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Duties and practices
The Five Pillars of Islam (Arabic: اركان الدين) are five practices essential to
Sunni Islam. Shi'a Muslims subscribe to different sets of pillars which
substantially overlap with the Five Pillars.[51] They are:
* The shahadah[52], which is the basic creed or tenet of Islam: "'ahadu 'al-lā
ilāha illā-llāhu wa 'ahadu 'anna muħammadan rasūlu-llāh", or "I testify that
there is none worthy of worship except God and I testify that Muhammad is the
Messenger of God." This testament is a foundation for all other beliefs and
practices in Islam. Muslims must repeat the shahadah in prayer, and non-Muslims
wishing to convert to Islam are required to recite the creed.[53]
* Salah, or ritual prayer, which must be performed five times a day. Each salah
is done facing towards the Kaaba in Mecca. Salah is intended to focus the mind
on God, and is seen as a personal communication with him that expresses
gratitude and worship. Salah is compulsory but flexibility in the specifics is
allowed depending on circumstances. In many Muslim countries, reminders called
Adhan (call to prayer) are broadcast publicly from local mosques at the
appropriate times. The prayers are recited in the Arabic language, and consist
of verses from the Qur'an.[54]
* Zakat, or alms-giving. This is the practice of giving based on accumulated
wealth, and is obligatory for all Muslims who can afford it. A fixed portion is
spent to help the poor or needy, and also to assist the spread of Islam. The
zakat is considered a religious obligation (as opposed to voluntary charity)
that the well-off owe to the needy because their wealth is seen as a "trust from
God's bounty". The Qur'an and the hadith also suggest a Muslim give even more as
an act of voluntary alms-giving (sadaqah).[55]
* Sawm, or fasting during the month of Ramadan. Muslims must not eat or drink
(among other things) from dawn to dusk during this month, and must be mindful of
other sins. The fast is to encourage a feeling of nearness to God, and during it
Muslims should express their gratitude for and dependence on him, atone for
their past sins, and think of the needy. Sawm is not obligatory for several
groups for whom it would constitute an undue burden. For others, flexibility is
allowed depending on circumstances, but missed fasts usually must be made up
quickly. Some Muslim groups do not fast during Ramadan, and instead have fasts
different times of the year.[56]
* The Hajj[57], which is the pilgrimage during the Islamic month of Dhu al-Hijjah
in the city of Mecca. Every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it must make the
pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in his or her lifetime. When the pilgrim is
about ten kilometers from Mecca, he must dress in Ihram clothing, which consists
of two white seamless sheets. Rituals of the Hajj include walking seven times
around the Kaaba, touching the Black Stone, running seven times between Mount
Safa and Mount Marwah, and symbolically stoning the Devil in Mina. The pilgrim,
or the hajji, is honored in his or her community, although Islamic teachers say
that the Hajj should be an expression of devotion to God instead of a means to
gain social standing.[58]
Law
The Sharia (literally: "the path leading to the watering place") is Islamic law
formed by traditional Islamic scholarship, which most Muslim groups adhere to.
In Islam, Sharia is the expression of the divine will, and "constitutes a system
of duties that are incumbent upon a Muslim by virtue of his religious
belief".[59]
Islamic law covers all aspects of life, from matters of state, like governance
and foreign relations, to issues of daily living. The Qur'an defines hudud as
the punishments for five specific crimes: unlawful intercourse, false accusation
of unlawful intercourse, consumption of alcohol, theft, and highway robbery. The
Qur'an and Sunnah also contain laws of inheritance, marriage, and restitution
for injuries and murder, as well as rules for fasting, charity, and prayer.
However, these prescriptions and prohibitions may be broad, so their application
in practice varies. Islamic scholars (known as ulema) have elaborated systems of
law on the basis of these rules and their interpretations.[60]
Fiqh, or "jurisprudence", is defined as the knowledge of the practical rules of
the religion. The method Islamic jurists use to derive rulings is known as usul
al-fiqh ("legal theory", or "principles of jurisprudence"). According to Islamic
legal theory, law has four fundamental roots, which are given precedence in this
order: the Qur'an, the Sunnah (actions and sayings of Muhammad), the consensus
of the Muslim jurists (ijma), and analogical reasoning (qiyas). For early
Islamic jurists, theory was less important than pragmatic application of the
law. In the 9th century, the jurist ash-Shafi'i provided a theoretical basis for
Islamic law by codifying the principles of jurisprudence (including the four
fundamental roots) in his book ar-Risālah.[61]
Religion and state
Mainstream Islamic law does not distinguish between "matters of church" and
"matters of state"; the ulema function as both jurists and theologians. In
practice, Islamic rulers frequently bypassed the Sharia courts with a parallel
system of so-called "Grievance courts" over which they had sole control. As the
Muslim world came into contact with Western secular ideals, Muslim societies
responded in different ways. Turkey has been governed as a secular state ever
since the reforms of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. In contrast, the 1979 Iranian
Revolution replaced a mostly secular regime with an Islamic republic led by the
Ayatollah Khomeini.[62]
Etiquette and diet
Many practices fall in the category of adab, or Islamic etiquette. This includes
greeting others with "as-salamu `alaykum" ("peace be unto you"), saying
bismillah ("in the name of God") before meals, and using only the right hand for
eating and drinking. Islamic hygienic practices mainly fall into the category of
personal cleanliness and health, such as the circumcision of male offspring.
Islamic burial rituals include saying the Salat al-Janazah ("funeral prayer")
over the bathed and enshrouded dead body, and burying it in a grave. Muslims,
like Jews, are restricted in their diet, and prohibited foods include pig
products, blood, carrion, and alcohol. All meat must come from a herbivorous
animal slaughtered in the name of God by a Muslim, Jew, or Christian, with the
exception of game that one has hunted or fished for oneself. Food permissible
for Muslims is known as halal food.[63]
Jihad
Jihad[64] means "to strive or struggle" (in the way of God) and is considered
the "sixth pillar of Islam" by a minority of Sunni Muslim authorities.[65]
Jihad, in its broadest sense, is classically defined as "exerting one's utmost
power, efforts, endeavors, or ability in contending with an object of
disapprobation." Depending on the object being a visible enemy, the devil, and
aspects of one's own self, different categories of Jihad are defined.[66] Jihad
when used without any qualifier is understood in its military aspect.[67][68]
Jihad also refers to one's striving to attain religious and moral
perfection.[69] Some Muslim authorities, especially among the Shi'a and Sufis,
distinguish between the "greater jihad", which pertains to spiritual
self-perfection, and the "lesser jihad", defined as warfare.[70]
Within Islamic jurisprudence, jihad is usually taken to mean military exertion
against non-Muslim combatants in the defense or expansion of the Islamic state,
the ultimate purpose of which is to universalize Islam. Jihad, the only form of
warfare permissible in Islamic law, may be declared against apostates, rebels,
highway robbers, violent groups, unIslamic leaders or states which refuse to
submit to the authority of Islam.[71][72] Most Muslims today interpret Jihad as
only a defensive form of warfare: the external Jihad includes a struggle to make
the Islamic societies conform to the Islamic norms of justice.[73]
Under most circumstances and for most Muslims, jihad is a collective duty (fard
kifaya): its performance by some individuals exempts the others. Only for those
vested with authority, especially the sovereign (imam), does jihad become an
individual duty. For the rest of the populace, this happens only in the case of
a general mobilization.[72] For most Shias, offensive jihad can only be declared
by a divinely appointed leader of the Muslim community, and as such is suspended
since Muhammad al-Mahdi's[74] occultation in 868 AD.[75]
History
Islam's historical development resulted in major political, economic, and
military effects inside and outside the Islamic world. Within a century of
Muhammad's first recitations of the Qur'an, an Islamic empire stretched from
the Atlantic Ocean in the west to Central Asia in the east. This new polity soon
broke into civil war, and successor states fought each other and outside forces.
However, Islam continued to spread into regions like Africa, the Indian
subcontinent, and Southeast Asia. The Islamic civilization was one of the most
advanced in the world during the Middle Ages, but was surpassed by Europe with
the economic and military growth of the West. During the 18th and 19th
centuries, Islamic dynasties such as the Ottomans and Mughals fell under the
sway of European imperial powers. In the 20th century new religious and
political movements and newfound wealth in the Islamic world led to both rebirth
and conflict.[76]
Muhammad began preaching Islam at Mecca before migrating to Medina, from
where he united the tribes of Arabia into a singular Arab Muslim religious
polity. With Muhammad's death in 632, disagreement broke out over who would
succeed him as leader of the Muslim community. Umar ibn al-Khattab, a prominent
companion of Muhammad, nominated Abu Bakr, who was Muhammad's intimate friend
and collaborator. Others added their support and Abu Bakr was made the first
caliph. This choice was disputed by some of Muhammad's companions, who held that
Ali ibn Abi Talib, his cousin and son-in-law, had been designated his successor.
Abu Bakr's immediate task was to avenge a recent defeat by Byzantine (or Eastern
Roman Empire) forces, although he first had to put down a rebellion by Arab
tribes in an episode known as the Ridda wars, or "Wars of Apostasy".[77]
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