The Meaning Of Islam
Islam is an Arabic word and denotes acceptance of God as the Supreme and the Ultimate Reality. It means submission, surrender and obedience. As a religion, Islam stands for complete submission and obedience to God- that is why it is called Islam.
The other literal meaning of the word Islam is peace and this signifies that one can achieve real peace of body and of mind only through submission and obedience to God. Such a life of obedience brings peace of heart and establishes real peace in society at large. Unlike many other faiths, the name Islam is neither related with its founder (as in Buddhism or Christianity) nor tribe or race (like in Judaism) nor with land and soil (as in Hinduism).
Anyone who submits to God as the Creator of the universe and follows His Commandments is a Muslim. Islam is the name given to this faith by God, in His revealed scripture, the Qur'an. According to the Qur'an this message was preached by all the Prophets of God, who guided man to the right path. But man not only veered away from the right path again and again, but also lost or distorted the code of guidance which the Prophets had bequeathed.
That was why other Prophets were sent to restate the original message and guide man to the right path. The last of these Prophets was Muhammad (peace be upon him), who presented God's guidance in its final form and arranged to preserve it for all time. It is this guidance which is now known as Al-Islam and is enshrined in the Qur'an and the life- example of the Prophet-Sunnah.
The basic Islamic concept is that the entire universe was created by God, whom Islam calls Allah and who is the Lord and the Sovereign of the Universe. He is the Lord of the universe which He alone sustains. He created man and appointed for each human being a fixed period of life which he is to spend upon the earth. God has prescribed a certain code of life as the correct one for him, but has at the same time conferred on man freedom of choice as to whether or not he adopts this code as the actual basis of his life.
One who chooses to follow the code revealed by God becomes a Muslim (believer) and one who refuses to follow it becomes a Kafir (non-believer). A man joins the fold of Islam by honestly believing in and professing faith in the unity of God and the Prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him). Both these beliefs are epitomized in the Shahadah (declaration of faith): La ilaha illallahu Muhammad rasulullah. (‘There is no god except God; Muhammad is His Prophet’.) The first part of this Shahadah presents the concept of Tawhid (unity of God) and its second part affirms the Prophethood of Muhammad (peace be upon him).
