How do I Revert (Convert) to Islam?
The purpose of this article is to correct a false idea spread among those
willing to adopt Islam as their faith. Some people have a wrong notion that
entering into the Islamic fold requires an announcement from the concerned
person in the presence of high ranking scholars or reporting this act to courts
of justice or other authorities. It is also thought that the act of accepting
Islam, should, as a condition, have a certificate issued by the authorities, as
evidence to that effect
We wish to clarify that the whole matter is very easy and that none of these
conditions or obligations are required. For Allah, Almighty, is above all
comprehension and knows well the secrets of all hearts. Nevertheless, those who
are going to adopt Islam as their religion are advised to register themselves as
Muslims with the concerned governmental agency, as this procedure may facilitate
for them many matters including the possibility of performing Hajj (Pilgrimage
to the Holy City of Makkah) and ‘Umrah. If anyone has a real desire to be a
Muslim and has full conviction and strong belief that Islam is the true religion
ordained by Allah for all human-beings, then, one should pronounce the
"Shahaadah", the testimony of faith, without further delay. The Holy Qur‘an is
explicit on this regard as Allah states:
 
"The Religion in the sight of Allah is Islam." The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 3,
Verse 19. 
In another verse of the Holy Qur’an, Allah states: 
"If anyone desires a religion other than Islam (Submission to Allah), Never will
it be accepted of him; and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who
have lost (their selves in the hell fire)." The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 3, Verse
85. 
In addition, Islam is the only religion prevailing over all other religions..
Allah states in the Holy Qur’an: 
"He it is Who hath sent His messenger with the guidance and the religion of
truth, that He may cause it to prevail over all religion. And Allah sufficeth as
a Witness." The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 48, Verse 28. 
Muhammad, the Prophet of Allah (Peace and blessing of Allah be upon him), said:
The superstructure of Islam is raised on five (pillars): 
1. Testifying that there is no God (none truly to be worshiped) but Allah, and
that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, 
2. Performing the prayer (meaning the formal obligatory daily prayer of a
Muslim, other non-formal prayers are not obligatory and may be performed when
the person wishes), 
3. Paying the Zakat (poor-due, an annual 2.5% {amount varies depending upon what
is the nature of the wealth, e.g. gold, money, livestock etc} portion of your
wealth which is to be distributed amongst the poor), 
4. Fasting the month of Ramadhaan (fasting from dawn to sunset), 
5. Performing Hajj (a pilgrimage to the Ka’bah (sacred house built by Aadam
and rebuilt by Ibraaheem) in Makkah, at least once in a lifetime for the person
who is able to). 
The Shahaadah can be declared as follows: 
"ASH-HADU ANLA ILAAHA ILL-ALLAH WA ASH-HADU ANNA MUHAMMADAN RASOOL-ALLAH". 
The English translation is:
"I bear witness that there is no deity (none truly to be worshipped) but, Allah,
and I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah", 
However, it would not be sufficient for anyone to only utter this testimony
orally either in private or in public; but rather, he should believe in it by
heart with a firm conviction and unshakeable faith. If one is truly sincere and
complies with the teachings of Islam in all his life, he will find himself a new
born person. This will move him to strive more and more to improve his character
and draw nearer to perfection. The light of the living faith will fill his heart
until he becomes the embodiment of that faith. 
What would be next after declaring oneself a Muslim? One should then know the
real concept underlying this testimony which means the Oneness of Allah and meet
its requirements. One must behave accordingly, applying this true faith to every
thing one speaks or does. 
What do the words of the "Shahada" signify? The significant point which every
Muslim must know very well is the truth that there is no God (deity) to be
worshipped other than Allah. He - glory be to Him - is the only true God, Who
alone deserves to be worshipped, since He is the Giver of life and Sustainer and
Nourisher of mankind and all creation with His unlimited bounties. Man must
worship Allah, Who alone is worthy of worship. 
The second part of the Shahaadah (i.e., Wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan
rasool-Allah) means that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is the servant and chosen
messenger of Allah. No one must have two opinions about this matter. In fact the
Muslim has to obey the commands of the Prophet (pbuh), to believe him in what he
has said, to practice his teachings, to avoid what he has forbidden, and to
worship Allah alone according to the message revealed to him, for all the
teachings of the Prophet were in fact revelations and inspirations conveyed to
him by Allah.
What is the meaning of worship? It simply means rendering sincere service,
showing reverence for Allah. In a deeper shade of meaning, it implies total
submission and complete obedience to Allah’s commandments both in utterances
and actions of man whether explicit or implicit.
Worship fall into two categories: 
Visible (manifest or outward) 
Invisible (concealed or inward) 
Visible worship includes acts such as uttering the two parts of the "Shahaadah",
performing prayers, giving Zakaah (the poor-due), recitation of the Qur‘an,
supplication, adoring Allah by praising Him, purifying our bodies before
prayers, etc. 
This type of worship is associated with movement of the parts of the human body.
Invisible worship is to believe in Allah, in the Day of Judgement (in the
Hereafter), in the Angels, in the Books of Allah, in the Prophets of Allah, in
the Divine Decree of destiny (that good and bad are determined by Allah
alone). 
This type of worship does not involve movement of parts of the body but it
surely has bearing on one’s heart which subsequently affects one’s way of
life.
It should be borne in mind that any worship not dedicated to Allah alone will be
rejected as one form of polytheism and this causes apostasy from the Islamic
fold (for the one who believes that worshipping someone besides Allah is good
and correct, the one who may have done this by mistake should immediately repent
and seek Allah’s forgiveness).
The next step for a new revert to Islam is to purify himself by taking a
complete bath. He should then resolve to comply with the principles and rules of
Islam in their entirety. He should disown all forms of polytheism and false
beliefs. He should reject evil and be righteous. Such rejection of evil and
being righteous is one of the requisites of the motto of Islam - that is, Laa
Ilaaha IllAllah. (none has the right to be worshipped except Allah)
Allah states in the Holy Qur‘an: 
"…whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy
Hand-hold, that never breaks…" The Holy Qur’an, Chapter 2, Verse 256
We have to consider that when we declare from our heart that "there is no god
(deity) worthy to be worshipped but Allah", it implies on our part love,
devotion, faith and obedience to the rules of Islamic legislations which are
legally binding on all Muslims. It is a requirement of "there is no god worthy
to be worshipped but Allah" to love for the sake of Allah and to reject for the
sake of Allah. 
This is the firmest anchor of belief which materialise the meaning of "AL WALA"
and "AL BARA". It means that a Muslim should love and be loyal to his Muslim
brothers and sisters. He should, as a practice, dissociate himself completely
from the unbelievers (those who stubbornly reject the faith of Islam) and refuse
to be influenced by them, both in worldly and religious matters.
We conclude with a humble prayer to Allah that may He cleanse the hearts and
souls of those who are genuine seekers of truth and may He bless the community
of believers. Amen.
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WHAT IT MEANS TO BE MUSLIM?Friday, August 29th, 2008

I send you today a good article. It could be new and adds to your knowledge..
WHAT IT MEANS TO BE MUSLIM
To accept the Divine covenant brings up the question of living according to the
Divine Will. The very idea of Islam is that through the use of intelligence
which discerns between the Absolute and the relative one should come to
surrender to the Will of the Absolute.
This is the meaning of Muslim: one who has accepted through free choice to
conform his will to the Divine Will.
Islam is actually like a several storied mountain and everything in it has
different degrees and levels of meaning, including the concept of Muslim itself.
Firstly, anyone who accepts a Divine revelation is a ‘Muslim’ in its
universal sense, be he a Muslim, Christian, Jew or Zoroastrian. In its first
meaning, Muslim refers to that human being who through the use of his
intelligence and free will accepts a divinely revealed law.
Secondly, ‘muslim’ refers to all creatures of the Universe who accept Divine
law in the sense that they conform to the unbreakable laws which the Western
world calls ‘laws of Nature.’
It is the Will of the Creator that expresses itself in what is called ‘laws of
nature’ in Western thought, and everything in the Universe is in a profound
sense Muslim except for man who, because of this free choice given to him as a
trust to bear, can refuse to submit to His Will.
It is only man who can stop being Muslim in this second meaning of the term
‘muslim’, whereas all other beings are ‘muslim’ in this sense by virtue
of their complete submission to the Divine Will which manifests itself as
‘laws of nature’.
Finally, there is the highest meaning of Muslim which applies to the saint. The
saint is like nature in that every moment of his life is lived in conformity
with the Divine Will, but his participation in the Divine Will is conscious and
active whereas that of nature is passive
In summary,
The first meaning of Muslim pertains to nature;
The second meaning of Muslim pertains to man who has accepted a revelation;
The third meaning of Muslim pertains to the saint who not only has accepted
revelation, but lives fully in conformity with the Divine Will.
 




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