Religion 101 (16 page)

Ablution

According to Islamic teachings, ablution is a standard requirement before most acts of worship. The Qur’an and Sunnah teach that the hands, mouth, nostrils, arms, face, head, ears, and feet must be washed or wiped with clean water in that particular order to qualify as proper ablution.

When scholars debate over a certain Islamic topic, they use quotes from the Qur’an and Sunnah to support their arguments. If a supporting statement they want is not available in the Qur’an, they quote a Hadith. The Hadith are integral to the survival of Islam. There are a few thousand of them that are available to answer common questions and interpret many verses in the Qur’an. They address specific Islamic situations or problems and propose solutions.

A Hadith is almost always a quote of Prophet Muhammad from someone who was present with the Prophet at the moment he said it. Usually, a Hadith is preceded by the name of the person who transmitted the information, such as, “According to Aisha, Prophet Muhammad said so and so.”

The Hadith is the word of Muhammad, not Allah. The Hadith were not preserved as well as the Qur’an, and scholars say that a few Hadith underwent slight distortion as they were transmitted from reference to reference. Therefore, Hadith have three classifications: authenticated Hadith, valid Hadith, and weak Hadith. An authenticated Hadith is a real and accurate quote of Muhammad. A valid Hadith is less established and its integrity suffers from a minor degree of doubt. A weak Hadith is just what the name implies — the Prophet may or may not have said it.

Qudsi Hadith

A Qudsi Hadith, also known as Hadith Qudsi (holy), is Allah’s words narrated through the Prophet; for example, Prophet Muhammad said, “On Judgment Day, Allah will speak to the people of heaven, telling them …” A Qudsi Hadith quotes Allah Himself, but in a manner and style different from the Qur’an.

The Qur’an and the Sunnah set rules Muslims must follow when attempting to read the Qur’an. Before even touching the Holy Book, the body must be cleansed through ablution. Allah specifies this in the Qur’an: “That (this) is indeed a noble Qur’an. In a book kept hidden. Which none touches but the purified. A revelation from the Lord of the Worlds” (56:77–80).

Reading the Qur’an

When reading the Qur’an it is important to take a reasonably respectful posture. According to Islam, sitting at your desk, in an armchair, or on a ground cushion with your legs crossed are all acceptable positions, but leaning back in your seat and throwing your legs over your desk is not!

Muslims regularly pick up and read the Qur’an, even if they have already read it many times before. No matter how many times it is read, there is always a new discovery or enlightenment, or a lesson learned. Muslims take it as a guide for life that takes the effort out of deciding where one belongs, and why one exists. They believe it sets down a path to be followed.

ISLAMIC LAW AND CUSTOMS

Faith and Charity

The Islamic Shari’ah is the entire legal system implemented in Islam. The word itself implies an endless source of water from which people satisfy their thirst.

The Islamic penal code provides for harsh punishments (for example, the penalty for theft is cutting off of one hand). Punishments such as these are meted out only for crimes that are considered transgressions against the community, because they put the entire society at risk. Only an Islamic court of law may order these sentences, and in reality, they are rarely carried out.

Major and Minor Sins

Islam classifies sins according to the severity of their consequences on individuals and society, with the harshest of warnings reserved for those actions that have the potential of harming the community as a whole.

A major sin in Islam is one that is directly warned against in the Qur’an. Among the major sins are such acts as murder, theft, perjury, bribery, slander, adultery, drinking alcohol, and fighting unjustly between people. They also include violations against God, such as polytheism or neglect of religious duties.

One may also make minor violations; these have not been given a specific punishment in the Qur’an. Examples of minor sins in Islam include bragging, flirting, lying, and swearing.

Repentance

In Islam, almost all sins can be forgiven by God if one truly repents and vows not to repeat the same mistake. Repentance is known as
tauba
in Arabic, which means “to turn back.” In order to repent, one must recognize the sin and give it up, and one must feel a sense of remorse for the act. Then one resolves never to make the same mistake again. If the action has caused harm to any other person, one must attempt to make amends by compensating them (if possible) or seeking their forgiveness.

Religion 101 Question

Must a Muslim confess a sin to someone?

No. In Islam, repentance is directly between an individual and God, without any intermediaries.

Dietary Laws

The Qur’an specifies certain foods that Muslims are prohibited from eating, including the following:

• Swine, including all pork byproducts
  
• Animals slaughtered in dedication to false gods
  
• Blood or dead carcasses
  
• Animals that have been strangled, beaten to death, gored, eaten by wild animals, or that have died as the result of a fall
  
• Predatory animals (carnivores such as lions, dogs, eagles, owls, and others)
  

Food of the Book

In recognition of their similarities in faith, the Qur’an permits Muslims to eat food provided by the “People of the Book” (Jews, Christians, or other monotheists), as long as the other Islamic dietary rules are also followed.

When slaughtering animals for food, Muslims recognize they are taking life that God has made sacred. They thus invoke God’s name as a reminder that they are killing with His permission, only to meet the need for food.

There is a zero-tolerance policy in Islam toward alcohol and drugs. Nowadays, many medical doctors propose that there are benefits to moderate consumption of some substances, such as wine and marijuana. However, Islam takes the strong prohibitive stance.

Many Muslims believe that tobacco and nicotine are poisons to the body and are therefore to be avoided. The strong link between smoking and serious health problems, such as cancer and heart disease, is the main reason cited for its prohibition.

Financial Prohibitions

In Islam, people are encouraged to earn a living and support their families. Exploitation and corruption cause harm to individuals and the community, and they weaken an economy based on honest, hard work.

In the Qur’an, gambling is discussed in the same verses as alcohol. Both are described as having some “profit for men,” but “the sin is greater than the profit” (Qur’an 2:219). The Qur’an refers to gambling as a “game of chance,” and scholars have interpreted that to include lotteries, casino gambling, or even betting on the outcomes of races or sports events.

Islam absolutely prohibits the lending of money for a price or with a fixed rate of interest. Interest-based lending creates an atmosphere where the wealthy exploit the weak, creating greed and hatred in people’s hearts. This guideline, like all of the others in Islam, is in place to help people engage in fair, trusting relationships with each other, and to help them avoid potential exploitation and abuse.

Men and Women

Islam teaches men and women to coexist in cooperation, without exceeding the limits defined for them in Islam. When Muslim men and women are in the presence of each other, they must observe guidelines that help them retain an air of respect, politeness, and honor. Islam forbids any situation that may lead to improper, unlawful, or suspicious circumstances.

In the Qur’an, both men and women are commanded to be modest and “lower their eyes.” This means that they should be humble and not gaze at each other in an immodest way.

Islam prohibits all forms of public nudity and exploitation of the female body. Muslim women are advised in the Qur’an not to make a display of their beauty in public.

In ancient times, it was customary for women to wear a head covering often called a
hijab
or
khimar.
Women are advised to wear garments over their house clothes when they leave the house. This outer garment is often called a
jilbab
,
abaya
, or
chador
, depending on the area of the world.

The Qur’an makes no reference to color or style, so one will find many local variations that meet these basic standards. On the Arabian Peninsula, it is customary for women to wear black. In western Africa, women wear colorful dresses and turbans. In Southeast Asia, women often wear
shalwar kameez
, tunics and pants of bright colors and designs. Islam allows for local variations as an expression of the diversity of the Muslim community, as long as minimum standards are observed.

In the privacy of the home, or in the presence only of family members and close female friends, Muslim women are free to remove their head coverings and outer garments and adorn themselves with makeup and jewelry.

In the vast majority of Muslim nations, women are free to choose their style of dress and whether they would like to “cover” or not. It is a personal choice based on piety and modesty and is not considered a sign of women’s inferiority by those who practice it.

Islam also prohibits all forms of nudity and exploitation of the male figure. Men are advised to cover their bodies modestly, particularly from the navel to the knee. Indeed, in the traditional dress of many Muslim countries, men wear long flowing robes and sometimes a head covering as well.

Fair Business Practices

In Islam, it is expected that any earnings will be made through decent and honest labor. Business practices must be conducted with frankness and honesty. Islam encourages that contracts and agreements should be written down and witnessed by two trustworthy persons so neither party can try to take advantage of the other or make false claims in the future.

Prompt Payment

Muslims are encouraged to pay for services as soon as they are performed and not to withhold or delay payment. Muhammad instructed that when Muslims hire laborers to do some work, they should “compensate them before the sweat dries.”

DIVISIONS WITHIN ISLAM

Sunni and Shi’ite

The very first division in Islam, between Sunni and Shi’a, occurred not as a matter of differing beliefs, but due to politics and the role of leadership in the community. The issue centered on the question of who was to lead the Muslim community following Muhammad’s death.

When Muhammad was suffering from his final illness, he appointed his closest companion, Abu Bakr (573–634), to lead the community in prayer. After Muhammad’s death, many of his companions felt that leadership of the community should go to the person most suited to the task. They consulted among themselves and selected Abu Bakr, in line with Islamic teachings about consultation and agreement among elders. Those who agreed with Abu Bakr’s appointment became known as Sunni (followers of the tradition of Muhammad).

Other members of the community felt that leadership of the Muslim state should stay within the bloodline of Muhammad, within his own family. Particularly, they felt that Muhammad’s son-in-law, Ali, should have been appointed the next leader of the community. This group became known as Shi’ati Ali (supporters of Ali). Due to political loyalties and deepening mutual distrust, Shi’a Muslims rejected or altered some practices of Islam.

Sunni Muslims shun formal clergy status, recognizing only jurists and scholars who offer nonbinding opinions. In contract, Shi’a Muslim leaders have popelike authority.

Shi’a Muslims tend to focus more on the virtues of martyrdom.

Today, Shi’a Muslims make up approximately 10 percent of the world’s Muslims. They are found mostly in Iran, with large communities in Kuwait, Lebanon, Iraq, and Bahrain. Their tensions have been an important factor in events such as the Iraq War.

A Mystical Faith: Sufism

In the early centuries after Muhammad’s death, some Muslims became disenchanted with the Islamic community’s growing interest in worldly affairs and the rigid application of rules within the faith. These self-described purists dedicated themselves to frugal living and getting in the spirit of faith. They strove to purify the soul and develop a connection with Allah. The path of the Sufis is often called the mystic or spiritual trend within Islam.

What’s It Mean?

The word
sufi
comes from the Arabic word for wool (
suf
). Followers of this trend traditionally wore wool because of its simplicity and low cost.
Sufi
may also be related to the word “to clean” (
safa
), since the Sufis were interested in cleansing the soul.

Over time Sufis organized various orders, each of which is called a
tariqa
(path). A Sufi master, called a
shaykh
, serves as the leader and guide to his followers. Sufis develop an intense devotion to their shaykh because they believe he can provide spiritual guidance and healing for those under his care.

The Qadiani Movement

The Qadiani, or Ahmadiyya, movement began in the late nineteenth century in the Punjab region of India, where a Muslim reformer named Mirza Ghulam Ahmad first claimed that he was the promised Messiah and later that he was a prophet of Allah who received divine revelation.

The followers of Ahmed have established what is known as the Ahmadiyya Mission to propagate their teachings and invite others to follow their path. They are known for preparing and distributing multilingual translations of the Qur’an but with variations in the text that support their own interpretations of Islamic teachings and history.