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A foreign friend of mine has just become a Muslim. What should we teach him before all else?
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What are the conditions for having Ahl as-sunnat belief?
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A philosopher claims, “There is no such thing as ilâh. The meaning of ‘Lâ ilâha ill-Allah’ is that ilâh is nonexistent but Allah exists.” Is it proper to say so?
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The following is the simplified translation of a letter written as an answer to a university student by ’Abdulhakîm-i Arwâsî (quddisa sirruh) while he was the senior professor of tasawwuf at the Madrasat al-mutahassisîn (the Faculty of Theology), which was located in the garden of the Sultân Selîm Mosque in Istanbul during the declining years of the Ottoman Empire.
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How do Ahl as-Sunnat scholars define îmân and Islam?
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What are the 32 fards [essentials, binding duties]?
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Do committing sins and continuing to commit them not cause people to lose their îmân [belief]?
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re a’mal [deeds, conduct, or practice] a part of îmân [belief]? That is, does a person who does not perform a fard [a commandment] or who commits a harâm [a prohibited act] become a kâfir [disbeliever]?
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Question: Some people are spending their lifetimes endeavoring to prove the existence of Allah. Providing such a justification, “Now that the ultimate purpose is îmân, busying ourselves with proving the existence of Allah is better than busying ourselves with acts of worship and the knowledge of fiqh,” they say that it is necessary to strengthen one’s îmân by way of observing the anatomies of plants, humans, and animals at all times. Is it proper for a believer in Allah to be busy with such things at all times?
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Question: After learning my religion correctly, I have begun to observe its rules as much as I possibly can. An atheist heard about my situation and emailed me so: “I heard about your becoming an extremist. You are said to perform namâz, observe fast, and cover yourself. By doing so, do you count yourself a better Muslim? It suffices to have a pure mind-set and heart. If your heart is pure, it does not matter whether you perform namâz, drink alcoholic beverages, or go out naked.” What do you advise me to write her in reply?
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What do “hubb-i fillah” and “bughd-i fillah” mean?
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Question: In the book Endless Bliss, it is written that one should say, “I am certainly a Mu’min [Believer]” even when expressing one’s îmân at one’s last breath. We have no doubts at all about its being true, but we are unable to fully comprehend the subtle difference here. It is understood as if one (by saying so) tells something unknown (ghayb). Could you give us a clear explanation of how one says “I am certainly a Believer” when meaning one’s last breath?
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Question: A friend of mine says, “In order to have îmân, it is not necessary to say the phrase ‘Muhammadun Rasûl-Allah’ in the Kalima-i shahâdat. Saying only ‘Lâ ilâha ill-Allah’ will suffice.” Is the phrase “Muhammadun Rasûl-Allah” not included in the Kalima-i shahâdat, which is the first of the five fundamentals of Islam? Do we not say “Ash-hadu an lâ ilâha ill-Allah wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan ’abduhû wa rasûluh” when we are reciting the Âmantu? Is such an îmân valid? What is the meaning of Kalima-i shahâdat?
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Why do people feel the need to believe in Allah?
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Does îmân [belief, faith] increase or decrease?
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If those who live in the mountains, in a desert, in a cave, in a forest or on a desolate island and who have never heard of any religion or any prophet find out or do not find out the existence of Allahu ta’âlâ with their minds, how are they treated?
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Has Allahu ta’âlâ declared His oneness in the Qur’ân al-karîm?
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Could you provide us with information about Qasîdat al-Amâlî, which is highly praised by many people?
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Wherever they see the word “hidâyah” in the Qur’ân, some people, somehow, say it means a soul’s reaching Allah before death. Actually, are there any âyât or hadîths that are in accordance with this definition? What is “reaching Allah”?
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Can we reach the summit of îmân [faith, belief] easily by reading many articles proving the existence of Allahu ta’âlâ?
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Some excerpts from the book Fiqh-i Akbar by Hadrat Imâm-i A’zam are as follows:
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It is stated in a hadîth-i sharîf quoted by Tabarânî that those who do not observe any of the following ten essentials of Islam are in a state of a loss:
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Upon which thing is it conditional to achieve salvation in the Hereafter?
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Some people ask, “Who created Allah?” Can the Creator ever be a creature?
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Could you explain briefly Islam’s basic tenets of belief that every Muslim has to know?
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What is the meaning of Kalimat at-tawhîd?
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Is it possible for a person to know that (s)he is a Mu’min [Believer]? What are the signs of îmân?
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Is it appropriate to use such expressions as “Turkic Islam” and “Ottoman Islam”?
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One day three people—an atheist, a Mu’tazilite and a person holding the Jabriyya belief (a determinist)—came before Imâm-i A’zam. The atheist said:
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What are the types of îmân [belief]?
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If those who do not have any good deeds or acts of worship and who spend their years rolling in sins say the Kalima-i shahâdat with ikhlâs and die with this faith, will they go to Jannat [Paradise]?
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People who are Ahl-i qibla [people of the qibla] cannot be called kâfirs [disbelievers]. Now that all the seventy-two heretical groups are Ahl-i qibla; that is, they perform namâz, do people calling them disbelievers not become the ones themselves?
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