Islam

Surrender to Almighty Allah

Surrender

This is understood from a verse in the Holy Quran - Allah says:
"Indeed, the religion in the sight of Allah is Islam."[Al-Imran 3:19], {إِنَّ الدِّينَ عِندَ اللَّـهِ الْإِسْلَامُ}Transliteration: Inna deena indalahil-Islam
This submission requires a fully conscious and willing effort to submit to the one Almighty God.

Submission to His Will

Submission

"But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you (Muhammad, peace be upon him) as a judge in all disputes between them, and find no resistance against your decisions, and accept (the decisions) with full submission." [An-Nisa' 4:65], {فَلَا وَرَبِّكَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ حَتَّىٰ يُحَكِّمُوكَ فِيمَا شَجَرَ بَيْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ لَا يَجِدُوا فِي أَنفُسِهِمْ حَرَجًا مِّمَّا قَضَيْتَ وَيُسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا}, Transliteration: Falā Wa Rabbika Lā Yu'uminūna Ĥattá Yuĥakkimūka Fīmā Shajara Baynahum Thumma Lā Yajidū Fī 'Anfusihim Ĥarajāan Mimmā Qađayta Wa Yusallimū Taslīmāan

Total submission is required after the surrender and some terms have to be set forth by Allah to be understood by the Muslim. There can be no option in the matter as Allah says in another verse:
"It is not fitting for the believing man nor for the believing woman, that whenever Allah and His Messenger have decided any matter, that they should have any other opinion."[Al-Ahzab 33:36], {وَمَا كَانَ لِمُؤْمِنٍ وَلَا مُؤْمِنَةٍ إِذَا قَضَى اللَّـهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَمْرًا أَن يَكُونَ لَهُمُ الْخِيَرَةُ مِنْ أَمْرِهِمْ}, Transliteration: Wa Mā Kāna Limu'uminin Wa Lā Mu'uminatin 'Idhā Qađá Allāhu Wa Rasūluhu 'Amrāan 'An Yakūna Lahumu Al-Khiyaratu Min 'Amrihim

Whatever- Allah and His Messenger have set out as being the Way of Islam- is incumbent on the believer; man or woman, to follow completely. One must consciously and conscientiously give oneself to the service of Allah.

Obey His Commandments

Obedience

"And obey Allah and the Messenger that you may obtain mercy" [Al-Imran 3:132], {وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّـهَ وَالرَّسُولَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ}, Transliteration: Wa 'Aţī`ū Allāha Wa Ar-Rasūla La`allakum Turĥamūna

"O you who believe! Obey Allah and His Messenger and those of you who are in authority. If you differ in anything amongst yourselves, refer it to Allah and His Messenger, if you believe in Allah and in the Last Day. That is better and more suitable for final determination." [An-Nisa' 4:59], {يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّـهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنكُمْۖفَإِن تَنَازَعْتُمْ فِي شَيْءٍ فَرُدُّوهُ إِلَى اللَّـهِ وَالرَّسُولِ إِن كُنتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّـهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِۚذَٰلِكَ خَيْرٌ وَأَحْسَنُ تَأْوِيلًا}, Transliteration: Yā 'Ayyuhā Al-Ladhīna 'Āmanū 'Aţī`ū Allāha Wa 'Aţī`ū Ar-Rasūla Wa 'Ūlī Al-'Amri Minkum Fa'in Tanāza`tum Fī Shay'in Faruddūhu 'Ilá Allāhi Wa Ar-Rasūli 'In Kuntum Tu'uminūna Billāhi Wa Al-Yawmi Al-'Ākhiri Dhālika Khayrun Wa 'Aĥsanu Ta'wīlāan

"He who obeys the Messenger has indeed obeyed Allah, but he who turns away, then we have not sent you as a watcher over them." [An-Nisa' 4:80] , {مَّن يُطِعِ الرَّسُولَ فَقَدْ أَطَاعَ اللَّـهَۖوَمَن تَوَلَّىٰ فَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ عَلَيْهِمْ حَفِيظًا}, Transliteration: Man Yuţi`i Ar-Rasūla Faqad 'Aţā`a Allāha Wa Man Tawallá Famā 'Arsalnāka `Alayhim Ĥafīžāan

This means to act on what Allah enjoins all of us to do (in the Qur'an) and what His beloved Prophet, Muhammad (PBUH) encouraged us to do in his Sunnah (his lifestyle and sayings personifying the Qur'an).
After surrendering your free will to Allah and then ratifying the terms and conditions of the surrender, it is obligatory for the Muslim to live up to his terms of the bargain. It is his or her responsibility to do their best to obey the orders of Allah set forth in the Holy Quran and the teachings of the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him.

Sincere Worship Only For Him

Sincerity & Purity of Intention

The heart must be clean and honest. Allah is Pure and He only accepts pure.

"Verily, deeds are rewarded by intention. And everyone will have the reward for that which he has intended." [A saying of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him - Sahih Al-Bukhari Vol. 1 #1, Narrated by Omar Ibn Al-Khatab]

Sincere intention is the key to the success or failure of the Muslim. All that he or she does must be for the sake of Allah and not for the chance to show off or call attention to himself or herself. If there is even a speck of pride or showing off for the people instead of doing for Allah, then the whole of the matter will be rejected by Allah on the Day of Judgment. This is due to the fact that Allah wants purity of intention and purity in deed.

Peace in Mind, Heart & Soul

Peace

"Peace" (Salam) is mentioned many times in the Holy Quran and it is certainly the most sought after condition for the life of every human on earth.

"The Peace" (As-Salam) is also one of the attributes which Allah has named Himself by in the Holy Quran:
"He is Allah beside Whom there is none worthy of worship, The King, The Holy, The Peace, The Watcher, The All Mighty, The Compeller, The Supreme. Glory be to Allah! He is above all that they try to associate with Him as partners." [Al-Hashr 59:23], {هُوَ اللَّـهُ الَّذِي لَا إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الْمَلِكُ الْقُدُّوسُ السَّلَامُ الْمُؤْمِنُ الْمُهَيْمِنُ الْعَزِيزُ الْجَبَّارُ الْمُتَكَبِّرُۚسُبْحَانَ اللَّـهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ}, Transliteration: Huwa Allāhu Al-Ladhī Lā 'Ilāha 'Illā Huwa Al-Maliku Al-Quddūsu As-Salāmu Al-Mu'uminu Al-Muhayminu Al-`Azīzu Al-Jabbāru Al-Mutakabbiru Subĥāna Allāhi `Ammā Yushrikūna

We are all striving to achieve some sort of peace and tranquility in our lives. And providing that the other four conditions have been met, then this is the inevitable result of the one who is truly seeking Allah.
So as soon as he or she has totally surrendered and submitted and obeyed Allah in complete sincerity, as a result has achieved total and complete peace in this life and in the next.

It does not imply that they will not be tested however. And this must be quickly understood. The one whom Allah loves, He tests. The person who will be successful in this life and the Next Life will be tested as Allah has said:
"Do they think that they will be left alone on saying, 'We believe and that they will not be tested'? For sure we will test them as we have tested those who came before them, to show (them) the truthful of the honest and the liars in their falsehood." [Al-Ankaboot 29:2-3], {أَحَسِبَ النَّاسُ أَن يُتْرَكُوا أَن يَقُولُوا آمَنَّا وَهُمْ لَا يُفْتَنُونَ ﴿٢﴾وَلَقَدْ فَتَنَّا الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ ۖ فَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ اللَّـهُ الَّذِينَ صَدَقُوا وَلَيَعْلَمَنَّ الْكَاذِبِينَ ﴿٣﴾}, Transliteration: 'Aĥasiba An-Nāsu 'An Yutrakū 'An Yaqūlū 'Āmannā Wa Hum Lā Yuftanūna (2) Wa Laqad Fatannā Al-Ladhīna Min Qablihim Falaya`lamanna Allāhu Al-Ladhīna Şadaqū Wa Laya`lamanna Al-Kādhibīna (3)

Once we humble ourselves, rid ourselves of our egoism and submit totally to Allah, and to Him exclusively, in faith and in action, we will surely feel peace in our hearts. Establishing peace in our hearts will bring about peace in our external conduct as well.


Islam is: 1) Beliefs & 2) Actions

Six Beliefs (Muslims must believe):

1. Allah
2. Angels
3. Books
4. Prophets
5. Resurrection
6. Predestination

Allah - Believe God Almighty is One, Unique, Unlike His Creation, Perfect in every way; Not like or in His Creation.

Angels - Made from light, follow Allah's orders perfectly, never make mistakes and are never disobedient (devil is not a fallen angel in Islam).

Books - Torah (Old Testament), Suhoof (Scriptures of prophets), Zabur (Psalms), Enjil (Evangel or New Testament), Quran (Recitation to Muhammad).

Prophets - Adam, Noah, Abraham, Jacob, Moses, David, Solomon, Jesus, Muhammad, and others mentioned in Books, peace be upon them all.

Resurrection - All people, believers and disbelievers will be resurrected for Judgment Day in real flesh and blood bodies to be judged.

Divine Destiny - Allah has complete control of all that happens, both good and evil and He has full knowledge of it all.

5 Pillars of Action

Five Actions (Muslims must practice these five things):

1. Shahadah
2. Salat
3. Fasting
4. Charity
5. Pilgrimage

Shahadah - Declare The Belief That Allah is ONE and Muhammad, peace be upon him, is His Last Messenger.

5 Daily "salat" - The special form of worship of standing, bowing, prostrating to Allah while facing Mecca.

Fast Ramadan - Not eating or drinking during the daylight hours for the month of Ramadan (Lunar calander).

Pay Alms Tax - 2 1/2% of Exess wealth distributed annually to the poor and needy.

Hajj - Pilgrimage to Mecca once in the life when Allah provides a way and it is safe to do so.

Complete Way of Life

Islam Is - A Complete and Total Way of Life
Islam is from Allah, The Creator and Sustainer of all that exists. As such, it is for Him Alone to command and direct His creation and He Alone is responsible for what He will accept and what He will not accept. It is also for Him Alone to decree what is good and what is bad and He must be the One to show the right path in all things.

Everything in the life of the creations of Allah, especially for those who have choices to make (us), must be dictated and clarified by the One who Created everything in the first place. We understand from this that Islam must be a complete and total way of living, explaining everything in the life from beginning to end and from birth until death.

Islam is careful to remind us that it is not a religion to be paid mere lip service; rather it is an all-encompassing way of life that must be practiced continuously for it to be Islam.

There are other injunctions and commandments which concern virtually all facets of one's personal, family and civic life. These include such matters as diet, clothing, personal hygiene, interpersonal relations, business ethics, responsibilities towards parents, spouse and children, marriage, divorce and inheritance, civil and criminal law, fighting in defense of Islam, relations with non-Muslims, and so much more.

In conclusion, we are forced to realize that ISLAM is a complete way of life for the human being. Everything is covered in Islam from birth to death to live in the complete submission to the Will of the One Who Created man in the first place.

Moderation

"All things in moderation" is the famous saying. Islam stresses the importance of this balance within the human being's lives by telling us in the Quran that Muslims are not to be in excess. Rather, we are to be in the "middle path" neither extreme to the right nor to the left. Allah Almighty calls us the "Balanced Nation."

Yusuf Estes
http://islamtomorrow.com