Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Chapter 6: Tawhid - Oneness of God

There are FIVE basic beliefs of Islam. In Islamic terminology, we call them Usul - e - Din.i.e., fundamentals of Islam. Anyone who has slightest doubts in these basic beliefs, or accepts them without understanding, is not a true Muslim. These basic principles of Islam are as follows;

It is important to know the meanings and have good understanding of these basic principles of Islam.

What isTawhid ?

Tawhid is the most basic principle of Islam.

Islam is the only religion which teaches a pure, perfect and unadulterated concept of monotheism, and entertains no compromise with nationalism, racism, polytheism, trinitariasm, saint-worship, idol worship or considering anyone in anyway equal to God or par t of God. The concept of Tawhid has two inseparable components.

1 - Belief in the existence of God.

2 - Belief in the absolute oneness of God.

Those who do not believe in the existence of God are called atheists. In Islamic terminology, we call them Kafir and Mulhid.

And those who do not believe in the absolute oneness of God are called polytheists. In Islamic terminology, we call such people as Mushrik. Both Mulhid and Mushrik are the most condemned people, and their ultimate end is eter nal hell-fire.

Thus, the most essential requirement of being a Muslim is that one must believe in the existence of God and also in His absolute oneness.

The most basic teaching of Islam is that the universe and everything in it, such as sun, stars, planets, moon, mountains, oceans, trees, animals, men, and billions of other material and invisible things around the universe, have been created by Allah Taala alone without any help from anyone. Mathematically speaking, anything other than Him and everything other than Him is His creation.

The Holy Quran has beautifully explained the meaning of Tawhid in Surah Al-Ikhlas which is also known as Surah Tawhid;

Say: Allah is one, the eternal God. He begot none, nor was He begotten. None is equal to Him or like Him. (112)This surah precisely tells us that there is none comparable or equivalent to Him. In surah ash- Shura, Quran tells the same fact in simple manner, "Nothing is similar to Him". (42:11)

Existence of God.

A special branch of Islamic theology, known as Ilm-ul-Kalam, deals with this subject in full detail. But is there any need to discuss the existence ofGod ? Do we discuss such plain observation such as that we have five fingers? Do we argue such apparent things like why there is light during the day and darkness during the night?

No, we don't really discuss such simple matters. Then the issue of Existence of God is also an obvious truth which doesn't need any debate or lengthy discussion. Quran also considers it a self-evident case.

"Their messengers said;Is there a doubt about Allah, the creator of the heavens and the earth. It is He Who invites you, in order that He may forgive you and your sins and give you respite for a term appointed" (14:10)

Quran further shakes the frozen minds:

"Is it not enough that your God is the proof of all things"?

This is a beautiful Quranic proof of the existence of God. Thus, the attentive and intelligent people consider God to be the proof of all existing things, not the existing things to be proof for God.

So, there should be no doubt in the existence of God and there should be no need of any kind of serious argumentation. What we really need is to strengthen the faith in God. For this reason Quran invites the believers to ponder in the creation of Allah.

However, we are living in an age of doubt, where people are denying the naked truths. For this reason, we shall discuss the existence of God from various angles and at a reasonable length. Does science prove existence ofGod ?

History of science tells us that man has an inborn desire to acquire knowledge. This desire is born out of his natural urge to know about his Creator. Many scholars believe that man's struggle to gain knowledge began with an effor t to understand God.

All scientists believe that the basic aim of scientific researches is to know thetr uth. So every sincere effort in scientific research will prove the existence of God because it is a universal truth. Quran invites all researchers in their respective fields of specialization to ponder in the creations of Allah in order to testify His existence and His Oneness.

"And your God is one: there is no god but He; He is the beneficent, the merciful. Most surely in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the night and the day, and the ships that run in the sea with that which profit men, and the water that Allah sends down from the clouds, then gives life with it to the earth after its death and spreads in it all kinds of animals, and the changing of the winds and the clouds made subservient between the heavens and the earth, there are signs for a people who understand". (2:163-164)

Almost every discipline of science is covered in this shor t verse of the Holy Quran. It is true. Today, the existence of God is a common observation of all scientists working in different fields of science.

How to prove the existence of God at schoollevel ?

Existence of God is so obvious and visible that it can be convincingly proved at all levels. When your chemistry teacher tells you about the structure of atom, he teaches you that some tiny particles known aselectrons, are revolving around the nucleus.

You should ask him a simple question; Sir: Who has initiated the movement ofelectrons ?

Because your physics teacher has taught you that, Isaac Newton in first law of motion says, that nothing can move unless someone makes it to move. So if electrons are moving in their respective orbits, then who has made them tomove ? Did any scientist tell you about any kind of force which has brought these electrons into motion?

No, without any dispute everyone says "NO".

Then, how the electrons started moving around the nucleus in their respective orbits? The answer of this question is nothing but what we teach you in Tawhid. "He is Allah. There is no god but Him". (20:8)

Both physics and chemistry teach you that you can not explain the structure of atom and first law of motion completely without believing in Tawhid. Thus every book of science and each discovery of the scientiststeaches us, how great is our Lord Who has created every thing which exists in the universe.

The human body is a marvelous creation of Allah Subhanahu taala. Every part of the body is divinely computerized to do a specific job. For instance, heart is a tireless, powerful muscle which works round the clock. It pumps 4.7 liters of blood throughout the body ever y minute.i.e., 7,600 liters of blood in one day. Millions of pages are not enough to describe the amazing features of the body and its accessories.

Thus, physics, chemistry and biology explicitly tell about the reality of God. Hence, science adequately proves the existence and oneness of God. Brain Exercise:

If we see sunlight, we affirmativly confirm the presence of sun without seeing it. If we find a car parked in a forest, we assuredly conclude that someone has brought it here with a definite intention. If we don't see the owner, we will look for him. If we can't find him around, still we will believe that someone has brought it here.

If we observe the chairs and desks orderly arranged in a room, and a blackboard with chalk and duster, we confidently assume that it is a classroom for students. We did not see the person who has arranged it, and we do not know the person who has arranged it. But we believe with certainty that a concerned person has done it for a definite purpose.

Now with the same eyes, if we see the moon, stars, oceans, trees, animals, and millions of other things, and we find that all of them are serving a definite purpose in the universe, then should we not believe that someone, who can be none but an omnipotent God, has created them with a definite purpose.

Thus, denying God means, denying the existance of univers. In Quranic terminology such a person is referred as Kafir.

Chapter 7: Atheism - Kufr

What is Atheism

The antithesis( direct opposite) of Tauhid is atheism and polytheism. Atheism is a belief that God does not exist.

There are many people in the world who believe without any solid knowledge that sun, stars, planets, earth, humans, animals, plants and billions and trillions of other marvelous things, have come into existence by accident i.e. by themselves and without any creator. All such people are called Kafirs (atheists).

Anyone whether a top scientist, a great scholar or a highly learned person who does not believe in the existence of God is not a wise man. Quran calls such educated people who refuse to accept the clear signs of God as the donkey laden with books (62:5).

The Holy Quran also confirms that such people, even if they have made great contributions in science and technology, are the great losers.

"The works of those who reject their Lord may be compared to ashes which the wind whips around on a stormy day. They can not do a thing with anything they have earned. That is the extreme failure." (14:18) Quran further evaluates the worth of their works.

"Those who disbelieve will find their deeds (scientific achievements) will disappear like a mirage in a desert, the thirsty traveler thinks it as water, but when he comes near, he finds that it is nothing. Yet he finds Allah there, who pays him back in full. Allah is prompt in accounting" (24:39)

"Or like darkness on a deep sea: one wave cover up another wave, above which are clouds, layers of darkness, one above the other: when he holds his hands, he can hardly see it. If Allah refuses light to anyone, there is no way he can find light. (24:40) "But those who are disbelievers, Allah will render their deeds astray". (47:8)Atheists, or Kafirs (unbelievers) are of two kinds.

Those who know the fact or can easily ascer tain it from their acquired knowledge, but deliberately refuse to accept. They understand the truth but determinedly reject it because of their personal reasons.

In other words, they know the truth but they hide it to an extent as if they don't know. A large number of people such as Firaun (Pharoh), Namrud, Abu Jahal, Abu sufian, Abu Lahab, and many world top scientists and educated people are atheists of this kind. To all these people, truth was revealed to them, but they rejected it out of their arrogance and hatred. Such people are real Kafirs and are the permanent residents of Jahannum.

The secondkind of atheists (Kafirs) are those who are ignorant people. The cause of their ignorance is either their too much involvement in the worldly things or their extremely inattentive nature. Such heedless people view everything with blind eyes and never conclude the truth. A large number of learned non-Muslims and many illiterate Muslims fall in this category of Kafirs.

Atheism conflicts with many of the world's major religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Hinduism etc.Confucianism, and Buddhism are atheistic religions.

Agnosticism.

Agnosticism is an offshoot of atheism. It is a religion of utterly confused people. The followers of this belief say that existence of God and other religious realities can not be proved. According to them, there is no way to prove the existence of God.

The word agnosticism has been derived from the Greek language agnostics, which means not knowing. i.e., they don't believe in God because they don't have means to know Him. This is absolute nonsense. All such people are Kafir as they pretend and deny the naked truth.

The word, agnosticism, was coined by the British naturalist Thomas Henry Huxley in 1869. Huxley was a staunch supporter of Charles Darwin, and people used to call him the bulldog win. The holy Quran condemns such people and has categorically stated that they will straight go to the hell-fire.

Does science disprove the existence ofGod ?

Many top scientists of the world do not believe in God. Does it mean that science denies the existence ofGod ? Not at all.

No scientist has ever proved, and can never prove, that there is no God. In fact, for the last 200 years, all scientists of the world have been trying to disprove the existence of God by their combined efforts, but they have been utterly unsuccessful in their attempts. For example,They have devised different theories to prove the self-existence of the universe.

They have formulated the theory of evolution to prove the self-existence of all living species.

Firstly, none of these theories can be proved on valid scientific standards. But even if we accept these theories as the true facts of science, the existence of God can not be denied. The most popular theory about the origin of the universeare :

1 The Big bang theory

In big bang theory, scientists have proposed that the universe came into existence by an explosion - called the big bang. This explosion occurred by itself 10 to 20 billion years ago. The main part of the fire-ball was matter, chiefly hydrogen. This matter, consisting of hydrogen and other light elements broke apart in huge clumps and became galaxies. That is how the universe of atheists was formed.

Now let us suppose that this is a correct theory. But does it invalidate the existence ofGod ? No; Because a valid question arises that, how matter consisting of hydrogen, helium and other light elements came intoexistence ?

So by this theory, the existence of God cannot be denied. The argument is that, one who created the hydrogen, will be considered as the creator of the universe even if the universe began as the result of an accidental big-bang explosion.

2 The Steady State theory

This is another forged theory to deny the existence of God. According to this theory, the universe has always existed in its present state.

Again if we accept this theory as correct one, a question will arise that, where this matter came from. This theory doesn't say anything about the origin of the matter. Thus, in these two popular theories of the West, we find very different explanations, and none is supported by astronomical observations or sound reasoning.

To deny or invalidate the existence of God, the atheist should create a universe without any raw material. They don't want to do so because if they do so, they will become god themselves as only God creates things out of nothing.

3 OrganicEvolution

Similarly this Theory has also been tactfully designed to deny the existence of God.According to this theory, popularly known as the Darwin theory of evolution, all living species evolved from a single cell of life which lived about 3 billion years ago. i.e.,All kinds of living organism that inhabit the ear th today are the descendants of a single cell.

Again, even if we supposedly accept this theory ofevolution , the existence of God remains a valid and logical belief.Because, how a single cell came into being. i.e., whether we accept or reject this theory of evolution, the existence of God will remain a valid belief.

However, if one accepts the theory of evolution, the controversy will arise only over one issue; that millions of kinds of living creatures around the world have been created by God as they are seen today or God has created first a single cell and multiplied it into millions of different kinds of living creatures.

Apparently, it seems that all different kinds of living species were created by Allah Taala as we find them today.

Nevertheless, some useful variations and essential modifications might have been occur red in them in a period of time to meet the immediate natural demand of their body and to fulfill the essential requirements of the prevailing time.

This is the great mercy of Allah Subhanahu taala and an obvious sign that He is the sustainer and the caretaker of all the creatures He has created. Allah knows the best, what a par ticular living species needs and in what finest body structure, it can comfortably survive. This is the Islamic explanation of the Darwin's phrase, survival of the fittest, and the struggle for the existence.

So, atheist scientists have exhaustively tried to create a theory justto cast-off the concept of existence of God, but every theory proved that the denial of God is utterly unworkable. In fact, to explain the big bang theory, steady state theory and the theory of evolution, scientifically and rationally, scientists will have to accept the existence of God. That is why Kepler, a great scientists of 1700s said, "If there is no God, we must invent God to justify the scientific truths and make them rationally understandable".

Thus, the edifice of all scientific truths and established facts will crumble if one stubbornly denies the existence of God.

The entire building of science is based on the strong foundation of Tawhid i.e., intellectually recognizing the existence ofOmnipotent being, who is none but Allah Subhanahu taala.

The rejection of Divinecreator, or criminal silence on this basic issue of science is totally an irrational attitude. It distorts the amazing beauty and rationality of natural phenomena. The first and the most basic teaching of Islam and the true science is that, the universe and everything in it is the creation of a Supreme immortal being called ALLAH.

Allah is the creator of all things, and of all things He is a guardian. His are the keys of the heavens and the earth. Those that deny His revelations shall assuredly be lost. (39:64) Thus, the pre-requisite condition of scientific research is that,

1- Scientists must acknowledge the existence of God.

2 - Scientists should make efforts to understand the purpose of His creation.

3 - Scientists should provide the rational explanation of the natural phenomena.

4 - Scientists should invite people to worship God