The civilization of La Ilaha Illa Allah

Urbanization in its simplest definition is the promotion of human beings from the state of brutality, nomadism, and ignorance to what is better by education, cultivation, and living in a social system that is capable of facilitating and developing life .

J. Hell says in his book "the Arab Civilization": "Necessity is the source of much of human civilization. In man, at different stages of his evolutional progress, exists a craving for enjoyment, for power, for beauty, for truth; and boundless, indeed, is this craving. The effort to compass and satisfy it is the mainspring of human progress and development.

The ideal lies behind a mass of definite individual needs; and only when these have been met with and satisfied does the prospect widen far afield. This is the way of all civilizations.

New needs spell new aims to strive for the satisfaction of those needs may be called the capacity for civilization to fulfill and attain them may be regarded as civilization itself. So, the history of the civilization of a people is the history of its growing needs or ideals, and of the attempt to satisfy those needs and to realize those ideals." [1]

Looking at civilization from this prospective emerges from a material concept even if it is enveloped by some thoughtful touches that speak about truth and beauty.

This is a wrong concept because it missed the main element responsible for the human existence itself, and any concept misses an effective element in any process is undoubtedly wrong.

A civilization that was made by man with this concept shall be eradicated because it is temporary.

Man has forgotten the Creator of the existence; he has forgotten his God, so what shall be the goal of life, what is the meaning of his life, and why does man struggle therein?

Man does not live alone in this life as Hicks Ely, those who came before him, and those who came after him claimed.

Hence, the Islamic civilization is different from other civilizations and it is worthy to be called: The civilization of La Ilaha Illa Allah (No god but Allah) i.e., civilization based on monotheism.

The beginning of establishing this civilization is that a person realizes the meaning of "La Ilaha Illa Allah" [Surat Muhammad: 19].

The meaning is: Man should deal directly with Allah without a mediation, no matter who or what it is.

The Messenger of Allah is not a mediation between Allah and His Creation, but he is just a caller to Allah, the teacher of the religion, and the explainer of its instructions.

"Muhammad (peace be upon him) is no more than a Messenger, and indeed (many) Messengers have passed away before him." [Surat Al `Imran: 144].

Let us read the following Ayah carefully to know how Allah calls man, whether a male or a female, civilized or not, arrogant or not. He asks him to deal directly with the Lord according to the Shari`ah of Allah; He addresses His Prophet saying: "And thus We have sent to you (O Muhammad peace be upon him) Rûh (a Revelation, and a Mercy) of Our Command. You knew not what is the Book, nor what is Faith? But We have made it (this Qur'ân) a light wherewith We guide whosoever of Our slaves We will." [Surat Ash-Shura: 52].

When a person does so, he gets rid of false creeds and wrong conceptions that do not exist. Then he moves forward to achieve progress in life and works to alleviate its pains and enjoy it according to the way of Allah, achieving goodness and security for himself and for others in this world and in the Hereafter.

Hence, the Islamic civilization is the civilization of La Ilaha Illa Allah because it teaches man the truth, goodness, and beauty; exhorts him to think, search, study, and to be creative; moreover this civilization considers the removal of life burdens an act of worship like other acts of worship.

The source:

The Islamic civilization seeks the pleasure of Allah, but the Western civilization seeks the pleasure of man. By General Ahmad `Abdul-Wahhab.