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Beliefs
Five Pillars of Islam
Shahadah: The first and greatest teaching of Islam is proclaimed by the Shahada: "La Ilaha illal-lah, Muhammadun rasulu-l-lah." ("There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the apostle of
Allah." Or "I testify that there is no god worthy of worship but God (Allah), and I testify that
Muhammad is the messenger of God.") It is this very confession, which, once uttered sincerely,
makes one a Muslim. This is the phrase all new converts are asked to say upon conversion. For
those who take the pilgrimage, or the Hajj, it is required that they repeat this phrase with belief
before they enter into the holy city of Mecca, (although technically the Shi'a do not consider the
shahadah to be a separate pillar, just a belief).
Salat or salah: To perform the daily prayers, or salat, five times a day, always facing towards
Mecca. The reason that the prayer has to be performed five times has to be because that was
the number revealed to the Prophet on the Night of Ascent. The prayers are performed between
dawn and sunrise- fajr, just after the height of midday sun- zuhr, during the afternoon when the
shadows have lengthened- asr, just after sunset- maghrib, and during the hours of darknessisha. The congregational prayer which is regarded as compulsory and performed in the Mosque
is the midday prayer on Friday. While it is considered preferable for men to meet together in
congregation to pray, women are encouraged to pray at home. Islam is a personalised faith and
each person faces God on a one-to-one basis. The aim of Muslin prayer is to purify the heart
and to bring about spiritual and moral growth. Just as performing 'Salat' is obligatory, learning to
perform it in the prescribed way is also obligatory so that one should know what he is saying to
his Lord, and enjoy the full blessings and benefits of praying. In the performance of Salat all the
prayers have to be said in Arabic besides reciting some verses of the Holy Quran. Therefore, it
becomes essential for a new Muslim to start learning those prayers in Arabic as well as some
short 'Suras' (chapters) of the Holy Quran immediately after embracing Islam so that he/she can
perform his Salat in the proper manner. The positions provide physical benefits in cleansing the
body internally.
Zakat: the compulsory giving of alms, which is often a contribution based on a certain
percentage of a person’s wealth. The Qur’an specifies that 2.5 per cent of surplus money,
capital and goods after looking after themselves and their family. This religious tax is not
considered charity but a regular, sacrificial giving which is part of the duty of a Muslim. As
everything is considered to belong to God the giver is simply distributing the wealth more
evenly. Rich people are only so because of the grace of God. It is not collected like a state tax
and it is anonymous.
Sawm: fasting from dawn to dusk during the month of Ramadan, the ninth month of the year.
Muslims keep a lunar calendar so that Ramadan come 11 or 10 days later each year in the
secular calendar. It honors the time when God revealed the word to Muhammad in 614 CE. All
people over 14 are required to take no food, drink, nor engage in sexual intercourse during the
daylight of the period of denial. Young children, sick, the elderly, expectant and nursing mothers,
soldiers in battle, menstruating women, those on long journeys and the mentally ill are exempt
from fasting. The end of Ramadan is celebrated with a two or three day festival. Although fasting
is beneficial to health, it is mainly a method of self-purification and self-restraint. By cutting oneself
from worldly comforts, even for a short time, a fasting person focuses on his or her purpose in life
by constantly being aware of the presence of God. God states in the Qur'an: "O you who
believe! Fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed to those before you that you may
learn self-restraint." (Qur'an 2:183).
Hajj: each Muslim makes the pilgrimage to Mecca if they can afford it, once in their lifetime.
Over two million people go to Mecca each year from every corner of the globe providing a
unique opportunity for those of different nations to meet one another.
The annual hajj begins in the twelfth month of the Islamic year (which is lunar, not solar, so that
hajj and Ramadan fall sometimes in summer, sometimes in winter). Pilgrims wear special
clothes: simple garments that strip away distinctions of class and culture, so that all stand equal
before God.
The rites of the hajj, which are of Abrahamic origin, include going around the Ka'bah seven
times, and going seven times between the hills of Safa and Marwa as did Hagar (Hajir,
Abraham's wife) during her search for water. The pilgrims later stand together on the wide plains
of 'Arafat (a large expanse of desert outside Makkah) and join in prayer for God's forgiveness, in
what is often thought as a preview of the Day of Judgment.
The close of the hajj is marked by a festival, the 'Id al Adha, which is celebrated with prayers
and the exchange of gifts in Muslim communities everywhere. This and the 'Id al Fitr, a festive
day celebrating the end of Ramadan, are the two holidays of the Islamic calendar.
The hajj celebrates three events in Muslim history:
1 the forgiveness and reunion of Adam and Eve
2 the Prophet Abraham’s sacrifice of his son Ishmael
3 and the life of obedience of the Prophet Muhammad
Seven Cardinal Beliefs
The Qur’an is not a linear text. The text consists of 114 chapters or suras, with a total of 6236
verses. A single verse is called an aya which means sign. The first sura is calle al-Fatihah (the
Opening), but each other sura is named after some striking incident or word in it. Except for the
first sura the Qur’an is arranged roughly according to length from the longest to the shortest.
The Qur’an rules on every aspect of life and Muslims are expected to apply these to everyday
life. The Qur’an speaks of belief in:
1) God- Tawhid- the declaration that He is One
2) His angels- Mala’ikah
3) The Last Day- Yawm al-Din
4) His Books- Kutubuhu
5) His Messengers- Rasuluhu
6) The World to come- Akhira
7) God’s power- Al-Qadr
These cardinal articles are often condensed into 3 aspects:
1) Tawhid or oneness of God
2) Risalah/Rasul or Prophethood
3) Akhira or the world to come
Tawhid
Central to Islamic belief is the oneness or unity (in Arabic: tawhid) of Allah. Allah is all-seeing,
all-hearing and all-knowing. He is unchanging and is present everywhere all the time. He is
invisible, with no human attributes, and he is not to be depicted in any human form in art or
statue. The will of God can only be known through his Messengers.
While the most important aspect in Islam is the unity of God, God may be addressed through
the notion of his Ninety-Nine Names which are found in the hadith literature. Muslims believe
that meditation upon these names is a means of discovering more about God.
Muslims condemn Christians for their belief in the Holy Trinity, that the godhead is composed of
three entities in one, and the Incarnation, because they consider it a denial of monotheism.
Risalah/Rasul
Islam sees itself as the culmination of Judaism and Christianity. God has been calling for
humankind to believe and to follow his rules. Each Prophet has the same message, namely,
God is merciful and we are called to repent. Since God is transcendent and beyond all human
perception, he communicates his message to his Prophets through his functionaries, the angels.
Angels are created from light and are totally obedient to God's Will. They are spirits and the four
great angels are: Gabriel, the messenger of revelation; Michael; Israfil, the summoner of
resurrection; and Izra'il, the angel of death.
The Qur'an names 28 Prophets, though six are onsidered the most important because they
received special revelations and introduced new teachings. They are Adam, Noah, Abraham,
Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. They are part of God's way of communicating with us, and are
part of his education of people in the process of Islam or submission to his will. Muslim consider
that Jews and Christians have tampered with the messages of the Prophets. For example
Jesus' divinty is considered blasphemous because it is unforgiveable to set other god beside
God.
Akhira
Al Qadr is the belief in the supremacy of the divine will. Humankind was created by God with an
inclination to choose to submit to the Divine Plan or not to submit. The Divine Plan for
humankind is to fulfil the Amanat, or trusteeship, of being God's Khalifat, or vice-regent of God
in the World by which, if they are successful, we can ultimately attain Akhira, or afterlife, a
paradise. If we are not successful, we will face a very unpleasant afterlife. Life on Earth is
temporary and is preparation for eternal life. The Qur'an had many references to the Day of
Judgement. We will be required to account for our deeds on the Day of Judgement when Allah
will decide our final destination in the hereafter. Muslims believe our chances of reaching
heaven are greatly increased through personal striving for submitting to God, by following the
Islamic laws, and by practising the Five Pillars of Islam.