First Article Of Faith – Belief in Allah (Tawheed):

First Article Of Faith – Belief in Allah (Tawheed):
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The declaration that ‘there is no God but Allah’ is the essence of Islam. It means that God has no partner (sharik): He exists by Himself. This is expressed by the Arabic word tawheed, ‘oneness’ and ‘unity,’ which in the Islamic context means ‘the oneness of God.’ This is a fundamental doctrine encompassing the oneness of God in every sense of the expression. Nothing can rival Him as a source of power or love. There is no one worthy of worship other than God. He is not an abstract concept. He is always near us; He cares for us and we owe our existence to Him alone.

Islam established a close and direct relationship between the Creator and His creation, in which no mediating power plays any role. God’s absolute unity is reflected in the unity of His creation, in which each individual part is in harmonious conjunction with all of the others. There is nothing remotely like Him. The Quran thus enjoins us:

“Say: He is God, the One. God the Absolute. He does not beget, nor is He begotten; and there is none like Him.” (chapter 112).
Chapter 112 of the Qur'an, entitled Ikhlas, gives us the essence of monotheism. Not only does it tell us of the oneness of God, but it also makes it clear what the oneness of God means. This chapter presents the concept of God, purified of all human interpolation, for, prior to the advent of Islam, tampering with the sacred text had caused this concept of God to be distorted for all would¬ be believers. God is not many. God alone is the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, including human beings. He is the sole possessor of all powers. He is Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent. That is, although invisible to the naked eye, He knows everything, He sees everything, He has full control over everything and is present everywhere. All depend upon him. He depends on none. He, in his own being, is all-powerful. He is above to beget or begotten. He is such a unique being who has no equal or compeer. All kind of oneness belongs to this Almighty Being. The concept of One God is the actual beginning point and also the only source of Islamic teachings.

Fundamental to the religious structure of Islam is the concept of tawheed, or monotheism. As the seed is to tree, so is tawheed to Islam. Just as the tree is a wonderfully developed extension of the seed, so is the religious system of Islam a multi-facetted expression of a single basic concept. For monotheism in Islam does not mean simply belief in one God, but in God's oneness in all respects. No one shares in this oneness of God.

“God is One, Eternal and Absolute. He is everything, everything is from Him. God, the Creator of all things is the Sustainer of the universe.
God: there is no deity save Him, the Living, the Eternal One. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him. His is what the heavens and the earth contain. Who can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows all about the affairs of men at present and in the future. They can grasp only that part of His knowledge, which He wills. His throne is as vast as the heavens and the earth, and the preservation of both does not weary Him. He is the Exalted, the Immense One.” (2:255)
Monotheism is the doctrine that all power lies in the hands of one God alone; that He alone deserves to be worshipped. No act in the nature of worship is lawful unless directed towards God. It is God alone who fulfills our needs. It is God alone, who is behind the functioning of the entire universe.

Here are further verses from the Quran which very clearly state the concept of God:

“Truly your God is but one: Lord of the heavens and of the earth.” (37:4)
“This is God your Lord; there is no God but He, the Creator of all things; therefore, worship Him alone.” (6:102)
“Your God is one God; there is no God but He, the Compassionate, the Merciful.” (2:158)
“God: there is no God but He, the Living, the Eternal One. Neither slumber nor sleep overtakes Him. His is what the heavens and the earth contain. Who can intercede with Him, unless by His leave? He is cognizant of men’s affairs now and in the future. Men can grasp only that part of His knowledge which He will. His throne is as vast as the heavens and the earth, and the preservation of both does not weary Him. He is the Exalted, the Immense One.” (2:255)
Tawheed has two aspects to it: tawheed fi az-zat and tawheed fi as-sifat, that is, oneness of being and oneness of attributes. This means that God is alone in His Being as well as in His attributes.

The attributes of God are called al-Asma ul-Husna, or the excellent names. The Quran says:

“But God’s are excellent names, call on Him by them.” (7:179) According to Abu Hurayrah, a Companion of the Prophet, there is a saying of the Prophet to this effect: “Verily, there are ninety nine names of God.”
This means that in addition to the fact of there being only one Being who enjoys the status of divinity and possesses divine powers, there is also the fact that no-one else can have a share in, or lay claim to God's attributes. These include the power of creating and sustaining the universe with all its countless bodies in motion, of sustaining and nourishing our world, in short, of governing all the happenings in the heavens and on earth; all of these are directly managed by God. No representative or deputy of God has any power-either independent or delegated –over the events of the universe: "He throws the veil of night over the day. Swiftly they follow one another. It was He who created the sun, the moon and the stars and made them subservient to His will. His is the creation, His the command. Blessed be God, the Lord of all creatures." (7:54

The divisibility of the divine attributes is totally alien to Islam. Just as God is alone in His being, so is He alone in His attributes. In recognition of His uniqueness, the Qur'an opens with the following invocation: "Praise be to God, Lord of the universe, the Compassionate, the Merciful, Sovereign of the Day of Judgement. You alone we worship, and to You alone we turn for help. Guide us to the straight path, the path of those whom You have favoured, not of those who have incurred Your wrath, nor of those who have gone astray." (1:1-7)

Islam enjoins believers to worship one God alone. No other being or object is worthy of being worshipped. No other being should be associated with God. Idolatry, or shirk, is to worship or hold in reverence anything other than God. This is strictly forbidden in Islam, and is regarded as the worst of all sins.