Al-'Aqida — Rawzat

What Is ‘Aqida?

The word ‘aqida comes from ‘aqada — to tie a knot, to bind, to secure. It refers to the beliefs that are “tied” or “bound” in the heart — the convictions that form the foundation of a Muslim’s inner life.

‘Aqida is distinct from shari’a (the law, the outer practice): shari’a tells you what to do, ‘aqida tells you what to believe. The two are intimately related — correct belief without corresponding practice is incomplete, and practice without underlying conviction is hollow — but the classical tradition distinguishes them as the foundational theoretical science (‘aqida/‘ilm al-kalam) and the applied practical science (fiqh).

The Six Articles of Faith (Arkan al-Iman)

The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) defined the six articles of faith in the famous Hadith Jibril (the Hadith of Gabriel), when Jibrail (AS) appeared in human form and questioned the Prophet:

“Tell me about iman.”

The Prophet replied: “It is to believe in Allah, and His angels, and His books, and His messengers, and the Last Day, and to believe in divine decree — both the good and the bad of it.”

“You have told the truth.” — Jibrail said.

This hadith, transmitted in Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, and others, establishes the six arkan (pillars) of iman:

1. Al-Iman bi-Allah — Belief in Allah

The most fundamental article: belief in the existence, uniqueness, and attributes of Allah.

The components:

Tawhid al-Dhat: The divine’s essence is absolutely one — no partners, no equals, no divisions
Tawhid al-Sifat: The divine’s attributes are unique — the divine is Knowing, Powerful, Living — but these attributes are not like human knowledge, power, or life
Tawhid al-Af’al: All acts in creation ultimately trace to the divine as the ultimate cause

“Say, He is Allah, [who is] One — Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any equivalent.” (112:1-4)

See also: Tawhid Divine Unity

2. Al-Iman bi-l-Mala’ika — Belief in the Angels

The angels (mala’ika — plural of malak, from malaka: to possess authority/power) are beings of light created to serve the divine:

“They do not disobey Allah in what He commands them but do what they are commanded.” (66:6)

The key angels in Islamic theology:

Jibrail (Gabriel) — the angel of revelation; who brought the Quran to the Prophet
Mika’il (Michael) — the angel of provision and rain
Israfil — who will blow the trumpet on the Day of Judgment
Izra’il (the Angel of Death) — Malak al-Mawt; takes the soul at death
Munkar and Nakir — who question the soul in the grave

Belief in the angels affirms that the divine’s command operates through a hierarchy of beings — that the divine is not “alone” in a solipsistic sense but is the head of a vast, ordered creation of beings.

See also: Malaika Angels, Ghayb The Unseen

3. Al-Iman bi-l-Kutub — Belief in the Revealed Books

The divine has sent books of revelation to various prophets:

Suhuf Ibrahim (Scrolls of Abraham) — now lost
Al-Tawrat (Torah) — revealed to Prophet Musa
Al-Zabur (Psalms) — revealed to Prophet Dawud
Al-Injil (Gospel) — revealed to Prophet ‘Isa
Al-Quran — revealed to Prophet Muhammad (SAW), the final and preserved revelation

Belief in the earlier books does not require believing that the texts as currently preserved by other religions are their original forms — the classical view holds they have been altered (tahrif). Belief is in the original divine revelations, not in their current form as found in Christian or Jewish scriptures.

4. Al-Iman bi-l-Rusul — Belief in the Prophets and Messengers

The divine has sent prophets and messengers to guide humanity:

“We have already sent Our messengers with clear evidences and sent down with them the Scripture and the balance.” (57:25)

The Quran mentions 25 prophets by name. The distinction between nabi (prophet — receives revelation but is not necessarily sent to a new community) and rasul (messenger — sent to a specific community with a specific mission and book) is classical but not universally agreed upon.

The chain of prophets: Adam, Idris, Nuh, Ibrahim, Isma’il, Ishaq, Ya’qub, Yusuf, Ayyub, Shu’ayb, Musa, Harun, Dawud, Sulayman, Ilyas, Al-Yasa’, Yunus, Dhul-Kifl, Zakariyya, Yahya, ‘Isa, Muhammad — and many others not named in the Quran.

The khatam al-nabiyyin (Seal of the Prophets) is Muhammad (SAW) — after whom no new prophet comes.

5. Al-Iman bi-l-Yawm al-Akhir — Belief in the Last Day

Belief in the Day of Resurrection, Judgment, and the eternal life:

Al-Ba’th (resurrection) — all humans restored to life
Al-Hashr (gathering) — all gathered for judgment
Al-Hisab (accounting) — each soul’s deeds reckoned
Al-Mizan (scale) — deeds weighed
Al-Jannah (paradise) — for the believers
Al-Jahannam (hellfire) — for the disbelievers

6. Al-Iman bi-l-Qadar — Belief in Divine Decree

Qadar (divine decree, destiny) is one of the most theologically discussed articles of Islamic faith. The full formula: “believing in divine decree — both the good and the bad of it.”

The four dimensions of qadar:

‘Ilm: Allah’s knowledge encompasses all that was, is, and will be — nothing happens outside Allah’s knowledge
Kitaba: Everything is written in the Lawh al-Mahfuz (the Preserved Tablet)
Mashi’a: Whatever Allah wills, occurs; whatever He does not will, does not occur
Khalq: Allah creates all things and all actions

The human freedom problem: Qadar raises the classical problem: if everything is decreed, how is the human being free to choose and accountable for their choices? The classical Ash’ari answer: humans “acquire” (kasb) actions that Allah creates — human intention and choice are real within Allah’s overarching decree. The Mu’tazili answer: humans genuinely create their own actions within a framework Allah established. The Ismaili answer: nuanced — the divine’s ‘ilm of what will happen is not the cause of what happens; the divine’s decree operates through human freedom rather than contrary to it.

The Ismaili Addition: Al-Walayah as the Seventh Pillar

In the Ismaili and Bohra ‘aqida, the six articles of faith are affirmed — and a seventh is added as their inner dimension: al-walayah (devotion, love, and allegiance to the Imam).

The argument: each of the six articles has a zahir and a batin.

Article	Zahir	Batin (Walayah dimension)
Iman bi-Allah	Believing in Allah’s existence and unity	Recognizing the Imam as the divine’s representative in creation
Iman bi-l-Mala’ika	Believing in angels	Recognizing the Dai as the human “angel” — the intermediary of guidance
Iman bi-l-Kutub	Believing in the Quran	Receiving the Quran’s ta’wil through the Imam (Quran al-Natiq)
Iman bi-l-Rusul	Believing in the prophets	Recognizing the continuity of prophetic authority in the Imam
Iman bi-l-Yawm	Believing in the Last Day	Understanding the “qiyama” as the soul’s inner awakening through the Imam
Iman bi-l-Qadar	Accepting divine decree	Trusting the Imam’s guidance as the form of divine decree in one’s life

Walayah is thus not an addition parallel to the six articles but their inner completion: the soul that possesses walayah to the Imam has accessed the batin of each of the six.

“Your waliy is only Allah and His Messenger and those who have believed — those who establish prayer and give zakah, and they bow in worship.” (5:55)

The Relationship Between ‘Aqida and Practice

The classical formulation: Iman = tasdiq bi-l-qalb + iqrar bi-l-lisan + ‘amal bi-l-arkan

Tasdiq bi-l-qalb — affirmation in the heart (the inner conviction that the articles are true)
Iqrar bi-l-lisan — declaration with the tongue (the shahada and its renewal)
‘Amal bi-l-arkan — action with the limbs (the practice of the pillars of Islam)

In this formulation, ‘aqida (the inner conviction) is the foundation; the shahada is its verbal expression; and the five pillars of practice are its embodied implementation. A “belief” that produces no outward change and no practice is, in this view, incomplete iman.

“The believers are only those who have believed in Allah and His Messenger, and then doubt not, but strive with their properties and their lives in the cause of Allah. It is those who are truthful.” (49:15)

Al-'Aqida — The Islamic Creed and the Articles of Faith