Islam
For other uses, see Islam (disambiguation).
The Kaaba, in Mecca, Hejaz region, today's Saudi Arabia, is the center of Islam. Muslims from all over the world gather there to pray in unity.
Islam (/ˈɪslaːm/;[note 1] Arabic: الإسلام, al-ʾIslām IPA: [ælʔɪsˈlæːm][note 2]) is a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion articulated by the Qur'an, a religious text considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of God (Allāh), and, for the vast majority of adherents, by the teachings and normative example (called the sunnah, composed of accounts called hadith) of Muhammad (c. 570–8 June 632 CE), considered by most of them to be the last prophet of God. An adherent of Islam is called a Muslim (sometimes spelled "Moslem").[1]
Muslims also believe that God is one and incomparable[2] and that the purpose of existence is to worship God.[3] Muslims also believe that Islam is the complete and universal version of a primordial faith that was revealed many times before through prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus.[4] Although a large majority of Muslims do maintain that the previous messages and revelations have been partially misinterpreted over time,[5] they are nevertheless all obliged, according to the Qur'an, to treat the older scriptures with the utmost respect.[6] As for the Qur'an, Muslims consider it to be both the unaltered and the final revelation of God.[7] Religious concepts and practices include the five pillars of Islam, which are basic concepts and obligatory acts of worship, and following Islamic law, which touches on virtually every aspect of life and society, providing guidance on multifarious topics from banking and welfare, to family life and the environment.[8][9]
Most Muslims are of two denominations: Sunni (75–90%)[10] or Shia (10–20%).[11] About 13% of Muslims live in Indonesia,[12] the largest Muslim-majority country, 25% in South Asia,[12] 20% in the Middle East,[13] and 15% in Sub-Saharan Africa.[14] Sizable Muslim communities are also found in Europe, China, Russia, and the Americas. Converts and immigrant communities are found in almost every part of the world. With about 1.62 billion followers or 23% of the global population,[15][16] Islam is the second-largest religion by number of adherents and, according to many sources, the fastest-growing major religion in the world.[17][18][19]
Etymology and meaning
The dome of the Carol I Mosque in Constanța, Romania, topped by the Islamic crescent
Islam is a verbal noun originating from the triliteral root s-l-m which forms a large class of words mostly relating to concepts of wholeness, safeness and peace.[20] In a religious context it means "voluntary submission to God".[21][22] Islām is the verbal noun of Form IV of the root, and means "submission" or "surrender." Muslim, the word for an adherent of Islam, is the active participle of the same verb form, and means "one who submits" or "one who surrenders." Believers demonstrate submission to God by serving God, following his commands, and rejecting polytheism. The word sometimes has distinct connotations in its various occurrences in the Qur'an. In some verses, there is stress on the quality of Islam as an internal conviction: "Whomsoever God desires to guide, He opens his heart to Islam."[23] Islam, by its own inner logic, embraces every possible facet of existence, for God has named Himself al-Muḥīṭ, the All-Embracing.[24]
Other verses connect Islām and dīn (usually translated as "religion"): "Today, I have perfected your religion (dīn) for you; I have completed My blessing upon you; I have approved Islam for your religion."[25] Still others describe Islam as an action of returning to God—more than just a verbal affirmation of faith.[26] In the Hadith of Gabriel, islām is presented as one part of a triad that includes imān (faith), and ihsān (excellence), where islām is defined theologically as Tawhid, historically by asserting that Muhammad is messenger of God, and doctrinally by mandating five basic and fundamental pillars of practice.[27][28]
Articles of faith
Main articles: Aqidah and Iman
God
Medallion showing "Allah" (God) in Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey.
Main articles: God in Islam and Allah
Islam's most fundamental concept is a rigorous monotheism, called tawḥīd (Arabic: توحيد). God is described in chapter 112 of the Qur'an as:[29] "Say: He is God, the One and Only; God, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; And there is none like unto Him."(112:1-4) Muslims and Jews repudiate the Christian doctrine of the Trinity and divinity of Jesus, comparing it to polytheism. In Islam, God is beyond all comprehension and Muslims are not expected to visualize God.[30][31][32][33] God is described and referred to by certain names or attributes, the most common being Al-Rahmān, meaning "The Compassionate" and Al-Rahīm, meaning "The Merciful" (See Names of God in Islam).[34]
Muslims believe that the creation of everything in the universe was brought into being by God's sheer command, "'Be' and so it is,"[35] and that the purpose of existence is to worship God.[36] He is viewed as a personal god who responds whenever a person in need or distress calls him.[37] There are no intermediaries, such as clergy, to contact God who states, "I am nearer to him than (his) jugular vein."[38] The reciprocal nature is mentioned in the hadith qudsi, "I am as My servant thinks (expects) I am."[39]
Allāh is the term with no plural or gender used by Muslims and Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews to reference God, while ʾilāh (Arabic: إله) is the term used for a deity or a god in general.[40] Other non-Arab Muslims might use different names as much as Allah, for instance "Tanrı" in Turkish, "Khodā" in Persian or Ḵẖudā in Urdu.
Angels
Main article: Islamic view of angels
Angels
An angel presenting Muhammad and his companions with a miniature city. In the Topkapi Palace Library, Istanbul.
Islamic calligraphy of the Archangel Israfil (reflects upon how angels are most commonly represented in Islam).
Belief in angels is fundamental to the faith of Islam. The Arabic word for angel (Arabic: ملك malak) means "messenger", like its counterparts in Hebrew (malʾákh) and Greek (angelos). According to the Qur'an, angels do not possess free will, and therefore worship and obey God in total obedience. Angels' duties include communicating revelations from God, glorifying God, recording every person's actions, and taking a person's soul at the time of death. Muslims believe that angels are made of light. They are described as "messengers with wings—two, or three, or four (pairs): He [God] adds to Creation as He pleases..."[41]
Revelations
11th-century Qur'anic manuscript with vocalization marks.
Main articles: Islamic holy books, Quran and Wahy
See also: History of the Quran
The Islamic holy books are the records which most Muslims believe were dictated by God to various prophets. Muslims believe that parts of the previously revealed scriptures, the Tawrat (Torah) and the Injil (Gospels), had become distorted—either in interpretation, in text, or both.[5] The Qur'an (literally, "Reading" or "Recitation") is viewed by Muslims as the final revelation and literal word of God and is widely regarded as the finest literary work in the Arabic language.[42][43]
Muslims believe that the verses of the Qur'an were revealed to Muhammad by God through the archangel Gabriel (Jibrīl) on many occasions between 610 CE until his death on June 8, 632.[44] While Muhammad was alive, all of these revelations were written down by his companions (sahabah), although the prime method of transmission was orally through memorization.[45]
The Qur'an is divided into 114 suras, or chapters, which combined, contain 6,236 āyāt, or verses. The chronologically earlier suras, revealed at Mecca, are primarily concerned with ethical and spiritual topics. The later Medinan suras mostly discuss social and moral issues relevant to the Muslim community.[46]
The Qur'an is more concerned with moral guidance than legal instruction, and is considered the "sourcebook of Islamic principles and values".[47] Muslim jurists consult the hadith ("reports"), or the written record of Prophet Muhammad's life, to both supplement the Qur'an and assist with its interpretation. The science of Qur'anic commentary and exegesis is known as tafsir.[48] Rules governing proper pronunciation is called tajwid.
Muslims usually view "the Qur'an" as the original scripture as revealed in Arabic and that any translations are necessarily deficient, which are regarded only as commentaries on the Qur'an.[49]
Prophets
Anbiya are considered prophets of the past in Islam.[50]
Main article: Prophets in Islam
Muslims identify the prophets of Islam (Arabic: أنۢبياء anbiyāʾ ) as those humans chosen by God to be his messengers. According to the Qurʼan, the prophets were instructed by God to bring the "will of God" to the peoples of the nations. Muslims believe that prophets are human and not divine, though some are able to perform miracles to prove their claim. Islamic theology says that all of God's messengers preached the message of Islam—submission to the will of God. The Qurʼan mentions the names of numerous figures considered prophets in Islam, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus, among others.[51]
Muslims believe that God finally sent Muhammad as the last law bearing prophet (Seal of the Prophets) to convey the divine message to the whole world (to sum up and to finalize the word of God). In Islam, the "normative" example of Muhammad's life is called the Sunnah (literally "trodden path"). This example is preserved in traditions known as hadith, which recount his words, his actions, and his personal characteristics. Hadith Qudsi is a sub-category of hadith, regarded as the words of God repeated by Muhammad differing from the Quran in that they are expressed in Muhammad's words, whereas the Qur'an is understood as the direct words of God. The classical Muslim jurist ash-Shafi'i (d. 820) emphasized the importance of the Sunnah in Islamic law, and Muslims are encouraged to emulate Muhammad's actions in their daily lives. The Sunnah is seen as crucial to guiding interpretation of the Qur'an.[52]
Resurrection and judgment
Main article: Qiyama
Belief in the "Day of Resurrection", Yawm al-Qiyāmah (Arabic: يوم القيامة) is also crucial for Muslims. They believe the time of Qiyāmah is preordained by God but unknown to man. The trials and tribulations preceding and during the Qiyāmah are described in the Qur'an and the hadith, and also in the commentaries of scholars. The Qur'an emphasizes bodily resurrection, a break from the pre-Islamic Arabian understanding of death.[53]
On Yawm al-Qiyāmah, Muslims believe all mankind will be judged on their good and bad deeds and consigned to Jannah (paradise) or Jahannam (hell). The Qurʼan in Surat al-Zalzalah describes this as, "So whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it (99:7) and whoever does an atom's weight of evil will see it (99:8)." The Qurʼan lists several sins that can condemn a person to hell, such as disbelief in God (Arabic: كفر kufr), and dishonesty; however, the Qurʼan makes it clear God will forgive the sins of those who repent if he so wills. Good deeds, such as charity, prayer and compassion towards animals,[54][55] will be rewarded with entry to heaven. Muslims view heaven as a place of joy and bliss, with Qurʼanic references describing its features and the physical pleasures to come. Mystical traditions in Islam place these heavenly delights in the context of an ecstatic awareness of God.[56]
Yawm al-Qiyāmah is also identified in the Qur'an as Yawm ad-Dīn (Arabic: يوم الدين), "Day of Religion";[57] as-sāʿah (Arabic: الساعة), "the Last Hour";[58] and al-Qāriʿah (Arabic: القارعة), "The Clatterer".[59]
Predestination
Main article: Predestination in Islam
In accordance with the Islamic belief in predestination, or divine preordainment (al-qadā wa'l-qadar), God has full knowledge and control over all that occurs. This is explained in Qur'anic verses such as "Say: 'Nothing will happen to us except what Allah has decreed for us: He is our protector'..."[60] For Muslims, everything in the world that occurs, good or bad, has been preordained and nothing can happen unless permitted by God. According to Muslim theologians, although events are pre-ordained, man possesses free will in that he or she has the faculty to choose between right and wrong, and is thus responsible for his actions. According to Islamic tradition, all that has been decreed by God is writ
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