What is Islam

by Prof. Masudul Hasan

Literal meaning of Islam
Literally “Islam” means submission, surrender, obedience and peace. Islam stands for complete surrender and submission to God. Islam envisages that the way to peace and progress for man lies in submission to God. The message of Islam is enshrined in the declaration of faith “There is no god but Allah the Creator of Universe, and Muhammad is His messenger”. It is a revolutionary message, which makes man aware of his origin and his destiny. Islam establishes the link between men with the purpose of life, makes him the vicegerent of God, and confers on him the status of the crown of creation.

Faith of Islam
Islam is primarily a matter of faith. Such faith stands for certain beliefs. Such beliefs are: belief in the unity of God; belief in the finality of the prophet hood of Muhammad (peace be on him); belief in the prophets that Allah commissioned from time to time; belief in the Holy Qur’an and other holy books revealed to the prophets from time to time; belief in the angels; belief in the life after death; and belief in the Day of Judgment. Such beliefs are intended to inculcate in man belief in him self, and belief in his destiny. Motivated and fortified with the faith in Islam, man can virtually move mountains and rise to any height.

Discipline of Islam
In order to enable man to fulfils his mission as the vicegerent of God, Islam seeks to discipline man through the offering of prayers to God five times a day; through the observance of fast for one month in a year; through the giving on Zakat on their assets for the welfare of the poor; through undertaking pilgrimage to the Kaaba at least once during life-time; and through readiness to undertake Jihad in the cause of God. Such disciplined people are to establish a social order characterized by social justice, public welfare and a high sense of social and moral virtues. In the Holy Qur’an Allah refers to the Muslims as the best of community among mankind, and Islam seeks to build up the Muslims as the model of humanity.

Characteristics of Islam
The characteristics of Islam are its universality; its comprehensiveness; its rationalism; its positivism; its pragmatism; its egalitarianism and its simplicity. Islam is universal in scope, and seeks to set up universal brotherhood among men. It is most rational in concept. It has liberated mankind from superstitions, which characterized the ancient religions. It takes a positive and not a negative view of life. It stands for progress and challenges and overcome them. It stands for equality among the people. There is no priesthood in Islam; one can have communion with God without the intercession of any human agency. It is conspicuous for its simplicity. Islam stands for no elaborate ritual; its message appeals to the heart as well as to reason.

Ideals of Islam
Islam is a way of life. This means that Islam is not concerned with mere religious rituals; it seeks to regulate human conduct in all fields of life, and spheres of action. It has set certain ideals, and the aim of Islamic socio-political order is to provide the necessary climate for the blossoming of such ideals to fruition. Such ideals are religious, social, moral, intellectual, cultural, political and international. The religious ideal of Islam is to establish belief in the unity of God and the prophet hood of Muhammad (peace be on him) throughout the worlds. The social ideal is to create a pattern of social order where under there are no distinctions of caste, creed, colour, the rich and the poor. The moral ideal is to make every person an embodiment of moral virtues. The intellectual ideal is to promote the acquisition of knowledge. The cultural ideal is to bring about a wholesome synthesis between the material and spiritual aspects of life. The political ideal is to establish a welfare state. The international ideal is to establish a universal state based on the brotherhood of men.

Islam a Religion
Like other religions, Islam is also a religion. In his “Lectures”, Allama Iqbal has quoted with approval the following definition of “Religion” by Professor Whitehead: “Religion is a system of general truths which have the effect of transforming character when they are sincerely held, and vividly apprehended”.

Islam is the most powerful and patent instrument for transforming the character of the believers and as such it is religion par excellence. The equivalent of “religion” under Islam is Din. According to the Dictionary of Technical Terms “Din” is defined as: “A divine institution which guides rational beings, by their choosing it, to salvation here and thereafter and which covers both articles of belief and action”.

Islam vis-à-vis other religions
In the Holy Qur’an Allah says, “This day We have perfected the religion for you, Islam”. Islam is thus on the testimony of Allah, the most perfect religion. Among the religions of the world, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Confucianism are more of philosophies than religions proper. Whatever foundation literature exists about these creeds is based on human speculation, and is not divinely revealed. Judaism, Christianity and Islam alone are revealed and they alone have the title to be called as religions. Judaism is deficient to the extent that the concept of God there under is that of a tribal God, and not that of a universal God. In Christianity the concept of God has been distorted by making Jesus Christ and Holy Ghost share godhood in “Trinity”. Islam alone presents God in proper perspective. While comparing Islam to Judaism and Christianity in his book Three Great Religions, Clarke has observed as follows: “It is the distinctive characteristic of Islam, as taught by Muhammad, that it combines within itself the grandest and the most prominent features in all religions compatible with the reason and moral intuition of man. It is not merely a system of positive moral rules, based on a true conception of human progress, but it is also the establishment of certain principles, the enforcement of certain dispositions, the cultivation of a certain temper of mind, which the conscience is to apply to the ever varying exigencies of time and place”.

Social and political order of Islam
In view of its dynamic character, Islam provides for the best social and political order. In this connection, H.G. Wells observes as follows in his book History of the World: “and if the reader entertains any delusions about a fine civilization, either Persian, Roman, Hellenic of Egyptian being submerged by Islam, the sooner he dismisses such ideas the better. Islam prevailed because it was the best social and political order. Islam was the broadest, freshest, and cleanest political idea that had yet come into actual activity in the world, and it offered better terms than any other to the masses of mankind”.

Vitality of Islam
About the vitality of Islam, Bernard Shaw observes as follows: “I have always held the religion of Muhammad in the highest estimation because of its wonderful vitality. It is the only religion, which appears to me to posses that assimilating capability to the changing phase of existence, which can make itself appeal to every age. I have studied him – the wonderful man – in my opinion far from being anti – Christ, he must be called a savior of humanity. I believe that if a man like him were to assume dictatorship of the modern world he would succeed in solving the problems in a way that would bring it the much needed peace and happiness. I have prophesied about the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of tomorrow as it is beginning to be accepted by Europe of today”.