Sifa zote ni za Allah, Mola wa viumbe vyote. Rehema na amani zimshukie Mtume aliye mtukufu zaidi kati ya Manabii na Mitume, Muhammad ﷺ, pamoja na jamaa zake na Masahaba wake wote. Moja ya nyakati nzuri zaidi maishani mwangu ilikuwa pale nilipowapa wazazi wangu wapendwa rasimu ya kwanza ya kitabu changu kama zawadi. Kwa kitabu hiki kipya, nilipata furaha na raha katika maneno na maoni yao. Kwa kweli, juhudi zangu ni juhudi zao, kwa kuwa mtoto si chochote ila ni mwendelezo wa wazazi wake. Ninasema haya kuonyesha fadhila ya Allah juu yangu. Sehemu kubwa ya matunda yangu ya kielimu isingetokea kama si msaada wao, kutiwa moyo kwao, na usimamizi wao. Namwomba Allah aniheshimu kwa radhi yao, na aongeze umri wao katika matendo mema. Kuwashirikisha katika kila kitabu nilichoandika imekuwa desturi yangu. Lakini kulikuwa na ubaguzi mmoja. Mada yake na jina lake vilizua upinzani kutoka kwa wazazi wangu. Ulikuwa upinzani uliokuwa na mshangao na aina fulani ya hasira. Mshangao wao ulichochewa na moto wa imani uliokuwa ukiwaka ndani yao, na kukemea mwelekeo hatari wa upotovu wa kiitikadi. Ilikuwa kama wanasema, ‘Ni nini kilichomtia mwanetu katika njia hii iliyochanganyikiwa?’ Kitabu hicho kilikuwa *The Atheist Militia*. Hali hii ilinikumbusha hadithi moja. Mwanachuoni mashuhuri wa elimu ya ‘ilmu al-kalām’ alikuwa akitembea njiani, akifuatwa na wanafunzi wengi. Mwanamke mzee alimuuliza, ‘Huyu ni nani?’ Akaambiwa, ‘Je, kweli hujui? Huyu ndiye mtu aliyetoa hoja elfu moja za kuthibitisha kuwepo kwa Allah!’ Akasema, ‘Mwanangu, kama hangesumbuliwa na shaka elfu moja, asingehitaji hoja elfu moja!’ Maneno yake yalipomfikia mwanachuoni yule, alisema, ‘Ewe Allah, ninakuomba imani kwako kama ile ya wanawake wazee.’1

All praise is for Allah, Lord of the Worlds. May benediction and peace be upon the most honoured of the Prophets and Messengers, our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his Companions. One of the loveliest moments in my life was when I presented the first draft of my book as a gift to my beloved parents. With this new book, I found happiness and pleasure in their words and observations. In reality, my efforts are their efforts, as a child is but an extension of its parents. I say this to point out Allah’s favour upon me. Much of my intellectual output would not have happened were it not for their support, encouragement, and supervision. I ask Allah to honour me with their pleasure, and that He increases their age in good deeds. Involving them with every book I have written has been a habit of mine. There was an exception though. Its topic and title evoked a pushback from my parents. It was a pushback that was coloured with surprise and an indignation of sorts. Their surprise was spurred by the fire of faith that burned in them, and the denunciation of a dangerous pattern of theological deviance. It was as if they were saying, ‘What is it that landed our son in this maze?’ That book was The Atheist Militia. This situation reminded me of a story. A leading scholar of dialectic theology (kalām) was walking along a path, followed by dozens of students. An elderly woman asked, ‘Who is this?’ It was put to her, ‘Do you really not know? This is the man who has put forth a thousand proofs for the existence of Allah!’ She said, ‘My son, if he was not afflicted by a thousand doubts, he would not have been in need for a thousand proofs!’ When her words were related back to the scholar, he said, ‘O Allah, I ask for faith in You like that of elderly women.’1

Kwa sababu zilizotajwa hapo awali, tangu mwanzo nafurahi kumweleza msomaji kwamba ninaamini kwa dhati kwamba kumtambua Allah, kukiri umoja Wake, na kutambua hitaji letu Kwake ni silika za asili na za kuzaliwa nazo kwa binadamu. Hali hii ndiyo inayoendana zaidi na maumbile ya mwanadamu, ikileta utulivu wa ndani na kuridhika. Bila hiyo, maisha yangekosa maana, na maswali mengi ya kuwepo kwa binadamu yangebaki bila majibu. Kwa kweli, yasingekuwa na jibu kabisa. Inaonekana kwamba uthabiti wa utambuzi huu na athari yake katika nafsi ni mkubwa zaidi kuliko nilivyofikiri mwanzoni. Miaka mingi iliyopita, nilikutana na kauli ya Ibn Taymiyyah ambayo wakati ule niliiona ya kushangaza, ambapo alijadili kuwepo kwa mwelekeo huu wa asili wa nafsi katika kumtambua Mungu, pamoja na misimamo inayojidhihirisha yenyewe na ya kiakili. Anasema: ‘Elimu ya msingi ya Mungu ni ya kiasili na ya lazima. Imethibitika zaidi katika nafsi kuliko misingi ya hisabati kama vile “Moja ni nusu ya mbili”, au misingi ya elimu ya maumbile kama vile “Mwili hauwezi kuwepo mahali pawili kwa wakati mmoja”. Hii ni kwa sababu maarifa kama hayo ni kauli ambazo silika za asili za watu wengi zinaweza kuzipuuza. Kuhusu elimu ya Mungu, haiwezekani kufikiria silika yoyote ya asili ikaweza kuipuuza.’2

For the aforementioned reasons, right from the outset I am enthused to reveal to the reader that I fervently believe that recognising Allah , acknowledging His oneness, and recognising our need for Him are deeply innate and natural human dispositions. It is this state that is most aligned with the nature of man, leading to inner peace and contentment. Without it, life would be without meaning, and many existential questions on humanity would remain unanswered. In fact, they would have no answer at all. It seems that the firmness of this recognition and the influence it had on the soul is more sweeping than I first thought. Many years ago, I came across what I considered back then to be a surprising statement by Ibn Taymiyyah, where he discussed the existence of this natural predisposition of the soul in recognising the Divine, in conjunction with self-evident and rational positions. He states, ‘The core knowledge of the Divine is both natural and necessary. It is more firmly established in the souls than the fundamentals of mathematics such as “One is half of two”, or the fundamentals of natural knowledge such as “A body cannot simultaneously exist in two places”. This is because such items of knowledge are expressions that the innate predispositions of most people can disregard. As for the knowledge of the Divine, it is unimaginable that any natural predisposition is able to disregard it.’2

Nilipoliona kifungu hiki mara ya kwanza, nilijiuliza: "Je, uthabiti wa imani kwa Mola ni imara zaidi kuliko mifano hii? Siwezi kuona hivyo kabisa!" Ingawa nakubali kwamba kumtambua Allah ni jambo la kimaumbile kwetu, kwa nini sijisikii kuwa ni imara kama mifano hii dhahiri? Baadhi ya utata wa suala hili ulinijia wazi miaka kadhaa baadaye, baada ya kuchapishwa kikamilifu kwa kitabu cha ensaiklopidia cha Ibn Taymiyyah, Bayān Talbīs al-Jahmiyyah. Humo nilikutana na kifungu bora ambamo alijadili imani ya utukufu wa Allah juu ya viumbe vyake, unaoeleweka kimaumbile: "Maarifa haya yameshikamana na nafsi zao. Hayawezi kutenganishwa nayo kama vile maarifa ya kimaumbile ya mambo yanayoonekana na ya kimaumbile, kama vile 'Moja ni theluthi ya tatu', na 'Mwili hauwezi kuwepo mahali pawili kwa wakati mmoja'. Hii ni kwa sababu maarifa hayo ya mwisho ni maarifa ambayo watu hawayahitaji kabisa; kwa kweli, huenda yasimjie mtu hata kidogo. Kuhusu maarifa ya utukufu wa Allah, ningesema kwamba – mbali na watu kuyahitaji – watu pia wanahitaji yale yanayoyalazimu na kuyamaanisha, ambayo ni dua, kuomba, kujinyenyekeza, na unyenyekevu mbele ya Mola – Yule Aliye Juu, Ambaye anaitwa."3

When I first saw this passage, I asked myself, ‘Is the entrenchment of belief in the Divine stronger than these examples? I just cannot see it this way! Though I acknowledge that recognising Allah is innate to us, why is it that I do not feel that it is as strong as those self-evident examples?’ Some complexities of this issue were resolved for me a few years later. This was after the full publication of Ibn Taymiyyah’s encyclopaedic book Bayān Talbīs al-Jahmiyyah, in which I came across an excellent passage where he discussed the belief of the innately understood highness of Allah  over His creation: ‘This knowledge clings onto their souls. It cannot be separated from it any more than the instinctive knowledge of tangibles and natural matters, such as “One is a third of three”, and “A body cannot simultaneously exist in two places”. This is because the latter is knowledge that they simply do not need; in fact, it may never even occur to a person. As for the knowledge of the highness of Allah, I would say that – in addition to people needing it – people are also in need of what it necessitates and means, which is supplication, asking, self-effacement, and humility unto the Divine – the One Above Who is being invoked.’3

Muungano wa maarifa na vitendo katika kumtambua Mola ni kipengele kinachoonyesha nguvu ya ufahamu huu, ukilinganishwa na taarifa nyingine zisizo za kivitendo ambazo mtu huenda asizikumbuke kila mara anapoendelea na maisha ya kila siku. Jambo hili limesisitizwa na Ibn Taymiyyah katika ukurasa unaofuata: ‘Kumjua Mwenyezi Mungu ni jambo kubwa zaidi na lenye heshima zaidi, kwani ni lazima kwa wana wa Adamu, kwa maarifa na kwa nia, kumgeukia Yeye. Walitayarishwa kwa hilo. Kuwepo kwa maarifa haya ya kiasili na nia hii ya kimaumbile kumekita mizizi zaidi kuliko kuwepo kwa taarifa nyingine.’4

The knowledge-action duet vis-à-vis recognising the Divine is one aspect that represents the strength of this understanding, compared to those other non actionable pieces of information that man may not always recollect as he grinds on with daily life. This is underscored by Ibn Taymiyyah on the next page: ‘As for knowing the Divine, it is far greater and more honourable, as it is necessary for the children of Adam in terms of both knowledge and intent to turn to Him. They were predisposed for this. The innate existence of this instinctive knowledge and intent is far more entrenched than the existence of other information.’4

Kwa maneno yaliyo wazi zaidi, alisema tena kurasa chache baadaye: 'Allah, Utukufu ni Wake, aliwaandaa waja Wake kwa mambo mawili: kwamba nyoyo zao zimkiri Yeye kwa upande wa elimu, na kwamba wampende na wanyenyekee mbele Yake kwa upande wa matendo, ibada, na kuomba msaada. Hivyo wameandaliwa kumjua Yeye na kutenda kwa ajili Yake.' Hata hivyo, bado nilibaki na swali la kiwango gani utambuzi wa Mwenyezi Mungu umekita katika roho. Hadi nilipokutana na kifungu kifuatacho kutoka katika jibu la Ibn Taymiyyah: 'Inajulikana kwamba nguvu ya mvuto kwa elimu yenye mabishano si sawa na mvuto kwa elimu isiyopingwa. Mvuto kwa elimu ya dhana kama hesabu ya kalkulasi au maumbile – kama vile "Moja ni nusu ya mbili", "Kitu kimoja hakiwezi kuwa katika sehemu mbili kwa wakati mmoja", na kadhalika – hauna mizizi imara mioyoni, wala hakuna upinzani mkubwa dhidi yake.' Na ndivyo ilivyo. Shaka mbalimbali zinazotolewa dhidi ya Allah – ambazo zinaweza kumfanya mwanadamu ageuke au adhoofike katika mwelekeo wake wa kimaumbile – ni nyingi zaidi kuliko pingamizi dhidi ya elimu nyingine. Kwa hiyo mtu anaweza kuhisi kwamba elimu nyingine ziko wazi zaidi kuliko Allah. Walakini, kama nafsi za watu zingekuwa safi na vikengeusho hivyo vya nje vikiondolewa, bila shaka kumjua Allah kungekuwa na nguvu zaidi na kuwa kumekita zaidi kuliko elimu nyingine zote.

In more explicit terms, he went on to say just a few pages later, ‘Allah, Glory to Him, predisposed His servants to two things: that their hearts affirm Him in terms of knowledge, and that they love Him and are humble in front of Him in terms of practice, worship, and seeking assistance. They are thus predisposed to having knowledge of Him and acting for His sake.5 However, I was still puzzled as to what extent recognition of the Divine was entrenched in the soul. This was until I came across the following passage from Ibn Taymiyyah’s response: ‘It is known that the strength of attraction to disputed knowledge is unlike that attraction to unopposed knowledge. The attraction to knowledge of concepts like calculus or nature – such as “One is half of two”, “A body cannot simultaneously be in two places”, and so on – is not as entrenched in the hearts, nor is there any strong opposition to it.’6 And this is how it is. The various doubts that are raised against Allah – which can potentially cause man to turn away from or weaken his innate predisposition – are far more than objections against other sciences. One therefore might feel that the sciences are more self-evident than Allah. However, if people’s souls were pure and those external distractions were taken out of the equation, it would have most certainly been the case that knowing Allah would be far stronger and entrenched than the sciences.

Kutoka mtazamo wa uchambuzi wa mfuatano na muundo wa kiakili, kutambua uwepo wa Mungu lazima kiwe kitu kilicho wazi zaidi kuliko dhana zote za kiakili. Bila kukiri Yeye, hakutabaki nafasi yoyote ya kuthibitisha maarifa ya asili, kutoa hukumu juu ya asili yake ya kuzaliwa nayo, au kupendekeza kwamba yako juu ya na zaidi ya maumbile ya ulimwengu, ya jambo, na ya mwanadamu. Lango la kuthibitisha ukweli wowote ulio wazi ni kwanza kumwamini Allah . Bila hili, haiwezekani kujenga msimamo wa kifalsafa unaoshikamana unaothibitisha dhana za asili na za kuzaliwa nazo. Kwa msingi huu, mtu anaweza kuelewa alichosimulia Ibn al-Qayyim kutoka kwa mwalimu wake, Allah awarehemu wote wawili. Alisema: "Unawezaje kudai ushahidi kwa mtu ambaye yeye mwenyewe ni ushahidi wa kila kitu?" Alikuwa (yaani Ibn Taymiyyah) akitaja mara kwa mara shairi hili la mistari miwili:

From the viewpoint of the sequence analysis and cognitive construct, recognition of the Divine must be the most self-evident of all rational concepts. Without acknowledging Him, there would be no scope left to affirm any innate knowledge, to pass judgement on its instinctiveness, or to suggest that it is above and beyond the nature of the universe, matter, and man. The gateway to affirming any self-evident truth is to first believe in Allah . Without this, it is impossible to construct a coherent philosophical outlook that affirms instinctive and innate concepts. Based on this, one can understand what Ibn al-Qayyim reported from his teacher, may Allah have mercy on both of them. He said, ‘“How can you demand proof for someone who Himself is proof for everything?” He (i.e., Ibn Taymiyyah) used to frequently mention this couplet:

Hakika, tunapoomba uthibitisho wa uwepo wa Allah, ni kama tunawasha mishumaa katikati ya mchana uliojaa mwanga. Tukio kama hilo lingeleta kicheko, je, si ndivyo? Hata hivyo, tufanye nini pale tunapolazimishwa kuingia katika hali ya kulifafanua jambo hili? Msomaji anaweza kuuliza, ‘Kwa nini haraka ya kujadili suala hili hapa, katika utangulizi wa kitabu? Kwa nini tusiliahirishe mpaka mahali ambapo linaweza kujadiliwa kwa njia inayofaa zaidi, na ambapo maelezo, ufafanuzi na hoja zinaweza kuwasilishwa ipasavyo?’ Lengo la jambo hili ni kusisitiza kwamba utafiti wowote kuhusu uwepo wa Allah na kutoa ushahidi wake muhimu zaidi hauwezi kuchukuliwa kama suala ambalo msomaji anaweza hata bila kujua kulichukulia kuwa lenye utata, au kudhani kwamba linahitaji majadiliano marefu ili kuthibitisha ukweli wake. Hasa ikizingatiwa kwamba kuna pingamizi zinazotolewa dhidi yake. Watu wengi wamedanganywa kuamini kwamba kuliweka suala kwenye mjadala na kulifanyia ukosoaji kunadhoofisha uhakika wake, na kwamba mchakato huu unalifanya suala hilo kuwa hoja ya mjadala halali. Fikiria hali ya watu wengi kuhusu mambo ya kiakili ya kiasili na yanayojidhihirisha yenyewe. Angalia yaliyowapata walipoonyeshwa kwa shule za falsafa ya kiakili, na jinsi ukweli wa msingi kabisa na unaojidhihirisha wenyewe ulivyotikiswa – yote kwa sababu tu suala hili likawa la kwenda na kurudi, kama masuala mengine yoyote. Baada ya kujigonga na kujishughulisha sana na mijadala mingi ya kifalsafa, nataka kushiriki hitimisho nililolifikia. Si jambo gumu kubuni madai potofu yanayotia shaka ukweli wa kujidhihirisha wenyewe na wa kiasili. Mtu asiposhikilia asili ya wazi ya suala linalopingwa, bila shaka ataangukia aina ya shaka inayoweza kuharibu msingi ambao muundo wa maarifa wenye mshikamano na wa kimantiki unasimama juu yake.

Indeed, when we ask for proof of Allah, it is as if we are lighting candles during an already bright day. Such a scene would provoke laughter, would it not? However, what are we supposed to do when we have been forced into a situation to clarify this? A reader may ask, ‘Why the haste in discussing this issue here, in the introduction of the book? Why not defer the discussion to where it can be more appropriately discussed and where the details, explanation, and proofs can be properly presented?’ The motivation for this is to underscore the notion that any research on the existence of Allah  and offering up its most important evidence cannot be treated as an issue which a reader may even subconsciously deem to be contentious, or presume that it requires some lengthy discourse to prove its veracity. This is especially given that there are objections raised to it. Many people are duped into believing that offering up an issue for debate and subjecting it to critique weakens its conclusiveness, and that this process renders the issue into a point of legitimate debate. Consider the state of many people vis-à-vis instinctive and self-evident matters of rationality. Look at what became of them when they were exposed to schools of cognitive philosophy, and how the very core and self-evident truths were shaken – all just because this issue became one of to-and-fro, like any other. After barging shoulders and engrossing myself with many of those philosophical debates, I want to share the conclusion I have deduced. It is not difficult to construct deviant assertions that cast doubt on self-evident and instinctive truths. If a person does not hold on to the self-evident nature of the issue being objected to, he will invariably fall into the type of scepticism that can undermine the foundation upon which a coherent and rational knowledge structure rests.

na kwa hiyo mpaka leo ungekuwa bado unaiamini. Naam, huenda juu ya akili kuna hakimu mwingine ambaye, kama angejitokeza, angeifanya akili kuwa mwongo, kama vile akili ilivyotushinda sisi. Na kama hakimu huyu wa tatu bado hajaonekana, haifuati kwamba hayupo.” ‘Kwa hoja hii nilibaki kimya kwa muda bila kujibu; tafakari iliyotokana na matukio ya usingizi iliongeza shaka yangu. “Je, huoni”, nilitafakari, “kwamba ukiwa usingizini unadhani ndoto zako ni halisi bila shaka yoyote? Ukishaamka, unazitambua kwa kile zilivyo: vituko visivyo na msingi. Basi nani anaweza kukuhakikishia kutegemeka kwa mawazo ambayo, ukiwa macho, unayapata kwa hisi na kwa akili? Kuhusiana na hali yako ya sasa yanaweza kuwa halisi; lakini pia inawezekana kwamba utaingia katika hali nyingine ya kuwepo ambayo itakuwa na uhusiano na hali yako ya sasa sawa na uhusiano wa hii na hali yako ukiwa usingizini. Katika ulimwengu huo mpya utatambua kwamba hitimisho la akili ni vituko tu.” ‘Hali hii inayowezekana labda ndiyo ile ambayo Masufi huiita “hali ya kuzimia kiroho” (ḥāl), yaani, kwa kadiri yao, hali ambamo, wakiwa wamejizamisha ndani yao wenyewe na wakiwa wamesimamisha utambuzi wa hisi, wanaona maono yaliyo nje ya uwezo wa akili. Labda Kifo nacho ni hali hiyo, kulingana na kauli ile ya mkuu wa manabii: “Watu wamelala; watakapokufa, ndipo wataamka.” Maisha yetu ya sasa kulingana na yajayo huenda ni ndoto tu, na mtu, akishakufa, ataona mambo kinyume kabisa na yale yaliyo mbele ya macho yake sasa; ndipo ataelewa lile neno la Qur’ani, “Leo tumekuondolea pazia kutoka machoni pako, na uoni wako ni mkali.” ‘Mawazo kama haya yalitishia kuitikisa akili yangu, nami nikatafuta njia ya kujiepusha nayo. Lakini vipi? Ili kufungua fundo la tatizo hili, dalili ilihitajika. Sasa, dalili lazima itegemee dhana za msingi, na hizi ndizo hasa nilizokuwa na shaka nazo. Hali hii isiyo ya furaha ilidumu kama miezi miwili, wakati wa muda huo mimi, si kwa kutamka wazi wala kwa kazi, lakini kiakili na kimsingi, nilikuwa mtu wa shaka kamili. Mwenyezi Mungu hatimaye alinijaalia kupona ugonjwa huu wa akili; akili yangu ilirejea katika uzima na utulivu: misingi ya msingi ya akili ilirejea pamoja nami kwa ukali wake wote na nguvu zake. Sikupata ukombozi wangu kwa mfululizo wa hoja na ushahidi, bali kwa nuru ambayo Mungu aliiruhusu kuingia moyoni mwangu, nuru inayoangaza kizingiti cha elimu yote. Kudhani kuwa yakini inaweza kujengwa tu juu ya hoja rasmi ni kuweka mipaka juu ya rehema isiyo na kikomo ya Mungu. Mtu mmoja alimuuliza Mtume ﷺ maelezo ya aya hii katika Kitabu cha Mwenyezi Mungu: {Mwenyezi Mungu hufungua moyo wa Uislamu kwa yule anayemchagua kumwongoza}. Mtume ﷺ akajibu: "Hayo yanahusu nuru ambayo Mungu huimwaga moyoni." Akaulizwa: "Na mtu anawezaje kuitambua nuru hiyo?" Akajibu: "Kwa kujitenga na dunia hii ya udanganyifu, na kwa mvuto wa siri kuelekea ulimwengu wa milele." Katika tukio jingine alisema: "Mwenyezi Mungu aliwaumba viumbe vyake gizani, kisha akawamwagia nuru yake." Ni kwa msaada wa nuru hii ambapo utafutaji wa ukweli lazima ufanyike. Kwa kuwa kwa rehema yake nuru hii hushuka mara kwa mara miongoni mwa watu, lazima tuwe macho daima kuisubiri. Hili pia linathibitishwa na kauli nyingine ya Mtume ﷺ: "Mwenyezi Mungu huwapelekea nyinyi, nyakati fulani, pumzi za neema yake; jitayarisheni kwazo." Lengo langu katika simulizi hii ni kuwafanya wengine waelewe kwa bidii kiasi gani tunapaswa kutafuta ukweli, kwani unaongoza kwenye matokeo ambayo hatukuwahi kuyatarajia. Misingi ya msingi haihitaji kutafutwa, kwa kuwa iko daima akilini mwetu; tukijaribu kuitafuta, tunaona kwamba inaendelea kutupita. Lakini wale wanaosukuma uchunguzi wao zaidi ya mipaka ya kawaida wako salama dhidi ya tuhuma ya uzembe katika kufuatilia kile kilicho ndani ya uwezo wao. 10 Mtu anaweza kupata funzo na hekima kadhaa katika hitimisho la kifungu hiki.

Hili ndilo kiini kikuu cha kitabu hiki. Natumaini kitatimiza malengo yake bila kuingia katika aina ya hoja za kibishi zisizohusiana na jinsi kutokuamini Mungu (ukafiri wa kiatheist) kunavyojidhihirisha leo. Lengo si kuwasilisha wala kujadili hoja kongwe za kitheolojia na kifalsafa zilizotumiwa kuthibitisha kuwepo kwa Allah, kama hoja ya kuwa miili ni ya kuanzia (huduth al-ajsām), hoja ya muundo (tarkīb), hoja ya usanifu maalum (al-ʿināyah al-khāṣṣah), wala mijadala inayozunguka hoja hizo. Badala yake, lengo ni kuwa na majadiliano yanayoendana na mijadala inayoendelea leo. Hizi ndizo aina za mazungumzo ambayo nimekuwa nayo na baadhi ya vijana wa leo walioathiriwa na mafundisho ya kiatheist. Pia ni utafiti wa shaka nyingi na pingamizi zilizotolewa na wanaatheist wa kisasa. Sipaswi kuficha kwa wasomaji kwamba, kwa upande wangu binafsi, nina shauku kubwa ya kutetea elimu ya itikadi (ʿilm al-kalām) ya Sunni, na kwa yale yaliyoandikwa katika vitabu na mijadala ya wanazuoni wa Sunni kuhusu somo hili, hasa maandishi ya Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah. Hata hivyo, nitajitahidi kuzuia misimamo yangu mikali inayounga mkono Usunni, ili nitoe nyenzo na mawazo ninayotumaini yatakuwa wazi, rahisi kueleweka, yenye kuburudisha, na yenye manufaa kwa jamii pana. Ninamalizia utangulizi huu kwa kutoa shukrani zangu kwa mke wangu mpendwa na binti zangu wapendwa – Munā, Fāṭimah, Shaykah, na Balsam – kwa dhabihu zao kubwa na subira yao, zilizowezesha kukamilika kwa utafiti huu. Allah awape malipo bora kwa niaba yangu. Namshukuru Dkt. Ibrāhīm al-Rammāḥ kwa kupitia rasimu kabla ya kuchapishwa, na kwa maoni yake bora – Allah ampe thawabu na malipo. Namwomba Allah atujaalie sote uwezo wa kutenda mema, na aruhusu ukweli utoke mioyoni mwetu na ndimi zetu. Yeye ndiye Mwenye kuombwa bora.

So this is the central idea of the book. I hope it will achieve its aims without delving into the type of polemic that is detached from how atheism actually manifests itself today. The purpose is not to present or discuss the old theological or philosophical arguments used to establish Allah’s existence, such as the argument from the temporality of bodies, argument from composition, argument from special design, or the discussions surrounding these. Rather, the aim is to have a discussion that is aligned to the discourse occurring today. They are the types of discussions I have been having with some of today’s youth who have been impacted by atheist discourse. It is also the study of many of the doubts and objections raised by contemporary atheists. I should not hide from the readership that, personally speaking, I am highly enthusiastic about defending Sunni dialectic theology, and by what is recorded in the Sunni books and debates by Sunni scholars on this subject, especially the writings of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah . However, I will try to curb my strong views in favour of Sunnism to offer material and ideas that I hope will be clear, easy to understand, refreshing, and beneficial to wider society. I end this introduction by paying homage to my beloved wife and my beloved daughters – Munā, Fāṭimah, Shaykah, and Balsam – for their great sacrifices and patience that have allowed me to complete this research. May Allah grant them the best of rewards on my behalf. I thank Dr. Ibrāhīm al-Rammāḥ for reviewing the pre-publication draft, and for his excellent feedback – may Allah decree reward and recompense for him. I ask Allah to grant us all the ability for good, and that He allow the truth to emanate from our hearts and tongues. He  is the best requestee.