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The word “Muslim” means one
who submits to the will of God, regardless of their race, nationality or
ethnic background. Becoming a Muslim is a simple and easy process that
requires no pre-requisites. One may convert alone in privacy, or he/she may
do so in the presence of others.
If anyone has a
real desire to be a Muslim and has full conviction and strong belief that
Islam is the true religion of God, then, all one needs to do is pronounce
the “Shahada”, the testimony of faith, without further delay. The “Shahada”
is the first and most important of the five pillars of Islam.
With the pronunciation of
this testimony, or “Shahada”, with sincere belief and conviction, one
enters the fold of Islam.
Upon entering the fold of
Islam purely for the Pleasure of God, all of one’s previous sins are
forgiven, and one starts a new life of piety and righteousness. The Prophet
said to a person who had placed the condition upon the Prophet in accepting
Islam that God would forgive his sins:
“Do you not know that accepting Islam destroys all sins
which come before it?” (Saheeh Muslim)
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When one accepts Islam,
they in essence repent from the ways and beliefs of their previous life.
One need not be overburdened by sins committed before their acceptance, but
if the sin involved usurping a right of another human, such as stealing,
then they should strive their utmost to return what was wrongly taken. The
person’s record is clean, and it is as if he was just born from his
mother’s womb. One should try as much as possible to keep his records clean
and strive to do as many good deeds as possible.
The Holy Quran and Hadeeth
both stress the importance of following Islam. God states:
“The only religion in the sight of God is Islam.“ (Quran 3:19)
In another verse of the
Holy Quran, God states:
“If anyone desires a religion other than Islam, never will
it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter, he will be in the ranks of
those who have lost (their selves in the Hellfire).” (Quran 3:85)
In another saying,
Muhammad, the Prophet of God, said:
“Whoever testifies that there in none worthy of being
worshipped but God, Who has no partner, and that Muhammad is His slave and
Prophet, and that Jesus is the Slave of God, His Prophet, and His word[1]
which He bestowed in Mary and a spirit created from Him; and that Paradise
(Heaven) is true, and that the Hellfire is true, God will eventually admit
him into Paradise, according to his deeds.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhari)
The Prophet of God, may God
praise him, also reported
“Indeed God has forbidden to reside eternally in Hell the
person who says: “I testify that none has the right to worship except Allah
(God),’ seeking thereby the Face of God.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhari)
The Declaration of the Testimony (Shahada)
The testimony can be
declared by saying the following statement with conviction and
understanding its meaning:
I testify “La ilah illa
Allah, Muhammad rasoolu Allah.”
[to hear it click here
or click on “Live Help” above for assistance by chat.]
The translation of which
is:
“I testify that there is no true god (deity) but God
(Allah), and Muhammad is the Messenger (Prophet) of God.”
The first part of the
testimony consists of the most important truth that God revealed to
mankind: that there is nothing divine or worthy of being worshipped except
for Almighty God. God states in the Holy Quran:
“We did not send the Messenger before you without revealing
to him: ‘none has the right to be worshipped except I, therefore worship
Me.’” (Quran 21:25)
This conveys that all forms
of worship, whether it be praying, fasting, invoking, seeking refuge in,
and offering an animal as sacrifice, must be directed to God and to God
alone. Directing any form of worship to other than God (whether it be an
angel, a messenger, Jesus, Muhammad, a saint, an idol, the sun, the moon, a
tree) is seen as a contradiction to the fundamental message of Islam, and
it is an unforgivable sin unless it is repented from before one dies. All
forms of worship must be directed to God only.
Worship means the
performance of deeds and sayings that please God, things which He commanded
or encouraged to be performed, either by direct textual proof or by
analogy. Thus, worship is not restricted to the implementation of the five
pillars of Islam, but also includes every aspect of life. Providing food
for one’s family, and saying something pleasant to cheer a person up are
also considered acts of worship, if such is done with the intention of
pleasing God. This means that, to be accepted, all acts of worship must be
carried out sincerely for the Sake of God alone.
The second part of the
testimony means that Prophet Muhammad is the servant and chosen messenger
of God. This implies that one obeys and follows the commands of the
Prophet. One must believe in what he has said, practice his teachings and
avoid what he has forbidden. One must therefore worship God only according
to his teaching alone, for all the teachings of the Prophet were in fact
revelations and inspirations conveyed to him by God.
One must try to mold their
lives and character and emulate the Prophet, as he was a living example for
humans to follow. God says:
“And indeed you are upon a high standard of moral
character.” (Quran 68:4)
God also said:
“And in deed you have a good and upright example in the
Messenger of God, for those who hope in the meeting of God and the
Hereafter, and mentions God much.” (Quran 33:21)
He was sent in order to
practically implement the Quran, in his saying, deeds, legislation as well
as all other facets of life. Aishah, the wife of the Prophet, when asked
about the character of the Prophet, replied:
“His character was that of the Quran.” (As-Suyooti)
To truly adhere to the
second part of the Shahada is to follow his example in all walks of life.
God says:
“Say (O Muhammad to mankind): ‘If you (really) love God,
then follow me.’” (Quran 3:31)
It also means that Muhammad
is the Final Prophet and Messenger of God, and that no (true) Prophet can
come after him.
“Muhammad is not the father of any man among you but he is
the Messenger of God and the last (end) of the Prophets and God is Ever
All-Aware of everything.” (Quran 33:40)
All who claim to be
prophets or receive revelation after Muhammad are imposters, and to
acknowledge them would be tantamount to disbelief.
We welcome you to Islam,
congratulate you for your decision, and will try to help you in any way we
can.
Footnotes:
[1] God created him through His statement, “Be!”
Source: www.islamreligion.com
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