Question Summary:
Questions on Islam

Question Detail:

I have a few questions about the Islamic faith. There are a lot of questions, but I have not been able to find the answer to the questions that I have. 
 
1. What is the main purpose of the Islam religion?
2. What is the attitude of Islam towards science, research and development in society?
3. How is common sense handled? In a lot of questions, I lack people's perception of common sense, as it seems to be forgotten or offset.
4. I read an answer to one of the questions saying that as long as one person say the words "I am a muslim", that person is a muslim. Is this correct? What about the intentions of the heart? What is the importance of the conviction of the heart?
5. Is it considered a sin to dance balet? If so, why?
6. Why are there so many rules? No person is able to follow all these rules, if not only sitting inside doing nothing.

Answer :

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.
1). As Muslims we believe that Allah Ta'ala is the sole creator of the entire universe. He is Al Wahid (The One) and there is none like Him. By way of example Allah Ta'ala draws our attention in the Quran towards the various signs and phenomena of this universe all pointing towards his existence and omnipotence; the heavens, the earth, mountains, stars, plants, seeds, animals, the alternation of the night and the day, the creation of man, etc. Pondering over these, man comes to recognize the brilliance of Allah's creation, and ultimately, comes to know his Creator.
أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ الْأَرْضَ مِهَادًا (6) وَالْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا (7) وَخَلَقْنَاكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا (8) وَجَعَلْنَا نَوْمَكُمْ سُبَاتًا (9) وَجَعَلْنَا اللَّيْلَ لِبَاسًا (10) وَجَعَلْنَا النَّهَارَ مَعَاشًا (11) وَبَنَيْنَا فَوْقَكُمْ سَبْعًا شِدَادًا (12) وَجَعَلْنَا سِرَاجًا وَهَّاجًا (13) وَأَنْزَلْنَا مِنَ الْمُعْصِرَاتِ مَاءً ثَجَّاجًا (14) لِنُخْرِجَ بِهِ حَبًّا وَنَبَاتًا (15) وَجَنَّاتٍ أَلْفَافًا (النبأ)
"Have we not made the earth a bedding. The mountains as pegs. And Created you in pairs. And We made your sleep a means of rest. And We made the night a drape (to cover the earth in tranquil darkness). And We made the day a means of earning livelihood. And (even made) seven powerful skies above you. And We placed a bright lamp (the sun). And we send heavy rains from laden clouds. To extract with it seeds and plants. And dense gardens." (Al Naba) 
 
It is clear to anyone with a basic level of intellect that such a precise system of growth, production, celestial movements, etc. cannot function on its own. Imagine if a school teacher were to tell his/her students in art class to haphazardly dump all the paint on a poster board and expect a picture of something as simple as a bird. Will anyone believe the teacher? In the same light, how are we expected to believe that the sound functioning of the intricate phenomena of this universe is a coincidence! Allah Ta'ala is Al Wahid, The One, and he is Al Khaliq, The Creator. Hence, he is most knowing of the nature of this universe. He knows what is beneficial, harmful, easy, difficult, etc. In order to maintain order, Allah Ta'ala has set out a code of law to abide by. These laws cover every facet of life; spiritual, social, political, financial, communal, etc. Abiding by these laws will draw the mercy and pleasure of Allah Ta'ala. Hence, the purpose of Islam is to "introduce" humanity to the oneness of Allah, The Creator, and the manner of obeying Him in every facet of life.[1]
إِنَّ الدِّينَ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ الْإِسْلامُ (آل عمران: ١٩)
"Verily (the only accepted[2]) obedience[3] according to Allah is Islam"(Aal 'Imran:19)
 
وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ الْإِسْلَامَ دِينًا (المائدة: ٣)
"And I have chosen Islam as your religion (way of life)" (Al Maidah:3)
 
وَمَنْ يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ الْإِسْلَامِ دِينًا فَلَنْ يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ (آل عمران: ٨٥)
"Whoever chooses a religion (way of life) besides Islam, it (that way of life) shall never be accepted from him." (Aal 'Imran: 85)
 
2). Science, research, and development are not foreign to Islam. Rather, the Quran encourages reflection and observation, the very essence of science.
إِنَّ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَاخْتِلَافِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ لَآيَاتٍ لِأُولِي الْأَلْبَابِ (آل عمران: ١٩٠)
"Verily in the creation of the skies and the earth and the alternation of the day and night are manifest signs for those of intellect." (Aal 'Imran: 190)
 
Muslims have contributed extensively to each of these fields.[4] For example, Ibn Khaldun, Ibn Sirin, Jabir bin Hayyan, and Ibn Sina were pioneers in history, neuroscience, chemistry, and medicine, respectively. Many modern-day scientific developments have been alluded to in the Quran 1400 years ago. For example, recent scientific research shows that the sun travels at high speeds. This is alluded to in the following verse,
وَالشَّمْسُ تَجْرِي لِمُسْتَقَرٍّ لَهَا ذَلِكَ تَقْدِيرُ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ (يس: ٣٨)
"And the sun runs to its resting place, that is the decree of The Most Powerful The Most Knowledgable." (Yaa Seen: 38)
 
For centuries humanity throughout the globe thought the earth to be flat. However, the Quran  presents the earth to be in a circular shape.
يُكَوِّرُ اللَّيْلَ عَلَى النَّهَارِ وَيُكَوِّرُ النَّهَارَ عَلَى اللَّيْلِ (الزمر: ٥)
"He wraps the night around the day and the day around the night." (Al Zumar: 5)
 
The word Takweer in the Arabic language refers to wrapping something around in a circular motion ex. a turban. Hence, wrapping the night around the day will mean that the earth is circular.
Modern geologists suggest that the earth's stability is due to the strategical placement of mountains. The Quran points out,
وَأَلْقَى فِي الْأَرْضِ رَوَاسِيَ أَنْ تَمِيدَ بِكُمْ (اللقمان: ١٠)
"And he placed mountains upon the earth, lest that it (the earth) trembles with you"
 
The Quran discuses the formation of the embryo in the uterus:
فَخَلَقْنَا الْعَلَقَةَ مُضْغَةً فَخَلَقْنَا الْمُضْغَةَ عِظَامًا فَكَسَوْنَا الْعِظَامَ لَحْمًا (المؤمنون: ١٤)
"Then we made the leech-like substance a chewed piece of flesh, then we made the chewed piece of flesh into bones, then we covered the bones with flesh." (Al Muminoon: 14)
 
1400 years ago, the Quran declared that the skies were gases, a fairly recent discovery:
ثُمَّ اسْتَوَى إِلَى السَّمَاءِ وَهِيَ دُخَانٌ (فصلت: ١١)
"Then he turned towards the skies whilst they were a smoke (gases)"
 
Today, scientists state that the ocean is divided into three zones based on depth and light level. Once again, the Quran had long preceded them.
أَوْ كَظُلُمَاتٍ فِي بَحْرٍ لُجِّيٍّ يَغْشَاهُ مَوْجٌ مِنْ فَوْقِهِ مَوْجٌ مِنْ فَوْقِهِ سَحَابٌ ظُلُمَاتٌ بَعْضُهَا فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ (النور:٤٠)
"Or like layers of darkness in the deep ocean, a wave covers him upon which there is a wave, above which there are clouds. Layers of darkness upon layers" (Al Noor: 40)
 
For more examples you may consult Dr. Maurice Bucailles's book, The Bible, The Quran and Science.
However, rejecting established doctrines of Islam based on the Quran and Sunnah because of scientific theories and research is unacceptable in Islam.
3). We understand your question to mean, "Why don't people rely on their common sense when asking questions on the Ask Imam website?"
The reason is very simple; people do not want to take a risk in matters of their Deen. It is very possible that a person's "common sense" tells him that a certain action is permissible/impermissible, but in reality the ruling of the Shari'ah is completely contrary. To suppress one's common sense in issues of Deen and inquiring from the 'Ulama is a clear sign of one's Iman (firm belief).
4). Please specify which question you are referring to; this will help us understand in which context the answer was given.
5). Al Imam Al Qurtubi, the famous Mufassir, says regarding verse 37 of Surah Al Isra (وَلَا تَمْشِ فِي الْأَرْضِ مَرَحًا)
"اسْتَدَلَّ الْعُلَمَاءُ بِهَذِهِ الْآيَةِ عَلَى ذَمِّ الرَّقْصِ وَتَعَاطِيهِ..."
"The 'Ulama have deduced from this verse the disapproval of dancing and occupying one's self in it..."
Also, consider the following Hadith:
روى أبو هريرة و...أنس بن مالك عن النبي صلى الله عليه و سلم أنه نهى عن الرقص...[5]
"Abu Hurairah and...Anas bin Malik narrate from The Prophet Sallallahu 'Alaihi Wa Sallam that he prohibited dancing..."
Dancing is also from the ways of the non-believers.[6] As Muslims we try to steer far from adopting the practices of others.
6). We have understood your question to mean, "Why are there so many laws to adhere to in Islam? It is impossible to do so, unless sitting at home doing nothing."
Actually, Islam is a very simple religion. Consider the following Hadith:
الإِسْلَامُ أَنْ تَشْهَدَ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ، وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَتُقِيمَ الصَّلَاةَ، وَتُؤْتِيَ الزَّكَاةَ، وَتَصُومَ رَمَضَانَ، وَتَحُجَّ الْبَيْتَ إِنِ اسْتَطَعْتَ إِلَيْهِ سَبِيلًا (الصحيح لمسلم)
"Islam is that you witness that there is no deity except Allah and that Muhammed is the messenger of Allah and that you establish Salah and discharge Zakah and that you fast in Ramadan and perform the Hajj if you have the ability to" (Al Sahih li Muslim)
The basic pillars of Islam have been highlighted in this Hadith. Added to that, one needs to stay away from the major sins, most of which are abhorred by a sane mind anyway. Gradually, a person becomes accustomed to the practices ordained by Allah Ta'ala and grows a natural dislike towards the prohibited actions. As explained under answer #1, Islam is a "law book" in order to ease and facilitate our stay in this world. Just as it would be unwise to discard the instruction manual a manufacturer gives with his product, or to consider the manufacturer oppressive for providing a manual, it is unwise to discard the "manual of life" (Islam) Allah Ta'ala has given us, or to consider Allah Ta'ala oppressive for outlining laws. The very fact that Allah Ta'ala has outlined a prohibition or injunction is proof of capability to abide by it. Consider the following Aayah:   
لَا يُكَلِّفُ اللَّهُ نَفْسًا إِلَّا وُسْعَهَا (البقرة: ٢٨٦)
"Allah does not task a soul beyond its capability" (Al Baqarah: 286)
 
Perchance, if a person is to falter in obeying the command of Allah Ta'ala, the gates of His mercy are always open.
قُلْ يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِنْ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ (الزمر: ٥٣)
"Say, O my bondsmen who have oppressed themselves (by sinning), do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed Allah forgives all sins. Verily He is The Most Forgiving The Most Merciful." (Al Zumar: 53)
 
May Allah Ta'ala keep you steadfast on His Deen.
And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Hisham Dawood
Student, Darul Iftaa
Chicago, U.S.A.
Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.
www.daruliftaa.net