Terms
The Islamic version of a Bible
What is the Koran or Qu'ran
The high God
Who is Allah or Ah'lah
The community of believers
Who are the Ummah
Caliph
ruler of the muslim community in Islamic history
Mosque
place of learning and worship
Shari'ah
what is islamic law which defines not only religious practice, but daily life
Sunna
What is the body of traditional social and legal custom and practice of the Islamic community
Hadith
Record of the traditions or sayings of the prophet Muhammad
Mecca
A place where Muhammad has a shrine and where he was hounded out of in fear of his life in 622 CE
Yathrib (Medina)
Where he fled to from Mecca during his exile
Ghaflah
the state of forgetfulness when we disregard or forget our divine source and our divine nature
forms of islam
sunni, shi'a, sufism
sunni
regard their demonination as the mainstream and traditionalist branch of Islam, they reognize the first four caliphs as the prophet muhammad's rightful successors
Shi'a
believed that muslim leadership belonged to Muhammad's son in law, Ali adn his descendants and no one else
Sufism
belief and practice in which muslims seek to find the truth of divine love and knowledge through direct personal experience
five pillars of islam
shahada-creed
salat-prayer
zakat-charity
sawm-fasting
haji-pilgrimage
Huston Smith 4 main tenets of Islamic theology
God, creation, the human self, day of judgement
radical teachings of muhammad
no infanticide of baby girls, women must give consent for marriage, divorce allowed, women can inherit
jihad
greater:the struggle of the soul (to surrender)
lesser: jihad of the sword in order to defend oneself
to strive
jihad of the tongue: to profess
shahada (creed)
there is no god but god and muhammad is his messenger, every Muslim required to say meaningfully once in life
salat
enjoined on Muslims 5X a dau, act of remembering and submitting to god
zakat
sharing resources for life to the entire community, mainly giving alms to the poor and are expected to return 2.5% of their net worth to community annually
sawm
a practice of intensified devotion to god, especially during Ramadan (which commemorates the Hijrah)
Hajj
at least once a lifetime a Muslim is expected to travel to Mecca and to follow the ancient rituals at the shrine called Ka'bah which is the traditional site of Abraham's altar (they face Mecca when they pray)