A cardinal principle of Islam is Oneness of Allah. This concept is known as ‘Taoheed.’ A whole chapter of the Holy Qur’an, “Suratul- Iklas,” asserts this fundamental belief : “Say He, Allah, is One. Allah is Absolute. He does not beget nor is He begotten. And there is no one like Him.” (Qur’an112; verses 1 -5)
Islamic scholars have divided ‘Taoheed’ into three broad categories, namely ‘Taoheed Uluhiyyah,’ ‘Taoheed Rububiyyah’ ‘Taoheed Sifa’at wal Asma’.’
‘Taoheed Uluhiyyah’ means Oneness of God in His right to be worshipped. This statement is understood by the too-familiar declaration of faith: “La ilaha ila Llahu,” meaning, ‘there is no one worthy of worship except Allah.’ Remove this key statement and the whole edifice of faith comes crashing down. In other words, there is no Islam without this fundamental assertion. Without this proclamation, you are not a Muslim. This primary declaration is supported by a supplementary statement, ‘Muhammadu rosulu Lhahi,’ meaning, ‘Muhammad is the messenger of God.’
The second category of ‘Taoheed’ is ‘Taoheed Rububiyyah,’ meaning: ‘Oneness of God in His right of being a Lord.’ Whether you believe in Allah as Lord or not, He is and remains so as He had been from time immemorial and will remain so till the end of time. This major declaration is made in ‘Suratul- Fatiah,’ the Opening chapter of the Holy Qur’an, where Allah is pronounced as ‘Robbul-a’lameen,’ meaning ‘The Lord of the worlds.’ (Qur’an 1; verse 1).
The significance of this statement is Allah’s monumental responsibility to cater, effortlessly, for the entire creations in both the heavens and the earth. Scholars of Islam have often said, “ A leaf does not fall off the tree except with the knowledge and permission of Allah.” This corroborates a statement of the Holy Qur’an that: “It is not fit for a soul to die except with the permission of Allah, as ordained at a fixed time.”
Whenever it rains, all human beings, irrespective of their religious persuasions, derive benefits from rainfall. Similarly, all human beings, plants and animals enjoy benefits of sunrays through solar energy and Photosynthesis. There is no discrimination in the benevolence of Allah. This is a clear demonstration of His Lordship over His creations. As long as He has decided to create you into this world, He carries the liability to take care of you and your needs for as long as you remain on earth. This is the essence of the second category of Taoheed, Taoheed Rubbubiyyah.
The third class of Taoheed, Sifaht wal-Asma,’ confers on Allah, the exclusive rights to His 99 names – and the divine attributes which He does not share with any of His creatures. For instance, “every soul shall taste of death.” On the contrary, Allah does not die just as He was not born. Allah has no son just as He was not born. Conversely, a barren woman is sad because she has not fulfilled the human attribute of procreation. Many marriages have broken down for the lack of children to bless the matrimony. It is simply human to beget and be begotten. These attributes are far from Allah. Again, Allah needs neither partners nor partnership to execute projects in His kingdom. Whenever He desires to achieve something, He simply tells the thing to be, and lo, it is! It is as simple as that. In the same vein, Allah has no look-alike. The claim by some other religionists that God creates man in His own image is rejected by the Holy Qur’an. You find this rejection in
Surat-Ul-Iklas, chapter 112; verse 4, where Almighty Allah says: “…and there is no one like Him.” These are the exclusive attributes of Allah, which He does not share with
anyone.
The Holy Qur’an makes a case against those who oppose the Islamic doctrine of Monotheism. The case stands against those who claim that Jesus is God as well as those
who worship at the Mariam Shrine. Listen to the Qur’an: “Certainly, they have disbelieved those who assert that the Messiah, son of Mary, is God. Say, Oh Muhammad, who can prevail against Allah if He chooses to destroy the Messiah, son of Mary and his mother and all that is on the earth? To Allah belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth and what are in between them. He creates whatever He wishes and has power over all things.” (Qur’an 5;18)