What tawhid means

Tawhid means believing that Allah is One. He has no partner, no equal, no child and no rival. Everything else in Islam is built on this.

Islam stands on five pillars. The first is the shahada: saying that there is no god but Allah, and Muhammad ﷺ is His Messenger¹. Allah says: know that there is no god but Allah². And: your God is one God. There is no god but Him, the Most Merciful, the Most Kind³.

When Nabi ﷺ sent Mu'adh to teach the people of Yemen, he told him what to begin with. Not salah, not zakat, but first: invite them to bear witness that there is no god but Allah. After that, teach them the prayers and the charity⁴. Tawhid comes first.

Tawhid is also why we were created. Allah says: I did not create jinn and humans except to worship Me⁵.

La ilaha illallah: what the words mean

La ilaha illallah has two halves:

• La ilaha: there is no god. An ilah is anything people worship: pray to, bow to, give their heart to. This half says no to all of them.
• Illallah: except Allah. This half says yes to Allah alone.

So the meaning is: nothing deserves worship except Allah. It is more than saying Allah exists, or that Allah made the world. It says that all worship belongs to Him alone.

Words that come from the heart

The words are short, but they are meant to be said with the heart, not only the tongue:

• Knowing what they mean. Nabi ﷺ said: whoever dies knowing that there is no god but Allah will enter Jannah⁶.
• Saying them sincerely. He said: no one bears witness to it truly, from the heart, except that Allah keeps them safe from the Fire⁷.
• Many teachers list a few more things that go with the words, taken from the Quran and hadith: certainty with no doubt, truthfulness, love for what they mean, accepting them, and following them in your life.

The best words

• Nabi ﷺ said: the best dhikr (remembrance of Allah) is la ilaha illallah⁸.
• Iman (faith) has more than sixty or seventy branches. The highest is la ilaha illallah. The lowest is moving something harmful off the road⁹.
• He said the best thing he and the prophets before him ever said was: la ilaha illallahu wahdahu la sharika lah, there is no god but Allah, alone, with no partner¹⁰.

Three sides of tawhid

To make tawhid easy to learn, many teachers explain it in three parts:

1. Allah, the Lord of all

Allah made the heavens and the earth. He gives life and takes it. He feeds every living thing. There is no creature on earth whose provision is not on Allah¹⁴. He needs nothing, and everything needs Him: you are the ones in need of Allah, and Allah is the Rich, the Praised¹⁵.

2. Allah alone is worshipped

Worship is more than salah. It is everything Allah loves that we do for Him: prayer, dua, fasting, charity, sacrifice, making a vow, putting our trust in Him, and loving Him most. Nabi ﷺ said: dua (asking Allah) is worship, and then recited: your Lord said, call on Me and I will answer you¹⁶¹⁷. So we ask Allah directly. He says: I am near. I answer the one who calls on Me¹⁸.

3. Allah's perfect names and qualities

Allah has told us about Himself: He is the Most Merciful, the All-Knowing, the All-Wise, and more. We believe all of it, and we know nothing in creation is like Him. This part has its own chapter: The Names and Attributes of Allah.

Surah al-Ikhlas: tawhid in four lines

Surah al-Ikhlas (chapter 112) is short, but it holds the whole of tawhid:

• Say: He is Allah, the One¹⁹. One with no partner. Not one of three, not one among many.
• Allah, as-Samad²⁰. As-Samad is the One everyone turns to in need, while He needs no one.
• He has no child, and He was not born²¹. He has no beginning and no family. He is not like us.
• And there is no one equal to Him²².

Why it matters so much

• A man recited this surah again and again, and another man thought it was too little. Nabi ﷺ said: it is equal to a third of the Quran²³.
• One Companion led prayers and always ended his recitation with this surah. When asked why, he said: it describes the Most Merciful, and I love to recite it. Nabi ﷺ said: tell him that Allah loves him²⁴.
• In a hadith qudsi (words of Allah told by Nabi ﷺ), Allah says that when people claim He has a child, they insult Him, while He is the One, as-Samad, who has no child and was not born, and no one is equal to Him²⁵.
• And still Allah is patient with people. Nabi ﷺ said: no one is more patient than Allah with hurtful words. People say He has a child, yet He still gives them health and food²⁶.

Ayat al-Kursi²⁷ is another great ayah of tawhid. It begins: Allah, there is no god but Him, the Ever-Living, the One who keeps everything going. Nabi ﷺ called it the greatest ayah in the Book of Allah²⁸.

The people of Makkah believed in Allah

This surprises many people. The people of Makkah who fought Nabi ﷺ did believe in Allah. They believed He was the Creator:

• If you ask them who created the heavens and the earth, they will say: Allah²⁹³⁰.
• Ask them who gives you food from the sky and the earth, who runs all affairs: they will say: Allah³¹.

So what was the problem? They also worshipped idols beside Allah. They said: we only worship them so that they bring us closer to Allah³². Even their call during Hajj showed it. They said: here I am, O Allah, You have no partner, except a partner who belongs to You³³.

What this teaches us

• Believing that Allah created the world is not enough on its own. The people of Makkah believed that.
• The heart of la ilaha illallah is the second part: worship belongs to Allah alone, with no go-between and no partner.
• That is why the message of Nabi ﷺ was so hard for them. It was not "believe in Allah". It was "worship Allah alone".

The message of every prophet

Tawhid is not new. It is the oldest message there is. Allah says:

• We never sent a messenger before you without telling him: there is no god but Me, so worship Me³⁴.
• We sent a messenger to every nation: worship Allah, and stay away from false gods³⁵.

The Quran shows prophet after prophet saying the same words to his people: O my people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him.

• Nuh (Noah) said it³⁶.
• Hud said it to the people of Ad³⁷.
• Salih said it to the people of Thamud³⁸.
• Shu'ayb said it to the people of Madyan³⁹.

Their laws were different in some details, but their belief was one. Every prophet called to the worship of Allah alone. Muhammad ﷺ came with the same message, as the last of them.

Allah also placed this truth inside every person before they were born, a natural pull toward their Creator. You can read about it in Fitrah: why we believe.

The opposite of tawhid

The opposite of tawhid is shirk: giving to anyone or anything else what belongs only to Allah, especially worship.

• Nabi ﷺ was asked which sin is the greatest. He said: to set up a rival to Allah, when He alone created you⁴⁰.
• Allah forgives any sin He wills, but not shirk if a person dies on it without repenting⁴¹.
• Shirk is not only idols of stone. A quiet kind is showing off: doing good deeds mainly so people praise you. Nabi ﷺ said: deeds are judged by their intentions⁴². Keep asking yourself: who am I doing this for?

When the ayah came down saying that safety is for those who believe and do not mix their faith with wrong⁴³, the Companions were worried. They said: which of us has never done wrong? Then Allah made it clear: the wrong meant here is shirk, for shirk is a great wrong⁴⁴.

The full chapter on this is Shirk: what breaks tawhid. Remember: a person who turns back to Allah is always welcome. Repentance wipes away every sin, even shirk.

The reward of tawhid

Tawhid is the most precious thing a person can carry to Allah. Nabi ﷺ gave great good news about it:

• Jannah. Whoever dies knowing that there is no god but Allah will enter Jannah⁴⁵.
• Safety from the Fire. No one bears witness, truly from the heart, that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger, except that Allah keeps them from the Fire⁴⁶.
• A promise from Allah. Nabi ﷺ asked Mu'adh: do you know Allah's right over His servants? It is that they worship Him and do not worship anything beside Him. And their right over Allah is that He will not punish those who worship nothing beside Him⁴⁷.
• Even a little is enough to save. Whoever said la ilaha illallah and had in their heart good the weight of a grain of barley will be taken out of the Fire⁴⁸.
• Last words. Whoever's last words are la ilaha illallah will enter Jannah⁴⁹.
• Forgiveness as big as the earth. Allah says: O son of Adam, if you came to Me with sins nearly as big as the earth, and then met Me without joining anything with Me, I would come to you with forgiveness nearly as big⁵⁰.

Good news, not an excuse

When Nabi ﷺ told Mu'adh this good news, Mu'adh asked: shall I tell the people? Nabi ﷺ said no, in case they rely on it and stop working⁵³⁵⁴. Mu'adh only told it near his death, so he would not be hiding knowledge. The lesson: tawhid is the root, and good deeds are its fruit. A true believer in la ilaha illallah wants to pray, to be honest, and to please Allah.

Living with tawhid every day

Tawhid is not only something you know. It changes how your heart feels, all day long. Four feelings belong to Allah first:

Trust (tawakkul)

• Whoever puts their trust in Allah, He is enough for them⁵⁵.
• Nabi ﷺ said: if you trusted Allah as you should, He would provide for you as He provides for the birds. They leave in the morning hungry, and come back in the evening full⁵⁶.
• Trust does not mean doing nothing. A man asked: should I tie my camel and trust Allah, or leave it loose and trust Allah? Nabi ﷺ said: tie it, and trust Allah⁵⁷. Do your part, then leave the result to Him.
• He taught the young Ibn Abbas: when you ask, ask Allah. When you need help, ask Allah for help. If the whole world came together to help you or harm you, they could only do what Allah had already written⁵⁸.

Hope

• Allah says: O My servants who have wronged themselves, do not lose hope in Allah's mercy. Allah forgives all sins⁵⁹.
• Allah says: I am as My servant thinks of Me⁶⁰. So think well of Allah.
• Allah made mercy in a hundred parts. He sent down one part to the earth, and from it every mother is kind to her child. He kept ninety-nine parts for His servants⁶¹.

Fear

• Healthy fear of Allah keeps us away from wrong. Nabi ﷺ said: I know Allah best of all of you, and I fear Him most⁶².
• It is fear that brings you closer to Him, not fear that makes you run away. Allah says: call on Him in fear and in hope⁶³.
• Nabi ﷺ visited a young man who was dying. The man said: I hope in Allah, and I fear my sins. Nabi ﷺ said: when these two come together in a heart at such a time, Allah gives him what he hopes for, and keeps him safe from what he fears⁶⁴.

Love

• Those who believe love Allah more than anything⁶⁵.
• Nabi ﷺ said that three things bring the sweetness of faith. The first is that Allah and His Messenger are dearer to you than anything else⁶⁶.
• Love shows in action. Allah says: if you love Allah, follow me, and Allah will love you⁶⁷.

Common questions

I just became Muslim. Is saying the shahada enough?

Yes. Saying it sincerely, knowing what it means, makes you a Muslim. Welcome. Then you learn step by step: salah first, and the rest little by little. That is how Nabi ﷺ told Mu'adh to teach⁶⁸.

Is it wrong to ask a doctor, or a friend, for help?

No. Asking a living person for help with something they are able to do is normal and allowed. Take the medicine and see the doctor. Tie your camel⁶⁹. Just know in your heart that the cure and the help come from Allah.

I have done a lot of bad things. Is my tawhid worth anything?

Yes, a great deal. Remember the card that was heavier than ninety-nine scrolls⁷⁰, and Allah's promise of forgiveness as big as the earth⁷¹. Hold on to la ilaha illallah, and turn back to Allah today.

My teacher says three kinds of tawhid. My friend's teacher explains it differently. Who is right?

Both are teaching the same belief in different words. All Sunni scholars agree that Allah alone creates, Allah alone is worshipped, and His names and qualities are perfect. Learn from a teacher you trust, and do not let words become a fight.

I feel more fear of Allah than love. Is that wrong?

It is common, and it can change. Read about Allah's mercy, and the names that tell you He is kind and loving. Think well of Him⁷². Fear and hope should go together.

How do I teach tawhid to my children?

Start simple: Allah made you, Allah loves you, and we pray to Allah alone. Teach them Surah al-Ikhlas. Nabi ﷺ taught the young Ibn Abbas: when you ask, ask Allah⁷³. Let them see you make dua for your own needs.