Download Lecture 4 file - Iqra University

Ibadaat (Islamic concept of Worship)
Lecture 4
Meaning of Worship
• Worship means devotion to Allah, who has the
only right to be worshipped, and this right is
deservingly reserved for Allah(alone).
• Ibadah is an Arabic word, that is taken from
Abada meaning is slave and servant.
Meaning of Worship
• The aim and object of a Muslim life is to worship Allah
alone, Allah say's “I have not created the jinn and ins
(mankind for any other purposes except that they
worship Me”.
• Worship is an indispensable part of all religions. It is
motivated, however in each religion by objectives and
assumes different forms and is performed under a
different set of rules. As for Islam, its conception of
worship is related to its fundamental view that the true
Foundation of a good life is soundness of belief and
thinking, purity of soul and righteousness of action. It
serves as a means to purge man’s soul and his practical
life of sin and wickedness.
Distinguishing features of worship
• The Holy Quran provides us the guide lines
that the concept of worship is very
comprehensive and linked with our entire life.
• Freedom from Intermediaries
• Islam has liberated worship from the bondage
of intermediaries between man and his
creator, Islam seeks to create a direct link
between man and his Lord.
Distinguishing features of worship
• Not confined to Specific places
• Islam has liberated worship from the
confinement to specific places.
• Islam regards every place whether it is one’s
dwelling place, the board of a vessel on the
surface of the sea or a mosque specially built for
worship as pure enough for the performance of
worship, the Holy prophet has expressed this idea
beautifully:• “The (whole of the) earth has been rendered for
me a mosque pure and clean.
Distinguishing features of worship
• All embracing view
• Islam has also considerably widened the scope of worship. In
Islam worship is not confined to specified prayers which are to
be performed on particular occasions.
•
Rather Islam consider every virtuous action which has been
sincerely performed and with His pleasure, an act of worship
for which man will be rewarded the fact is that even eating,
drinking sleeping and enjoyment of innocent recreation
becomes acts of worship provided they are performed with
true religious motives, yes even those acts become acts of
worship if the intentions underlying them is to comply with
the will of Allah. The real purpose of Islam in declaring that
worship embraces the total life of a man is to make religious
faith play a practical and effective role in reforming human
life.
Comprehensive Concept of Worship
• Aim and Objective of our Life
• The aim and objective of a Muslim life is to
worship Allah alone. The purpose of Islamic
education is to indicate to human being about
the principal of right and wrong.
• Muslims must follow the commandments of Allah
and bring other people under it. Allah Almighty
created jinn and mankind that they might
worship him and this is the aim they are sent in
this world to fulfill their object.
Comprehensive Concept of Worship
• Prayer, sacrifice, life and death belong to Allah
Almighty alone
• Islam stresses that act of worship is alone for
Allah Almighty . We should devote everything we
do in our daily life based on worship Allah alone.
Prayer is the most significant pillar of Islam. It is a
key to paradise.
• Our prayer, our sacrifice, our entire life and death
all are only for Allah. We should follow the
instruction in our entire life. Our entire life is
worship and all are for Allah Almighty alone and
there is no associate of him.
Comprehensive Concept of Worship
• A Muslim must entered perfectly in Islam
• Islam provides complete guideline to all his
believers to follow it in all walks of life. Its
guidance is comprehensive and includes the
social, economical, political, ethical and spiritual
aspects of life.
• The Holy Quran reminds the main purpose of his
life on earth and tells him that the aim of all his
duties is to get pleasure of Allah Almighty alone.
Comprehensive Concept of Worship
• A Muslim must entered perfectly in Islam
• The Holy Quran reminds the main purpose of
his life on earth and tells him that the aim of
all his duties is to get pleasure of Allah
Almighty alone.
• A true believer follow the instructions of Allah
in his/her entire life.
Comprehensive Concept of Worship
• We are not thankful to Allah Almighty as we are
required to be
• The true Muslim must believe in oneness of Allah
because he is the only creator, preserver and
cherisher. After the verbal commitment, it must
be verified by our heart and must be seen in our
practical life. We should be thankful to Allah in
every step of our life and we should realize what
Allah has given us.
• We as a Muslim should be thankful to Allah
Almighty sincerely for giving us unlimited gracing
and blessing, we cannot make a list of them nor
we can count them.
Articles of Faith
• There are five basic beliefs according to the Holy
Quran:
• Belief in Allah.
• Belief in the Day of Judgment.
• Belief in Prophets.
• Belief in Scriptures.
• Belief in Angles.
Allah says in the Holy Quran:
• “But righteous in he who believe in Allah and the Last
Day and the Angles and the Scriptures and Prophets.”
[2:177]
Belief in Allah
• Belief in the existence of Allah is the cardinal
doctrine of Islam. It is inconceivable for
anyone who claims to be a Muslim to deny the
existence of Allah.
• The Holy Quran contains hundreds of
arguments to prove the existence of Allah. The
atheists (those who deny the existence) are
asked of a few simple but searching questions.
Belief in Prophets
• Allah sent one hundred twenty four thousand
messengers for the guidance of mankind.
• They came to all parts of the world. The Holy
Quran says “And there is a nation but a
Warner has passed among them” (35:24)
• The Quran says, “And indeed We sent
messengers before you and We appointed for
them wives and offsprings.”
Belief in Angles
• Angles are spiritual creation of Allah. They are
made up of light. They are visible to ordinary
mortals.
• They are very obedient creations of Allah as
they are not given free will. The Holy Quran
say: “Who disobey not (from executing) the
commands they receive from Allah, but do
that which they are commanded.” (66:6)
• Belief in Revealed Books
Belief in After Life
• It is one of the major Muslim beliefs. Muslims
believe that this world is temporary and a day
will come when this world will come to an
end. This will be the Final Day, known as
Qiyamah.
Belief in Predestination
• Belief in predestination is an article of faith.
Muslims believe that everything good or bad
is predestined by Allah and everything is
written with Allah in clear words. Muslims
believe that Allah is wise and He has planned
everything beforehand wisely.
Five Pillars of Islam
• Meaning and importance
• The basis of the Islamic teachings and way of life
are various obligatory acts of worship, Ibadaat
that are often referred to as the five pillars of
Islam. These consists of:
• Shahadat
• Salat
• Saum
• Zakat
• Hajj
Five Pillars of Islam
• These acts of worship require the participation of all
aspects of man’s nature, his soul, his mind, his feelings,
his body, his time, his energy and his possessions. They
demand the worship of Allah with all the faculties of an
individual.
• For e.g, the declaration of faith is to be always present
in the mind and heart of the Muslims and is to be
uttered again and again with the tongue during his
daily prayers. Prayers are to be performed five times
daily, everyday of a man’s life. Fasting is for a full
month every year, while zakat or poor-due is to be paid
once yearly and hajj is to be performed once in a
lifetime if possible.
Shahadat
• Declaration that none deserves to be worshipped except Allah and
Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is his slave and messenger.
• The first part of the declaration attests not only to the oneness and
uniqueness of Allah and a constant theme of the holy Quran. It is
repeatedly mentioned as the basic principle of Islam and of all
revealed religions
• This declaration attests not only to the oneness and uniqueness of
Allah, but it also signifies the oneness of lordship, the sovereignty
and the authority in the universe and in this world. As there is no
other creator and sustainer of the universe, there can likewise be
no ruler, lawgiver and supreme authority for mankind.
• Allah is the lord of all creations; he creates what he pleases, giving
each of his creatures the nature, role and function which he desires
for it; in this he is accountable to no one and all things are under his
absolute control.
Salat
• The prescribe prayers, five times a day. The importance of prayer in
Islam is great as it is the foremost duty of the Muslims; and the
chief of the pillars on which the structure of Islam stands. It is the
distinguishing feature between a Muslim and a Non-Muslim.
• The Holy Prophet(P.B.U.H) said:
•
“What stands between a man and disbelief is the abandonment of
salat” (Muslim)
• Salat is the central point of the life of a Muslim, without which he
would not be able to maintain a strong and vital link with his Lord
or continue his inner struggle against wrong doing or temptation.
Because of all these aspects, salat is the principal means whereby
the Muslim keeps in mind the limited and temporary nature of
wordily life and the certainty of death and life to come.
• Thus, he is able to maintain a sense of balance and proportion
between the needs and claims of this world and the hereafter.
Fasting
• Islam developed a higher significance of fasting, ‘that you
may guard against evil’. The keynote of fasting is selfdiscipline and self-control. Fasting is for the improvement
of the moral and spiritual condition of man. It makes a
Muslim disciplined and steadfast in his habits. It also makes
him capable of enduring hardships. It develops compassion
and humanism and removes barriers between the rich and
the poor.
• By fasting, the rich undergo an experience which makes
them aware of the condition of the poor and hungry and
instills in them a desire to help the poor. It enables the rich
to thank Allah for the bounties bestowed on them.
• Thus, on the material side, fasting involves total abstinence
from food, drink and material relations and on the spiritual
side abstinence from falsehood, speaking ill of others,
quarrelling or wrong behavior.
Zakat
• A major pillar on which the structure of Islam stands is
zakat which can be defined as that portion of a man’s
wealth which is chosen for the poor. The Holy Prophet
(P.B.U.H), himself described zakat as wealth which is
collected from the well-to-do and distributed to the
poor.
• The word zakat which is derived from “zaka” which
means to increase or to bless. Another meaning of the
word as used in the Quran carries the sense of
purification. It finds its origin in the Quran command to
take alms from their goods to purify and sanctify(bless)
them.(9:103)
Hajj
• Hajj to Makkah in Saudi Arabia constitutes the fifth act of worship
prescribed by Islam. The Quran says:
•
“Pilgrimage thereto is a duty men owe to Allah those who can afford the
journey.”
• The literal meaning of Hajj is the will and desire to visit, but in the
terminology of the Shariah, it means the will to visit the Holy Ka’abah
which was the first structure built by Hazrat Adam(A.S) for the worship of
Allah. Then, about 4,500 years ago, Hazrat Ibrahim (A.S) and Hazrat Ismail
(A.S) rebuilt it at the command of Allah.
• Hajj is the only pillar which requires both physical and financial sacrifices.
• Hajj is one of the fundamental religious institutions of Islam. It is the
greatest of all acts of worship; it is in fact the result of worship. It is an
exhibition of brotherhood, equality, punctuality and discipline.
Sources of Religious and Legal
Authority
• Quran and Sunnah
• The Holy Quran provides fundamental laws in
respect of beliefs, prayers, morality, finances
as well as political setup of society. As regards
belief and morality, the laws provided by the
Holy Quran are complete, final and
exhaustive, however the position is different.
Sources of Religious and Legal
Authority
• Ijma
• In legal terminology Ijma means ‘consensus of
opinion of the learned in Islamic
jurisprudence.’ It may be defined as the rule
governing the Shariah which is the outcome of
the consensus of Muslim jurists and a
particular question of law within the limits lay
down by the Quran and Sunnah.
Sources of Religious and Legal
Authority
• Qiyas (Analogy)
• The root meaning of the word Qiyas is
measuring or equality. It originates form a
verb that means to measure one thing by
comparing with another thing that is similar to
it. It is legal method which uses human
reasoning to compare an existing situation for
which legislation already exists.