The Salah requires praying Essay Example for Free

The Salah requires praying EssayOne of the greatest hindrances to attaining peaceful relations in the marrow East comes from the fact that the Islamic trust is often misunderstood. In their book entitled, Islam A Thousand old age of Faith and Power, authors Jonathan Bloom and Sheila Blair, discuss the origins of Islam by discussing various aspects of the religion and the cultural practices.Literally, Islam means peace or the surrender of ones self to God. Islam was born 1,400 years ago, when the message of the Quran was relayed to the prophet Muhammad by Allah with the angel Gabriel. The fundamental decree of Islam is monotheism, that at that place is only one Creator, that he alone should be adore by mankind and that Muhammad is Gods final prophet.Aside from monotheism, there are also another(prenominal) five aspects of Islam first, that the Quran is considered by Muslims as the undistorted message of God and is the central text of Islamic religion second, that angels ar e the messengers of god, devoid of free will and dedicated only to the worship of God and the duties entrusted to them third, belief in all of Gods prophets, from Adam to Jesus fourth, that there will be a solar day of Judgment or Day of Resurrection (yawm al-Qiyamah) where every human will account for all the deeds and sins he has committed during his lifetime at a time that is only known to God lastly, the belief in the Divine Decree (al-qadaa wal-qadr ), that everything overhauls according to the will of God. Islam also decrees five main duties that a Muslim essential perform. Integral to the understanding of Islam are the Five Pillars. These five duties are otherwise also known as the Five Pillars of Islam Shahadah, Salah, Zakat, Sawm and hadj.The Shahadah is the primary tenet of Islam which is found in the shahadatan or twin testimonies wherein a Muslim declares that there is only one God worthy of devotion and that Muhammad is the messenger of God. The Salah requires prayi ng five times a day at different times while facing towards the Kaaba in Mecca. The Zakat is the alms-giving of capable Muslims to the hapless and needy. The Sawm is the requirement of fasting during the month of Ramadan wherein a Muslim desists from eating, drinking and having sexual intercourse from dusk until dawn. The Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca a Muslim is required to make at least once in his or her lifetime. Aside from discussing these practices, they also discuss the cultural background of some of the most saintly sites of the Islamic Religion.Considered as perhaps one of the holiest cities in the whole world, Makkah or Mecca, is located in the historic Hejaz region of Saudi-Arabian Arabia. With a population of nearly two million (1,700,000 to be exact), this region is deeply revered by Muslims because it contains the Grand Mosque of Mecca. From an etymological perspective, the word mecca means a location that is considered as the center of interest or a goal which rel igious adherents aspire for. This is synonymous with the religious devotion that is associated with the area. One of the major events that occur in this area is the annual pilgrimage to Makkah which happens during the season of the Hajj.This is very in-chief(postnominal) for every Muslim since it is cover under the Five Pillars of Islam. Given this relevance, every able bodied Muslim who has the means to must lambaste Mecca at least once in their lifetime. This is a very strict rule. During this time, nobody else is allowed to enter the holy city especially spate belonging to other faiths. Historically, the Mecca has always been considered as one of the most important cities in the Arabian Peninsula. Since the 6th century, it has always been the wealthiest of all the settlements in the area. Due to the abundant water egress that it got from the Zamzam Well, Mecca soon grew in prosperity and became the site of the Kaaba, the holiest site in all of Islam.Given this ideal location, it comes as no surprise then that this soon became one of the holiest areas in the world. The sacred mosque or the Al-Masjid al-Haram is the largest mosque in the inviolate world. Its location in the city of Mecca is only appropriate given the fact that it surrounds what is the holiest place in the integral Islam, the Kaaba. Also known as Haram or Haram Sharif, the mosque is capable of accommodating over four million (4,000,000) people during the great pilgrimage or the Hajj. It covers a floor area of approximately three hundred and fifty-six thousand eight hundred (356,800) square meters. References Bloom, Jonathan and Blair, Sheila (2002). Islam A Thousand Years of Faith and Power. New Haven, 2002