The True Shahada of Islam
There is no god but God (Laa Elaaha Ella Allah) (لا إله إلا الله)
This is the true shahada of God, the angels and those who possess knowledge (3:18).
- 3:18: God bears witness that there is no god except He, and so do the angels and THOSE WHO POSSESS KNOWLEDGE. Truthfully and equitably, He is the absolute god; there is no god but He, the Almighty, Most wise.
Many Muslims insist on including the name of Muhammad in the shahada, which contradicts the principle of dedicating the religion entirely to God alone. Nowhere in the Qur'an is Muhammad's name incorporated into the shahada alongside God's name. The phrase "Muhammad Rasoul Allah" is a declarative statement of fact, but it should not be conflated with the shahada, which is a testimony of faith bearing witness to the oneness of God.
The Shahada or Proclamation of Faith is the same first commandment given to Moses, and it has to be the same commandment given to all the prophets and messengers. We see this in Deuteronomy 5:6, and Quran 21:25.
- Deut. 5:6: "I, the Lord, am your God who brought you out of the Land of Egypt, that place of slavery. You shall not have any other gods beside me..."
- 21:25: We did not send any messenger before you (O Muhammed) except with the inspiration : "There is no god except Me; you shall worship Me ALONE.
The Islamic Shahada (that equals the first commandment) is mentioned in 3:18.
This most important expression (LA ELAAHA ELLA HOO= there is no other god besides Him) occurs in 19 suras.
The first occurrence is found in 2:163, and the last occurrence in 73:9. The sum of the surah numbers, along with the number of verses between the first and last occurrences, as well as the sum of these verse numbers, equals 316502, which can be expressed as 19 multiplied by 16658. 316502 = 19*16658.
- 2:163: Your god is one god; there is no god but He, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
- 73:9: Lord of the east and the west; there is no other god besides Him. You should choose Him as your advocate.
Additionally, by adding the numbers of the 19 surahs in which the expression LA ILAHA ILLA HU occurs, along with the verse numbers where this significant phrase is found, and including the total number of occurrences (29), the grand total amounts to 2128, which is equal to 19 multiplied by 112.
The TRUE believers KNOW that Muhammed was the messenger of God and bear witness that there is no god besides God.
The Shahada of the hypocrites is within 63:1. God knows Muhammad is His Messenger. If you believe in the Word of God (Quran), you automatically take Muhammad as a Messenger as he delivered the Message we use today. Why would we idolize him alongside God? Some will say "we aren't idolizing Muhammad alongside God", very well. If I say, "reader, I want to invite only you for dinner.", this is a clear invitation to you and for you only. Yet, if I say "reader, I want to invite only you for dinner, bring your servant with you." this is a clear invitation but not to only you, it includes your servant as well. Therefore, am I inviting only you? Sounds ignorant, doesn't it?
- 63:1: When the hypocrites come to you they say, "We bear witness that you are the messenger of God." God knows that you are His messenger, and God bears witness that the hypocrites are liars.
Are you worshipping only God? Do you partner God with others without doing so intentionally?