When the Prophet (peace be upon him) called on anyone to accept Islam, he told them the main principles that are necessary for every Muslim to know. Numerous are the Hadiths that tell us how the Prophet outlined the main principles of the Islamic faith. Jareer ibn Abdullah mentions that when he went to Madinah to meet the Prophet, he stayed with some people. “The Prophet sent for me to come over. When I went to see him, he asked me: ‘What brought you here, Jareer?’ My answer was: ‘I have come to embrace Islam in your presence, Messenger of God.’ He put a cover over me and spoke to his companions, saying: ‘If a man of noble position among his people comes to you, extend good hospitality to him.’ Then he said to me: ‘Jareer! I am asking you to believe that there is no deity other than God, and that I am God’s Messenger; and to believe in God, the Day of Judgment, the operation of God’s decree whether it brings good or bad, and to offer obligatory prayers and pay your zakah duty.’ I accepted what he said. Whenever he saw me after that, he received me with a smile.” (Related by Al-Tabarani and Al-Bayhaqi).
When we consider any number of the Hadiths that speak of how the Prophet spoke about Islam to newcomers, or to people asking him about his message, we note that he always concentrated on these basic concepts: Belief in God’s oneness, Muhammad’s message, the Day of Judgment, prayer and zakah. He may add one or two more things, but these are the essentials he concentrated on. Indeed these principles are common to all divine faiths, ever since the first prophet was sent. Without these there will be no religion in the proper sense of the word.
The first thing is to believe in God and the messenger who advocates this belief. The belief must be clear, stressing the fact that God is one, without partners. People must also believe in the Day of Judgment, when all people are resurrected and have to account for their deeds that they do in this life. It is this belief that lies behind all good action people do at any time. When they know that they have to stand in front of God and account for their deeds, they want to have a good record. Hence, they try to erase any slip by doing more good. Prayers provide a constant reminder that keeps people alert to their duties toward God and their fellow men. The Prophet is quoted as saying: “A faith without prayer is of no benefit.” It remains a theoretical idea until prayer brings it into the practical field. Zakah then establishes affinity and cooperation within society so that there is no greed, and the poor can share in the resources of the community.
A similar Hadith is reported by Hawshab Dhi Zulaym who says: “When God granted Muhammad (peace be upon him) victory and his position was on the ascendance I sent him a delegation of 40 men with Abd Sharr as their chief. When they arrived in Madinah carrying my letter, Abd Sharr asked the people there: ‘Which of you is Muhammad?’ People pointed to the Prophet and said: ‘This one is.’ He asked him: ‘What is this message you have come to us with? If it is good, we will follow you.’ The Prophet said: ‘You should attend regularly to prayer, pay your zakah, refrain from killing anyone, enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong.’ Abd Sharr said: ‘All this is fine. Put out your hand and I will give you my pledge of allegiance.’ The Prophet asked him about his name and he replied: ‘It is Abd Sharr.’ The Prophet said: ‘No. You are Abd Khayr.’ He then pledged his allegiance to him and accepted Islam. He sent his reply to Hawshab with him, and Hawshab declared his belief in Islam as well.” (Related by Abu Nuaym, Ibn Asakir and others).
It is obvious that the delegation was well aware, as was its chief and tribe, of the basic concept of belief that the Prophet advocated. Hence, there was no question about the renunciation of idolatry and the belief in God’s oneness. Therefore, their question concentrated on what would be required of them when they gave their pledges of allegiance and declared themselves Muslims. Aware of this, the Prophet gave them, in a nutshell, the basic principles of Islam, outlining its duties for the individual and the community. Hence, the Prophet’s address took the plural form even with individual duties like prayers and zakah. This was the proper form considering that the delegation consisted of 40 men.
The Prophet started with the two duties common to all divine faiths, namely prayer and zakah. He then followed that with the duty that they should “refrain from killing anyone.” People must live in security, feeling that there is no threat to their lives or property. Apparently the Prophet was aware that in their community there were people being killed and the killers could go about in immunity. Or it may be that this tribe was engaged in vengeance killing with some other tribes. Hence, the Prophet wanted an end to all that, highlighting this requirement immediately after those of prayer and zakah. Then the Prophet mentioned the major duty required of all Muslim communities in all generations to enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong. This is an important duty that gives a practical meaning to the fundamental Islamic concept of upholding good and fighting evil. A community where people accept evil practices and do not encourage good ones is bound to suffer and decline.
The delegation recognized the great advantages of a religion that included these duties, and they were ready to accept Islam. However, the Prophet asked the head of that delegation about his name. In pre-Islamic days, Arabs might choose some very peculiar names for their children. This man was called Abd Sharr. The first word means “servant of” and the second means “evil, wrong, bad action, etc.” The idea of giving a child such a name means to impart that when the child is a man, he will be brave and would not hesitate to inflict punishment on anyone who tries to stand in his, or his tribe’s, way. He will suffer no humiliation, but will inflict suffering on others in protection of his own rights.
The Prophet ended all such nonsense, making it clear that it is the right of the child to have a good name. He changed any name that had a bad meaning, or was in conflict with the basic principles of Islam. In this case the Prophet changed the man’s name to Abd Khayr, which means “the servant of goodness.”