In the Name of Allah, the Merciful, the Gracious

As-Salaamu Alaikum wa Rahmatullaahi wa Barakaatuhu

ISLAMIC

RESEARCH AND INFORMATION CENTRE

The Concept of Religion

Most people deviated from the right Path just because they do not know the meaning of Religion. Therefore, in this article, the concept of Religion is explained in detail.

Allah created man and all that man needs to survive and grow. Thereafter, while sending him on the earth, Allah said to him:

“Whenever there comes to you Guidance from Me, whosoever follow My Guidance, on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve. But those who deny and reject our Revelations, they shall be inmates of the fire: they shall abide therein forever.”  (2: 38, 39)

So, to convey His Guidance to mankind, and to teach His Guidance practically, Allah sent His Messengers (for details, see the concept of Prophethood).

The Guidance sent down by Allah through His Messengers is nothing but the Religion. So Allah says:

“(O men!) Follow that what has been sent to you from your Lord, and do not follow Auliya (priests, ancestors, etc.) other than Him. Little you accept of Admonition.”  (7: 3)        

This clarifies that what Allah has sent down is Religion; what auliya say or do is not Religion, what Sufis and Moulvis say or do is not Religion; what Allah says and what His Messenger says and does is Religion. So Allah says:

“Obey Allah and His Messenger if you are believers.” (8: 1)

The Guidance of Allah (Religion) came through the Messengers who came before Muhammed is not in its original form. It was corrupted and interpolated. The Guidance of Allah (Religion) came through only Muhammed, the final Messenger of the God of the universe, is safe and intact, and therefore reliable (for details, refer to the concept of Prophethood). Remember all the Messengers preached the same Religion (the Guidance of Allah) (for details, refer to the concept of Prophethood). So, the followers of other Religions should realize that by following the Guidance came through Prophet Muhammed, they follow the same Religion taught by their Prophets. Since the Guidance came through their Prophets is not intact and safe, they should follow the Guidance came through Prophet Muhammed, to follow their Prophets. We, Muslims, follow all the Prophets of Allah by following the Guidance came through Prophet Muhammed. The name of the Guidance (Religion) came through the Messengers of Allah is Islam.

Islam is an Arabic word. It is derived from two root words: one Silm, meaning Submission and the other Salm, meaning Peace and Safety. Islam stands for a Commitment to surrender one’s will to the Will of Allah, the God of the universe. It is through submission to the Will of the God that peace and safety is brought about.

If we carefully observe the universe, we realize that the whole universe is following the Religion of the God of the universe i.e. Islam. The Quraan says:

1)      “To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. Everything renders worship to Him.” (2: 116)

2)      “Do they seek for other than the Religion of Allah? – While all those that are in the heaven and the earth, have, willingly or unwillingly, bowed to His Will and to Him shall they all be brought back.” (3: 83)

Syed Maudoodi explains: “Everyone can see that we live in an orderly universe where everything is assigned a place in a grand scheme. The moon, the stars and all the heavenly bodies are knit together in a magnificent system. They follow unalterable Laws and make not even the slightest deviation from their ordained courses. Similarly, everything in the world, from the minute whirling electron to the mighty nebulae, invariably follows some Laws. Matter, energy and life – all obey some Laws, grow and change and live and die in accordance with those Laws. Even in the human world the Laws of nature are paramount. Man’s birth, growth and life are all regulated by a set of biological Laws. He derives sustenance from nature in accordance with unalterable Laws. All the organs of his body, from the smallest tissues to the heart and the brain, are governed by the Laws prescribed for them. In short, ours is a Law-governed universe and every thing in it is following a course ordained for it.

This powerful, all-pervasive Law, which governs all that comprises the universe, from the tiniest specks of dust to the magnificent galaxies of the heavens, is the Law of God, the Creator and Ruler of the universe. As the whole of creation obeys the Law of God, therefore, the whole universe literally follows the Religion Islam – for Islam signifies nothing but obedience and submission to Allah, the Lord of the universe. The sun, the moon, the earth and all other heavenly bodies are thus ‘Muslims’. So are the air, water, heat, stones, trees, and animals. Everything in the universe is ‘Muslim’ for it obeys God by submission to His Laws.”

Since man is the best of all creations of the God, the God has given him freewill in some aspects. Syed Maudoodi says:

“Man is so constituted that there are two distinct spheres of his activity. One is the sphere in which he finds himself totally regulated by the Divine Law. Like other creatures, he is completely caught in the grip of the physical Laws of nature and is bound to follow them. But there is another sphere of his activity. He has been endowed with reason and intellect. He has power to think and form judgments, to choose and reject, to approve and spurn. He is free to adopt whatever course of life he chooses. He can embrace any faith, and live by any ideology he likes. He may prepare his own code of conduct or accept one formulated by others. Unlike other creatures, he has been given freedom of thought, choice and action. In short, man has been bestowed with freewill.

Both these aspects exist side by side in man’s life. In the first, he, like all other creatures, is a born Muslim, invariably obeying the Injunctions of God, and is bound to remain one. As far as the second aspect is concerned, he is free to become or not to become a Muslim. It is the way of a person exercises this freedom, which divides mankind into two groups: believers and non-believers. An individual, who chooses to acknowledge his Creator, accepts Him as his real Master, honestly and scrupulously submits to His Laws and Injunctions and follows the code. He has achieved completeness in his Islam by consciously deciding to obey God in the domain in which he was endowed with freedom of choice. He is a perfect Muslim: his submission of his entire self to the Will of Allah is Islam and nothing but Islam.

He has now consciously submitted to Him Whom he had already been unconsciously obeying. He voluntarily as well as involuntarily obeys the Laws of One God – the Lord of the universe. Now he is at peace with the whole universe for he worships Him Whom the whole universe worships. Such a man is God’s vicegerent on earth. The whole world is for him and he is for God.” (Towards understanding Islam Pg. 17-19)

The Sources of Islam

Allah says:

1)      “(O Muhammed!) Allah has sent down to you the Book and the Wisdom, and (through them) taught you what you did not know.” (4: 113)

2)      “O Messenger! Convey that which has been sent to you from your Lord. If you did not do this, you did not fulfill His Mission.” (5: 67)

3)      “He (the Messenger of Allah) teaches you the Book and the Wisdom, and (through them) teaches you what you did not know.”  (2: 151)  

Here, the Book means the Holy Quraan. And besides the Holy Quraan, what Muhammed taught people, through his sayings and deeds is nothing but the Wisdom that has been sent down by Allah. So, Allah says:

4)      “He (Prophet Muhammed) does not say (aught) of (his own) desire. It is nothing but the Inspiration that is sent down.” (53: 3, 4)

5)      “Say: ‘I but follow what is revealed to me from my Lord.’” (7: 203)

The Wisdom (sayings and deeds of Prophet Muhammed) is also known as Hadees and has been preserved with complete accuracy in the books like Saheeh Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim.

Thus we came to know that there are only two Sources of Islam: (1) The Holy Quraan, and (2) The Wisdom (Hadees). Besides these two Sources, there is no other Source of Islam to be approached. So, to know Islam and to follow Islam, we must follow only the Sources of Islam i.e. the Book and the Wisdom.

The Holy Quraan

The Quraan is the greatest Gift of God to mankind. It is the Holy Book that God has sent down to guide mankind rightly in all walks of life. Dr. Kamal Omar says:

“No sane person would ever put to use a highly technical type of machinery without consulting the guide book or instruction manual supplied by its maker or manufacturer. But we have totally by passed this essential practice in our own case and have completely ignored the Guide Book (the Quraan) coming from the one and only Creator to guide all human beings.” (Deep into the Quraan Pg. 9)

There are Signs and Prophecies, in the Holy Quraan, that prove that the Holy Quraan is from Allah, the God of all things. Allah says:

“We have indeed sent down Signs that manifest (the Truth). And Allah guides whom He wills to a Way that is Right.” (24:46)

Here I am going to quote some of the Signs and the Prophecies of the Holy Quraan, one by one, that prove that the Holy Quraan is from Allah, the Creator, Sustainer, Maintainer, Sovereign, Lord and God of all things.

1.   Allah says in the Holy Quraan:

“It is We Who have sent down the Guidance (the Quraan), and will Ourselves preserve it.” (15:9)

Allah has preserved the Quraan as said in the above-mentioned Verse for more than fourteen centuries now. So we see, even after fourteen centuries, that the Quraan is as intact as it was fourteen centuries ago. We would find no interpolation in the Quraan. It has been existing in its original text for over 14 centuries now without a word, syllable or even letter having been changed. The Quraan is the only Book, in the world, that is preserved for so long time and continues to be preserved.

One point must be noted here that the Holy Books of all other religions are not present in their original text today. They are but interpolated and corrupted translations.

2.   Not only by common people, but also in the medical world it had been thought that mother was responsible for the sex of the newborn baby. Only recently, after the discovery of chromosomes, the medical world came to know that the sex of the newborn is determined by the sperm that fertilizes the ovum. If the sperm carrying an X-chromosome fertilizes an ovum that always contains X-chromosomes, the offspring will be a girl. While if the fertilizing sperm contain Y-chromosomes, the offspring will be a boy.

The Holy Quraan has stated this fact more than once, before anybody knew anything about X and Y-chromosomes. It says:

1.      “And of him He (Allah) made sexes, the male and the female.” (75: 39)

2.      “Allah fashioned both male and female from a drop of fluid that has been ejaculated.” (53: 45, 46)

3.   The Holy Quraan says:

“It is He (Allah) Who has let free the two bodies of flowing water: one palatable and sweet, and the other salt and bitter. Yet He has made a barrier between them, a partition that is not to be passed.” (25:53)

     Abdullaah Yusuf  ‘Ali says in the commentary of this Verse:

            “There are two bodies of water, viz., 1) The great salt ocean, and 2) the bodies of sweet water fed by rain, whether they are lakes, rivers or underground springs: their source in rain makes them one, and their drainage, whether above-ground or underground eventually to the ocean, also makes them one. They are free to mingle, and in a sense they do mingle, for there is a regular water cycle and the rivers flow constantly to the sea, and tidal rivers get seawater for several miles up their estuaries at high tide. Yet in spite of all this, the laws of gravitation are like a barrier or partition set by Allah, by which the two bodies of water as a whole are always kept apart and distinct. In the case of rivers carrying large quantities of water to the sea, like the Mississippi or the Yangtsekiang, the river-water with its silt remains distinct from seawater for a long distance out at sea. But the wonderful Sign is that the two bodies of water, though they pass through each other, remain distinct bodies, with their distinct functions. Thus this Verse points to a fact which has only recently been discovered by Science.”

4.   Allah says in the Quraan:

   “We have made every living thing from water. Will they not believe, then?” (21:30)

Our latest knowledge, in biological science, points that protoplasm is the original basis of all living matter in the physical world. And one must know that the constitution of protoplasm is about 80 to 85 per cent of water, and protoplasm is in a state of constant flux and instability that is a specialty of water.

5. In 1235 B.C., when Fir‘oun (Ramsess II) had drowned in the Red Sea while following Prophet Moosa and his companions through it, the Holy Quraan says Allah had said to Fir‘oun:

“This day We shall save your body, that you may be a Sign to those who come after you. But verily, many among mankind are heedless of our Signs.” (10: 92)

When this Verse of the Holy Quraan revealed to Muhammed, no one knew that the dead body of Fir‘oun (Ramsess II) has been preserved in the Red Sea. It was in 1881 A.D. that the dead body of Fir‘oun was found in the Red Sea. It can be seen even today with the Royal mummies in the Egyptian Museum in Egypt. It must be noted that the dead body of Fir‘oun is not a mummy. It means nothing has been used to preserve it. It is preserved naturally.

6.   The Holy Quraan says:

“Allah has promised, to those among you who believe and work righteous deeds, that He will surely grant them in the land inheritance (of power) as He granted it to those before them, that He will establish for them their Religion – the One which He has chosen for them, and that He will change (their state), after the fear in which they (lived), to one of security and peace: ‘They will worship Me (alone) and not associate aught with Me.’ If any do reject Faith after this, they are transgressors.” (24: 55)

     Abdullaah Yusuf  ‘Ali says in the commentary of this Verse:

“Three things are promised here to those who have Faith and obey Allah’s Law: (1) that they will inherit power and authority in land not for any selfish purposes of theirs nor by way of favouritism, but in order that they may maintain Allah’s Law; (2) that the Religion of Right, which Allah has chosen for them, will be openly established, and will suppress all wrong and oppression; (3) that the righteous will live in peace and security, instead of having to suffer persecution, or leave their hearths and homes for the cause of Allah, or practise the rites of their Faith in secret.”

Prophet Muhammed and his companions believed firmly in Allah and worked righteous deeds sincerely. All promises of Allah came true to them. They had nothing; Allah gave them the charge of whole of Arabia. They continued to be sincere to Allah; Allah made them defeat the then super powers, Rome and Persia, and made them the then super power. But latter generations left the Guidance of Allah and began to follow their own desires and fancies. So, they became among the losers.

7.    When the people of Prophet Looth had not abstained from evils and crimes despite of admonition, the Holy Quraan says Allah had said:

“Verily, We are going to send down on the people of this township a punishment from heaven because they have been wickedly rebellious. And We have left thereof an evident Sign for any people who understand.” (29: 34, 35)

The punishment was a rain of brimstone, which completely overwhelmed the cities, with possibly an earthquake and a volcanic eruption. Because of this, the whole tract on the east side of the Dead Sea (where the cities were situated) is covered with sulphurous salts and is deadly to animal and plant life. So no living beings exist in the Dead Sea. Moreover, the water of the Dead Sea is eight times saltier than the water of any other sea. Therefore, its density is so high that the person, who lies on it, does not drown. This is the evident Sign that can be seen even today.

8.   The expansion of the universe is a discovery of modern science. But the Holy Quraan had informed man about this fact more than fourteen centuries ago. Allah says in the Holy Quraan:

“The heaven, We have built it with Power. Verily, We are expanding it.”      (51: 47)

9.   The Holy Quraan had informed man some 14 centuries ago that Allah has taught material knowledge to man, and man be the most developed creature in material knowledge. Read the following Verses of the Quraan.

“Behold, thy Lord said to the angels; ‘I will create a vicegerent on earth.’ They said: ‘Will You place therein one who will make mischief therein and shed blood? While we do celebrate Thy praises and glorify Thy Holy (Name)?’ He said: ‘I know what you know not.’ And He taught Adam the names of things. Then He placed them before the Angels, and said: ‘Tell Me the names of these if you are right.’ They said: ‘Glory to Thee! of knowledge, we have none, save what You have taught us: in truth it is You Who is Perfect in knowledge and wisdom.’ He said: ‘O Adam! Tell them their names.’ When he told them their names, Allah said: ‘Did I not tell you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the earth, and I know what you reveal and what you conceal?’ And behold! We said to the angels ‘Bow down to Adam.’ And they bowed down, not so Iblees. He refused and was haughty. He was of those who reject Faith.”  (2: 30-34)

According to commentators, “The names of things” means the inner nature and qualities of things.

Today we see the truthfulness of these Verses of the Quraan. The developments made by man in the field of science and technology, are so obvious that none can deny them. Moreover, the developments of man indicate that man, in the real sense, is worthy to be a vicegerent of Allah on earth.

10.   Allah says in the Holy Quraan:

a)      “Say: ‘If the whole of mankind and jinns gathered to produce the like of this Quraan, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and support.’” (17: 88)

b)     “Or they may say: ‘He (Prophet Muhammed) forged it (the Holy Quraan).’ Say: ‘Bring you then ten Suras (chapters) forged like unto it, and call (to your aid) whomsoever you can other than Allah if you are truthful! If then they (the false gods) do not answer, know that this Revelation is sent down (replete) with Knowledge of Allah, and there is no God but He! Will you then submit to Islam?” (11: 13, 14)

c)      “If you are in doubt as to what We have revealed to our servant (Muhammed), then produce a Sura (chapter) like there unto and call witnesses or helpers besides Allah, if you are truthful. But if you can not and certainly you can never (produce such a thing) then guard yourselves against the fire whose fuel is men and stones, prepared for the unbelievers.” (2:23, 24)

Allah says to those, who think that the Quraan has been forged by Muhammed, to produce ten chapters or at least one chapter that must be as influential, effective, terse, informative, true, moderate, beautiful and attractive as the Quraanic chapters are.

So far, many people tried to meet this challenge of the Holy Quraan, but failed. This proves that the Holy Quraan is not a fabricated material of any creature. It is, in fact, from Allah, the God of all things.

These were the some Signs and Prophecies of the Holy Quraan. If someone really wants to see more Signs and Prophecies of the Holy Quraan, he must study the Holy Quraan deliberately.

These Signs are enough to convince them who are in search of the Truth. And those who want to follow their desires and fancies, or their parents’ religion without caring for and confirming the Truth cannot be convinced even if we show them many more Signs. Allah says:

1)      “Do they not ponder on the Quraan? If it had been from other than Allah, they would have surely found therein much discrepancy.” (4:82)

2)      “O mankind! Verily, there has come to you a convincing Proof from your Lord. We have sent unto you a Light (that is) manifest. Then those who believe in Allah and hold fast to Him, soon He will admit them to Mercy and Grace from Himself, and guide them to Himself by a right Path.” (4: 174, 175)

3)      “There has come to you from Allah a Light and perspicuous Book, - with which Allah guides all those who seek His good pleasure to ways of peace and safety, and leads them out of darkness, by His Will, unto the Light, - guides them to a right Path.” (5: 15, 16)

4)      “(O mankind!) There have come to you, from your Lord, Proofs (to open your eyes). If one sees (them), it will be for (the good of) one’s own soul; if one is blind (to them), it will be to one’s own (harm).” (6: 104)

5)      “This (Book) is a veritable Proof from your Lord, and Guidance and Mercy for those who believe (in it).” (7: 203)

6)      “We have revealed to you this Book so that you may lead men from darkness to the Light – by the Will of their Lord – to the Path of Almighty, Praiseworthy Allah to whom belong all that is in the heavens and the earth.” (14: 1, 2)

7)      “Verily, this Quraan does Guide to that which is the most right, and gives the glad tidings to the believers who work deeds of righteousness that they will have a magnificent reward; and to those who believe not in the Hereafter, (it announces) that We have prepared for them a grievous chastisement.”          (17: 9, 10)

8)      “The Revelation of this Book is from Allah, the Almighty, the All-Wise. Verily, it is We Who have revealed the Book to you to manifest the Truth. So serve Allah, offering Him sincere devotion.” (39: 1, 2)

The Specialties of the Holy Quraan

The following are some of the specialties of the Holy Quraan:

1.       It is free from superstitions, myths and other irrational and unreasonable beliefs and practices.

2.       It is free from all sorts of defects and wrong beliefs and practices.

3.       Its Teachings are universal and are not confined to the people of any region, any colour, any nation, any race, any sex, any society or any language.

4.       Its Teachings are based on knowledge and wisdom, truth and justice.

5.       Its Teachings are perfect, intelligible, practicable, implementable, moderate and suitable to human nature in all ages and times.

6.       It is beneficial to mankind and is not harmful to the same.

7.       It awakens the human conscience and enlightens the human mind.

8.       It has a moving force that makes man act upon what is right, good and beneficial, and shun what is wrong, bad and harmful.

9.       It gives a right direction to man’s nature, talents, wealth, health, relations and all other precious things.

10.   It guides man rightly in all walks of life.

11.   It restores the eternal Truth revealed in the previous Revelations, like Zaboor, Tauraat and Injeel.

12.   It is in the living language.

Some of the Contributions of the Quraan

There are innumerable contributions of the Holy Quraan to humanity. The following are some of them:

1)      It is the Quraan that first asked man – irrespective of sex, colour, race, nationality, caste and social and financial status - to gain knowledge.

2)      It is the Quraan that aroused man to think over experiences, observations and Allah’s Guidance.

3)      It is the Quraan that aroused man to use the power of reason and intellect in the light of knowledge, and discouraged him to follow fancies, myths, superstitions and irrational beliefs.

4)      It is the Quraan that aroused man to eradicate falsehood, myths, superstitions, irrational beliefs, unreal and wrong culture and customs, ignorance, immorality, immodesty, injustice, oppression, tyranny, usury, corruption and all other forms of evils and crimes from the whole of human society for the welfare and well-being of the whole of humanity.

5)      It is the Quraan that taught man that peace, progress and salvation can be attained by living a responsible, practical and realistic life according to the Guidance of Allah, not by running away from mundane affairs.

The Eternity of the Holy Quraan

Many people ask that whether the Holy Quraan is useful in our modern age.

If we study the beliefs and the morals of most of people of today’s world, they are not different from the beliefs and the morals of most of people before Muhammed (peace be upon him).

      All sorts of superstitions, irrational beliefs and myths are present, even today, as they were present before Muhammed.

All forms of injustice, ignorance, oppression, tyranny, falsehood, deception, corruption, usury, evil, crime, immorality and immodesty are present, even today, as they were present before Muhammed.

Similarly if we study the problems and propositions of individuals and societies of today’s world, they are also not different from the problems and propositions of individuals and societies prior to Muhammed.

When the disease is the same, the treatment that has been practised successfully by Muhammed (peace be upon him) and his companions, must be the same. So the Quraan is useful even today and forever. And people must know that besides Quraanic Teachings no other teachings have proved themselves successful and useful in this matter so far.

Moreover, the Teachings of the Quraan are based on the same principles of nature on which man has been created. And as that nature remains the same in all periods, Law based on it also remains the same in all periods.

The Wisdom (Hadees)

Sayings and deeds of Prophet Muhammed have been regarded in the Holy Quraan as the Wisdom that is commonly known as Hadees (plural: Ahaadees) among Muslims.

Hadees is the interpretation of the Holy Quraan. We get the details of the Quraanic Commands in Ahaadees, for example: -The Holy Quraan says, “Establish Salaat (prayer).”  But the Holy Quraan does not give the details (i.e. timings, method, propositions etc.) of Salaat. So to know the details of Salaat, we need to turn to Ahaadees. We get all the details of Salaat in Ahaadees. It is as though there is a book. When we do not understand the book, we turn to either its author or its teacher. The Holy Quraan is the Book, Allah is its Author, and Muhammed is its teacher. If we do not understand any Verse (Aayat) of the Holy Quraan, we should turn to Allah (the Author) and His Messenger (the teacher). It means we should see the other related Verses of the Holy Quraan and the related Ahaadees, to understand the Verse that we could not understand. This is the position of Ahaadees.

Every Hadees (saying or deed of Prophet Muhammed), before it was being collected by Muhaddiseen (researchers of Ahaadees), passed through from generation to generation. Therefore, each Hadees has one or more chain of narrators, which is known as Sanad. Sanad is the link (a chain of narrators) between Prophet Muhammed and Muhaddiseen. On the basis of Sanad, Muhaddiseen distinguished Ahaadees into two categories:

1)      Maqhbool (accepted) and 2) Ghair-Maqhbool (unacceptable)

Maqhbool Ahaadees:  If all the narrators of the Sanad of a Hadees are famous among people for their truthfulness, piety, good memory power and expertise in Ahadees, then the Hadees narrated by them would be accepted and considered as Saheeh (authentic). Almost all the Ahaadees collected in the books like Saheeh Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim are authentic, and therefore accepted.

Ghair-Maqhbool: If any of the narrators of the Sanad of a Hadees was found to be guilty of any major sin or had had weak memory power or had had any other thing that make him suspectable, then the Hadees narrated by him would not be accepted and considered as Za’eef (weak) or Mouzwoo‘ (concocted).

In all other books besides Saheeh Bukhari and Saheeh Muslim, both – Maqhbool and Ghair-Maqhbool – types of Ahaadees are found. So care must be taken while studying these books. 

Deen (The Religion, the Law, the Code)

and Mazhab (The school of thought)

Today, we see that there are many schools of thought among Muslims. It must be noted that Islam is the Religion of Allah (Deen). It is not a Mazhab (school of thought), nor does it recognize any Mazhab. So there were no schools of thought among the Muslims in the period of Allah’s Messenger Muhammed and in the period of Sahaabah (the companions of Allah’s Messenger).

In the periods of Muhammed and his Sahaabah, all Muslims were one under one Ameer (head) and one Al-Jamaa’at (the community) that used to be called as “Jamaa’atul Muslimeen (Muslims’ community)”. They had followed only the Sources of Islam, i.e. the Holy Quraan and the Wisdom (sayings and deeds of prophet Muhammed). So Allah had said to them:

“Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him.” (58: 22)

So Muslims must stick to the Sources of Islam as the Sahaabah did, if they really want to succeed both in this world and in the Hereafter as the Sahaabah succeeded. Allah says:

1)      “Obey Allah and His Messenger if you are believer.” (8: 1)

2)      “If anyone contends with the Messenger even after Guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, and follows a path other than that of the believers (sahaabah), We shall leave him where he turned, and land him in Hell, - what an evil refuge!” (4:115)

The different schools of thought were formed among Muslims after many years to the death of Muhammed (peace be upon him).

The different schools of thought broke Muslims’ unity which was their strength, divided them into many sects, made them enemies of one another, spoiled their Faith, destroyed their power, kept them away from the Sources of Islam and pushed them in ignorance. What Muslims had gained in the Guidance of Islam, they lost all that under the misguidance of the different schools of thought. The different schools of thought have been harming Islam and Muslims to the incredible extent for more than one thousand years now. Neither Allah nor His Messenger had asked anyone to follow any school of thought. Allah says:

1)      “O you who believe! Fear Allah as He deserves… and do not die but in the state that you are Muslims. And hold fast, all together, Allah’s Rope (Islam), and do not be divided.” (3: 102, 103)  

2)      “Turn you to Him, and fear Him. Establish Salaat and do not be among those who join others with Allah, - those who split up their Religion and become sects, - each party rejoicing in that which is with itself!” (30: 31, 32)

3)      “(O Muhammed!) Those who divide their Religion and break up into sects, you do not belong to them in anything. Their affair is with Allah. He will tell them the truth of all that they did.” (6: 159)

4)      “Be not like those who are divided amongst themselves and fall into disputations after receiving clear Signs. For them is a dreadful chastisement.” (3:105)

All the above-mentioned Verses of the Quraan describes that Islam hates sectarianism. How can Islam then accept the different schools of thought that create sectarianism among Muslims?

Islam and Sufism

What has been said about Mazhab (school of thought), the same can be said about Sufism. Sufism has been founded and flourished under the influence of Hindu and Greek philosophies. Sufism was not present among the Muslims in the period of Allah’s Messenger Muhammed and in the period of Sahaabah (the companions of Allah’s Messenger). Sufism formed after many years to the death of Muhammed (peace be upon him) and his Sahaabah. Non-Islamic elements – like non-Islamic creeds, rites, rituals, traditions, customs and manners etc. - have been introduced as Islamic ones in Sufism. So, if we study Islam and Sufism, we find they both go against each other. Note the following:

1)      Islam asks people to believe in monotheism, and Sufism asks people to believe in pantheism.

2)      Islam prescribed easy ways of worship, so that each and every individual could worship and please Allah. Prophet Muhammed says, “Innad deena yusrun,” meaning, “Certainly, the Religion is easy. The one who makes it hard will be defeated.” (Saheeh Bukhari). But, in Sufism, we find the ways of worship not only different, but also so harsh that each and every individual could not follow them. Moreover, we find flexibility in the ways of worship in Islam, and rigidity in the ways of worship in Sufism.

3)      Islam asks people to take an active participation in the mundane affairs according to the Guidance of Allah. So, Islam gives Guidance to man in all walks of life. It showed the path of spiritual evolution, moral emancipation and attainment of salvation through active participation in the affairs of the world around them. But Sufism says that asceticism and self-annihilation alone led to moral and spiritual purity – that purity can only be achieved by running away from life, disregarding all the desires of the flesh and subjecting the body to all types of tortures.

4)      Sufism asks people not to ponder on the Quraan. That is why we find many Sufis and Moulvis asking people not to ponder on the Quraan and not to use mind in religious matters. To keep common people away from the Holy Quraan, they say, “The Holy Quraan is unintelligible to common people. So, only scholars can understand it. Common people cannot understand it. So, common people must not ponder on it, nor must they use their mind in religious matters, or else they may go astray.”  Thus they succeeded to keep Most Muslims away from the Quraan and succeeded to rule over them. But Islam asks people not only to ponder on the Quraan, but also to use their mind to understand Islam. The Holy Quraan says:

a)      “Thus Allah makes His Aayaat (Signs, Verses) clear to you, so that you may reflect.” (2: 219)

b)     “Thus Allah makes His Aayaat (Signs, Verses) clear to you, so that you may understand.” (2: 242)

c)      “And He (Allah) makes His Aayaat (Signs, Verses) clear to mankind, so that they may receive admonition.” (2: 221)

d)     “Thus Allah makes His Aayaat (Signs, Verses) clear to you, so that you may be guided.” (3: 103)

e)      “Thus Allah makes His Aayaat (Signs, Verses) clear to you, so that you may be grateful.” (5: 89)

f)       “And We have indeed made the Quraan easy to understand and remember. Is there, then, any that will receive admonition?”        (54: 17)

These were a few differences, between Islam and Sufism, that make Islam and Sufism two different entities. To know the reality of Sufism in details, please study the following books:

1)      Talbeesu Iblees (the devil’s deception) by ‘Allaama Ibn Al-Jouzi.

2)      Al-Fikrus Soofi (Sufi’s thought) by Abdur Rahmaan Abdul Khalique.

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