Importance of Faith and Prayer in Islam

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.

Central to the Muslim belief is the importance of devotion and total submission to Allah. This is put into practice through the Five Pillars of Islam –the five obligatory duties that must be performed by all practising Muslims. These are the acts of faith, prayer, charity, fasting and pilgrimage. Carrying out these duties creates structure in a Muslim’s life, teaching them to devote their time to Allah and not get caught up in their own secular lives. The effect the Five Pillars of Islam has on not only the individual but the community as a whole is substantial. Constantly

Islam is not only religion, but a way of life followed by over 1 billion Muslims. Islam identifies the six articles of faith, central beliefs that every Muslim must believe in order to be a true Muslim. These include the belief in existence and unity of God, existence of angels, God’s revelation to humans in holy books, God appointing prophets to all people, resurrection and life after death, and God’s Will and human freedom of choice (Ewing, 2004, p. 1). The importance of these beliefs can be highlighted through the practical expressions of the five pillars. These include Shahadah, Salah, Zakah, Saum and Hajj which are all important during Muslim life because they are used daily or have to be performed at least once. Many of the six

The Islam faith, spread under the prophet Muhammad in about 600 c.e., holds that peace can be found when one surrenders to Allah (“Overview of Islam”). Muslims, or followers of Islam, are expected to become very knowledgeable of the sacred text of Islam, the Qur’an. This all truthful text as Muslims believe, contains “knowledge in areas of action, contemplation, and intellectual concerns” (“Overview of Islam”). It is essentially a guidebook for living a life on the Straight Path. The Islam tradition is rooted in the fulfillment of the Five Pillars of Islam. The proclamation of faith, daily prayers, fasting during Ramadan, giving of wealth to community, and the pilgrimage to Mecca provide a guide

Before Muslims begin to pray there are strict guidelines in preparation that they must follow. A major part of this preparation is cleansing the body and soul. First the Muslims must wear the proper attire for prayer and make sure that the place of prayer is clean. The garments which are to be worn for prayer are to be loose fitted and cover a majority of the person’s body. Then the individual is to perform a ritual ablution, in which they clean their body in preparation. This ablution is followed by the individual becoming internally aware that they are about to enter into prayer. Muslims then mentally prepare themselves to recite the prayer as if it is their last prayer, meaning they

When describing the five pillars of the Muslim faith, it is believed that this was the main foundation of the Muslim way of life. These five pillars give a true identity when it comes to the Muslim faith and lifestyle. One of the pillars is named Salat which is translated to Prayer in the English language. Throughout the day people would have to pray and it doesn't really matter where they do it. They have to at least do it five times a day. The second pillar that I will talk about is named Zakat. Zakat would mean charity or give charity. One of the principles following this is to have the knowledge that everything belongs to God.

I think it’s important to begin with a basic understanding of Islam. The foundation of Islam is the worship one God, Allah, and submission to Him. Muslims believe that God doesn’t need humanity nor be worshipped, but people need God. This human need for God gives purpose to the religion and individual followers. To fulfill this need for Allah, Muslims are required to worship five times a day at dawn, noon, late afternoon, evening and night. During each time of worship, Muslims follow rakat, which are series of ordained movements. One praying begins standing, then bows and goes on their knees, then lies prostrate on the ground. Each time of prayer requires a different amount of rakats, but usually only needs three to five minutes to complete. It is common to complete an act of purification/absolution, called wudu before staring the rakat. This helps them focus their mind on Allah and His goodness. Additional short prayers known as dua are

“Recitation of the Qur’an is thought to have a healing, soothing effect, but can also bring protection, guidance, and knowledge, according to Islamic tradition (Fisher, Mary)”. People can recite the qur’an in the purified states only because Qur’an contains a powerful words and it takes a great responsibility (Fisher, Mary)”. “The verses of the Qur’an are terse (Fisher, Mary)” which makes it harder to translate. One of the unique tradition in Islam are the five pillars. “The basic spiritual practices incumbent on all Muslims are known as the five pillars of Islam (Fisher, Mary)”. The first pillar is believing and professing the unity of god and the messengership of Muhammad. The second pillar is the performance of a continual round of prayers. Muslims perform prayers five times a day “facing mecca, and reciting a series of prayers and passages from the Qur’an, bowing and kneeling (Fisher, Mary)”. The third pillar is Zakat, charity or almsgiving. “Muslims must donate at least two and a half percent of their accumulated wealth to needy Muslims (Fisher, Mary)”. The fourth pillar is fasting. Fasting frequently is recommended in Islam however, fasting during Ramadan is the obligatory (Fisher,

The Islam religion prays 5 times a day. Which is called salaat/salah. All muslims are to participate in this ritual. They pray between first light and sunrise, when the sun is in the middle in the sky, and between darkness and midnight. Before they pray they cleans themselves. The reason they do this is because they believe cleanliness is half of faith.

Since the Muslim religion is based centrally on the Koran, the emphasis of the “peripheral importance of customs, sayings, and traditions… is upon acting in accordance with God’s will, beginning with five practices”

The Tales from 1,001 Nights have no author, and the tales within the book were compiled between the 9th and 14th centuries (Cunningham 257). In the stories from Tales from 1,001 Nights, there is the presence of Islamic values that are mentioned in our Culture and Values textbooks, such as devotion to religion and differences in religious denominations. However, the stories that I read from Tales from 1,001 Nights seemed to revolve around gaining wealth, which is not mentioned as a value in the textbook. Despite the discrepancy of the value of wealth, I believe that the Islamic culture is deeply woven into The Tales from 1,001 Nights.

Muslims, the followers of Islam, “believe that Islam is the religion of God (Allah), which he ordained for the guidance and benefit of humanity” (Canadian Encyclopedia, 2002). Members of the Islamic society choose to live life according to the Qur’an, which is the holy book of Islam. Muslims trust that the Qur’an contains God’s exact words and teachings. The tenets of Islam are known as the Five Pillars. These are five ways in which a Muslim is expected to worship Allah.

2) Prayer. Muslims must pray five times a day. When they pray, they must pray towards Mecca, the holy city.

Islam is a monotheistic religion and spiritual belief based upon revelations established forth by the once then Prophet of 7th century Arabia, Muhammad. These revelations which were later chronicled in the Qur 'an (Koran), Islam 's sacred writings. The Arabic word 'Islam ' conveys "entry," mirroring the spiritual beliefs and their central precept of ones acceptance toward the will of God. Islam antedates to the edge of Adam where its message was then tied to man by God 's Prophets and Messengers composed of Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad himself. (Abu Al- 'Ala Maududi, 1984).

The holy Quran is a collection of the divinely inspired utterances and discourses (Ahmed, 16). It is composed of some 300 pages which are divided into 114 Surahs (chapters). The general tone of the holy Quran is sombre and meditative. It is a dialogue between God and humanity. At the core is a moral earnestness (Ahmed, 16). The Quran also teaches that humanity is created by God and therefore God understands its weaknesses and in Allah humans find the source of peace. Islam’s appeal lay – and – lies in the simplicity: one God, one Book, one Prophet (Ahmed, 17). Islam is a religion of balance, equilibrium, and compassion. The Islamic virtues are courage, generosity, cleanliness, and piety: and in his life the Prophet exemplifies them (Ahmed, 17).