Tawhid and the 99 Names: Allah the One and Only (Episode 4)
One of the most fundamental tenents of Islam is monotheism, tawhid. It is so important that Muslims believe one third of the Quran is summarized in Surah 112 (Al-Ikhlas [Sincerity]):
Say: He is Allah, the One and Only; 1It is said that the Sufi, Ibn Khafif (d. AD 981), recited Quran 112:1 ten thousand times in one prayer! (Alexander D. Knysh, “Sufism and the Qur’an”, Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾan)
Allah, the Eternal, Absolute;
He begetteth not, nor is He begotten;
And there is none like unto Him.
Surah 112 is one of the shortest chapters in the Quran and yet summarizes a third of the Quran thus highlighing the importance of monotheism. Surah 112 is also the only chapter in the Quran where Allah’s name “Only” is found.
In this series, Amr Khalid teaches about Allah the One, (Arabic, الواحد, al-wahid; cf. Quran 2:163) and the Only (Arabic, الاحد, Al-‘Ahad; Qur’an 112:1). Last time we left off with Amr Khaled discussing a Muslim for his belief in God’s Oneness, Bilal Habashi.
Bilal Habashi (Hazrat Bilal Bin Rabah [ بلال بن رباح)]) – remembered by Muslims of as one of the earliest African Muslims. He experienced horrendous torture at the hands of his master, Umayehti ibn Khalaf, because of his belief in monotheism. Muhammad chose the Bilal to be his muezzin, effectively making him Islam’s first muezzin (Bilal ibn Rabah al-Habashi).
Bilal’s confession of Allah as “One and Only”
0:00-0:56
“They did so to make him disbelieve in God, but he said: “God is One & Only”. Bilal must have truly sensed these words! Do you feel these words like Bilal did? Can you sense the implications of “Sincerity of Faith” Chapter like Bilal? Some recite the verse of this short Chapter to finish Prayer quickly! When you recite: “He is God, the One and Only”, remember Bilal’s stance! … They urged him to disbelieve in God, but his tongue could not utter words of disbelief! Bilal’s tongue could not utter any word of disbelief! Ammar was tortured as he believed in God the One and Only. Those who do not care about religion and just enjoy worldly pleasures are to consider how early Muslims were persecuted while serving Islam. How can some then neglect Islam and just indulge in worldly pleasures?”
Ammar ibn Yasser was tortured for believing in God the One and Only
0:57-1:31
“Many do not pray; even when they do, they do not feel: “the One and Only”. The infidels tortured Ammar ibn Yasser with burning coals, they made him like on live coals to urge him to disbelieve in God! He believed that : “He is God, the One and Only”! It was his melting flesh that extinguished the coals! Imagine the flesh of his back melting on the live coals! Ammar then went to the Prophet, unable to stand upright after that torture as he believed in God, the One & Only and the fact there is no diety but God.”
The hairdresser of Pharaoh’s daughter was tortured for believing in God the One and Only
1:32-4:14
“Also the hairdresser of Pharaoh’s daughter was tortured because she believed in God, the One and Only! That hairdresser of Pharaoh’s daughter was concealing her Faith. Pharaoh claimed that he was the “supreme lord”! That girl the beautician to the Pharaoh’s daughter. We have to consider her story to see the value of the Testification of Faith.”
“While she was combing the hair of her lady, the comb fell to the ground; the girl’s heart was so full of Faith that her tongue could not conceal it. She picked up the comb saying: “In the Name of God; there is no deity but Him.” Some people tend to say this when they drop something: “In the Name of God, Glory be to God…” out of faith in God. Pharaoh’s daughter asked if her hairdresser meant her father; the girl declared that all, including Pharaoh, were the servants of God! The daughter wondered if she believed in a deity other than her father and threatened to tell her father, but the maid stuck to her Faith though she was just a maid combing the hair of her lady.”
“Pharaoh summoned her and asked her if she believed in a deity other than him and she went on saying there is no deity but God!” Many are heedless of such words and say it in prayer absent-mindedly; the girl sensed the implications of God’s Oneness.”
“Pharaoh was enraged and asked if she had children and ordered that her children be brought, and burnt! They were burned in a copper oven in the shape of a cow! He ordered her children to be thrown into that oven asking if she believed in anyone other than him, but she remained steadfast! Her eldest son was thrown into the cow-shaped oven before her as she believed in the words which we utter heedlessly and absent-mindedly! She sacrificed her children for believing in God’s Name, the One and Only.” [there are video problems here]
“The last child was still a baby, sho she pitied him and she hesitated a second but the baby spoke and reassured his mother she was in the right! After a while, the woman died with her 4 children, but her Testification of Faith survived!”
“Muhammad said when he ascended to the heavens, he smelt a sweet scent; he asked Gabriel about the source of that scent and Gabriel said it was the hairdresser of Pharaoh’s daughter and her children! This is as believing in God, the One and Only, is the greatest thing ever!”
Sincere belief that “There is no deity but God” outweighs other sins no matter how great
4:15-6:52
“The Prophet said God would question one of his followers on Doomsday, he would appear before God when called into account. God would spread the Records of his misdeeds; they would be ninety-nine Records of sins, each of which extending as far as the eye could see! Imagine how big those Records of sins are! How many sins did that man commit to fill all these Records! His sins, filling the 99 Records, were as huge as mountains! Imagine, 99 Records of sins! That man would be sure he would go to Hell. God would ask him if any of his deeds were missing; he would answer in the negative and God would ask him: “Have My recording Angels wronged you?” and he would answer in the negative! God would ask him if he had any excuse; he would say he did not!”
“God would say: “On the contrary you have with Us a good deed…” He would ask God what it was; God would say it was written in a small document. The man would say that document would not compare to those Records and God would say: “…you will not be wronged” and He would order the document to be put on the side of good deeds. On the document there was written: “There is no deity but God.” When it was put on the scale, it outweighed the 99 Records of sins! This single good deed outweighed 99 Records of sins! “There is no deity but God” outweighed everything else.”
“The Prophet said, “…nothing else could compare in weight to God’s Name.” There is no deity but God. This man would not have been saved unless he had said it sincerely! He must have said it with conviction and really believed in it; knowing there is no deity but God and one must be devoted to God alone. That man must’ve said at least once, out of true Faith in God. Thanks to saying “There is no deity but God”, he was saved as “…nothing could compare in weight to God’s Name.” [there are video problems here]
“Utter this Testification of Faith, so you may be saved! You may have Records of sins like that man and still be saved, thanks to it! Say it from the bottom of your heart and live by God’s Name the One and Only and by “He is God, the One and Only…”
6:53-end
“A man complained to the Prophet that a man used to lead them in Prayer, and in every unit of Prayer he would recite “He is God, the One and Only…” The Prophet asked the man why he had done so; he answered he just loved it because that Chapter contains God’s Name and Attribute “the One and Only”; He has no asssociates. The Prophet told him that thanks to his love for this verse, he won God’s Love; Muhammad said that man would enter Paradise due to loving that Chapter! This short Chapter alone equals, in value, one third of the Qur’an as it contains God’s Name, the One and Only, and sums up Monotheism. I hope you’re moved now that you have grasped my point.”
“Once the Prophet heard a man praying to God, calling Him by His Name, the One and Only, the Eternal Cause of all beings the One Who begets not, and was not begotten, the One beyond compare. The Prophet told him he had just uttered God’s Most Magnificent Name by which if He was called, He would answer one’s prayer!”
“Mu’awiah Al-Muzani could not participate in the Battle of Tabuk because he was very ill, so he stayed back in Medina. Though it was very cold and all Muslims were sleeping, Gabriel visited the Prophet and told him he was to offer the funeral Prayer for Mu’awiah who had died. It was cold that night and Muslims were asleep, exhausted after fighting. Gabriel told Muhammad (PBUH) 2 rows of angels were waiting for him; they had descended from heavens to offer the funeral prayer for Mu’awiah, and they had never descended before! He (PBUH) asked Gabriel what Mu’aweya had done so he would deserve that honor! Gabriel said “Mu’aweya loved “Sincerity of Faith” Chapter and he used to recite if often, day and night, as it contains God’s Attribute, One and Only, so angels wished to pray for him!”
Next Post
Amr Khaled, 99 Names of Allah, The One and Only Part 5
Related Posts
Amr Khaled, 99 Names of Allah, The One and Only Part 1-2
Amr Khaled, 99 Names of Allah, The One and Only Part 3
Amr Khaled, 99 Names of Allah, The One and Only Part 5
Amr Khaled, 99 Names of Allah, The One and Only Part 6-7
Amr Khaled, 99 Names: “The Oft-Forgiving” “The Oft-Pardoning”
Trinity, Tawheed, and Monotheism
التوحيد وعقيدة الثالوث الأقدس
Have you read the Bible?
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