What is Islam?

Islam is the voluntary submission to the Will of Allāh and obedience to Him. Allāh says: {And who is better in faith than those who ˹fully˺ submit themselves to Allāh, do good, and follow the Way of Abraham, the upright? Allāh chose Abraham as a close friend} (Qurʾān 4:125). That is, the best religion is that of the one who submits himself entirely to Allāh and obeys Him. Allāh says: {For your God is only One God, so submit yourselves to Him ˹alone˺. And give good news ˹O Prophet˺ to the humble} (Qurʾān 22:34). These verses establish that Islam signifies total and unconditional submission to Allāh, complete obedience to His commands, and contented compliance with the dictates of His Law. This is the essence of Islam, the religion that Allāh has prescribed for mankind. Allāh says: {Truly, the religion with Allāh is Islam} (Qurʾān 3:19). Therefore, Islam is the only religion acceptable to Allāh, and whoever meets Him adhering to a religion other than it will not have it accepted from him. Allāh says: {Whoever seeks a way other than Islam, it will never be accepted from them, and in the Hereafter they will be among the losers} (Qurʾān 3:85). All the Prophets and Messengers brought one message: to worship Allāh alone and not to associate anything with Him—monotheism. The difference between these Prophets and Messengers lay in the Sharīʿah (legal rulings), not in the ʿaqīdah (creed). Allāh sent His Prophets and Messengers at different times and to different peoples. Accordingly, He revealed to each of them specific rulings suited to their time and place. Allāh says: {To each of you We have ordained a code of law and a way of life} (Qurʾān 5:48). However, they were all sent with the same Islamic creed: the oneness of Allāh and submission to Him. Allāh says: {We never sent a Messenger before you ˹O Prophet˺ without revealing to him: “There is no god ˹worthy of worship˺ except Me, so worship Me ˹alone˺”} (Qurʾān 21:25). That is, Islam is not the message of Prophet Muḥammad (PBUH) alone, but rather the message of all the Prophets and Messengers who preceded him. Therefore, in their original forms, religions such as Christianity and Judaism were founded upon the oneness of Allāh. All the Prophets and Messengers conveyed the same divine message: to worship Allāh alone and live a morally upright life. However, their original message was abandoned or corrupted over time, and only parts of it remained intact. Hence, Allāh sent Muḥammad (PBUH) as the final Prophet to all mankind, calling people back to that very same message brought by all the Prophets and Messengers who preceded him and correcting the corruption that had been introduced into it. Allāh has guaranteed the preservation of His final Reminder for mankind (i.e., the Qurʾān): {It is certainly We Who have revealed the Reminder, and it is certainly We Who will preserve it} (Qurʾān 15:9). Indeed, none is more faithful to His promise than Allāh. The Qurʾān that we have today is exactly the same as the one revealed to the Prophet (PBUH) over fourteen centuries ago—not a single letter has changed. Millions of Muslims around the world continue to memorize the Qurʾān by heart, making it impossible for it to be altered, even if every copy of it were to disappear from the earth. Islam is the only monotheistic religion in the world today. All other religions contain elements of polytheism, whereas Islam preserves the pure monotheism brought by all the Prophets and Messengers of Allāh throughout human history.