) and prohibits them from shirk (associating partners with Allah, in that which is particular to Him).
It commands them with being truthful and prohibits them from lying.
It commands them with 'Adl (justice) and prohibits them from injustice and oppression.
It commands them with fulfilling trusts and prohibits them from acting treacherously.
It commands them keeping promises and prohibits them from breaking them.
It commands them with kindness and good treatment of parents and prohibits them from disobedience to them in that which is not sinful.
It commands them with joining the ties of relations and prohibits them from severing them.
It commands them with good treatment of neighbors and prohibits the causing of harm to them.
In short, Islam orders all that is good, from manners and morals, and prohibits all that is evil from it. Likewise, it orders all actions which are righteous and good and prohibits all actions that are evil and harmful. Allah – the One & Only God - said:
"Indeed Allah enjoins upon you justice, kindness and the giving of good to relatives and near ones. And He prohibits you from all shameful and evil deeds, oppression and transgression. Thus He admonishes you, that you may take heed and be reminded." [Noble Quran 16:90]
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ALL RELIGIONS TEACH PEOPLE TO BE RIGHTEOUS, THEN WHY ONE SHOULD FOLLOW ISLAM !
All religions basically teach followers to do good deeds.. Why should a person
only follow Islam? Can he not follow any of the religions?
By-Dr Zakir Naik..
1. Major difference between Islam and most other religions
All religions basically exhort mankind to be righteous and eschew evil. But Islam goes beyond that. It guides us towards practical ways of achieving righteousness and eliminating evil from our individual and collective lives. Islam takes into account human nature and the complexities of human society. Islam is guidance from the Creator Himself. Therefore, Islam is also called the Deenul- Fitrah (the natural religion of Man).
2. Example - Islam commands us to shun robbery and also
prescribes method of eliminating robbery
a. Islam prescribes method of eliminating robbery
All major religions teach that theft is an evil act. Islam teaches the same.. So what is the difference between Islam and the other religions? The difference lies in the fact that Islam, besides teaching that robbing is evil, shows a practical way of creating a social structure in which people will not rob.
b. Islam prescribes Zakat
Islam prescribes a system of Zakat (obligatory annual charity). Islamic law prescribes that every person who has a saving that exceeds the nisab level i.e.. more than 85 grams of gold, should give 2.5% of that saving every lunar year in charity. If every rich person in the world gave Zakat sincerely, poverty will be eradicated from this world. Not a single human being would die of hunger.
c. Chopping off the hands as punishment for robbery
Islam prescribes chopping off the hands of the convicted robber. The Glorious Qur'an says in Surah Maidah:
"As to the thief, male or female, cut off his or her hands, a punishment by way of example, from Allah, for their crime: and Allah is Exalted in power, full of wisdom."
[ Al-Qur'an 5:38]
The non-Muslim may say, "Chopping off the hands in this 20th century. Islam is a barbaric and ruthless religion!"
d. Results achieved when Islamic Shariah Implemented
America is supposed to be one of the most advanced countries in the world. Unfortunately it also has one of the highest rates of crime, theft and robbery. Suppose the Islamic shariah is implemented in America i.e. every rich person gives Zakat ( 2.5% of his savings in charity above 85 grams of gold every lunar year), and every convicted robber has his or her hands chopped off as a punishment. Will the rate of theft and robbery in America
increase, remain same or decrease? Naturally it will decrease. Moreover the existence of such a stringent law would discourage many a potential robber..
I agree that the amount of theft that takes place in the world today is so tremendous that if you chop off the hands of all the thieves, there will be tens of thousands of people whose hands will be chopped off. The point here is that the moment you implement this law the rate of theft will decline immediately. The potential robber would give it a serious thought before jeopardizing his limbs. The mere thought of the punishment itself will discourage majority of the robbers. There will barely be a few who would rob. Hence only a few person's hands would be chopped off but millions would live peacefully without fear of being robbed.
Islamic Shariah is therefore practical, and achieves results.
3. Example: Islam prohibits the molestation and rape of women. It enjoins hijab and prescribes capital punishment for a convicted rapist.
a. Islam prescribes method of eliminating molestation and rape
All the major religions declare the molestation and rape of women as grave sins. Islam teaches the same. What then is the difference between Islam and the other religions? The difference lies in the fact that Islam does not merely preach respect for women, or abhor molestation and rape as serious crimes, but also gives clear guidance as to how society can eliminate such crimes.
b. Hijab for men
Islam has a system of hijab. The Glorious Qur'an first mentions hijab for the men
and then for the women. Hijab for the men is mentioned in the following verse:
"Say to the believing men that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty: that will make for greater purity for them: and Allah is well acquainted with all that they do."
[Al-Qur'an 24:30]
The moment a man looks at a woman and if any brazen or unashamed thought comes to his mind, he should lower his gaze.
c. Hijab for women
Hijab for women is mentioned in the following verse:
"And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons...."
[Al-Qur'an 24:31]
The extent of hijab for a woman is that her complete body should be covered. The only part that can be seen, are the face and the hands up to the wrists. If they wish to cover, they can even cover these parts of the body. However some Islamic scholars insist that even the face should be covered.
d. Hijab prevents molestation
The reason why Allah (The One & Only God) has prescribed Hijab for the women is given in the Holy Qur'an in the folowing verse of Surah Al-Ahzab:
"O Prophet! Tell thy wives and daughters, and the believing women, that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad): that is most convenient, that they should be known (as such) and not molested. And Allah is Oft-Forgiving, most Merciful."
[Al-Qur'an 33:59]
The Holy Qur'an says that Hijab has been prescribed for the women so that they are recognized as modest women this would prevent them from being molested.
e. Example of twin sisters
Suppose two sisters who are twins and who are equally beautiful, walk down a street. One of them is wearing the Islamic Hijab i.e. the complete body is covered except for the face and the hands up to the wrists, and the other twin is wearing a mini skirt or shorts. Around the corner there is a hooligan who is waiting for an opportunity to tease a girl. Who will he tease? The girl wearing the Islamic Hijab or the girl wearing the mini skirt or shorts?
Dresses that expose more than they conceal, are an indirect temptation to the opposite sex for teasing, molestation and rape.
The Holy Qur'an rightly says that the hijab prevents women from being molested.
f. Capital punishment for rapist
The Islamic shariah prescribes capital punishment for a convicted rapist. The non-Muslim may be horrified at such a stringent punishment in this age. Many accuse Islam of being ruthless and barbaric. I have asked a common question to hundreds of non-Muslim men. Suppose God-forbid, some one rapes your wife, your mother or your sister and you are made the judge. The rapist is brought in front of you. What punishment would you give him? All of them said, "we would put him to death." Some went to the extent of saying, "we would torture him to death", If your wife or your mother is raped you want the rapist to be put to death. But if someone else's wife or mother is raped, capital punishment is a barbaric law. Why the double standards?
g. U.S.A. has one of the highest rate of Rape
The United States of America is supposed to be one of the most advanced countries of the world. An F.B.I report in the year 1990 says that 1,02,555 cases of rape were reported. It further says that only 16% of the cases of rapes are reported. Thus, in order to know the actual number of rapes that took place in 1990, the reported figure should be multiplied by 6.25. We get a total of 6,40,968 rape cases that took place in the year 1990. If the total is divided by 365 the number of days in a year, we get an average of 1,756 rape incidents everyday.
Later another report said that an average of 1900 cases of rape are committed in U.S.A every day. According to National Crime Victimization Survey Bureau of Justice Statistics (U. S. Dept. of Justice) in 1996 alone 3,07,000 cases of rape were reported. Only 31% of the actual cases of rape were reported. Thus, 3,07,000 X 3.226 = 9,90,322 rapes took place in 1996.
That is, an average of 2,713 cases of rape took place everyday in America in 1996. Every 32 seconds one rape is taking place in America . Maybe American rapists got bolder. The FBI report of 1990 continues and says that out of the rape cases that were reported only 10% of the rapist were arrested, that is only 1.6% of the actual rapes committed. Out of those arrested, 50% were let free before the trial. This would mean that only 0.8% of the rapists faced a trial. In other words if a person commits 125 rapes the chances that he will get a punishment for rape is only once. Many would consider this a good gamble. And the report says that of those people who faced trial 50% received sentences of less than a year's imprisonment though the American law says rape carries a seven year sentence of imprisonment. For a rapist, the judge is lenient to first time offenders. Imagine a person commits 125 rapes and the chances of being convicted is only once, and 50% of the time the judge will grant leniency and give a sentence of less than a year!
h. Results achieved when Islamic Shariah Implemented
Suppose the Islamic shariah is implemented in America . Whenever a man looks at a woman and if any brazen or unashamed thought comes to his mind, he lowers his gaze. Every woman wears the Islamic Hijab, that is the complete body is covered except the face and the hands upto the wrists. After this if any man commits rape, he gets capital punishment. The question is, will the rate of rape in America increase, will it remain the same or will it decrease? Naturally it will decrease. Islamic Shariah gets results.
4. Islam has Practical Solutions for the Problems of Mankind
Islam is the best way of life because its teachings are not doctrinaire rhetoric but practical solutions for the problems of mankind. Islam achieves results both at the individual and collective levels. Islam is the best way of life because it is a practical, universal religion not confined to any ethnic group or nationality.
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