The Essence of Islam
The True Essence of Islam
The term “Surrender” is the hallmark of Islamism. The word Islām is derived from the Arabic verb Aslama, which means to surrender. It means that a Muslim is one who has totally surrendered his entire mind to God. Anyone who has been able to realize this state of being with God is a Muslim, irrespective of the person’s creed, country, caste, or colour. The Quran gave examples of such Holy ones – Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus etc, who reached the state of complete surrender to God and referred to them as Muslims.
Abraham was neither Jew nor Christian, but he was sound in the faith, a Muslim and not of those who add gods unto God.” [Qur’an 3:60]
Thus, Islam is a word which denotes not a particular religion but a state of mind, the state of total surrender to the Will of God. The Prophet, therefore, did not see himself as founding a new religion, but as restoring the foundations of Islam which had been there from time immemorial.
“In Islam, the expression salaam is used as a form of greeting. “Sa” in this term signifies the combined expression of Saalokyam, Saameepyam and Saayujyam (Seeing the Divine, Being near the Divine and Merging in the Divine). When these three expressions are combined and merged into one – “La” signifying merger – you have Salaam (the merging of the many in the One)”
– Divine discourse of Sri Sathya Sai Baba on 25th December 1991
“The foremost need today is for everyone to realise that God is One. This is what Jesus and Mohammed proclaimed. The word “Allah” really means the One Supreme which contains everything in the Universe. This is the primary message of the Vedas …The essential truth of all religions is that God is one. Jesus proclaimed the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man. One can have only one father, not two.”– Sathya Sai Baba
Three possible misconceptions:
The First Misconception: “Your God is different from my God”
The Second Misconception: “God and His Creation are Separate”
The Third Misconception: “I am Different From God”
“God is One; there are not many Gods, one for each tribe among men! Love is One; it transcends caste, colour and creed, if it has to be genuine. Truth is One; there cannot be two. For, two can only be One, occurring twice. The Goal is One; for, all roads must lead to the One God. Why then should men quarrel and fight over the Eternal and the Absolute?”
– Sathya Sai Baba (Divine Discourse 12th October 1983)