How to become Muslim: the Shahadah, what it means, and what to say

The words of the Shahadah

In English letters, the way it sounds:

Ashhadu an la ilaha illallah, wa ashhadu anna Muhammadan rasulullah.

In English: “I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.”

“Shahadah” means testimony, and it is two testimonies: the first about Allah, the second about His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). The Prophet said that Islam is built on five pillars, and the first of them is this testimony (Bukhari 8). The other four are establishing the prayer, giving Zakah, fasting Ramadan, and Hajj to the House of Allah for whoever is able.

What “there is no god but Allah” means

It means that no one has the right to be worshipped except Allah. Not a person, not a prophet, not an angel, not an idol, not anything in creation. Allah alone created everything, and Allah alone is worshipped.

Saying it goes together with rejecting everything that is worshipped besides Allah. The sentence has two halves for a reason: “no god” turns away from every false object of worship, and “but Allah” turns to the One who deserves it.

The book the course follows calls “la ilaha illa Allah” the highest branch of faith. Everything a Muslim does afterwards, from the prayer to kindness to neighbours, grows from it.

What “Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah” means

The second testimony asks four things of you:

1. 1Believe what he told us.
2. 2Obey what he commanded.
3. 3Avoid what he forbade.
4. 4Worship Allah only in the way he taught.

That last point is why Muslims learn the prayer, the fast and every other act of worship from his example rather than inventing their own. If you come from a Christian or Jewish background, it may help to know that all the Prophets had one religion and one creed, the worship of Allah alone; only their laws differed.

Saying it truthfully

In Islam, faith (Iman) is belief in the heart, saying with the tongue, and doing with the body. The Shahadah is all three. You say it aloud with your tongue; you believe its meaning in your heart; and you live it out with your body, above all in the prayer.

So the Shahadah is not a formula to be repeated without thought. It is a promise made with understanding. Faith also grows: it increases with obedience and decreases with disobedience. The day you say the Shahadah is a beginning, not a finish line.

The course's practice task for its first lesson on belief asks for exactly this: say the Shahadah slowly, thinking about its meaning.

What it opens: the pillars of Islam and of faith

Islam is surrendering to Allah by worshipping Him alone and obeying Him, built on the five pillars above. Faith has six pillars: belief in Allah, His angels, His Books, His Messengers, the Last Day, and Qadar (His Decree), its good and its bad. There is no faith without all six; disbelieving in one of them is disbelieving in all of them.

That may sound like a lot to take in at once. It is not meant to be. Each pillar is explained simply in Islam for beginners: what Muslims believe, and the course gives each one its own short lesson.

If you would like help

If you would like help with the words, or with what comes next, a teacher or your local masjid can help.

After the Shahadah: the first steps

1. 1Do Ghusl, the full wash. Someone who accepts Islam must do Ghusl, and the simplest way is enough: wash your whole body with water, with the intention. See How to do Ghusl step by step.
2. 2Begin learning the prayer, one step at a time. Start with How to make Wudu, then How to pray for beginners.
3. 3Write down the five pillars of Islam and the six pillars of faith somewhere private, and look at them each day this week. This is the course's practice task for its lesson on the Shahadah.

For the rest of the first week, in order, read I just became Muslim: what do I do now?. In the course, “The Shahadah: what you testified to” is the second lesson of 41, nine minutes long; you can see where it sits on the course syllabus.