Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Islamic Religion
Islam
comes from an Arabic root word meaning
"peace" and "submission.
• Spirits (Jinn)
– Spiritual beings, with free will
– Thus can be good or evil
– Root of English word/concept: “genie”
To Believe in Prophethood
• Prophets (nabi ) and Messengers (rasul )
– Prophets speak God’s words to people orally.
– Messengers record God’s words in book form.
– So, not all prophets are messengers,
but all messengers are also prophets.
• Progressive Revelation
– Books of Moses, Psalms of David, Gospels of Jesus
– Ultimately the Qur’an, revealed thru Muhammad
• Judgment / Afterlife
– Everyone is judged based on one’s life/actions on earth
– If good deeds outweigh bad deeds:
• Reward eternal life with God in heaven/paradise/garden
– If bad deeds outweigh good deeds:
• Punishment in everlasting fires of hell
To Believe in the Divine Decree
• Human Nature / Free Will
– Everyone has knowledge & ability to choose between right
& wrong, and so is held responsible
– Yet God has correct fore-knowledge of everyone’s path
(i) Kalma recitation: To declare that there is no God but Allah and that
Muhammad is His ‘Rasul’ (Prophet or messenger). Shahda is recitation
of the Kalma, which is in Arabic and recited by Muslims in its original
form. The Kalma reads as follows:
La ilaha ill-allah, Muhammadu-Rasul Allah
(ii) Namaz-e-Panjagana: Participation in five periods of prayer each day.
(iii) Zaqat: Payment of an obligatory tax (Zaqat) to the needy.
(iv) Roza: Mandatory fasting during the month of Ramadan.
(v) Hajj: Pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in the lifetime of a Muslim,
if possible.
In Islam, faith and good works go hand-in-hand. A mere verbal
declaration of faith is not enough, for belief in Allah makes
obedience to Him a duty. The Muslim concept of worship is
very broad, they consider everything they do in life to be an
act of worship, if it is done according to Allah's guidance.
There are also five formal acts of worship which help strengthen
a Muslim's faith and obedience. They are often called the
"Five Pillars of Islam."