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The Third Fundamental:
Knowing Your Prophet Muhammed,
salla Allah u alaihi wa sallam.
He is Muhammad, son of Abdullah. He was born in Mecca. He lived for sixty-three
years, forty before his mission and twenty-three years as a prophet and a
messenger.
His prophecy started when Allah revealed unto him:
"Read! in the name of your Lord…” and his message started when Allah
revealed unto him: "O you enveloped in garments! Arise
and warn!”
Allah subhana wa ta’ala sent him as a messenger to warn against associating
partners with Allah and to invite to the worship of Allah alone.
The evidence is in His saying:
O you (Muhammad) enveloped in garments! Arise and
warn! And magnify your Lord
(Allah)! And purify your garments! And keep away
from Ar-Rujz
(the idols)! And give not a thing in order to have
more. And be patient for the sake of your Lord! (74:1-7)
"Arise and warn"- against associating partners with Allah, and
call the people to worship Allah alone, and “And
magnify your Lord”- through testifying His unity,
"And purify your garments”- purify your deeds from polytheism,
“Keep away from Rujz”- keep away from idols and their worshippers, to
be from them and to reject them.
During the first ten years of his prophethood Muhammad sala Allahu alaihi wa
sallam continued to call people to the worship of Allah alone then he was
taken on a journey to the heavens whereupon the five daily prayers (salat)
were made obligatory. Thus, he performed prayers in Mecca for three years
thereafter he was ordered to migrate to Madinah. Migrating from the abode of
disbelief to the abode of Islam. Migration is departing from among the
polytheists to settle with the community of Islam. This kind of migration is
obligatory upon the nation of the Muslims and it remains up till the Last Day.
The evidence is in His saying:
Verily! As for those whom the angels have taken
(in death) while they are wronging themselves (as
they stayed among the disbelievers even though emigration was obligatory to
them), they (angels) asked
them: “In what condition were you?” They reply: "We were weak and oppressed on
earth." The angels asked: "Was not the earth of Allah spacious enough for you to
migrate therein?”
Such men will find their abode in Hell - What an evil destination! -
Except the weak ones among men, women and children who were unable to devise a
plan, nor are they able to direct their way.
(4:97-98)
and His saying:
O My slaves who believe! Certainly, spacious is My Earth: therefore worship Me
(and Me alone).
(29:56)
Al-Baghawi, may Allah have mercy on him, said: "This revelation refers to the
Muslims who remained in Mecca and had not migrated to Madinah. Allah calls them:
<O My slaves who believe! >.
The evidence for migration from the Sunnah is the hadith:
Migration will not end until repentance ends, and repentance will not end until
the sun rises from the west.
When the Prophet settled in Madinah, the other ordinances of Islam were
prescribed; these include the Zakat, fasting, Pilgrimage, the Adhan
(call to prayers), Jihad (fighting in the way of Allah), and the
injunction to recommend good and denounce evil.
Muhammad
salla Allahu alaihi wa sallam passed away but the message that he came
with remains to this day. There was no good except that he guided his nation to
it and no evil except that he warned them against it. The good that he guided
them to is Tawheed and everything that Allah loves and is pleased with. The evil
that he warned against is associating partners with Allah and against everything
that Allah dislikes and prohibits.
Allah has sent him to all people and nations, and He has ordained that
all mankind and jinn should follow him in obedience to his message. The evidence
is in His saying:
Say
(O Muhammad): 'O mankind! Verily I am sent unto you all,
as the Messenger of Allah'
(7:158)
And with him Allah has completed and perfected the religion. The evidence is in
the saying of Allah ta’ala:
This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favor upon you,
and have chosen for you Islam as your religion. (5:3)
The evidence of the prophet's death is in the saying of Allah ta’ala:
Verily, you (O Muhammad) will die and verily, they
too will die. Then on the day of Resurrection, you will be disputing before your
Lord. (39:30- 31)
All mankind will be resurrected after death. The evidence is in the saying of
Allah ta’ala:
Thereof
(the earth) We created you, and into it We shall return
you, and from it We shall bring you out once again. (20:55)
And His saying:
And Allah has brought you forth from the (dust of) earth. Afterwards He will
return you into it (the earth), and bring you forth (again on the Day of
Resurrection). (71:17-18)
After Resurrection, mankind will render account to Allah and then they will be
recompensed according to their deeds. The evidence is in His saying:
And to Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth,
that He may requite those who do evil with that which they have done and reward
those who do good, with what is best.
(53:31)
Whoever denies or rejects the resurrection has disbelieved. The evidence is in
His saying:
The disbelievers claim that they will never be resurrected. Say (O
Muhammad): Yes! By my Lord, you will certainly be
resurrected, then you will be informed of (and recompensed for)
what you did, and that is easy for Allah.
(64:7)
Allah has sent all the messengers as bearers of good news and warnings. The
evidence is in His saying:
Messengers as bearers of good news as well as of warning, in order that mankind
should have no plea against Allah after (the coming)
of the messengers. And Allah is Ever All-Powerful, All -Wise.
(4:165)
The first messenger is Nuh, alaihi sallam and Muhammad salla Allahu
alaihi wa sallam is the last and he is the Seal of the prophets. The
evidence that the first messenger is Nuh alaihi sallam is the statement
of Allah, the exalted:
Verily, We have sent the revelation to you (O Muhammad)
as We sent the revelation to Noah and the Prophets after him.
(4:163)
To every nation Allah subhana wa ta’ala sent a messenger, from the time of Nuh
to Muhammad, to command them to worship Allah alone, and to forbid them from
worshipping taghut (false deities). The evidence is in His saying:
And verily, We have sent among every nation a Messenger (proclaiming):
“Worship Allah (alone), and avoid taghut
(all false deities).” (16:36)
Allah subhana wa ta’ala has made it obligatory upon all to disbelieve in taghut
and to worship Allah alone.
Ibn Al-Qayyim, may Allah have mercy on him, said: "Taghut (false deities) is
that with which the slave exceeds his limits, whether as an object of worship,
or followed, or obeyed."
The
taghuts are numerous, but at the head of them are five:
-
Iblees,
may Allah curse him.
-
Whoever
is worshipped and is pleased with being worshipped.
-
Whoever
calls people to worship him.
-
Whosoever
claims any knowledge of the Unseen (Ghaib).
-
Whosoever
judges or rules by other than what Allah revealed.
The
evidence is in His saying:
There
is no compulsion in religion. Verily the Right Path has become distinct from the
wrong path. Whoever disbelieves in taghut and believes in Allah then he has
grasped the most trustworthy handhold that will never break. And Allah is
All-Hearer, All-Knower.
(2:256)
This
is the meaning of "La ilaha illa Allah”
In
the Prophetic tradition is this text:
"The
head of the Command is Islam, its Pillars are prayer, and its highest pinnacle
is Jihad (fighting in the Cause of Allah)."
Allah
knows best.
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