Simplified Doctrine

From the Holy Book and the Sunnah

Author's Name: Prof. Dr. Ahmed bin Abdulrahman Al-Qadi

introduction

All praise is due to Allah. We praise Him, seek His aid, and ask for His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our own souls. He whom Allah guides, none can misguide, and he whom He misguides, none can guide. I bear witness that Allah is All-Wise.

There is no god but Allah alone, without partner. He, the Most High, says: “It is He who has sent among the trustworthy a Messenger from themselves, reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom - although they were before in manifest error.” (Al-Jumu’ah: 2) And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger, whom God bestowed upon His servants by sending him, saying: “Allah has certainly conferred a great favor upon the believers when He sent among them a Messenger from among themselves, reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom - although they were before in manifest error.” [Al Imran: 164] Now then:

God Almighty sent His Messenger Muhammad with guidance and the religion of truth, to bring people out of darkness into the light and from clear misguidance to complete guidance, which brings peace to the chests and tranquility to the hearts. Guidance [Al-Baqarah: 120] is beneficial knowledge, and the religion of truth [At-Tawbah: 29] is righteous deeds. And upon these two great pillars is built the good life.

God Almighty has included in His Noble Book everything that the servants need in their beliefs, worship, dealings, and morals. The pure Sunnah came to clarify what was general, explain what was ambiguous, and detail what was generalized. As the Prophet, may God bless him and grant him peace, said: “Behold, I have been given the Book and something similar with it.” (1) Narrated by Abu Dawud.

The Islamic faith is the pillar of this religion, its foundation, and the secret of its strength and supremacy over all religions, because it contains unique characteristics, including:

First: To worship God alone, and to follow the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Second: To be divinely inspired; it does not go beyond the Quran and Hadith, nor is it derived from opinion or analogy.

Third: It is in accordance with the sound nature that God created people with before the devils attacked them.

Fourth: The approval of the clear mind, free from doubts and desires. Fifth: Comprehensiveness: It does not leave any aspect of the universe, life, or humanity without

Sixth: Similarity, as some of them confirm others, so there is no contradiction or difference in their individual words.

Seventh: Moderation: It is the balance of moderation between excess and deficiency among the various articles.

These characteristics have yielded the following results:

First: Achieving servitude to the Lord of the Worlds and liberation from slavery to created beings. Second: Achieving adherence to the Messenger of the Lord of the Worlds and freedom from innovation and innovators.

Third: Psychological comfort and peace of mind, through connection with the Creator, the Wise Manager.

Fourth: Intellectual conviction, rational consistency, and freedom from contradiction and superstition.

Fifth: Meeting the needs of the soul and the needs of the body and integrating belief and behavior.

The scholars of this religion have continued to give great importance to the creed and to exert their utmost effort in teaching and establishing it. They have compiled concise texts and lengthy commentaries on this subject, sometimes explaining the general beliefs of the Salaf (the early Muslims), sometimes clarifying a specific issue, and other times refuting the followers of misguided whims and innovations. I have decided to simplify the issues of belief and arrange them in the same manner as the Prophetic arrangement of the six fundamental principles of faith mentioned in the famous Hadith of Gabriel, relying solely on the texts of the two revelations: the Noble Qur’an and the Purified Sunnah. I have placed under each fundamental the specific details it contains, concluding with a statement of those who have gone astray in that regard and a refutation of them without elaboration.

This creed came as a middle ground between length and brevity, and was characterised by clarity and simplicity so that individual Muslims could benefit from it and achieve the intended meaning of being familiar with the entirety of the belief of the Salaf with easy expression and an objective arrangement. I called it: (The Simplified Creed from the Noble Book and the Purified Sunnah).

I ask God to make this work sincere for His sake and beneficial to His servants. May God’s prayers and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his companions.

Written by

Prof. Dr. Ahmed bin Abdul Rahman Al-Qadi

Unaizah on: 17/02/1427 AH