What Are the Five Pillars of Islam?

What Are the
Five Pillars of Islam?

The Five Pillars of Islam are the framework of the Muslim life.
They are the testimony of faith, prayer, giving zakat (support of the
needy), fasting during the month of Ramadan, and the pilgrimage to Makkah once
in a lifetime for those who are able.

1)
The Testimony of Faith:

The testimony of faith is saying with conviction, “La ilaha
illa Allah, Muhammadur rasoolu Allah.” This saying means “There is no
true god (deity) but God (Allah), and Muhammad is the Messenger
(Prophet) of God.” The first part, “There is no true god but
God,” means that none has the right to be worshipped but God alone, and
that God has neither partner nor son. This testimony of faith is called the

Shahada, a simple formula which should be said with conviction in order
to convert to Islam (as explained previously on this page). The testimony of faith
is the most important pillar of Islam.

2)
Prayer:

Muslims perform five prayers a day. Each prayer does not take
more than a few minutes to perform. Prayer in Islam is a direct link between the
worshipper and God. There are no intermediaries between God and the worshipper.

In prayer, a person feels inner happiness, peace, and comfort, and that God is
pleased with him or her. The Prophet Muhammad What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Salla

said: {Bilal, call (the people) to prayer, let
us be comforted by it.}
Bilal was one of Muhammad’s What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Salla

companions who was charged to call the people
to prayers.

Prayers are performed at dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset, and night. A Muslim
may pray almost anywhere, such as in fields, offices, factories, or
universities.

(For detailed information on how to perform
prayer,
please refer to the links at How to
Perform Prayer or refer to the book entitled A Guide to Salat (Prayer)
by M. A. K. Saqib.)
3)
Giving Zakat (Support of the Needy):

All things belong to God, and wealth is therefore held by human
beings in trust. What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Ch3-16-3-img1

What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Ch3-16-3-img1

The original meaning of the word
zakat is both ‘purification’ and ‘growth.’ Giving zakat means
‘giving a specified
percentage on certain properties to certain classes of needy people.’ The
percentage which is due on gold, silver, and cash funds that have reached the
amount of about 85 grams of gold and held in possession for one lunar year is
two and a half percent. Our possessions are purified by setting aside a small
portion for those in need, and, like the pruning of plants, this cutting back
balances and encourages new growth.

A person may also give as much as he or she pleases as voluntary alms or
charity.

4)
Fasting the Month of Ramadan:

What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Ch3-16-4-img1

What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Ch3-16-4-img1

Every year in the month of Ramadan,(1)
all
Muslims fast from dawn until sundown, abstaining from food, drink, and sexual
relations.

Although the fast is beneficial to
health, it is regarded principally as a method of spiritual self-purification.
By cutting oneself off from worldly comforts, even for a short time, a fasting
person gains true sympathy with those who go hungry, as well as growth in his or
her spiritual life.

5)
The Pilgrimage to Makkah:

The annual pilgrimage (Hajj) to Makkah is an obligation
once in a lifetime for those who are physically and financially able to perform
it. About two million people go to Makkah each year from every corner of the
globe. Although Makkah is always filled with visitors, the annual Hajj
is performed in the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar. Male pilgrims wear
special simple clothes which strip away distinctions of class and culture so
that all stand equal before God.

What Are the Five Pillars of Islam? Ch3-16-5-img1

Pilgrims praying at the Haram mosque
in Makkah. In this mosque is the Kaaba (the black building in the
picture) which Muslims turn toward when praying. The Kaaba is the
place of worship which God commanded the Prophets Abraham and his son,
Ishmael, to build.

The rites of the Hajj include circling the Kaaba seven times and going
seven times between the hillocks of Safa and Marwa, as Hagar did during her
search for water.

Then the pilgrims stand together in Arafa(2) and ask God for what they wish and for His
forgiveness, in what is often thought of as a preview of the Day of Judgment.

The end of the Hajj is marked by a festival,
Eid Al-Adha,
which is celebrated with prayers. This, and Eid al-Fitr, a feast-day
commemorating the end of Ramadan, are the two annual festivals of the Muslim
calendar.

_____________________________

Footnotes:

(1) The month of Ramadan
is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar (which is lunar, not solar).

(2) An area about 15 miles
from Makkah.

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