La Ilaha Illa Allah and the Explanation of the Truth of Monotheism (Tawhid) in Relation to the Human Being
In everyday life, a person constantly moves among different desires. One day the mind is occupied with work and income, another day with social status, emotional relationships, or concerns about the future. If someone is asked what they ultimately want, they usually give answers that are immediate and tangible: peace, success, affection, security, or progress. Yet the issue is that these responses do not always reveal the deepest layer of human desire. Sometimes a person reaches something they have pursued for a long time, yet still feels they have not arrived at the final point. This experience shows that there is a serious difference between everyday desires and the ultimate purpose of the human being.
To clarify this point, imagine someone who has spent years striving to achieve a particular position. After attaining that position, they may feel satisfied for a while, but soon they again experience a kind of inner emptiness or incompleteness. This sense of incompleteness cannot be explained simply by changing external goals. It appears that within the human being there exists a deeper longing that cannot be fully satisfied by limited things. From this point, the truth of monotheism gains a new meaning. Monotheism is not merely a mental teaching or a doctrinal formula; rather, it relates to the question of what the human being truly seeks at the deepest level of existence and what can become their ultimate object of desire.
Within this framework, La ilaha illa Allah (There is no deity but Allah) is not merely a sentence to be uttered; rather, it expresses a truth that relates both to God and to the human being. If this truth is properly understood, many issues related to religion, knowledge, human development, and the direction of life become clearer. For this reason, in order to understand monotheism one must speak both about divine truth and the existential structure of the human being as these two are not separate in this discussion.
La Ilaha Illa Allah as the Pivot for Understanding the Truth of Monotheism
La ilaha illa Allah holds a pivotal position within the core of religion because it relates both to the truth of Allah and of the human being. On one hand, Allah is introduced as the comprehensive Essence encompassing all attributes; on the other hand, the human being, in the authentic layer of their existence seeks perfection. For this reason, the relationship between the human being and God is not merely a conventional or instructional one, but is rooted in the truth of human existence. This means the human is not just commanded to desire God, but in the very core of their being, they are so constructed that their ultimate quest cannot be fulfilled by anything other than God.
This point causes the truth of tawhid to go beyond the level of a theoretical definition. Here, the issue is not just that God is one, but rather why the human must recognize only Him as their Ilah (deity/beloved). The answer is that since Allah is absolute perfection, He is the only being capable of responding to the ultimate longing of the human being. Anything else, no matter how desirable in its own place, is limited and therefore cannot occupy the position of the ultimate Deity.
From this perspective, a correct understanding of this principle is the key to understanding religion. If someone reads religion without this pivot, its parts will appear scattered and separate. However, if this principle is grasped, it becomes clear that various parts of religion are formed around one central truth. Consequently, monotheism in this sense is not merely one part of the religion, but the foundation for understanding all its parts.
The truth of monotheism is not completed only at the level of mental reasoning. A person may understand through reason that God is the Truth and that monotheism is correct, but this understanding can still remain at the level of “knowing.” True realization occurs only when this knowledge reaches the deeper layers of human existence.
This supra-rational dimension exists in all humans, but it does not reach maturity in many. While the possibility of reaching this perception exists for everyone, its actualization is not uniform. When this part reaches maturity, the human being does not repeat La ilaha illa Allah merely through instruction or logic, but finds it with their own true self. In such a state, belief is transferred from the level of the mind to the level of existence.
The importance of this distinction explains many differences between outward faith and true faith. Two people may utter the same sentence, but their relationship with that sentence is not the same. One “knows” it and the other “lives” it. Therefore, if the supra-rational faculty has not reached maturity, stating this truth can take an estimative form; it means the words may be present, but deep belief in the oneness of God has not yet settled within the human soul.
Human Truth and the Quest for the Infinite
To better understand this, note that humans are not merely a set of instincts, emotions, or intellective abilities. We possess various dimensions: inanimate, vegetative, animal, and intellective. This is the realm where our capacity for the infinite and our love for God truly reside.
To say humans seek the infinite does not mean we are always consciously aware of it. Often, this quest appears disguised as limited, worldly desires. However, the persistent sense of emptiness we feel even after achieving our goals proves that finite things can never satisfy our deepest longing.
Ultimately, our true self is bound to God, and our existence is a continuous journey toward Him. Humans are not static beings; in our deepest layers, we are moving toward the Truth. Therefore, stagnation, confusion, and boredom are unnatural states—they simply indicate that we have strayed from our true direction. When we align with our truth, we naturally move forward and find deep joy and purpose in that journey.
La Ilaha Illa Allah and the True Beloved of the Human Being
One of the important results of this analysis is that if the supra-rational dimension is activated in a person, they realize that there is no beloved but God. This statement does not mean denying human and material beloveds; rather, it means that none of these loves can take the place of the ultimate Beloved. A person can love their family, wealth, home, or social status, but if any of these are placed higher than God, the true order of existence is disrupted.
This issue has also been stated in the Quran: If fathers, children, spouses, relatives, wealth, trade, and homes are more beloved than God, the human will stray from the path of guidance [1]. This verse is important because it does not tell us to reject worldly things completely; instead, it teaches us to prioritize what we love in the right order. The main question is not what things a person loves; the question is who is our ultimate beloved.
The human soul naturally seeks the infinite. If a person lacks this desire, their growth has essentially stalled, as if they are turning away from the very source of their eternal existence. In this light, God is not just a deity to be worshipped, but humanity’s ultimate beloved. Once a person realizes this truth, they will desire a deep relationship with God, not just a superficial or customary one.
Religion as the Interpretation of La Ilaha Illa Allah
In this intellectual system, the truth of religion is nothing but the negation of every beloved except Allah and the interpretation of this very principle. In other words, religion is not a scattered collection of commands and beliefs just placed side by side. All its components return to one center, and that center is the oneness of God. Without seeing this center, religion just looks like a collection of random parts, losing the meaning that ties it all together.
Based on this foundation, the mission of the prophets is also interpreted in line with introducing this same truth. They all came to acquaint the human being with their true Beloved and to free them from ultimate dependence on anything other than God. This liberation is the essence of the truth of monotheism. Consequently, monotheism is not just one of the religious teachings, but the guiding principle for all other teachings; wherever there is talk of guidance, growth, ma’rifa, and worship, this principle is present in the background.
On the other hand, religion, as a rite and a rule, is the path to reaching the same truth that the human being seeks within their own essence. This means religion is not something outside of human truth, but a response to their existential structure. This structure is fundamentally designed to genuinely recognize the oneness of God. Since the human seeks absolute perfection, they need a way to guide them on this path. From this perspective, religion is the external form of the very relationship established internally between the human being and God.
The Relationship between the Truth of Monotheism, Prophethood, and Imamate
One of the important results of this discussion is that the knowledge of other principles of religion also relies on the recognition of monotheism. Without understanding monotheism, a person will not correctly grasp prophethood, Imamate, and revelation. The reason for this priority is clear: Unless a person recognizes Allah, they will not recognize His messenger, and until they recognize the messenger, they will not understand the divine proof (Hujjah) in his true place.
The Dua’a e Marefat e Imam [2] also demonstrates this same order: first, gaining ma’rifa about Allah, then about the Messenger of Allah (Peace be upon him and his family), and after that, about the Proof (Hujjah). This sequence informs us of an intellectual and existential order. In this arrangement, monotheism is the foundation, and other principles are built upon it. If the foundation is not clear, subsequent recognitions will not be stable.
Furthermore, this principle is a criterion for assessing the state of the human being. Anyone who wishes to understand what state they are in, how much they have grown, and how close they have become to bliss must measure their relationship with La ilaha illa Allah. The issue is not just saying this sentence; rather, it is seeing to what extent the negation of false deities has progressed within them and how far the establishment of a genuine connection with their true Beloved has gone.
In conclusion, monotheism in this view looks both at the truth of God and the truth of the human being. Allah is Absolute Perfection and has all the attributes of perfection, and the human being, in the deepest dimension of their existence, seeks nothing but this very Absolute Perfection. Therefore, the relationship between the human being and God is a real and existential relationship, not merely a mental or verbal one.
This truth becomes apparent in the supra-rational dimension—where the human being passes from the stage of “knowing” and reaches the stage of “existential belief.” At this stage, God becomes the True Beloved; the path forward becomes clear, and religion is understood as the interpretation and roadmap of that relationship. Conversely, if this dimension does not reach maturity, words and concepts, however present, have not yet found their way into the depths of human existence.
Therefore, monotheism in this analysis is not just a doctrinal principle, but a criterion for understanding the human being, religion, and measuring one’s existential movement. The more a person clarifies their relationship with this truth, the more deeply they will know themselves, the path of life, and the structure of religion. For this reason, La ilaha illa Allah is not considered merely a monotheistic statement, but the summary of the truth of both God and the human being.
References
[1]. Quran, 9:24
[2]. “O Allah, make Yourself known to me, for if You do not make Yourself known to me, I will not know Your Prophet. O Allah, make Your Prophet known to me, for if You do not make Your Prophet known to me, I will not know Your Proof (Hujjah). O Allah, make Your Proof known to me, for if You do not make Your Proof known to me, I will stray from my religion.”