Download Muslim Practices

Islam
Muslim Practices
Essentials of
Islam
• Islam means “surrender”
or “submission”
– Indicating
wholehearted
surrender to God
• Muslim means “one who
submits” to God (Allah)
– Expressed during
worship-prostration of
the entire body during
prayer indicates a
belief in divine power
and the believer’s
submission to it
Theology
•
•
•
•
Islam worship the same God Jews and Christians worship
Muslims refer to God as Allah
The word is a contraction of al (“the”) and ilah (“God”)
Muslims explain that the word Allah is not the name of God- it simply
means “God”
• It is said that God has 99 names
– Merciful, just, compassionate
• Even though God is referred as a male, God has no gender
• Essentially good
• People “forget” and
that’s why they sin
– Came from the fall
in the Garden of
Eden
– Therefore pray 5 x
daily in order to
remember
• Human destiny is
dependent on the
struggle (jihad) for
goodness
– Reward for
goodness –
Heaven
– Punishment for
forgetfulness –
Hell
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE
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•
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Umma
Umma = Islamic community
– The Umma bases its laws and lifestyle on
the teachings from the Koran
Sufism: Religious movement
– Aka Sufis
Sufism derives from the Arabic word suf= wool
– Because early Sufis wore a simple robe
made of common wool
Sufi belief:
– Believe that the highest experience a
person can have is a direct experience of
God
– An individual can experience God face to
face on earth
– Sufis have spoken about the sense of loss
of self that occurs in mystical experience
through dance or meditation
– This sense of loss of self is called
fana or al-fana meaning extinction
Sufis cont.
• Sufi practice:
– Deep regular breathing during
meditation
– Repetition of the 99 names of Allah
• Sometimes counted on a
rosary, to enable a constant
remembrance of God
– Dancing
• Wear a special dress code
• Sufi Shaykh
– A teacher
– Leads his disciples through a
variety of spiritual disciplines to
help them achieve union with God
• Sufism video clip:
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fo5
HJ_voXxg
Mosque
• Mosque refers to a space for
prostration
• Its design is simple
• Has one formal entry to the compound
– where shoes are to be taken off and left
outside
• There is at least one fountain for
purification
• There is a high pulpit indoors or
outdoors for sermons
• worshipers stand and prostrate
themselves in rows
• Mihrab- is a special arched niche that
indicates the direction of MeccaMuslims pray facing Mecca
• The floor is usually covered with rugs or
mats
Mosque cont.
• Outdoors there is usually a minaret
– a tall tower or two towers at the
corners of the mosque where
prayer is called
• a muezzin
– calls out from the top of a tower
for prayer
– The muezzin’s call to prayer
begins with Allahu akbar (“God is
supreme”)
– Nowadays, recordings of the call
to prayer are often played over
loudspeakers
Marriage
• Marriage
– Arranged by parents and
formalized by a written contract
– The bridegroom’s family makes
an offer of money or property to
the family of the bride as a part
of the contract
– The marriage ceremony is held
at home
• It consists of signing the
contract
• A passage from the Qur’an
might be read
• There is usually a feast
following the signing of the
contract
MARRIAGE, CONT.
– Multiple wives
(polygamy) – no
more than 4
permitted
• Must be treated
equally
• Not allowed in
western countries
with monogamous
marriage laws
Female roles
• In some societies, a woman
must be veiled when she goes
out of the house
• She allows only her husband
and relatives to see her face
– In most places it is a
choice, not in
Afghanistan, Saudi
Arabia, Iran
• Women are expected to
socialize only with female
friends and relatives
• Women may work as nurses,
doctors, and teachers
Female dress code: veiled options
1. Burqa- covers the
entire body, with
mesh over the eyes
2. Niqab- covers the
entire body, with a
thin slit for the eyes
3. Chador- covers the
body and leaves the
face bare
4. Hijab- covers the
hair and neck
Male dress code
• Kufi cap- skull cap
– Usually worn during
prayer
– Humility before God
• Men’s Jeleba
Circumcision
• Male circumcision is required
• Is the sign of the Covenant between God and Abraham
• Ishmael and Isaac were circumcised
– Boy are circumcised at the age of 7 or 8 years old
– Muhammad was circumcised
Prohibition: image making
• The prohibition against the
making of images has been
observed in Islam, but there are
at a few exceptions:
• One: Muhammad’s Night
Journey. However, Muhammad’s
face often appears as a ghostly
blank space.
• Another exception: Pilgrims who
return successfully from Mecca
make a picture of their pilgrimage
and place it outside the house,
near the front door, where it
cannot be missed.
• Prayers from the Qur’an are
recited for the dying person
• After death, the body is
buried in a plain white
shroud
– If the deceased is a male who
has made the pilgrimage, he
will wear the robe he wore in
Mecca
• The face of the decease is
turned toward Mecca at the
burial
• The headstone is usually an
undecorated stone markersignifies equality of all
people in death
Death rituals