What is Shahadah? (Edexcel GCSE Religious Studies B)
Revision Note
The Role & Significance of Shahadah
What is Shahadah?
Shahadah is the first of the Five Pillars of Islam that all Sunni Muslims follow
It is the Muslim statement of belief or declaration of faith and describes the key message of Islam that all Muslims must accept
The basic statement of Shahadah is that there is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his Messenger
Muslims believe that this statement is key to their religion, and that everything else in Islam centres around these key beliefs
There is no God but Allah (Tawhid)
The first part of Shahadah is the key belief that ‘There is no god except Allah’
This is known as Tawhid
Muslims must believe that there is only one God, Allah, and that he is one and without equal, the only being worthy of worship
The Qur’an states this belief
‘Allah bears witness that there is no god except Him, as do the angels and all who have knowledge … There is no god except Him, the Almighty, the All Wise (Surah 3:18-19)
Only Allah gave humans life, provides for everyone, and answers prayers
Worshipping anything else but Allah is considered shirk, a serious sin that is described as unforgivable in the Qur’an
‘God does not forgive the joining of partners with Him: anything less than that He forgives to whoever He will, but anyone who joins partners with God has fabricated a tremendous sin’ (Surah 4:48)
At the time of the Prophet Muhammad, idol worship was common in Makkah. Muhammad preached against this and encouraged people to believe in Tawhid
Muhammad is his Messenger (Risalah)
The second part of Shahadah means that Muslims must believe that the Prophet Muhammad was a messenger of Allah
This belief in prophets is known as Risalah
Muslims believe that Muhammad was human, not a god
He was a man who dedicated his whole life to serving Allah
He was the key to humanity receiving the full and unaltered message of Allah
The Qur’an calls Muhammad ‘an excellent model’ (Surah 33:41) for how to live
Muslims have the greatest of respect for Muhammad
One way of showing this is that when using the Prophet’s name, they would say ‘peace and blessings be upon him’ afterwards
The Place of Shahadah in Muslim Practice Today
Role of the Shahadah Today
The Shahadah plays a central role in Muslim practice today
It remains the basic statement of faith
Muslims recite the Shahadah daily to remind them of the central importance of these beliefs
Muslims would say that anyone who cannot recite it is not a Muslim
Awaiting Image: Reciting the Shahadah
Reciting the Shahadah
AWAITING IMAGE
Worked Example
Outline three beliefs about the Shahadah
(3 marks)
Answer:
Muslims believe that the Shahadah is the central statement of belief of Islam (1 mark)
It contains the key beliefs of faith in one God (Tawhid) and Muhammad as the messenger or prophet of God (Risalah) (1 mark)
Muslims believe that this statement underpins all of the other beliefs of Islam (1 mark)
Exam Tip
You may be asked to compare Shahadah to the other pillars of Islam, for example
‘The Shahadah is the most important pillar for Muslims.’ Evaluate this statement considering arguments for and against.
In your response you should:
Refer to Muslim teachings
Reach a justified conclusion
(12 marks)
In your answer, you would need to consider all of the religious arguments that Muslims would use to support this view
You would also have to consider what alternative pillars other Muslims might consider of equal or greater importance to Shahadah. Use the notes in the following sections on Salah, Sawm, Zakah, and Hajj to help you to consider other points of view
For example, Muslims might argue that there is no point in reciting the Shahadah and then not praying to Allah (Salah)
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