7 articles of Iman(faith)

Iman in Islamic theology denotes a believer's faith in the metaphysical aspects of Islam. Its most simple definition is the belief in the six articles of faith, known as arkān al-īmān.

The term iman has been delineated in both the Quran and hadith. According to the Quran, iman must be accompanied by righteous deeds and the two together are necessary for entry into Paradise. In the hadith, iman in addition to Islam and ihsanform the three dimensions of the Islamic religion.

Iman is based upon belief in the six articles of Faith, but this is not blind belief, as many people incorrectly assumes. Readers may need to set aside any preconceived notions that the English word ‘faith’ might imply. Rather, faith in Islam is an action. As Allah said, “Give glad tidings to those who have faith and do righteous deeds, that they will have gardens beneath which rivers flow. ” The phrase “those who have faith and do righteous deeds” occurs over and over throughout the Qur’an. Faith is inseparable from the deeds of the heart and the deeds of the body, as the Prophet ﷺ said, “Allah does not look at your appearance or wealth, but rather he looks at your hearts and actions.”

For this reason, the scholars defined iman in terms of both inward and outward action. Ibn Taymiyyah explains the definition for us, “It is understood that īmān is [actually] affirmation and not simply belief (al-taṣdīq). Affirmation includes both the heart's statement, which is belief, and the heart's action, which is compliance.” The statement of the heart means to really believe in what you profess with your tongue, and the actions of the heart are the internal mechanisms of worship, such as one’s ultimate fear, love, hope, reliance, and penitence. In another place, Ibn Taymiyyah writes that faith “is not merely belief in His existence and His attributes, as is shared by the believer and unbeliever alike.” Even Satan believes in Allah’s existence, but that does not make him a believer. It was only after he arrogantly disobeyed his Creator that “he became one of the unbelievers.” It was not the sin per se that made him an unbeliever, as we are all sinners, but rather it was his stubborn and remorseless refusal to repent and obey the commands of his Lord.

In a hadith, Prophet Muhammad (saw) defined iman as "a knowledge in the heart, a voicing with the tongue, and an activity with the limbs.” Faith is confidence in a truth which is real. When people have confidence, they submit themselves to that truth. It is not sufficient just to know the truth, but the recognition of the heart should be expressed by the tongue which is the manifestation of the intelligence and at last to reflect this confidence in their activities.

Faith (iman) breaks down into six axioms:

• Belief in the existence and oneness of God (Allah).
• Belief in the existence of angles.
• Belief in the existence of the books of which God is the author: the Quran(revealed to Muhammad), the Gospel(revealed to Jesus), the Torah (revealed to Moses), and Psalms (revealed to David).
• Belief in the existence of all Prophets:Prophet Muhammad (saw) being the last of them, Jesus the penultimate, and others sent before them.
• Belief in the existence of the Day of Judgment: in that day, humanity will be divided into two groups: that of paradise and that of hell. These groups are themselves composed of subgroups. 

• Belief in the existence of God's predestination, whether it involves good or bad.

Of these, the first five are mentioned together in the Quran and by Prophet  Muhammad (saw), while including a corollary of belief in Allah – the good and evil of fate ordained by God – has referred to all six together in the following manner in the Hadith of Gabriel:

"Iman is that you believe in God and His Angels and His Books and His Messengers and the Hereafter and the good and evil fate [ordained by your God]."

Another similar narration ascribed to Muhammad is:

Ibn Abbas narrates that the Angel Jibril once asked the Prophet: "Tell me what is Iman?" The Prophet replied: "Iman is to believe in Allah, the Day of Judgment, His (Allah's) Angels, Books and Prophets and to believe in life after death; and to believe in Paradise and the Fire, and the setting up of the Mizan (scales) to weigh the deeds; and to believe in the Divine Decree, the good and the bad of it (all). Jibril then asked him: "If I do all this will I be with Iman?" The Prophet said: "When you have done all of this, you will be having Iman."

Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet said: "Iman has more than 70 branches. The most excellent among these branches is the saying of "Laa ilaaha ill Allah" (there is no God but Allah), and the smallest branch is to remove an obstacle from the wayside. And "Haya" (modesty) is an important branch of Iman."

Iman inspires a man to acquire moral values. It restrains him/her from bad habits and obscene activities. A Mumin always keeps in mind that one day (s)he will appear before Allah. On that day the Most High will ask for an account of all kinds of inhuman and immoral activities. Almighty says: “And one who is afraid of standing before his Load and abstains from following his instincts, certainly Paradise is his abode.” (Sura Al-Nazia: Ayat 40-41)