When (S) was first spreading the message of Islam...

When (S) was first spreading the message of Islam, some people came to him and informed him that they were believers.

In reply, Allah revealed: "Say: 'You believe not, but say, 'We have submitted in Islam,' for faith has not yet entered your hearts.' " (49:14) The first successor to the Holy Prophet, Imam 'Ali (peace be upon him), has described the dynamic process of following Islam: I am defining Islam as no one has defined it before me: Islam is submission, submission is conviction, conviction is affirmation, affirmation is acknowledgement, acknowledgement is performance of obligations, and the performance of obligations is good deeds.[^4] [^1]: From the Arabic verb aslama.

[^2]: The Arabic word for God. [^3]: "Muslim" refers to a follower of the religion of Islam. [^4]: Nahj al-Balagha (The Peak of Eloquence), saying #125 Previous…