ABSTRACT
The Muslim conception of God is of an all-knowing, all-powerful being, who, after creating the world and all that is in it, sent prophets and messengers to humankind. The prophets and messengers were given the responsibility of informing humankind of God’s nature, and of demanding humankind’s unconditional obedience to God. Obedience to God consists of submitting to his demands, and his demands are to be found in a set of rules and regulations which some (though not all) prophets and messengers have promulgated on God’s command. In Muslim discourse, these rules and regulations are collectively known as the sharī ʿa, and by obeying the sharī ʿa, Muslims demonstrate their total submission to God, thereby gaining benefits in the next life.
