Definition of Iman and its pillars

Definition of Iman (‫إِي َمان‬ īmān, literary is faith or belief, in Islamic theology denotes a believer's faith in
the metaphysical aspects of Islam.[1][2]Its most simple definition is the belief in the six articles of faith,
known as arkān al-īmān.
The term iman has been delineated in both the Quran and the Hadith of Gabriel.[3] According to the
Quran, iman must be accompanied by righteous deeds and the two together are necessary for entry
into Paradise.[4] In the Hadith of Gabriel, iman in addition to Islam and ihsan form the three dimensions
of the Islamic religion.
There exists a debate both within and outside Islam on the link between faith and reason in religion, and
the relative importance of either. Several scholars contend that faith and reason spring from the same
source and hence must be harmonious.[5][who?]

Literal and Terminological meaning of Iman:

In Arabic, iman (‫إِي َمان‬ ʾīmān), means "faith". It is the verbal noun of   َ‫آ َمن‬ "to believe (in something)."
In a hadith, Muhammad defined iman as "a knowledge in the heart, a voicing with the tongue, and an
activity with the limbs. Faith is confidence in a truth which is real. When people have confidence, they
submit themselves to that truth. It is not sufficient just to know the truth, but the recognition of the heart
should be expressed by the tongue which is the manifestation of the intelligence and at last to reflect this
confidence in their activities.[6]
Hamiduddin Farahi, while explaining the meaning of imān in his exegesis, wrote:
The root of imān is amn. It is used in various shades of meaning. One of its derivatives is mu'min,
which is among the noble names of Allah because He gives peace to those who seek His refuge. This
word is also an ancient religious term. Hence the certitude which exists with humility, trust and all the
conditions and corollaries of adherence to a view is called imān and he who professes faith in Allah, in
His signs and in His directives and submits himself to Him and is pleased with all His decisions is a
mu'min.

The Six Articles of Faith: Faith (iman) is generally outlined using the six articles of faith:

1. Belief in Allah, The Only God

2. Belief in the Angels
3. Belief in Holy Books (Quran)[9][10]
4. Belief in the Prophets
5. Belief in the Day of Judgement
6. Belief in God's predestination
Of these, the first five are mentioned together in the Qur'an [11] and by Muhammad, while including a
corollary of belief in Allah – the good and evil of fate ordained by God – has referred to all six together
in the following manner in the Hadith of Gabriel: "Iman is that you believe in God and His Angels and
His Books and His Messengers and the Hereafter and the good and evil fate [ordained by your Allah].
[Sahih Muslim, 22, no 3]
Another similar narration ascribed to Muhammad is: Ibn Abbas narrates that the Angel Jibril once asked
the Prophet: "Tell me what is Iman?" The Prophet replied: "Iman is to believe in Allah, the Day of
Judgment, His (Allah's) Angels, Books and Prophets and to believe in life after death; and to believe in
Paradise and the Fire, and the setting up of the Mizan (scales) to weigh the deeds; and to believe in the
Divine Decree, the good and the bad of it (all). Jibril then asked him: "If I do all this will I be with
Iman?" The Prophet said: "When you have done all of this, you will be having Iman."[Musnad Ahmad]

Delineation in the Quran and Hadith: The three dimensions of Islam including iman.
In the Quran, iman is one of the 10 qualities which cause one to be the recipient of God's mercy and
reward.[Al Ahzab: 35] The Quran states that faith can grow with remembrance of God [Al Anfal:
02] The Qur'an also states that nothing in this world should be dearer to a true believer than faith.[At
Tawbah: 24]

Muhammad (S) is reported to have said that he gained sweetness of faith who was pleased to accept
Allah as Lord, Islam as religion and Muhammad as prophet.[Shahih Muslim: 38, no 151] He also said
that no one can be a true believer unless he loves the Prophet more than his children, parents and
relatives [Al Bukhari: 6 no 15, Muslim: 41 no 169]. At another instance, he has remarked that it is this
love with God and Muhammad after which a person can be aware of the real taste of faith.[Al-Bukhari,
6-7, no 16, 21, Muslim, 40, no. 165]
Iman is also the subject of a supplication uttered by Muhammad to God: O God! I have resigned myself
to You and I have consigned my matter to you and have taken support from You fearing Your grandeur
and moving towards You in anticipation. There is no refuge and shelter after running away from You,
and if there is, it is with You. Lord! I have professed faith in your Book which You have revealed and
have professed faith in the Prophet you have sent as a Messenger [45, no 247].
This is based on the following Hadith ascribed to Muhammad:
Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet said: "Iman has more than 70 branches. The most excellent
among these branches is the saying of "Laa ilaaha ill Allah" (there is no God but Allah), and the smallest
branch is to remove an obstacle from the wayside. And Haya (modesty) is an important branch of Iman."
[Muslim].

Faith and deeds:

In Islam, it is essential that there exist harmony and concord between faith and deeds. Farāhī has
explained this aspect in his tafsīr in the following manner:[30]
Righteous deeds are mentioned in the Qur’ān right after faith in the capacity of an explanation ... In the
case of faith, the need for its explanation is obvious: the place of faith is the heart and the intellect. In
matters of intellect and heart, not only can a person deceive others but also at times he himself can
remain in deception. He considers himself to be a mu’min (believer) whereas actually he is not. For this
reason, two testimonies needed to be required for it: a person's words and a person's deeds. Since words
can be untrue, hence a person who only professes faith through words is not regarded as a mu’min and it
was deemed essential that a person's deeds also testify to his faith. Thus the Qur’ān said: O you who
believe with the tongue! Believe through your deeds.[Al Nisa: 136].