WALT: understand the concept of Tawhid and the role of Allah as creator, judge and guide

 Tawhid – unity or oneness  Polytheism – belief in different gods  Monotheism – belief in one God  Shirk – associating other beings with God  Jahannam – hell  Yawmuddin – judgement day Get these written in your glossary

‘There is no God but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God”. The Shahadah What are Muslims saying about Allah when they recite this? You have 2 minutes to write down your answers.

Allah The Shahadah

Say, He is God, One God eternal He does not give birth, nor was He born, And there is none like unto Him Surah 112 God has always been in existence and always will be

This can be broken down into 5 points 1. The denial of polytheism 2. The denial of absolute loyalty to anything other than Allah 3. The internal unity of Allah 4. The denial of the permanent reality of the self 5. The declaration of the uniqueness of Allah

How is Tawhid directed against the people of Mecca?

 The importance of the belief in Tawhid for Muslims can be seen in the fact that the worst sin a Muslim can commit is Shirk  Anyone who commits shirk is no longer considered a Muslim and because it is an unforgivable sin that person will automatically go to Jahannam on Yawmuddin

“God does not forgive associating anything with Him; anything else He forgives according as He wills”.

There are no pictures in a mosque and in Sunni homes there are no pictures of the prophet (pbuh) because of the risk of shirk.  How is there a risk of shirk?  How is this linked in to the Ka’ba in Muhammad’s (pbuh) early life?

 For some Muslims the concept of shirk is so strong that they oppose western capitalism as it leads to Muslims worshipping their material possessions rather than putting God first which is against the concept of tawhid. ‘When a believer surrenders himself to Allah alone, he can go forward without fear. But if he does not obey Allah he has to obey false gods like the fear of losing his job, fear of danger, fear of hunger and the like”. Ghulam Sarwar

What ‘false gods’ do you think people in modern Britain obey because of their lack of faith in Allah?

 If Allah is one and with no helpers, then Muslims must believe that the world we live in his creation.  This means – if you believe in the oneness of Allah then you believe that he is creator of all things You will see some verses from the Quran. We will work out what each verse tells us about Allah. Write these points down on your sheet

“It is He who created for you all things that are on earth”. Surah 2:29 “To Him is due the primal origin of the heavens and the earth: when He decreeth a matter, He saith to it, ‘be’, and it is”. Surah 2:117 “Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alteration of the night and day, these are indeed signs for men of understanding”. Surah 3:190

“Recite in the name of thy Lord who created...’

When does a Muslim first hear about Tawhid ? When is the last time a Muslim will speak of their belief in Tawhid ? Give two ways that Tawhid affects the life of a Muslim How do we know of Allah’s role creator? Give two examples