CONCEPT OF WORSHIP IN ISLAMThe
concept of worship in Islam is misunderstood by many people including some
Muslims. Worship is commonly taken to mean performing ritualistic acts such
as prayers, fasting, charity, etc. This limited understanding of worship is
only one part of the meaning of worship in Islam. That is why the
traditional definition of worship in Islam is a comprehensive definition
that includes almost everything in any individual's activities. The
definition goes something like this, “Worship is an all inclusive term for
all that God loves of external and internal sayings and actions of a
person.” In other words, worship is everything one says or does for the
pleasure of Allah. This, of course, includes rituals as well as beliefs,
social activities, and personal contributions to the welfare of one's fellow
human beings. Islam
looks at the individual as a whole. He is required to submit himself
completely to Allah, as the Quraan instructed the Prophet Muhammad
to
do: “Say
(O Muhammad) my prayer, my sacrifice, my life and my death belong to Allah;
He has no partner and l am ordered to be among those who submit, i.e.
Muslims.” Quraan 6: 162-163 The
natural result of this submission is that all one's activities should
conform to the instructions of God, to whom the person is submitting. Islam
being a way of life, requires that its followers model their life according
to its teachings in every aspect, religious or otherwise. This might sound
strange to some people who think of religion as a personal relationship
between the individual and God, having no impact on one's activities outside
rituals. As a matter of fact
Islam does not think much of mere rituals when they are performed
mechanically and have no influence on one's inner life. The
Quraan addresses the believers and their neighbors from among the people of
the Book (Jews and Christians) who were arguing with them about the change
of the direction of the Qibla (the direction which all Muslims pray towards)
in the following verse: “It
is not righteousness that you turn your faces towards the east or the west,
but righteous is he who believes in Allah and the Last Day and the Angels
and the Books and the Prophets, and gives his beloved money to the relatives
and the orphans and the needy and for the ransoming of the captives and who
observes prayer and pays the poor-due; and those who fulfill their promises
when they have made one, and the patient in poverty and affliction and the
steadfast in time of war; it is those who have proved truthful and it is
those who are the God-fearing.” Quraan
2: 177 The
deeds in the above verse are the deeds of righteousness and they are only a
part of worship. The Prophet
told
us about faith, which is the basis of worship, that it:“…is made up of
sixty and some branches: the highest of which is the belief in the Oneness
of Allah, i.e., there is no God but Allah and the lowest in the scale of
worship is removing obstacles from the people's path.” Decent
work is considered in Islam a type of worship. The Prophet
said:
“No one has eaten better food than that obtained through the labor of his
hands. Prophet David, the
prophet of Allah used to earn his living through his own labor.”
Seeking
knowledge is one of the highest types of worship. The Prophet
told
his companions that “seeking knowledge is a (religious) duty on every
Muslim.” In another saying he
said:
“A person who follows a path for acquiring knowledge, Allah will make easy
the passage to Paradise for him” Social
courtesy and cooperation are part of worship when done for the sake of Allah
as the Prophet
told
us: “Receiving your friend with a smile is a type of charity, helping a
person to load his animal is a charity and putting some water in your
neighbor’s bucket is a charity.” It
is worth noting that even performing one's duties are considered a sort of
worship. The Prophet
told
us that whatever one spends for his family is a type of charity; he will be
rewarded for it if he acquires it through legal means. Also kindness to the
members of one's family is an act of worship as when one puts a piece of
food in his spouse's mouth. It
is clear, from the previous discussion that the concept of worship in Islam
is a comprehensive concept that includes all the positive activities of the
individual. This of course is in agreement with the all-inclusive nature of
Islam as a way of life. It regulates the human life on all levels: the
individual, the social, the economic, the political and the spiritual. That
is why Islam provides guidance to the smallest details of one's life on all
these levels: Thus following these details is following Islamic instructions
in that specific area. It is a very encouraging element when one realizes
that all his activities are considered by God as acts of worship. This
should lead the individual to seek Allah's pleasure in his actions and
always try to do them in the best possible manner whether he is watched by
his superiors or he is alone. There is always the One True God watching, who
knows everything, namely Allah. So
far we have been looking at non-ritual worship in Islam; however, this does
not under evaluate the importance of the ritual ones. Actually, ritual
worships, if performed in true spirit, elevate man morally and spiritually
and enable him to carry on his activities in all walks of life according to
the Guidance of God. Among
ritual worships, Formal Prayer (Salah) occupies the key position for two
reasons. Firstly, it is the distinctive mark of a believer. Secondly, it
prevents an individual from all sorts of abominations and vices by providing
him chances of directly facing his Creator five times a day, wherein he
renews his covenant with God and seeks His guidance again and again.
Muslims recite in every Prayer: “You
(Allah) alone do we worship and to You alone do we turn for help.
Guide us to the straight path “ Quraan 1: 5-6. Formal
prayer is the first practical manifestation of Faith and also the foremost
of the basic conditions for the success of the believers: “Successful
indeed are the believers who are humble in their prayers”
Quraan 23: 1-2 The
same fact has been emphasized by the Prophet
in
a different way. He
said:
“Those who offer their Prayers with great care and punctuality,
will find it a light, a proof of their Faith and cause of their salvation on
the Day of Judgment.” After
Salah (prayer), Zakah (poor-due) is the next important pillar of Islam. In
the Quraan, Salah and Zakah are usually mentioned together. Like Salah,
Zakah is a manifestation of faith that affirms that God is the sole owner of
everything in the universe. What
men hold is a trust in their hands over which God made them trustees to
discharge it as He has laid down: “Believe
in Allah and His messenger and spend of that over which He has made you
trustees.” Quraan 57: 7 In
this respect Zakah is an act of devotion, which, like prayer, brings the
believer nearer to his Lord. Apart
from this, Zakah is a means of redistribution of wealth in a way that
reduces differences between classes and groups. It makes a fair contribution
to social stability. By purging the soul of the rich from selfishness and
the soul of the poor from envy and resentment against society, it stops the
channels leading to class hatred and makes it possible for the springs of
brotherhood and solidarity to gush forth. Such stability is not merely based
on the personal feelings of the rich but stands on a firmly established
right, which, if the rich denied could be exacted by force if necessary. Fasting
from dawn to sunset in the month of Ramadhan (Siyam) is another pillar of
Islam. The main function of fasting is to make the Muslim pure from
“within” as other aspects of the Religion make him pure from “
without.” By such purity he responds to what is true and good, and shuns
what is false and evil. This is what we can perceive in the verse: “O you
who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those
before you, that you may gain piety.” Quraan 2: 183
In
an authentic tradition, the Prophet
reported
Allah as saying with regard to one who fasts “He suspends eating,
drinking, and gratification of his sexual passion for My sake.”
Thus his reward is going to be according to God’s great bounty. Fasting
thus awakens the conscience of the individual and gives it scope for
exercise in a joint experience for all society at the same time, thus adding
further strength to each individual. Moreover, fasting offers a compulsory
rest to the over-worked human digestive system for the duration of one full
month. Similarly fasting reminds and individual of those who are deprived of
life’s basic necessities throughout the year or throughout life. It makes
him realize the suffering of others, and thus promotes in him a sense of
sympathy and kindness to them. Lastly,
we come to Al-Hajj (pilgrimage to the House of God in Makkah). This very
important pillar of Islam, manifests a unique unity, dispelling all kinds of
differences. Muslims from all corners of the world, wearing the same dress,
respond to the call of Hajj in one voice and language: LABBAIK ALLA HUMMA
LABBAIK (Here I am at Your service O lord!). In Hajj there is an exercise of
strict self-discipline and control where not only sacred things are revered,
but even the life of plants and birds is made inviolable so that everything
lives in safety: “And he that honors the sacred things of God, it shall be
better for him with his Lord” Quraan
22: 30 Pilgrimage
gives an opportunity to all Muslims from all groups, classes, organizations
and governments from all over the Muslim world to meet annually in a great
congress. The time and venue of this congress has been set by the One True
God. Invitation to attend is open to every Muslim. No one has the power to
bar anyone. Every Muslim who attends is guaranteed full safety and freedom
as long as he himself does not violate its safety. Thus,
worship in Islam, whether ritual or non-ritual, trains the individual in
such a way that he loves his Creator most and thereby gains an unyielding
will and spirit to wipe out all evil and oppression from the human society
and makes the Word of Allah dominant in the world.
|
||