Knowing Allah
Tawheed is one of the most important aspects of one’s life. It is a fundamental pillar of Islam and represents the whole base of Islam itself. Without the knowledge of Tawheed, one cannot understand Islam in its true form. We need the knowledge of Tawheed to attain perfection in our faith and to stop us from committing shirk knowingly, or unknowingly.
Tawheed is derived from the word ‘aqd, which means to tie, consolidate, affirm or hold tight together. Aqeedah refers to a strong belief in which one is full of certainty. And in Islam, it refers to the belief in one’s heart. It is the full submission to Allah with complete obedience to his commandments, rulings and following his messenger ﷺ. The term Aqeedah is used to refer to the Aqeedah of Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamah. The principle of Tawheed needs further clarification and teaching even among Muslims these days. When one does not know what Tawheed is, they end up committing shirk without realizing it.
Tawheed can be categorized into three types. These three combined lead a Muslim to live a life of submission to Allah .
Types of Tawheed
1. Tawheed Ar Ruboobiyah
Tawheed Ar Ruboobiyah means to have a strong faith that Allah is the creator of everything in the earth and He is the one who gives and takes life. This further confirms that Allah is the sole provider, the Most Powerful and the Most Merciful. This Tawheed is there in every man’s heart, as we made a covenant to Allah that we would recognize Allah as our Lord and not fall into shirk. This is the fitrah of man. Hence there are only a few people who pretend to deny God, they blind themselves from the truth.
Believing that Allah is our creator automatically makes us believe that he has power over us all. This prohibits us from placing hope in objects such as talismans, charms or visiting the fortune tellers. Even when we take an intermediary to Allah we are committing a grave error by violating the tawheed ar ruboobiyah.
It was narrated that Abu Musa said: “The Prophet heard me saying: ‘La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah (there is no power and no strength except with Allah).’ He said: ‘O ‘Abdullah bin Qais! Shall I not tell you of a word which is one of the treasures of Paradise?’ I said: ‘Yes, O Messenger of Allah.’ He said: ‘Say: La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah (There is no power and no strength except with Allah).'”
Saheeh, Sunan Ibn Majah
2. Tawheed Al Asma Was Sifat
This category of Tawheed focuses on the beautiful names and attributes of Allah . It deals with describing Him using His attributes of majesty and clear perfection as stated by Him and clarified by our Prophet Muhammad . Allah tells us how elegant and magnificent His names are. And such marvelous names express His attributes of uniqueness and traits. Allah tells us in the Noble Qur’an:
“… There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing.”
[Surah Ash-Shuraa, 42:11]
3. Tawheed Al Ibadah
Tawheed Al Ibadah speaks about the most principal factor of all the aspects of Tawheed. Allah is the only one whom we should worship with complete sincerity, the one who must be loved with a love not comparable to that of love for desires, The one who must be obeyed and the only one whose religion is to be followed.
Ibn ‘Abbas narrated, “One day I was riding behind the Prophet when he said, ‘O lad, be mindful of Allah and He will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you shall find Him with you. When you ask (for anything), ask it from Allah, and if you seek help, seek help from Allah.’”
(Saheeh, Bulugh al-Maram)
Tawheed is the basis of Islam. Without the base, there can be no building. Only if we know and understand Islam, can we implement it ourselves and teach it to others. Tawheed is the only way to attain a strong faith, to find pleasure and success. Especially in this time, when the advancement of technology has given us an outstanding opportunity, we must not spend a minute wasting our time. Tawheed is key to unlocking true Islam. Hence it is the need of the hour that every person should strive the hardest to get perfection in his/her Tawheed and implement it, teach it to others, and benefit the entire Ummah.
Now, do you know Allah?
The most important and greatest message for the people is Tawheed. Believing in the oneness of Allah. Hence it is the first pillar of faith. Once we look at the importance of Tawheed, we have no doubt how essential it is to know about it and implement it in our lives. Only if one knows Tawheed does he understand Islam. One cannot get satisfaction or peace except by reaching out to Allah Our love, trust, fear and all those emotions that bring us joy are all directed to Allah to an incomparable degree.
Not knowing Tawheed leads to Shirk. Shirk is the opposite of Tawheed and means associating partners with Allah. Shirk can occur in all categories of Tawheed. Most of the time, people fail to realize they are doing shirk, due to lack of knowledge. In India concepts of grave worship, saint worship and charms are so widespread due to them not having the knowledge of Tawheed. Sometimes people might fall into major sins such as learning magic or visiting a fortune teller too. This eventually leads to great harm and people find it hard to find the straight path.
Every Action Matters
Every day of our lives, for every choice we make, every thought occurring in our mind, we do so, in the path of Allah. However, the events in our daily life are so chaotic and hectic that this faith of ours is challenged and tested throughout. But no matter what we face, our heart should always be entitled to the remembrance of Allah Tawheed is the first decree that was chosen for us. Hence, its right to be fulfilled is utmost and needs to be done in a way that all worship is directed only to Allah
Aqeedah is a necessity. Its impact is very deep and leaves a trail of what we perceive of our religion. Our purpose in life is to worship Allah . Hence, everything we do throughout our daily lives includes our worship of Him. Our love for Him, His knowledge, His beautiful names, etc, are all important things that we need to know to be able to worship Him in the way He deserves to be worshiped.
To be from the main body of the Muslims, that is, the way of our prophet and his companions, we need to know and perfect our aqeedah. It’s importance as we can note is paramount. In the light of the Quran and Sunnah, we can say that Aqeedah is the central core of our faith and something that every Muslim must strive hardest to perfect throughout our daily lives.
