ESSENCE OF IMAN (FAITH) AND ITS SIGNS
All thanks are due to Alláh Who judges by Truth and Justice and guides whom He wills to the Straight Path. He decides all matters with His Wisdom and ordains the religion, and He is the All- Wise, All-Knower. He sent the Messengers as Bringers of glad tidings and as Warners, and revealed the Book to them to judge between people conceming what they differ about. That was so that they judge by fairness and give each his due right without exaggeration or shortcomings. I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Alláh Alone without partners; His is the kingdom, He is Worthy of all praise and He is Able to do all things. I bear witness that Muhammad is Alláhs slave and Messenger, may Alláhs peace and blessings be on him, his progeny and all those who followed him with excellence until the Day of Judgment.
O people! Fear Alláh the Exalted, offer your loyalty and support to Him and He will grant you victory; obey Him and He will compensate you.
“Verily, Alláh will help those who help His (Cause). Truly, Alláh is All-Strong, All-Mighty. Those (Muslim rulers) who, if We give them power in the land, (they) enjoin Iqamat-as-Salát [i.e. to perform the five compulsory congregational Salát (prayers) (the males in mosques)], to pay the Zakat and they enjoin AI-Ma ‘rúf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do), and forbid AI-Munkar (i.e. disbelief, polytheism and all that Islam has forbidden) [Le., they make the Qur’an and Sunnah as the law of their country in all the spheres of life]. And with Alláh rests the end of (all) matters (of creatures).” (22:40)
O people! Imán (Faith) is not acquired by wishing and hoping. Rather, Imán is the creed that resides in the heart and is implemented by actions that substantiate its truth and essence by performing acts of worship and avoiding sins. Each one of us is able to state that he is Muslim and even claim that he is a Mu ‘min (faithful believer). Each one of us is able to declare that there is no deity worthy of worship except Alláh and that Muhammad(pbuh) is the Messenger of Alláh. Even hypocrites, who will dwell in the lowest depths of the Hellfire, mention Alláh by their words. Hypocrites used to declare to the Prophet ss, “We testify that you are the Messenger of Alláh.” They also swore to the Prophet(pbuh) and his Companions that they were with them, even though they were against them. However, all these testimonies and vows did not avail them in the least: here they are in the lowest bottorns of the Fire below every Mushrik (polytheist), atheist, Jew and Christian! This is because their vows and oaths did not come from hearts full of Yaqin (sincerity), Imán, submission or obedience.
“And of mankind, there are some who say: ‘We believe in Alláh and the Last Day, , while in fact they believe not.” (2:8)
Imán requires strong and firm faith that bears the fruits of truthful statements, righteous actions, love in the Cause of Alláh, sincerity in performing Tauhid and obedience to His Messenger(pbuh). Imán requires strong resolve, liveliness, vigor, endurance and dedicating the heart to what it finds hard: the obedience of Alláh and restraining the inner self from what it covets and is a disobedience of Alláh.
There are several signs of Imán that Alláh has mentioned in His Book and His Messenger(pbuh) detailed in his Sunnah, as follows. Alláh said:
“The believers are only those who, when Alláh is mentioned, feel a fear in their hearts and when His Verses (this Qur’án) are recited unto them, they (i.e., the Verses) increase their Faith; and they put their trust in their Lord (Alone); who perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat) and spend out of that We have provided them. It is they who are the believers in truth. For them are grades of dignity with their Lord, and forgiveness and a generous provision(Paradise).”(8:2-4)
Allah also said:
“And whenever there comes down a Surah(chapter from the Qurán), some of them (hypocrites) say: “Which of you has had his Faith increased by it?” As for those who believe, it has increased their Faith, and they rejoice. But as for those in whose hearts is a disease (of doubt, disbelief and hypocrisy), it will add suspicion and doubt to their suspicion, disbelief and doubt; and they die while they are disbelievers. See they not that they are put in trial once or twice every year (with different kinds of calamities, disease, famine)? Yet, they turn not in repentance, nor do they learn a lesson (from it).” (9:124-126)
Therefore, dear Muslims, who amongst us has these qualities? Who amongst us feels fear in his heart because of Alláh and Honors His remembrance when He is mentioned? Who amongst us has his faith increased and rejoices when the Áyat of his Lord are recited to him? Who feels the delight of believing in the Áyat and applying their laws? Who amongst us truly trusts in Alláh, rather than in any among the creation? Who amongst us performs the prayer as it should be performed, perfectly and on time? Who amongst us gives from what Alláh has granted him by paying the Zakát and helping the needy, the relatives and the poor?
When contemplating the condition of Muslims in the present time, we find many Muslims who do not practice Imán or Islam, except whomever Alláh wills among them to have faith. Generally, Muslims have fallen into shortcomings, especially with regards to fulfilling Allah’s rights, the rights towards each other and acquiring Imán and Yaqin (certainty). Many Muslims all over the Islamic World do not embrace the code of Islamic conduct or correct their actions, and many of them were affected by the ways and immoral traditions of the disbelievers. The impact of this appears on some Muslims who feel doubt and hesitation in their hearts about Allah’s revelation, the Prophet’s prophecies, existence of angels and Jinn and about the authenticity of the Prophet’s Message in general. Some of them even doubt the existence of Alláh, the Lord and Creator! Glory be unto Alláh’
Would one doubt the existence of God, yet not doubt his own existence? Who has created him then, if Alláh did not? This is the reason why we witness many Muslims today whose hearts do not move if Alláh is mentioned, as if nothing they heard should cause them humbleness. Sorne Muslims do not increase in faith when Alláhs Áyat (the Qur’án) are recited to them. Rather, they increase in wickedness and sin, mock Alláhs Áyat and shun implementing them out of arrogance. Some Muslims in present times do not trust in Alláh, but instead trust in material possessions and this life. Thus, they do not seek wealth from lawful resources, thinking that if they do, the opportunity to amass wealth becomes less open. They strive to collect wealth from any resource, whether allowed or disallowed. Sorne Muslims nowadays rely on Alláh’s enemies to secure their safety and peace, leading them to obeying the disbelievers in disobedience to Alláh and His Law:
“Verily, those who have turned back as disbelievers after the guidance has been manifested to them – Shaitán (Satan) has beautified for them, and (Alláh) prolonged their term. This is because they said to those who hate what Alláh has sent down:
“We will obey you in part of the matter.” But Alláh knows their secrets. Then how when the angels will take their souls at death, smiting their faces and their backs? That is because they followed that which angered Alláh and hated that which pleased Him. So He made their deeds fruitless.” (47:25-28)
We find that those Muslims who obey and follow their enemies in matters that contradict Islamic Law do so because of their weak trust in Alláh and their strong reliance on something other than Him! They are amazed at the strength of Allah’s enemies and think that all power is in their hands. They forget that He Who has created the enemies, is indeed more powerful than they are. Had these people used their awe by dedicating their trust in Alláh Alone, and sought the means and ways of achieving triumph, such as abiding by Allah’s religion and Law with regards to their affairs of life, they would find sufficient strength. If they did this, Alláh would be with them, and whoever has Alláh with him, will never be defeated:
“Alláh is not such that anything in the heavens or in the earth escapes Him. Verily, He is All-Knowing, All-Omnipotent.” (35:44)
Nowadays, we find Muslims who neither join the prayer in congregation nor preserve its obligation. They do not attend the Jumu ‘ah (congregational prayer) at the Mosque and when they do pray, they do not fulfill the prayer’s pillars, conditions and Sunan (recommended acts). They do not take special care regarding purity of (prostrating)
body, praying on time, completing the standing, sitting, Ruku’ (bowing) or Sujud (prostrating) calmly and with grace. Sorne people who say that they are Muslims do not pray at all, and sorne of them mock the prayer and those who pray. Sorne Muslims do not spend for Zakát or Sadaqah from what Alláh has granted them, nor spend on those on whom they are required to spend. Yet, such people spend lavishly on what does not benefit them and on what Alláh had disallowed for them.
Muslims in these times are in a dire situation. We complain to Alláh from the evil that they have done and from theír abandoníng His set limits and commandments. We complain to Alláh from their taking His Law lightly, forgetting His remembrance, feeling safe from His plan, ignoring the mission they were created to fulfill and indulging in foolhardiness instead. This explains why enemies of Muslims have power over them now and humiliate them, while controlling them politically and economically. Muslims have become just like a flock of sheep that hears nothing but calls and cries from their shepherd; they are deaf, dumb and blind, and therefore they do not understand. Indeed, we are all for Alláh and to Him shall be our return.
O Alláh! We invoke You while waiting to perform an act of worship that You have ordained on us as a favor from You. We invoke You by asserting that You are Alláh, there is no ilah (god) deserving worship but you, the One, the Sustainer. He Who neither begets, nor was He begotten and there is none like unto Him. O You Who created the heavens and earth, Owner of Power and Grace, the Ever-Living Who never dies, Who sustains all that exists. We invoke You to make Imán dear to us, beautify it and make it firm in our hearts. We invoke You to make disbelief, sin and rebellion hated by us and to take us away from this evil path.
O Alláh! We invoke You to set aright the affairs of this Ummah and provide them with righteous rulers who abide by the truth and judge by it. Grant us rulers who never fear the blame of anyone in their implementation of Alláh law. Give us rulers who never favor their relatives because of their relation or the strong on account of their strength. We ask You to protect our religion and make us firm on it until the day we die. You, verily You are the Most-Kind, Most Generous. I say this and ask Alláh to forgive me and you.
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