Islam

**History o****f Islam**

Muslims practice the Islamic ways. They believe in [|Allah.] Allah, known to the Islamic culture is the "Only God". Islam means to submission to Allah. [|Muhammad](Allah's Prophet) started the beginning of Islam, he had a revelation from Allah. Muhammad w﻿as only a businessman when he was given this revelation. In this revelation he was given he was told that "there is only one true god, and other gods are false, and that he must spread the word of Allah." He didn't start right away he told most of his family and from there it started to spread. When the teaching began Muhammad, he didn't have many followers that would follow this faith. When Muhammad fled to Yathrib which is now named Medina. Muhammad was more successful converting people here. When Muhammad brought more people into his faith he was able to start a religious leadership. From here the Islam religion has began. Muslims read the Qur'an. The [|Qur'an] the holy book for Muslims. ** 5 Pillars of Islam **

When being a Muslim you have certain laws and rules, such as other religions they have certain things that can be done and others that cannot. Islamic laws declare that you have to follow the [|5 Pillars of Islam]. The 5 Pillars of Islam include Witnessing, Prayer, Charity, Fasting, and Pilgrimage. These acts are done by every Muslim. They are done daily, monthly, and annually. Muslims have to live by the 5 Pillars of Islam. __ Witnessing __ The statement "Ashadu alla ilaha illa Allah, wa ashadu anna Muhammad ar-rasool Allah" means " I bear witness that there is no God other than Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His messenger". Muslims have to truly believe this statement. They should believe and acknowledge that Allah is their creator. They should also believe that Muhammad had a revelation from Allah and was given the message to bring humanity out of the darkness for believing in other gods than Allah. __ Prayer __  ** ﻿ ** Muslims pray to their god Allah. Prayers are required to happen five times a day. There are five daily prayers: These prayers are down everyday, five times a day. When someone misses the obligatory prayers they must be made up. When Muslims pray they join their mind, body, and soul to worship their god. (Allah)       __ Charity __ Charity is a giving act of worship and spiritual investment to Allah. Muslim have charity to give to the needed and to move themselves closer to Allah. 2.5% of income should be given to someone that is less fortunate then themselves. A very important principle that Islam follows is that everything belongs to god; therefore it is held by human beings in trust. Muhammad said that the obligatory charity is not the only way of giving, but to give a smile to a fellow brother is an act of charity. __ Fasting __ Fasting is when they don't eat, drink, and intimate sexual contacts from the break of dawn till sunset. Fasting is done once a year for a period of a months' time. This is the month of [|Ramadan]. Everyone is obligated to fast. Women are allowed to skip the fasting when they are nursing a baby. Fasting is also used for Muslims to be forgiven for sins, for Allah's mercy, and avoid the condemnation to Hell. They all use this time to be closer to Allah and to be forgiven for any of their mistakes. __ Pilgrimage __ It is obligatory to make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once. Muslims assemble in Mecca to respond to the call of Allah. When Muslims go Mecca they are there to worship or glorify Allah, they do not worship any man. To view the tomb of Muhammad at Modena is recommended but is not mandatory to make the pilgrimage (Hajj) complete and valid. __ Sects __ Islamic Sects that are mostly known are [|Sunni and Shiite]. Both fought on who would be able to be a legitimate leader for Muslims after Muhammad had passed away. __ Population __  Islam comes in second to Christianity, when it comes to population. The far left side shows the religions around the world and how they are populated. Muslims are highlighted in blue ( Sunni and Shiite ). In the right hand side of the graph shows the percentages of religions. __ Sunni and Shiite __ Sunni and Shiite are the major sects for Islam. They are similar and sharp Political differences. They disagreements are over the succession of The Prophet Muhammad and over the nature of political leadership in the Muslim Community. Their debate was about who would take the leadership because they wanted someone that would follow and do as Muhammad would. Some thought that no one could take Muhammad's place and other Muslims thought that they needed a new leader that would follow the footsteps. The Sunnis are people that follow the Prophet. The Shiite are the people that follow Ali. Ali is the leader that thought was chosen to be a new leader to follow the footsteps of Muhammad.
 * 1) Fajr-Before sunrise
 * 2) Zuhr-The sun begins to decline from its zenith
 * 3) Asr-Afternoon
 * 4) Magrib-After sunset
 * 5) Isha- Night