Five Pillars of Islam
George Clark
REL 2300
The Five Pillars of Islam
The Five Pillars of Islam are essentially the main principles and important practices of Islam. They are representative of the personal relationship between Muslims and their God, Allah. While there are many interpretations of Islam as with many religions, The Five Pillars of Islam are common to all divisions of Islamic practice.
The First Pillar of Islam is known as the Shahadah. It is the sentence, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.” This is a confession and means to affirm two things, the principle of monotheism and faith in the validity of Muhammad and his works (Smith 160). This confession, which is sometimes made multiple times per day by some Muslims, reinforces the idea of Oneness of God because within the confession it states very clearly that there is only one God, Allah. The Second Pillar of Islam is the canonical prayer. The Koran notes that this is a very difficult concept and is very important to comprehend. According to Islamic faith, humans have repeatedly made the error or putting themselves at the center of the world. This canonical prayer is meant to encourage those of Islamic faith to acknowledge their Creator and keep human perspective in balance with the larger picture. Essentially, to remind them that they are not the center of the world (Smith 160). The idea that humans need to keep life in perspective and that there is a Creator adds to the idea of the Oneness of God. The canonical prayer is praying while facing Mecca, and according to Muhammad, it is to be done five times each day. The specific times are upon awakening, when the Sun is directly overhead, mid-afternoon, sunset and before bed. In many countries where Islam is widely practiced, the call to prayer is announced and honored collectively. The Third Pillar of Islam is simple, but no less important; charity. The Koran states that is one is able to share of donate to the unfortunate, one
REL 2300
The Five Pillars of Islam
The Five Pillars of Islam are essentially the main principles and important practices of Islam. They are representative of the personal relationship between Muslims and their God, Allah. While there are many interpretations of Islam as with many religions, The Five Pillars of Islam are common to all divisions of Islamic practice.
The First Pillar of Islam is known as the Shahadah. It is the sentence, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.” This is a confession and means to affirm two things, the principle of monotheism and faith in the validity of Muhammad and his works (Smith 160). This confession, which is sometimes made multiple times per day by some Muslims, reinforces the idea of Oneness of God because within the confession it states very clearly that there is only one God, Allah. The Second Pillar of Islam is the canonical prayer. The Koran notes that this is a very difficult concept and is very important to comprehend. According to Islamic faith, humans have repeatedly made the error or putting themselves at the center of the world. This canonical prayer is meant to encourage those of Islamic faith to acknowledge their Creator and keep human perspective in balance with the larger picture. Essentially, to remind them that they are not the center of the world (Smith 160). The idea that humans need to keep life in perspective and that there is a Creator adds to the idea of the Oneness of God. The canonical prayer is praying while facing Mecca, and according to Muhammad, it is to be done five times each day. The specific times are upon awakening, when the Sun is directly overhead, mid-afternoon, sunset and before bed. In many countries where Islam is widely practiced, the call to prayer is announced and honored collectively. The Third Pillar of Islam is simple, but no less important; charity. The Koran states that is one is able to share of donate to the unfortunate, one
Cited: Novak, Phillip. The Worlds Wisdom. New York: Harper One, 1995. Smith, Houston. The Illustrated Worlds Religions. New York: Harper One, 1994.