There is something very important
for both the new Muslims and those who grew up in Islam, without which a person
may not really be a "Muslim." It is called the "shahadah."
The
complete statement of the creed of the Muslim is:
"Ash-shadu anna Laa ilaha illa lah. Ash-shadu anna Muhammadar Rasoolulah."
(I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger).
"Ash-shadu anna Laa ilaha illa lah. Ash-shadu anna Muhammadar Rasoolulah."
(I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and messenger).
Every Muslim has been taught that the key to "Jannah" (Paradise) is the statement in Arabic:
"Laa illaha illa lah." (There is none worthy of worship except Allah.)
Yet too many Muslims simply rely
upon this statement and believe that as long as they have made this statement,
nothing will harm them. They think they will be granted Paradise because
of this mere verbal statement of the Shahadah.
There is no question that the mere
saying of the shahadah: "I bear witness that there is none worthy of
worship except Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and
messenger" is not sufficient for salvation. In
fact, the munafiqeen ( hypocrites) used to make this statement quite
often yet Allah describes them as liars and says that they shall abide in the
lowest abyss of the Hell-fire.
True scholars of Islam are quick to
tell us that this testimony of faith is our "Muftah ul Jennah" (Key
to Paradise). The famous follower Wahb ibn Munabbih was once asked;
"Isn't the statement of "La ilaha illa-lah" the
key to Paradise?"
He answered;
"Yes! But every key has ridges. If you come with the key that
has the right ridges, the door will open for you. Yet if you do not have the
right ridges the door will not open for you."
Think about it. If you try to drive
your car with the key to your house will it work? Of course not. So, we see
that the statement like a key, must meet certain conditions in order to work.
In fact these conditions are what will determine who will benefit from the
statement and who will not benefit from saying it, no matter how many times per
day they say it. We must work hard to learn, understand and practice these
conditions before we run out time and then it would be too late for our
shahadah to help us at all. This article has value only if we use it to look at
ourselves and make sure we are really meeting these conditions.
Then by Allah's Mercy, the doors to
Jannah will open for us with our KEY (muftah) of Laa ilaha illa lah".
"9
Conditions of the Shahadah":
The Qur'an and the
"Hadeeth" (teachings of Muhammad, peace be upon him) are the ultimate
sources for knowledge in Islam. We find contained in them the reality of the
conditions necessary for the "shahadah" to work as a "muftah"
to the "Jennah" for us. The number might be understood as seven,
eight or even nine depending on how you would categorize them or combine them
together. Regardless of how we would list them or divide them up, it still
remains that we must understand and most important, apply these conditions of
our shahadah if we are to enter the Jennah. We listed them here as
"nine" in order to give more attention and detail to each and every
aspect. However, the scholars who have listed them as seven or eight have not
left anything out. They have merely combined several for easier comprehension
and memorization.
The nine conditions of the shahadah
are known as:
1 KNOWLEDGE: ('ilm)
That is, one must have the basic and general knowledge of
what is meant by the shahadah. One must understand what the shahadah is
affirming and what the shahadah is denying. Allah says in the Qur'an,
"So know that there is no God save Allah, and ask
forgiveness for your sin."
(Surah Muhammad: 19).
(Surah Muhammad: 19).
Similarly, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said,
“Whoever dies knowing that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah shall enter Paradise.”
(Recorded in Sahih Muslim).
“Whoever dies knowing that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah shall enter Paradise.”
(Recorded in Sahih Muslim).
In fact, the shahadah itself is a testimony. When one testifies
to something, one must know what it is that he is testifying concerns.
Obviously, a testimony about something that one does not have any knowledge
about is absolutely unacceptable. Allah says in the Qur'an,
"Except him who bears witness unto the truth
knowingly." (Surah Al-Zukhruf: 86).
Now this condition probably sounds obvious; if someone said
to you, "There is no God except Allah," and then said that what he
meant by Allah was Jesus, you would immediately tell him that this shahadah is
nonsense. Yet can you imagine that there is a Muslim country in the world that
until recently used to have a yearly weeklong celebration to "the Gods of
the Sea"! All along they call themselves Muslims and they make the
shahadah numerous times a day.
This clearly shows that they have no idea what the meaning
of their shahadah is. Do you think that this kind of shahadah will open the
doors to Paradise for them? Today, there are many Muslims who wonder why we
should not accept secularism. They think that there is nothing wrong with
secularism! Many of these Muslims pray five times a day and utter the shahadah
repeatedly. Yet they see nothing wrong with accepting a Lawgiver other than
Allah? What kind of shahadah are these people making?
All of us do our best to learn at least the basics of
Islamic beliefs, the basics of what shahadah means. In this way, Allah willing,
we will be making the correct shahadah. We will be witnessing to the truth as
we are supposed to be witnesses to it.
2- CERTAINTY
(yaqeen):
This is the opposite of doubt and uncertainty. In Islam, in
fact, any kind of doubt is equivalent to Kufr or disbelief. We must, in our
hearts, be absolutely certain of the truth of the shahadah. Our hearts must not
be wavering in any way when we testify to the truth of, "There is none
worthy of worship except Allah." Allah describes the believers in the
Qur'an as those who have belief in Allah and then their hearts waver not. Allah
says,
"the (true) believers are those only who believe in
Allah and His messenger and afterward doubt not, but strive with their wealth
and their lives for the cause of Allah. Such are the sincere."
(al-Hujjarat : 15).
(al-Hujjarat : 15).
Similarly, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "No
one meets Allah with the testimony that there is none worthy of worship but
Allah and I am the Messenger of Allah, and he has no doubt about hat statement,
except that he will enter Paradise." (Recorded by Muslim.)
Indeed, Allah describes the hypocrites as those people whose
hearts are wavering. For example, Allah says,
"They alone seek leave of thee (not to participate in
jihad) who believe not in Allah and the Last Day and whose hearts feel doubt,
so in their doubt they waver." (al-Tauba: 45).
Many scholars have stated that the diseases of the heart, or
the doubt and suspicions that one allows into one's heart, are more dangerous
for a person's faith than lusts and desires. This is because lusts and desires
may be satisfied at some time yet the person still knows them to be wrong and
he may control himself and repent and give up that evil deed. On the other
hand, the doubts and suspicions may linger in the heart, with no cure, until
the person finally leaves Islam entirely or continues to practice Islam while,
in fact, in his heart he does not have the true faith. The greatest cure for
these doubts is seeking knowledge. It is through sound knowledge of the Qur'an
and the Sunnah that most of these doubts will be removed.
3- ACCEPTANCE
(qabool):
If a person has knowledge of and certainty in the shahadah,
this must be followed by acceptance, with the tongue and heart, of whatever
that shahadah implies. Whoever refuses to accept the shahadah and its
implications, even if he knows that it is true and certain about its truth,
then he is a disbeliever. This refusal to accept is sometimes due to pride,
envy or other reasons.
In any case, the shahadah is not a true shahadah without its
unconditional acceptance. The scholars all talk about this condition as a
general condition in the way that I have just stated. However, there is also a
more detailed aspect that we must all be aware of. The believer accepts
whatever the implications of the shahadah are. This also means that he believes
in whatever is stated in the Qur'an or stated by the Prophet (peace be upon
him), without any right to choose what he wants to believe and what he wants to
reject. Allah says in the Qur'an,
"Do you believe in part of the book and reject part of
it? And what is the reward of those who do so, except humiliation in the life
of this world, and on the Day of Resurrection they will be sent to the most
dreadful doom."
(al-Baqarah: 85).
This is one aspect that the Muslims must be aware of.
Although it is not the same as the complete refusal to accept the truth, by
rejecting part of the truth that has come from Allah, one also negates his
testimony of faith. Unfortunately, many Muslims are doing this nowadays in
various ways. Although not all of these forms may necessarily be considered
apostasy, they are still very dangerous. For example, if they do not like what
is stated in a verse in the Qur'an, they simply reinterpret the verse according
to their liking. If they do not like what is stated in a hadeeth, they simply
state that the hadeeth must not be authentic although they are not scholars in
that area. This kind of behavior is the antithesis of the behavior of the true
Muslims. Whatever comes from Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him), the
true Muslim believes in as the truth. This goes hand in hand with their
testimony of faith.
4- SUBMISSION and COMPLIANCE (Inqiyad):
This implies the actual physical enactment with our deeds of
our shahadah. In fact, this is one of the main meanings of the word Islam
itself, "the submission to the will and commands of Allah." This is
what Allah commands in the Qur'an,
"Turn unto Him repentant, and surrender unto Him" (al-Zumar: 54).
Allah has praised those who submit to His command by their
actions. Allah says,
"Who is better in religion than he who surrenders his
purpose to Allah while doing good"
(al-Nisa: 125).
Actually, Allah has clearly made it a condition of faith
that one submits to the command of Allah and His messenger. Allah says,
"But nay, by your Lord, they will not truly believe
until they make you [the Messenger of Allah] judge of what is in dispute
between them and find within themselves no dislike of which you decide, and
submit with full submission"
(al-Nisa: 65)
Unfortunately, there are many that claim that there is no
relationship between faith and deeds. You can even hear one Muslim saying about
another, "That is the best Muslim I have ever met," yet the other
person performs scarcely any of the deeds of Islam whatsoever. This incorrect
understanding of faith has spread throughout the Muslim world. Indeed, our
shahadah or testimony of faith must be implemented or realized in our hearts,
tongues and actions. In our hearts, we must have love for Allah, fear Allah and
hope in Him. With our tongues we must testify to the shahadah. And with our
actions, we must implement what the testimony of faith requires from us.
Anyone who claims to be a Muslim and yet does no deeds,
either does not understand Islam whatsoever or is bearing testimony against
himself that his testimony of faith is not a true and correct testimony of
faith. This does not mean that the true believer never commits a sin. Indeed,
true believers do commit sins, but as long as they recognize that what they did
is not correct and it is inconsistent with their obligation of submitting to
Allah, then they have not violated the soundness of their testimony or
shahadah. But do not forget they are still sinners. And what is the minimum of
submission that is required from a person beyond whom there can be no claim to
faith? For those scholars who say that the abandonment of prayers is
infidelity, it is the five daily prayers. Whoever does not perform, at least,
the five daily prayers have gone beyond the limit that is acceptable for lack
of deeds. Allah knows best.
5-TRUTHFULNESS
(as-sidq), as opposed to hypocrisy and dishonesty:
This means that when we say the shahadah, we are saying it
honestly. We actually mean it. We are not lying when it comes to our testimony
of faith. The Prophet (peace be upon his) said, "No one bears testimony
to there being no one worth of worship save Allah, sincerely from his heart,
except that Allah makes the Hell-fire forbidden for him." (Recorded by
al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
We are all familiar with those who say the testimony of
faith yet they are not saying it honestly. They do not believe in it but they
are simply saying it in order to protect themselves or to get some gain from
doing so; these are the hypocrites. Allah has described them in the opening of
the Qur'an with the following words,
"And of mankind are some who say, 'We believe in Allah
and the Last Day,' when they believe not. They think to beguile Allah and those
who believe, and they beguile none save themselves, but they perceive not. In
their hearts is a disease, and Allah increases their disease. A painful doom is
theirs because they lie"
(al-Baqarah: 8-10).
Obviously, the shahadah of those who become Muslims simply
to benefit from being Muslim and not because they believe in Islam will be
rejected by Allah in the Hereafter. They will face a painful punishment due to
their lying.
6- SINCERITY (or al-ikhlass):
That is, when we make the shahadah, we must do so solely for
the sake of Allah. We must not do it for any other reason. And we must not do
it for anyone else's sake. In this manner, the meaning of sincerity is opposite
of Shirk or ascribing partners with Allah. We became and remain Muslims solely
for Allah's sake. Allah says in the Qur'an,
"Worship Allah, making religion pure for him" (al-Zumar: 2).
And Allah also says,
"And they are ordained not else than to serve Allah,
keeping religion pure for Him, as men by nature upright and to establish
worship and to pay the poor-due. That is true religion"
(al-Bayinah: 5).
And the Prophet (peace be upon him) added, "Allah
has forbidden for the Hell-fire anyone who says, 'There is no one worthy of
worship except Allah,' and say so desiring the face [and pleasure] of
Allah." (Recorded by Muslim).
This is something that we should all think about, especially
those of us who grew up in Muslim families and were born Muslim. We should make
it very clear to ourselves that we are Muslims only for the sake of Allah. We
are not Muslims for the sake of our parents, friends, family or community. It
must be clear in our minds that we are Muslims for the sake of Allah first,
last and only. One of the signs that we are Muslims for the sake of Allah is
that we do whatever Allah asks of us, regardless of what anybody else desires
or wants from us. That is, in the same way that we are Muslims solely for the
sake of Allah, all of our actions are done for the sake of Allah.
However, sometimes one begins to wonder whether some people
meet this condition. Some people from the Muslim world practice Islam to the
extent that it is pleasing to their families. If there is anything in Islam
that their families do not like- although their families are Muslim and
therefore they actually should like all of Islam- then they do not practice
that aspect of Islam. One common example of that nature is mixing between men
and women. Sometimes a brother, here in the U.S., will not mix with women and
his wife will remain separate from the men. Yet, when they return to their
homes, because this is not pleasing to their families who want to mix between
men and women, they easily, simply and happily compromise their religion for
the sake of their parents. These people must sincerely ask themselves why they
are Muslims. Are they Muslims for the sake of their parents and therefore
whatever their parents like they will do and whatever their parents do not like
they won't do? Or are they Muslims for the sake of Allah and therefore whatever
Allah dislikes they will not do and whatever Allah is pleased with they do?
7- LOVE
(mahabbah):
That is, the believer loves this shahadah, he loves in
accordance with the shahadah, he loves the implications and requirements of the
shahadah and he loves those who act and strive for the sake of this shahadah.
This is a necessary condition of the shahadah. If a person makes the shahadah
but does not love the shahadah and what it stands for, then, in fact, his faith
is not complete. It is not the faith of a true believer. And if he loves
something more that this shahadah or if he loves something more than Allah,
then he has negated his shahadah. The true believer, the one meeting the
conditions of the shahadah puts no one whatsoever as an equal to Allah in his
love. Allah says in the Qur'an,
"Yet of mankind are some who take unto themselves
(objects of worship which they set as) rivals to Allah, loving them with a love
like (that which is due to) Allah only. However, those who believe are
stauncher in their love of Allah"
(al-Baqarah: 165).
And elsewhere Allah says:
"Say: If your fathers, or your sons, or your brethren,
or your wives, or your tribe, or the wealth you have acquired, or merchandise
for which you fear that there will be no sale, or dwellings you desire are
dearer to you than Allah and His Messenger and striving in His way: then wait
till Allah brings His command to pass. Allah guides not wrongdoing folk" (al-Tauba: 24).
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "Whoever has
three characteristics has tasted the sweetness of faith. [The first of these]
is that he loves Allah and His Messenger more than he loves anyone
else..." (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.).
This is one of the most important aspects of Islam yet, for
some reason, it is missing from the lives of many Muslims. They act in Islam as
if Islam were a chore instead of doing things out of the love of Allah. When
Allah orders us to do something, like bear witness to the faith, we should
realize that that thing is pleasing to Allah and, therefore, out of our love
for Allah, we should be very pleased to do the acts that are pleasing to Allah.
But, as I said, this feeling is missing from many, many Muslims today.
8: DENIAL OF FALSE WORSHIP:
Although that is clear in the words of the testimony of
faith, it does not seem clear to everyone who makes that testimony. Therefore,
I am mentioning it explicitly here. In Surah al-Baqarah, Allah clearly reminds
us of this important aspect of the shahadah, the shahadah is not merely an
affirmation but it is both an affirmation and a negation. Allah states,
"And he who rejects false deities and believes in Allah
has grasped a firm handhold which will never break" (al-Baqarah: 256).
Perhaps the Prophet (peace be upon him) made this point even
clearer when he said, "Whoever says there is no one worthy of worship
except Allah and denies whatever is worshipped besides Allah, then his wealth
and blood are protected and his accounting will be with Allah."
(Recorded by Muslim).
Although this condition should be obvious to everyone who
says the words of shahadah, you can still find Muslims who say the shahadah and
then make acts of worship for beings or things other than Allah. You will find
them going to the graveyards and worshipping those in the graves. They will
perform acts of worship, not for the sake of Allah, but for the sake of the
dead "saints" in the grave. What kind of shahadah have these people
made? Do you really think that their shahadah will mean anything on the Day of
Judgment as long as they believe that acts of worship may be done for other
than Allah?
9- ADHERENCE (astaqeem)
until death:
This is must if the shahadah is to mean anything for you in
the Hereafter. You cannot rest on your laurels of what you may have done in the
past. No, indeed, the shahadah must be your banner until your death. The
Prophet (peace be upon him) said, " A man spends a long time doing the
deeds of the people of Paradise and then he ends his deeds with the deeds of
the people of the Hell-fire. And a man spends a long time doing the deeds of
the people of the Hell-fire and then he ends his deeds with the deeds of the
people of Paradise." (Recorded by Muslim)
In another hadeeth, the Prophet (peace be upon him)
said,
"By the One beside whom there is no other God, one of you does the actions of Paradise until there is just a hand span between him and Paradise and then the book [preordainment] overtakes him and he does the actions of the people of Hell and he enters into it."
(Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
"By the One beside whom there is no other God, one of you does the actions of Paradise until there is just a hand span between him and Paradise and then the book [preordainment] overtakes him and he does the actions of the people of Hell and he enters into it."
(Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.)
And Allah says in the Qur'an,
"O believers, observe your duty to Allah with right
observance, and die not except as Muslims "O believers, observe your duty to Allah with right
observance, and die not except as Muslims [in complete state of surrender,
submission, obedience to Allah]" [in complete state of
surrender, submission, obedience to Allah]"
(al-Imran: 102).
(al-Imran: 102).
Dear brothers and sisters, these are the conditions of the
shahadah. These are the aspects of the shahadah that each and every one of us
should look deep down into our own hearts and ask ourselves:
"Is my shahadah meeting those requirements?"
"Am I saying it sincerely, honestly and out of love for Allah?"
"Am I saying it based on what it really means?"
"Am I denying all other false objects of worship?"
"Is there any part of my shahadah that is weak or missing?"
"Is my shahadah meeting those requirements?"
"Am I saying it sincerely, honestly and out of love for Allah?"
"Am I saying it based on what it really means?"
"Am I denying all other false objects of worship?"
"Is there any part of my shahadah that is weak or missing?"
It is not enough to simply memorize these conditions and the
answers to the questions as though we were on our way to class to take a
"pop quiz." We might meet Muslims or even the teachers themselves,
who have totally memorized these conditions and their meanings so much so that
they can recite every detail. But if we look to the way they act and the way
they treat others, we know that the conditions are not having the right effect
on them. This is proof that no matter how much a person knows, it only matters
how much they live up to it. In the Next Life their knowledge of these
conditions of shahadah will not benefit them in the least if they have not put
them into practice. Actually, their knowledge will be proof against them
because they clearly knew the conditions, yet they were not willing to live up
to them in this life.
As Muslims we need to ask ourselves right now, before we die
and go in front of Allah for His Judgment. We need to consider our answers
carefully to these questions. If we are weak in certain areas of these
important questions, then we should work hard to remove that weakness. So that
in the Next Life our shahadah will be our "Key to Paradise" and the
gates of the Paradise will open wide for us and we will be able to live forever
in Allah's Jennah with Him being please with us.
"O Allah, make us of those who learn, understand and
apply the true meanings of the shahadah, ameen. Forgive us were we fall short
or make mistakes, ameen. Bring us closer to You by Your Mercy and enter us into
Your Jennah, ameen."
Al Hamdulilah Rabbil Alameen was salat was salam ala Rasool al kareem.
Al Hamdulilah Rabbil Alameen was salat was salam ala Rasool al kareem.
