The Shahada is the Muslim profession of faith and the first of the ‘Five Pillars’ of Islam. The word shahada in Arabic means ‘testimony.’ The shahada is to testify to two things: (a) Nothing deserves worship except God (Allah). (b) Muhammad is the Messenger of God (Allah). A Muslim is simply one who bears witness and testifies that “nothing deserves worship except God and Muhammad is the messenger of God.” One becomes a Muslim by making this simple declaration. It must be recited by every Muslim at least once in a lifetime with a full understanding of its meaning and with an assent of the heart. Muslims say this when they wake up in the morning, and before they go to sleep at night. It is repeated five times in the call to prayer in every mosque. A person who utters the shahada as their last words in this life has been promised Paradise. Many people ignorant of Islam have misconceived notions about the Allah, used by Muslims to denote God. Allah is the proper name for God in Arabic, just as "Elah", or often "Elohim", is the proper name for God in Aramaic mentioned in the Old Testament. Allah is also His personal name in Islam, as "YHWH" is His personal name in Judaism. However, rather than the specific Hebrew denotation of "YHWH" as "He Who Is", in Arabic Allah denotes the aspect of being “The One True Deity worthy of all worship”. Arabic speaking Jews and Christians also refer to the Supreme Being as Allah. (a) Nothing deserves worship except God (Allah). The first part of this testimony states that God has the exclusive right to be worshipped inwardly and outwardly, by one’s heart and limbs. In Islamic doctrine, not only can no one be worshipped apart from Him, absolutely no one else can be worshipped along with Him. He has no partners or associates in worship. Worship, in its comprehensive sense and all its aspects, is for Him alone. God’s right to be worshipped is the essential meaning of Islam’s testimony of faith: Lā ‘ilāha ‘illā llāh. A person becomes Muslim by testifying to the divine right to worship. It is the crux of Islamic belief in God, even all of Islam. It is considered the central message of all prophets and messengers sent by God - the message of Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Moses, the Hebrew prophets, Jesus, and Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon them. For instance, Moses declared: “Hear, O Israel The Lord our God is one Lord.” (Deuteronomy 6:4) Jesus repeated the same message 1500 years later when he said: “The first of all the commandments is, “Hear, O Israel; the Lord our God is one Lord.” (Mark 12:29) …and reminded Satan: “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.” (Matthew 4:10) Finally, the call of Muhammad, some 600 years after Jesus, reverberated across the hills of Mecca, ‘And your God is One God: there is no god but He.’ (Quran 2:163). They all declared clearly: “Worship God! You have no other god but Him.” (Quran 7:59, 7:73; 11:50, 11:84; 23:32) But by a mere verbal profession alone, one does not become a complete Muslim. To become a complete Muslim one has to fully carry out in practice the instruction given by Prophet Muhammad as ordained by God. This brings us to the second part of the testimony. (b) Muhammad is the Messenger of God (Allah). Muhammad was born in Mecca in Arabia in the year 570 CE. His ancestry goes back to Ishmael, a son of Prophet Abraham. The second part of the confession of faith asserts that he is not only a prophet but also a messenger of God, a higher role also played by Moses and Jesus before him. Like all prophets before him, he was a human being, but chosen by God to convey His message to all humanity rather than one tribe or nation from among the many that exist. For Muslims, Muhammad brought the last and final revelation. In accepting Muhammad as the “last of the prophets,” they believe that his prophecy confirms and completes all of the revealed messages, beginning with that of Adam. In addition, Muhammad serves as the preeminent role model through his life example. The believer’s effort to follow Muhammad’s example reflects the emphasis of Islam on practice and action. Next: The Second Pillar of Islam: The Prayer Parts of This Article The First Pillar of Islam: The Muslim Profession of Faith The Second Pillar of Islam: The Prayer The Third Pillar of Islam: Compulsory Charity The Fourth Pillar of Islam: The Fast of Ramadan The Fifth Pillar of Islam: The Pilgrimage (Hajj) View all parts together Article Tools PoorBest Rate this article Rate it Back to top Back to top Print Print Save this article Save E-mail this article to a friend E-mail PDF Format PDF Format Add a comment on this article Add a comment View or hide comments on this article View comments(2 comments) Add this article to your favorites on this site Site favorites Add this article to Explorer favorites Explorer favorites Share on facebookShare on twitterShare on myspaceShare on digg| More Sharing ServicesMore User Comments Name: Parviaz Ahmad Country: India E-mail: Private Date: 17 Oct 2009 Comment: Assalamu Alikum, This article is nicely explained and is easy to understand. May ALLAH bless you and give more courage and help to easily propagate the message of ISLAM. Wassalam. Name: Noura Abousetta Country: Canada E-mail: palestinian_forever_221@hotmail Date: 16 Mar 2010 Comment: Thank you once again for all your hard work. Other Articles in the Same Category Category: Articles > Worship and Practice > The Five Pillars of Islam and Other Acts of Worship Hajj - The Journey of a Lifetime (part 1 of 2): The Day of Arafah and its Preparation Hajj - The Journey of a Lifetime (part 2 of 2): The Rites of Abraham Worship in Islam (part 1 of 3): The Meaning of Worship Worship in Islam (part 2 of 3): The Outer Forms of Worship Worship in Islam (part 3 of 3): The Comprehensiveness of Worship A Day and a Night in Ramadan (part 1 of 2): The Fast of the Day A Day and a Night in Ramadan (part 2 of 2): Worship of the Night Malcolm X’s Letter from Mecca Ramadan and Fasting (part 2 of 2): Night Prayer and Other Acts of Worship Why Do Muslims Fast? (part 1 of 2) Why Do Muslims Fast? (part 2 of 2) A History of the Hajj Grace, Faith and Works (part 1 of 4): The Components of Faith Grace, Faith and Works (part 2 of 4): Speech, Deeds, and the Love of God Grace, Faith and Works (part 3 of 4): The Grace of God Grace, Faith and Works (part 4 of 4): “Faith Alone” and the Bible The Prophet in Ramadan The Spirit and Ramadan Why Muslims Love the Month of Ramadan Ramadan Concludes..What happens now? The Hajj - The Pilgrimage (part 1 of 2) The Hajj - The Pilgrimage (part 2 of 2) Prayer in Islam The Importance of Prayer One Direction, One people, One God The Kaba – the Sacred House of God What is a Mosque? Hajj: A Celebration of Peace Dua (Supplication) (part 1 of 4): What is Dua? Dua (Supplication) (part 2 of 4): Praise God in the way He deserves to be praised Dua (Supplication) (part 3 of 4): Why dua remains unanswered Dua (Supplication) (part 4 of 4): Even Prophets feel distress and turn to God What is Eid ul Adha? The Wisdom behind the Postures and Phrases of Prayer (part 1 of 2): Can certain positions really bring a person closer to God? The Wisdom behind the Postures and Phrases of Prayer (part 2 of 2): Perfect the postures and seek aid from your tongue A Month of Blessings Friday – The Best Day of the Week Zakat – Obligatory Charity: Purifying Wealth Ramadan and Fasting (part 1 of 2): Fasting Videos in the Same Category Category: Videos > Worship and Practice > The Five Pillars of Islam and Other Acts of Worship The Islamic Call to Prayer Pilgrimage (Hajj) with TheDeenShow Pilgrimage (Hajj): The Fifth Pillar of Islam Virtues of Ramadan (Month of Fasting) The Religion of Islam Home Page Home Page Contact Us Contact Us English Español Français Deutsch Русский Português 中文 日本語 Live Help by Chat Live Help by Chat Online daily: From 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM (according to your computer time) Login Username Password Remember me Forgot your password? No account? Register & Why? Most Popular Most viewed (daily average) Most viewed (total) Highest rated Most emailed Most printed Most commented on List Articles Editor’s Pick Since your last visit All by date All by category Your Favorites Your favorites list is empty. You may add articles to this list using the article tools. Your History The First Pillar of Islam: The Muslim Profession of Faith How to Convert to Islam and Become a Muslim Human Rights and Justice in Islam The Truth is One (part 1 of 2) How Do Muslims Treat the Elderly? More... Clear all my history Disable recording my history -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 2006-2013 IslamReligion. All rights reserved. Privacy policy is here.
Posted on: Fri, 20 Sep 2013 09:58:48 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015