OPEN BOOK TEST RKUD 3190_DR.

HASLINA BINTI IBRAHIM_2014188

NAME: AMINAH HAZIQAH BINTI TAJUDDIN

MATRIC NUMBER: 2014188

Religious pluralism refers to the diversity of religions, but the matter is not about the quantity
of religions, but the numerous and diverse truth-claims that those religions exhibit. The
guiding framework of religious pluralism is very secular, the propagators are trying to go
away from any religious affiliation, because according to them, the frameworks should be
universal and fit all religion, if not it will be labelled as a bias framework. Their interpretation
of religion is human, not revelation where they give mundane to human reasoning and human
experience. They perceived that the way humans understand religion is based on their
understanding and their experience. According to them, superiority will obstruct man from
living together, the only way to get out from the dilemma of superiority and inferiority is to
perceive all religions as equal. This framework is definitely contradicting with the Tawhidic
framework.
The concept of Tawhid helps Muslim to develop a philosophical framework in
understanding the reality around us including the existence of other religions. It was obligated
by the Qur’an because the Qur’an explains how Muslims should deal with the diversity. The
concept of reality from the perspective of Tawhid is that everything is created and sustained
by God. In the context of human relationship with God, the concept of Tawhid explains about
the dimension of man towards God. Surah al-A’raf verse 172: "Am I not your Lord?" They
said, "Yes, we have testified". This verse showed that we testify that Allah is the one that
created and sustained us. This is the concept of reality that Allah has explained in the
Tawhidic framework that there exists plurality of existence in terms of the existence which is
God as the creator and sustainer and also the man as the creation.
The concept of Tawhid also explained to us about the relationship between the two
realities, which is the realities of the Creator and the realities of creation. Tawhid does not
mean single only, but Tawhid also explains about how the Creator and creation relates with
each other. Allah created everything, including the diversity of religions. We must believe
that Allah does not create anything in vain, there must be a purpose for every creation.
Tawhid is concerned about the purpose of every creation to show that there is a logical
explanation for everything that has been created and that it was a Tawhidic way to understand
the reality. The same goes to the existence of other religions. The concept of Tawhid helps
Muslims to understand that the existence of the concept of Tawhid is with purpose.
Allah explained about the ontology of man and creations other than man where other
creations are made to serve man. In other words, the other creations are made subservient to
man because man has capacity, intellectuals, and rationale to think what is good and what is
bad. Because of this capacity, man believes in God by choice, not by design because they
have the freedom to choose, unlike other beings who are designated to be as such. The
freedom that was given to humans makes them have responsibility. Allah have sent many
prophets to communicate the message of Tawhid to the people and the essential message of
prophet is that Allah does not leave man without guidance. Men were given the revelation to
find the truth, they have to look for guidance to find the truth. Men was sent to this world
with certain mission to accomplish in this world they have to actualize the will of God.
The concept of tawhid explains the ontological, epistemological, and axiological
context of reality. The ontology explained about what makes the reality, meanwhile
epistemological explains about how do we know about reality which was explained in the
Qur’an where it mentioned that if we are failed to be guided by the revelation, we will never
know that our existence here was the existence that was created by God and we have the
shariah to help us understand how to live as a Muslims.
OPEN BOOK TEST RKUD 3190_DR. HASLINA BINTI IBRAHIM_2014188

Also, the syahadah is the essence of Islam, it implicates the existence of uluhiyyah
and ubudiyyah of God. It is essential for Muslims to understand that the way of the Qur’an
project the idea of existence of others, or the pluralistic phenomenon of the nature is based on
the syahadah itself. And syahadah also helps us to understand that the essence of Islam is to
help the Muslims to understand the reality of this world where we can carry on believing in
what we believe but at the same time also to understand the reality around us.
So, in conclusion Tawhid is a worldview of Islam that helps us to understand the view
of Islam for here before, present and also the hereafter. Tawhidic framework helps us to
understand and comprehend the reality and because of this concept of Tawhid, we are able to
make sense of our existence and the rest of the existence and why God makes them. The
reality is not singular like what pluralists claimed, but the reality is plural to the extent that
we know that there is the existence of God and there is the existence of non-God which is the
creation. Regarding the existence of many religions, there are two verses in the Qur’an that
help us to understand the existence of other religions, which is surah al-Kafirun which
explains how the Qur'an enlightens the existence of other religions. This verse helps Muslims
to internalise the meaning of coexistence that other religions can coexist, but they can
continue to believe in what they believe, and their belief does not reflect our belief and vice
versa. Also, the Qur’an encouraged Muslims to get to know each other in surah al-Hujurat
verse 13. God is not bias because every man is the same in His eyes, He does not have any
preference for certain race or certain group of people because Allah creates men to actualize
His will. This verse also explains that Allah said that one thing that makes man good in the
eyes of Him is when men fear Him regardless of where they came from. It is clear that man
should not live in exclusiveness because they have to be together with the society and get to
know with each other. The existence of many religions is the ontological will of Allah as the
creator of everything and everyone. When He created many religions, it was part of His
design because He is the God, He has the liberty to do so and his legal will is that he wants
man to submit to Him by choice, not by design.