Basics of Islam 101
Islam literally means “peace” and/or “submission” (submission to the will of God).
One who belongs to the religion of Islam is called a “Muslim”.
Muslims use the word “Allah” to refer to God.
Allah sent many messengers into this world to teach Islam to the people. These messengers are called “Prophets”.
You may have heard of some of them already.
The first man on the face of this earth was also a prophet – Adam.
Some of the others you may have heard of:
The final prophet to bring us the message and complete the teachings of Islam is named “Muhammad”.
Muhammad was the greatest of all messengers. He received revelation from Allah which he relayed to the people.
The revelation is still with us to this day and will remain until the last day. The revelation is what we know as the holy “Quran”.
Although the Quran was revealed in Arabic, you can pick up a Quran from almost anywhere today and read its translation in English.
Muslims believe in one absolute statement:
“There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his servant and messenger”.
Without believing in this statement, one cannot have faith. If one does not have faith, he/she cannot be a Muslim.
To be a Muslim, you must believe and have faith in several entities…
- Allah
- His Angels
- His Books
- His Messengers
- The Day of Judgment
- Destiny – good and bad is from Allah
- Resurrection after death
Without firm belief in any of these articles, one cannot be a Muslim.
Islam asks for 5 things from you. Read on to discover the 5 pillars of Islam.
