Islam Rediscovered
12. Islamic Fundamentalism
~ 212 ~
On further investigation, we find that these five
basic teachings have a spirit as well as a form and,
what is of real significance is that the true essence of
Islam resides not in its outward forms but in its
inner spirit. That is why our actions, according to a
hadith
, must be judged by their intentions alone.
(
Sahih al-Bukhari
)
Let us take the first of the above principles, which is
the article of faith (
kalima
). The form it takes is the
utterance of certain words, expressing one’s faith.
But this verbal expression is not in itself sufficient. It
is essential that at the same time, the concerned
person should be imbued with the actual spirit of
the words he utters. As we find in the Qur’an: “The
Arabs of the desert declare: ‘We believe,’ ‘You do
not.’ Say rather: ‘We profess Islam,’ for faith has not
yet found its way into your hearts’ (49:4). This
shows that to God, the real faith (
iman
) is that which
reaches into the deepest recesses of the heart; which
awakens human consciousness in such a way as to
bring to the individual the realization of God. That
is to say that the concept of form here is relative,
while the concept of spirit is what truly matters.
