#50 THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A MUSLIM, A MU’MIN AND A SIDDIQ

Wa alaykum salaam warahmatullaah wabarakaatuh.

Alhamdulillaah! We are sorry for the delay in responding to your question. We ask Allah to forgive us and you all in all, aameen.

Dear One, what you have asked is the question worth asking by every Muslim for with the ability to put it into practice is a guarantee of Firdaws for the Believer.

Know firstly that the word ‘Muslim’ and ‘Mu’min’ are among the twin words that the Ulamaa used to say “they diverge when they meet and meet when they diverge”.

What that means is that when they do not appear together in a sentence, they are made to mean the same thing. But when they appear together in the same sentence, then they take different meanings. ‘Muslim’ would mean the one who has testified to the Message of the Rasul – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – and is abiding by the rules that govern his faith. Whereas ‘Mu’min’ will mean he whose heart has settled and is in total agreement with the details of Islam.

Perhaps the verse that shows that more explicitly in the verse where Allaah – ta’aala – said:

ﻗﺎﻟﺖ ﺍﻷﻋﺮﺍﺏ ﺁﻣﻨﺎ ﻗﻞ ﻟﻢ ﺗﺆﻣﻨﻮﺍ ﻭﻟﻜﻦ ﻗﻮﻟﻮﺍ ﺃﺳﻠﻤﻨﺎ ﻭﻟﻤﺎ ﻳﺪﺧﻞ ﺍﻹﻳﻤﺎﻥ ﻓﻲ ﻗﻠﻮﺑﻜﻢ ﻭﺇﻥ ﺗﻄﻴﻌﻮﺍ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻭﺭﺳﻮﻝﻩ ﻻ ﻳﻠﺘﻜﻢ ﻣﻦ ﺃﻋﻤﺎﻟﻜﻢ ﺷﻴﺌﺎ ﺇﻥ ﺍﻟﻠﻪ ﻏﻔﻮﺭ ﺭﺣﻴﻢ
‏( 14 ‏)

“The Bedouin Arabs said ‘we have believed’ say (unto them) ‘you have not believed. Rather you have submitted to Islam as Imaan has yet to enter into your hearts’ and if you believe in Allah and His Messenger, then nothing of your good deeds will suffer reduction. Indeed Allaah is Forgiving Merciful.”

Al-Hujuraat 14

Imaam Al-Baghawi said in his tafsir of the verse quoted:

“So He mentioned that the reality of Imaan is to attest in the heart and that to attest and testify with the tongue and to, in apparency, display the practices of it with the body cannot be referred to as Imaan without testifying with the heart and been sincere (in the heart).”

Therefore the Mu’min is the one whose heart has totally accepted faith and he can feel the love of Imaan in his heart’s core whereas the Muslim is the one who has just testified to Imaan and is practicing the tenets.

Looked at differently, the Muslim is the one who has submitted himself to Islam and who is at peace with the tenets of Islam whereas the Mu’min is the one whose heart, limbs and tongue is safe from kufr and the whims and caprices of his own self.

As for the Siddiq – and what will make you know who the siddiq is? – he is the one whose heart, tongue and limbs are in synchrony with the truth everywhere and on every situation and condition.

Imaam Al-Qurtubi – rahimahullaah – said:

“As-Siddiq is the superlative and exaggerate verb form for ‘as-sidq’ (truth speaking) or ‘at-tasdiq’ (testifying to truth). So, the Siddiq is the one whose deeds confirm what he says with his tongue. And it is said that they are the best of the followers of the Prophets who are the front liners to believe and bear testimony to their truth such as Abubakr As-Siddiq”

Tafsiru Al-Qurtubi 5/272

As-Sa’adi – rahimahullaah – said:

“They are the ones who have perfected the levels of Imaan, pious deeds, beneficial knowledge and true certainty, and have alighted at its peak.”

Tafsiru As-Sa’adi page 841

Imaam Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyya – rahimahullaaah – said:

“The highest peak of truthfulness is the level of Siddiqiyya and it is the perfect followership of the Messenger – salallaahu alayhi wasallam – together with perfect sincerity to the Messengers.”

Madaariju As-Saalikin 2/258

Then you should know that the Siddiq is the one who follows the level of Prophet hood in perfection of Imaan and sincerity. The Siddiq obeys Allaah both in secret and in open and has never said a word or acted a deed except the word and deed of Truth borne in the Kitaab and the Sunnah.

May Allaah make us among the Siddiqin, aameen.