Campusalam

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Islam is a religion and culture with a long history and a rich variety of traditions. This information on the links to the left is not a comprehensive guide to Islam as a whole or in depth. For those with little background in Islam, it provides a quick reference to those aspects that are helpful to know and understand regarding the needs and situations that can arise in universities.

Islam is a monotheistic religion that is 'Abrahamic', that is it traces its origin to God's revelation to Abraham. It considers itself to be part of the series of revelations by God to humanity through the revelations of Judaism and Christianity. Islam declares that God revealed the Qur'an to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who was not the founder of a religion he created himself but who was the final prophet.

The name 'Islam' alludes to submission, complete self-giving to God's will.

There are five pillars at the core of Islam, as described in the Sunni tradition, one of the two main branches of Islam. Shi'a Muslims, the other branch, believe in all these too but use a different formula to identify the essentials of the faith. The five pillars of Islam are:

* Shahada - the declaration that there is no God but God (Allah) and that Mohammed (pbuh) is God's messenger and last prophet.

* Salah - prayer five times daily,

* Zakah - charitable giving to the value of one fortieth of assets,

* Sawm - fasting from dawn to sunset during the month of Ramadan,

* Hajj - pilgrimage to the two holy cities of Mecca and Medina at least once in a Muslim's lifetime where possible.

The Islamic creed, or core principles of belief, is called Aqidah. The Sunni generally enumerate six principal articles of Aqidah:

* Tawhid - oneness of God

* Nabi and Rusul - Prophethood

* Kutub - divine revealed books

* Mala'ikah - Angels

* Qiyamah - the Day of Judgment

* Qadr - Predestination

The Shi'a name principles of the religion (Usul al-Din):

* Tawhid - oneness

* Adalah - justice

* Nubuwwah - Prophethood

* Imamah - Leadership

* Qiyamah - the Day of Judgment

They also identify ten practices of the religion (Furu al-Din):

* Salah - Prayer

* Sawm - Fasting in Ramadan

* Hajj - pilgrimage to Makkah (Mecca)

* Zakah - alms to the poor

* Khums - one-fifth tax

* Jihad - struggle

* Amr-bil-Ma'ruf - commanding good

* Nahi-anil-Munkar - forbidding evil

* Tawalla - loving the 'Ahl al-Bayt', the descendants of the Prophet (pbuh)

* Tabarra - disassociating from the enemies of the Ahl al-Bayt