All praises are due to Allah the Most High.

May Allah the Almightys peace and blessing be upon the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him).

Spiritual Growth Through Knowledge and Action

Series

Tawheed - Review

The literal meaning of tawheed is unification or making something one or asserting oneness. It comes from the Arabic verb wahhada, which itself means to unite, unify or consolidate. What is the overall theme of this term tawheed?

REVIEW: Using Tawheed in Reference to Allah the Most High

When the word tawheed is used in reference to Allah the Exalted, it means realizing and affirming Allah the Most Highs unity in all of mans actions which directly or indirectly relate to Him. This particular action involves 3 recognitions to be complete, and one may not disbelieve in any one of these: Allah the Almighty is One without partner in His dominion. Allah the Almighty is One without similitude in His essence and attributes. Allah the Almighty is One without rival in His divinity and in worship.

REVIEW: Tawheed As Action Steps

Tawheed requires 3 steps or beliefs in order to complete this action. First, one must affirm that Allah the Most High is One, without partners in his sovereignty. Second, one must affirm that Allah the Almightys names and attributes are incomparable and unique. Third, one must affirm that Allah is alone in his right to be worshipped.

REVIEW: Step 1: Affirming that Allah the Most High is One, without partners in his sovereignty

This is known as Tawheed arRuboobeeyah It means to maintain the Oneness of Lordship. This is based on the following concepts: Allah alone caused everything to exist when there was nothing. He is the only One who sustains and maintains His creation. He has no need from it or for it. He is the sole Lord of the universe and its inhabitants. He has no real challenge to His Lordship.

END REVIEW Any Questions?

Step 2: Affirming that Allah the Almightys names and attributes are incomparable and unique.

This is known as Tawheed al-Asmaa was-Sifaat. There are 5 subcategories for this category of Tawheed: Allah the Exalted must be referred to according to how He and His Prophet, peace be upon him, have described Him without explaining away His names and attributes by giving them meanings other than their obvious meanings. Allah the Exalted must be referred to as He has referred to Himself without giving Him any new names or attributes. Allah the Exalted must be described without giving Him the attributes of his creation. Man must never give himself the attributes reserved for Allah the Most High. Allah the Almightys name in the definite form cannot be given to His creation unless preceded by the prefix Abd meaning slave of or servant of.

Allah the Exalted must be referred to according to how He and His Prophet, peace be upon him, have described Him without explaining away His names and attributes by giving them meanings other than their obvious meanings

It is important to remember that even though we take these names and attributes as they are described and written, we should understand that there is nothing like Allah the Almighty and so though He gives us descriptions of Him, we should never compare them to our human attributes. Example Al-Baqara 2:115 states, The East and West belong to Allah. Wherever you turn, there is His Face, for Allah is all pervading, all-knowing. Here Allah has described 3 of His attributes, what are they? All-Pervading All-Knowing He has a Face Now, in this, we should not think of human faces, we should not even question what His Face looks or is like, but simply accept that He has one because He has said this in the Quran.

Allah the Exalted must be referred to as He has referred to Himself without giving Him any new names or attributes.

Several Ayats in the Quran speak to this but one example is in Surat Al-Imran, Ayat 7, He it is Who has sent down to you the Book: In it are verses basic or fundamental (of established clear meaning); They are the foundation of the Book: Others are those that have abstractions. But those in whose hearts is evil follow the part within it that is abstract seeking disharmony, in searching for hidden meanings; But no one knows its hidden meaning except Allah: And those who are firmly grounded in knowledge say, We believe in the Book: The whole of it is from our Lord: And none will grasp the Message except men of understanding. So, we should not be of those who search for hidden meanings or abstractions. We should accept the names and attributes of Allah the Almighty as He clearly states them. Examples: Al-Araf 7:186 states, For those whom Allah rejects from His guidance, there can be no guide: And He will leave them exceeding their limits, wandering aimlessly (without going anywhere). You cannot describe Allah the Almighty as a rejecter even though He has stated that He rejects those who exceed their limits because He has not described Himself as the rejecter. Al-Maida 5:60 states, Say (to them): Shall I point out something to you much worse than this, (judging) by the treatment it received from Allah? Those who received the curse from Allah and His anger, those (are the people) of whom some He transformed into apes and swine, those who worshipped Evil and false gods- These are (much) worse in rank, and far more astray from the even Path! Here we are told that Allah the Exalted can become angry and that he can curse people. Even though He has said this, we do not refer to Him as the angry one or the curser because He has not clearly used those terms to describe Himself. We do not want to be among those who search for unclear meanings and abstractions as this is a sign of evil within ones heart.

Allah the Exalted must be described without giving Him the attributes of his creation.

This is similar to the first sub-category in that when Allah(swt) describes something about Him(swt), then we do not think about our human knowledge of such things because there is nothing like Allah(swt). Example: Some Christians and Jews subscribe to the belief that Allah the Almighty created the world in 6 days and rested on the 7th. Humans require sleep or rest, however, it is clear that Allah(swt) requires no sleep or rest in Al-Baqara 2:255: Allah! There is no god but He- The Living,- The Self-Sufficient,- The Infinitely Enduring,- Slumber or sleep never reaches Him. All things are His, in the heavens and on the earth. Who is there who can plead in His presence except as He permits? He knows what (appears to His creatures), before or after or behind them. They shall not understand the smallest fragment of His knowledge except as He wills. His Throne extends over the heavens and over the earth, and He does not tire in guarding and preserving them; And He is the Most High, the Supreme (in Glory).

Man must never give himself the attributes reserved for Allah the Most High.

Any name or attribute of Allah the Most High can not be given to any human being, no matter what their position. Example: Some sects have given their Imams divine attributes of absolute infallibility, knowledge of the past, the future and the unseen, the ability to change destiny and control over the atoms of creation. This is incorrect. Below are examples of this incorrect belief as expressed in writings: *A+n Imam must be infallible, that is to say incapable of making errors or doing wrong, either inwardly or outwardly, from his birth to his death, either intentionally or unintentionally, because the Imams are the preservers of Islam and it is under their protection. Faith of Shia Islam, Muhammad Rida al-Muzaffat, 2nd ed., 1983) Certainly the Imam has a dignified station, a lofty rank, a creational caliphate, and sovereignty and mastery over all atoms of creation. al-Hukoomah al-Islaameeyah, Aayatullah Musavi al-Khomeini, Beirut, 1979)

Allah the Almightys name in the definite form cannot be given to His creation unless preceded by the prefix Abd meaning slave of or servant of.

Names where people name themselves as other than a slave of Allah the Almighty are forbidden. The Prophet (peace be upon him) forbade Muslims from referring to those put under their charge as Abdee (my slave) or Amatee (my slave girl). Many of the Divine names in their indefinite form like Raoof and Raheem are allowable names for men because Allah the Almighty has used some of them in their indefinite form to refer to the Prophet (peace be upon him). An example: A messenger has come to you from among yourselves to whom anything which burdens you is grievous. He is full of concern for you and is full of pity (Raoof) and full of mercy (Raheem). Quran 9:128

Application of Knowledge

Amirah is about to have a baby boy and she is very excited. She has always wanted to name her son something which would honor the Prophet (peace be upon him). Because of this, she picks the name Abdun-Nabee (slave of the Prophet). Is this an acceptable name? Why or why not using your knowledge of Tawheed al-Asmaa wasSifaat. Abdullah needs some advise regarding taking a new job with a small sales company that sells all pork products. He wants to know if it is okay for him to take the job if he only sells the pork products, but does not touch or consume them. His Imam tells him to take the job and also that he should make sure to donate more money to the masjid due to his new higher salary and that he must obey his advise because he is infallible as the Imam and also because he has seen into the future and that Abdullah is a large donor at the masjid in this future which he has seen firsthand. Should Abdullah listen to the Imam? Why or why not using your knowledge of Tawheed al-Asmaa was-Sifaat.
James observes Ryan drinking an intoxicant at the local restaurant. When he sees Ryan later, he confronts him and states, Dont you know that Allah the rejecter will reject those who exceed their limits? Then he quotes the following ayat, For those whom Allah rejects from His guidance, there can be no guide: And He will leave them exceeding their limits, wandering aimlessly (without going anywhere). Is James correct in describing Allah the Almighty as the rejecter? Why or why not using your knowledge of Tawheed al-Asmaa was-Sifaat.

Action Steps

Take time to review the requirements for Step 2 of putting Tawheed into action.

Dua O Allah, You are pure, I praise You and testify that there is none worthy of worship besides you. I seek forgiveness and pardon from You.

There will be a review and test over this material soon, InshaAllah.