How a Person Becomes a Muslim

How a Person Becomes a Muslim


[This is an amended copy of "HOW TO BECOME A MUSLIM" originally prepared and published by the Co-operative Office for Call and Guidance - Riyadh.]




All praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the universe. May peace and blessings of Allaah be upon Muhammad, His last messenger.
The purpose of this hand out is to correct a false idea spread among those willing to adopt Islaam 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 Islaam, 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 Allaah, Almighty, is above all comprehension and knows well the secrets of all hearts. Nevertheless, those who are going to adopt Islaam 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 Allaah for all human-beings, then, one should pronounce the "Shahaadah", the testimony of faith, without further delay. The Holy Qur‘aan is explicit on this regard as Allaah states:

"The Religion in the sight of Allaah is Islaam."
(Qur‘aan 3:19)

In another verse of the Holy Qur'an, Allaah states:

"If anyone desires a religion other than Islaam (Submission to Allaah), 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)."
(Qur‘aan 3:85)

In addition, Islam is the only religion prevailing over all other religions. Allaah states in the Holy Qur'an:

"To thee We sent the Scripture in truth, confirming the scripture that came before it, and guarding it in safety:..."
(Qur‘aan 5:48)

Muhammad, the Prophet of Allaah (Peace and blessing of Allaah be upon him), said:
The superstructure of Islam is raised on five (pillars):

Testifying that there is no God (none truly to be worshiped) but Allaah, and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allaah,

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),

paying the Zakaah (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),

fasting the month of Ramadhaan (fasting from dawn to sunset),

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-ALLAAH WA ASH-HADU ANNA MUHAMMADAN RASOOL-ALLAAH".

The English translation is:
"I bear witness that there is no deity (none truly to be worshipped) but, Allaah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allaah",
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 Allaah 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 Allaah. 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 Allaah, Who alone is worthy of worship.
The second part of the Shahaadah (i.e., Wa ash-hadu anna Muhammadan rasool-Allaah) means that Prophet Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alayhi was sallam) is the servant and chosen messenger of Allaah. No one must have two opinions about this matter. In fact the Muslim has to obey the commands of the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alayhi was sallam), to believe him in what he has said, to practice his teachings, to avoid what he has forbidden, and to worship Allaah 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 Allaah.
What is the meaning of worship? It simply means rendering sincere service, showing reverence for Allaah. In a deeper shade of meaning, it implies total submission and complete obedience to Allaah'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‘aan, supplication, adoring Allaah 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 Allaah, in the Day of Judgement (in the Hereafter), in the Angels, in the Books of Allaah, in the Prophets of Allaah, in the Divine Decree of destiny (that good and bad are determined by Allaah 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 Allaah 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 Allaah is good and correct, the one who may have done this by mistake should immediately repent and seek Allaah's forgiveness).
The next step for a new revert [1] to Islaam is to purify himself by taking a complete bath. He should then resolve to comply with the principles and rules of Islaam 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 Islaam - that is, Laa Ilaaha Illallaah. (none has the right to be worshipped except Allaah)
Allaah states in the Holy Qur‘aan:

"...whoever rejects evil and believes in Allaah hath grasped the most trustworthy Hand-hold, that never breaks..."
(Qur‘aan 2:256).

We have to consider that when we declare from our heart that "there is no god (deity) worthy to be worshipped but Allaah", it implies on our part love, devotion, faith and obedience to the rules of Islaamic legislations which are legally binding on all Muslims. It is a requirement of "there is no god worthy to be worshipped but Allaah" to love for the sake of Allaah and to reject for the sake of Allaah.
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 Islaam) and refuse to be influenced by them, both in worldly and religious matters.
We conclude with a humble prayer to Allaah that may He cleanse the hearts and souls of those who are genuine seekers of truth and may He bless the community of believers. Aameen.



Footnote:

[1] Revert: Muslims use the term 'revert' rather than 'convert', since the Prophet (may the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) informed us that every baby is born upon the natural submission to the Will of God (i.e.Islaam), but it is his parents who convert him to a Jew or a Christian; meaning that every baby is born sinless and without corrupt thoughts or ideas about the nature of God or Who is the one deserving of Worship, Love and Obedience, but when he or she is growing up they are taught corrupt ideas and principles regarding God; therefore when a non-Muslim becomes a Muslim he returns to the natural submission to God's Will (i.e. Islaam) upon which he or she was born, and is therefore more correctly referred to as a 'revert'.