Belief in the Angels and Revelations

Two of the six pillars of Islamic faith — belief in angels (al-mala'ikah) and belief in the revealed books (al-kutub) — are addressed in this chapter of al-Aqeedah al-Tahawiyyah. These are not peripheral matters but foundational components of the Islamic worldview without which a proper understanding of prophethood, revelation, and divine communication would be impossible.

Al-Tahawi affirms belief in the angels as a community of created beings made from light, as established by the hadith of Aishah in Sahih Muslim: 'The angels were created from light, the jinn were created from a smokeless flame of fire, and Adam was created from what has been described to you.' The angels have no independent will in opposition to Allah's commands — the Quran states of them: 'They do not precede Him in speech, and they act by His command' (Quran 21:27). They are neither male nor female in the human sense, neither eat nor drink, do not tire in worship, and have no capacity for sin. Those who elevated them to divine status — as some pagan Arabs did, claiming them to be daughters of Allah — are explicitly refuted by the Quran.

The named angels affirmed in Islamic doctrine include Jibril (Gabriel), who brought revelation to all the prophets; Mika'il (Michael), who oversees provisions and rain; Israfil, who will blow the Trumpet on the Day of Resurrection; Izra'il or Malak al-Mawt, the Angel of Death who takes souls; the Bearers of the Throne; Munkar and Nakir, who question the dead in the grave; and Ridwan, the keeper of Paradise, and Malik, the keeper of Hellfire. Beyond these named angels, the Quran describes vast numbers of angels engaged in perpetual worship and glorification of Allah.

Regarding the revealed books, al-Tahawi affirms belief in all the books that Allah sent down to His prophets, including the Tawrah (Torah) given to Musa, the Zabur (Psalms) given to Dawud, the Injil (Gospel) given to Isa, and the Quran given to Muhammad ﷺ. The Quran itself attests to these earlier scriptures: 'He has sent down upon you the Book in truth, confirming what was before it, and He had sent down the Tawrah and the Injil before as guidance for the people' (Quran 3:3-4).

A critical doctrinal point that al-Tahawi implies, and that later commentators elaborate, is the distinction between belief in the original revealed books and acceptance of the currently available texts of the Torah and Gospel. The Quran explicitly states that the earlier scriptures were subject to corruption (tahrif) — both in the sense of textual alteration and in the sense of misinterpretation. Muslims affirm that Musa received a true Torah and Isa received a true Gospel from Allah, while acknowledging that these originals are no longer available in their pure form. This is not a contradiction but a distinction between the divine original and the humanly transmitted version.

The Quran, by contrast, is preserved by Allah's direct guarantee: 'Indeed, it is We who sent down the Reminder, and indeed, it is We who will guard it' (Quran 15:9). This protection has been maintained through the institution of hafiz (memorizers), the preservation of the isnad system for Quranic recitation (the ten canonical qira'at), and the historical fact that the Quran as memorized and written today is identical to the text compiled under Uthman ibn Affan and confirmed by the Companions.