Important Figures
In Islam he is founder, lawmaker, jurist, politician, general, family man, exemplary human, the source of the sayings and actions in the hadith, and the final prophet of Islam
Who is Muhammed?
Often misrepresented as "holy war" this term means external struggle against enemies of Islam and internal struggle to submit to the divine.
What is jihad?
This is the annual pilgrimage to Mecca and one of the Five Pillars of Islam
What is the hajj?
Arabic words of God brought into the world through the prophet Muhammad; a short book of 114 chapters, its teachings include the unity of God, the prophethood of Muhammad, the Day of Judgment, and afterlife rewards and punishments
What is the Qur'an?
Saudi Arabian city, the sacred center of the Muslim world, and the home of the Kaaba shrine around which the annual hajj revolves
What is Mecca?
These are human beings through whom God brings his revelations into the world, including Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and finally Muhammad, "the seal of the prophets"
What are prophets?
The place of community prayer that includes a niche in the wall marking the direction to Mecca
What is a mosque?
The one-month fast that marks the revelation of God's word to Muhammed, also one of the five pillars.
What is Ramadan?
This term often is translated Islamic law but more broadly means the Islamic way of life.
What is Sharia?
Meaning "party of Ali," this is the minority branch of Islam globally, but dominant in Iran
Who are the Shia?
among Sunnis, the local leader who oversees congregational prayers; among the Shia, the community leader and a blood relative of Muhammad
Who is the imam/Imam?
Often called "idolatry" this means ascribing partners to God or otherwise bowing down to anyone or anything other than the one, true God
What is shirk?
This is the first pillar, known as "witnessing" that "there is no God but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God."
What is the shahada?
Islamic scripture, second in authority only to the Quran, consisting of the exemplary sayings and actions of Muhammad and his companions
What is hadith?
Islam's second holiest city; the place Muhammad and his followers migrated in 622 and established their community and calendar
What is Medina?
This person serves as "successor" to Muhammad who governs the Muslim community; particularly important to the Sunni.
Who is the caliph>
Term meaning divine unity. Islam maintains God is not three (versus Christianity) but one, and God is unique, unequaled, and without partners.
What is tawhid?
cubic House of God in Mecca toward which observant Muslims pray every day and around which pilgrims walk during the hajj; typically covered in an ornate black cloth, it includes a sacred black stone said to have fallen from heaven
What is the kaaba?
One of the more common terms for head coverings for Muslim women.
What is the hijab?
The term "Islamaphobia" comes from this idea, meaning "the cultural and historical lens through which the Western world perceived, defined, and “otherized” the East, and particularly the Muslim Middle East."
What is Orientalism?
This term refers to authoritative custom, often associated with Muhammed, and a key source of Islamic law, rooted in the Quran and hadith
What is sunna?
A legal decision from a Islamic scholar is called this
What is a fatwa?
This is the niche in the wall of a mosque that marks the direction of Mecca
What is a qiblah
This term refers to the united community of Muslims.
What is umma?
The migration of Muhammed and his followers from Mecca to Yathrib, starting the Islamic calendar
What is the hijra?