Salam Irtaza,
Most traditional Muslims believe that in order to be a Muslim you must say
the shahada, which is comprised of two parts: la ilaha illa allah and
Muhammad rasool alla. According to traditional Muslims, both parts of the
shahada must be declared to the public to be considered a Muslim in the
eyes of the people.
From this, we should ask ourselves two questions:
1) What does the Quran say on how to become a Muslim? Are there certain
words that must be said?
2) If the second part of the shahada (Muhammad rasool Allah) was excluded,
would the first part of the shahada ('la ilaha illah Allah') be sufficient
in Islam?
1. If we take a careful look at 3:18-20, we see that in order to
become a Muslim one must simply 'submit':
[3:18] GOD bears witness that there
is no god except He, and so do the angels and those who possess knowledge.
Truthfully and equitably, He is the absolute god; there is no god but He,
the Almighty, Most Wise.
[3:19] The only religion approved by GOD is "Submission." Ironically,
those who have received the scripture are the ones who dispute this fact,
despite the knowledge they have received, due to jealousy. For such
rejectors of GOD's revelations, GOD is most strict in reckoning.
[3:20] If they
argue with you, then say, "I have simply submitted myself to GOD; I and
those who follow me." You shall proclaim to those who received the
scripture, as well as those who did not, "Would you submit?" If they
submit, then they have been guided, but if they turn away, your sole
mission is to deliver this message.
GOD is Seer of all people.
According to 3:20, Muhammad was required to ask the people of the
scripture and the gentiles "would you
submit?"... So the criteria to becoming
Muslim, if we are to say anything at all, is to simply say, "I submit" -
no shahada of a messenger is required...
2. Abraham said and did the same thing; he said, "I submit to the
Lord of the Universe" (2:131).
[2:131] When his Lord said to him,
"Submit," he said, "I submit to the Lord of the universe."
3. When the Queen of Sheba became a Muslim she simply said:
"I now submit with Solomon to God..."
[27:44] She was told, "Go inside the
palace." When she saw its interior, she thought it was a pool of water,
and she (pulled up her dress,) exposing her legs. He said, "This interior
is now paved with crystal." She said, "My Lord, I have wronged my
soul. I now submit with Solomon to GOD, Lord of the universe."
4. Submitting to God means we worship God Alone and strive to do
all the righteous works:
[2:177] Righteousness is not turning
your faces towards the east or the west. Righteous are those who believe
in GOD, the Last Day, the angels, the scripture, and the prophets; and
they give the money, cheerfully, to the relatives, the orphans, the needy,
the traveling alien, the beggars, and to free the slaves; and they observe
the Contact Prayers (Salat) and give the obligatory charity (Zakat); and
they keep their word whenever they make a promise; and they steadfastly
persevere in the face of persecution, hardship, and war. These are the
truthful; these are the righteous.
5. From the above Quranic verses we learn that in order to become Muslim
we must Submit to the will of God by words and, more importantly, by deed.
Is 'la ilaha illah Allah' sufficint to making me a Muslim?
As we have seen in the Quran, the shahada is not a requirement to become a
Muslim... But for the sake of clarity, let's find out if saying 'Muhammad
rasool Allah' is contingent to our salvation when used in the shahada:
1. The shahada according to God, the angels, and those who are well
founded in knowledge is 'la ilaha illa Allah' (3:18)... This simple
statement is what unifies all those who Submit to the One God in
Submission (2:62). The only criteria to being a Muslim is to Submit to the
One and only God (3:18-19).
2. We are required to believe in all of God's messengers (2:85),
but nowhere does the Quran suggest the shahada must include bearing
witness to God's messengers... Especially if the messenger is dead...
Muhammad himself proclaimed that the greatest testimony (akbar shahada)
is:
[6:19] Say, "Whose testimony is
the greatest?" Say, "GOD's. He is the witness between me and you that this
Quran has been inspired to me, to preach it to you and whomever it reaches.
Indeed, you bear witness that there are other gods* beside GOD." Say, "I
do not testify as you do; there is only one god, and I disown your
idolatry."
3. Although the desciples of Jesus were living amongst a living
messenger and they believed in him. They said
'bear witness we are Muslim'...
They didn't have to say 'la ilaha illa Allah, Isa rasool Allah'... No,
they simply said 'we are Muslims'..
[3:52] When Jesus sensed their
disbelief, he said, "Who are my supporters towards GOD?" The disciples
said, "We are GOD's supporters; we believe in GOD, and bear witness
that we are submitters."
[5:111] "Recall that I inspired the disciples: `You shall believe
in Me and My messenger.' They said, `We have believed, and bear witness
that we are submitters.' "
4. Pharaoh, even though he still incurred hell, uttered a correct
and sufficient 'shahada' before drowning:
[10:90] We delivered the Children of Israel across the sea. Pharaoh and
his troops pursued them, aggressively and sinfully. When drowning became a
reality for him, he said, "I believe that there is no god except the One
in whom the Children of Israel have believed; I am a submitter."
[10:91] "Too late!* For you have rebelled already, and chose to be a
transgressor.
Please note that the words 'too late,
for you have rebelled already...' means
that God would have accepted Pharaoh's repentance but didn't because
Pharaoh's sins out-weighed his good deeds. Again, this teaches us there is
no need that the Shahada should include a messengers name.
5.
In order to witness something, that 'something' must be present (4:135).
For example; the statement 'I bear witness that Muhammad is a messenger of
God' is a false satement. This is because Muhammad is dead, I can't see
him or touch him to bear witness of his current existence.
Moreover, 3:86 does not mean there is a second part to the shahada.
Unfortunately, the translation of Y. Ali does not give the full picture.
Here is a better translation:
[3:86] Why should GOD guide
people
who disbelieved after believing, and
after witnessing that the messenger is truth,
and after solid proofs have been given to them?
GOD does not guide the wicked.
Again, to witness something, that 'something' must be present. This is
precisely the case in 3:86. The people 'witnessed' the messenger and the
proofs given to them... Nowhere does the verse suggest this is part of the
second shahada...
6. Finally, every Muslim MUST believe Muhammad was a messenger of
God and a deliverer of the Quran (47:2). The Quran teaches us to give the
utmost respect to God's messengers (5:12), to bear witness of their
righteous endeavors in spreading the word of God (25:56), and not to
distinguish between the messengers of God (2:136). As we've seen from the
above Quranic examples, nowhere does it say that our shahada must include
another name besides God. All messengers of God said 'la ilaha illah
Allah' (there is no god but God).... What comprises a Muslim is the
worship and Submitting to the One God. As simple as that...
Peace
Joe S.
Source: Discussion in
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/progressive-muslim/ group.