General Muslim Religion Essay

Islam is the worlds second great monotheistic worship (Armstrong, 2002). Islam, an Arabic word, comes from a root word meaning commitment or surrgoaler hence the foundation of Islam is abidance to the will of the Only God, Allah. The word Muslim also itself means one who lives his life according to Allahs will (Esposito, 2002). Allah also has laid down the five pillars of foundations of Islam which ar 1. Confession of faith (shahada) the basic head of Islam which is submission to Allahs will 2. Prayer (salat) An exercise done five times daily to take to be Allahs influence in a Muslims life3. Fasting (Roza) In the month of Ramadan for a month 4. Almsgiving (Zakat) Annu all in ally by rich Muslims at the rate of 21/2% of wealth 5. Pilgrimage (hajj) Once in a lifetime What holidays or events atomic number 18 important to your religion and why? The Muslims follow the Islamic calendar which is based on the position of the moon and their holidays fall accordingly to it. This inclu des 1. New Year which for them is the first-year day of Hijra (migration) when we celebrate Prophet Muhammads departure from Mecca to Medina in AD622 2. twelfth Rabi-ul-awwal that is the birthday of the sanctified Prophet (PBUH)3. Shab-e-Baraat (night of forgiveness) In preparation of Ramadan, Muslims seek to forgive old grievances over against each realizeer(a) and beg for mercy from their Lord 4. Lailat-ul-Qadr (night of power) when the Holy Quran was revealed to the Holy Prophet. It takes home base on the 27th of Ramadan. 5. Eid-ul-Fitr which takes place after Ramadan and is like Christmas to the Muslims 6. Hajj The pilgrimage which constitutes the fifth pillar of Islam is one of the most important events in the Muslim calendar and takes place in the month of Hajj 7.Eid-ul-Azha Another Christmas type celebration which celebrates the end of the Mec give the gate pilgrimage and animal kick ins are made during the three days How does your group handle conflict? What are some e xamples of conflict? If there are criminal or family conflicts, they can be resolved done Islamic courts which decide the cases according to sharia or the Islamic law. These are practiced in near al Muslim countries though such Shariah courts are disallowed in western countries and over there Muslims must follow the law of the country they are residents of.One of Britains MPs recently suggested that Shariah courts be allowed in Britain also but this created uproar by non-Muslims who were afraid of Islamization. other then that, if the root word of an issue is not mentioned in the Quran or its explanation is murky, knowledgeable Islamic scholars gather together to find an answer to a certain problem and it then becomes a rule of the Shariah. This practice has been cocksure by Allah to keep Islam updated with emerging problems in this fast changing world. What is the focus of your religion? The focus of Islam for Muslims is again submission to Allahs will.This can be done thro ugh reading, understanding and following the word of God, which Muslims remember to be the Holy Quran. They should also follow the teachings of the Holy Prophet (PBUH) called the Sunnah and only then can they live the life of a true and complete Muslim. For the Western world though, the focus of Islam has always been its fascist beliefs and what they consider to be its outdated traditions, not understanding that there is only a minority of Muslims who tinct the name of Islam by interpreting it so harshly. Who are your current leaders? Who are leaders of the by?Like most religions, Muslims have also had pious men of God lead them by example. in that location have been a total of 124000 prophets send by Allah though the Quran only mentions 25 of them. The first prophet was Hazrat Adam and the final and undoubtedly the greatest prophet was our last prophet, Hazrat Muhammad (PBUH). Allah revealed in the Quran that no to a greater extent prophets shall come after the Holy Prophet (P BUH). After the prophets, came numerous Caliphs or religious leaders. Currently, tortuous there are learned Islamic scholars in the Muslim world there are no leader as such.The Holy Prophet (PBUH) in the words of Allah was the Seal of the Prophets. How do your members participate and what is judge? All Muslim males are unavoidable to congregate in a mosque for the five daily prayers, specially the afternoon Friday prayers (Clark, 2003). For Muslim women, assembly in mosques is not mandatory. Other then that, all Muslims are required to uphold the basic principles of Islam by fulfilling all their obligations. atomic number 18 there any special requirements, such as fasting, personal sacrifice? Fasting is the third pillar of Islam and without fasting, a Muslim is incomplete.It is prescribed for Muslims in the form of a month long abstinence from food and drink, accompanied by intense devotional activity. animal(prenominal) relations and swear words are also prohibited to be perf ormed or uttered. Similarly, smoking, losing temper, telling lies and all negative activities are also discouraged. Fasting, as is made clear by Allah, is not to be interpreted as self torture but mainly a way for Muslims to learn about patience, fortitude and self sacrifice and also to realize the plight of the needy and poor. During Eid-ul-Azha, Muslims are also required to sacrifice goats in Gods way and share the meat with the poor.Where do you see your religion in 25 years? What changes have occurred recently? Keeping in mind the fast exploitation popularity of Islam, I see Islam in 25 years, as the worlds largest religion. This is because as the concept of religion is destruction in the west and more churches are being converted to museums and restaurants, Muslims, now more than ever are embracing their faith with a greater fervency and non-Muslims are also converting to Islam which they accept as a complete way of life and not just a religion. Muslims have now grown more re ceptive to Western ideas and Ijtehad or consensus helps keep Islam updated with the modern world.How has the modern world changed the direction and or performance of your religion? The recent of War on Terror, which often tends to depict Islam as a rigid and radical religion has resulted in more Muslims delving deeper to understand their religion (Lewis, 2004). This has led to increased knowledge of Islam and a growing number of Muslims defending their faith as actually a very flexible one. My religions name has been besmirched by a few misguided individuals who believe suicide bombings and terrorist activities are completely delicious in the eyes of God which is not at all the case.Islams very basis is peace. Are there any other validated forms of the religion practiced? What are some of the factors that have contributed to changes in ideas or customs? The Muslim sect is predominantly divided into Sunnis ( more or less 80%) and Shiahs. The major difference in the midst of them i s the way in which divine guidance is discovered. Sunni Muslims take their stand on the consensus of the community making cognise the Sunna (Holy Prophets example) of the Holy Prophet (PBUH). Shiah Muslims look instead to inspired teachers and Imams who are descendents of the Holy Prophet (PBUH).Other sects include the Aghakhanis who are followers of the Aga Khan who considers himself a spiritual leader sent by God. His followers believe the five pillars of Islam to be non-mandatory, preferring to give charity to the poor instead. They dont share the Muslim taboo associated with drinking. Many believe theses changes have occurred due to undue influence of the West. Other sects are the Qadianis and Bohris. Conclusion Muslims all over the world follows a religion known as Islam which is a monotheistic religion. The word Islam means to submit oneself to god.There are almost 2 billion Muslims around the world practicing the teaching of Islam making it the second largest religion of the world. The follows the teachings of Prophet Mohammad on whom a holy obligate Quran was revealed. The faith of a Muslim is based on five pillars of Islam that are tauheed, salaat, zakat, hajj, and fasting. References Book Armstrong. (2002). Islam A Short History. Esposito, J. L. (2002). What everyone needs to Know about Islam. Clark. (2003). Islam for Dummies. Lewis. (2004). The Crisis of Islam.