One needs to be careful before joining the chorus of “all religions are the same.” It's only partly correct, NOT entirely.
We agree that the ethical values of all faiths are similar. But that cannot be said concerning their spiritual values. For instance, all religions profess that it is wrong to steal, to kill, to be dishonest, to commit adultery/fornication, to be unkind to parents, relatives, neighbours and humanity in general, etc. All such issues constitute the ethical side of every faith and may have a high degree of uniformity. But every faith does not portray the same ideology about God, and this constitutes its spiritual/religious side. Concerning spiritual and religious notions, Islam is different and is the final word for all those who adhere to the Glorious Quran. The Quran clearly asserts that we ought to follow only the path shown by Allah. If we consider other guidelines, we run the risk of being parted from His way.
“And (He commandeth you, saying) : This is My straight path, so follow it Follow not other ways, lest ye be parted from His way: This hath He ordained for you, that ye may ward off (evil)” (6:153) Al-An’am
“ ….. And set your faces, upright (toward Him) at every place of worship and call upon Him, making religion pure for Him (only). As He brought you into being, so return ye (unto Him).” (7:29) Al-Araf
“He it is who hath sent His messenger with the guidance and the religion of truth, that He may make it conqueror of all religion however much idolaters may be averse.” (61:9)
“And cry not unto any other god along with Allah. ……..” (28:88)
And whoso seeketh as religion other than the Surrender (to Allah) it will not be accepted from him, and he will be a loser in the Hereafter. (3:85)
Say (O Muhammad): I am forbidden to worship those unto whom ye cry beside Allah since there have come unto me clear proofs from my Lord, and I am commanded to surrender to the Lord of the Worlds. (40:66)
The above verses (and many more) plainly imply that the path of spiritual conduct that Allah Almighty has commanded to be followed in the Quran is different from those of other faiths. As already mentioned, only certain rules of ethics are common between Islam and other religions. But the various spiritual factors are very different. Therefore, the ideology of life highlighted in the Quran in its entirety (ethical + spiritual) is DIFFERENT from those of other faiths. Accepting and implementing the rules of another faith in its entirety would definitely lead to a clash of values with the Quran at some point or the other.
Astonishing as it may sound, there are some so-called Muslims who have deviated from the Glorious Quran to such an extent that they do not doubt the theory of re-incarnation as accepted by various pagans. Allah Almighty says in the Quran, loud and clear, that every soul is responsible and answerable for its own deeds. This concept is one of the cornerstones of the Glorious Quran.
“And no burdened soul can bear another's burden, ……. He who groweth (in goodness), groweth only for himself, (he cannot by his merit redeem others). Unto Allah is the journeying.” (35:18)
“And guard yourselves against a day when no soul will in aught avail another, …” (2:48)
Also, Allah has inspired each human soul (separately) with a conscience and awareness of right & wrong. It’s the responsibility of every individual to select their path of conduct. Those who allow their conscience to grow are the successful ones in His sight, while those who keep it stunted are the losers.
“And a soul and Him who perfected it
And inspired it (with conscience of) what is wrong for it and (what is) right for it.
He is indeed successful who causeth it to grow,
And he is indeed a failure who stunteth it.” (91:7-10) Ash-Shams
Again, the above verses and many more clearly reflect that there is absolutely NO room in Islam for the acceptance of concepts such as the re-incarnation theory. Anyone who trusts the infallibility of Divine Justice would totally reject such a bizarre concept about a single soul being shared by several living beings as claimed by the theory of re-incarnation.
It makes me wonder that if such “Muslims” are acquainted with the spiritual dictates of the Glorious Quran, how do they reconcile their beliefs based on other sources with the established principles & norms of the Quran?
Allah has stated that the Quran is a continuation and reminder of the former Divine Scriptures which were corrupted and altered by its followers with the passage of time. Thus, Allah mentions in the Quran that all messengers and prophets came with the same basic spiritual message, that is, there is only ONE God, He has NO partners, and He is the sole Creator of the entire universe and the heavens, Who is All Powerful and All Knowing.
“And unto thee have We revealed the Scripture with the truth, confirming whatever Scripture was before it, and a watcher over it. So judge between them by that which Allah hath revealed, and follow not their desires away from the truth which hath come unto thee. ………. Unto Allah ye will all return, and He will then inform you of that wherein ye differ.” (5:48) Al-Maidah
Both Moses and Jesus, son of Mary, preached pure Islamic doctrine (i.e. surrender to One God). Later, the Jews and Christians deviated from strict monotheism because of their own interpolations and deviated beliefs. The Jews earned the wrath of Allah by worshipping the golden calf. Similarly, the Christians went astray by taking Jesus as God along with their belief of trinity.
“O People of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His word which He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers, and say not "Three". Cease! (it is) better for you! Allah is only One God. Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that He should have a son. His is all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. And Allah is sufficient as Defender.” (4:171) An-Nissa
“And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah, and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah. That is their saying with their mouths. They imitate the saying of those who disbelieved of old. Allah (himself) fighteth against them. How perverse are they!” (9:30) At-Taubah
Islam is the only Religion that strictly adheres to monotheism portraying the image of the Almighty, the One and Only, as the lone Supreme Creator Who has NO associates.
All other religions are named after a mere mortal or human being except Islam. For example, Christianity was named after Christ, Buddhism was named after Buddha, Confucianism came from Confucius and Zoroastrianism from Zoroaster. Islam (complete surrender to Allah Almighty alone) is the only true Religion from the Creator Himself, which has always existed since the beginning of time, and was never ascribed or named after any mortal.
As a Muslim I CANNOT and DO NOT say that I believe in all religions. That would be contradictory to my Islamic beliefs. I can say that I respect all religions, but I believe only in Islam otherwise I cannot call myself a Muslim. I repeat, here I am primarily referring to the spiritual & religious aspect of religion. Needless to mention, emphasis on the unity of Allah is the most important cornerstone of Faith, without which there can be no Faith. This is the first and foremost concept that must be taken into consideration .. and in this regard there's a marked difference between Islam and other religions.
Hence, much against the modern-day rhetorics, the underlying message of all religions is NOT the same. This is simply a shrewd protocol of secular diplomacy, or possibly a product of twisted human philosophies. Also, the glorious existence of the Almighty Allah is not a mere ‘philosophy,’ rather it is the most significant Truth.
We agree that the ethical values of all faiths are similar. But that cannot be said concerning their spiritual values. For instance, all religions profess that it is wrong to steal, to kill, to be dishonest, to commit adultery/fornication, to be unkind to parents, relatives, neighbours and humanity in general, etc. All such issues constitute the ethical side of every faith and may have a high degree of uniformity. But every faith does not portray the same ideology about God, and this constitutes its spiritual/religious side. Concerning spiritual and religious notions, Islam is different and is the final word for all those who adhere to the Glorious Quran. The Quran clearly asserts that we ought to follow only the path shown by Allah. If we consider other guidelines, we run the risk of being parted from His way.
“And (He commandeth you, saying) : This is My straight path, so follow it Follow not other ways, lest ye be parted from His way: This hath He ordained for you, that ye may ward off (evil)” (6:153) Al-An’am
“ ….. And set your faces, upright (toward Him) at every place of worship and call upon Him, making religion pure for Him (only). As He brought you into being, so return ye (unto Him).” (7:29) Al-Araf
“He it is who hath sent His messenger with the guidance and the religion of truth, that He may make it conqueror of all religion however much idolaters may be averse.” (61:9)
“And cry not unto any other god along with Allah. ……..” (28:88)
And whoso seeketh as religion other than the Surrender (to Allah) it will not be accepted from him, and he will be a loser in the Hereafter. (3:85)
Say (O Muhammad): I am forbidden to worship those unto whom ye cry beside Allah since there have come unto me clear proofs from my Lord, and I am commanded to surrender to the Lord of the Worlds. (40:66)
The above verses (and many more) plainly imply that the path of spiritual conduct that Allah Almighty has commanded to be followed in the Quran is different from those of other faiths. As already mentioned, only certain rules of ethics are common between Islam and other religions. But the various spiritual factors are very different. Therefore, the ideology of life highlighted in the Quran in its entirety (ethical + spiritual) is DIFFERENT from those of other faiths. Accepting and implementing the rules of another faith in its entirety would definitely lead to a clash of values with the Quran at some point or the other.
Astonishing as it may sound, there are some so-called Muslims who have deviated from the Glorious Quran to such an extent that they do not doubt the theory of re-incarnation as accepted by various pagans. Allah Almighty says in the Quran, loud and clear, that every soul is responsible and answerable for its own deeds. This concept is one of the cornerstones of the Glorious Quran.
“And no burdened soul can bear another's burden, ……. He who groweth (in goodness), groweth only for himself, (he cannot by his merit redeem others). Unto Allah is the journeying.” (35:18)
“And guard yourselves against a day when no soul will in aught avail another, …” (2:48)
Also, Allah has inspired each human soul (separately) with a conscience and awareness of right & wrong. It’s the responsibility of every individual to select their path of conduct. Those who allow their conscience to grow are the successful ones in His sight, while those who keep it stunted are the losers.
“And a soul and Him who perfected it
And inspired it (with conscience of) what is wrong for it and (what is) right for it.
He is indeed successful who causeth it to grow,
And he is indeed a failure who stunteth it.” (91:7-10) Ash-Shams
Again, the above verses and many more clearly reflect that there is absolutely NO room in Islam for the acceptance of concepts such as the re-incarnation theory. Anyone who trusts the infallibility of Divine Justice would totally reject such a bizarre concept about a single soul being shared by several living beings as claimed by the theory of re-incarnation.
It makes me wonder that if such “Muslims” are acquainted with the spiritual dictates of the Glorious Quran, how do they reconcile their beliefs based on other sources with the established principles & norms of the Quran?
Allah has stated that the Quran is a continuation and reminder of the former Divine Scriptures which were corrupted and altered by its followers with the passage of time. Thus, Allah mentions in the Quran that all messengers and prophets came with the same basic spiritual message, that is, there is only ONE God, He has NO partners, and He is the sole Creator of the entire universe and the heavens, Who is All Powerful and All Knowing.
“And unto thee have We revealed the Scripture with the truth, confirming whatever Scripture was before it, and a watcher over it. So judge between them by that which Allah hath revealed, and follow not their desires away from the truth which hath come unto thee. ………. Unto Allah ye will all return, and He will then inform you of that wherein ye differ.” (5:48) Al-Maidah
Both Moses and Jesus, son of Mary, preached pure Islamic doctrine (i.e. surrender to One God). Later, the Jews and Christians deviated from strict monotheism because of their own interpolations and deviated beliefs. The Jews earned the wrath of Allah by worshipping the golden calf. Similarly, the Christians went astray by taking Jesus as God along with their belief of trinity.
“O People of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His word which He conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers, and say not "Three". Cease! (it is) better for you! Allah is only One God. Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that He should have a son. His is all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth. And Allah is sufficient as Defender.” (4:171) An-Nissa
“And the Jews say: Ezra is the son of Allah, and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah. That is their saying with their mouths. They imitate the saying of those who disbelieved of old. Allah (himself) fighteth against them. How perverse are they!” (9:30) At-Taubah
Islam is the only Religion that strictly adheres to monotheism portraying the image of the Almighty, the One and Only, as the lone Supreme Creator Who has NO associates.
All other religions are named after a mere mortal or human being except Islam. For example, Christianity was named after Christ, Buddhism was named after Buddha, Confucianism came from Confucius and Zoroastrianism from Zoroaster. Islam (complete surrender to Allah Almighty alone) is the only true Religion from the Creator Himself, which has always existed since the beginning of time, and was never ascribed or named after any mortal.
As a Muslim I CANNOT and DO NOT say that I believe in all religions. That would be contradictory to my Islamic beliefs. I can say that I respect all religions, but I believe only in Islam otherwise I cannot call myself a Muslim. I repeat, here I am primarily referring to the spiritual & religious aspect of religion. Needless to mention, emphasis on the unity of Allah is the most important cornerstone of Faith, without which there can be no Faith. This is the first and foremost concept that must be taken into consideration .. and in this regard there's a marked difference between Islam and other religions.
Hence, much against the modern-day rhetorics, the underlying message of all religions is NOT the same. This is simply a shrewd protocol of secular diplomacy, or possibly a product of twisted human philosophies. Also, the glorious existence of the Almighty Allah is not a mere ‘philosophy,’ rather it is the most significant Truth.
Very very well and rightly said. I am delighted to see so many of the most commonly talked out debate points in one page. Thank You.
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