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The Islamic Belief Islam: An Introduction Non-Muslims generally associate the origin of Islam with Prophet Muhammad, blessings and peace be on him. In fact, it is not so. According to the teachings of Islam, all true messengers of God, from the first to the last of them, were Muslims and preached Islam. This simply means that each one of them preached that God is one, the only deity worthy to be worshipped, and that he (the prophet of the time) was His messenger, chosen to deliver His commandments to the people he was sent to. Muslims believe that this was the message preached by Abraham (Ibraheem), Ismael (Ismail), Joseph (Yusuf), Moses (Musa), Jesus (Isa), Muhammad and all other true prophets of God, blessings and peace be on all of them. For example, Moses preached to the Children of Israel that God is one and that he was a prophet of God sent to them. So they had to believe in him and follow his teachings until the advent of the next prophet, Jesus Christ (pbuh). But when Jesus (pbuh) was sent to the Children of Israel as a prophet – with the same message affirming the oneness of God and his prophethood – they had to follow his teachings. Similarly, when Muhammad (pbuh) came to the world as a prophet – with the same message that God is one and that he is His messenger to mankind – people were required to believe in him and follow his teachings. Thus the basic message of Islam has remained the same since the advent of the first prophet of God to the last. Thus Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is not the first prophet of Islam; in fact, he is the last prophet as with him the message of Islam is completed for mankind.
It is one of the fundamental tenets of Islam that all true prophets of God were sincere, pious, righteous, God-fearing, and the best exemplars of moral excellence, and that all of them were sent to teach their people to worship one and the only God, without associating any partner to Him. That is why Muslims equally revere all of them and love them all with utmost sincerity. This teaching is summed up in clear words in the following verse of the Qur’an:
Say (O Muslims): we believe in Allah and that which is revealed to us and that which was revealed to Abraham and Ismael, and Isaac and Jacob, and their children, and that which Moses and Jesus received and that the prophets received from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them and unto Him we have surrendered. (2: 136)
He has set and explained for you some of the religion in which He instructed Noah, what We revealed to you (Muhammad), and in which We instructed Abraham, Moses, and Jesus… (42: 13)
Islam, the name of the religion under consideration, has a much larger implication than it meets the eyes at the first sight. It is not just a name like that of any other religion. It projects the global appeal with which it addresses mankind at large. The word Islam is not limited to a tribe or a race, or a nation. For example, the word Judaism is derived from Judah, the name of a tribe. Similarly Christianity is related to Christ, the name of its founder, as is Budhism to Gautam Budha, Zorastrianism to its founder Zoraster, and Jainism to its founder Mahavir Jain. The name of the religion of Islam, in contrast, is related neither to its prophet, nor to a tribe or a nation. Islam means peace; it also means total and perfect submission of man to the will of God. Thus this word refers to man’s relationship with God and defines the true nature of this relationship. It requires that man acknowledge God as his creator, cherisher, and master, and as a believer submit to His will in faith as well as in deeds, rationally as well as emotionally, in both private and public life.
The meaning of Islam as peace also suggests that by following the teachings of Islam a person can achieve peace of mind and heart which will enable him consequently to be at peace with himself, with his society, with the world at large, and ultimately with his creator. Thus if a follower of Islam sincerely adheres to its teaching, he will remain at peace with himself, with his family, with the society, with the whole creation at large, and ultimately with his Creator. The term Muhammadanism used by Europeans to refer to Islam is, therefore, an offensive misnomer that contradicts the true spirit and message of Islam.
Islam addresses to mankind at large and demolishes all caste, color, race, nation, or class barriers among human beings. The very initial call of prophet Muhammad (pbuh) which he delivered to the residents of Makkah, in Saudi Arabia, who were all Arabs, was thus worded: “O mankind, say that there is no god but Allah, the only deity worthy of your worship, and you will be blessed with success (in both worlds).” It is important to notice that this call to Islam is not limited to the Makkans, nor to the Arabs, but to the mankind at large of his time and for all times to come. The following verses from the Qur’an, which are only a few from so many verses with the same content and focus, emphasize the same universality of the message of Islam:
The month of Ramadan in which the Qur’an was sent down as a guide for mankind. ((2: 185)
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