What it means to be a 'Muslim' ?

What Is Islam?

Like I explained last Friday, the word ‘ISLAM’ comes from the Arabic root “silm” which means ‘peace’. But as far as people in the different countries who have accepted Islam wholeheartedly are concerned, as they are not well versed in the Arabic language, they may not fully comprehend the exact extent and the exact denotation of Islam. So I have been thinking that today in my sermon I shall continue on my explanation on what is Islam?

My dear brothers and sisters, Islam is what makes the heart pump and which reinvigorates both the body and soul of the human race, and every creature which is found in the heavens and earth. The beautiful panorama of the heavens and the earth which we see around us carries in its bosom the testimony that it is the creation of a Great Creator. 

The Universe' Set Pattern

The existence of order and design in the universe which modern science, through intense researches, has come to teach us leads us to believing in the existence of a Supreme power and a Supreme Intelligence who is responsible for this complex but orderly design, such a Supreme Being Who brought it into existence and supplied with it all that is needed for its life and growth. New researches have also enabled the discoveries of new galaxies which are sisters to our galaxy, such discoveries which enrich all the more the knowledge of science in respect to the grandeur of Allah and His vast power. Thus, we find that even modern science through its innumerable researches have come to prove the words of Allah, as established in the Holy Scriptures – especially the last Law, the Holy Quran – as true.

Muhammad- the Universal Prophet

The Holy prophet (pbuh) was born on 12^th Rabi’ul Awwal. His father was Abdullah son of Abdul-Muttalib and his mother was Amina daughter of Wahab. It was in the year of Elephant, the year when Abraha an Abyssinian at the head of an army marched towards Mecca mounted on elephants in order to attack Mecca and demolish the Ka’aba. The march of elephants frightened the Arabs but Allah sent down a swarm of flying creatures which threw stones on the Abyssinian army. This event marked history for Allah after nominating the Muhammad (pbuh) as prophet, later revealed to him about what occurred to Abraha and his army in the year of his birth. This Surah is none other than Surah Al-Fil (The Elephant: Chapter 105). Allah relates therein how He crushed them and their evil plans.

The Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) came to change the course of human history. His birth was like a spring of light which illuminated the Arabian Peninsula and the whole world.

According to various Qur’anic verses and prophetic traditions, we see the magnificence of the Prophet, whether in his physical features, and in his character. His physical beauty is comparable to the beauty of the fourteenth moon; and much more! Several of his companions have given details of his physical traits and his character. The Prophet (pbuh) had a beautiful constitution. He had a white complexion; a splendid white. His forehead was wide, and the place between his eyebrows was bright like pure silver and his eyes were beautiful, and the pupils of his eyes were black. His cilia were abundant. As for his nose, it was thin, and he had a sweet face. His beard was thick, and his neck was beautiful, being neither long nor short, to the point that if the sun hit him, it seemed like a cup of silver mixed with gold. In addition, the space between the shoulders of the Prophet (pbuh) was wide and his hair, which was neither thin nor curly, almost touched his shoulders. Aisha, his beloved wife reported that “the blessed hair of the Messenger of God (pbuh) were longer than those reaching the earlobes and shorter than those that reach the shoulders.” He was neither tall nor short. (Inset:  Hazratbal Mosque in Srinagar, Kashmir. It houses a hair of the prophet Muhammad. The "Moi-e-Muqqadas", arrived in Kashmir in 1699 during the time of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, is displayed on various occasions related with the life of the Holy Prophet ).

‘Allah Blesses me with His Revelations’

In his Friday Sermon of January 06, 2012 Khalifatullah Hadhrat Munir Ahmad Azim Sahib (atba) spoke about the inextricably intertwined Universe.  The grandeur and majesty of the Creator par excellence is written all over the space so much so that an accidental coincidence is impossible to conceive. Human mind perceives the potential role of an intelligent design behind it all. While human sensory organs are incapable of observing God, Almighty Allah reaches out to his Chosen servants in every age through the medium of divine revelations.  In this speech, the Khalifatullah throws light on the subtle subject of divine revelations by quoting from the writings of the Promised Massih Hadhrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (as). Further, the Khalifatullah (atba) confirms that for the last 12 years, he has been blessed with the special Grace of Allah and that he is a recipient of divine revelations, Alhamdulillah.      

Read from the extracts of the Sermon:

“And verily this Quran is a revelation from the Lord of all the worlds.” (26: 193)

There is an accurate orderly design and deep interrelation between different creations in the universe. How could food, air, water and sunlight, which are all indispensable for life, come to assemble accidentally on the earth? If the eye was created accidentally, then how the sun was also brought into existence accidentally? If the ear was formed accidentally did the air also come into existence accidentally to aid the ear in hearing sounds? If man appeared accidentally did woman also accidentally to aid him in procreation and to relieve his emotions?

Example after example could be listed. There is a deep interrelation and interdependence between different things in the universe which cannot happen by accident. We are forced to come to the conclusion that there exists an All-Knowing, All-Powerful and All-Wise Creator Who designed the whole pattern of the universe and then brought it into existence. It is the view of some people that, no doubt, God created the universe, designed it and set in motion but after that it is operating automatically in accordance with inherent laws and God never interferes with its operation. Were this so then we are unable to find answers to the following questions. Why did God create such a strange universe and what was the purpose of its creation? Did He reveal His purpose to man? Is there life after death and will man be rewarded or punished in the Hereafter in accordance with the merits of his actions?