The Islamic Studies series of books by the prolific writer and scholar Dr. Bilal Philips are part of a meticulously written series intended to guide young Muslims in a manner that helps them acquire a thorough practical and spiritual foundation. This series have been generally acknowledged as an excellent introduction set to the principles of the Islamic faith, with core sciences discussed and explored, for both the new Muslim as well as the old Muslim wishing to brush up on the fundamentals.

iterally tawheed means “unification” (making something one) or “asserting
oneness,” and it comes from the Arabic verb ـد

) which itself
means to unite, unify, or consolidate.1 However, when the term tawheed is
used in reference to Allaah (i.e. tawheedullaah)

, it means realizing and affirming
Allaah’s unity in all of man’s actions which directly or indirectly relate to Him. It
is the belief that Allaah’s One, without partner in His dominion (ruboobeeyah),
One without similitude in His essence and attributes (asmaa was sifaat), and One
without rival in His divinity and in worship (ulooheeyah ‘ibaadah). These three
aspects form the basis for the categories into which the science of tawheed has
been traditionally divided. The three overlap and are inseparable to such a degree
that whoever omits any one aspect has failed to complete the requirements of
tawheed. The omission of any of the above mentioned aspects of tawheed is
referred to as shirk (which literally means “sharing” but here signifies) the
association of partners with Allaah. In Islamic terms this association is in fact
idolatry.
Because of this principle of tawheed, the Islamic belief in God is uniquely
unitarian and Islaam is counted among the world’s monotheistic religions along
with Judaism and Christianity. However, according to the Islamic unitarian
concept (tawheed), Christianity is classified as polytheism and Judaism is
considered to be a subtle form of idolatry.