Page 28 - Quick Grasp of Faith 1

26 QUICK GRASP OF FAITH - 1

18. How is one saved from idolatry?
First of all, one has to confirm from his heart that Allah is
the only god, all power belongs to Him, and no being other
than Him can possess any power to provide help or cause
harm. A person who affirms these truths conclusively serves
Allah alone and never ascribes partners to Him. Allah advised
people that they must turn completely to Him to be saved
from idolatry.
It is Him alone you call on and, if He wills, He will relieve
your affliction; then you will forget what you associated
with Him (your idols). (Surat al-An’am: 41)
The radical change experienced by a person who is freed
from ascribing partners to Allah and turns to Allah, first occurs
in his heart. The person who is saved from ascribing a partner
to Allah gains a totally different point of view and mindset. He
now leads his life which, until then, he had pursued under the
sway of certain rules of ignorance, as well as his own wishes
and obsessions, for Allah’s approval and pleasure alone.

19. What does it mean to seek Allah’s approval
on the highest plane?
What would you do if the place you lived in suffered a
flood disaster? Would you climb to the top floor and wait to
be saved, or would you climb floor by floor as the waters
arose? While climbing to the roof, would you act slowly or try
with all your might to reach the roof as soon as possible?
Obviously, the wisest thing to do at such a moment would be
to choose out of all the alternatives that would save you, the
one which would yield the fastest result. Any other course