An Overview of Islam

As God is All-Knowing and Changeless, and human nature and needs are basically the same at all times, Islam believes that God’s Message is the same for all humanity. Islam represents itself as a universal and perpetual message, preached not only by Prophet Muhammad, but by all the prophets of God before Muhammad, whose true followers were essentially Muslims, that is, they surrendered to God alone.

• Islam: Islam (lit. voluntary surrender or submission) means to fully submit to the Will and Law of God. It has the same root (S-L-M) as the Arabic word Salam (peace). As is clear from the connection between the words, it is through submission to God’s Will and Law that a person finds peace.
• Attitude to life: The word Islam, therefore, is not a name that derives from a specific man or nation.
  Rather, it is descriptive of a state of mind and a whole way of living, thinking, and acting that God
  ordained for humankind.
• Innate religion: Islam is also defined as the religion of Fitrah (the natural inborn need for and
  awareness of God). According to Islam, every human is born with an innate knowledge of God and a
  natural inclination to believe in His Absolute Oneness.
• One religion: Islam introduces itself not as a new religion, but as a continuation of the same message
  of pure monotheism revealed by God to all of His prophets, beginning with Adam and ending with
  Muhammad (peace be upon them all).

This booklet gives an overview of Islam and its universal message and main components.