Islamic Worldview
The Basics of the Islamic Worldview –
The Islamic worldview is grounded in the sayings and visions of Muhammad (believed to be the ultimate and final prophet of Allah by faithful Muslims), as recoded in the Qur’an (the Word of Allah delivered through Muhammad beginning in about 610 AD), and supported by the Sunnah and Hadith, rounding out the three sacred documents of Islam.
Islam reveres Allah, whom Muslims consider to be the one and only God, the only creator and master of the universe. Muslims also hold that this god is the same one worshipped by Christians and Jews.
Islam means submission to Allah; a Muslim is one who has submitted to Allah through Islam and acknowledges Muhammad as the last true prophet of Allah. It is estimated that about 1/5th of the world’s population is Muslim, with about three-quarters of this body of believers being non-Arabs.
Many religious scholars and “informed” politicians alike treat and think of the Islam as just another of the monotheistic religions of the world, but following five basic “pillars” of faith similar to the other great world religions. (Islam is therefore, as is religion in general in the opinion of this writer, disregarded in importance to World Progress by many if not most Humanist “modern” political leaders of the United State of American and the world alike in their beliefs and practiced policies.) However, the Islamic World View is much more than a mere religion. Islam covers all aspects of life for its followers. We will review the major elements of Islam in future posts, but for now we review the Pillars of Islam only.
The Five Pillars of Islam
There are Five Pillars of Islam generally accepted as encompassing the basic moral obligations for faithful Muslims with a sixth being jihad. However, there are other beliefs and institutions no less important which recur in the HadIs. These are, to name the more important ones, Paradise, Hell, Doomsday, jihAd (holy war against polytheists,) jizyA (the poll tax paid by polytheists), war booty (ghanImah), and khums (the holy one-fifth).
The first pillar of Islam is the confession of faith: There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet. Under this pillar all other obligations are subordinate; to believe in God and Muhammad as Allah’s final prophet is to obey the teachings of and the examples of Muhammad’s life.
The second pillar of Islam is prayer. Faithful Muslims are expected to engage in prayer five times a day, while facing Mecca. Prayer provides a daily rhythm to Muslim life. Muslims hope to please Allah by remembering him constantly with regular prayer. Muslims also hope that systematic praying will help them avoid temptations to immorality.
The third pillar is fasting during Ramadan. Fasting involves refraining from such things as food, tobacco, and sexual relations during daylight hours, though they are not prohibited after sundown. These periods of fasting are to encourage and enable Muslims to develop self-control, to squelch bad habits, and to refocus their minds toward personal spiritual progress.
The fourth pillar is almsgiving. Faithful Muslims are required to give at least 2.5 percent of their annual capital to the poor, either directly or through Muslim charitable organizations. Giving to the poor is intended to achieve a generous lifestyle and a sense of caring for the Muslim community, especially those lacking physical and financial means.
The fifth pillar is pilgrimage. All faithful Muslims are expected to make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their lifetime if their finances and health permit. During their pilgrimage, Muslims don white garments and remove all indicators of status or class. This practice is intended to help Muslims recognize that before Allah they are all equal. Racial, gender, and economic differences are muted as masses of Muslims from many nations bow together to worship Allah.
A sixth pillar, jihad, is by far the most controversial of obligation of Muslims for the Western world. Jihad has two parts. One is the personal battle of every believer against temptation and sin for the sake of self-control and the development of virtue. The second is the battle against any and all who oppose Islam (jihad, holy war against polytheists—such as Christians in the view of Islam). It is this second element of jihad that is most controversial because jihad or holy war is the method by which all other competing civilizations are to be extinguished and by design eliminated, or converted to Islam (by force if necessary). All able bodied Muslims are obligated to jihad unless they are infirmed, insane, widowed, or otherwise incapacitated and thus unable to perform jihad. Indeed, jihad is seen as the most self-sacrificing action Muslims can undertake.
These, then in brief, are the staples of the religion preached by Muhammad. Allah becomes concrete in His threats and punishments of Hell, and in His promises and rewards of Paradise. Similarly, in the history of Islam, jihAd and war booty have played a more important role than even pilgrimage or zakAt. We will attempt to explain and understand these and other basic concepts of Islam in future page posts.