Islamic Fundamentalism

Over 1.6 billion people are muslims. That is about about a quarter of the entire world. Islam is the second largest religion the world. This beast of a religion started out in the small town of Mecca on the Arabian Peninsula. Over the next thousand years it spread to the astonishing size we know today.

Islam, meaning submission or submitting oneself fully to God, is one of the world’s largely practiced religions. Those that participate and practice the Islamic religion

In Islam, God, grants human rights and therefore they can never be taken away or changed, for any reason. As a result, these concepts are part of the way Islamic individuals are portrayed in society. Every Muslim is required to accept them and recognize the people's right to have them enforced and obeyed. Islam allows complete freedom of thought and expression, provided that it does not involve spreading anything that is harmful to individuals and the society at large. The value of the community and society as a whole is greatly emphasized in Islamic traditions, as the common wealth of the society is important. This in turn reflects on society, because in Islamic culture, it is important to act in a lawful way as it is entrenched not only in their Muslim religion but in their general lifestyle as well. These factors greatly affect society because their customs, traditions and beliefs are embedded in their laws and individuals must act accordingly.

When studying Islam, it is important to understand the essential elements of the faith, how they are practiced, and the distinctions among the three branches: Shiite Islam, Sunni Islam, and Sufism.

Notably, as Muhammed standardized the Five Pillars of Islam for the “umma,’’ or community of faithful, multiplying followers stayed true to his legal doctrines. Ever since early Islam, the ‘’Sharia’’ stabilized the cults law, even if it combated Greek, Persian, and Indian nations. Along with cultural topics, the Sharia gave

Islam is the fastest growing religion, growing at a rate of 2.9% increase each year 20% of people claim to be a Muslim.(Consiltants)

The Islamic religion is currently world's second largest and fastest growing worldwide and there are approximately about 1.6 billion population in the world believe in Islam which is nearly one-fourth. “Over fifty countries have Muslim-majority populations, while other groups of believers are clustered in

Islam is an Arabic word meaning submission and therefore Islam religion is believed to be an Abrahamic religion which believes in submission to the almighty God Allah and Muhammad as the prophet. Quran is the holy book believed to be the guideline of the Muslims who are the followers of the Islamic religion. It is believed that Allah repeatedly revealed to Muhammad verbally through angel Gabriel and recited in the Quran (Hadith of Revelation, Volume 1, Book 1, Number 3). Over time particular aspects arose from the Quranic teachings and Muslims began to have questions about the teachings and translation of The Quran, thus, narrations were developed in Hadiths.

Islam, a major world religion, founded in Arabia and based on the teachings of Muhammad, who is called the Prophet. One who practices Islam is a Muslim. Muslims follow the Koran, the written revelation brought by Muhammad. The Muslim world population is estimated at more than 1 billion. Islam is the quickest growing religion.

The Islamic religion and belief system is very solely focused on the teaching derived from its core spiritual texts, also when confronted with the ethical issues situated with bioethics, religious Authority is very influential in the decision process of the issue, e.g. with abortion and euthanasia a member of religious authority would refer to the spiritual texts of Islam to whether the issue at hand is “wajib” (mandatory), “mustahabb” (advised), “mubah” (either way/unbiased), “makruh” (advised against), “haram” (illegal/prohibited). The main core spiritual texts are as follows: The Qur’an, Sunnah and the Hadith. The Quran is the central text of the Islamic religion as a whole and can be interpreted in many different ways, it is believed to be the revelation of God written by the prophet Muhammad. The Quran is the primary source for Islamic law, ethical teachings and values. There are known to be 350 legal verses out of the 6235 verses that make up the Quran, meaning that it is fairly scattered and hard to follow. It is used with the Hadith to clarify Shari’a Law. The Sunnah is a written version of the teachings and sayings of the prophet Muhammad who is known to be the perfect role model for a Muslim, this meaning that the Sunnah is referred to as the perfect way in which a Muslim must live and it influences every aspect of their daily life. The Hadith is another sacred Islamic text, which is basically one of many reports that followed the

Sharia law is an ancient compilation of religious rules that most Muslim nations seek reference in governing their people. Also defined as Islamic law, the essence of sharia laws emanated from the life of Prophet Mohammed known as the hadiths as well as the Quran teachings. The hadiths entail the vocal expressions of prophet Muhammad on divine life and his condemnation of immoral behavior that undermine the acceptable way of life. The teachings are accepted by the Muslim community who affirm that Muhammad’s teachings supplement the functionality of the Quran. On the other hand, the Quran, which forms the core reference on Muslim beliefs and regulations provides moral and spiritual guidance among the Muslims. It also dictates how the Muslims should interact with the non-Muslim community without contravening on the sharia doctrines (Hallaq 20-25).

The basic message of Islam was that there was one God who ruled over the other Gods and whose name was Allah. Muslim Prophet Muhammad was the last and greatest prophet of Allah. He believed that Allah had exposed himself in Moses and Jesus and thru the Hebrew and Christian traditions (203). The last revelations were given to him. These revelations were written down in a holy book that became the Qur 'an. The teachings of Muhammad formed the foundation for the religion of Islam. Islam means, "submission to the will of Allah". Allah was the almighty who created the world and everything in it (203). His worshipper 's were called Muslims. Islam was a way to set religious beliefs as well as a way of life. The Islamic society had a certain way in which they behave. They had their morals recorded in the Qur 'an and this served as their code of ethics and law (203). They has to followed a basic righteous code that was compose of the Five Pillars of Islam. These first pillar, was that there is no other God but Allah and Muhammad is the prophet. The second pillar is that regular prayers to worship Allah are required 5 times a day and a public prayer on Friday at midday. The third pillar was that money must be given to the poor and needy. The fourth pillar was the observance of the Holy month of Ramadan with fasting from dawn to sunset. The fifth pillar was to make a pilgrimage to Mecca

In all countries throughout the world the sources of Islamic traditions are found in the Qur’an. Similar to the Bible the Qur’an has different chapters to refer to in the holy book; the chapters in the Qur’an are called Surah’s. In the Muslim

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).

The Quran is a religious manuscript with a unique effect on the legal, social, and political organizations of the numerous societies of Muslims since ancient times until today. Apparently, in the majority of Muslim states, their constitutions are usually canonized by the Islamic regimens. Consequently, the Quran is the foundation of the legal principles in such nations. The basis of numerous lawful codes in ancient Muslim kingdoms was primarily outlined in the Quran and was vastly referred by jurists especially in court proceedings. Additionally, the set of rules marks an integral position in the religious lives of Muslims. It encompasses the five prayers that are typically recited daily, and they entail the