Islam is the way of life for those who believe in God and want to live a
life in worship and obedience to none but God. The reward is forgiveness
from God and an everlasting life in the Heaven.
Belief
in one God, Allah in Arabic, constitutes the very foundation of Islam.
There is no deity except Allah. He is indivisible and absolutely
transcendent. God is the Almighty, the Creator and the Sustainer of the
universe, Who is similar to nothing and nothing is comparable to Him.
Worship and obedience belongs to Allah and Allah alone. Joining other gods
with God is an unforgivable sin. Any one who joins other gods with God has
strayed far, far away from the Truth.
Prophet
Muhammad
was born in Makkah, a city in the present-day Saudi Arabia in 570 C.E. He
is a direct descendant of Prophet Ishmael, the first son of Prophet
Abraham. Peace and blessings of God be on all His prophets. Muhammad
received divine revelations (The Holy Quran) over a period of 23 years in
the seventh century of the Christian Era. Muslims believe that he is the
last Messenger sent by God for the guidance of mankind until the Day of
Judgment. He is the model for humanity of all walks of life to follow
until the Last Hour. God sent him as a mercy for the worlds.
The primary sources of knowledge are the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of
the Prophet Muhammad. Anyone wanting to live a life in worship and
obedience to God should follow these teachings.
The
Holy Quran (also written as Koran) is the Divine Book revealed
to Muhammad (peace be on him). The Holy Quran confirms what was revealed
to earlier messengers of God and serves as the Criterion of right and
wrong. The Quran is the only divine Book extant in its original text and
is therefore the only source of Guidance from God for all mankind.
The Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad
refers to
his sayings and actions, his approvals and disapprovals. The Sunnah is
collected in books separate from the Holy Quran and are known as Hadith
books. While the Holy Quran is 100% word of God revealed to the Prophet,
not every Hadith is authentic. Early Muslim scholars have classified
hadith into various categories ranging from different levels of authenticity to
false hadith.
Under this subweb on Theology, the
Introductory page
has general introductory articles on Islam.
The page on Islamic Faith describes the
basic beliefs in Islam. Articles on worship and rituals including prayers,
charity, fasting and pilgrimage are at our
Worship page.