Saturday, November 22, 2008

Implement Islam As A Complete Way of Life



My dear brothers and sisters, please catch a glimpse of this tiny effort. I pray that Allah will always guide us in His Light of Truth………..
Islam is the religion of truth, the perfect religion. Islam is also a complete religion and a way of life. It is the only religion that Allah approves of. Allah states in the glorious Quran, (Surah Al-Maidah:3) which means:-“This day I have perfected your religion for you and I have completed My blessings upon you, and I have approved Islam for your religion.”

Islam is a complete way of life encompassing every aspect of livelihood. Many Muslims realize that Islam is a complete way of life but they fail to testify it because they have not manifested Islam totally in their own lives. They apply only some areas of Islam in their lives while ignoring the others. Allah mentioned in the Quran, (Surah Al Baqarah, verse 85), which means:- “Then is it only a part of the Book that ye believe in. And do ye reject the rest? But what is the reward for those among you who behave like this. But disgrace in this life? And on the Day of Judgment they shall be consigned to the most grievous penalty, for God is not unmindful of what ye do.”

Our struggle is not complete and will not end if we haven’t made ourselves, our household, our community, and nation, Islamic. We must begin from ourselves to lead an Islamic way of life in every aspect of our life. We are the ones who must first submit to Islam totally before we struggle to make our family members, our household and our community Islamic. If we fail to practice Islam as our way of life then it will be impossible to make our household and our community Islamic. When our community is not Islamic then it will be more impossible for us to gain an Islamic nation. This means we must start from the beginning stages to make ourselves Islamic before we struggle on the higher stages to make our nation Islamic. Obviously it is absolutely awkward if we struggle to make an Islamic nation (national or international) whereas we ourselves and our household are not Islamic first!

Examine our own selves first. We start on fundamental matters like prayers, dress codes, social interactions, education, unity, economy and other aspects in our daily lives. Are these all in line with the requirements of Islam?

This is an extract of my article which was published in Al Nahdah. (a journal of the Regional Islamic Da’wah Council of Southeast Asia and the Pacific )