Islam

Islam (Arabic: الإسلام ) is a religion based on the teachings of the Qur’an, a sacred book. People who follow Islam are called Muslims. Muslims believe that there is only one god, whom they call Allah (Arabic: الله‎, al-lāh).

Muslims also believe that Muhammad was the last of many prophets from God. They believe that the Qur'an is the exact word of God, as revealed to Muhammad. Muslims also call Muhammad a "messenger of Allah".

After Muhammad died, Muslims wrote down stories about what he had said and done. Muslims call these stories Hadith. Muslim scholars collected all of these Hadith in books and compared them to each other. They decided which Hadith were most likely to be true records of the Sunnah, that is, the words and actions of Muhammad. Muslims see the Sunnah as an important source of guidance, along with the Qur'an.

Islam has laws based on the Qur'an and the Sunnah. These laws are called "Sharia". Muslim lawyers have studied Sharia and written down their ideas about how to judge different cases. These ideas about Sharia are called Fiqh.

Meaning of the word "Islam"

The word Islam means "submission". It comes from the Arabic verb أسلم <‎aslámah>, which means "to accept, surrender, or submit."

Qur'an

The Qur'an is the holy book of Islam. Muslims believe the Qur'an is made up of the sayings of Allah.

Islam teaches that the Qur'an was revealed by Allah, or God, to Muhammad with the help of an angel called Gabriel. It also teaches that the Qur'an is in heaven and that it is a perfect book. The Qur'an has a total of 114 chapters. In each chapter there are many verses. Many Muslims try to memorize the entire Qur'an and ones who do are called a Hafiz or Hafez.

Other important books are the Sunnah, or biographies of Muhammad and Hadith compilations, which are collections of sayings attributed to Muhammad.

The Five Pillars of Islam

There are five things that Muslims should do. They are called "The Five Pillars of Islam".

1. Faith: The Testimony (Shahada in Arabic) is the Muslim belief that there is no god but Allah himself, and that Muhammad is his messenger.

2. Prayer: Muslims pray five times at special times of the day. This is facing the holy city Mecca.Prayer is called Salat in Arabic and namaz in Persian, Turkish and Urdu.

3. Charity: Muslims who have money must give alms (Zakah or Zakat in Arabic) to help poor Muslims in the local community .

4. Fasting: Muslims fast during Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic year. They do not eat or drink from sunrise till sunset for one lunar month. After Ramadan, there is a holiday called Eid al-Fitr (English: Festival of end-fast). Muslims usually have a party with families and friends and go to the mosque in the morning for a special service.

5. Hajj (Pilgrimage): During the Hajj season, many Muslims go to Makkah, the holiest city of Islam, which is in Saudi Arabia. Muslims must make the hajj at least once in their life if they can afford to do so. There is no need if a Muslim does not have the money to make the Hajj. At the end of Hajj season, there is a holiday called Eid al-Adha (English: Festival of Sacrifice). Muslims in general who can afford or who have made the Hajj must buy an animal, usually a goat, to sacrifice according to Islamic laws and cook as food or give away to the poor, if they have the money for it. Muslims believe that Abraham, one of Allah's earliest messengers, was told by Allah on the day of Eid al-Adha to sacrifice his son in Jerusalem. But the angel Gabriel congratulated Abraham's obedience to Allah and gave him a lamb instead.

Place of worship

Muslims pray in a masjid, like this one in Jerusalem.

Muslims, the people who follow the religion of Islam, pray in a holy place called the masjid. The Muslims place of worship is properly known as a masjid in arabic. Most masjids have at least one dome and some have one or more towers. But a masjid does not need to have a dome or tower. Muslims take their shoes off before entering the masjid to pray. Prayer is one of the most important things that a Muslim does.

Different movements and beliefs

Like with other religions, over the time different movements have developed in Islam. These movements are based on different interpretations of the scriptures.

Sunni

See the main article: Sunni Islam

Sunni Islam is the largest movement in Islam. About 93.5% of Muslims are Sunni. After Muhammad died, the Sunnis believed that Abu Bakr should lead Islam. This is because they believe leaders of Islam should be chosen by the consensus of the Ummah, the Muslim world. After he died Omar took his place, then Osman, and then Ali. All of them were companions of the Prophet Muhammad and lived in Medina. Sunni beliefs are usually based on the Qur'an and the Sunnah.

Shia

See the main article: Shi'a Islam

The Shi'a are the second biggest movement in Islam. They believe that just as God can appoint a prophet only, he can appoint a second leader after the prophet. Shi'a Muslims believe that God chose Ali as the leader after Prophet Muhammad. They say that before he died, Muhammad chose Ali as his replacement. 10-15% of Muslim's in the world are Shi'a which means that there are about 130 million to 190 million world wide . Although Shi'a is not the biggest movement in Islam, Shi'a Muslims have the largest population in Iran, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, and Iraq.

Kharijite

See the main article: Kharijite

Kharijites were a movement during the early years of Islam. This movement has no followers today. At first they accepted the rule of Ali, but rejected him to later support the view that Abu Bakr, and his successors were the rightful Caliphs. The only group of Kharijites that still exists are the Ibadi. The Ibadi do not consider themselves to be Kharijite. Most Ibadis live in Oman. Smaller numbers live in Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Zanzibar.

Sometimes, the term Kharijite (or Neo-Kharijite) is also used for some islamic terrorist groups. Examples of such groups are the Groupe islamique armé in Algeria, or the Takfir wal-Hijra in Egypt.

Sufism

See the main article: Sufism

The Sufi are not a movement like the Sunni or the Shia. They focus more on the spiritual and mystic elements of Islam. Some followers of Sufism are Sunni, others are Shia.

Criticism

Islam has been widely criticised. Some of the first people who criticised Islam in writing were Christians, like John of Damascus (born about 676). In the medieval period, some Arab philosophers like the poet Al-Ma'arri also criticised Islam. The Jewish philosopher Maimonides compared Islamic views of morality to the Jewish approach that he himself believed in. He believed that Islam was a copy of the Jewish and Christian religions with a few minor changes. He thought these changes were made to suit Mohamed's desire for fame and his quest to start a new religion. He thought Mohamed wanted to be seen as equal to the likes of Moses and Jesus. Medieval Christian writers thought that Islamic beliefs were not valid. They tried to show Muhammad was possessed by Satan. In the 19th century, the Orientalist (eastern countries and beliefs) scholar William Muir wrote harshly about the Qu'ran.

In modern times, critics also say that Islam does not tolerate the view that Islamic law may be too harsh on some accounts. This is especially the case when punishing those Muslims that reject or criticize the accepted views of Islam. Other critics see Muhammad's personal life negatively. Still others question how authentic the Qu'ran is and if it can impose moral guidelines. These reports also say that women may be treated badly by Islamic law and practice.

Some people have responded to these forms of criticism. Montgomery Watt and Norman Daniel say that some of the criticisms are the product of old myths and polemics,. Carl Ernst writes that Islamophobia has played a part in establishing those myths.

Other pages

• Muhammad
• Nation of Islam
• Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi

References

• Ernst, Carl (2004). Following Muhammad: Rethinking Islam in the Contemporary World. University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 0-8078-5577-4.
• Novak, David (February 1999). "The Mind of Maimonides". First Things.
• Sahas, Daniel J. (1997). John of Damascus on Islam: The Heresy of the Ishmaelites. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-90-04-03495-2.
• Seibert, Robert F. (1994). "Review: Islam and the West: The Making of an Image (Norman Daniel)". Review of Religious Research. 36 (1).
• Warraq, Ibn (2000). The Quest for Historical Muhammad. Prometheus. ISBN 978-1-57392-787-1.
• Warraq, Ibn (2003). Leaving Islam: Apostates Speak Out. Prometheus. ISBN 1-59102-068-9.
• Watt, W. Montgomery (1974). Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman (New ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-881078-4.

Other websites

• A Simple site to Learn Islam
• Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs
• Islam house website with more than 70 languages
• The Quran miracles encyclopedia