ISLAM ITS CONCEPTS AND MEANINGS:

Islam is the embodiment of the code of life which God,the Creator and Lord of the universe has revealed for the guidence of mankind.All of its teachings are harmoniously conceived and to compliment each other,nothing is superflous and nothing is lacking. With the result of solid composure and absolute balance its teachings and postulates both create a strong and long lasting impression on both beleivers and non believers.it is a religion which purely provides guidence for each and every aspect of mankind and the universe.

Man requires two significant things for the proper development of his existence.He requires resources to maintain life and fulifill the needs of both the individual and the society.Secondly he must attain the knowledge regarding the principles of individual and social behaviour which enables him maintain justice and tranquility in human life.The Lord of the universe had provided for both of these in full measure.In order to cater for the individual needs of man God has provided nature with all kinds of resources which lie at the disposal of man.To provide for his spiritual,social and cultural needs He has raised His prophets from among men and revealed to them the code of life which can guide man's steps to teh right path.This code of life is known as Islam,the religion preached by all the prophets of God.According to the Holy quran,

"He has ordained for you (O Muhammad) that faith which He commended to Noah and that which he commended to Abraham ,Moses and Jesus saying,"Establish the Faith and be not divided therein".

Thus all of the Prophets were the messengers from God who have been revealed the real truth regarding the existence of this universe and who were assigned the task to guide men to the right path.All of them gave the same message and all of them stood for the same cause,Islam.
As it has been stressed in Quran,
" O you who beleive! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and make not your deeds vain".

THE MEANING OF ISLAM:

Islam,an arabic word which denotes submission.surrender, and pure obedience of Allah.The literal meaning of the word is 'peace' which signifies the most vital aspect of the islamic religion that a person can acheive the true tranquility of both heart and mind only through his obedience of one God who is Omnipotent,Omnipresent and the Sustainer of the universe.Such a life with obedience can also help in the establishment of peace and harmony among the memebers of teh society.As Quran says,
"Mankind is a single nation. So Allah raised Prophets as bearers of good news and as warners, and He revealed with them the book with truth, that it might judge between people concerning that in which they differed . And none but the very people who were given it, differed about it after clear arguments had come to them, envying one another. So Allah has guided by His will those who believe to the truth about which they differed. And Allah guides whom he pleases to the right path " [2:213]

According to the Quran ,
"Those who believe and whose heart find rest in the remembrance of Allah -indeed it is in the thought of Allah alone that the heart of man really finds rest-those who believe and act righteously ,joy is for them and a blissful home to return to."

This message was preache by all the prophets of God,who showed men the right way of life.But man veered away from this path again and again and also distorted the code of guidence which prophets had bequeathed.That is why other prophets were sent to restate the original message and guide man to the right path.The last of these prophets was Muhammad (PBUH) who presented God's guidence in its final form.and arranged to preserve it for all the time.It is this guidence which is known as "Al Islam" and is enshrined in the quran and is the lif example of the Prophet (PBUH)

BASIC CONCEPT OF ISLAM:

The basic Islamic concept is based on Tauheed and the belief that Muhammad (PBUH) is the last prophet sent by God as a messenger to guide and teach the mankind to the right path.
The beleif of Tauheed is a revolutionary concept and constitutes the essence of teh teachings of islam.It means that there is only One Supreme Lord of the universe who is the sustainer of mankind.His presence and governess can be felt if we observe the scattered stars in the infinite space, the harmony of seasons,the vast panorama of nature with its charm and beauty all point towards one fact that this system of universe is being governed by only one God who has created all of the things around us.Truly Allah said,

"O,Mankind worship your Lord,who created you and those before you,so that you may ward off evil.Who has appointed the earth a resting place for you,the sky a canopy?and who causes water to pour down from the heavens ,thereby producing fruits as food for you?So do not setup rivals to Allah ,when you know better".

The second part of the islamic belief signifies that God has not left any man without any guidence for the conduct of his life.He has made revelations to his prophets who further became apostels of God and guided men towards the teachings of Allah.The Quran said,

"Every Messenger who was sent by Us was sent for the purpose that he should be obeyed under the sanction of Allah."

The third and very significant postulate of the Islamic concept is the belief in the life hereafter.
The world according to Islam is a place of trial and man is accountable for whtever deeds he performs in this world.It will be in life after death that man will be rewarded or punished for his deeds and misdeeds.Those who live in the present world a life in complete obedience to God will enjoy eternal bliss and those who disobey his commands will ahve to suffer for his misdeeds in the life of eternity.

BASIC CHARACTERISTICS OF ISLAMIC IDEOLOGY:

SIMPLICITY:

Islam's as a religion is simple as it is free from superstitions and irrational beliefs.The unity of God,the Prohethood of Muhammad (PBUH) and the concept of life after death are the beasic articles of this faith.All the teachings of Islam follow from these three articles and are based on sound logic and reason.In Islam there is no heirarchy of priests,no far fetched abstarctions,no complicated rites and rituals and everybody can translate the book of God and dictates it into practice.

RATIONALISM:

Islam enjoins man to see things in the light of reality.It teaches man to use his intellect and observe as well understand the real meanings of the presence of the things around him .The Prophet of Islam said,

"He who leaves his home in the search of some knowledge walks in the pathof God."

Quran advised man to pray ,"O ,my Lord! Advance me in Knowledge"
Muhammad (PBUH) also stressed regarding the attainment of knowledge in the following words,

"To seek knowledge is obligatory for mankind."

Islam appreciates the intellectual activites of man to such a degree as to place him above the angels.No other religion went ever so far in asserting the dominance of reason and ,of learning above all other manifestations of life.As Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) also asserted in the following words,

"If anybody goes on his way in search of knowledge,God will make easy for him the way to Paradise."
And also,

"The superiority of a learned man over a mere worshipper is like the supeiority of the moon on a night when it is full over all other stars."

Thus from the above mentioned hadith's it can be vividly understood that Islam as a religion teaches rational approach towards life.

PRACTICAL:

Islam, as a religion is not based on empty or futile theories .Infact it intensely educates in attaining a practical approach towards one's existence both as an individual and as a social being.It says that Islam is not a mere profession of beleifs ,it is the essence of life.It is a religion which is something to be lived and not an object of mere lip service.The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in this regard,

"God does not accept belief,if it is not expressed in deeds,and does not accept deeds,if they do not conform to beleif".

Material prosperity in islam is desireable,though not the goal in itself.The goal of all our practical activities always should be the creation and maintenece of both personal and social conditions which can be helpful in the development of a moral stamina in man.In other words,Islam leads man towards a conciousness of moral responsibility by his adoption of practicality in his life.

UNITY BETWEEN MATTER AND SPIRIT:

One of the unique characterisitics of Islam is that it does not divide life in water tight compartments of matter and spirit.It is against ascetisim and believs in the achievemnet of spiritual elevation by living piously in this world with a complete sense of virtue and morality instead of renouncing the world.Every individual Muslim has to regard himself as personally responsible for all the happenings around him and to strive for the establishment of Right and abolition of Wrong at every time and every direction.A sanction for this attitude can be found in the verses of Quran,
"You are the best community that has been sent forth unto mankind :You enjoin the Right and forbid the Wrong and you have faith in God."
Islam stresses again and again in the attainment of moderation and decency in all walks of life.It's injunction is,
"Eat and drink but do not exceed".
The Holy Prophet said that,
"A Muslim who lives in the midst of the society and bears with patience and afflictions that come to him is better than the one who shuns society and cannot bear any wrong done to him."

Islam enjoins man to devote all his energies to the reconstruction of life on healthy and moral foundations.It teaches that both moral and material powers can be welded together and spiritual salvation can be acheived by using teh material resources for the betterment of man in the service of just ends instead of runing away from the challenges of life.An establishemnt of of a equilibrium is strongly desired by the religion of Islam between both the material and spiritual aspects of life.

COMPLETE WAY OF LIFE:

Islam as a religion has a wide horizon and a scope.It is not only restricted to the private matters and affairs concerning an individual rather it deals with all the fields of human existence.It carries withing its teachings a complete guidence concerning the individual and social,material and moral,economic and political,legal and cultural,national and international.It also clearly states that its objectives are the purification of teh soul and the reformation of the society.As Quran says,

"We verily sent Our messengers with clear proofs and revealed with them the Scripture and the Balance,that mankind may observe justice and the right measure."

Islam is a complete way of life as it integrates man with God, awakens in him a new moral conciousness and invites him to deal with all problems of life in complete accordance with his commitment to God.

UNIVERSALITY AND HUMANISM:

God in Islam is the God of all the world.In Islam there is no distinction on the basis of colour,creed ,language or nationality.All men are equal in the eyes of Islam and it insits in the removal of all the impediments on the basis of status,wealth and social status.
"O Lord! Lord of my life and of everything in the universe! I affirm that all human beings are brothers to one another."

Islam wants to unite all the human race under one code of life and presents
a message of hope and a glorious future for its followers.According to Holy Prophet (PBUH),
"Respect God and be affectionate to the family of God."

Islam leads man to a unification of all aspects of life.Its a universal religion which stresses on the equality of all human beings with basic equal rights for all.It is a dynamic belief and a revolutionary doctrine.It means that all men are the creatures of one God .Discrimination based on colour,class,race or territory is unfounded and illusionary.It is remnant of the days of ignorance which chained men down to servitude.Humanity is one single family of God and there can be no sanction for those barriers.Men are one and gives a revolutionary concept of the unity of mankind.