المعنى الاصطلاحي

Having firm belief in what Allah imparted about His prophets and messengers in the Quran and Sunnah, generally and in detail, and acting upon the legislation of the messenger who was sent to us.

الشرح المختصر

"Al-Eemaan bir-rusul" (believing in the Messengers) is one of the six pillars of the Islamic creed. A person is not considered a Muslim nor a believer until he believes in them all. Believing in the Messengers includes four matters: 1. Having firm belief that Allah Almighty sent to every nation a human Messenger to call them to worship Allah alone without partners and to disbelieve in anything that is worshiped other than Him, and that all of them were truthful, affirmers of the truth, pious, trustworthy, and guides who were themselves rightly-guided and supported with evident proofs and magnificent signs from their Lord, and to believe that they conveyed everything that Allah sent them with without concealing a single letter thereof or changing it or adding to it or deleting from it, and that they were all upon the clear truth, and that the basis of their message - from the first to the last of them - was one, which is to believe in the Oneness of Allah, and to believe in the Oneness of His divinity, lordship, and names and attributes, along with negating everything that is contrary to this Oneness or contradicts its perfection, and that the Messengers do not share any of Allah’s characteristics that are specific to Him. 2. Having firm belief in the Messengers whom Allah the Almighty named in the Quran and in the Sunnah. They are: Adam, Nuh (Noah), Idris (Enoch), Hud (Heber), Salih (Methuselah), Ibrahim (Abraham), Isma`il (Ishmael), Is-haq (Isaac), Ya`qub (Jacob), Yusuf (Joseph), Lut (Lot), Shu`ayb (Jethro), Yunus (Jonah), Musa (Moses), Harun (Aaron), Ilyas (Elias), Zakariyya (Zachariah), Yahya (John the Baptist), Ilyasa` (Elisha), Dhul-Kifl (Ezekiel), Dawud (David), Sulayman (Solomon), Ayyub (Job), Al-Asbat (the 12 sons of Jacob, mentioned as a group without naming each of them), `Isa (Jesus), and Muhammad. There are five among them who are known as those of determination (Ulu-l-`Azm), meaning that they had firm assertion, diligence, patience and perfect reason, and to believe that the best of them and final one is Muhammad, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, after whom there will be no prophet. 3. Having firm belief in their reports, virtues, their special characteristics, and their stories. This includes believing in Allah’s taking Abraham as His close friend (Khaleel), taking Muhammad, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon them, as His close friend, His speaking to Moses with clear speech, His raising of Enoch to a high status, and His raising of Jesus to the heaven, and that Jesus is a servant of Allah, His messenger, and His word that he directed to Maryam (Mary) and a spirit created by Him, and to believe that Allah made the wind and mountains subservient to David and Solomon, and to believe the stories of the Messengers with their peoples, the conflict that broke out between them and their peoples, and Allah’s support for His Messengers and their followers. 4. Acting upon the legislation of the messenger who was sent to us; the seal of the Messengers, Muhammad, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, who was sent to all the creation. Among the fruits of believing in the Messengers are the following: 1. Having knowledge of Allah’s mercy and care for His creation as He sent them those noble Messengers to guide them and direct them to the truth. 2. Thanking Allah the Exalted for this great blessing. 3. Loving, respecting, honoring, and praising the Messengers in a way that befits them, because they are the Messengers of Allah Almighty and His special slaves.