WHERE SHOULD WE BEGIN?

I keep talking about renewing our faith, but how should we go about believing?

“O you who believe! Believe in Allah, His Prophet, the Book He sent down to His Prophet, and the Book He sent down before.” (Nisâ, 136). This verse invites believers who already have faith to move beyond superficial belief and deepen their faith, making it more conscious, sincere and strong. This invitation also includes those who previously said, “We believe in what has come to us.” On the other hand, we must remember that we will not simply be left alone just because we say, “We believe.”

(Ankebût, 2): “Do people think they will be left alone merely for saying, ‘We believe,’ without being tried and tested?” (Hucurât, 14): “The Bedouins said, ‘We believe.’ Say: You have not believed. Rather, say, ‘We have become Muslims (submitted).’ For faith has not yet settled in your hearts. If you obey Allah and His Prophet, Allah will not diminish any of your deeds. Surely Allah is most forgiving, most merciful.”

To have the kind of faith Allah (glorified and exalted be He) asks of us, we must first have sound judgment and a moral character. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) says, “I was sent to perfect good character.” Faith rises upon this foundation. Chronologically, the first two articles of faith are belief in Allah and in the Last Day.

Islam consists of Allah (glorified and exalted be He), the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and the Book, that is, the Glorious Qur’an.

We cannot believe in something we do not know. Otherwise, Satan will try to deceive us about Allah. (Fâtır, 5): “O people! Allah’s promise is true. Do not let the life of this world deceive you, nor let that deceiver (Satan) deceive you about Allah.” (Lokmân, 33): “… Do not let the life of this world deceive you, nor let that deceiver, Satan, deceive you by making you rely on Allah’s forgiveness.” (Hadîd, 14): “… Wishful thinking deceived you. And that deceiver, Satan, deceived you about Allah…”

We believe and act according to the capacity of our reason. Those who lack the capacity to reason are not required to have faith.

To understand Islam properly, please follow this path: First, read a book on the principles of Qur’anic exegesis. What are “Meccan verses,” “Medinan verses,” “unambiguous verses” and “ambiguous verses”? What are the occasions of revelation? You need to learn about these and many other subjects. To learn the contents of the Noble Qur’an, you need to read a translation of its meanings. On specific matters, you must consult Qur’anic commentaries. Then you need to read about hadith methodology. We need to know the circumstances in which hadiths were uttered, understand the verses correctly in light of the Messenger of Allah’s words and explanations, and distinguish authentic hadiths from fabricated ones. What do authentic, well-known, good and weak mean as classifications of hadith? We must learn these too. Of course, the principles of Islamic jurisprudence are also essential. In this way, we learn what independent legal reasoning is, what a school of law is, what analogical reasoning is, and how to interpret contemporary issues; we learn that all of this has a methodology. We also need to study Islamic theology to understand and explain the concepts in the Noble Qur’an correctly and gain a thorough grasp of certain matters. At the same time, we should read about the life of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) as the living Qur’an—that is, a book of his biography. We need to read all of this with an understanding grounded in the oneness of Allah. In this sense, the tenets of faith should always be the most important subject in all this reading.

After this, we need to read the history of the prophets and the history of Islamic schools and sects. We will thus gain a deeper understanding of the experiences of past prophets cited as examples in the Noble Qur’an. Reading a history of Islam is also essential. When and how did the schools, sects and Sufi orders emerge? To understand the fundamental disagreements in the Islamic world and the efforts to resolve them, we must not read history as a book of praise or condemnation. We need to know what happened to those before us so that we do not take our religious and political leaders as gods and lords.

Look, religion cannot be learned through hearsay. That is why the Book begins with the command, “Read!”

Do not let this intimidate you. Think of it this way: If you are not working as hard to enter Paradise as your children work to pass a grade, get into university or succeed in an exam, who told you that getting into Paradise is easier than getting into university?

(Ahzâb, 72): “Surely We offered the trust to the heavens, the earth and the mountains, but they declined to bear it and were afraid of it; humankind took it on. Indeed, humankind is deeply unjust and deeply ignorant.” (En’âm, 144): “… Who could be more unjust than someone who invents lies against Allah to lead people astray through ignorance? Surely Allah does not guide a people who do wrong.”

You do not need to be a graduate of a religious vocational school or a theologian to learn these things. It is obligatory for every Muslim to know what is obligatory for them.

We must not read the Noble Qur’an once, put it away somewhere and forget it. We need to read the Noble Qur’an continually. This too is an act of worship. And let us not forget: “Know this well: the Qur’an was not sent down to be recited at gravesides or used for fortune-telling.” The Qur’an is a way of life revealed by the Creator to His creation. Each time a believer reads the verses of the Noble Qur’an, they will gain a deeper and broader understanding of the subject. Indeed, with each reading, they will discover new riches they had not noticed before. This is one of the miracles of the Noble Qur’an.

Moreover, whatever field of knowledge you delve into, the Noble Qur’an opens new horizons for you in that field. If, as you read the book of the universe, you wish to become an exegete interpreting Allah’s (glorified and exalted be He) “signs in creation,” you will reach a more advanced level when you look at the universe through the window of the Qur’an. On the endless journey of development, those who ascend through knowledge, step by step through the realm of reality, will attain the pleasure of Allah (glorified and exalted be He) as travellers on the path of truth. They are those who advance along the path of “certainty through knowledge” to rise to the station of “certainty through direct realization.”

In the end times, Muslims will split into 70 sects; only one of these will be the Fırka-i Nâciye, the community that attains salvation. Sadly, each of these 70 sects believes itself to belong to the Fırka-i Nâciye. Yet all will suffer loss except those who truly believe, do righteous deeds, and counsel truth and patience. Those who possess these qualities are people who reason and reflect, who abandon religious wrangling and divisiveness, and who call everyone not to themselves or their own sects, but to Allah (glorified and exalted be He), His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and the Book. They call people not to their own Sufi lodge, but to the mosque.

Of course we will have our schools of law and our Sufi orders. But we will not take our religious leaders as gods and lords or treat them as infallible authorities. We will not practise sectarianism or partisanship on behalf of Sufi orders. Who could speak more beautifully than those who say, “We are among the Muslims”? All Islamic scholars are fine examples for us, whether they are the imams of our schools, Mâtürîdî, Eş’arî, Salafi, Shia or Sunni. I do not mean Wahhabism; but does not every Muslim already follow the path of the earliest generations, the righteous predecessors? May Allah be pleased with each of our four imams. Is not every Muslim—I do not mean Safavid Shiism—on the side of the Prophet’s household, the venerable Ali and the followers of Ali? Is not every Muslim a follower of the Sunnah? Does not everyone who believes in Allah, His Messenger and the Book, regards those who face the same direction in prayer as brothers and sisters, and cherishes the Sunnah and the community belong to the tradition of the People of the Sunnah and the Community? How we have torn our religion to pieces among ourselves! How far have we drifted after abandoning consultation and collective deliberation, competence and merit? According to the Wahhabis, the Shia are apostates anyway, while Sunnis and Sufis are polytheists. According to Safavid Shiism, there is only one Islam—their own—and the others are a community of the misguided. As for the Sunnis, the Shia are the fifth school, while the Wahhabis have already gone astray. Come on, was not İmam-ı Âzam a student of İmam Cafer-i Sâdık?

Good heavens! Do any of the sheikhs we regard as guides in our Sunni world ever come together to consult one another? Can they work together? Of course not! Each has his own radio station, television channel, publishing house, newspaper, magazine, Qur’an translation, commentary and hadith collection. Each has his own humanitarian aid association collecting zakat; separate travel companies organizing Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages; even mosques, Qur’an courses and schools. Heaven forbid that their little lambs should become confused by attending someone else’s Qur’an course and reading their books, or going on Hajj and Umrah with their teachers! Allah (glorified and exalted be He) also knows what passes through minds and hearts. Tomorrow, everyone’s record will be placed before them, containing what they did and what they failed to do. Come, let us stop calling mosque congregations to our own Sufi lodges and instead call people to the mosque. Let our mosques not become “mosques of harm.” Let us not forget that today there are more “Sufi lodges of harm” than “mosques of harm”! If Muslims do not trust one another, how can anyone else trust a Muslim? Were we not supposed to be “the trustworthy”? When the move was made from Mecca the Honoured to Medina the Radiant, there were Christians, Jews and polytheists there too. How was it that they came to trust the Muslims? In those days, they said of Muslims: “They are trustworthy; they know and do not lie, and when they make a promise, they keep it.” Can Muslims belonging to this or that party, Sufi order or school say this of one another today? Where did we go wrong? This example is enough to see, know and understand it.

Please see the notes for translations of the verses in the Noble Qur’an concerning those who reason, those who possess knowledge and those who reflect.

With greetings of peace and prayers…

NOTE: The condemnation of the ignorant and the praise of those who possess knowledge, reason and reflect in the Noble Qur’an

Below you will find translations of verses praising those who possess knowledge, reason and reflect. While ignorance, lack of knowledge and unthinking imitation are sharply condemned in the Noble Qur’an, knowledge, reason, contemplation and deep reflection are praised and exalted in direct connection with faith.

The condemnation of the ignorant, those who do not use their reason, and blind imitators

The Qur’an sharply criticizes people who do not seek the truth, who blindly imitate their ancestors and who do not reason; it places them below animals.

(Bakara, 171) — Blind imitation and deaf ignorance: “The condition of those who disbelieve is like that of a shepherd calling out to animals that hear only a call and a cry (without grasping its meaning). They are deaf, mute and blind; therefore they do not use their reason.”

(Enfâl, 22) — The standing of those who do not reason: “Surely the worst of living creatures in Allah’s sight are the deaf and mute who do not use their reason.”

(A’râf, 179) — Heedlessness and ignorance: “… They have hearts but do not understand with them; they have eyes but do not see with them; they have ears but do not hear with them. They are like animals, indeed even further astray. It is they who are truly heedless (ignorant).”

(Furkân, 44) — The condemnation of thoughtlessness: “Or do you think that most of them will listen (to what is said) or reason? They are only like animals; indeed, they are even further astray.”

The praise and exaltation of those who possess knowledge

In Islam, knowledge is regarded as one of the greatest means of drawing closer to Allah. The verses declare that those who know and those who do not know cannot be equal.

(Zümer, 9) — The best-known verse on knowledge: “… Say: Can those who know and those who do not know ever be equal? Only those endowed with reason reflect (on this) and take heed.”

(Mücâdele, 11) — The rank of scholars: “… Allah raises the ranks of those among you who believe and those who have been given knowledge. Allah is fully aware of what you do.”

(Fâtır, 28) — True reverent fear lies in knowledge: “… Among His servants, only those with knowledge fear Allah (as He should be feared). Surely Allah is almighty, most forgiving.”

(Âl-i İmrân, 18) — The testimony of those who possess knowledge: “Allah, upholding justice, has borne witness that there is no god but Him. The angels and those who possess knowledge have also (borne witness to this)…”

The praise of those who reason and reflect (contemplate)

The Qur’an refers to those who examine the order of the universe and the evidence of creation as “people of understanding” (ulü’l-elbâb) and praises them.

(Âl-i İmrân, 190-191) — Deep reflection: “In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the succession of night and day, there truly are clear signs for people of understanding. They remember Allah while standing, sitting and lying on their sides. They reflect deeply on the creation of the heavens and the earth and say: ‘Our Lord! You did not create this in vain…’”

(Yûnus, 100) — The consequence of not reasoning: “… Allah places filth (distress and punishment) upon those who do not use their reason.”

(Câsiye, 5) — Reflecting on natural phenomena: “In the alternation of night and day, in Allah’s sending down provision (rain) from the sky and reviving the earth with it after its death, and in His directing the winds, there are signs for a people who reason.”

(Ra’d, 4) — A community of reflection: “On earth there are neighbouring tracts of land, vineyards, crops, and date palms growing in clusters from a single root or standing alone, all watered with the same water. Yet We make some of them better than others in their fruit. Surely in these are signs for a people who reason.”

Abdurrahman Dilipak

More articles by this author

Mirat Haber – YouTube