what is islam ?

Islam is derived from the Arabic root "Salema": peace, purity, submission and obedience. In the religious sense, Islam means submission to the will of God and obedience to His law.

Everything and every phenomenon in the world other than man is administered totally by God-made laws, ie. they are obedient to God and submissive to his laws, they are in the State of Islam. Man possesses the qualities of intelligence and choice, thus he is invited to submit to the good will of God and obey His law, ie, become a Muslim.

Submission to the good will of God, together with obedience to His beneficial Law, ie, becoming a Muslim, is the best safeguard for man's peace and harmony.

Islam dates back to the age of Adam and its message has been conveyed to man by God's prophets and messengers, including Abrahim, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad peace be on them .

Islam's message has been restored and enforced in the last stage of the religious evolution by God's last prophet and messenger, Muhammad pbuh .

The word Allah in the Arabic language means God, or more accurately, The One and Only Eternal God, Creator of the Universe, Lord of all lords, King of all kings, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful. The word Allah to mean God is also used by Arabic speaking Jews and Christians.

shirk

To worship anything besides God is Shirk. To offer prayers for anyone apart from God is Shirk. To make supplication (Dua) to anyone besides God is Shirk. To seek anyone's help besides God is Shirk.

God says in the Qur'an, "Verily God forgives not setting up partners in worship with Him. But He forgives whom He pleases, sins other than that (shirk)" The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 4, Verse 116

God says in the Qur'an, "Verily whosoever sets up partners in worship with God, then God Has forbidden paradise for him and the fire will be his abode" The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 5, Verse 72

Even a muslim who commits shirk will not enter paradise.

Some of the kinds of Shirk with Hadith references:

To swear to someone besides God

1. "He who swore by something other than Allah shall be regarded as Mushrik" Reported by Umar Ibn al-Khattab(ra) and narrated by Ahmad

2. "He who swore by other than Allah has fallen in kufr or shirk" Reported by Umar Ibn al-Khattab(ra) and narrated by Abu Dawood and At-Tirmidhi

3. "To pretend to be muslims by concealing bad faith in their hearts is disguised shirk." This kind of shirk is Riya (to do good deeds or beautify them to be seen by men)

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said that "May I tell you of what i fear very much, that might harm you more than Al Masih Ad Dajjal (the false Messiah). The audience said "Yes, Prophet of Allah". He said " The disguised Shirk..When a man gets up to pray and strives to beautify his prayer, because people are looking at him" Reported y Abi Sa'eed Al Khudri and narrated by Imam Ahmed in his Musnad.
To wear a ring, twine or anything similar for protection from or removal of harm or affliction

Allah the Almighty said " Say: Tell me then, the things that you invoke besides Allah - if Allah intended some harm for me, could they remove His harm, or if He (Allah) intended some mercy for me, could they withhold His mercy? Say: Sufficient for me is Allah; in Him those who trust must put their trust." The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 39, Verse 38

Ibn Abi Hatim reported about Hudhaifah (ra) : He saw a man with a piece of twine on his hand (as protection or cure from fever) so he cut the twine and read the verse " Most of them believe not in Allah except that they attribute partners unto Him" The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 12, Verse 106"



The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 112 To seek help from other than Allah or to invoke other than Him

Allah the most exalted said "And invoke not besides Allah any that will neither profit you nor hurt you, but if (in case) you did so, you shall certainly be one of the polytheists and wrong doers. And if Allah touches you with hurt, there is none who can remove it but He; and if He intends any good for you, there is none who can repel His favours which He causes it to reach whomsoever of His slaves He wills. And He is the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful" The Holy Qur'an, Chapter 10, Verses 106-107

Allah's Messenger (pbuh) has warned the one who builds the mosque to worship Allah near the grave of righteous persons.

Imam Malik (ra) recorded in his book muwatta that the Prophet (pbuh) said, " O Allah! Never turn my grave into an idol to be worshipped"
Muslims are to put their trust in Allah only. And ask only His help. And not ask any man's or any saint's help who is alive or who is dead in the grave. To benefit a person or to harm a person is in the control of Allah, Let us therefore worhsip Him, the way He wants us to worship Him.

MEDIA AND ISLAM

Islam, today, is the most misunderstood religion. It bears the brunt of misconceptions and hate propaganda.
 
The powerful mass media, aligned to deceitful political and corporate interests, spreads these misconceptions virulently... worldwide.

While portraying Islam, integrity and reliability are bypassed by the media with professional charm and finesse.

Wise and apt Islamic viewpoints are seldom covered in the mainstream media, whereas aberrations by a few misled Muslims are highlighted.

Muslims hardly have any hold or influence on major media, especially TV. They instead, exhibit an apologetic attitude and an inferiority complex.

quran "book wherein there is no doubt"

This is the book ;  in it is guidance sure , without doubt , to those who fear Allah (quran : 2:2) .

This is the quran ; it was revealed to one human being named as Muhammed ( peace and blessing be upon him ) and its Author is Allah , the lord  and sustainer of the universe .

At a time when the world sank to its lowest , oppression and tyranny (cruel and unfair treatment by someone in a position of power) exceeded all the limits, human beings were enslaved by arrogant kings and emperors , and women lost their human dignity on earth ,

A night in the month of Ramadan (9^th month of Islamic calendar) was destined

to determine the course of human history from then on . fourteen hundred years ago . Allah, the lord  decided to bring back humanity from the disgrace of slavery into the position of Allah`s emissary on earth . That was laylat ul Qadr ( the night of power ) ; the night when angel Gabriel , on the command of Allah , made an eternal link between the heaven and the earth . that was the night that shaped the destiny of humanity .

This is that quran that :

·        Transformed a nation that stooped in chaos

·        Revolutionized them and elevated them to the peak of human perfection

·        Changed people`s hearts

·        Molded their characters

·        Uprooted their ignorance

·        Reconstructed their societies in a noble and divine fashion