Monday, August 11, 2008

A DISCOURSE IN ISLAMIC STATE (Part 15)

Assalamualaikum,
..........................continued from part 15
Does the Syahadah Stay Intact Continuously?
A contract on a construction project may become null and void if parties involved in it breached rule(s). A Muslim covenant with Allah does not necessarily stay intact all the time.If the syahadah is nullified, then the covenant is automatically broken. During the lifetime, every Muslim must assume extra cautions on every single move that he/she perpetrates so as to maintain the purity of the syahadah and to prevent it from derailment which may lead to the nullification of the syahaddah. Since Allah does not break his promise, it is therefore the duty of every Muslim to uphold his/her syahadah.
Abdul Aziez bin Abdullah bin Baz (1984), the late mufti of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia cautioned would be performers of haj and umrah on 10 major situations the syahadah can get nullified. Said Hawa (1982) outlined 20 instances where a Muslim's syahadah can get nullified. Abdul Hadi Awang (1985) elaborated on no less than 24 causes for the nullification of the syahadah.
Any Muslim who utters and acts in such a way as to nullify the syahadah, is, in the sight of Allah, exited from Islam, known as murtad (Abd. Hadi Awang, op.cit., pg.72)
Concluding remark
It is the iman which keeps the syahadah valid and thus sets the Muslim dutibound. Being a Muslim is to hold on tight to the iman and to nourish it constantly and to uphold the syahadah and its obligations. Never would a true Muslim engage in anything which would nullify the iman and the syahadah.
..............to be continued