Background On Muslim Practices And Beliefs

To be a Muslim, one has to follow five religious duties: 1. Repeat a creed about Allah and Muhammad; 2. Recite certain prayers in Arabic five times a day; 3. Give to the needy; 4. One month each year, fast from food, drink, sex and smoking from sunrise to sunset; 5. Pilgrimage once in one's lifetime to worship at a shrine in Mecca (Adamson). These beliefs affect daily life from praying five times a day to financial giving. The interface between the divine and humanity is not only contact but a way of life.

The very first pillar is the profession of faith, also known as Shahada, which states “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger”. In order to become Muslim, it is required to recite the Shahada three times, out loud, in front of witnesses. By reciting the profession of faith, they declare that there is only one Allah and they will follow the teachings of the Prophet. They will abide by the Five Pillars of Islam which are the Shahada, Salat (prayer), Zakat (charity), Sawm (fasting during Ramadan), and Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca). They will also abide by the Six Articles of Faith. They must believe in one and only Allah, angels, the holy books, the prophets, Judgement Day, and

The Islamic religion is a Middle Eastern, Arabic Peninsula, based religion that originated right around the 7th c. and is based on the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad. The definition of the word Islam means "submission" in Arabic, and connotes the notion of a total surrender of oneself to God, Allah in the Arabic language. Individuals who practice Islam are known as Muslims, which, again in Arabic, means "one who submits to God"

Muhammad descended from Ishmael. The fundamental practices of Islam is the five pillars. These practices include a ritual profession of faith, praying five times daily facing east, giving of alms (zakat), fasting, and performing the holy pilgrimage to Mecca.

One of the main practices for Islamic people would be the Five Pillars of Islam. All Muslims must follow these five rules completely. The first pillar is Shahada, which is the profession of faith, and stats "There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his prophet." The second pillar is Salat, which means daily prayers. Muslims must pray at least five times a day while facing Mecca. The next pillar is Zakat, or alms-giving, in which Muslims believe that everyone should share their wealth with less fortunate people. The fourth pillar is Saum, which means Ramadan. The last pillar is Hajj, which means pilgrimage. All Muslims must make a pilgrimage to Mecca as least once in their lifetime.

The writer also gives other explainations of the religion and of true Muslims to support the fact that not all Muslims reflect those Muslims shown through the media. In the essay, it is explained that a Muslim must complete and practice the five pillars of Islam to become a true Muslim. A true submitter to the faith must (1) practice the Shahadah: a testimony to the unity of God, (2) participate in Salah: daily prayers, five times a day, (3) partake in Zakat or almsgiving: giving back to Allah by giving to the needy, (4) sawm or fast from sunrise to sunset during the Ramadan: the month of

They follow the 5 Pillars of Islam. the first pillar is Shahada. This means testifying to god’s oneness. The second pillar is Salat. A good muslim is expected to pray. The third pillars is Zabat. giving charity,the fourth pillar is Sawm.: Fast, the five pillars is Hajj.: Pilgrimage-Journey and Muslims follow the 5 pillars of islam

Muslims believe their faith is the only true faith, it was revealed to them through a long line of prophets inspired by God. To practice their faith Muslims must accept five primary obligations called five pillars of Islam. The first pillar, is the profession of faith, repetition of the statement, “There is no god but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God”. The second pillar is the devotion to prayer and worship. Muslims pray five times a day while facing towards Mecca the “house of God”. Prayers are simple and personal but also done in groups. The third pillar is the obligatory religious tax it is paid by all for the benefit of the community. The fourth pillar is the month long fast each year during Ramadan from dawn to dark along with refraining from cursing, lying, and cheating. The fifth pillar is the pilgrimage to Mecca at some time during your life.

All followers of Islam, who are known as Muslims, have to follow the five pillars of faith. Those include:

Although it is quite difficult to name exactly all of the values and beliefs held by Muslims, there are six core Articles of Faith which are considered as the foundations of Islamic belief. The first is a belief in only one God, and one of gravest sins that Muslims consider is that of worshipping other Gods, or other beings alongside God. The second is a belief in angels, which are beings who work in the service of God to administer His kingdom. The Muslims also believe in prophets who were sent to every nation to bear witness that there is only one God. These prophets include Noah, Abraham, Jesus, and of course, Muhammad. The fourth belief is that God’s words were revealed through books, such as the Gospels, Psalms, and Torah. However, Muslims also believe that the Koran contains the final revelation and is a fully preserved version of God’s revelations. The other versions, Muslims believe, were either lost or distorted. The fifth belief is the occurrence of the Day of Judgment, in which people who perform good deeds will be rewarded in Heaven. The last belief is that there is a destiny and a Divine Decree, in which God has full and perfect knowledge of all things, and everything happens through his will (Ibrahim, 1997).

In the textbook, the values of the Islamic culture seemed to revolve around their religion. In fact, the word Islam actually means the “surrender of the self to the will of Allah” (Cunningham 243). Every Muslim follows the Five Pillars of Islam: that there is only one God, and Muhammad is his profit, the obligation to pray five times a day, donation of a portion of the surplus of one’s wealth, fasting during Ramadan, and the duty to travel to Mecca at least once. Three of these five pillars are present in The Tales from 1,001 Nights as well. The acceptance that there is only one God, and Muhammad is his prophet is seen in the tale “Abu Muhammad the Sluggard.” A man carrying a lance made Abu Muhammad recite the line “there is no god but God, and Muhammad is the Prophet of God,” and if Abu would not recite the lines, he would be struck down by

This is set by the time of day. The last important component to the prayer pillar is the public day of prayer, Friday. On this day, devote Muslims join together to pray in mosques (Molloy, 432-434).

Islam is defined as, “the monotheistic religion based on the doctrine of submission to God and of Muhammad as the last chief and prophet of God”(Dictionary 720). There are multiple practices included in the religion of Islam, similar to any other religion. Compared to Christianity or Judaism, when one follows Islam, one must follow The Five Pillars of Islam and the rules and circumstances of the worshipping practices. In addition, depending on the branch one is apart of, they may have to follow laws enforced by different prophets as well. One’s lifestyle will change because when following Islamic faith, their religious life is their main priority. Meaning, a Muslim makes the commitment to the practices one-hundred

Salat is the Muslim prayers that are performed five times every day. Allah ordered Muslims to pray at five times of the day: dawn, before sunrise, midday, after the sun passes its highest, the late part of the afternoon, just after sunset, and between sunset and midnight. All Muslims try to do this, even young children. The prayers give Muslims the pattern of their day.

Islam is the religion for about a fifth of the world’s population and is continually growing in numbers. The people who believe in Islam, are called Muslims. It is a religion full of peace, mercy, and forgiveness (Basic facts about). Islam was founded in the 7th