The Decisive Criterion Between The Friends of Allah & The Friends of Shaytan (P/B)

This work is a translation of Shaikh Abdul Aziz bin Baz’s book ‘Ad-Duroos Al-Muhimmah li-Ammatil-Ummah.’ It contains concise lessons that explain the fundamental teachings of Islam. This book covers a wide range of basic information such as the meaning of Tawhid (Islamic monotheism), the categories and implications of Shirk (polytheism), the regulations of prayer, and Islamic morals and manners. As the title implies, these are truly essential lessons for everyone who is concerned with the correctness of his Islamic beliefs and acts of worship.

In all the divine revelations there is a constant warning that wrongdoers may end up in Hell-fire, though Allah’s kindness and mercy are extended to many people. Reading about the Hell-fire enables one to know it, fear it, and try utmost to keep oneself away from it through correct beliefs and good deeds. The more one knows about Hell-fire, the more he or she strives to be saved from its reach. Relying on statements from the Holy Qur’an and the Hadith, this book enables the reader to have a realistic picture of Hell-fire’s torments. It may be enough to know that it is a raging fire, but detailed knowledge of it, as displayed in this book, will strengthen a person’s belief and eventually, Allah willing, make him or her seek for and remain steadfast on the path to salvation. This is an indispensable book for believers and non-believers alike. Hell-fire: Its Torments and Denizens is an abridged, summarized version of Siddiq Hasan Khan’s book about the Hell-fire.

A lengthy process, rich in remarkable and thought-provoking events, including compelling encounters with Islamic philosophy, led the author to embrace Islam. His experiences since that time – such as his pilgrimages to Makkah – further deepened his understanding of, and identification with, this “fastest growing religion in Europe.” This “Diary” is, however, much more than a recorded soliloquy. It is a lively introduction to Islam as such – developed in the spiritual confrontation of a Muslim intellectual of European background with the ideology and value system of post-industrial western society.