ISLAM AND MUSLIMS
The Arabic word Islam means peace, submission and obedience. The religion
of Islam is the complete acceptance of the teachings and guidance of God as
revealed to His Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho Alehe Wassallam). A Muslim is one who believes in God
and strives for total reorganization of his life according to His revealed guidance
and the sayings of the Prophet. He also works for building human society on
the same basis. "Mohammedanism" is a misnomer for Islam and offends its very
spirit. The word 'Allah' is the proper name of God in Arabic. It is a unique
term because it has no plural or feminine gender.
CONTINUITY OF MESSAGE
Islam is not a new religion. It is, in essence, the same message and guidance
which Allah revealed to all Prophets: Say, we believe in Allah and that which
has been revealed to us, and that which was revealed to Abraham and Ismael and
Isaac and Jacob and the tribes and that which was given to Moses and Jesus and
to other Prophets, from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them,
and to Him we submit. (Qur'an
sura3 ale Imran verse 83). The Message which was revealed to Prophet
Muhammad (Sall Allaho Alehe Wassallam) is Islam in its comprehensive, complete and final form.
(3:83)
THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM
There are five pillars of Islam :
1. The declaration of faith
" Tauheed "
: To bear witness that there is none worthy of
worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His messenger to all human beings
till the Day of Judgment. The Prophet-hood of Muhammad obliges the Muslims to
follow his exemplary life as a model.
2. Prayers: Namaz or Salaat Daily prayers are offered five times a day as a duty towards
Allah. They strengthen and enliven the belief in Allah and inspire man to a
higher morality. They purify the heart and prevent temptation towards wrongdoings
and evils.
3. Fasting in the month of Ramadan: The Muslims during the month of
Ramadan
not only abstain from food, drink and sexual intercourse from dawn to sunset,
but also from evil intentions and desires. It teaches love, sincerity and devotion.
It develops a sound social conscience, patience, unselfishness and willpower.
How to perform Prayer
4. Zakat: To pay annually 2.5% of one's net saving on which a year has passed
as a religious duty and purifying sum to be spent on poorer sections of the
community. How to calculate Zakat
5. Pilgrimage to Makkah "
Hajj " : It is to be performed once in a lifetime, if one
can afford it financially and physically. Besides these pillars every action
which is done with the awareness that it fulfils the will of Allah is also considered
an act of worship. Islam enjoins faith in the Oneness and Sovereignty of Allah,
which makes man aware of the meaningfulness of the Universe and of his place
in it. This belief frees him from all fears and superstitions by making him
conscious of the presence of the Almighty Allah and of man's obligations towards
Him. This faith must be expressed and tested in action. Faith alone is not enough.
Belief in one God requires that we look upon all humanity as one family under
the universal Omnipotence of God - the Creator and Guardian of
all.
Islam rejects the idea of a chosen people, making faith in God and good action the only way to heaven. Thus, a direct relationship is established with God, without any intercessor. More Information about Hajj
MAN: THE FREE AGENT
Man is the highest creation of God. He is equipped with the highest of potentialities.
He is left relatively free in his will, action and choice. God has shown him
the right path, and the life of Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho Alehe Wassallam) provides a perfect example.
Man's success and salvation lies in following both. Islam teaches the sanctity
of the human personality and confers equal rights upon all without any distinction
of race, sex or color. The law of God, enunciated in the Qur`an and exemplified
in the life of the Prophet, is supreme in all cases. It applies equally to the
highest and the lowest, the prince and the peasant, the ruler and the ruled.
Quran And Hadith
The Qur`an is the last revealed word of God and the basic source of Islamic
teachings and laws. The Qur`an deals with the bases of creeds, morality, history
of humanity, worship, knowledge, wisdom, God-man relationship, and human relationship
in all aspects. Comprehensive teachings on which, can be built sound systems
of social justice, economics, politics, legislation, jurisprudence, law and
international relations, are important contents of the Holy Qur`an. Muhammad
(Sall Allaho Alehe Wassallam) himself was an unlettered man who could not read or write. Yet, the Holy
Qur`an was committed to memory and writing by his followers, under his supervision,
during his lifetime. The original and complete text of the Qur`an is available
to everybody in Arabic, the language in which it was revealed. Translations
of the meaning into many languages are widely used.
HADITH, the teachings, sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad (Sall Allaho Alehe Wassallam), meticulously reported and collected by his devoted companions, explain and elaborate the Qur`anic verses.
CONCEPT OF
WORSHIP
Islam does not teach nor accept mere ritualism.
It emphasizes intention and action. To worship God is to know Him and love Him,
to act upon His law in every aspect of life, to enjoin goodness and forbid wrongdoing
and oppression, to practice charity and justice and to serve Him by serving
mankind. The Qur`an presents this concept in the following sublime manner: "It
is not righteousness that you turn your faces to the East or the West, but righteous
is he who believes in God and the Last day and the Angels and the Book and the
Prophets; and gives his wealth for love of Him to kinsfolk and to orphans and
the needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask, and to set slaves free; and
observe proper worship and pays the Zakat. And those who keep their treaty when
they make one, and the patient in tribulation and adversity and time of stress;
such are those who are sincere. Such are the God-fearing." (Qur`an sura2 'baqarah' :verse
177).
ISLAMIC WAY OF LIFE
Islam provides definite guidelines for all people to follow in all walks
of life. The guidance it gives is comprehensive and includes the social, economic,
political, moral and spiritual aspects of life. The Qur`an reminds man of the
purpose of his life on earth, of his duties and obligations towards himself,
his kith and kin, his community, his fellow human beings and his Creator. Man
is given fundamental guidelines about a purposeful life and then he is left
with the challenge of human existence before him so that he might put these
high ideals into practice. In Islam, man's life is a wholesome, integrated unit
and not a collection of fragmented, competitive parts. The sacred and secular
are not separate parts of man: they are united in the nature of being human.
HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
Hazrat Muhammad (Sall Allaho Alehe Wassallam)(Peace Be Upon Him) was born in the year 570 A.C. in the city
of Makkah in Arabia in a noble family. He received the first revelation at the
age of forty. As soon as he started preaching Islam, he and his followers were
persecuted and had to face severe hardships. He was, therefore, commanded by
God to migrate to Madinah, another city in Arabia. During a short span of 23
years, he completed his mission of Prophet-hood and died at the age of 63. He
led a perfect life and set an example for all human-beings as his life was the
embodiment of the Qur`anic teachings.
ISLAM'S RATIONAL APPEAL
Islam in its clear and direct way of expressing truth has a tremendous amount
of appeal for any seeker of knowledge. It is a solution for all the problems
of life. It is a guide towards a better and complete life glorifying, in all
its phases, God, the Almighty Creator and the Merciful Nourisher.
ISLAM - THE SOLUTION OF MODERN PROBLEMS
UN-FRAGMENTED VIEW OF LIFE