God (Allah) Glorified be He, the most High and His Religion

By: Dr. Syed Hasan Akhtar
Austin, Texas
God, the Exalted, the most High is the only reality in the universe. He is the Creator and Every thing else is created by Him.
God is above religion. Religion is a means to an end, the end is God. Here is an analogy: God is the Destination, religion is a Highway leading to the destination, a prophet of God is a Guide, and scripture is a Guide Map. Before we start on the journey we must find a certified and sincere guide, obtain an authentic and correct guide map to take along, and with the help of the two find the highway that will lead to the destination. One must keep in mind the difficulties one may encounter during the journey. In the first place one has to have a fair concept of the Destination, without which one may be off the target. Secondly, if the guide is not qualified, knowledgeable, and reliable, then he may not set us on the right path. Thirdly, if the guide map is not authentic, certified, and without ambiguities, then one is likely to lose the way. Fourthly, if one does not travel with firmness of purpose, striving, and avoiding distractions, one may not reach the goal in a given time. It is also important to remember that the time (earthly existence) is limited, the journey is long, and there is no time to waste.
So, it is logical to ask: What do we know about the destination, which guide to choose? Which guide map to use? What highway to travel upon? Additionally we need to know what provisions to take along that will be needed? It will be quite obvious to the reader that depending on the answers to the above questions, individuals may act differently.
Let us look at some of the possible answers. My personal choices and the logic behind them are as follows:
The Guide: All prophets of God were authentic guides. They were given knowledge and were groomed by God himself to deliver His message, and lead the mankind. They were selfless, God-fearing, and dedicated to their mission. Adam, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, peace be upon them all, were some of the prophets and guides. However, today we do not have the true teachings, authentic and dependable information about them with the exception of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. His life and teachings have been meticulously preserved in the form of Hadith literature or traditions, which are his sayings and teachings. More is known about the life of prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, than all the previous prophets combined, by the Grace of God the Exalted, most high.
The Guide Map: All original scriptures, the Book of Abraham, the Psalms of David, the Torah (Book of Moses), Evangel (the Gospel of Jesus or the New Testament), and other books in use today were in their original forms the Word of God. However, the original versions are lost and the available versions contain word of man mixed with the word of God. Thus, the older Scriptures may not be relied upon as guide maps in their present form. The Qur'an is the only scripture that is pure word of God, preserved in its original form in Arabic, the language of its revelation. Not a word has been added or subtracted from the time it was revealed to Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, by angel Gabriel, and repeated by him to his disciples. The whole of it has been continuously preserved in the memory of the believers, generation after generation, word for word, by the grace of God Almighty. It is His promise in the Qur'an that He will preserve it. The Qur'an is the Guide Map that is original, authentic, and reliable.
The Highway: Judaism and Christianity in their original forms were true religions of God. However, over a period of time they evolved into something that was somewhat different from the original teachings of the prophets Moses and Jesus, peace be upon them. The character of Judaism was altered to the degree that God, the Exalted, the most High sent Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him, to bring the children of Israel back to the true teachings of prophet Moses and Prophet Abraham, peace be upon him. The original teachings of Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him, who was a Jew, were modified by Saint Paul, who introduced the concept of Trinity. Thus God sent His last prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon him. He was the promised one fulfilling the prophecy of the Bible as spoken by Jesus: "that prophet to come." The religion he taught, Islam (submission to the Will of God) is the religion of God, the only religion that God will accept according to the Qur'an. Islam was the religion of all the prophets including Adam, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Moses, Jesus, Muhammad, peace be upon them all. Islam is the only true highway, the Straight Path to the Destination (One and the only true God of the universe).
A word about the Destination (God or Allah): Only the Qur'an and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, give us the correct concept of God, the exalted, the most High. The pure and pristine concept of the monotheistic deity, the one and the only God, with no partners, no associates, the Omnipotent and the Omniscient, the Sublime with no consorts, no offspring, the Eternal without beginning and without end, is exclusive to the teachings of Islam.
In summary:
There is only one God, His proper name is Allah. All messengers sent by Him brought the same message, that is: worship only God, and do not join any partners or associates with Him, and practice righteousness.
The only religion that God sanctioned is Islam. All his prophets were Muslims. The people, after truth was revealed to them and after having accepted the truth, chose to differ for selfish reasons.
The Qur'an is the only scripture available to mankind that is the word of God in the original form.
The Destination: God (Allah is the proper name of God)
The Highway: Islam (The Religion of God)
The Guide Map: The Qur’an (The latest revelation of God)
The Guide: Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him, the last and the final prophet of God)