Tawhid, Tawheed Is No Where To Be Found In The Quran Or Hadith?

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Kaleef K. Karim

It is often said by Muslims and non-Muslims that the doctrine of Trinity is nowhere to be found in the Bible. This fact is further supported also by some well respected Christian and non-Christian academics, that the word trinity nor the trinity formula (doctrine) is anywhere explicitly mentioned in the Bible. We have written some articles on this matter before, please click on the following pieces:

(1) – “Trinity: The Truth About Matthew 28:19 & 1 John 5:7”

(2) – “Trinity: Examining Authenticity Of Matthew 28:19”

(3) – “Dismantling The Trinitarian Perception Of John 1:1”

(4) – “Jesus (pbuh): Nothing Divine about Him”

(5) – “1 Timothy 3:16 Did God become manifest in flesh?”

(6) – “Isaiah 9:6 Messiah God?”

Christian trinitarians have for a long time been unable to explain consistently what the trinity is. If you were to bring three Christian trinitarians, each asked separately to explain what the trinity doctrine is, they would give contradictory and heretical positions on their triune-god belief. When some trinitarians are unable to explain the triune-god formula, they say, “it is a mystery, you don’t understand God.”

Another hard task for them is to find explicit passage(s) in the Bible where this trinity is mentioned. Unable to answer this, trinitarians have resorted to fallacy. Some have thrown a question back at lay Muslims who don’t know much about Islam. They say, well the word “Tawheed” (Tawhid) is nowhere in the Quran or Hadith. They claim, that Tawhid or the concept of Tawhid was continuing to develop hundreds of years after Prophet Muhammed’s demise.

The comparable cases brought forward by trinitarian missionaries are not the same. When Muslims speak about Tawhid, we are saying that God is One. God being One is littered throughout the Quran and Hadith. However, the trinity, or God of the Bible being described as three in one is nowhere to be seen. Shaykh Dr. Shabir Ally noted beautifully, even if we don’t use the word Tawheed, Muslims can repeat what the Quran and Hadith corpus say, “God is One” or “There is no god but Allah” (La ilaha illallah: Q. 47:19, 37:35-36) and:

“Allah! La ilaha illa HUWA (none has the right to be worshipped but HE), the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists.” – Quran 3:2 (Mushin Khan Translation)

And:

“Allah, there is no god except HE, The Ever-Living, The Superb Upright Sustainer.” – Quran 3:2 (Dr. Ghali Translation)

We have no issue if one does not use the word Tawhid. On the other side though, trinitarians have a major problem on their hand, the concept nor is the word trinity anywhere to be found in the New Testament.

Given that the claim was made that Tawhid is not found in our scriptures (Quran And Hadith), we will present authentic Hadith where the word Tawheed is clearly mentioned.

In the following Hadith the word Tawheed is mentioned by Prophet Muhammed (p) in  reference to some Muslims who would be thrown in the hell-fire for their major sins they had committed, and later put in paradise:

“2597. Jabir narrated that the Messenger of Allah said: ‘Some of the people of TAWHID will be punished in the Fire until they are coals. Then the Mercy (of Allah) will reach them, they will be taken out and tossed at the doors of Paradise will pour water over them, and they will sprout as the debris carried by the flood sprouts, then they will enter Paradise.’” (Sahih) (English Translation of Jami At-Tirmidhi, compiled by: Imam Hafiz Abu Eisa Mohammad Ibn Eisa At-Tirmidhi [Translated by: Abu Khaliyl (USA), Ahadith edited and referenced by: Hafiz Abu Tahir Zubair Ali Za’I, Final review by: Islamic Research Section Darussalam, Maktaba Dar-us-salam, 2007], volume 4, page 574 (Book 37. Chapters On The Description Of Hell From The Messenger Of Allah. Chapter 10. Something Else Regarding The Story Of The Last Of The People Of The Fire To Leave It. The Description Of Hell. Hadith No. 2597))

Here is a screenshot for the above quote [1]:

Br. Bassam Zawadi provided plenty of other Hadith reports where the word Tawheed is mentioned. Here are two of them:

“The Messenger of Allah came with two sheep both with big horns, then he reclined to one side and said: Bismillah wa Allahu Akbar, O Allah! Be with Muhammad and his family, then reclined to the other and said: Bismillah wa Allahu Akbar, O Allah! Be with Muhammad and his Ummah who testify/bear witness to you of/with TAWHEED and testify/bear witness to this statement/declaration. (Narrated by Jabir ibn Abdullah, collected by Ibn Hajr al-Asqalani, Matalib al-Aliya volume 3, page 32 (Hassan))
إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أتي بكبشين أملحين أقرنين عظيمين موجوأين ، فأضجع أحدهما وقال : بسم الله والله أكبر ، اللهم عن محمد وآل محمد ، ثم أضجع الآخر وقال : بسم الله والله أكبر ، اللهم عن محمد وأمته من شهد لك بالتوحيد ، وشهد لي بالبلاغ
الراوي: جابر بن عبدالله المحدث:ابن حجر العسقلاني – المصدر: المطالب العالية – الصفحة أو الرقم: 3/32
خلاصة حكم المحدث: إسناده حسن”

And:

“Aas ibn Wael made a vow in pre-Islamic era of ignorance to sacrifice 100 camels and Hisham ibn al-Aas to sacrifice 50 camels; Umar asked the Prophet about it and he said: But if your father had affirmed TAWHEED, then fasted and admitted it, that would have been of benefit to him. (Narrated by Jad Amro ibn Shu’aib Musnad al-Ahmad volume 10, page 176 (Saheeh))
أنَّ العاصَ بنَ وائِلٍ نذَر في الجاهِلِيَّةِ أنْ يَنحَرَ مِائَةَ بَدَنَةٍ وأنَّ هِشامَ بنَ العاصِ نحَر حِصَّتَه خمسينَ بَدَنَةً وأنَّ عُمَرَ سأَل النبيَّ صلَّى اللهُ عليه وسلَّم عن ذلك فقال: أمَّا أبوكَ فلو كان أقرَّ بالتوحيدِ فصُمتَ وتصَدَّقتَ عنه نفَعَه ذلك
الراوي: جد عمرو بن شعيب المحدث:أحمد شاكر – المصدر: مسند أحمد – الصفحة أو الرقم: 10/176
خلاصة حكم المحدث: إسناده صحيح”

Thanks to brother Adeel, from Qurananswers.me site, he took his time out to translate the above Hadith reports, Jazak’Allahu khayran.

In conclusion, in this brief article we showed clear evidence from our scriptures that the word Tawhid is mentioned by Prophet Muhammed (p). So the claim being made by missionaries that Tawheed is not mentioned in our Islamic scriptures is untrue. As shown, Tawheed is clearly present in our sources.

Addendum:

A new piece of information I received from a dear brother:

When the Prophet sent Mu’adh to Yemen, he said to him, “You are going to a nation from the people of the Scripture, so let the first thing to which you will invite them, be the Tauhid of Allah. If they learn that, tell them that Allah has enjoined on them, five prayers to be offered in one day and one night. And if they pray, tell them that Allah has enjoined on them Zakat of their properties and it is to be taken from the rich among them and given to the poor. And if they agree to that, then take from them Zakat but avoid the best property of the people.”
Arabic:
وَحَدَّثَنِي عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ أَبِي الأَسْوَدِ، حَدَّثَنَا الْفَضْلُ بْنُ الْعَلاَءِ، حَدَّثَنَا إِسْمَاعِيلُ بْنُ أُمَيَّةَ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ صَيْفِيٍّ، أَنَّهُ سَمِعَ أَبَا مَعْبَدٍ، مَوْلَى ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ يَقُولُ سَمِعْتُ ابْنَ عَبَّاسٍ، يَقُولُ لَمَّا بَعَثَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم مُعَاذًا نَحْوَ الْيَمَنِ قَالَ لَهُ ‏ “‏ إِنَّكَ تَقْدَمُ عَلَى قَوْمٍ مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ فَلْيَكُنْ أَوَّلَ مَا تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَى أَنْ يُوَحِّدُوا اللَّهَ تَعَالَى فَإِذَا عَرَفُوا ذَلِكَ فَأَخْبِرْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ فَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ خَمْسَ صَلَوَاتٍ فِي يَوْمِهِمْ وَلَيْلَتِهِمْ، فَإِذَا صَلُّوا فَأَخْبِرْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ زَكَاةً فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ تُؤْخَذُ مِنْ غَنِيِّهِمْ فَتُرَدُّ عَلَى فَقِيرِهِمْ، فَإِذَا أَقَرُّوا بِذَلِكَ فَخُذْ مِنْهُمْ وَتَوَقَّ كَرَائِمَ أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ ‏”‏‏.‏” (Sahih al-Bukhari volume 9, Book 93, Hadith 469 (Eng. Tran.))

In another version on this very same incident reported by Darqutni it is said:

“…so let your first thing that you call them to is the Monotheism of Allah (Tauheed-ullah).”
Arabic:
فَلْيَكُنْ أَوَّلَ مَا تَدْعُوهُمْ إِلَيْهِ تَوْحِيدُ اللَّهِ” (Sunan al–Darqutni in his Sunan 5/316)

So in Arabic the action of making the thing One (Waahid) is affirming Tawheed. This is a common characteristic when referring to the action in a nounal form where it transforms from Waahid to Tawheed. Therefore whenever Allah is affirmed of being One with the Arabic term Waahid this is the affirmation of Tawheed.

Here is one more report where the word Tawhid (Tauheed) is mentioned. A narration reported by at-Tabarani, Ibn Abi Asim, and Abu Nuaim al-Asfahani, on al-Harith ibn al-Harith al-Ghamadi:

“I said to my father, who are these people? He said, they are gathered against a Saba’i (one who has left the religion of his fathers) from among them. Then we looked and verily it was the MESSENGER OF ALLAH CALLING PEOPLE TO THE MONOTHEISM of Allah the Almighty and Majestic (Tauheed Allah Azz wa Jall), and to faith, until the noontime of the day came, and then the people left him, and a women came crying with her neck open carrying a cup and a cloth, and she gave him it and he drank and performed ablution and raised his head and he said to her, O my daughter cover your neck and do not worry about your father…”
Arabic:
الحارث بن الحارث الغامدي ، قال : قلت لأبي : ما هذه الجماعة ؟ قال : هؤلاء قوم اجتمعوا على صابئ لهم قال : فتشرفنا فإذا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يدعو الناس إلى توحيد الله عز وجل والإيمان به حتى ارتفع النهار فتصدع عنه الناس ، وأقبلت امرأة قد بدا نحرها تبكي تحمل قدحا ومنديلا فناولته منها فشرب وتوضأ ثم رفع رأسه إليها فقال : « يا بنية خمري عليك نحرك ولا تخافي على أبيك غلبة ولا ذلا » فقلت : من هذه ؟ قالوا : هذه زينب ابنت (at-Tabarani in, Al-Kabir, 3373, Ibn Abi Asim in, al-Ahadeeth wa al-Mathani, 2403, and refer to, Jilbab al-Mar’ah al-Muslimah, page 79. Imam al-Haythami mentioned in Majma az-zawaid and classed the narrators to be trustworthy)

And:

“Amr bin Shu`aib narrated from his father, who narrated from his grandfather that al-Aas bin Wa’il took an oath during the pre-Islamic times (Jahiliyyah) that he would slaughter one hundred goats and that Hisham bin al-`Aas slaughtered his share of 50 goats. Then `Amr bin al-`Aas asked the Prophet (P) about that, and he said, “As for your father, if he affirmed TAWHID and you fast and give charity on his behalf, it would benefit him.”
Arabic:
أما أبوك فلو كان أقر بالتوحيد، فصمت وتصدقت عنه نفعه ذلك “. (Imam Ahmad narrated this, See silsilah saheeha (484))

And:

“The Prophet (p) said, “There was a man who came before you who did no good whatsoever, except TAWHID. When his time to die came, he said to his family, ‘Look, if I die have my body burnt to coal, then make them into ashes and wait for a windy day and throw half of the ashes in the desert, and half in the ocean. By Allah, if Allah decides to punish my body, He will punish it like none other in the universe.’ When he died they did as he requested to his body, and Allah ordered the desert to gather whatever it had of him in it and the ocean likewise, until he stood in Allah’s Grasp. Allah U said, ‘O son of Adam, what caused you to do what you did?’ He said, ‘O Lord, I did so out of fear of you’ – and in another narration, ‘out of awe in you, and you know best–.’ The Prophet said, ‘Allah forgave him because of it, and he did no good actions, besides TAWHID.’”
Arabic:
كانَ رجلٌ ممَّن كان قبلكم لم يعمل خيراً قطُّ؛ إلا التوحيد، فلما احتُضر قال لأهله: انظروا: إذا أنا متُّ أن يحرِّقوه حتى يدعوه حمماً، ثم اطحنوه، ثم اذروه في يوم ريح، [ثم اذروا نصفه في البر، ونصفه في البحر، فوالله؛ لئن قدر الله عليه ليعذبنه عذاباً لا يعذبه أحداً من العالمين] ، فلما مات فعلوا ذلك به، [فأمر الله البر فجمع ما فيه، وأمر البحر فجمع ما فيه] ، فإذا هو [قائم] في قبضة الله، (Collected in, As-Sahihah, 3048)

The last two Hadith reports was taken from the following site.

It is absolutely clear here that the word Tawhid (Tauheed) is mentioned in our Islamic sources.

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References:

[1] “COMMENTS:
Those from among the BELIEVERS IN ISLAMIC MONOTHEISM that will be thrown into Hell shall be punished in the Fire until they turn into coals. Eventually, through Allah’s mercy, they shall be tossed on to the doors of Paradise so that the people of Paradise sprinkle water over them and they sprout speedily and enter their coveted place, Paradise.” ((English Translation of Jami At-Tirmidhi, compiled by: Imam Hafiz Abu Eisa Mohammad Ibn Eisa At-Tirmidhi [Translated by: Abu Khaliyl (USA), Ahadith edited and referenced by: Hafiz Abu Tahir Zubair Ali Za’I, Final review by: Islamic Research Section Darussalam, Maktaba Dar-us-salam, 2007], volume 4, page 574)
[2] The following Hadith is not direct word for word from Prophet Muhammed, but later narrators who said it:

“3122. It was narrated from Aishah and Abu Hurairah that when the Messenger of Allah wanted to offer a sacrifice, he bought two large, fat, horned, black-and-white, castrated rams. He slaughtered one on behalf of his nation, for whoever testified to Allah with MONOTHEISM and that he had conveyed (the Message), and he slaughtered the other on behalf of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.” (Hasan) (English Translation of Sunan Ibn Majah, compiled by Imam Muhammad Bin Yazeed Ibn Majah Al-Qazwini [Ahadith edited, researched and referenced by Hafiz Abu Tahir Zubair Ali Za’I, Translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab (Canada), Edited by Huda Khattab (Canada), Final review by Abu Khaliyl (USA), Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, 2007], volume 4, page 255 (Book 26. Chapters On Sacrifices. Chapter 1. The Sacrifices Of The Messenger of Allah. Hadith No. 3122))

Screenshot for the above quote:

“COMMENTS:
a. Sacrificing a castrated animal is allowed; it is not considered a defect.
b. Sacrificing one animal for an entire family is allowed.
c. Offering a sacrifice on behalf of others is allowed.” (English Translation of Sunan Ibn Majah, compiled by Imam Muhammad Bin Yazeed Ibn Majah Al-Qazwini [Ahadith edited, researched and referenced by Hafiz Abu Tahir Zubair Ali Za’I, Translated by Nasiruddin al-Khattab (Canada), Edited by Huda Khattab (Canada), Final review by Abu Khaliyl (USA), Maktaba Dar-us-Salam, 2007], volume 4, page 256)
[3] A Tabi’i, a person who met the Prophet’s companions mentioned the word Tawhid (بِالتَّوْحِيدِ). It is a very long report, so I will leave readers with a link where you can see the full report here, and here.

Tagged as: Hadith, Islam, monotheism, Quran, TAWHEED, TAWHID, Trinity