Cool Concepts
From Issue: 605 [Read full issue]
Paradigm Shift
When a person truly and consciously believes in the articles of Islamic faith, he becomes a Mumin (believer) and his paradigm is expected to shift at that very instant from a non-Islamic one to the holistic Islamic perspective, even though turning one's ship of life may take prolonged time and effort.
When the paradigm shift takes place, the Mumin becomes a Muslim (one who has submitted according to the demands of faith.) Every Muslim adopts Islamic paradigms according to his or her own level of commitment and clarity of understanding Islamic perspectives. The adoption of Islamic paradigms is termed in the Quran as a believer's soul being imbued in Allah's dye or hue, "Sibghatullah" - the Islamic baptism of a person's spirit.
The minimum acceptable standard of adopting Sibghatullah is called Taqwa. It is characterized by an ongoing consciousness and frequent remembrance of Allah, restraint in fulfilling one's desires, caution in conducting one's affairs and care in fulfilling one's obligations to Allah so that His displeasure and/or punishment are successfully avoided. Only people who shift their paradigms to the level of Taqwa can claim to be true Muslims and only they can benefit from the guidance of Islam.
The ideal, most desired level of Sibghatullah is called Ihsan. Ihsan is characterized by passionate love for Allah with corresponding fervent remembrance of Him and consciousness of being in His presence day and night, paying minimum attention to physical needs in order to maximize attention on seeking Allah's pleasure, doing more than commanded, giving more than required, joining those who want to separate, being generous to those who deprive them, forgiving those who abuse them, pursuing excellence in dealing with people and aiming for the highest level of Jannah and closeness to Allah.
Compiled From:
"Islam: Adopting Its Paradigms" - Ayub A. Hamid, pp. 129-130