7 Conditions of La Ilaaha Illa-Allah – لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللهُ
The ever continuing complex system of the world and the entire universe represents no disorder whatsoever like the rising of the Sun from the East and setting in the West, interchanging of Day and Night at their specific times and altering of weathers etc. There is no error or fault in the entire scheme of things happening around human beings. The one who possesses at least some thinking power must come to know that it is undeniably being controlled by One Allah SWT. It also requires one to think about one`s purpose of existence on planet earth. The Islamic point of view regarding man`s reason of life is described in the following verse of the Holy Quran:
“And I did not create the jinn and mankind except to worship Me.” [Quran, 51: 56]
This belief in the Religion of Peace calls for worshiping the Gracious Lord alone, and consider no one else worthy of venerating or comparing to His Greatness. This concept Monotheism of Allah in Islam is called “Tawheed”. Due to its great importance in Islamic faith, the entire Makkan (from Makkah) revelations were more or less centered on it, which extended over the long period of 13 years. It is also an essential part of Daily Prayers in which Muslims recite Surah Al-Fatiha containing the
“It is You we worship and You we ask for help.” [Quran, 1: 5]
Sahadah is an Arabic word that comes from the root word “Shahida”, which means “to witness or confirm”. It is the fundamental basis of the Islamic conviction. It includes believing in One Allah and Hazrat Muhammad ﷺ as His Prophet.
“There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God.”
It is the first Kalma Shareef in the Religion of Peace, and is the stepping stone to entering the circle of Islam. Believing in One God also includes some of the stipulations in which one has to firmly trust to be able to become called a Mo`min (true Muslim).
There are 7 conditions of “LA ILAAHA ILLA-ALLAH”:
i) Knowledge wiping out Ignorance
Every action precedes some basic information behind its execution. Without knowing the implication of the task being done, a man cannot achieve the desired result. Same hold true in Shahadah, which requires one to know what it is about. Allah SWT describes the state of true believers in the Holy Quran as:
“And those they invoke besides Him do not possess [power of] intercession; but only those who testify to the truth [can benefit], and they know.” [Quran, 43: 86]
The above mentioned Ayah differentiates between the polytheists and true disciples of Allah`s Instructions. It tells that the former would not be benefited by their so called gods in front of the Almighty while the latter will be saved by their own strong belief in One God because they have the complete knowledge about the true sense of Allah`s Greatness. The Messenger ﷺ of the Almighty is reported to have said:
“He, who died knowing (fully well) that there is no true God worthy of being worshipped except Allah, entered Al Jannah.” (Muslim)
It means that awareness of the true essence of LA ILAAHA ILLA-ALLAH is the key to venerating Allah SWT in the most rightful spirit, which in turn is the foundation for achieving the blessed place of Jannah in eternal life.
ii) Certainty canceling out Doubt
The understanding of the theme of this testimony needs to be followed with firm belief, which should nullify any kinds of suspicions in one`s mind regarding the Ultimate Power of the Almighty. This complete trust in the Most Merciful is the key factor which makes devotees to stay firm on their belief and consider Allah SWT as Enough in every matter without any hesitation in mind. The Creator of the Universe says in His Sacred Scripture:
“The believers are only the ones who have believed in Allah and His Messenger and then doubt not but strive with their properties and their lives in the cause of Allah. It is those who are the truthful.” [Quran, 49: 15]
So, the upholders of Shahadah are said to be those who after believing in One Lord and His Apostle ﷺ, do not fell in a state of qualm over their credence. They are the ones who spend every beloved belonging of theirs in the way of Allah Almighty as they have concrete confidence and reliance in One God only.
iii) Acceptance by tongue and actions
The knowledge and complete belief in Shahadah must be accompanied by its execution in all walks of life of a Muslim. There should also not be any kind of hesitation in front of oppressive rulers who try to stop the believers from worshiping One Allah. This combination of approval of Monotheism of God through tongue and actions should make one to accept His entire commandments with great modesty and humbleness.
“……. So do you believe in part of the Scripture and disbelieve in part? Then what is the recompense for those who do that among you except disgrace in worldly life; and on the Day of Resurrection they will be sent back to the severest of punishment. And Allah is not unaware of what you do.” [Quran, 2: 85]
The part of above mentioned Ayah Stresses on accepting the entire teachings of Islam, as there is no choice among them for the believers.
iv) Submission to Allah`s Will
One must base its each and every deed on this belief by confining them to His Worship alone, e.g. carrying out all the religious actions with a conviction that Allah SWT is the only One Who deserves such a praise and adoration.
“And whoever submits his face to Allah while he is a doer of good – then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold. And to Allah will be the outcome of [all] matters.” [Quran, 31: 22]
It means that the acceptance the instructions of Islam should be followed with complete obedience to Allah SWT, which includes the implementation of His whole orders and avoiding what He has forbidden.
v) Congruence between belief and actions
Many of the Madani revelations of Quran were based on explaining the state of hypocrites who by actions always tried to portray themselves as the believers, but they did not accepted Islam as true religion in their hearts. So, Allah SWT directs Muslims to not become like them in Furqan e Hameed:
“In their hearts is disease, so Allah has increased their disease; and for them is a painful punishment because they [habitually] used to lie.” [Quran, 2:10]
So, one must have absolute correspondence between its conviction in One Allah and its deeds in order to fulfill the true quintessence of LA ILAAHA ILLA-ALLAH.
vi) Sincerity negating Shirk
The belief of Shahadah should be based on honesty behind doing any religious deed, which should be directly related for the sake of seeking Allah`s Pleasure, and not anyone else`s. the Almighty Lord says in the Holy Quran:
Say, [O Muhammad], “Indeed, I have been commanded to worship Allah, [being] sincere to Him in religion.
In the above stated Quranic verse, the believers have been directed to purify their devotion to God, the Exalted by giving an example of His Messenger ﷺ, Who was the most sincere person and a role model for Muslims in living a rightful life. So, there should be no Riya (Show Off) in any matter concerning Allah`s Worship and Veneration, as it would lead to performing something according to someone else`s will and desire and not for attaining the Sole happiness of Allah SWT.
vii) Loving for Allah`s Sake
The testimony of incomparable Worthiness Allah`s worship also call for keenness in carrying out His entire decrees. This love for the sake of the Almighty must be realized in every matter concerning life.
“…. But those who believe are stronger in love for Allah ……” [Quran, 2:165]
So, the true disciples of Islam are those who have tremendous love for Allah. Hazrat Muhammad ﷺ described the state of the believer as follows:
“Whoever possesses (the following) of three qualities will relish the sweetness (delight) of Eemaan (Faith): The one to whom Allah and His messenger (saw) becomes dearer than anything else: that he loves a person for Allah Alone (i.e. purely seeking Allah (swt) and His pleasure); that he hates to revert to Kufr (disbelief) after Allah has rescued him from it as he hates to be thrown in hell.” (Bukhari)
It means that the belief in Shahadah should be accompanied with adoring and acting upon the instructions of Allah SWT and His Messenger ﷺ, loving someone else for His sake only, and also hating on certain matters of life just because they lead towards immorality.
In short, LA ILAAHA ILLA-ALLAH is not merely a phrase to utter, rather one must centre all its beliefs and actions on the above seven described attributes of this testimony that would fulfill the criteria of Shahadah in the most equitable manner.
