The Five Pillars Of The Muslim Faith

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

In the Muslim faith, The Five Pillars of Islam represent the deeds that every devotee needs to follow to become a good Muslim. These deeds include: confession of faith, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, and pilgrimage. While these commitments are written specifically for Muslims, the lessons they teach can be applied to anyone and everyone on all walks of life. In comparison, I will explain my personal equivalents to these five pillars with examples from my life, as well as explain the overall purpose of each pillar and the message it conveys.

Often called “The Crossroads of the World”, the Middle East stands between three continents: Asia, Africa, and Europe. Over thousands of years, migrating traders and conquerors crossed this region and spread the ideas, inventions, and achievements of many civilizations. It is an incredibly important part of the world with rich history, important resources, and deep religious and cultural traditions. However, in the past decades up to today, the Middle East has been consumed by conflict and chaos. Although different circumstances surround each issue, religion, terrorism, disputes over the control of natural resources, and weak governance primarily allow conflict to persist in the Middle East.

all-poor or all-wealth neighborhoods increased from 15% to 34%. The reason for all of this

Conflict between the U.S. and the Middle East has gone on for too long. Starting in the reagan administration and continuing until now. In the book “Fool’s Errand” Scott Horton, the author, writes about what has caused this conflict to last so long and why the U.S. is involved anyway. Horton believes that the problem in the Middle East will get worse before it gets better, and that it will last for generations to come.

The lust for territory seems to be the real source of conflict, and until one group is satisfied, the appearance of religious conflict will exist in the Middle East. It seems as if the real truth needs to be portrayed to the rest of the world about the true reason for the Arab-Israeli conflict, which is geography and ultimately water. The lack of water stems from the Great Syrian Rift Zone, and causes damage to Israeli land which ultimately decreases the amount of water that flows into the Red Sea. This lack of water causes Israel and other surrounding countries (Jordan, Lebanon, and the Occupied Territories) to only have one source of surface water, which is from Lake Kinnaret, or the Sea of Galilee that flows into the Jordan River.

Like many other religions, the Muslim faith has experienced many changes and branches. Like Christianity, the original faith is still practiced by some, but others have started new branches with their own unique interpretation being Muslim. Despite these differences within the Muslim religion, one set of rules for moral guidance is central to all. These rules are the Five Pillars of Islam. The Five Pillars act as a moral compass for Muslims and are universally accepted as they are mentioned specifically in the Qur’an, the sacred Muslim book of God’s words as they were recited to Muhammad (Molloy, 425).

Finally, the last Pillar of the five is called Zakat. Zakat is paying alms or charity to poor people and in need. It is the same as if you were to give a homeless man a dollar or some change out of generosity. Instead of just being generous, however, Zakat enforces that you must give charity to the needy. Changing their life, as well as the donor's life. Through The Five Pillars, lifestyle is changed through numerous ways for anybody practicing the Islam

Another source of conflict as reported by Sørli et. al stems from the religious differences. As a whole, the Middle East is comprised of followers of Islam. But within the Islamic religion are the Sunni (which account for the majority), and the Shia. Tension lies between the two sects, especially given the fact that the Shia often hold the positions of power (Sørli, 147). Another major

“There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger” (Five Pillars of Islam). This is the basic statement of the Islamic faith. When a Muslim recites this they proclaim Allah is the only God and Muhammad is the prophet, they personally believe this is true, and they will obey all the commitments of Islam in their life (Five Pillars of Islam). This is known as the Shahadah. To become a Muslim, an individual must recite this saying three times in front of one witness, loud, with sincerity, and full understanding. The Shahadah is written on the flag of Saudi Arabia, the state that contains Islam’s holiest places (Five Pillars of Islam). The Salat is the second pillar and it consists of performing ritual prayers in the proper way five times each day (Five Pillars of Islam).

Amery H. A. & Wolf A. T. (2000). Water in the Middle East: A geography of peace. Austin:University of Texas Press.

The Fajr prayer is performed before sunrise, Dhuhr is performed in the midday after the sun has surpassed its highest point, Asr is the evening prayer performed before sunset, Maghrib is the evening prayer performed after sunset and Isha is the night prayer. All of these prayers are recited while facing in the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and forms an important aspect of the Muslim Ummah.

Every religion has basic beliefs or teachings they would like their believers to follow and practice. In the Islamic faith, there are five duties that are important to the life of the Islamic community and are known as the “pillars of Islam.” Each pillar helps to form the foundation of the Islamic faith. Three of the five pillars are giving to charity, daily prayers, and a pilgrimage to Mecca. The third pillar is giving to charity, also known as Zakah. Muslims are instructed to perform voluntary charity as an essential duty. Zakrat was originally a tax collected by their government from the wealthy to help out the misfortunate. Daily prayers, known as Salah, are implemented five times a day as part of the Muslims daily lives. In their prayers, the Muslims stop everything they are doing and face towards Mecca which is where the kaaba is located. Along with daily prayers the Muslims are told to complete a pilgrimage, known as Haji, to the holy city of Mecca if physically and economically able to. The goal of their pilgrimage is to reach the kaaba in Mecca and the adults are suppose to accomplish this

Regardless of the past, the importance of water in the Middle East as a source of conflict has been continually under-appreciated both within the region and abroad. As Boutros Boutros-Ghali warned before taking his position as Secretary General of the United Nations in 1992, "the next war in our region will be over water, not politics."2 Water has a deeply spiritual importance in the Middle East. For over 1,500 years, Islamic law has dictated punishments to those denying access to or polluting water, because it holds water as reverent and spiritually pure. The Zionist tradition holds a similar reverence for the land and its resources.3

[2] Not surprisingly, the Middle East has frequently been at the centre of political debate and conflict, particularly in the Persian Gulf region.