What is Al-Islaam?

 بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

❝ [Al-Islaam] ❞

And it is to submit to Him with tawḥeed and to yield to Him with obedience and to free oneself from shirk and its people.

– Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab at-Tamimi (rahimahullaah)

❛AL-ISLAAM❜ is derived from “ASLAMA LISH-SHAY” meaning he submitted to it as it is said in the language, “ASLAMA NAFSAHU LILQATL” which means he submitted himself to being killed. So a person did islaam of himself,means that he submitted to that thing.

Therefore ISLAAM is submitting one’s face and one’s purpose and resolve and one’s intention to Him,He the Mighty and Majestic.

[An-Nisa’ 4:125]

And who can be better in religion than one who submits his face (himself) to Allâh (i.e. follows Allâh’s religion of Islâmic Monotheism); and he is a Muhsin (a good-doer). And follows the religion of Ibrâhîm(Abraham) Hanîfa (Islâmic Monotheism – to worship none but Allâh Alone)….

[Al-Baqarah 2:112]

Yes, but whoever submits his face (himself) to Allâh (i.e. follows Allâh’s Religion of Islâmic Monotheism)…

Meaning: he makes his deeds purely and sincerely for Allaah the Mighty and Majestic,and he yields to Allaah obediently and by choice and with desire and out of love.

“SUBMITTING TO ALLĀH WITH TAWHEED” –

is to single out Allaah the majestic and most high with worship and this is the meaning of tawheed.So whoever worships Allaah alone without attributing a partner to Him, then he has indeed submitted to Him.

“AND YIELDING TO HIM,HE THE PERFECT WITH OBEDIENCE” –

regarding whatever He has commanded you with and whatever He has forbidden you from.So whatever He commanded you with then you do it and whatever He forbids you from then you avoid it,in obedience to Allaah the Perfect and Most High.

“AND FREEING ONESELF FROM SHIRK AND IT’S PEOPLE” –

here freeing oneself means cutting off and separating from-being far removed from shirk and the people of shirk,such that you believe the falsity of shirk and keep away from it.And believe in the obligation of having enmity towards the people of shirk as they’re enemies to Allaah,the mighty and majestic.So therefore you don’t take them as beloved friends and allies,rather you take them as enemies as they’re enemies to Allāh, His Messenger, His religion so you don’t have love for them and alliance with them rather you cut off from them with regard to the religion,distance yourself from them and you believe in the falseness of what they are upon.

So therefore you don’t love them with your heart and you don’t aid them with your sayings and your actions,because they are enemies to your Lord and to your religion,so how can you have love and alliance with them when they are enemies of Islaam?

It is not sufficient that you submit to Allaah and yield to him with obedience but do not free yourself from shirk and nor from the people of shirk…

…This will not suffice, you will not be counted as being a Muslim until you have these characteristics:

Firstly:

submitting to Allaah with tawheed.

Secondly:

yielding to him with obedience

Thirdly:

freeing oneself from that which opposes tawheed and that which opposes obedience and it is shirk.

Fourthly:

freeing oneself from the people of shirk.

—// #4 characteristics

By actualising these characteristics you will be a Muslim, as for if you miss out on a single characteristic from them then you will not be a Muslim.

So in these three words the Shaykh summarised the definition of Islaam and how many a person does not know the meaning of Islaam because he has not learned this thing, and if it were said to him,”WHAT IS ISLAAM?”, he will not give you a correct response.

[Explanation of Three Fundamental Principals of Islaam of Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhab by Shaykh Fawzaan|Translated by Dawud Burbank|Maktabah as-Sunnah Publication & Distribution]

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