TAUHID AND RISALAT

Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He) says in the Holy Qur'aan, in the 49^th Sura, al-Hujeraat, Verse 1

"O ye who believe! Put not yourselves forward before Allah and His Messenger; but fear Allah: for Allah is He Who hears and knows all things."

Ishq And Ab Or Love And Respect

The aim (Maqsad) of faith (Iman) is to establish oneness (Tauhid). Within the Science of the Pursuit of Spirituality (Tasawwuf) all existence is one (tauhid- i- wujudi). The Sufis and the Verifiers (muhaqqiqun) have realised Allah’s Unity within themselves. They, the ahl al-kashf wa’l wujud or ‘The People of Unveiling and Finding’, have taught us that the key to unlock the treasures of Tauhid is Risalat or the Messenger of Allah. The aim (Maqsad) of Risalat is Iteba or ‘Following with Love’. The key to open the treasures of Iteba or ‘Following with Love’ is Ishq and Ab or love and respect. Hazrath Shaykh Abd al-Qaadir al-Jilaani (may Allah be well pleased with him) says that it is important that every believer observe a>da>b under all circumstances. Hazrath Shaykh Abd al-Qaadir al-Jilaani (may Allah be well pleased with him) quotes Hazrath Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be well pleased with him) as having said,

Respect Of Rasulullah Is Respect For Allah

Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He) says in the Holy Qur'aan, in the 49^th Sura, al-Hujeraat, Verse 1

"O ye who believe! Put not yourselves forward before Allah and His Messenger; but fear Allah: for Allah is He Who hears and knows all things."

This noble Sura begins with the refined manner (a>da>b) that Allah has taught the believers to conduct themselves, with respect to the Sacred Law (Shariah) of Allah (Almighty and Glorious is He) and the authority of His Beloved Messenger. Some of the traditional Commentators, soaked in ishq and a>da>b have called it the ‘Sura of Ethical and Moral Standards’ (Su>rat al-Akhla>q).

Amongst many reasons given for this revelation, the one given by al-Tabrani who cites Hazrath Hassan Basri (May Allah be well pleased with him), that this was revealed on the occasion of ‘The Festival of Sacrifice’ (Id al-Adha) when some Companions of the Holy Prophet (Sahaba) performed their sacrifice (Qurbani) before the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) had made his sacrifice and Allah revealed this verse.

Two points should be noted here

1. The Sacred law (Shariah) declares that the sacrificial animal be cut after the Festive Prayer (s{ala>t-al-‘I) but respect (a>da>b) says cut after the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) or the Sacrifice (Qurbani) is not accepted. Any act of Servitude to Allah (Ibaadat) has to be offered with Abe Rasul (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) This is a condition of acceptance that proper conduct (a>da>b) demands

2. Another point is that the Companions (Sahaba) performed Sacrifice (Qurbani) before the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) but the Verse says before Allah and His Messenger (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions). Therefore the Qur’aan is informing us that disrespect of the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) is disrespect to Allah. Hence, loyalty to the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) is loyalty to Allah.

The rule that these points teach us is that we should realize and recognize the status of the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions). There should be a balance between the teaching of Allah’s Unity (Tauhid) and the Concept of the Messenger of Allah (Risaalat). One should not try and belittle the Holy Prophet’s status in the name of one’s own narrow understanding of Tauhid.

The Creator And The Created

There is no difference between Allah and His Messenger (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) in respect of, Love, Obedience Respect etc. Only one difference exists i.e. one is the creator and the other is the created.

Ibn Taimiyyah one of the founding fathers and leading scholar of the deviant Wahabbi School has elaborated this concept.He says:

"Certainly, Allah has appointed the Holy Prophet (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) as His stand-in at His own place in case of command of commission, command of omission, disclosure of the facts and interpretation of the laws. Hence, discrimination between the status of Allah and that of the Prophet (Peace be upon him, his family and his companions) with reference to any of these issues

" Agar Khamosh Rahu Meh Toh Tuhi Heh Sub Kuch

Agar Kaha Kuch Toh Tera Husn Hoh Gaya Mehdood"