Principal Beliefs (HSC SSCE Studies of Religion): Revision Notes
Principal Beliefs
The principal beliefs of Islam are known as the Aqida (or Aqidah), which outlines the essential articles of faith that every Muslim must accept. These core beliefs form the foundation of Islamic theology and guide how Muslims understand Allah, the universe, and their place within it. Understanding these beliefs is crucial for comprehending Islamic practice and spirituality.
The six fundamental articles of faith are:
- The oneness of Allah (tawhid)
- Angels (mala'ika)
- Revealed books of Allah (Kutubullah)
- Prophets (rusul)
- Life after death (al-akhira)
- Divine knowledge and determination (al-qadar)
Tawhid: The oneness of Allah
The core doctrine of monotheism
Tawhid represents the most fundamental doctrine in Islam—the absolute belief in one God. This concept was revealed to Muhammad through the Archangel Gabriel during the revelation of the Qur'an. The Arabic term 'Allah' literally translates as 'the God', emphasising the singular nature of the divine.
Muslims understand Allah to possess three key characteristics:
- Eternal: Allah has no beginning and no end
- Almighty: Allah possesses unlimited power
- Omnipotent: Allah is all-powerful and all-knowing
Allah is completely unlike any creation—unique and incomparable. This means Muslims should direct their worship exclusively toward Allah, rejecting any form of idolatry or association of partners with God.
The shahada: Declaration of faith
The shahada serves as the gateway to Islam and the constant reminder of tawhid. This confession states:
"There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet"
This declaration functions in several important ways:
- It marks formal entry into the Muslim community when spoken by a new convert
- It appears as a daily recitation on the lips of practising Muslims
- Its first part directly expresses the unity (tawhid) of Allah
- It establishes Muhammad's role as Allah's messenger
The 99 names of Allah
Since Allah cannot be represented through visual images or symbolic forms, Muslims instead reflect on the 99 names of Allah found throughout the Qur'an. These names describe Allah's characteristics in ways that human beings can comprehend and appreciate.
Many of these names highlight Allah's superlative qualities:
- The Most Gracious
- The Most Merciful
- The Forgiving
- The Thankful
These divine names serve multiple purposes in Islamic life. They appear frequently in mosque decorations as part of the building's sacred art, and Muslims meditate on how these attributes manifest in the universe. Through contemplating these names, believers develop a deeper understanding of Allah's nature and how it shapes creation.
Angels (mala'ika) and jinn
The nature and role of angels
Islamic theology teaches that angels exist as beings created entirely from light. Unlike humans, angels possess no free will—they exist solely to worship Allah and carry out His divine commands. Their actions represent how Allah actively creates and manages events throughout the universe.
Angels demonstrate several distinctive characteristics:
- They are the purest of all Allah's creations
- They submit completely to Allah's will in everything
- They have no gender
- They do not eat or drink
- Humans cannot perceive them through normal senses
The Qur'an (35:1) explains that angels function as divine messengers, carrying Allah's commands throughout creation. The most significant example of angelic communication in Islam involves the Archangel Gabriel, who delivered the entire Qur'an from Allah to Muhammad.
Angels also play crucial roles in human life and death. According to the Qur'an (79:1–5), angels actively participate in the moment of death—violently removing the hearts of wicked individuals while gently drawing out the souls of righteous people.
Jinn: Spiritual beings
Jinn represent another category of created beings distinct from both angels and humans. The Qur'an mentions jinn in numerous suras (chapters), describing them as spirits created from smokeless fire before the creation of Adam.
Key features of jinn include:
- They possess bodies and physical form
- They can be good or malevolent in nature
- The Qur'an often addresses them collectively alongside humans
- They influence believers despite being imperceptible to human senses
The existence of jinn demonstrates the Islamic understanding that creation includes multiple realms beyond what humans can directly observe.
Books of Allah (Kutubullah)
Divine revelation throughout history
Muslims maintain that Allah has revealed His truth to humanity through multiple scriptures across different periods of history. This belief acknowledges that divine guidance did not begin with Muhammad but represents a continuous pattern of Allah's communication with humankind.
The revealed books include:
- The Scrolls of Abraham (now lost to history)
- The Torah of Moses (given to the Jewish people)
- The Psalms of David (sacred Jewish scripture)
- The Gospels of Jesus (Christian scripture)
- The Qur'an (revealed to Muhammad)
The primacy of the Qur'an
Many Muslims hold the view that scriptures revealed before Muhammad have either been lost over time or become distorted through human transmission. Consequently, they regard the Qur'an as the most reliable and complete book for understanding Allah's word.
The Qur'an stands as the primary and ultimate source of guidance for contemporary Muslims. While other levels of religious authority exist to amplify or clarify Qur'anic teachings, nothing supersedes the Qur'an's status in Islamic theology.
Rusul: The prophets
Prophets as divine messengers
The term rusul means 'messengers' or 'prophets', referring to individuals Allah has sent to different societies throughout history. This concept forms a central pillar of Muslim belief, establishing that Allah has consistently communicated with humanity through chosen individuals.
Islamic tradition teaches that thousands of prophets have been sent to deliver religious messages over the course of human history. The Qur'an specifically mentions 25 prophets by name, though many more are believed to have existed.
Muhammad's special status
While the shahada identifies Muhammad as a prophet of God, this recognition does not diminish the importance of other prophets. Figures such as Jesus and Moses remain highly relevant to Muslim life and spiritual understanding.
However, Muhammad holds a distinct and final position among all prophets:
- He is recognised as the last prophet
- His message completes all previous divine revelations
- No new prophet will come after him
Muslims believe that prophets live entirely sinless lives, making their example worthy of emulation. This belief explains why the Hadith—the record of Muhammad's life—serves as such a significant guide for Muslim behaviour and ethics.
As a mark of profound respect, Muslims use the phrase "peace be upon him" (or the abbreviation PBUH) when speaking or writing about the Prophet Muhammad.
Al-akhira: Life after death
The intermediate state
The Qur'an (23:99–100) teaches that after physical death, each soul enters an intermediate period. During this phase, souls remain suspended between death and resurrection, awaiting the final judgement.
Resurrection and judgement
At some future point determined by Allah alone, the resurrection (qiyamah) will occur. This momentous event will summon every human who has ever lived to stand before Allah in judgement.
The Islamic understanding of judgement emphasises several key points:
- Life functions as a test of faith and behaviour (Qur'an 67:2)
- Souls face either punishment for sins or rewards for goodness
- The judgement is absolutely just and fair
- Each person receives consequences appropriate to their actions
Jannah: Paradise
Jannah designates the Islamic concept of paradise—the ultimate destination for righteous believers. The Qur'an describes it as a realm of supreme joy (32:17), where the faithful experience eternal happiness and fulfilment.
Specific descriptions include:
- Believers will recline on thrones arranged in ranks (Qur'an 52:20)
- It represents the ultimate reward for righteous living
- Joy and contentment are perpetual
Jahannam: Hell
Jahannam refers to hell or hellfire, the destination for those who have committed evil or rejected Allah. Islamic scholars engage in ongoing debate about the precise nature and duration of hellish punishment.
Two main perspectives exist:
1. Temporary punishment view: Hell serves as a place where punishment matches the crime committed, after which the purified soul may eventually be released to paradise. This interpretation draws on Qur'an 6:160, which states that punishment relates only to the particular crime committed.
2. Eternal punishment view (more widely held): Disbelievers in Allah remain in hell forever without possibility of release.
This theological debate reflects the tension between Allah's justice (which might suggest proportional punishment) and the severity of rejecting the divine (which might warrant eternal consequences).
Divine knowledge and determination (al-qadar)
Understanding fate and free will
The concept traditionally called 'fate and predestination' is more accurately termed 'divine knowledge and determination' by the majority opinion in both Sunni and Shi'ite Islam. This distinction matters because it better captures the nuanced Islamic understanding of how Allah's knowledge relates to human choice.
The theological tension
Islamic theology identifies a fundamental difference between angels and humans regarding free will:
- Angels and other beings: Completely submitted to Allah's will with no free will
- Humans: Possess genuine free will and the ability to choose
This gift of free will explains why humans face judgement at the end of time—they bear responsibility for their choices. However, this creates a complex theological question: How does human free will coexist with Allah's complete omniscience?
Reconciling omniscience and free will
Islamic scholars have engaged in extensive debate about how human free will functions alongside Allah's all-knowing nature. The Qur'an appears to address this tension from multiple angles:
Verses emphasising Allah's total control:
- Qur'an 7:188 stresses the totality of Allah's will, stating that the Prophet has no power over good or harm except as Allah wills
- Qur'an 64:11 suggests no disaster can strike without Allah's permission
- These verses might seem to teach a fatalistic attitude toward life
Verses emphasising human responsibility:
- Other passages suggest humans genuinely choose their actions
- People face judgement precisely because they make real moral choices
- Qur'an 6:160 indicates proportional reward and punishment: "He that does good shall have ten times as much to his credit. He that does evil shall only be repaid according to his evil"
The majority position
Most Islamic scholars conclude that:
- Allah possesses complete knowledge of all human actions and choices
- This divine foreknowledge does not force humans to make those choices
- Humans retain genuine free will and moral responsibility
- Predestination differs fundamentally from fatalism
Insha Allah: If God wills
The common Arabic phrase "Insha Allah" (meaning "if it is God's will") demonstrates how Muslims practically apply this theological understanding. When Muslims say this phrase to each other, they:
- Invoke Allah's blessing on future plans
- Acknowledge Allah's foreknowledge and permissive will
- Express trust in divine wisdom
- Recognise that outcomes ultimately rest with Allah
This practice, supported by Qur'an 18:24, reflects a balanced approach—neither purely fatalistic nor presumptuous about controlling the future.
Key Points to Remember:
- The Aqida outlines six essential articles of faith that form the foundation of Islamic belief
- Tawhid (the oneness of Allah) is the fundamental doctrine of Islam, expressed through the shahada
- Angels are created from light, have no free will, and carry out Allah's commands; jinn are spirits that can be good or evil
- Five main books have been revealed by Allah throughout history, with the Qur'an being the final and most reliable
- Prophets (rusul) have been sent to humanity across time, with Muhammad being the final prophet whose life serves as a guide
- Al-akhira encompasses belief in an intermediate state after death, resurrection, judgement, paradise (Jannah), and hell (Jahannam)
- Divine knowledge and determination balances Allah's complete omniscience with genuine human free will and moral responsibility
- Understanding these beliefs is essential for grasping Islamic theology and how Muslims understand their relationship with Allah and their purpose in creation