Five pillars in islam - Essay Example

_____________ ID: _________ ID: _________ Five Pillars In Islam To be a true Muslim, it is must to obey and act according to the five pillars of Islam, as mentioned in the Holy Quran revealed upon the last Prophet of God (Allah) Muhammad. Prophet Muhammad preached an integrated universal plan directed to all mankind, in which authority on earth is devolved to mankind with the creation at their disposal to utilise. They are given the tools of learning (inspiration or revelation) and the general guidelines to be used in order to stay on the right course, as well as the freedom to choose. Prophet Muhammad preached by presenting his own life as an example to follow and did nothing beyond the doings of an average Muslim. Holy Quran and Sunnah (teachings of Holy Prophet) in this context is the best example of what he did by setting his own example in this world. Prophet Muhammad's preaching revolves around the central theme that after death every body will be raised at the Day of Judgement and all will be judged by God based on their conduct in this life. No doubt it was Prophet Muhammad's inspirations, which put mankind on a new footing by stressing the use of empirical observations and the use of reason and reflection as the guiding tools for seeking the way of God. (Hamdiyyah, 2000, p. 26) The five pillars necessary to be practiced by a Muslim are none other than: 1. Shahadat (Kalma Tauheed) - The belief of one and only God; 2. Salat (Prayers) - prayers performed five times a day at regular intervals i.e., dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset and night; (Pasquine, March 2002) 3. Siyaam (Fasting) 4. Zakat (Charity) - Charity tax for the poor and disadvantaged; 5. Hajj (pilgrimage) - Obligatory for a Muslim to perform at least once in his lifetime. Shahadat - Tauheed (Confession of one God) In the midst of that milieu which was followed by the then superstitious beliefs, and had been cross-fertilized by all sorts of ideas, right in the centre of the Arabian Peninsula, separated but not isolated, Prophet Muhammad came preaching that there is only One God for all creation, Allah (an assimilated form of Al-ilaah, the god), with no other gods besides Him, accessible to all, with no priesthood as an intermediary, no original sin and no ethnic, tribal or racial overtones. In the Quran we find God addressing human beings in general or the believers, but never 'the Arabs' or 'men' in contradistinction to 'women'. (Hamdiyyah, 2000, p. 26) 'Shahadat' in the form of 'Kalma Tauheed' is the belief that must be declared and uttered by every Muslim, which means that he has acknowledged by his heart and soul that there is no God except "Allah" and Prophet Muhammad is His most beloved and last Prophet. This doctrine is the foremost principle for being a Muslim after which a Muslim follows other doctrines. The oneness of Allah prevents a Muslim from getting into other confusions and diversification which is the cause of uniting the Muslims all over the globe to a single main believe, i.e., Allah is the creator of the universe and all the things within ranging from nature to life. Prophet Muhammad is the last messenger for whom Allah has created the whole universe and He is the one to whom we are onus to worship and none other. Salat (Prayer) The second main pillar of Islam is Salat (Prayer), which is, in fact, one of the earliest and most constantly urged elements of Prophet Muhammad's message. "The word used 'Salat' refers to Arabic word where it refers precisely to liturgical prayer, a public worship of God in the form of audibly uttered words". (Peters, 1994, p. 164) Quran says, Prophet Muhammad advises the Muslims "Do not be loud in your prayer nor speak it softly (as if in secret), but find a way between" (Quran 17: 110) It is the second basic pillar which makes it compulsory for a Muslim to practice his daily five times prayer which is accompanied by particular gestures and postures, as laid down in the teachings of Prophet Muhammad and his beloved followers. Salat is composed of a minimum of two and a maximum of four prayer units. A prayer unit consists of presenting oneself before God standing on a clean spot reciting the official prayer, which is the first surah of the Quran. Other verses from the Quran may also be recited in addition to the first surah. The recitation is followed by bowing and prostration, during both of which obedience of the Almighty is proclaimed. A full prayer salat is made of a minimum of two or a maximum of four of these units, depending on the time of the day. At the end of prayer one enters again in life activity by declaring "assalum alaykum" (greetings), in the right and left directions, as if one was returning from a trip. (Hamdiyyah, 2000, p. 47) The salat is carried out by individuals singly or in groups (in the latter case, one of the group leads the prayer) and is meant to instil in the believer the discipline of remembering God during the day (waking hours). (Hamdiyyah, 2000, p. 58) The main purpose for carrying out in-group lead us to the main core of salat i.e., to maintain and develop brotherhood among all the Muslims irrespective of colour, cast, race, culture or creed. When a rich and poor perform salat together in rows in a mosque, the social differences erase automatically. Siyaam (Fasting) Fasting is the food restriction imposed upon Muslims once a year in the Holy month of Ramadan. This practice is based on ancient rituals, which were part and parcel of the annual festivities in Mecca and its surroundings as well as across the whole of the Arabian Peninsula and its periphery. All that Prophet Muhammad has done is to depaganize these rituals to fit into the new outlook, spread by Prophet Muhammad as Islam. Fasting instructions are followed in the light of customs and circumstances of the local people at the time of dawn till dusk, as in this period of time no Muslim (engaged in fasting) is allowed to eat or drink even a drop of water or a small grain. The main objective this third pillar depicts is the concept of sympathetic feeling towards the poor and needy, every Muslim who engages in this act concerns for another Muslim who is deprived of good food due to lack of financial resources. So, in this manner he feels deep sympathy for his poor brother who is unable to enjoy those edible benefits, which other Muslims enjoy. Zakat (Charity) Zakat, the Charity tax is the fourth fundamental pillar of religion Islam on which the Prophet Muhammad, stressed as the principal virtue, inasmuch as it involved helping the unfortunate and showing detachment from material things. Thus, starting from this general principle and according to the word of Allah, "Then shall anyone who has done an atom's weight of good, see it! And anyone who has done an atom's weight of evil shall see it". (Bino et al, 2001, p. 94) The concept of this obligation on Muslims where on one hand creates the awareness of helping the poor, on the other hand it promotes financial and economic equality among the Muslims which today cannot be seen in most of the Muslim world except for a few like Saudi Arabia, Middle East etc. Zakat endorse the feeling of unity and strength among the Muslims when one Muslim out of his hard earned living, gives a portion of it to another Muslim who is poor and needy, this encourages eradicating poverty from our society by spreading the wealth equally among the poor. Hajj Hajj, the fifth holy pillar of Islam is imposed on all those Muslim adults (male and female) who possess financial stability along with physical health at least once a lifetime. According to the website Islam.com, "Every nation and society has a center of unity where they get together to worship God. They see prosperity and culture as relics of unity. People of the society get to know each other and understand each other's difficulties. They form a unified front to remove these difficulties and achieve their goals". (Islam, Hajj) Hajj is not mandatory throughout the year, however there are special Islamic months in which this ritual is performed in the city of Mecca. Muslims throughout the Islamic countries gather at one place and say their prayers accordingly. This act alleviates all the societal differences created within Muslim ummah, where one does not bother about the other as to who he is standing next to, but the main concern is Muslim brotherhood at a collective level. God revealed the Quran to his messenger Mohammed, whose life and teaching (Sunna) has been donated to Islam according to God's guidance. Muslims believe that the Quran, revealed to Mohammed and preserved by God, became the book of guidance for all humanity, and is furthermore the final message from God to all people and completes the doctrines of Judaism and Christianity. Muslim worship is a gratitude to God in the form of testifying to God, praying, paying Zakat, fasting and pilgrimage. (Khorshid, 2004, p. 29) Works Cited and References Bino J. Murad, Biswas K. Asit & Faruqi Naser. (2001) "Water Management in Islam': United Nations University Press: New York. Hamdiyyah Abu, (2000) "The Quran: An Introduction": Routledge: London. Khorshid Aly, (2004) "Islamic Insurance: A Modern Approach to Islamic Banking": Routledge Curzon: New York. Pasquini Elaine, (2002 March) "Mill Valley Children Enjoy Lesson in Islam" In Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. Volume: 21. Issue: 2. Peters F. E. (1994) "Muhammad and the Origins of Islam": State University of New York Press: Albany, NY. Islam, Hajj. (n.d) Accessed from CNN, accessed from Read More