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Angels in Islam
“Angels
are unseen beings of a luminous and spiritual substance that
act as intermediaries between God and the visible world.
Belief in their existence enters into the definition of
faith itself: "The Messenger believes in what was sent down
to him from his Lord, and the believers: Each one believes
in God, His angels, His Books, and His Messengers" (Quran
II:285; cf. II:177, IV:136).
The
word for angel, malak, whose root meaning is "messenger",
occurs more than eighty times in the Quran and repeatedly in
the Hadith.
The Islamic concepts of creation, revelation,
prophecy, the events that occur in the world, worship, the
spiritual life, death, resurrection, and the central
position of man in the cosmos cannot be understood without
reference to the angels.
In
philosophical and Sufi texts, angelology is often an
essential component of both cosmology and spiritual
psychology, since the angels enter into the definition of
both the macrocosm and the microcosm.
Angels in
Qur'an & Hadith
The
angels belong to the "world of the unseen" ('alam al-ghayb).
When the unbelievers asked why an angel had not been sent
down with the Prophet Muhammad, God replied, "Had We made
him an angel, yet assuredly We would have made him a man"
(VI, 9).
Even if
the angels were to be seen by the outward eye, they would
appear in forms suitable for the visible world (al-shahadah).
Moreover, if God had sent down an angel, then "the matter
would be judged, and no respite would be given [to mankind]"
(VI, 8)
For,
"upon the day when they see the angels -- no good tidings
that day for the sinners ... On the day when the heavens and
the clouds are split asunder and the angels are sent down in
a grand descent, the dominion that day will belong truly to
the All-Merciful; it will be a harsh day for the
unbelievers" (XXV, 25-26)
The Quran
often refers to the angels' eschatological function not only
at the resurrection, but also at death and in heaven and
hell: "The angel of death, who has been charged with you,
will gather you; then to your Lord you will be returned"
(XXXII, 11).
. . .
Islamic
spirituality can only be envisaged in connection with the
angels, who are intertwined with all dimensions of human
life as seen by Islam. The key events of sacred history,
such as the Revelation itself, the Prophet's Nocturnal
Ascent, and the battle of Badr, are explicit instances of
angelic intervention.”
http://www.islamia.com/
Praise be to Allaah.
Belief in angels is one of the six pillars of belief or
faith without which there is no faith. Whoever does not
believe in any of these pillars is not a believer (mu’min).
These pillars are belief in: Allaah, His angels, His Books,
His Messengers, the Last Day, and that predestination, both
good and bad, comes from Allah.
Angels are a part of the world of the Unseen which we cannot
comprehend. Allah has told us about them in many places in
the Qur’aan and via His Prophet Muhammad . There follows a
number of proven reports concerning the angels, which
hopefully will make you realize the greatness of the Creator
and the greatness of this religion which has told us so much
about them:
Of what are they created?
They are created from light, as ‘Aa’ishah reported: "The
Messenger of Allah said: ‘The angels are created from light,
just as the jinn are created from smokeless fire and mankind
is created from what you have been told about.’" (Reported
by Muslim, no. 2996).
When were
they created?
We have no knowledge of precisely when they were created,
because there is no text to tell us this. But they were
created before mankind for certain, because the Qur’aan says
(interpretation of the meaning): "Behold, your Lord said to
the angels: ‘I will create a vicegerent on earth.’ . . ."
[al-Baqarah 2:30] The fact that Allah told them of His
intention to create man indicates that they already existed.
Believe In Angels
by Sheikh Mohamad Salih El-Munajjid
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