The True Meaning of Taqwa

"O you who believe! fear Allah as He should be feared and die not except in a state of Islam." [TMQ 3:102]
Allah (swt) in the Quran emphasises the concept ofTaqwa to us many times in the Quran.
Taqwa is one of the most profound concepts in Islam. Taqwa is an avenue by which Muslims relate toone another in society anda means to channel their actions. Because of the great importance of taqwa, it has been referred to numerous times in the Qur’an and Sunnah in order to emphasise its relevance and significance to the Muslims.
Allah (swt) strongly emphasises the rewards ofpeople with taqwa in this life and the Hereafter. It is these muttaqeen that Allah (swt) grants assistance, victory and provides for. Thus, understanding the conceptof taqwa is vital and mandatory for every Muslim.
Unfortunately, this is the very concept which some of us have left behind, as aresult of intellectual decline. The disbelievers inthe distant past, as well asin present times, have understood the importance of taqwa and the Islamic creed, and howit could jeopardise their interests. They realised how taqwa and the Islamic creed (‘aqeedah) were the roots of power to the Muslims. Today we see a campaign to destroy the concept of Taqwa by making us divide the Deenfrom the Dunya, to secularise our understanding of Islam such that we limit it to personal Ibadat and akhlaq (morals) and detach from any other aspect of life such as economics, politics or social affairs. Allah (swt) warned us in the Quran about their continuous attempts to extinguish his light i.e. Islam, He (swt) said:
"They wish to extinguish Allah's Light with their mouths, but Allah will not allow but that His Light is perfected even though thekuffar may detest it." [TMQ9:32]
Unfortunately due to the influence of the idea of separating the Deen and Dunya, we can see many misunderstandings amongst us as to who is defined as the Mutaqqi. A picture of a person who over emphasises prayer, fasting, and things such as donating to the masjid, while living a secluded and isolated life would be the one with taqwa, even though the same person would deal with usury, lie and do nothing towards reviving the Ummah.
Due to this idea, people look to Islam as a religion like the other religions who are not complete Deen’s that have come with solutions to every aspect of life. So if I were to ask anyone from amongst the general population of Muslims, ‘what are the rules of Salah?’ I am sure most people would be able to answer this question. But if I was to ask ‘what is the ruling or economic systemof Islam?’, ‘what are the Shariah rules relating to contracts and company structures’ or ‘what is our shar’iah responsibility towards the Muslims around the world who arebeing attacked such as in Iraq and Palestine?’ then I think many people would not know the answers to these questions, we must ask why? Didn’t Allah (swt) reveal to us a complete Deen covering all aspects of life? Didn’t Allah (swt) say in the Quran:
“And We have sent down to you the Book as an explanation of everything,a guidance, a mercy and glad-tidings for those whosubmitted themselves to Islam.” [TMQ 16:89]
So let us understand the true meaning of Taqwa. Incontrast to the distorted picture that people have today, the Qur’an and Sunnah defines the idea oftaqwa as protecting oneself from the Hellfire by following the orders of Allah (swt) by doing what He (swt) has commanded and avoiding what He (swt) has forbidden. Many ayat in the Qur’an point tothis:
“And unto Allah belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth. And, verily, We have recommended to the people of the Scripture before you, and to you (O Muslims) that you (all) fearAllah, and keep your duty to Him, But if you disbelieve, then unto Allahbelongs all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth, and Allah is EverRich, Worthy of all praise.” [TMQ An-Nisa’ 4: 131]:-: TRANSLATOR :-: http://translate.google.co.in/m?hl=en&twu=1