1.
Kaaba
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The Kaaba, also referred as Al Kaaba Al Musharrafah, is a building at the center of Islams most sacred mosque, Al-Masjid al-Haram, in Mecca, al-Hejaz, Saudi Arabia. It is the most sacred site in Islam and it is considered the House of Allah and has a similar role to the Tabernacle and Holy of Holies in Judaism. Wherever they are in the world, Muslims are expected to face the Kaaba when performing salat, from any point in the world, the direction facing the Kaaba is called the qibla. The sanctuary around the Kaaba is called Al-Masjid al-Haram, one of the Five Pillars of Islam requires every Muslim who is able to do so to perform the hajj pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime. Multiple parts of the hajj require pilgrims to make tawaf, the seven times around the Kaaba in a counter-clockwise direction. Tawaf is also performed by pilgrims during the umrah, however, the most significant times are during the hajj, when millions of pilgrims gather to circle the building within a 5-day period. In 2013, the number of pilgrims coming from outside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to perform hajj was officially reported as 1,379,531. In 2014, Saudi Arabia reported having completed Hajj permits for 1,389,053 international pilgrims and 63,375 for residents. The building is called by names in the Quran and Hadith, such as Bait, Bait ul Haram, Bait Ullah, Bait al-Ateeq. The Arabic word Bait is cognate to the Hebrew Bait, also meaning House, the Arabic word Kaaba means square or cube. The Quran also mentions Bait al-Mamur, the House of God in Heavens which the Kaaba symbolizes, the Kaaba is a stone cube structure made of granite. The Kaaba is approximately 13.1 m high, with sides measuring 11.03 m by 12.86 m, inside the Kaaba, the floor is made of marble and limestone. The interior walls, measuring 13 m by 9 m, are clad with tiled, white marble halfway to the roof, the floor of the interior stands about 2.2 m above the ground area where tawaf is performed. The wall directly adjacent to the entrance of the Kaaba has six tablets inlaid with inscriptions, along the top corners of the walls runs a green cloth embroidered with gold Quranic verses. Caretakers anoint the marble cladding with the same scented oil used to anoint the Black Stone outside, three pillars stand inside the Kaaba, with a small altar or table set between one and the other two. Lamp-like objects hang from the ceiling, the ceiling itself is of a darker colour, similar in hue to the lower trimming. A golden door—the Babut Taubah —on the right opens to an enclosed staircase that leads to a hatch. Both the roof and ceiling are made of stainless steel-capped teak wood, each numbered item in the following list corresponds to features noted in the diagram image
2.
Great Mosque of Mecca
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The Great Mosque of Mecca, also called the Grand Mosque, is the largest mosque in the world and surrounds Islams holiest place, the Kaaba, in the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Muslims face in the Qibla while performing Salat, the Quran states that Abraham, together with his son Ishmael, raised the foundations of a house that is identified by most commentators as the Kaaba. Allah had shown Abraham the exact site, very near to the Well of Zamzam, after Abraham had built the Kaaba, an angel brought to him the Black Stone, a celestial stone that, according to tradition, had fallen from Heaven on the nearby hill Abu Qubays. According to a saying attributed to Muhammad, the Black Stone had descended from Paradise whiter than milk, the Black Stone is believed to be the only remnant of the original structure made by Abraham. Quran 22,27 Going by the dates attributed to the patriarchs, Ishmael is believed to have been born around 2150 BCE, therefore, Islamic scholars have generally assumed that the Kaaba was constructed by Abraham around 2130 BC. The Kaaba is, therefore, believed by Muslims to be more than an older than Solomons Temple in Jerusalem. These dates remain consistent with the Muslim belief that the Kaaba is the first, in Samaritan literature, the Samaritan Book of the Secrets of Moses claims that Ishmael and his eldest son Nebaioth built the Kaaba as well as the city of Mecca. Upon Muhammads victorious return to Mecca in 630, he and his son-in-law, Ali Ibn Abi Talib, broke the idols in and around the Kaaba, similar to what Ibrahim did as stated in and ended its pagan use. This began the Islamic rule over the Kaaba and the building of the Masjid al-Haram around it, the first major renovation to the mosque took place in 692. Before this renovation, which included the outer walls being raised and decoration added to the ceiling. The spread of Islam in the Middle East and the influx of pilgrims required an almost complete rebuilding of the site which included adding more marble, in 1570, Sultan Selim II commissioned the chief architect Mimar Sinan to renovate the mosque. These features are the oldest surviving parts of the building, during heavy rains and flash floods in 1621 and 1629, the walls of the Kaaba and the mosque suffered extensive damage. In 1629, during the reign of Sultan Murad IV, the Kaaba was rebuilt with stones from Mecca, in the renovation of the mosque, a new stone arcade was added, three more minarets were built, and the marble flooring was retiled. This was the state of the mosque for nearly three centuries. The first major renovation under the Saudi kings was done between 1955 and 1973, in this renovation, four more minarets were added, the ceiling was refurnished, and the floor was replaced with artificial stone and marble. The Masa gallery is included in the Masjid via roofing and enclosements, during this renovation many of the historical features built by the Ottomans, particularly the support columns, were demolished. The second Saudi renovations under King Fahd, added a new wing, the new wing, which is also for prayers, is accessed through the King Fahd Gate. This extension was performed between 1982 and 1988, the third Saudi extension saw the building of more minarets, the erecting of a Kings residence overlooking the mosque and more prayer area in and around the mosque itself
3.
Mecca
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Mecca or Makkah is a city in the Hejaz region of Saudi Arabia that is also capital of the Makkah Region. The city is located 70 km inland from Jeddah in a valley at a height of 277 m above sea level. Its resident population in 2012 was roughly 2 million, although more than triple this number every year during the hajj period held in the twelfth Muslim lunar month of Dhu al-Hijjah. Mecca is home to the Kaaba, by majority description Islams holiest site, Mecca was long ruled by Muhammads descendants, the sharifs, acting either as independent rulers or as vassals to larger polities. It was conquered by Ibn Saud in 1925, during this expansion, Mecca has lost some historical structures and archaeological sites, such as the Ajyad Fortress. Today, more than 15 million Muslims visit Mecca annually, including several million during the few days of the Hajj, as a result, Mecca has become one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the Muslim world, despite the fact that non-Muslims are prohibited from entering the city. The Saudi government adopted Makkah as the spelling in the 1980s. The full official name is Makkah al-Mukarramah or Makkatu l-Mukarramah, which means Mecca the Honored, the ancient or early name for the site of Mecca is Bakkah. An Arabic language word, its etymology, like that of Mecca, is obscure, the form Bakkah is used for the name Mecca in the Quran in 3,96, while the form Mecca is used in 48,24. In South Arabic, the language in use in the portion of the Arabian Peninsula at the time of Muhammad. Other references to Mecca in the Quran call it Umm al-Qurā, another name of Mecca is Tihamah. Arab and Islamic tradition holds that the wilderness of Paran, broadly speaking, is the Tihamah, yaqut al-Hamawi, the 12th century Syrian geographer, wrote that Fārān was an arabized Hebrew word. One of the names of Mecca mentioned in the Torah, Mecca is governed by the Municipality of Mecca, a municipal council of fourteen locally elected members headed by a mayor appointed by the Saudi government. As of May 2015, the mayor of the city was Dr. Osama bin Fadhel Al-Bar, Mecca is the capital of the Makkah Region, which includes neighboring Jeddah. The provincial governor was prince Abdul Majeed bin Abdulaziz Al Saud from 2000 until his death in 2007, on 16 May 2007, prince Khalid bin Faisal Al Saud was appointed as the new governor. The early history of Mecca is still disputed, as there are no unambiguous references to it in ancient literature prior to the rise of Islam. The Roman Empire took control of part of the Hejaz in 106 AD, ruling cities such as Hegra, even though detailed descriptions were established of Western Arabia by Rome, such as by Procopius, there are no references of a pilgrimage and trading outpost such as Mecca. The first direct mention of Mecca in external literature occurs in 741 AD in the Byzantine-Arab Chronicle, claims have been made this could be a reference to the Kaaba in Mecca
4.
Temple Mount
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The Temple Mount, known to Muslims as the Haram esh-Sharif, a hill located in the Old City of Jerusalem, is one of the most important religious sites in the world. It has been venerated as a site for thousands of years by Judaism, Christianity. The present site is dominated by three monumental structures from the early Umayyad period, the al-Aqsa Mosque, the Dome of the Rock, Herodian walls and gates with additions dating back to the late Byzantine and early Islamic periods cut through the flanks of the Mount. Currently it can be reached through eleven gates, ten reserved for Muslims and one for non-Muslims, the Temple Mount is the holiest site in Judaism, which regards it as the place where Gods divine presence is manifested more than in any other place. According to the rabbinic sages whose debates produced the Talmud, it was here the world expanded into its present form. Several passages in the Hebrew Bible indicate that during the time when they were written, the Temple Mount was identified as Mount Zion. The Mount Zion mentioned in the parts of the Book of Isaiah, in the Book of Psalms. The name later migrated for a last time, this time to Jerusalems Western Hill, according to the Bible, both Jewish Temples stood at the Temple Mount, though archaeological evidence only exists for the Second Temple. However, the identification of Solomons Temple with the area of the Temple Mount is widespread, according to the Bible the site should function as the center of all national life—a governmental, judicial and religious center. During the Second Temple period it functioned also as an economic center, according to Jewish tradition and scripture, the First Temple was built by King Solomon the son of King David in 957 BCE and destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 BCE. The second was constructed under the auspices of Zerubbabel in 516 BCE, in the 2nd century, the site was used for a temple to Jupiter Capitolinus. It was redeveloped following the Arab conquest, Jewish tradition maintains it is here a Third and final Temple will also be built. The location is the holiest site in Judaism and is the place Jews turn towards during prayer and it was from the Holy of Holies that the High Priest communicated directly with God. The Temple was of importance in Jewish worship, in the Tanakh. In the New Testament it remains the site of events in the life of Jesus. It was to end, proof of a biblical prophecy fulfilled and of Christianitys victory over Judaism with the New Covenant. Among Sunni Muslims, the Mount is widely considered the third holiest site in Islam, revered as the Noble Sanctuary, the location of Muhammads journey to Jerusalem and ascent to heaven, the site is also associated with Jewish biblical prophets who are also venerated in Islam. Muslims preferred to the esplanade as the heart for the Muslim quarter since it had abandoned by Christians
5.
Al-Aqsa Mosque
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Al-Aqsa Mosque, also known as Al-Aqsa and Bayt al-Muqaddas, is the third holiest site in Sunni Islam and is located in the Old City of Jerusalem. Muslims believe that Muhammad was transported from the Sacred Mosque in Mecca to al-Aqsa during the Night Journey, Islamic tradition holds that Muhammad led prayers towards this site until the seventeenth month after the emigration, when God directed him to turn towards the Kaaba. The mosque was destroyed by an earthquake in 746 and rebuilt by the Abbasid caliph al-Mansur in 754. His successor al-Mahdi rebuilt it again in 780, another earthquake destroyed most of al-Aqsa in 1033, but two years later the Fatimid caliph Ali az-Zahir built another mosque which has stood to the present day. When the Crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099, they used the mosque as a palace and the Dome of the Rock as a church, but its function as a mosque was restored after its recapture by Saladin in 1187. More renovations, repairs and additions were undertaken in the centuries by the Ayyubids, Mamluks, Ottomans, the Supreme Muslim Council. Today, the Old City is under Israeli control, but the remains under the administration of the Jordanian/Palestinian-led Islamic Waqf. Al-Masjid al-Aqsa translates from Arabic into English as the farthest mosque, for centuries, al-Masjid al-Aqsa referred not only to the mosque, but to the entire sacred sanctuary, while al-Jami al-Aqsa referred to the specific site of the mosque. This changed during the period of Ottoman rule when the complex came to be known as al-Haram al-Sharif. The al-Aqsa Mosque is located on the Temple Mount, referred to by Muslims today as the Haram al-Sharif, at the time of the Second Temple, the present site of the mosque was occupied by the Royal Stoa, a basilica running the southern wall of the enclosure. The Royal Stoa was destroyed along with the Temple during the sacking of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE, however, remains identified as those of the Nea Church were uncovered in the south part of the Jewish Quarter in 1973. Analysis of the beams and panels removed from the mosque during renovations in the 1930s shows they are made from Cedar of Lebanon. Radiocarbon dating indicates a range of ages, some as old as 9th-century BCE. These included a mosaic like those used in Byzantine churches, the current construction of the al-Aqsa Mosque is dated to the early Umayyad period of rule in Palestine. However, Arculf visited Palestine during the reign of Muawiyah I and this latter claim is explicitly supported by the early Muslim scholar al-Muthahhar bin Tahir. According to several Muslim scholars, including Mujir ad-Din, al-Suyuti, and al-Muqaddasi, however, the entire Haram al-Sharif was meant to represent a mosque. The bridge would have spanned the street running just outside the wall of the Haram al-Sharif to give direct access to the mosque. Direct access from palace to mosque was a feature in the Umayyad period
6.
Old City (Jerusalem)
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The Old City is a 0.9 square kilometers walled area within the modern city of Jerusalem. Until 1860, when the Jewish neighborhood Mishkenot Shaananim was established, traditionally, the Old City has been divided into four uneven quarters, although the current designations were introduced only in the 19th century. Today, the Old City is roughly divided into the Muslim Quarter, Christian Quarter, Armenian Quarter, the Old Citys monumental defensive walls and city gates were built in the years 1535–1542 by the Turkish sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. The current population of the Old City resides mostly in the Muslim and Christian quarters. As of 2007 the total population was 36,965, the breakdown of religious groups in 2006 was 27,500 Muslims,5,681 Christians, not including the 790 Armenians, and 3,089 Jews. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the Old City was captured by Jordan, today, the Israeli government controls the entire area, which it considers part of its national capital. However, the Jerusalem Law of 1980, which effectively annexed East Jerusalem to Israel, was declared null, East Jerusalem is now regarded by the international community as part of occupied Palestinian territory. In 2010, Jerusalems oldest fragment of writing was found outside the Old Citys walls, according to the Bible, before King Davids conquest of Jerusalem in the 11th century BCE the city was home to the Jebusites. The Bible describes the city as heavily fortified with a city wall. The city ruled by King David, known as Ir David, or the City of David, was southeast of the Old City walls, outside the Dung Gate. His son King Solomon extended the city walls and then, in about 440 BCE, during the Persian period, Nehemiah returned from Babylon, in 41–44 CE, Agrippa, king of Judea, built a new city wall known as the Third Wall. Muslims occupied Jerusalem in the 7th Century under the second caliph and he granted its inhabitants an assurance treaty. Sophronius believed that Umar, a warrior who led an austere life, was a fulfillment of this prophecy. In the account by the Patriarch of Alexandria, Eutychius, it is said that Umar paid a visit to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and sat in its courtyard. Eutychius adds that Umar also wrote a decree which he handed to the Patriarch, in which he prohibited Muslims gathering in prayer at the site. In 1099, Jerusalem was captured by the Western Christian army of the First Crusade and it remained in their hands until recaptured by the Arab Muslims, led by Saladin and he summoned the Jews and permitted them to resettle in the city. In 1219, the walls of the city were razed by Muazzim Sultan of Damascus, in 1229, by treaty with Egypt, in 1239 he began to rebuild the walls, but they were demolished again by Daud, the emir of Kerak. In 1243, Jerusalem came again under the control of the Christians, the Kharezmian Tatars took the city in 1244 and Sultan Malik al-Muattam razed the walls, rendering it again defenseless and dealing a heavy blow to the citys status
7.
Jerusalem
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Jerusalem is a city located on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is considered a city in the three major Abrahamic religions of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice, besieged 23 times, attacked 52 times, the part of Jerusalem called the City of David was settled in the 4th millennium BCE. In 1538, walls were built around Jerusalem under Suleiman the Magnificent, today those walls define the Old City, which has been traditionally divided into four quarters—known since the early 19th century as the Armenian, Christian, Jewish, and Muslim Quarters. The Old City became a World Heritage Site in 1981, and is on the List of World Heritage in Danger, Modern Jerusalem has grown far beyond the Old Citys boundaries. These foundational events, straddling the dawn of the 1st millennium BCE, the sobriquet of holy city was probably attached to Jerusalem in post-exilic times. The holiness of Jerusalem in Christianity, conserved in the Septuagint which Christians adopted as their own authority, was reinforced by the New Testament account of Jesuss crucifixion there, in Sunni Islam, Jerusalem is the third-holiest city, after Mecca and Medina. As a result, despite having an area of only 0, outside the Old City stands the Garden Tomb. Today, the status of Jerusalem remains one of the issues in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. During the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, West Jerusalem was among the captured and later annexed by Israel while East Jerusalem, including the Old City, was captured. Israel captured East Jerusalem from Jordan during the 1967 Six-Day War and subsequently annexed it into Jerusalem, one of Israels Basic Laws, the 1980 Jerusalem Law, refers to Jerusalem as the countrys undivided capital. All branches of the Israeli government are located in Jerusalem, including the Knesset, the residences of the Prime Minister and President, the international community does not recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital, and the city hosts no foreign embassies. Jerusalem is also home to some non-governmental Israeli institutions of importance, such as the Hebrew University. In 2011, Jerusalem had a population of 801,000, of which Jews comprised 497,000, Muslims 281,000, a city called Rušalim in the Execration texts of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt is widely, but not universally, identified as Jerusalem. Jerusalem is called Urušalim in the Amarna letters of Abdi-Heba, the name Jerusalem is variously etymologized to mean foundation of the god Shalem, the god Shalem was thus the original tutelary deity of the Bronze Age city. The form Yerushalem or Yerushalayim first appears in the Bible, in the Book of Joshua, according to a Midrash, the name is a combination of Yhwh Yireh and the town Shalem. The earliest extra-biblical Hebrew writing of the word Jerusalem is dated to the sixth or seventh century BCE and was discovered in Khirbet Beit Lei near Beit Guvrin in 1961. The inscription states, I am Yahweh thy God, I will accept the cities of Judah and I will redeem Jerusalem, or as other scholars suggest, the mountains of Judah belong to him, to the God of Jerusalem
8.
Arabic
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Arabic is a Central Semitic language that was first spoken in Iron Age northwestern Arabia and is now the lingua franca of the Arab world. Arabic is also the language of 1.7 billion Muslims. It is one of six languages of the United Nations. The modern written language is derived from the language of the Quran and it is widely taught in schools and universities, and is used to varying degrees in workplaces, government, and the media. The two formal varieties are grouped together as Literary Arabic, which is the language of 26 states. Modern Standard Arabic largely follows the standards of Quranic Arabic. Much of the new vocabulary is used to denote concepts that have arisen in the post-Quranic era, Arabic has influenced many languages around the globe throughout its history. During the Middle Ages, Literary Arabic was a vehicle of culture in Europe, especially in science, mathematics. As a result, many European languages have borrowed many words from it. Many words of Arabic origin are found in ancient languages like Latin. Balkan languages, including Greek, have acquired a significant number of Arabic words through contact with Ottoman Turkish. Arabic has also borrowed words from languages including Greek and Persian in medieval times. Arabic is a Central Semitic language, closely related to the Northwest Semitic languages, the Ancient South Arabian languages, the Semitic languages changed a great deal between Proto-Semitic and the establishment of the Central Semitic languages, particularly in grammar. Innovations of the Central Semitic languages—all maintained in Arabic—include, The conversion of the suffix-conjugated stative formation into a past tense, the conversion of the prefix-conjugated preterite-tense formation into a present tense. The elimination of other prefix-conjugated mood/aspect forms in favor of new moods formed by endings attached to the prefix-conjugation forms, the development of an internal passive. These features are evidence of descent from a hypothetical ancestor. In the southwest, various Central Semitic languages both belonging to and outside of the Ancient South Arabian family were spoken and it is also believed that the ancestors of the Modern South Arabian languages were also spoken in southern Arabia at this time. To the north, in the oases of northern Hijaz, Dadanitic and Taymanitic held some prestige as inscriptional languages, in Najd and parts of western Arabia, a language known to scholars as Thamudic C is attested
9.
Muslim
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A Muslim is someone who follows or practices Islam, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion. Muslims consider the Quran, their book, to be the verbatim word of God as revealed to the Islamic prophet. They also follow the teachings and practices of Muhammad as recorded in traditional accounts, Muslim is an Arabic word meaning one who submits. Most Muslims will accept anyone who has publicly pronounced Shahadah as a Muslim, the shahadah states, There is no god but the God and Muhammad is the last messenger of the God. The testimony authorized by God in the Quran that can found in Surah 3,18 states, There is no god except God, which in Arabic, is the exact testimony which God Himself utters, as well as the angels and those who possess knowledge utter. The word muslim is the active participle of the verb of which islām is a verbal noun, based on the triliteral S-L-M to be whole. A female adherent is a muslima, the plural form in Arabic is muslimūn or muslimīn, and its feminine equivalent is muslimāt. The Arabic form muslimun is the stem IV participle of the triliteral S-L-M, the ordinary word in English is Muslim. It is sometimes transliterated as Moslem, which is an older spelling, the word Mosalman is a common equivalent for Muslim used in Central Asia. Until at least the mid-1960s, many English-language writers used the term Mohammedans or Mahometans, although such terms were not necessarily intended to be pejorative, Muslims argue that the terms are offensive because they allegedly imply that Muslims worship Muhammad rather than God. Other obsolete terms include Muslimite and Muslimist, musulmán/Mosalmán is a synonym for Muslim and is modified from Arabic. In English it was sometimes spelled Mussulman and has become archaic in usage, the Muslim philosopher Ibn Arabi said, A Muslim is a person who has dedicated his worship exclusively to God. Islam means making ones religion and faith Gods alone. The Quran states that men were Muslims because they submitted to God, preached His message and upheld His values. Thus, in Surah 3,52 of the Quran, Jesus disciples tell him, We believe in God, and you be our witness that we are Muslims. In Muslim belief, before the Quran, God had given the Tawrat to Moses, the Zabur to David and the Injil to Jesus, who are all considered important Muslim prophets. The most populous Muslim-majority country is Indonesia, home to 12. 7% of the worlds Muslims, followed by Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Egypt. About 20% of the worlds Muslims lives in the Middle East and North Africa, Sizable minorities are found in India, China, Russia, Ethiopia. The country with the highest proportion of self-described Muslims as a proportion of its population is Morocco
10.
Prayer
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Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. Prayer can be a form of practice, may be either individual or communal. It may involve the use of words, song or complete silence, when language is used, prayer may take the form of a hymn, incantation, formal creedal statement, or a spontaneous utterance in the praying person. There are different forms of such as petitionary prayer, prayers of supplication, thanksgiving. Thus, people pray for many such as personal benefit, asking for divine grace, spiritual connection. Some anthropologists believe that the earliest intelligent modern humans practiced a form of prayer, scientific studies regarding the use of prayer have mostly concentrated on its effect on the healing of sick or injured people. Meta-studies of the studies in this field have been performed showing evidence only for no effect or a small effect. Some studies have indicated increased medical complications in groups receiving prayer over those without, the efficacy of petition in prayer for physical healing to a deity has been evaluated in numerous other studies, with contradictory results. There has been criticism of the way the studies were conducted. The act of prayer is attested in sources as early as 5000 years ago. Some anthropologists, such as Sir Edward Burnett Tylor and Sir James George Frazer, various spiritual traditions offer a wide variety of devotional acts. There are morning and evening prayers, graces said over meals, some Christians bow their heads and fold their hands. Some Native Americans regard dancing as a form of prayer, Jewish prayer may involve swaying back and forth and bowing. Muslims practice salat in their prayers, some pray according to standardized rituals and liturgies, while others prefer extemporaneous prayers. Friedrich Heiler is often cited in Christian circles for his systematic Typology of Prayer which lists six types of prayer, primitive, ritual, Greek cultural, philosophical, mystical, some forms of prayer require a prior ritualistic form of cleansing or purification such as in ghusl and wudhu. Prayer may be privately and individually, or it may be done corporately in the presence of fellow believers. Prayer can be incorporated into a daily life, in which one is in constant communication with a god. Some people pray throughout all that is happening during the day and this is actually regarded as a requirement in several Christian denominations, although enforcement is not possible nor desirable
11.
Salah
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Salah, called namāz in some languages, is one of the Five Pillars in the faith of Islam and an obligatory religious duty for every Muslim. It is a physical, mental, and spiritual act of worship that is observed five times every day at prescribed times, in this ritual, the worshiper starts standing, bows, prostrates themself, and concludes while sitting on the ground. During each posture, the worshiper recites or reads certain verses, phrases, the word salah is commonly translated as prayer but this definition might be confusing. Muslims use the words dua or supplication when referring to the definition of prayers which is reverent petitions made to God. Salah is preceded by ritual ablution, Salah consists of the repetition of a unit called a rakʿah consisting of prescribed actions and words. The number of obligatory rakaʿāt varies from two to four according to the time of day or other circumstances, prayer is obligatory for all Muslims except those who are prepubescent, are menstruating, or are experiencing bleeding in the 40 days after childbirth. Every movement in the salat is accompanied by the takbir except the standing between the ruku and sujud, and the ending which has a derivation of the Muslim greeting As-salamu alaykum, Salah is an Arabic word whose basic meaning is bowing, homage, worship, prayer. In its English usage, the reference of the word is almost always confined to the Muslim formal, Muslims themselves use several terms to refer to salah depending on their language or culture. In many parts of the world, including many non-Arab countries such as Indonesia, the other major term is the Persian word namāz, used by speakers of the Indo-Iranian languages, as well as Turkish, Russian, Chinese, Bosnian and Albanian. In North Caucasian languages, the term is lamaz in Chechen and this is a book, there is no doubt in it, a guidance for righteous. Those who believe in unseen and offer Salah and spend from what we have given to them, and those who believe in what We have revealed to thee and what We revealed before thee, and on hereafter they believe. They are on guidance from their lord and they are successful, and offer Salah and pay Zakah and bow along those who bow. Guard your Salah and middle Salah, and stand before God devoutly obedient, then if you fear on foot or riding, then when you become secure remember God as he has taught you that which you did not know previously. And offer Salah at the two ends of day and at the approach of night, indeed good deeds remove bad deeds, offer Salah at the decline of the day until the darkness of night, and Quran at dawn, indeed Quran at dawn ever is a witness. And at night pray Tahajjud an extra for thee, it is expected that your lord raise you to praised station. ) Say call God or call Merciful, by whomever you call, He has good names, and offer Salah and pay Zakah and obey Messenger so that you may receive mercy. And recite that is revealed to you as a book and offer Salah, indeed Salah prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and remembrance of God is great, ) The chief purpose of salah is to act as a persons communication with and remembrance of God. By reciting The Opening, the first sura of the Quran, as required in daily worship, the worshiper can stand before God, thank and praise Him, under the Hanbali School of thought, a person who doesnt pray five times a day is an unbeliever
12.
Hejaz
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The Hejaz, also Al-Hijaz, is a region in the west of present-day Saudi Arabia. The region is so called as it separates the land of the Najd in the east from the land of Tihamah in the west and it is also known as the Western Province. It is bordered on the west by the Red Sea, on the north by Jordan, on the east by the Najd and its main city is Jeddah, but it is probably better known for the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina. As the site of Islams holiest places, the Hejaz has significance in the Arab, historically, the Hejaz has always seen itself as separate from the rest of Saudi Arabia. The Hejaz is the most populated region in Saudi Arabia,35 % of all Saudis live in Hejaz, hejazi Arabic is the most widely spoken dialect in the region. Saudi Hejazis are of diverse origins. The Hejaz is the most cosmopolitan region in the Arabian Peninsula, people of Hejaz have the most strongly articulated identity of any regional grouping in Saudi Arabia. Their place of origin alienates them from the Saudi state, which invokes different narratives of the history of the Arabian Peninsula, thus, Hejazis experienced tensions with people of Najd. One or possibly two megalithic dolmen have been found in Al-Hijaz, the Hejaz includes both the Mahd adh-Dhahab and a water source, now dried out, that used to flow 600 miles north east to the Persian Gulf via the Wadi Al-Rummah and Wadi Al-Batin system. Archaeological research led by of Boston University and the University of Qassim indicates that the system was active in 8000 BCE. The northern part of the Hejaz was part of the Roman province of Arabia Petraea, Saudi Arabias first World Heritage Site that was recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is that of Al-Hjir. The name Al-Hijr occurs in the Qur’an, and the site is known for having structures carved into rocks, construction of the structures is credited to the people of Thamud. Despite their rather Polytheistic nature, a member of folk was a Monotheistic preacher called Salih. After the disappearance of Thamud from Mada’in Saleh, it came under the influence of people, such as the Nabataeans. Later, it would lie in a used by Muslim Pilgrims going to Mecca. According to Islamic sources, the civilization of Mecca started after Ibrahim brought his son Isma‘il and wife Hajar here and it was during such an occasion that Muhammad met some Medinans who would allow him to migrate to Medina, to escape persecution by his opponents in Mecca. Given that he had followers and enemies here, a number of battles or expeditions were carried out in this area. They involved both Meccan companions, such as Hamzah ibn ‘Abdul-Muttalib, Ubaydah ibn al-Harith and Sad ibn Abi Waqqas, the Hijaz fell under Muhammads influence as he emerged victorious over his opponents, and was thus a part of his empire
13.
Mosque
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A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. There are strict and detailed requirements in Sunni jurisprudence for a place of worship to be considered a mosque, many mosques have elaborate domes, minarets, and prayer halls, in varying styles of architecture. Mosques originated on the Arabian Peninsula, but are now found in all inhabited continents, the mosque serves as a place where Muslims can come together for salat as well as a center for information, education, social welfare, and dispute settlement. The imam leads the congregation in prayer, the first mosque in the world is often considered to be the area around the Kaaba in Mecca now known as the Masjid al-Haram. Others regard the first mosque in history to be the Quba Mosque in present-day Medina since it was the first structure built by Muhammad upon his emigration from Mecca in 622. The Islamic Prophet Muhammad went on to another mosque in Medina. Built on the site of his home, Muhammad participated in the construction of the mosque himself and helped pioneer the concept of the mosque as the focal point of the Islamic city. The Masjid al-Nabawi introduced some of the still common in todays mosques, including the niche at the front of the prayer space known as the mihrab. The Masjid al-Nabawi was also constructed with a courtyard, a motif common among mosques built since then. Mosques had been built in Iraq and North Africa by the end of the 7th century, the Imam Husayn Shrine in Karbala is reportedly one of the oldest mosques in Iraq, although its present form – typical of Persian architecture – only goes back to the 11th century. The shrine, while operating as a mosque, remains one of the holiest sites for Shia Muslims, as it honors the death of the third Shia imam. The Mosque of Amr ibn al-As was reportedly the first mosque in Egypt, serving as a religious, like the Imam Husayn Shrine, though, nothing of its original structure remains. With the later Shia Fatimid Caliphate, mosques throughout Egypt evolved to include schools, hospitals and it was the first to incorporate a square minaret and includes naves akin to a basilica. Those features can also be found in Andalusian mosques, including the Grand Mosque of Cordoba, still, some elements of Visigothic architecture, like horseshoe arches, were infused into the mosque architecture of Spain and the Maghreb. The first mosque in East Asia was reportedly established in the 8th century in Xian, however, the Great Mosque of Xian, whose current building dates from the 18th century, does not replicate the features often associated with mosques elsewhere. Indeed, minarets were initially prohibited by the state, mosques in western China were more likely to incorporate elements, like domes and minarets, traditionally seen in mosques elsewhere. In turn, the Javanese style influenced the styles of mosques in Indonesias Austronesian neighbors—Malaysia, Brunei, Muslim empires were instrumental in the evolution and spread of mosques. Although mosques were first established in India during the 7th century, reflecting their Timurid origins, Mughal-style mosques included onion domes, pointed arches, and elaborate circular minarets, features common in the Persian and Central Asian styles
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Niche (architecture)
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A niche in classical architecture is an exedra or an apse that has been reduced in size, retaining the half-dome heading usual for an apse. The word derives from the Latin nidus or nest, via the French niche, in Gothic architecture, a niche may be set within a tabernacle framing, like a richly-decorated miniature house, such as might serve for a reliquary. The backings for the altars in churches can be embedded with niches for statues, one of the earliest buildings which uses external niches containing statues is the Church of Orsanmichele in Florence, built between 1380-1404. The Uffizi Palace in Florence modified the concept by setting the niche within the wall so it did not protrude, the Uffizi has two dozen or so such niches containing statues of great historical figures. In England the Uffizi style niches were adopted at Montacute House, in Fra Filippo Lippis Madonna the trompe-loeil niche frames her as with the canopy of estate that was positioned over a personage of importance in the late Middle Ages and Early Modern Europe. At the same time, the Madonna is represented as an iconic sculpture who has come alive with miraculous immediacy, expanding from its primary sense as an architectural recess, a niche can be applied to a rocky hollow, crack, crevice, or foothold. The sense of a niche as a clearly defined narrow space led to its use describing the position of an organisms species. Alcove Grotto Mihrab Wave cut platform Sir John Summerson,1948. in Heavenly Mansions
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Mihrab
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Mihrab is a semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla, that is, the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and hence the direction that Muslims should face when praying. The wall in which a mihrab appears is thus the qibla wall, Mihrabs should not be confused with the minbar, which is the raised platform from which an Imam addresses the congregation. The word is derived from the verb ḥariba, so miḥrāb would mean battlefield or place of fight. Some scholars have suggested that the word is from the Ethiopian mekʷerab, the word mihrab originally had a non-religious meaning and simply denoted a special room in a house, a throne room in a palace, for example. The Fath al-Bari, on the authority of others, suggests the mihrab is the most honorable location of kings and the master of locations, the front and the most honorable. The Mosques in Islam, in addition to Arabic sources, cites Theodor Nöldeke, the term was subsequently used by the Islamic prophet Muhammad to denote his own private prayer room. The room additionally provided access to the adjacent mosque, and the Prophet would enter the mosque through this room. This original meaning of mihrab – i. e. as a room in the house – continues to be preserved in some forms of Judaism where mihrabs are rooms used for private worship. In the Quran, the word refers to a sanctuary/place of worship. The sign was however just a sign on the wall, eventually, the niche came to be universally understood to identify the qibla wall, and so came to be adopted as a feature in other mosques. A sign was no longer necessary, the Quranic passage that refers to a mihrab – then he came forth to his people from the sanctuary/place of worship – is inscribed on or over some mihrabs. Today, Mihrabs vary in size, are usually ornately decorated, in exceptional cases, the mihrab does not follow the qibla direction. One example is the Mezquita of Córdoba, Spain that points south instead of southeast, among the proposed explanations, there is the localization of the ancient Roman cardo street besides the old temple the Mezquita was built upon. Another is the Masjid al-Qiblatayn, or the Mosque of the Two Qiblas and this is where the Prophet Muhammad received the command to change the direction of prayer from Jerusalem to Mecca, thus has two prayer niches. In the 21st Century the mosque was renovated, and the old prayer niche facing Jerusalem was removed, and the one facing Mecca was left
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Multifaith space
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Many of these spaces are small, clean and largely unadorned areas, which can be adapted and serve for any religious or spiritual practice. Rarely, persons of different faiths may come together in such spaces within the context of worship services. The space may or may not be a place of worship. All norms and values need to be considered and respected, which leads to an unstable equilibrium where divergent worldviews can be brought together. Social cooperation and openness must be possible within the space, each space raises question of ethics and national style, in which different faith members are able to participate in a mutually respectful, yet cooperative, manner. This creates a platform from which to launch peaceful and productive dialogue, following the program launch, approximately 250 colleges and universities made the vision for interfaith cooperation and community service a reality on campuses across the country. The acts and behaviors of students can impact a campus environment and climate, campuses across the world join this movement to foster interfaith cooperation. Better Together is a student campaign for interfaith action, allowing students to engage. Better Together promotes leadership rooted in a person’s beliefs, builds community no matter how different those beliefs may seem, and that strong community is able to serve others
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Ummah
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Ummah is an Arabic word meaning community. It is distinguished from Shab which means a nation with common ancestry or geography, thus, it can be said to be a supra-national community with a common history. It is a synonym for ummat al-Islamiyah, and it is used to mean the collective community of Islamic peoples. In the Quran the ummah typically refers to a group that shares common religious beliefs. In the context of Pan-Islamism and politics, the word Ummah can be used to mean the concept of a Commonwealth of the Believers, the word Ummah means Nation in Arabic, Plural, Ummam. For example the Arabic term for the United Nations in Arabic is الأمم المتحدة Al-Ummam Al-Mutahedah, the Word Ummah differs from the concept of a country or people. In it is greater context it is used to describe a group of people. For example, in Arabic the world شعب Shaab would be used to describe the citizens of Turkey. However, the term Ummah is used to describe the Turkic Nation as a whole, which includes Turkey, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the phrase Ummah Wāhidah in the Quran refers to all of the Islamic world as it existed at the time. The Quran says, You are the best nation brought out for Mankind, commanding what is righteous, at the time of Muhammad, before the conception of the ummah, Arab communities were typically governed by kinship. In other words, the ideology of the Arabs centered around tribal affiliations. In the midst of a society, the religion of Islam emerged. The ummah emerged according to the idea that a messenger or prophet has been sent to a community, but unlike earlier messengers who had been sent to various communities in the past, Muhammad had been given the task to develop a universal ummah and not only for the Arabs. Muhammads purpose as messenger to them was to transmit a divine message, since Muhammad is the messenger for the ummah, it indicates there is a divine message, which further implies that God is directing the life affairs of the ummah. Accordingly, the purpose of the ummah was to be based on religion, following the commands of God, there are a total of sixty-two instances that the term ummah is mentioned in the Quran. The use of ummah in the Quran almost always refers to ethical, linguistic, the meaning of the term ummah in the Quran appears to transform throughout the chronology of the Quran. When it is first used in the Quran it is distinguishable from the term qawm which can be translated to people. The Quran recognizes that each ummah has a messenger that has sent to relay a divine message to the community
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Sharia
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Sharia, Sharia law, or Islamic law is the religious law forming part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the precepts of Islam, particularly the Quran. In Arabic, the term refers to Gods divine law and is contrasted with fiqh. The manner of its application in modern times has been a subject of dispute between Muslim traditionalists and reformists, traditional theory of Islamic jurisprudence recognizes four sources of sharia, the Quran, sunnah, qiyas, and ijma. Traditional jurisprudence distinguishes two branches of law, ʿibādāt and muʿāmalāt, which together comprise a wide range of topics. Its rulings assign actions to one of five categories, mandatory, recommended, permitted, abhorred, thus, some areas of sharia overlap with the Western notion of law while others correspond more broadly to living life in accordance with God’s will. Historically, sharia was interpreted by independent jurists, ottoman rulers achieved additional control over the legal system by promulgating their own legal code and turning muftis into state employees. Non-Muslim communities had legal autonomy, except in cases of interconfessional disputes, in the modern era, sharia-based criminal laws were widely replaced by statutes inspired by European models. Judicial procedures and legal education in the Muslim world were brought in line with European practice. While the constitutions of most Muslim-majority states contain references to sharia, legislative bodies which codified these laws sought to modernize them without abandoning their foundations in traditional jurisprudence. The Islamic revival of the late 20th century brought along calls by Islamist movements for full implementation of sharia, including reinstatement of hudud corporal punishments, in some cases, this resulted in traditionalist legal reform, while other countries witnessed juridical reinterpretation of sharia advocated by progressive reformers. The role of sharia has become a contested topic around the world, attempts to impose it on non-Muslims have caused intercommunal violence in Nigeria and may have contributed to the breakup of Sudan. Some Muslim-minority countries in Asia, Africa and Europe recognize the use of sharia-based family laws for their Muslim populations, there are ongoing debates as to whether sharia is compatible with secular forms of government, human rights, freedom of thought, and womens rights. The word sharīʿah is used by Arabic-speaking peoples of the Middle East to designate a prophetic religion in its totality, for example, sharīʿat Mūsā means law or religion of Moses and sharīʿatu-nā can mean our religion in reference to any monotheistic faith. Within Islamic discourse, šarīʿah refers to regulations governing the lives of Muslims. For many Muslims, the word means simply justice, and they will consider any law that promotes justice, Muslims of different perspectives agree in their respect for the abstract notion of sharia, but they differ in how they understand the practical implications of the term. Classical sharia, the body of rules and principles elaborated by Islamic jurists during the first centuries of Islam, historical sharia, the body of rules and interpretations developed throughout Islamic history, ranging from personal beliefs to state legislation and varying across an ideological spectrum. Classical sharia has often served as a point of reference for these variants, Contemporary sharia, the full spectrum of rules and interpretations that are developed and practiced at present
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Halal
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Halāl, also spelled hallal or halaal, is any object or action which is permissible to use or engage in, according to Islamic law. The term covers and designates food and drink as well as matters of daily life and it is one of five Ahkam—fard, mustahabb, halal, makruh, haram —that define the morality of human action in Islam. Mubah is also used to mean permissible or allowed in Islam, growth regions include Indonesia and Turkey. The European Union market for food has an estimated annual growth of around 15 percent and is worth an estimated US$30 billion. Several food companies offer halal processed foods and products, including foie gras, spring rolls, chicken nuggets, ravioli, lasagna, pizza. Halal ready meals are a consumer market for Muslims in Britain. The most common example of food is pork. While pork is the meat that categorically may not be consumed by Muslims. The criteria for non-pork items include their source, the cause of the animals death and it also depends on the Muslims madhab. Muslims must also ensure that all foods, as well as items like cosmetics. Frequently, these products contain animal by-products or other ingredients that are not permissible for Muslims to eat or use on their bodies, foods that are not considered halal for Muslims to consume include blood and intoxicants such as alcoholic beverages. If there is no food available and a Muslim is forced by necessity. Globally, halal certification has been criticized by anti-Halal lobby groups. The critics argue that the results in added costs, a requirement to officially certify intrinsically-halal foods, leads to consumers subsidising a particular religious belief. Australian Federation of Islamic Councils spokesman Keysar Trad told a journalist in July 2014 that this was an attempt to exploit anti-Muslim sentiments, the food must come from a supplier that uses halal practices. Dhabīḥah is the method of slaughter for all meat sources, excluding fish and other sea-life. This method of slaughtering animals consists of using a knife to make a swift, deep incision that cuts the front of the throat, the carotid artery, trachea. The head of an animal that is slaughtered using halal methods is aligned with the qiblah, in addition to the direction, permitted animals should be slaughtered upon utterance of the Islamic prayer Bismillah in the name of God
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Archaeology
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Archaeology, or archeology, is the study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, Archaeology can be considered both a social science and a branch of the humanities. In North America, archaeology is considered a sub-field of anthropology, archaeologists study human prehistory and history, from the development of the first stone tools at Lomekwi in East Africa 3.3 million years ago up until recent decades. Archaeology as a field is distinct from the discipline of palaeontology, Archaeology is particularly important for learning about prehistoric societies, for whom there may be no written records to study. Prehistory includes over 99% of the human past, from the Paleolithic until the advent of literacy in societies across the world, Archaeology has various goals, which range from understanding culture history to reconstructing past lifeways to documenting and explaining changes in human societies through time. The discipline involves surveying, excavation and eventually analysis of data collected to learn more about the past, in broad scope, archaeology relies on cross-disciplinary research. Archaeology developed out of antiquarianism in Europe during the 19th century, Archaeology has been used by nation-states to create particular visions of the past. Nonetheless, today, archaeologists face many problems, such as dealing with pseudoarchaeology, the looting of artifacts, a lack of public interest, the science of archaeology grew out of the older multi-disciplinary study known as antiquarianism. Antiquarians studied history with attention to ancient artifacts and manuscripts. Tentative steps towards the systematization of archaeology as a science took place during the Enlightenment era in Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries, in Europe, philosophical interest in the remains of Greco-Roman civilization and the rediscovery of classical culture began in the late Middle Age. Antiquarians, including John Leland and William Camden, conducted surveys of the English countryside, one of the first sites to undergo archaeological excavation was Stonehenge and other megalithic monuments in England. John Aubrey was a pioneer archaeologist who recorded numerous megalithic and other monuments in southern England. He was also ahead of his time in the analysis of his findings and he attempted to chart the chronological stylistic evolution of handwriting, medieval architecture, costume, and shield-shapes. Excavations were also carried out in the ancient towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum and these excavations began in 1748 in Pompeii, while in Herculaneum they began in 1738. The discovery of entire towns, complete with utensils and even human shapes, however, prior to the development of modern techniques, excavations tended to be haphazard, the importance of concepts such as stratification and context were overlooked. The father of archaeological excavation was William Cunnington and he undertook excavations in Wiltshire from around 1798, funded by Sir Richard Colt Hoare. Cunnington made meticulous recordings of neolithic and Bronze Age barrows, one of the major achievements of 19th century archaeology was the development of stratigraphy. The idea of overlapping strata tracing back to successive periods was borrowed from the new geological and paleontological work of scholars like William Smith, James Hutton, the application of stratigraphy to archaeology first took place with the excavations of prehistorical and Bronze Age sites
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Cemetery
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A cemetery or graveyard is a place where the remains of dead people are buried or otherwise interred. The word cemetery implies that the land is designated as a burial ground. The term graveyard is used interchangeably with cemetery, but primarily referred to a burial ground within a churchyard. The intact or cremated remains of people may be interred in a grave, commonly referred to as burial, or in a tomb, an above-ground grave, in Western cultures, funeral ceremonies are often observed in cemeteries. These ceremonies or rites of passage according to cultural practices. Modern cemeteries often include crematoria, and some previously used for both, continue as crematoria as a principal use long after the interment areas have been filled. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a cemetery as a burial-ground generally, a large public park or ground laid out expressly for the interment of the dead, and not being the ‘yard’ of any church. Prehistoric cemeteries are referred to by the term grave field. From about the 7th century, European burial was under the control of the Church, practices varied, but in continental Europe, bodies were usually buried in a mass grave until they had decomposed. The bones were exhumed and stored in ossuaries, either along the arcaded bounding walls of the cemetery, or within the church under floor slabs. In Europe this was accompanied with a depiction of their coat of arms. Most others were buried in graveyards again divided by social status, mourners who could afford the work of a stonemason had a headstone engraved with a name, dates of birth and death and sometimes other biographical data, and set up over the place of burial. Usually, the writing and symbols carved on the headstone. Some families hired a blacksmith and had large crosses made from various metals put on the place of burial, in many European states, burial in graveyards was eventually outlawed altogether through government legislation. Instead of graveyards, completely new places of burial were established away from populated areas and outside of old towns. Many new cemeteries became municipally owned or were run by their own corporations, in some cases, skeletons were exhumed from graveyards and moved into ossuaries or catacombs. A large action of this occurred in 18th century Paris when human remains were transferred from graveyards all over the city to the Catacombs of Paris. The bones of an estimated 6 million people are to be found there, an early example of a landscape-style cemetery is Père Lachaise in Paris
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Abraham in Islam
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Ibrahim, known as Abraham in the Hebrew Bible, is recognized as a prophet and messenger in Islam of God. Abraham plays a prominent role as an example of faith in Judaism, Christianity, in Muslim belief, Abraham fulfilled all the commandments and trials wherein God nurtured him throughout his lifetime. As a result of his faith in God, Abraham was promised by God to be a leader to all the nations of the world. The Qur’an extols Abraham as a model, an exemplar, obedient, Muslims believe that the prophet Abraham became the leader of the righteous in his time, and that it was through him that people of both the Arabian Peninsula and Israel came. Abraham, in the belief of Islam, was instrumental in cleansing the world of idolatry at the time, paganism was cleared out by Abraham in both Arabia and Canaan. He spiritually purified both places as well as physically sanctifying the houses of worship, Abraham and Ismail further established the rites of pilgrimage, or Hajj, which are still followed by Muslims today. Muslims maintain that Abraham further asked God to bless both the lines of his progeny, of Ismail and Ishaq, and to all of his descendants in the protection of God. They also believe that Muhammad is a descendant of Abraham through Ishmael, Muslims maintain that Abrahams father was Aazar, which could be derived from the Syriac Athar, who is known in the Hebrew Bible as Terah. Other Muslims maintain that Azar was his paternal uncle, commentators and scholars believed that Abraham himself had many children, but Ismail and Ishaq were the only two who became prophets. Abrahams two wives are believed to have been Sarah and Hājar, the latter of whom was originally Sarahs handmaiden, Abrahams nephew is said to have been the messenger Lut, who was one of the other people who migrated with Abraham out of their community. Abraham himself is said to have been a descendant of Nuh through his son Shem, Abrahams personality and character is one of the most in-depth in the whole Qur’an, and Abraham is specifically mentioned as being a kind and compassionate man. Abrahams father is understood by Muslims to have been a wicked, ignorant, the relationship between Abraham and his father, who in the Qur’an is named Azar, is central to Abrahams story as Muslims understand it to establish a large part of Abrahams personality. The Qur’an mentions that Abrahams father threatened to stone his son to death if he did not cease in preaching to the people, despite this, the Qur’an states that Abraham in his later years prayed to God to forgive the sins of all his descendants and his parents. Muslims have frequently cited Abrahams character as an example of how one must be towards people. A similar example of Abrahams compassionate nature is demonstrated when Abraham began to pray for the people of Sodom, Ibrahim was born in a house of idolaters in the ancient city of Ur in Chaldea. His father Azar was a well-known idol-sculptor that his people worshiped, as a young child, Ibrahim used to watch his father sculpting these idols from stones or wood. Despite his opposition to idolatry, his father Azar would still send Ibrahim to sell his idols in the marketplace, once there, Ibraham would call out to passersby, Who will buy my idols. They won’t help you and they hurt you
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Fiqh
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Figuratively, fiqh means, knowledge about Islamic legal rulings from their sources. He must look deep down into a matter and not suffice himself with just the apparent meaning, a person who only knows the appearance of a matter is not a faqīh. Conceptually, the attempt to understand divine law. Whereas shariah is immutable and infallible, fiqh is fallible and changeable, fiqh is distinguished from usul al-fiqh, the methods of legal interpretation and analysis. Fiqh is the product of application of usul al-fiqh, the product of human efforts at understanding the divine will. A hukm is a ruling in a given case. Fiqh deals with the observance of rituals, morals and social legislation in Islam, in the modern era, there are four prominent schools of fiqh within Sunni practice, plus two within Shia practice. A person trained in fiqh is known as a Faqih, the word fiqh is an Arabic term meaning deep understanding or full comprehension. Technically it refers to the body of Islamic law extracted from detailed Islamic sources and this definition is consistent amongst the jurists. In Modern Standard Arabic, fiqh has come to mean jurisprudence in general and it is separated in Sunni, shia and others. Qiyas, i. e. analogy which is deployed if Ijma or historic collective reasoning on the issue is not available. For example, the Quran states one needs to engage in prayers and fast during the month of Ramadan. Details about these issues can be found in the traditions of Muhammad, so Quran, some topics are without precedent in Islams early period. In those cases, Muslim jurists try to arrive at conclusions by other means, Sunni jurists use historical consensus of the community, a majority in the modern era also use analogy and weigh the harms and benefits of new topics, and a plurality utilizes juristic preference. The conclusions arrived at with the aid of additional tools constitute a wider array of laws than the Sharia consists of. Thus, in contrast to the sharia, fiqh is not regarded as sacred and this division of interpretation in more detailed issues has resulted in different schools of thought. This wider concept of Islamic jurisprudence is the source of a range of laws in different topics that guide Muslims in everyday life, Islamic jurisprudence covers two main areas, Rules in relation to actions, and, Rules in relation to circumstances surrounding actions. The Sunni schools are Hanafi Maliki Shafii Hanbali see Wahhabism Zahiri Qurtubi No longer exists Laythi No longer exists, the schools of Shia Islam comprise, Jafari Zaydi Entirely separate from both the Sunni and Shia traditions, Khawarij Islam has evolved its own distinct school
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Shahada
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The Shahada, is an Islamic creed declaring belief in the oneness of God and the acceptance of Muhammad as Gods prophet. The declaration, in its shortest form, reads, لا إله إلا الله محمد رسول الله lā ʾilāha ʾillā-llāh, muḥammadur-rasūlu-llāh There is no god but God, Muhammad is the messenger of God. Audio audio The noun šahāda, from the verbal root šahida meaning to observe, witness, testify, the Islamic creed is also called, in the dual form, šahādatān. The expression al-šahāda is used in Quran as one of the titles of God, in Sunni Islam, the shahada has two parts, la ilaha illallah, and Muhammadun rasul Allah, which are sometimes referred to as the first shahada and the second shahada. The first statement of the shahada is also known as the tahlīl, in the Quran, the first shahadah takes the form la ilaha illallah twice, and allahu la ilaha illa hu much more often. It appears in the form la ilaha illa Hu in many places. It appears in these forms about 30 times in the Quran, islams monotheistic nature is reflected in the first shahada, which declares belief in the oneness of God and that he is the only entity truly worthy of worship. The second shahada indicates the means by which God has offered guidance to human beings, the verse reminds Muslims that they accept not only the prophecy of Muhammad but also the long line of prophets who preceded him. While the first part is seen as a truth, the second is specific to Islam. Shahada is a statement of both ritual and worship, recitation of the shahādah is the most common statement of faith for Muslims. In Sunni Islam, it is counted as the first of the Five Pillars of Islam, while the Shii Twelvers and it is whispered by the father into the ear of a newborn child, and it is whispered into the ear of a dying person. The five canonical daily prayers include a recitation of the shahada. Recitation of the shahada in front of witnesses is also the first and this occasion often attracts more than the two required witnesses and sometimes includes a party-like celebration to welcome the convert into their new faith. In accordance with the importance played by the notion of intention in Islamic doctrine. Intention is what acts of devotion from mundane acts and a simple reading of the shahada from invoking it as a ritual activity. Though the two phrases of the shahada are both present in the Quran, they are not found there side by side as in the shahada formula. An inscription in the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem reads There is no god but God alone, He has no partner with him, Muhammad is the messenger of God. Another variant appears in coins minted after the reign of Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, although it is not clear when the shahada first came into common use among Muslims, it is clear that the sentiments it expresses were part of the Quran and Islamic doctrine from the earliest period
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Turbah
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A turbah is a small piece of soil or clay, often a clay tablet, used during salat to symbolize earth. The use of a turbah is compulsory in most Shia schools of Islam, the most favoured soil is that of Karbala, the site of the death of Husayn ibn Ali, however, soil from anywhere may be used. In the absence of soil, plants or items made from plants may be substituted and this provision has been extended to include the use of paper. Following the instruction from the Quran, Shi’ah Ja’fari stated that prostration must be performed on earth or what grows on it. For example, prostration on paper is permissible because it is made of natural elements grown on earth. According to Abu Said al-Khudri, “I saw Allah’s Apostle prostrating in mud and water and saw the marl of mud on his forehead. ”Though Mohammed prayed on the ground, the hadith Sahih al-Bukhari states that Allah’s Apostle used to pray on Khumra. The idea of absolute consideration states that some kinds of soil, for example, places, buildings, and structures related to Allah and Mohammed are held in the highest regard when it comes to places in which to hold prayer. Karbala is recognized by Shia Muslims as a place, this is contrary to Sunni Islam. The events of Karbala resonate within the vast Islamic world, the grandson of the Prophet of Allah, swas, was martyred during the Islamic holy month of Muharram. Husayn, as, was the brother of Hasan, the son of Ali, as, and Fathima, as, the soil from Karbala is considered holy. Since there are Muslims located all over the world, Shi’ah Muslims have created small clay tablets called mohr or Turbah from the ground of Karbala, however, since it is an issue of honor and respect, Muslims are allowed to prostrate on other earthen materials. Turbah has a meaning of dirt, earth or soil. --Turbah is the ground on which one prostrates oneself for prayer, additionally, clean dirt or dust can serve as a substitute for someone who is performing ablutions in the absence of clean water. The use of turbah in this process is known as tayammum, Turbah is also used in connection with funerals because of death’s association with dust—a dead body eventually turns to earth after death. --Turba or Türbe in Turkish is an Islamic funerary building in a variety of contexts, sunnis reject the use of Turbah as bidah, noting that neither Muhammad nor his companions ever carried a clay tablet with which to place their foreheads upon while in prostration. Sunnis also note that many Turbah used by Shia have inscribed invocations to their figures, such as Ya Hussein. In Majmoo al-Fatawa, Sunni scholar Ibn Taymiyyah issued a fatwa that prayer on a Turbah from the site of Al-Husseins martyrdom is an innovation, in a nutshell, Why do the Shiah prostrate on Turbah
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Sunnah prayer
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Sunnah prayer is an optional salah that can be performed by Muslims at almost any time of the day. These prayers are performed in addition to the five daily prayers, all of these optional prayers were originally performed by Muhammad. Tahajjud prayer is performed at night time, and it is recommended that it Should be performed after first going to sleep for some part of the evening, scholars have different opinions about whether sleeping first is absolutely required or not. Others simply stay in the mosque and perform these optional prayers before going home, the time for the Tahajjud prayers falls between the prayer times of the ishaa prayers and the fajr prayers. It is also recommended that the prayers be done in the last third of the night, Muslims believe that the reward is greater for those who do this prayer at a later time. Each prayer for a Muslim is made up with repeated actions, from standing, to bowing on the floor, the Tahajjud prayer consists of a minimum of two rakaah and the maximum number is unlimited. Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-As relates that the Messenger of Allah said to him, O Abdullah, do not be like so-and-so, a narration attributed to Aisha reports, Allahs Apostle used to offer eleven Rakat and that was his prayer. He used to prolong the prostration to such an extent that one could recite fifty verses before he would lift his head. He used to pray two Rakat before the Fajr prayer and then used to lie down on his right side till the call-maker came and informed him about the prayer. It is recommended that tahajjud be prayed during the last third of the night, Tarawih is an optional prayer in that can be done only during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan. This prayer can be alone, in a group, at home. Typically, Muslims gather together and perform tarawih as a group, others may meet in their local mosque, a meeting hall, or even in an outdoor field. Depending on the country, the tarawih prayers might be done in mosque by men only, the number of rakaah of Tarawih salah is Twenty. Prophet was afraid that if he continued to perform the prayers in the mosque, then his followers come to think that they were compulsory. After the death of Prophet Muhammad, the number of rakaah was increased to twenty instead of eight by the second Caliph, Muslims now choose for themselves how many rakaah to perform. In the main mosque in Mecca, the Imam performs twenty rakaah followed by a further three rakaah known as witr prayers, the total number of people joining the tarawih prayers in the main mosque in Mecca may reach 3-4 million. They fill up all levels inside the mosque, the roof, outside in the courtyard, some nearby streets. It is also customary for the Imam in Meccas main mosque to recite the contents of the Quran during the fasting month by reading approximately one section per day
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Tahajjud
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Tahajjud, also known as the night prayer, is a voluntary prayer performed by followers of Islam. And they who pass the night prostrating themselves before their Lord, the following acts are recommended for one who wishes to perform the Tahajjud prayer, Upon going to sleep, one should make the intention to perform the prayers. And when he woke up from his sleep, he would say, (All the Praises are for Allah Who has made us alive after He made us die, One should begin with two quick rakahs and then one may pray whatever one wishes after that. Aisha said, When the Prophet prayed during the late-night, he would begin his Prayers with two quick rakahs. And may Allah bless the woman who gets up during the night to pray and wakes up her husband and who, if he refuses, sprinkles water on his face. Tahajjud may be performed in the part of the night, the middle part of the night, or the later part of the night. Commenting on this subject, Ibn Hajar says, There was no time in which the Prophet would perform his late night Prayer. Amr ibn Absah claimed that he heard Muhammad sallā llāhu ʿalay-hiwa-sallam saying, if you can be among those who remember Allah the Exalted One at that time, then do so. Tahajjud Prayer does not entail a number of rakahs that must be performed
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Tarawih
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Tarawih refers to extra prayers performed by Sunni Muslims at night in the Islamic month of Ramadan. Tarawih prayers are prayed in pairs of two and can be prayed in at least 11/13/21/23 raka‘āt according to the Hanafi and Shafii schools of Sunni Islam, a break is taken after every 4 raka‘āt. This prayer is performed only during Ramadan of the Islamic calendar after salat of Isha, Muslims believe it is customary to attempt a khatm complete recitation of the Quran as one of the religious observances of Ramadan by reciting at least one juz per night in tarawih. Tarawih prayers are considered optional, not obligatory, in all the Sunni hadith scriptures, the prayer Tarawih has been mentioned as Qiyamul Layl min Ramadan and Qiyam-ar-Ramadan. A majority of Sunni Muslims regard the Tarawih prayers as Sunnat Muakkadah, however and he consistently offered every night 11 rakaat tahajjud which consisted of eight Nafal and 3 vitr every single day of the year. He did not offer any additional prayer in Ramadan, Sunni Muslims believe tarawih is a nafil salat and may be performed at home if one is unable to attend a mosque. Contrary to common belief that, Prophet Muhammad initially prayed the tarawih in congregation during Ramadan and he prayed in congregation for three consecutive nights. During the time when Umar was the caliph, he reinstated the praying of Tarawih in congregation, the Shia view differs among the three main schools of thought, Ismaili, Twelvers and Zaydis. Alevi Muslims in Turkey, Twelvers and Ismailies have no Tarawih prayer, Twelvers believe in the Tahajjud prayer or Salatul layl which Muhammad recommended. It is recommended throughout the year, especially during nights of Ramadan, Salat al-Layl or Tahajjud prayer is made up of eleven rak’ats. The first eight rak’ats are prayed as normal in pairs of two each with the niyyah of Nawafilat al-Layl. The next two rak’ats are prayed with the niyyah of Salat al-Shaf’a, the remaining rak’at is prayed with the niyyah of Salat al-Witr. In the last rak’at, Qunut is recited before or after ruku, Shia Ismaili Muslims believe Tahajjud prayer or Bayt al-Khayal prayer is recommended throughout the year particularly on Friday or Chand Rat. John L. Esposito, The Oxford Dictionary of Islam, Oxford University Press US2004, ISBN 978-0-19-512559-7, p.276 Dua during Tarawih and other Ramadhan related information
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Fasting in Islam
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Fasting in Islam, known as Sawm or siyam صيام, the Arabic words for fasting, is abstaining from eating and drinking. In the terminology of Islamic law, sawm means to abstain from eating and drinking during daylight hours, the observance of sawm during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan is one of the Five Pillars of Islam, but is not confined to that month. Sawm is a cognate to Syriac, ܨܘܡܐ ṣawmā. Literally, it means to abstain, cognates to Hebrew tsom, fasting is not unique to the Muslims. It has been practiced for centuries in connection with religious ceremonies by Christians, Jews, Confucianists, Hindus, Taoists, for example, the Muslims of Central Asia, Afghanistan, India, Iran, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Turkey use the words roza/rozha/roja/oruç, which comes from Farsi. While the Malay community in Malaysia, Brunei and Singapore call it puasa, Muslims are prohibited from eating, drinking and engaging in conjugal sexual relationships from dawn to sunset. Fasting helps Muslims develop self-control, gain an understanding of God’s gifts. Fasting in Islam involves abstaining from all bodily pleasures between dawn and sunset, not only is food forbidden, but also any sexual activity. All things which are regarded as prohibited is even more so in this month, each and every moment during the fast, a person suppresses their passions and desires in loving obedience to God. This consciousness of duty and the spirit of patience helps in strengthening ones faith, fasting helps a person gain self-control. A person who abstains from permissible things like food and drink is likely to feel conscious of his sins, a heightened sense of spirituality helps break the habits of lying, staring with lust at the opposite sex, gossiping, and wasting time. Fasting is also viewed as a means of controlling ones desires, Sawm also carries a significant spiritual meaning. It teaches one the principle of God Consciousness, because when one observes fasting, it is out of deep love for God. Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, the month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Quran, a guidance for mankind, and clear proofs of the guidance, and the Criterion. And whosoever of you is present, let him fast the month, and whosoever of you is sick or on a journey, number of other days. God desireth for you ease, he desireth not hardship for you, and that ye should complete the period, and that ye should magnify God for having guided you, the intention means resolving to fast. It is essential to have the intention the night before, night by night, throughout the duration of the fast itself, Muslims will abstain from certain provisions that the Quran has otherwise allowed, namely eating, drinking and sexual intercourse. This is in addition to the standard obligation already observed by Muslims of avoiding that which is not permissible under Quranic or sharia law, without observing this standard obligation, sawm is rendered useless and is seen simply as an act of starvation
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Hajj
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It is one of the five pillars of Islam, alongside Shahadah, Salat, Zakat, and Sawm. The Hajj is the largest annual gathering of people in the world, the state of being physically and financially capable of performing the Hajj is called istitaah, and a Muslim who fulfills this condition is called a mustati. The Hajj is a demonstration of the solidarity of the Muslim people, the word Hajj means to intend a journey, which connotes both the outward act of a journey and the inward act of intentions. The pilgrimage occurs from the 8th to 12th of Dhu al-Hijjah, because the Islamic calendar is lunar and the Islamic year is about eleven days shorter than the Gregorian year, the Gregorian date of Hajj changes from year to year. Ihram is the given to the special spiritual state in which pilgrims wear two white sheets of seamless cloth and abstain from certain actions. The pilgrims then shave their heads, perform a ritual of animal sacrifice, Pilgrims can also go to Mecca to perform the rituals at other times of the year. This is sometimes called the lesser pilgrimage, or Umrah, the present pattern of Hajj was established by Muhammad. However, according to the Quran, elements of Hajj trace back to the time of Abraham, according to Islamic tradition, Abraham was ordered by God to leave his wife Hagar and his son Ishmael alone in the desert of ancient Mecca. In search of water, Hagar desperately ran seven times between the two hills of Safa and Marwah but found none, returning in despair to Ishmael, she saw the baby scratching the ground with his leg and a water fountain sprang forth underneath his foot. Later, Abraham was commanded to build the Kaaba and to people to perform pilgrimage there. The Quran refers to incidents in verses 2, 124-127 and 22. It is said that the archangel Gabriel brought the Black Stone from Heaven to be attached to the Kaaba, in pre-Islamic Arabia, a time known as jahiliyyah, the Kaaba became surrounded by pagan idols. In 630 CE, Muhammad led his followers from Medina to Mecca, cleansed the Kaaba by destroying all the pagan idols, in 632 CE, Muhammad performed his only and last pilgrimage with a large number of followers, and instructed them on the rites of Hajj. It was from this point that Hajj became one of the five pillars of Islam. During the medieval times, pilgrims would gather in big cities of Syria, Egypt and this was done in order to protect the caravan from Bedouin robbers or natural hazards, and to ensure that the pilgrims were supplied with the necessary provisions. Muslim travelers like Ibn Jubayr and Ibn Battuta have recorded detailed accounts of Hajj-travels of medieval time, the caravans followed well-established routes called in Arabic darb al-hajj, lit. Pilgrimage road, which usually followed ancient routes such as the Kings Highway, the date of Hajj is determined by the Islamic calendar, which is based on the lunar year. Every year, the events of Hajj take place in a period, starting on 8 and ending on 12 Dhu al-Hijjah
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Ihram
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Ihram is, in Islam, a sacred state which a Muslim must enter in order to perform the major pilgrimage or the minor pilgrimage. A pilgrim must enter into this state before crossing the boundary, known as Miqat, by performing the cleansing rituals. A man in the state of Ihram must not tie any knots or wear any stitched items, sandals and flip flops must not be stitched either and should allow the ankle and back of foot to be exposed. Whilst in the state of Ihram, a Muslim must not use any scents on the body or on the robes. If the robe has been fouled by najas material or has been wiped, rubbed or touched by scented liquids, then a new iḥrām clothing must be worn, during ihram, women must have their faces uncovered, they are forbidden to wear the Burqa or Niqab. However, the Hijab or Dupatta is obligatory, there is also no gender segregation during the Hajj. Unlike in mosques, men and women together, not just in the same area. This is to everyone that on the Day of Judgment. Aside from being as clean as they are for prayer, male Muslims are expected to refrain from cutting their nails and they must also not wear any scent, including deodorant. They have to wear Ihram clothing, which is a white, many also shave their head as this is considered hygienic. Most will wait to shave their heads until after they have finished Umrah or Hajj, female Muslims are also expected to be clean. During the pilgrimage, sexual activity, smoking and swearing are also forbidden, other forbidden activities include killing animals, using profane language, quarrelling or fighting, and taking oaths, in addition to any other regularly prohibited acts. Males should also refrain from looking at women, women must exercise strict modesty in their appearance and should not apply make-up, perfume or any other cosmetics. Also, Muslims are not allowed to use scented soap, unscented soap is available for pilgrims during hajj. All flirtatious, arrogant and rude thoughts are to be put aside, Muslims must forget about studies, business and relationships, and focus on God. When flying on pilgrimage, appropriate measures are taken to assure that the pilgrim will be in the state of ihram when flying above or alongside the stations of miqat. For this reason some airports in Muslim areas have dedicated ihram rooms, ghanim Saleh Al-Sadlan, professor of Higher Islamic Studies at the Imam Muhammad bin Saud Islamic University
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Ihram clothing
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Ihram clothing includes mens and womens garments worn by Muslim people during the Ihram pilgrimage and or. The main objective is to avoid attracting attention, mens garments often consist of two white un-hemmed sheets and are universal in appearance. The top is draped over the torso and the bottom is secured by a belt, womens clothing, however, varies considerably and reflects regional as well as religious influences, but they often dont wear special clothing or cover their faces. White ihram clothing is intended to make everyone appear the same, Ihram also contributes to a feeling of unity that pilgrims have when they are in the city of Mecca. They are all brothers and sisters joined to worship God, there are also certain behaviours that are expected and forbidden once ihram is donned. Ihram is typically worn during Dhu al-Hijjah, the last month in the Islamic calendar, although it is simply an item of clothing to be worn during the pilgrimage, there are many competing views on the proper wearing of ihram. For example, the number of days a pilgrim is required to wear ihram varies according to the type of pilgrimage the individual is performing. Ihram is also a state a pilgrim is in during the Hajj pilgrimage, before entering Ihram, they bathe, trim their nails and hair, make wudu, and pronounce a formal intention to perform Hajj. While they are in state, pilgrims are not allowed to hunt or kill any living thing, participate in sexual intercourse, cut hair or nails. Islam and clothing sarong a waist-wrap similar to the izar
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Tawaf
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Tawaf is one of the Islamic rituals of pilgrimage. The circling is believed to demonstrate the unity of the believers in the worship of the One God, as they move in harmony together around the Kaaba, the circle begins from the Black Stone on the corner of the Kaaba. They are also to make the Takbir prayer each time they approach, for men, it is recommended to make the first three circuits at a hurried pace, followed by four times, more closely, at a leisurely pace. Muslims are generally advised to make ṭawāf at least twice – once as part of the Hajj, however, on some occasions when it is especially humid or crowded, respiration may become more difficult due to excess carbon dioxide in the air around the Kaaba. There are several types of ṭawāf that can be performed, Ṭawāf al-Qudūm is performed by those not residing in Mecca once reaching the Holy City, Ṭawāf aṭ-Ṭaḥīyah is performed after entering the Masjid al-Haram at any other times and is mustahab. Ṭawāf al-cUmrah refers to the ṭawāf performed specifically for Umrah, Ṭawāf al-Wadāc is performed before leaving Mecca. Ṭawāf az-Zīyārah, Ṭawāf al-Ifāḍah or Ṭawāf al-Ḥajj is performed after casting stones, attempts have been made to establish a connection between the act of ṭawāf and orbiting motions of heavenly bodies. It has been proposed, for example, that the act of ṭawāf closely resembles the shape of a galaxy when viewed from above, but this view has not been verified by qualified ulama. As above, so below is the precept of sacred geometry, the ancients observed the 7 Classical Planets/Seven Heavens and 4 dont cast shadows on Earth,4 cant be easily seen during the day. The 4 Lunar phases are roughly 7 days each, the Lunar Year +7 day week +4 days = Solar Year. Orion the Hunter is 7 stars with 4 making up his shoulders, etc. Therefore, Tawaf has 7 circumambulations around a meteorite encased in the 4-sided Kaaba with three rounds at a fast pace and 4 rounds at a leisurely pace. Mohamed, Mamdouh N. Hajj to Umrah, From A to Z. Mamdouh Mohamed, Hajj Leaflet The Hajj according to the Five Schools Hajj, The Pilgrimage Denny, Frederick Mathewson
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Umrah
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The ʿUmrah is a pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, performed by Muslims that can be undertaken at any time of the year, in contrast to the Hajj. In Arabic, Umrah means to visit a populated place and it is sometimes called the minor pilgrimage or lesser pilgrimage, the Hajj being the major pilgrimage and which is compulsory for every able-bodied Muslim who can afford it. The Umrah is not compulsory but highly recommended, the pilgrim performs a series of ritual acts symbolic of the lives of Ibrahim and his second wife Hajar, and of solidarity with Muslims worldwide. These acts of faith are, Perform a tawaf طواف, which consists of circling the Kaaba seven times in an anticlockwise direction, men are encouraged to do this three times at a hurried pace, followed by four times, more closely, at a leisurely pace. Perform a sai سعي, which means rapidly walking seven times back and this is a re-enactment of Hajars frantic search for water. The baby Ishmael cried and hit the ground with his foot and this source of water is today called the Well of Zamzam. Perform a halq or taqsir, meaning a shaving of the hair, a taqsir is a partial shortening of the hair typically reserved for women who cut a minimum of one inch or more of their hair. A halq is a complete shave of the head, usually performed on men, both of these signify the submission of will to God over glorifying physical appearances. The head shaving/cutting is reserved until the end of Umrah and these rituals complete the Umrah, and the pilgrim can choose to go out of ihram. Although not a part of the ritual, most pilgrims drink water from the Well of Zamzam, various sects of Islam perform these rituals with slightly different methods. The peak times of pilgrimage are the days before, during and after the Hajj, there are two types of Umrah, depending on whether one wishes to combine the Umrah with Hajj, al-Umrat al-mufradah al-mustaqillah an al-Hajj and al-Umrat al-mundammah ila al-Hajj. Al-Umrat al mufradah refers to Umrah that is performed independently of Hajj, umrat al-tammatu refers to Umrah that is performed in conjunction with Hajj. More precisely, the rituals of the Umrah are performed first, both are Islamic pilgrimages, the main difference is their level of importance and the method of observance. Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and it is obligatory for every Muslim once in their lifetime, provided they are physically fit and financially capable. Hajj is performed during a designated Islamic month, however, Umrah can be performed at any time. Both seem similar in the start, Umrah can be performed in less than a few hours while Hajj is more time consuming, and involves more rituals. Throughout Muhammads era the Muslims wanted to establish the right to perform Umrah, during that time Mecca was occupied by Arab Pagans who used to worship idols inside Mecca. The first military campaign related to the Umrah was the Nakhla Raid ordered by Muhammad, when the Quraysh saw the shaven head of Ukkash, they thought that the group was on its way for pilgrimage and they felt relieved and began to set up camp
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Caliphate
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A caliphate is an area containing an Islamic steward known as a caliph —a person considered a religious successor to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, and a leader of the entire Muslim community. During the history of Islam after the Rashidun period, many Muslim states, the Sunni branch of Islam stipulates that, as a head of state, a caliph should be elected by Muslims or their representatives. Followers of Shia Islam, however, believe a caliph should be an Imam chosen by God from the Ahl al-Bayt, before the advent of Islam, Arabian monarchs traditionally used the title malik, or another from the same root. The term caliph, derives from the Arabic word khalīfah, which means successor, steward, however, studies of pre-Islamic texts suggest that the original meaning of the phrase was successor selected by God. There was no specified procedure for this shura or consultation, candidates were usually, but not necessarily, from the same lineage as the deceased leader. Capable men who would lead well were preferred over an ineffectual heir, Sunni Muslims believe that Abu Bakr was chosen by the community and that this was the proper procedure. Sunnis further argue that a caliph should ideally be chosen by election or community consensus, the Shia believe that Ali, the son-in-law and cousin of Muhammad, was chosen by Muhammad as his spiritual and temporal successor as the Mawla of all Muslims in the event of Ghadir Khumm. The caliph was often known as Amir al-Muminin, Muhammad established his capital in Medina, after he died, it remained the capital during the Rashidun Caliphate, before Kufa was reportedly made the capital by Caliph Ali. At times there have been rival claimant caliphs in different parts of the Islamic world, according to Sunni Muslims, the first caliph to be called Amir al-Muminin was Abu Bakr, followed by Umar, the second of the Rashidun. Uthman and Ali also were called by the title, while the Shia consider Ali to have been the only truly legitimate caliph. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk officially abolished the system of Caliphate in Islam as part of his secular reforms, the Kings of Morocco still label themselves with the title Amir al-Muminin for the Moroccans, but lay no claim to the Caliphate. Some Muslim countries, including Somalia, Indonesia and Malaysia, were never subject to the authority of a Caliphate, with the exception of Aceh, consequently, these countries had their own, local, sultans or rulers who did not fully accept the authority of the Caliph. Abu Bakr, the first successor of Muhammad, nominated Umar as his successor on his deathbed, Umar, the second caliph, was killed by a Persian named Piruz Nahavandi. His successor, Uthman, was elected by a council of electors, Uthman was killed by members of a disaffected group. Ali then took control but was not universally accepted as caliph by the governors of Egypt and he faced two major rebellions and was assassinated by Abd-al-Rahman ibn Muljam, a Khawarij. Alis tumultuous rule lasted only five years and this period is known as the Fitna, or the first Islamic civil war. The followers of Ali later became the Shia minority sect of Islam, the followers of all four Rashidun Caliphs became the majority Sunni sect. Under the Rashidun each region of the Caliphate had its own governor, Muawiyah, a relative of Uthman and governor of Syria, succeeded Ali as Caliph
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Islamic marital jurisprudence
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In Islamic law, marriage is a legal and social contract between a man and a woman. Islam is totally opposed to monasticism and celibacy, Marriage is an act of Sunnah in Islam and is strongly recommended, the age of marriage being whenever the individuals feel ready, financially and emotionally. Polygyny is permitted in Islam under some conditions, but polyandry is forbidden, Nikah is the first—and most common—form of marriage for Muslims. It is described in the Quran in Surah 4,4, regulations, While intended to be a permanent state, it can be terminated by the husband engaging in the Talaq process or the wife seeking a Khula. The couple inherit from each other, a legal contract is signed when entering the marriage. However it is not a requirement that the contract be in writing, if an agreed end-date is specified in the Nikah contract, In Sunni jurisprudence, the contract is invalid. In Shia jurisprudence, the contract defines a temporary marriage, nikah mutah, requirement of witnesses, Sunni, either two adult Muslim males or one adult Muslim male and two adult Muslim females. Shia, two adult Muslim males Permission from Wali, Sunni, Compulsory or Strongly recommended Shia, Depending on the scholar, Nikah mut‘ah, often referred as fixed-time marriage. Many of these marriages have a limit, and is the second form of marriage. Nikah mut‘ah has a time period to the marriage which is stated during the initiation of the contract. Traditionally the couple do not inherit each other. The man usually is not responsible for the welfare of the woman. For these reasons Sunnis frequently compare this type of marriage to adultery or prostitution, Nikah mut‘ah also does not count toward a maximum of wives. This is to ensure there is no pregnancy from the ex-husband. Shia justification for Mutah, Quran 4,24 - And all married women save those whom your right hands possess and it is a decree of Allah for you. Lawful unto you are all beyond those mentioned, so that ye seek them with your wealth in honest wedlock, and those of whom ye seek content, give unto them their portions as a duty. And there is no sin for you in what ye do by mutual agreement after the duty, Muslim males may marry a non-Muslim female, specifically, one from the People of the Book, which includes Judaism and Christianity. Conversion is optional for the woman, but she is charged with having a proper understanding of her respective faith as well as engaging in its true
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Marriage in Islam
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‹See Tfd› In Islam, marriage is a legal contract, between two people. Both the groom and the bride are to consent to the marriage of their own free wills, a formal, binding contract is considered integral to a religiously valid Islamic marriage, and outlines the rights and responsibilities of the groom and bride. There must be two Muslim witnesses of the marriage contract, divorce can be effected through husband or through khula is permitted and can be issued by both the bride and groom with equal rights as per Islamic laws and Shariah. In addition to the marriage until death or divorce, there is a different fixed-term marriage known as zawāj al-mutʻah permitted only by the Twelver branch of Shia Islam for a pre-fixed period. Islam is totally opposed to monasticism and celibacy, Marriage is an act of Sunnah in Islam and is strongly recommended. In Pre-Islamic Arabia a variety of different marriage practices existed, the most common and recognized types of marriage at this time consisted of, marriage by agreement, marriage by capture, marriage by mahr, marriage by inheritance and Mota or temporary marriage. Prior to Islam, in the Arab world, women could not make decisions based on their own beliefs and they were never bound by contract for marriage or custody of children and their consent was never sought. Women were seldom allowed to divorce their husbands and their view was not regarded for either a marriage or divorce, if they got divorced, women were not legally allowed to go by their maiden name again. They could not own or inherit property or objects, even if they were facing poverty or harsh living conditions, women were treated less like people and more like possessions of men. They, however, could be inherited and moved home to home depending on the wants and needs of their husband. Essentially, women were slaves to men and made no decisions on anything, if their husband died, his son from a previous marriage was entitled to his wife if the son wanted her. The woman had no choice in the matter unless she was able to pay him for freedom, one of the most extraordinary practices that took place was that if a husband died, his son could inherit his wife to be his own wife. Marriage by inheritance, and incestuous relationships between a son and his own mother was a widespread custom throughout Arabia, including Medina and Mecca. If the son of a deceased husband did not want his wife, the hut that the women lived in was kept dark with very poor air circulation. After one year, the woman was allowed to come out of the hut, People in Makka would blame her for refusing to sleep with her own son. In 586 AD women were acknowledged to be human, although this appears to be a change in the status of women in Arabia, they were only acknowledged as human with the sole purpose of serving men. They were considered human, but were not given the rights as men and were not treated equally in respect to men. In fact, it was common for a new father to be outraged upon learning that his baby was a female and it was believed that the birth of a girl was a bad omen, and men thought that daughters would bring disgrace to the family
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Islamic marriage contract
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An Islamic marriage contract is an Islamic prenuptial agreement. In Sunni Islam, a contract must have two male witnesses, or, in the Hanafi school of jurisprudence, one man and two women, if a second male is unavailable. Proper witnessing is critical to the validation of the marriage, also acting as a protection against suspicions of adulterous relationships, had I been the first to come upon it, I would have ordered them to be stoned. In Shia Islam, witnesses to a marriage are deemed necessary, marriages are usually not held in mosques, and men and women are separated during the ceremony and reception. Islam doesnt authorize any official clergy, so any Muslim who understands the Islamic tradition can be the official for the wedding. However, if a Muslim wedding is held in a mosque, then a marriage officiant, known as qadi, qazi or madhun, among the stipulations that can be included in the contract include giving up, or demanding, certain responsibilities. The contract may also be used to regulate the physical relationship. One important purpose of the contract is that which makes sexual intercourse legal, the Prophet, The most deserving of conditions to be fulfilled are those by means of which sexual intercourse becomes permissible for you. الخ, Mahr, Shabkah, Sadaq-, whereas, all of these examples attributed and affected by the culture, beena marriage, a pre-Islamic form of marriage. Islamic views on slavery and concubinage, Mahr, a mandatory payment, paid or promised to be paid by the groom or his father to the bride at the time of marriage. Marriage in Islam Minangkabau marriage, marriage practices of West Sumatra, nikah Halala, the marriage of a woman to a second man after a triple talaq. Nikah Ijtimah, a form of marriage. Nikah Misyar, a practice in Sunni Islam. Nikah mut‘ah, a form of marriage in Shia Islam. Nikah urfi, a customary Sunni Muslim marriage contract, rights and obligations of spouses in Islam. Articles / Knowledge on Marriage within Islam at muslimwedding. org
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