First of all, what is Islam? The word “Islam”
can be read as “surrender” or “submission”.
The meaning behind that is their belief is to sincerely surrender to God
so that they can live in peace. Peace is obtained through their complete
obedience for God. For example, God said
to never steal, respect your elders, etc. Islam is a very welcoming
religion. It will not force people to
believe but they highly encourage it.
Islam is believed to have been first revealed to
people by Muhammad, the Final Prophet, who was the first person that Allah
(God) had revealed the Qur'an from. Muhammad was born in 570 CE in the
city of Mecca.
He was orphaned at a young age and was raised by his uncle Abu Talib. He
got married at the age of 25 and his wife brought him into the business of
trade. During one trade journey, Gabriel the archangel descended upon him
and revealed to him the Qur'an. Many believe that Muhammad magically
recited the words as if he already knew them. He was 40 years old at the
time. He then returned home to spread the word.
The Qur'an is very important as it is known to be
of Allah's exact words. Therefore, whenever a copy of the Qur'an is
replicated, it must be carefully done without altering any of the words.
Some Muslim schools teach calligraphy in order to replicate the Qur'an
better. It is believed that the Qur'an was slowly revealed in bits and
peaces over a total of about 23 years starting from the year 610 CE during the
month of Ramadan. The meaning of the word "Qur'an" can be translated
to "he read" or "he recited" as it was words sent directly
from God. That is why Muhammad is also known as "The Messenger of
Allah".
For someone to truly be
considered a believer in Islam, they must first complete the tradition of the
Five Pillars of Islam. They are as
follows:
1.
The Declaration of Faith (Shadadah) - One must recite: ““I testify that
there is no true deity except God and that Muhammad is his messenger” in order
for God to cleanse them of their sins.
2. Praying Five Times a Day (Salah) – One must pray at least five times a day
while facing Makkah or more if they wish.
3. Paying the Yearly Alms (Zakah) - One
must donate at least 2.5% of their income throughout the year in order to
donate to the needy.
4. Fasting During Ramadan (Sawm) – One must not eat, drink, or have sex for the
duration of a day at one point during the month of Ramadan in order to cleanse
themselves of sins.
5. Making the Pilgrimage to Makkah (Haji) - A person wishing to follow in the
word of Islm must make a pilgrimage to the Ka’bah in Makkah ONCE in their
lifetime if possible. It compels the
pilgrims to break down the racial , economic, nad social barriers that may
reside in their societies. Each person
walks counter-clockwise seven times around the Kaaba, the cube-shaped building
which acts as the Muslim direction of prayer, runs back and forth between the
hills of Al-Safa and Al-Marwah, drinks from the Zamzam Well, goes to the plains
of Mount Arafat to stand in vigil, and throws stones in a ritual Stoning of the
Devil. The pilgrims then shave their heads, perform a ritual of animal
sacrifice, and celebrate the three day global festival of Eid al-Adha.
They
must also believe in the six articles of Faith which are as follows:
1.
Belief in God
2.
Belief in his Angels
3.
Belief in his Books
4.
Belief in his Prophets and Messengers
5.
Belief in Day of Judgement
6.
Belief in God’s Divine Decree
Islam has been known to be a harsh and
burdensome. What do you think? Is Islam a harsh religion? What are your thoughts about their traditions? Would you consider being a believer in
Islam? Check back on my next post
regarding the future of Islam.
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