BELIEF IN ALLAH || EVIDENCE OF THE EXISTENCE OF THE CREATOR
THE FIRST PROOF: THE EVIDENCE OF THE FITRAH
(HUMAN INSTINCT)
Sound Human Instinct Bears Witness to the Existence of Allah Without (Any Need for Further) Evidence
The Qur'an does not discuss at length the matter of proving the existence of Allah (), because it states that sound human instinct, and minds that are not contaminated with the filth of shirk, affirm His existence (without any need for further evidence). Not only that, Tawheed or the affirmation of Divine Unity, is something which is natural and instinctive.
In the Qur'an it says:
فَأَقِمْ وَجْهَكَ لِلدِّينِ حَنِيفًا فِطْرَتَ اللَّهِ الَّتِي فَطَرَ النَّاسَ عَلَيْهَا لَا تبْدِيلَ لِخَلْقِ اللَّهِ ذَلِكَ الدِّينُ الْقَيِّمُ
So set you [O' Muhammad] your face towards the religion [of pure Islamic Monotheism] Haneef [worship none but Allah Alone]. Allah's Fitrah [i.e. Allah's Islamic Monotheism] with which He has created mankind. No change let there be in Khalq-illaah [i.e. the religion of Allah, Islamic Monotheism], that is the straight religion...) (Qur'an 30: 30)
This fitrah is the thing which explains the phenomenon that has been noted by those who research the history of religions, that all nations whose history has been studied have adopted gods which they have turned to and venerated.1
It may be said at this point, "If turning towards Allah is something natural, then people would not have worshipped different gods at different times."
The answer is, that the fitrah (natural instinct) calls man to turn towards his Creator, but man is surrounded by many other influences which make him deviate towards the worship of other gods.
Parents, writers, teachers and others instil into children's minds ideas which change and contaminate this fitrah, placing a veil over the fitrah so that they are not able to turn towards the truth.
The Messenger (ﷺ) stated that what we have referred to here is true. Bukhari and Muslim narrated on the authority of Abu Hurayrah (RA) that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
"Every child is born in a state of fitrah, then his parents make him into a Jew or a Christian or a Magian."2
- He did not say that they make him Muslim, because Islam is in accordance with the fitrah.
It may be said: "If we were to leave a child with no influences to affect his fitrah, would he turn out to be a monotheist, knowing his Lord?" We say: "If the devils among men leave him alone, and do not contaminate his fitrah", but the devils among the jinn (shayaateen) will never leave him alone, as the Shaytaan made a vow that he would misguide the children of Adam:
قَالَ فَبِعِزَّتِکَ لَاُغۡوِیَنَّهُمۡ اَجۡمَعِیۡنَ ﴿ۙ۸۲ اِلَّا عِبَادَکَ مِنۡهُمُ الۡمُخۡلَصِیۡنَ ﴿۸۳[Iblees (Satan)] said: 'By Your Might, then I will surely, mislead them all, Except Your chosen slaves amongst them [i.e. faithful, obedient, true believers of Islamic Monotheism].' (Qur'an 38: 82-83)
The Shaytaan has been given the power to reach people's hearts, as stated in the ṣaḥeeḥ hadith:
"The Shaytaan flows in man like blood flows through his veins, and I fear that he may cast some evil - or he said, something into both your hearts."3
The Qur'an describes the Shaytaan, from whom we must seek refuge with Allah (), as one who,
یُوَسۡوِسُ فِیۡ صُدُوۡرِ النَّاسِ ۙ﴿۵ ....... Whispers into the hearts of mankind.) (Qur'an 114: 5)
It is also true that every person has a hidden mate (qareen) from among the jinn who urges and encourages him to do evil. In the Qur'an it says:
قَالَ قَرِیۡنُهٗ رَبَّنَا مَاۤ اَطۡغَیۡتُهٗ وَ لٰکِنۡ کَانَ فِیۡ ضَلٰلٍۭ بَعِیۡدٍ ﴿۲۷His companion [Satan-devil] will say: 'Our Lord! I did not push him to transgression, [in disbelief, oppression, and evil deeds], but he was himself in error far astray." (Qur'an 50: 27)
No one can be safe from this unless he turns to Allah (SWT) for refuge.
قُلۡ اَعُوۡذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ ۙ﴿۱ مَلِکِ النَّاسِ ۙ﴿۲ اِلٰهِ النَّاسِ ۙ﴿۳ مِنۡ شَرِّ الۡوَسۡوَاسِ ۬ۙ الۡخَنَّاسِ ۪ۙ﴿۴ الَّذِیۡ یُوَسۡوِسُ فِیۡ صُدُوۡرِ النَّاسِ ۙ﴿۵ مِنَ الۡجِنَّۃِ وَ النَّاسِ ﴿۶Say: 'I seek refuge with [Allah] the Lord of mankind, The King of mankind, The Ilaah [God] of mankind, From the evil of the whisperer [devil who whispers evil in the hearts of men] who withdraws [from his whispering in one's heart after one remembers Allah]. Who whispers into the hearts of mankind. Of jinn and men."(Qur'an 114: 1-6)
The shayaateen among the jinn play a major role in corrupting and contaminating human nature. It is reported in Muslim from ‘Iyaad ibn Himaar that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) addressed one day, and one of the things he said in his khutbah (address) was:
"My Lord has commanded me to teach you what you do not know of what He has taught me today: all the wealth that I have given to My slaves is halaal, and I created all of My slaves as haneefs [worshipping Allah Alone], then the shayaateen came to them and led them astray from their religion. They forbade them things that I had permitted for them, and commanded them to associate others in worship with Me for which I had not sent down any authority."4
Calamities Purify the Essence of the Fitrah
It is often the case that the veils covering the fitrah and preventing it from seeing the truth will be removed when calamity strikes or problems arise for which no help is forthcoming from any human being and there is no means of saving oneself. How many atheists have acknowledged their Lord and turned to Him when overwhelmed with calamity, and how many mushrikeen (idolaters and polytheists) have made their devotion solely for Allah alone when disaster strikes?
حَتّٰۤی اِذَا کُنۡتُمۡ فِی الۡفُلۡکِ ۚ وَ جَرَیۡنَ بِهِمۡ بِرِیۡحٍ طَیِّبَۃٍ وَّ فَرِحُوۡا بِهَا جَآءَتۡهَا رِیۡحٌ عَاصِفٌ وَّ جَآءَهُمُ الۡمَوۡجُ مِنۡ کُلِّ مَکَانٍ وَّ ظَنُّوۡۤا اَنَّهُمۡ اُحِیۡطَ بِهِمۡ ۙ دَعَوُا اللّٰهَ مُخۡلِصِیۡنَ لَهُ الدِّیۡنَ ۬ۚ لَئِنۡ اَنۡجَیۡتَنَا مِنۡ هٰذِهٖ لَنَکُوۡنَنَّ مِنَ الشّٰکِرِیۡنَ ﴿۲۲... Till when you are in the ships, and they sail with them with a favourable wind, and they are glad therein, then comes a stormy wind and the waves come to them from all sides, and they think that they are encircled therein. Then they invoke Allah, making their Faith pure for Him Alone, [saying]: 'If You [Allah] deliver us from this, we shall truly, be of the grateful." (Qur'an 10: 22)
We have heard how airplane passengers turned to their Lord when their plane developed problems and started to shake and swing about in the air, and the pilot - let alone the passengers - was not able to do anything about it. Their atheism vanished and they were screaming prayers, and their hearts turned to their Lord in all sincerity. There was no room for shirk (polytheism) and atheism in the face of such a terrifying ordeal.
The Mushrikeen (Polythiests—the Idolaters) to Whom the Messenger (ﷺ) was Sent Acknowledged the Existence of the Creator
The Arabs whom the Messenger () confronted acknowledged the existence of Allah and that He Alone is the Creator of the universe. They also believed that He Alone was the Provider and that He alone could bring benefit or cause harm... but they worshiped others alongside Him, and they did not devote their worship to Him alone.
When the Qur'an calls the mushrikeen to worship Allah Alone and to make their religion for Him Alone, it asks them Who the Creator and Sovereign of the heavens and the earth is, for they knew that, and they never denied it:
.....وَ لَئِنۡ سَاَلۡتَهُمۡ مَّنۡ خَلَقَ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَ الۡاَرۡضَ لَیَقُوۡلُنَّ اللّٰAnd if you [O' Muhammad] ask them: 'Who has created the heavens and the earth,' they will certainly say: 'Allah'... (Qur'an 31: 25)
In Soorah al-Mu'minoon (the chapter: The Believers) it says:
قُلۡ لِّمَنِ الۡاَرۡضُ وَ مَنۡ فِیۡهَاۤ اِنۡ کُنۡتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ﴿۸۴ سَیَقُوۡلُوۡنَ لِلّٰهِ ؕ قُلۡ اَفَلَا تَذَکَّرُوۡنَ ﴿۸۵ قُلۡ مَنۡ رَّبُّ السَّمٰوٰتِ السَّبۡعِ وَ رَبُّ الۡعَرۡشِ الۡعَظِیۡمِ ﴿۸۶ سَیَقُوۡلُوۡنَ لِلّٰهِ ؕ قُلۡ اَفَلَا تَتَّقُوۡنَ ﴿۸۷ قُلۡ مَنۡۢ بِیَدِهٖ مَلَکُوۡتُ کُلِّ شَیۡءٍ وَّ هُوَ یُجِیۡرُ وَ لَا یُجَارُ عَلَیۡهِ اِنۡ کُنۡتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ﴿۸۸ سَیَقُوۡلُوۡنَ لِلّٰهِ ؕ قُلۡ فَاَنّٰی تُسۡحَرُوۡنَ ﴿۸۹(Say: 'Whose is the earth and whosoever is therein? If you know!' They will say: 'It is Allah's!' Say: 'Will you not then remember?' Say: 'Who is [the] Lord of the seven heavens, and [the] Lord of the Great Throne?' They will say: 'Allah.' Say: 'Will you not then fear Allah [believe in His Oneness, obey Him, believe in the Resurrection and Recompense for every good or bad deed]?' Say: 'In Whose Hand is the sovereignty of everything [i.e. treasures of everything]? And He protects [all], while against Whom there is no protector [i.e. if Allah saves anyone, none can punish or harm him; and if Allah punishes or harms anyone, none can save him], if you know?' They will say: '[All that belongs] to Allah.' Say: 'How then are you deceived and turn away from the truth?' (Qur'an 23: 84-89)
It is well known that the Arabs used to venerate the Ka'bah and perform Hajj, and they had other acts of worship that they did.
The Kufr (Disbelief) of People Nowadays is Greater
We should not have had to pause too long to prove the existence of Allah, because sound human nature bears witness to His existence. We hardly know of anyone in the past who denied the existence of the Creator; those that did were so few as to be hardly worth mentioning.
But deviation has reached its lowest point nowadays. We see people who have established states based on this principle, states whose inhabitants include millions of people.
This idea has spread everywhere, books have been written about it and it has developed a philosophy which is the subject of study. Its proponents have tried to make it a scientific methodology and have tried to bring forth proof to support it.
Because of this, we have no choice but to produce our own proof concerning this matter.
Note:
1. Even the communists nowadays who wanted to free themselves from the worship of gods - as they claimed worship the founder of their Party, so you see them passing by his preserved body in Red Square on the anniversary of his death, bowing their heads in humility. They have made him a god; instead of worshipping the Creator of man they worship a dead man, may they perish! (Comment added by the author in the new, revised edition): This is what I wrote fifteen years ago. A few years ago the guards of communism destroyed their own Party and cast aside their leaders and they threw out the body of their founder just as they threw out their beliefs and ideas.
2. Bukhari, 3/245, hadith no. 1385; Muslim, 4/2047, hadith no. 2658.
3 Muslim, 4/1712, hadith no. 2175.
4. Muslim, 4/2197, hadith no. 2865.
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