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A
believer in this Kalimah can never be narrow in outlook.
He believes in a God Who is the Creator of the heavens and
the earth, the Master of the East and the West and Sustainer
of the entire universe. After this belief he does not regard
anything in the world as a stranger to himself. He looks on
everything in the universe as belonsging to the same Lord
he himself belongs to. His sympathy, love and service are
not confined to any particular sphere or group. His vision
is enlarged, his intellectual horizon widens, and his outlook
becomes as liberal and as boundless as is the Kingdom of God.
How can this width of vision and breadth of mind be achieved
by an atheist, a polytheist or one who believes in a deity
supposed to possess limited and defective powers like a man?
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This
belief produces in man the highest degree of self-respect
and self esteem. The believer knows that Allah alone is the
Possessor of all power, and that none besides Him can benefit
or harm a person, or provide for his needs, or give and take
away life or wield authority or influence. This conviction
makes him indifferent to, and independent and fearless of,
all powers other than those of God. He never bows his head
in homage to any of God's creatures, nor does he stretch out
his hand before anyone else. He is not overawed by anybody's
greatness. This attitude of mind cannot be produced by any
other belief. For it is necessary that those who associate
other beings with God, or who deny God, should bow in homage
to some creatures, regard them able to benefit or harm them,
fear them and place their hopes in them.
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Along
with self-respect this belief also generates in man a sense
of modesty and humbleness. It makes him unostentatious and
unpretending. A believer never becomes proud, haughty or arrogant.
The boisterous pride of power, wealth and worth can have no
room in his heart, because he knows that whatever he possesses
has been given to him by God, and that God can take away just
as He can give. In contrast to this, an unbeliever, when he
achieves some worldly merit, becomes proud and conceited because
he believes that his merit is due to his own worth. In the
same way pride and self-conceit are a necessary outcome and
concomitant of shirk (association of others with
God in His divinity), because a mushrik believes
that he has a particular relation with the deities which does
not exist between them and other people.
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This
belief makes man virtuous and upright. He has the conviction
that there is no other means of success and salvation for
him except purity of soul and righteousness of behavior. He
has perfect faith in God Who is above all need, is related
to none and is absolutely just. This belief creates in him
the consciousness that, unless he lives rightly and acts justly,
he cannot succeed. No influence or underhand activity can
save him from ruin. As against this, the kafirs and
the mushriks always live on false hopes. Some of
them believe that God's son has atoned for their sins; some
think that they are God's favorites, and will not be punished;
others believe that their saints will intercede with God on
their behalf; while others make offerings to their deities
and believe that by so bribing the deities they acquire a
license to do whatever they like. Such false beliefs keep
them enmeshed in sin and evil deeds; depending on their deities,
they do not bother about their souls and living pure and good
lives. As to atheists, they do not believe that there is any
Being having power over them, to Whom they should be responsible
for their good or bad actions; therefore they consider themselves
independent to act in whatever way they like. Their own fancies
become their gods and they live like slaves of their wishes
and desires.
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The
believer never becomes despondent. He has a firm faith in
God Who is Master of all the treasures of the earth and the
heavens, Whose grace and bounty have no limit and Whose powers
are infinite. This faith imparts to his heart extraordinary
consolation, fills it with satisfaction and keeps it filled
with hope. Although he may meet with rejection from all sides
in this world, faith in and dependence on God never leave
him, and on their strength he goes on struggling. Such profound
confidence can result from no other belief than belief in
one God. Mushriks, kafirs and atheists have small
hearts; they depend on limited powers; therefore in times
of trouble they are soon overwhelmed by despair and, frequently,
they commit suicide.2
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This
belief produces in man a very strong degree of determination,
patient perseverance and trust in God. When he makes up his
mind and devotes his resources to fulfilling the Divine Commands
in order to secure God's pleasure, he is sure that he has
the support and backing of the Lord of the universe. This
certainty makes him firm and strong like a mountain, and no
amount of difficulties, impediments and opposition can make
him give up his resolution. Shirk, kufr and atheism
have no such effect.
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This
declaration inspires bravery in man. There are two things
which make a man cowardly: (i) fear of death and love of safety,
and (ii) the idea that there is someone else besides God who
can take away life and that man, by adopting certain devices,
can ward off death. Belief in La ilaha illallah purges
the mind of both these ideas. The first idea goes out of his
mind because he knows that his life and his property and everything
else really belong to God, and he becomes ready to sacrifice
his all for His pleasure. He gets rid of the second idea because
he knows that no weapon, no man or animal has the power of
taking away his life; God alone has the power to do so. A
time has been ordained for him, and all the forces of the
world combined cannot take away anyone's life before that
time. It is for this reason that no one is braver than the
one who has faith in God. Nothing can daunt him: not even
the strongest tempest of adversity and the mightiest of armies.
Where can the mushriks, the kafirs and the
atheists get such great determination, force and power from?
They hold life the dearest thing in the world; they believe
that death is brought about by the enemy and can be warded
off by running away from him!
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The
belief in La ilaha illallah creates an attitude of
peace and contentment, purges the mind of jealousy, envy and
greed and keeps away the temptations of resorting to base
and unfair means for achieving success. The believer understands
that wealth is in God's hands, and He apportions it out as
He likes; that honor, power, reputation and authority - everything
- is subjected to His will, and He bestows them as He will;
and that man's duty is only to endeavor and to struggle fairly.
He knows that success and failure depend on God's grace; if
He wills to give, no power in the world can prevent Him from
so doing; and if He does not will it, no power can force Him
to. On the other hand, the mushriks, the kafirs and
the atheists consider success and failure as dependent on
their own efforts and the help or opposition of earthly powers.
Therefore, they always remain slaves to cupidity and envy.
They never hesitate to turn to bribery, flattery, conspiracy
and other kinds of base and unfair means to achieve their
ends. Jealousy and envy of others success eat them away, and
they will stop at nothing to bring about the downfall of a
successful rival.
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The
most important effect of La ilaha illallah is that
it makes man obey and observe God's Law. One who has belief
in it is sure that God knows everything hidden or open and
is nearer to him than his own jugular vein. If he commits
a sin in a secluded corner and in the darkness of night, He
knows it; He even knows our thoughts and intentions, bad or
good. We can hide from everyone, but we cannot hide anything
from God; we can evade everyone, but it is impossible to evade
God's grip. The firmer a man's belief in this respect, the
more observant will he be of God's commands; he will shun
what God has forbidden and he will carry out His behests even
in solitude and in darkness, because he knows that God's 'police'
never leaves him alone, and he dreads the Court whose warrant
he can never avoid. It is for this reason that the first and
the most important conditions for being a Muslim is to have
faith in La ilaha illallah. 'Muslim', as you have
already been told, means one 'obedient to God' and obedience
to God is impossible unless one firmly believes in La
ilaha illallah.
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