Well, this is the information on my dry site.....better here than there I guess...
A bit about Islam
Well, Islam is basically a religion in which we must believe in Allah (literal meaning of God) and his Prophet Muhammad (S.A.W).
We must first make a testimony of that...Then We must follow the 5 pillars.
Belief in Allah(Imaan)
The first Pillar is Imaan, to make the testimony that "there is no god BUT Allah, and Mohammad (S.A.W) is the final messenger of Allah. This is known as the central pillar.
Above image:
"There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad (S.A.W) is the messenger of Allah."
Prayers (salaah)
The second pillar is Prayers (Salaah). We must pray 5 times daily at fixed times:
Just before Sunrise
Between midday and early afternoon.
Late Afternoon
Just after sunset
At night
We must face the Qiblah (the direction of prayer), the Kabah in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. After ablution(washing), we should go to the mosque and pray in congragation.
Above:
Prayer at The grand mosque, Makkah.
Charity(zakah)
Every muslim who has a saving of a given amount of money, jewellery etc. saved at the end of the year; must pay 2.5% of their wealth in charity. But even though one has given, their money shall never decrease.
Fasting (Sawm)
Every matured muslim must fast 29 or 30 days in Ramadhan, the ninth month in the Muslim calendar. Through this action one feels what hunger means, not only that, but refraing from useless talk, back biting, swearing and no evil thoughts or actions. One must fast from a bit before sunrise to sunset, then enjoying a meal called Iftar, breaking fast. At that moment, a person is thankful of having food to eat.
Above:
Food for breaking the fast, Iftar.
Pilgrimage (Hajj)
Makkah is the holiest place of Islam. Here, the Kabah is situated, the house of Allah that Abraham built as a place of worship. the place where Muhammad (S.A.W) re-established Islam and purified the Kabah from false gods and Idols. Therefore, when a Muslim has the financial and physical means to go to Hajj should do so once in a life time. This is a series of actions such as going around the Kabah 7 times and praying at mount Arafat etc. This takes place in Zhul Hijjah, the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar. Millions of people gather at the same time..
Well those are the 5 pillars...Islam is like a building, if the central foundation is not strong then there will be no chance of a building, as with the other pillars, if one of the other pillars are toppled or is not strong, it will not be able to support the building.
Same thing here at:
www.freewebs.com/fozley
