Submission, Faith & Beauty: The Religion of Islam

Joseph E.B. Lumbard
co-edited by Zaid Shakir and Hamza Yusuf

Zaytuna College commissioned this thoughtful and well-written work, inspired by the Hadith of Gabriel, upon him be peace, that beautifully and succinctly summarizes the core beliefs of the Muslim faith. In the Hadith of Gabriel, upon him be peace, the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ is asked about submission, faith, and beauty.

About Submission, the Prophet ﷺ says: "Submitting is that you bear witness that there is no deity but God and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God, that you perform the ritual prayer, pay the alms tax, fast during Ramadan, and make pilgrimage to the House if you are able."

About Faith, the Prophet ﷺ says: "Faith is that you have faith in God, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day, and that you have faith in the measuring out, both its good and its evil."

And, about Beauty, the Prophet ﷺ says: "To beautify is to worship God as if you see Him, for if you do not see Him, He nonetheless sees you."

Submission, faith, and beautification, as this short book demonstrates, are the three fundamental dimensions of the religion of Islam; they complement and complete each other. Through them, we come closer to living in what the Qur'an refers to as our true nature (fitrah).

About the Author

Joseph E.B. Lumbard is Assistant Professor of Classical Islam at Brandeis University and is the founder of the Islamic Research Institute. He was formerly Special Advisor on interfaith relations to HM King Abdullah II of Jordan. He was awarded a B.A. magna cum laude in English Literature and Religious Studies from George Washington University in 1993, and an M.A. in Religious Studies in 1995. He received a second M.A. in 2000 and a Ph.D. in Islamic Studies with distinction in 2003 from Yale University.

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