Some Basic Islamic Beliefs

1) Belief in God:

Muslims believe in one, unique, incomparable God, Who has no son nor partner, and that none has the right to be worshipped  but Him alone. He is the true God, and every other deity is false. He has the most magnificent names and sublime perfect attributes. No one shares His divinity, nor His attributes. In the Qur’an, God describes Himself:

Say: “He is God, the One. God, to Whom the creatures turn for their needs.
 He begets not, nor was He begotten, and 

there is none like 

Him.”   

(Qur’an, 112:1-4)

Chapter 112 of the Qur’an written in Arabic calligraphy

No one has the right to be invoked, supplicated, prayed to, or shown any act of worship, but God alone God alone is the Almighty, the Creator, the Sovereign, and the Sustainer of everything in the whole universe. He manages all affairs. He stands in need of none of His creatures, and all His creatures depend on Him for all that they need. He is the All-Hearing, the All-Seeing, and the All-Knowing. In a perfect manner, His knowledge encompasses all things, the open and the secret, and the public and the private. He knows what has happened, what will happen, and how it will happen. No affair occurs in the whole world except by His will. Whatever He wills is, and whatever He does not will is not and will never be. His will is above the will of all the creatures. He has power over all things, and He is able to do everything. He is the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, and the Most Beneficent. In one of the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, we are told that God is more merciful to His creatures than a mother to her child. God is far removed from injustice and tyranny. He is All-Wise in all of His actions and decrees. If someone wants something from God, he or she can ask God directly without asking anyone else to intercede with God for him or her.

God is not Jesus, and Jesus is not God. Even Jesus himself rejected this. God has said in the Qur’an:

"Indeed, they have disbelieved who have 

said: “God is the Messiah (Jesus), son of 

Mary.” The Messiah said: “Children of Israel, 

worship God, my Lord and your Lord. 

Whoever associates partners in worship with 

God, then God has forbidden Paradise for 

him, and his home is the Fire (Hell). For the 

wrongdoers,1 there will be no helpers.”  (Qur’an, 5:72)

God is not a trinity. God has said in the Qur’an:

"Indeed, they disbelieve who say: “God is the 

third of three (in a trinity),” when there is no

god but one God. If they desist not from what 

they say, truly, a painful punishment will 

befall the disbelievers among them. Would 

they not rather repent to God and ask His 

forgiveness? For God is Oft-Forgiving, Most 

Merciful. The Messiah (Jesus), son of Mary, 

was no more than a messenger..."  

(Qur’an,5:73-75)

Islam rejects that God rested on the seventh day of the creation, that He wrestled with one of His angels, that He is an envious plotter against mankind, or that He is incarnate in any human being. Islam also rejects the attribution of any human form to God. All of these are considered blasphemous. God is the Exalted. He is far removed from every imperfection. He never becomes weary. He does not become drowsy nor does he sleep.

The Arabic word Allah means God (the one and only true God who created the whole universe). This word Allah is a name for God, which is used by Arabic speakers, both Arab Muslims and Arab Christians. This word cannot be used to designate anything other than the one true God. The Arabic word Allah occurs in the Qur’an more than 2150 times. In Aramaic, a language related closely to Arabic and the language that Jesus habitually spoke, God is also referred to as Allah.

2) Belief in the Angels:

Muslims believe in the existence of the angels and that they are honored creatures. The angels worship God alone, obey Him, and act only by His command. Among the angels is Gabriel, who

brought down the Qur’an to Muhammad ﷺ .

3) Belief in God’s Revealed Books:

Muslims believe that God revealed books to His messengers as proof for mankind and as guidance for them. Among these books is the Qur’an, which God revealed to the Prophet Muhammadﷺ  . God has guaranteed the Qur’an’s protection from any corruption or distortion. God has said:

"Indeed,We have sent down the Qur’an, and

surely We will guard it (from corruption)"  

(Qur’an, 15:9)

4) Belief in the Prophets and Messengers of God:

Muslims believe in the prophets and messengers of God, starting with Adam, including Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and Jesus (peace be upon them). But God’s final message to man, a reconfirmation of the eternal message, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ . Muslims believe that Muhammad ﷺ is the last prophet sent by God, as God has said:

"Muhammad is not the father of any one of

your men, but he is the Messenger of God and

the last of the prophets... " (Qur’an, 33:40)

Muslims believe that all the prophets and messengers were created human beings who had none of the divine qualities of God.

5) Belief in the Day of Judgment:

Muslims believe in the Day of Judgment (the Day of Resurrection) when all people will be resurrected for God’s judgment according to their beliefs and deeds.

6) Belief in Al-Qadar:

Muslims believe in Al-Qadar, which is Divine Predestination, but this belief in Divine Predestination does not mean that human beings do not have freewill. Rather, Muslims believe that God has given human beings freewill. This means that they can choose right or wrong and that they are responsible for their choices. The belief in Divine Predestination includes belief in four

things: 

1) God knows everything. He knows what has happened and what will happen.

 2) God has recorded all that has happened and all that will happen.

 3) Whatever God wills to happen happens,and whatever He wills not to happen does not happen.

4) God is the Creator of everything.

Beliefs

There are six things that every Muslim should believe in (also known as the Six Articles of Faith).

Six articles of faith

1. Allah: as the one and only God.
2. The Quran: as Allah’s holy book and everything that Quran says.
3. Muhammad ﷺ: as the messenger of Allah.
4. Angels: created by Allah from light to worship and serve him as well as watch over his people.
5. Predestination: the belief that Allah chooses our destiny for us and is watching and controlling everything.
6. The Day of Judgement: the day when every person that ever lived will account for their deeds and be sent to Paradise or Hell.

Other articles of faith also include belief in Death and the Afterlife.

To deny any of these is considered Shirk (Disbelief), which means to associate other things with Allah, and Shirk is considered the one thing that the all-Merciful Allah will not forgive on the Day of Judgement (Quran: 4:48).

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 Quran quotes

“Indeed, those who believed and those who were Jews or Christians or Sabeans [before Prophet Muhammad]– those [among them]who believed in Allah and the Last Day and did righteousness – will have their reward with their Lord, and no fear will there be concerning them, nor will they grieve.”
Surah Al Baqarah 2:62

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Hadith quotes

“While we were one day sitting with the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah upon him, there appeared before us a man dressed in extremely white clothes and with very black hair. No traces of travel were visible on him, and none of us knew him.

He sat down close by the Prophet, peace and blessings upon him, rested his knees against his knees and placed his palms on his thighs, and said, O Muhammad! Inform me about Islam.”

Muhammad said, “Islam is that you should testify that there is no deity save Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger, that you should perform salah (ritual prayer), pay the zakah (alms), fast during Ramadan, and perform Hajj (pilgrimage) to the House (the Ka’bah at Makkah), if you can find a way to it (or find the means for making the journey to it).”

Said he (the man), “You have spoken truly.” We were astonished at his thus questioning him and telling him that he was right, but he went on to say, “Inform me about Iman (faith).”

He (the Messenger of Allah) answered, “It is that you believe in Allah and His angels and His Books and His Messengers and in the Last Day, and in fate (qadar), both in its good and in its evil aspects.”

He said, “You have spoken truly.” Then he (the man) said, “Inform me about Ihsan.”

He (the Messenger of Allah) answered, ” It is that you should serve Allah as though you could see Him, for though you cannot see Him yet He sees you.”

He said, “Inform me about the Hour (time of the resurrection).”

He (the Messenger of Allah) said, “About that the one questioned knows no more than the questioner.”

So he said, “Well, inform me about the signs thereof (i.e. of its coming).” Said he, “They are that the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress, that you will see the barefooted ones, the naked, the destitute, the herdsmen of the sheep (competing with each other) in raising lofty buildings.”

Thereupon the man went off. I waited a while, and then he (the Messenger of Allah) said, “O ‘Umar, do you know who that questioner was?” I replied, “Allah and His Messenger know better.” He said, “That was Jibril. He came to teach you your religion.”

Narrated by Umar. Sahih Muslim.

Muslim Prayer

HOW A MUSLIM PRAYS TO GOD"

Islam lays great stress upon Divine worship. Indeed it is regarded as the purpose of man's creation. 

The object of worship is to strengthen man's relationship with Allah. 

Allah says in Holy Qur'an:

"Call on Me,  I will respond to you." (40:61) 

In Islam, it is a great sin to worship any other besides Allah. 

Islamic worship may be may be divided into two categories:

1: Formal worship such as Prayer Services, Pilgrimage to the House of Allah, Zak-at and Fasting. 

2: Informal worship such as remembrance of Allah, called "Zikr".

I

slam prescribes five daily prayer, called 'Salat' at appointed times. They are as follows:   

1: Fajr Prayer....At Dawn

2: Zuhr Prayer....At Noon

3: Asr Prayer....In the Afternoon

4: Maghrib Prayer....After Sunset

5: Isha Prayer....In the Evening

On Fridays there is a special Prayer called 'Salat-ul-Jumma', which is performed in the place of Zuhr Praye. In this Prayer the Imam delivers a sermon before the Prayer. Although a Muslim may say his Prayers anywhere.  

Before each Prayer, Azan is called. The one who calls out the Azan is called a 'Muezzin'. He stands on a raised plate form or on a minaret, with his face towards the Kaaba and makes the announcement, the translation of  which is as follows:

"Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest

Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest

I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship save Allah

I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship save Allah 

I bear witness that Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) is the Messenger of Allah

I bear witness that Muhammad (P.B.U.H.) is the Messenger of Allah

Come to Prayer, Come to Prayer

Come to Success, Come to Success

Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest

There is none worthy of  worship save Allah"

Hearing this call a Muslim leaves his work and comes to the mosque. 

Fasting is another  form of worship. A Fast means abstention from drink and food from dawn to sunset for the pleasure of God. 

Another form of worship is known as Zakat. It is a compulsory levy imposed on certain types of possessions and wealth The proceeds of Zakat are distributed among the poorer sections of the community.  

Hajj, or the Pilgrimage to Mecca is another form of Islamic worship. It is obligatory upon all Muslims who can afford the journey to perform Hajj  once in their life-time. Hundreds of thousands of Muslims from all parts of the world gather at Mecca to to perform this worship every year, during the prescribed days. 

There are two great festivals in Islam. One is called 'Eid-ul-Fitr'. The second festival is called 'Eid-ul-Adha.