"Islam, a religion very easy to comprehend."

1. INTRODUCTION
2. THE MEANING OF ISLAM
3. SOME BASIC BELIEFS OF ISLAM

We are providing this writing for your information about some of the teachings of Islam; the religion of absolute submission to the one God; Allah. We sincerely hope that you will benefit from it, and that it may deepen your knowledge and increase your interest in Islam and religion.
Although we live in the twentieth century - in probably the most secular and irreligious age in history - many of us are still inclined to stop from time to time to think about religion. And yet we find that there are so many different opinions about religion. People seem to cling fanatically to their own beliefs. Each in turn seems to claim that it possesses all truth, while all others are lost in hopeless error.

So, we may ask, is there a religion which teaches the Oneness of God and the oneness of mankind, and yet, at the same time is tolerant of other points of view? This is exactly the teaching of Islam. In fact, Islam teaches that this message of the Oneness of God and the brotherhood of all races is the original message which Allah sent to all prophets and religions since the dawn of human history. However, man has changed this original teaching of Oneness and developed out of numerous mutually antagonistic sects. As Alah says in the Holy Qur'an, the revelation of Allah to Prophet Muhammad,:
Surely this your brotherhood is a single brotherhood, and I am your Lord, so keep your duty unto Me. But they (mankind) split themselves up in sects, each party rejoicing in its own tenets.Chapter 23:52-53.
Islam seeks to implement this spirit among all races, and yet, at the same time, remains tolerant and respectful of all other heavenly religions and their followers who share the belief in the One and only God. The Holy Qur'an teaches:
There is no compulsion in religion. The right direction stands out clearly from error. Whoever rejects false deities and believes in Allah has grasped a firm handhold that never breaks, and Allah hears and knows all things. Chapter 2:256

It is false to call Islam Muhammadanism, as has been done so frequently in the West. We have already pointed out that Muslims believe that Islam is the eternal message which Allah sent to all prophets, from the dawn of mankind, and not a new belief which began with the Prophet Muhammad. Muslims call their religion Islam, and the Arabic word Islam implies the attainment of peace through submission to Allah. The word Muslim is an adjective derived from the noun Islam, and implies one who has peace within himself from his submission to Allah. Muslims believe in the One,Unique, Eternal God, Who created the heavens and the earth and all that exists. In Arabic, God is called Allah. There is absolutely no difference between Allah and the God of Abraham, Moses and Jesus, peace be upon them all. Muslims do not believe that Prophet Muhammad was the only Prophet; rather they believe that he was the last of the Prophets and Qur'an is the Last Testaments. The Holy Qur'an is the revealed and sacred scripture of Islam, and it teaches:
"Say (O Muslims), We believe in Allah and what has been revealed to us and what was revealed to Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and that which Moses and Jesus received, and that which the Prophets received from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them and unto Him have we surrendered". Chapter 2:136.

Islam is based on three principles:

1. : Tawhid or Submission to one God only- The most fundamental concept of Islam and the fountainhead of all its other principles and practices is the Oneness and Unicity of God - tawhiid. Islam is monotheism in its purest form, and the logic of pure monotheism is the thread which runs through the entire fabric of the Islamic way of life. Islam teaches a fundamental difference between Allah, the Creator and that which He has created. The sky, the moon, the stars, the harmony and perfection of the natural world, the grace and beauty of the human body and the excellence of the human mind, the alternation of day and night, the change of the seasons, and the mystery of life and death all point to something beyond and greater than themselves. To the believer these are all signs (ayaat) of Allah. Islam teaches that Allah is not to be likened to anything which He has created. He is All-Powerful, All-Knowing; He is beyond any imperfection, and is the fulfillment of all Perfection. He is not a substance, nor is He like any of His creatures. He is not a far away and distant God, nor is He an unapproachable ideal. He is All-Kind, All Merciful, and All-Compassionate. Islam teaches that Allah is eternal. He was not Himself begotten, nor has He, in turn begotten a son or a daughter. Islam rejects the concept of the incarnation of God, which is found in Hinduism and other religions, and believes that the concept of incarnation limits the concept of God and destroys the believer's conviction of God's Activeness and Perfection. The Qur'an describes Allah being perfect and active: Allah, there is no god except He. The Living, the Everlasting. Neither dozing nor sleep overtakes Him. To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. Who is he that shall intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what will be before their hands and what was behind them. And they do not comprehend anything of His knowledge except what He willed. His Seat surrounds the heavens and earth. The preserving of them does not tire Him. He is the All-High, the All-Glorious.Chapter 2:255.
   Islam rejects the notion that Jesus, peace be upon him, died on the cross for mankind's sins. Islam teaches no human being can bear the burden of another's responsibility. Allah is very aware of our human weaknesses and imperfection. He does not condemn us because we are created imperfect; rather He guides us to self-perfection and He forgives us and showers His Mercy upon us when we fail and then ask His forgiveness sincerely.
2. : Nobovvat or Prophecy means believing in the divine origin of the Old and New Testaments (and other Holy Books), although Muslims doubt the historical authenticity of some parts of the Old and New Testaments and do not believe them to be exact representations of what Allah originally revealed to Moses and Jesus. The Qur'an upheld this view of the text of the Old and New Testaments hundreds of years ago, and in recent years, this view has been upheld by textual studies of biblical scholars. All prophets got their messages from a unique source and they can not be contradictory, if they are they should have been altered, and they have, except for" Qur'an the last Testament" which will remain unaltered by God's word.. Qur'an is in arabic and one who wish to get directly to the source of devine message he should learn arabic, but in all practical purposes many many translations of Qur'an by moslim authers, are available and acceptable for learning the faith.
3. :
Ma'ad or Judgement Day, means believing in another life (Akherat) beyond this life when one sees whatever he has done in this world-the lower world (Donya)and is judged accordingly. One who has good deeds will be elevated to a superior life (Paradise) where whatever he wishes will be created at once for him and much much more blessing that we cannot comprehend now. Those with bad deeds will continue their inferior life (Hell) with little or no chance to improve it for ever. A good moslem who is certain about Ma'ad will try to do better deeds and improve in this world, hoping and asking God's grace to have everlasting afterlife in the Paradise.