These Five Pillars are actions which a Muslim has to perform and are given via the Hadith (a major source of Islamic Law): Shahadah (declaration of faith) Salah (compulsory prayers five times a day) Zakah (annual welfare contributions) Sawm (fasting during Ramadan) Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca). The term Islam itself means submission to the will of Allah. Practicing The Five Pillars everyday demonstrates that a Muslim both willingly obeys Allah's divine guidance and is devoted to Him. The Five Pillars are considered basic practices that Muslims are expected to perform to demonstrate their commitment to serve and worship Allah. The Shahadah is the first of the Five Pillars and is practiced most.
This Islamic creed is the profession of faith and trust, in which Muslims bear witness to the oneness of God and profess that Muhammad is the messenger of God. This statement of the proclamation of faith underlines the monotheistic nature of Islam. لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله lā ʾilāha ʾillā-llāh, muḥammadun rasūlu-llāh This is the basic statement through which Muslims proclaim that Allah is the only God and that Muhammad is his prophet. Through this proclamation of faith, adherents personally accept this to be true and will obey all the commandments of Islam throughout their lifetime. In order to become a Muslim, a person must recite this statement wholeheartedly.
The Five Pillars of Islam The Five Pillars of Islam form the moral framework for the Muslim life. They are the testimony of faith, prayer, fasting during the month of Ramadan, giving to the needy, and the pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime. These acts are considered pillars because they are the very foundation to which Islam is built upon. The first pillar, Shahada, is the confession that Allah is the one and only true God and that there is no other god before Allah. The Shahada also states that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah and is recognized as the true and greatest prophet of Allah; it was through Muhammad that Allah conveyed the last and final revelation (Slick, 2010).
These are mandatory to every Muslim at all times, unless the individual is unable to perform them due to sickness or age. All in all, it is safe to say that commitment in no joke is Islam. The very first of the five pillars as Emerick states “helps Muslims to remind themselves about the reality of God in their lives” (Emerick 118). The Shahadah, the practice in which an individual declares his faith in God and confesses that Muhammad is the messenger of God. The statement “I declare there is no god except God, and I declare that Muhammad is the messenger of God"(Qu ‘ran 3:191) is to be said with pure sincerity and great commitment.
Checkpoint: Five Pillars of Islam The central beliefs of Islam include an oneness of God and humanity, Prophethood, human relationship with the divine, the unseen life, and the last judgment. These beliefs are further extended and explained through the “Five Pillars”. The “Five Pillars” provide instructions for rituals and ways to live. These instructions enable the Muslim people to live their lives in a fashion that brings them closer to God (Fisher, 2005). The first pillar is believing and professing the unity of God and the messengership of Muhammad.
The four other pillars include, fasting (Saum), prayer (Salat), and pilgrimage (Hajj), alms-giving or charity (Zakat), Shahada is a declaration that is made by followers of the Islamic faith, which says, “there is no true God except Allah,” and also says that, “Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. Christianity and other religions whose bible teaches that God is part of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit); Islamic faith teaches that Allah is the one and only God. Muslims also firmly believe that Muhammad is Allah’s greatest prophet, and it is important that those who practice the Islamic acknowledge and recognize him as such. They also believe that Allah used Muhammad to convey the last and final revelation (Slick, 1995-2010). The second pillar, Salat (Prayer), is a prayer that consists of confessions of sins and concluding with purification of the soul.
Analyse the Muslim understanding of Tawhid and how it is expressed in the Five Pillars Tawhid is a key principle belief in the religion of Islam which can be put into practise through the five pillars of faith. Although there are two different denominations or Islam, Sunni and Shi’a, Tawhid is the central monotheistic belief that there is only one God, Allah. The belief of Tawhid is lived out in the everyday life of Muslims through each of the five pillars of faith, Shahada, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, and Hajj, all acts of worship which show obedience and submission to Allah. Through these expressions of faith, the Islamic community, Umma, is able to connect to Allah closely and more deeply and truly live out the key beliefs of Islam in their everyday lives. ‘There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet’, is the declaration of faith stated in the Shahada.
Every religion has its own rituals to sanctify their daily lives. They all have a spiritual meaning and are very significant. Islam and Hinduism have many rituals but, the main ones this essay will focus on are the prayers form Islam and Puja (Pooja) from Hinduism. The prayer in Muslim is a binding promise of the faith, to be performed five times of the day by adult Muslim. In Hinduism Puja (Pooja) is performed as an offering to various deities, distinguished person, or special guests.
God tells us how we should live our daily lives. Allah tells us who we should look up to as a role model. The Quran is the final revelation to humanity by Allah. The Quran continuously talks about avoiding violence to be just gentle in speech, forgiving and patient. For e.g in verse 49:10 it says the believers are but a single.
What are the five pillars of Islam, the names and meanings? The Five Pillars of Islam are as follow: Creed, Prayer, Zakat, Swam, and Hajj. Creed (Shahada) is the first pillar of Islam. This is the Islamic creed that states “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.” This declaration of faith is called Shahada. Non Muslim can become a Muslim by reciting these words and have belief and faith.