The path of knowing Allah and His onenessLesson 8 of 10

The two testimonies and following

The door of entering Islam

The two testimonies: singling out Allah for worship and following His Messenger ﷺ

The two testimonies are not mere utterances; the first includes the worship of Allah alone, and the second includes believing the Messenger ﷺ, obeying him and following what he brought.

01

The first testimony

La ilaha illa Allah

Its meaning: none is truly worshipped except Allah. It negates the deserving of worship from what is other than Allah and affirms worship for Allah alone.

02

The second testimony

Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah

It requires believing him in what he reported, obeying him in what he commanded, avoiding what he forbade, and that Allah is worshipped only by what He legislated.

03

The connection

Sincerity and following

SincerityWorship for Allah alone.
FollowingWorship according to the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
04

A practical effect

Make the two testimonies the scale of action

  • Ask before the act: for whom am I doing it?
  • And ask: did the Messenger of Allah ﷺ do it or did the Shari'ah indicate it?
  • Learn what nullifies or weakens the meaning from reliable sources and in a suitable order.
Record of sources

Review sources

This page gathers the direct sources and presents the issue in a teaching wording open to review and scrutiny.

  1. The Noble Qur'anMuhammad 19, al-Nisa' 80, al-Hashr 7
    Original text
  2. The categories of tawhid and their inclusion in the two testimoniesThe official site of Shaykh 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn Baz
    Source: the official site of Shaykh Ibn Baz
  3. The meaning of the two testimoniesThe official site of Shaykh 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn Baz
    Source: the official site of Shaykh Ibn Baz
  4. The Book of Prayer — Lesson 22Shaykh Muhammad ibn Salih al-'Uthaymin, may Allah have mercy on him — explanation of the meaning of 'La ilaha illa Allah'
    Open the source
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