Why Islam?

A Q&A to the light

In the name of Allah who is the Most Merciful, while asking Allah to send blessings and peace to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW).

The central questions are:
1. For Muslims: Why do I believe in Islam?
2. For Non-Muslims: Why should I believe in Islam?

The question will be answered in two major steps. First, it will be shown that there is one God. Then, it will be shown that Islam is the true religion from that God.

Then, to complete the matter, there will be two more parts. One will respond to some deviated beliefs and some common questions trying to disprove Islam. The next will explain why it is important for one to care about this question of religions in the first place.

Purpose

For Muslims: A person may know the truth but may not know how to articulate it. A person may know the truth and there may still be room for strengthening. I hope that this article will help a person articulate and strengthen their preexisting faith. May Allah keep your hearts firm.

For Non-Muslims: You may ask why Muslims believe what they believe. What is their evidence and why don’t they believe something else? Or is it just blind faith? I hope this article will explain why we believe it, and it is my poor attempt. May Allah guide you.

PART 1: GOD

Why Is There One Uncreated Cause For Everything?

“Or were they created by nothing, or were they the creators [of themselves]?” [52:35]

1. If you start by looking at yourself, you were born. That means, you had a cause before you; your parents. Then, your parents had a cause each. Then, again there was a cause.
2. Everything that began to exist has a cause. And that cause (if it began to exist) has a cause. This chain of causes goes on. There are two possibilities: the chain ends, or the chain goes on forever with no end.
3. The second (which is known as the infinite regress) is absurd, because for anything to exist, the cause before it needs to exist. But, if the chain is infinite, every time you try to check if something exists, you need to look at the cause before it. And there is no end to the causes, so then you never stop checking, and thus nothing comes to exist.
4. As for the other possibility, it is that the chain of causes ends at one point: the ultimate cause that always existed and never had a beginning; so it doesn’t need a cause before it. This ultimate cause is called God. He is Allah.

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Why Is That Uncreated Cause God?

“Does He who created not know, while He is the Subtle, the Acquainted?” [67:14]

Someone might say: why do you believe the first cause is God? Why can’t it just be inanimate?

1. An inanimate object, by definition, cannot do anything by itself. An inanimate object needs an outsider to push it to do something. As the first cause, there is no outsider to push anything. So, the first cause cannot be inanimate, because the cause did something with no outside influence. Hence, He is a being with a will and knowledge.
2. We know the First Cause is powerful because He had the power to create the universe and design it.

Simplified: The above may seem like a difficult read. This is a simplified version. Something cannot come from nothing, and something cannot create itself. So, obviously, the universe and we must have had a creator. Everything you see around you is a sign for that creator. That creator is God, and we wish to find His religion.

Beyond the logical proofs for God’s existence, the belief in the existence of God is something innate in our very beings. Allah created us and put inside us the desire to worship Him. Everyone innately knows God exists, and those who disbelieve only do so because they have corrupted their innate senses. So, in actuality, a person might not even need the verbal justifications because he can simply know it intuitively.

Result: After knowing that God exists, we need to search for what religion, if any, was revealed by Him.

PART 2: ISLAM

What is Islam?

“Indeed, the religion in the sight of Allah is Islam.” [3:19]

Islam is the religion revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and given in the holy book, the Quran. Islam, however, did not start there. Allah sent prophets and messengers throughout time, and whoever followed their latest messenger, was considered a Muslim of that time.

Muhammad (SAW) is simply the last of those messengers and he corrected the previous religions that had become corrupt due to human influences.

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Why Is Islam True?

“And We have certainly revealed to you verses [which are] clear proofs, and no one would deny them except the defiantly disobedient.” [2:99]

The proofs of Islam being true and the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) being a true prophet are too many to count. Here, some of the major ones will be presented and some resources to look further.

Evidence 0: Theology

We know there is one God. Islam is one of the only religions to affirm one God alone without the contradictory notion of multiple gods.

Evidence 1: Guidance of the Quran

The Quran was revealed miraculous in its eloquence and its message. The readers in Arabic can see its eloquence, and the readers in other languages can still see its message. Anyone who reads the Quran with an open heart can only conclude it is from God.

This is an evidence you see with personal experience. By simply reading the Quran, a sincere person’s heart is filled with realization and recognition of the words of His creator.

Evidence 2: Challenge of the Quran

The Quran challenged the Arabs to produce something similar to its power and eloquence if they believed it could be man-made. The Arabs specialized in poetry and speech and it was their pride, yet they failed in this. How, then, can a man (Muhammad SAW) who never wrote poems before bring such a text that would leave all the expert poets in the dust? It is only possible due to its divine origins. For further learning — Miraculous language of the Quran ( Book ), The Eternal Challenge ( Book ), The Challenge of the Quran by Mansur Ahmed ( Video), The Inimitable Qur’an: The Revelation to Prophet Muhammadﷺ ( Article), The Challenge of the Quran ( 2 video), Nobody met Quran’s Challenge ( 5m video).

Evidence 3: Prophecies

Allah in the Quran and the prophet Muhammad (SAW) in the hadith made many prophecies. All of them came true, and none of them were ever wrong.

For an example, the Quran predicted the victory of the Romans over the Persians at a time when the Roman Empire was close to breaking down, and it came true.

For another example, the Prophet (SAW) predicted that the Bedouins would start competing in tall buildings, and that is what we see today in the Middle East. Countless more prophecies were made.

Some more prophecies listed in brief all of which came to pass after the Prophet (SAW)’s death:

• That the Muslims would conquer Syria and Persia.
• That there would no longer be a Sassanian king after that time.
• That both Umar (RA) and Uthman (RA) would die as martyrs.
• That the Muslims would conquer Jerusalem after his death. (predicted when the Prophet was living in a leather tent! Imagine the audacity of these statements.), then a large plague would occur (Plague of Amwas), then the Muslims would be blessed with a lot of prosperity and wealth (happened in the reign of the caliph Uthman), then there would be a large fitnah and bloodshed affecting all the Arabs (wars and rebellions after the assassination of Uthman).
• That Ammar ibn Yasir (RA) would be killed by a rebelling group.
• That a time will come when the Ummah will make naval expeditions and hold power in the sea.
• That a great fire would come from Hijaz which would be seen as far away as Basra. (1256 eruption near Madinah)
• That the Muslims would conquer Constantinople.
• That people will come that will try to only follow the Quran and leave the Sunnah.

predicting the future without any mistakes would only be possible due to God’s knowledge.

Other Sources: Source 1, Source 2 ( lecture), Source 3 ( 101 Prophecies )

Evidence 4: Miraculous Knowledge

Allah in the Quran and the Prophet (SAW) demonstrated knowledge not possible to an Arab at that place and time without divine knowledge.

For example, Allah in the Quran refers to the king at the time of Yusuf (AS) as “king” rather than Pharaoh; while the Bible refers to him as a Pharaoh. If the Prophet had been copying from the Bible, he would have done the same. But, now we know according to historical record that the ruler of Egypt at the time of Yusuf (AS) was not a Pharaoh.

The Prophet (SAW) talked about how Arabia used to be rivers and gardens in the past. We only know that Arabia actually did use to be full of rivers due to modern geology and science.

Such knowledge was only possible to know due to God.

Evidence 5: Physical Miracles

The Prophet (SAW) performed many miracles. So many different people saw so many different miracles from him that it cannot all be fabricated.

For an example, the Prophet (SAW) showed the Arabs the moon being split. The Quran even clearly claims the moon split. Imagine if they hadn’t actually seen the moon split… The Prophet (SAW) would be a laughing stock for claiming nonsense with absolutely no evidence. And such a nonsensical claim would have ended Islam then and there.

In reality however, Islam didn’t immediately fail. Rather, even more people accepted Islam after the incident of the moon. The disbelievers didn’t deny that he showed them something; rather, they claimed it was magic. They denied not the existence of the miracle, but only the cause of it.

In addition to that, the Prophet (SAW) was seen performing many other miracles reported by many different people.

Further Learning: Article

Evidence 6: Quran’s Freedom From Mistakes and Contradictions

The Quran was revealed orally and taught by the Prophet (SAW) orally. He did not write it down. Yet, the Quran contains no contradictions as large of a text as it is. In sincere analysis, all parts of it confirm other parts. What people frivolously claim of contradictions are easily debunkable.

This is simply not possible for an Arab orally composing the Quran over a period of two decades.

In addition, the Quran is, compared to the other religious books, the only one that can stand in the face of confirmed facts while staying true to its text. Most other ancient books include clear misconceptions and clear falsehoods stemming from the time of the writer that would be debunked later.

Evidence 7: Preservation

The Quran was preserved word for word. No other book that is claimed to be of divine origin is preserved as meticulously as the Quran. This assures a person of the authenticity of the religion that reached the modern day as being the same one that the Prophet (SAW) came with. There is no room for doubt in the words of God as there would be in many other religions.

More Evidences

There are, without exaggerating, too many evidences to list for Islam being true and the Prophet (SAW) being true. This is a playlist listing many more of them. It also explains further some of the evidences I already listed in brief above: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsdT_5k9wPhH-Ezh07KWEDfp8dKy4dcKf

This is a series of detailed articles and videos which explains many of the proofs of prophethood: https://yaqeeninstitute.ca/series/proofs-of-prophethood

PART 3: OTHER RELIGIONS AND QUESTIONS

Why Are There Other Religions If Islam Is True?

And mankind was not but one community [united in religion], but [then] they differed. And if not for a word that preceded from your Lord, it would have been judged between them [immediately] concerning that over which they differ.. [10:19]

Allah periodically sent messengers throughout history, but He never forced people to stay upon truth. He gave them free will. That is why people corrupted and made mistakes forming many different religions.

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Does The Existence Of Many Religions Mean One Of Them Cannot Be True?

The logic in this is questionable, as anyone can see. The existence of many false claimants to something does not mean a true one does not exist. You simply need to follow the evidence and determine what is true.

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Why Doesn’t Everyone Believe In Islam If It Is True?

And We have certainly diversified for the people in this Qur’an from every [kind] of example, but most of the people refused [anything] except disbelief. [17:89]

Although the proofs and evidences of God and Islam are evident and clear, there is a human element to accepting them.

The existence of God and the truth of Islam aren’t neutral scientific matters such that people would accept them without any bias. (Even in science, you will find there to be a lot of bias in what is accepted. As it is said, science changes often not by older scientists changing their minds but by the old scientists dying out).

The human element is sincerity and an honest desire to know the truth and to submit to the truth once it is found.

Someone who looks with sincerity, will eventually accept Islam. But, many people are concerned with themselves and they are concerned with following their parents or with rebelling against their parents. All this prevents them from seeing the truth, and it is not because the truth is unclear.

In addition to that, those who are insincere and stubborn, Allah blinds them to seeing the truth properly until they become sincere and let go of their arrogance.

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Why Are Other Religions False? (General)

Islam is true and other religions are false basically because the evidence proves Islam and there is little to no evidence for those other religions.

And if there ever is some little evidence, Islam can explain them while those religions cannot explain the overwhelming evidences for Islam.

In addition to that, there are often logical problems, contradictions, and inconsistencies in their theologies and religious books. Some of them state there are more than one gods and other illogical statements.

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Why Is Polytheism False?

Had there been within the heavens and earth gods besides Allah, they both would have been ruined. [21:22]

Polytheism is defined as the belief in more than one God.

1. There can never be truly more than one God, because there is only one uncreated cause. The uncreated cause is, by definition, perfect and complete and pure. Say, there were two of them. What differentiates between the two? If anything differentiates between them, that means one of them is less perfect or not perfect. Hence, that one cannot be an uncreated cause. Thus, there cannot be two. In simpler terms, for there to be multiple of something, there needs to be a differentiating feature. But, that is not possible as that would require one to be less perfect than the other.
2. Any other “gods” after are just superpowered beings at most. They are not truly God. There is no need for one to care about worshiping beings that are also created.
3. The fact that the universe works in a stable manner with consistent rules removes the possibility of two separate powers controlling it.
4. The proof of one God and Islam is provided above. The idolatrous religions never provide useful proof of the existence of their gods except legends and traditions.

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Why Is Incarnation Impossible?

The Messiah, son of Mary, was not but a messenger; [other] messengers have passed on before him. And his mother was a supporter of truth. They both used to eat food. [5:75]

Incarnation is defined as God coming to Earth in some physical form.

1. God must be uncreated. A human form is created. Thus, if there is a human form, it cannot be God logically speaking. At most, there can be a vessel that God controls. But, that’s just a prophet with less free will. He would not be God Himself. Rather, a creation of God.
2. God is all powerful. A human form is limited. It is not possible for God to be limited.
3. The universe is created. An uncreated cause cannot go inside His creation. It is not logically possible.

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Can God Create A Rock Too Heavy For Him To Lift? And Other Such Questions.

The basic form of this questions is to ask whether Allah can do something that would undermine one of His qualities. In the case of the stone, His power.

The response is that the action in question is illogical, so it is not possible. The impossibility of it occurring is not a lack of power on God’s part, but it simply comes from the fact that the request itself is illogical.

It is like asking “can Allah make a square circle?” or “can Allah make this true and false at the same time?”

All of these are impossible not due to a lack in Allah’s power, but because the thing in question is itself not a logical request. It is absurd. It is a string of words that is meaningless.

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Does the existence of evil contradict the existence of God?

God decided to create this world as a test and not as a paradise. He created evil because He decided to test people and see whether they would choose to do good or evil and whether they would be patient in the face of difficulty.

However, God is Just and Fair without a doubt. That is why, in the hereafter, God will reward and punish people to give them justice for whatever evil they committed or whatever difficulty they endured. In the end, everything will be equalized and no one will have any complaint about being treated unjustly.

Why did He decide to test people? There is no questioning God’s actions. He does not do things due to any needs. He does what He does, and He is Just.

PART 4: RELEVANCE

What is the importance of analyzing this question of God and which religion is true? Why shouldn’t I just live my life in whatever way I wish? This section will present some of the reasons this search is important.

Reasons of Personal Benefit:

1. Afterlife Punishment - Many religions including Islam promise a Day of Judgement where everyone will be judged for their actions. Disbelief, disobedience, and ingratitude are all considered large sins which will be punished in that afterlife. Thus, it is important to analyze the religions to make sure one does not fall into punishment.

2. Afterlife Reward - Many religions including Islam promise reward for belief and doing good. Thus, it is important to make sure one is not missing out on great reward.

3. Material Benefit - Human judgement is shortsighted and often mistaken. Following the laws of the Most Knowledgeable holds more material benefit for humans than their own laws.

4. Inner Peace - Humans have an inner desire to worship God. Thus, only worshiping God properly will bring inner peace.

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Reasons of Spiritual Nature:

5. Gratitude to the Creator - God is the one who created us and gave us countless blessings. It is our duty to thank and serve the one who created us.

6. Meeting and Gaining the Love of the Creator - Believing and following the correct religion gives the opportunity for one to meet His creator. What person would not want that?

CONCLUSION

I end with gratitude to the one who created me, sent a message to guide humanity, and made the truth clear from falsehood. Then, I send peace and blessings upon my prophet and the last one sent to mankind.

If there was any good in this, it was from Allah. If there was any bad or any mistakes, it was from me. I pray that Allah accepts the good in it, blesses it, and guides people through it. I pray that Allah forgives the bad and saves people from its consequence.

I testify there is no god except Allah and Muhammad (SAW) is his prophet.

Thanks to my brother (Admiral Katheer#1340) I found on Discord. Almost all the credit goes to him. I did nothing but making making few changes and copying to here. I would recommend you to check his awesome blogs http://blog.fussilat.com/. And also thanks to my friend and brother (toksik#4666) for helping me and making this as much flawless as possible. Alhamdulillah. May Allah bless them and reward him with great rewards here and also in the life after. Jazāk Allāhu Khayran.