The Effects of the Declaration of Faith on the Heart

Abul A’la al -Maududi mentions in his book, Fundamentals of Islam, nine effects of the declaration of faith upon the heart.

First, as a believer you are not narrow minded like those who believe in many gods or who dispute the existence of God altogether.

Second, as a believer you feel a sense of your own worth and dignity, since it is Allah alone who brings benefit and harm, and He alone who brings life and death. Wisdom, power and authority are His. Because of this the heart feels no fear of anything other than Him.

No head bows to another, no one is humbled before anyone else. No one may fear another or be intimidated by human power or majesty, since Allah is the Majestic and the Omnipotent over all things.

In contrast to this we see the subjugation of the disbelievers, the Christians and the Jews, and the pagans and the atheists, to one another.

Third, as a believer your sense of honour and self esteem are inspired by faith. The Muslim knows humility without humiliation, and pride without vainglory.

Satan can not affect his pride or inspire conceit in him since he is well aware that it is Allah who has given him all that he has and who is capable of stripping him of everything at any time. Yet you see the atheist bursting with pride whenever some worldly benefit comes his way.

Fourth, as a believer you have the knowledge and the certainty that it is only through purification of the self and the performance of good works that success may be had. As for the disbelievers they have only the false hope that the ‘son’ of God will wash away the sins of the world, or that since they are themselves the ‘sons’ of God and His high priests they will not be punished for their sins, or that they will benefit from the intervention of the noble and pious, or that their offerings and sacrifices to their gods will give them license to do as they please.

As for the atheist who supposes that his existence in this world is without purpose and unguided by any higher plan, his gods are his own passions and desires. To these things he has dedicated his life.

Fifth, the believer in this ‘aqeedah will not know hopelessness or despair, because he believes that Allah is Master of all that the heavens and earth contain. So his heart is reassured in peace and in hope.

Even when weak in himself and defeated, when life closes in around him, he knows that those whom Allah takes into His protection will not be neglected or abandoned so long as they depend upon Allah and trust in Him. The disbelievers prefer to depend upon their own feeble resources, yet how quickly despair overtakes them, plunging them into desperation, and even driving them to suicide.

Sixth, belief in this ‘aqeedah develops in the individual great determination, fortitude, patience, confidence and trust, since you are engaged in the greatest of enterprises, the quest for the pleasure of Allah.

Indeed you feel that what supports you is the power of He who possesses the heavens and the earth. In this way the strength and determination of the believer, his resolute will inspired by this confidence, becomes like a mountain that no human force may move. Could there ever be such a strength and confidence as this to inspire a person’s disbelief?

Seventh, the believer derives both strength and support from the declaration of faith, since it puts you out of reach of the two things that can undermine your strength, love of the world and fear of it. Love of the world is to place love of yourself, your spouse or your money before love of Allah.

Fear of the world is fear of an unknown force, not under the power of God, waiting to destroy you. The believer knows that there is no god but Allah, and so neither of these things can gain any power over the heart, because it is reassured by the fact that Allah is the Sole Possessor of both life and property.

Once you dedicate yourself to the pleasure of your Lord regardless of the cost, you suddenly realise that no one can deprive you of your life, neither man nor beast: the gun, the sword and the stone do not kill; it is God alone who brings death.

There is no stronger determination than that of someone who believes in Allah. No man can intimidate him and no army frightens him, neither flashing swords nor bullets falling like rain.

Whenever a believer presents himself for battle in the path of Allah, his strength is multiplied tenfold. So where does this leave the Christians and the Jews, the disbelievers and the atheists?

Eighth, by believing in the declaration of faith you can take command over your own life, take pride in yourself, in your confidence and determination, and in this way purify your heart from the influence of avarice, jealousy, cowardice, spite, and all other vices.

Ninth, and by far the most important of these effects on the heart, is the knowledge that the declaration of faith guides you to understand the law of Allah, and helps you to keep carefully to it.

Thus you are awakened to the fact that Allah is totally aware of everything, and that He is nearer to you than your jugular vein; and although you may be able to escape from most kinds of danger, there is no escaping from Allah.

The degree to which faith pervades the human mind determines in turn the extent of the believer’s obedience to the laws of Allah, his keeping to Allah’s limits and not coming near to what Allah has forbidden, and his hastening to do good works and to fulfill Allah’s commands.

The declaration of faith is the first of the five essential pillars of Islam. It is also the most important of these when it comes to ascertaining the extent of a Person’s faith. The Muslim is the obedient servant who keeps near to Allah.

We cannot do this until we believe from the depths of our hearts that there is no god but Allah. The declaration of faith is the source of Islam and the basis of its strength.

Regardless of the details of our belief or the different shades of legal opinion, everything ultimately rests upon this one statement: the power of Islam relies upon nothing else. If this should ever be lost, then nothing at all would be left of our deen.[1]

Ibn Rajab, when commenting on the declaration of faith, quotes Sufyian ibn ‘Ayneeyah:

“Allah did not bestow upon His servants a greater blessing than the knowledge that there is no god but Allah. For the people of Paradise these words are the same as fresh rain is to a people who live on the parched Earth. By it the scales of Heaven and Hell are set. Because of it the Messengers were sent into battle. Whoever declares it to be so, his wealth and his life are protected, but whoever denies it shall find himself destroyed. It is the key to paradise, and the single call of all the Messengers.”[2]