Page 86 - World Religions I - Islam

 al-Mahabbah - Love of the Shahada and its meaning.
 al-Inqiad - Submission to the requirements of the Shahada, performing one's sincere duty to
God.
 al-Qubool - Acceptance that contradicts rejection. Many Muslims utter the Shahada in the
ears of newly-born infants and it is the last words of dying Muslims.
• Muslim scholarship stresses that remembering the oneness of
o God (and rejecting self) is the key to redemption.
o "In Islam, the Fall (of mankind) is the error of seeing the world and the ego as real instead of God, who
alone is Real. Thus the redemption from the Fall lies within the shahadah, in realizing the truth that there
is no god, or autonomous reality, but Allah. The affirmation of the shahadah in principle corrects virtually
the effect of the Fall, and its complete realization within the soul restores man effectively to his original
state, that of Adam before the Fall."3
• The complete Shahada is not found in the Qur'an, but is compiled from the following two verses:
o "So know that there is no god but Allah, and, ask protection for your fault and for the believing men and
the believing women; and Allah knows the place of your returning and the place of your abiding." -
Muhammad 47:19
o "Muhammad is the apostle of God; and those who are with him are strong against unbelievers, (but)
compassionate amongst each other. Thou wilt see them bow and prostrate themselves (in prayer),
seeking grace from God and (His) good pleasure. On their faces are their marks, (being) the traces of
their prostration. This is their similitude in the Taurat; and their similitude in the Gospel is like a seed
which sends forth its blade, then makes it strong. It then becomes thick, and it stands on its own stem,
(filling) the sowers with wonder and delight. As a result, it fills the unbelievers with rage at them. God has
promised those among them who believe and do righteous deeds forgiveness, and a great reward." - Al-
Fath (Victory) 48:29

2. Salah (Prayers)
Salah (plural Salat) is the practice of ritual worship, and specifically the obligatory Islamic prayer, which takes place five
times daily and shows one's faith to others. Salat have prescribed conditions, a prescribed procedure, and prescribed
times. According to the Qur'an, prayer keeps one from social wrongs and moral deviancy (Surah 29:45).

• Obligatory, ritual prayer is prescribed at five periods of the day. While the Qur'an only mentions three daily
prayers (see Surahs 11:114; 17:78-79; 30:17-18), the Hadith stipulates five daily prayers, which has been adopted
by Muslims. The periods are measured according to the movement of the sun.
o Fajr (dawn)
o Dhuhr (noon, or just after midday)
o Asr (afternoon)
o Maghrib (sunset) E. Isha'a (nightfall)
• The faithful are called to prayer (adhan) by a muezzin at the prescribed times of the day, traditionally from the
minaret of a mosque. The term "adhan" is pronounced "ad-than" or "azan".
The adhan sums up the Shahada (statement of faith): Transliteration
Translation
o The line "Prayer is better than sleep" is added to the adhan for the first prayer of the day (fajr).

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