WHAT IS ISLAM?

Firdaus 095815, Group 9


Islam is a religion and people who follow this religion called as Muslims.The term ISLAM is based on Arabic word,the root word itself SLM which means among other things,peace,purity,submission and obedience .It denotes submission,surrender and obedience.Islam stands for complete submission and obedience to Allah .Islam is the oldest religion began from prophet Adam A.S. and exist until the end of time.The founder of Islam not Prophet Muhammad PBUH,it is ALLAH SWT itself.

The meaning of Islam is explained from a hadith(Sahih Muslim) which is to testify on the oneness of Allah SWT and accept Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) as messenger of Allah,perform 5 daily prayers(Solah),pay zakat,fasting during month of Ramadhan,and perform hajj for whom able to perform it.Muslim accept the oneness of Allah as the only Creator,TheSupreme,Eternal,Infinite,Mighty,Merciful,Compassionate,and Provider.This requires the followers complete trust and hope in ALLAH,submission to His will and rely on His aid.Every muslim must believe that Prophet Muhammad PBUH is His last messenger for Human nations to complete the spread message of Islam to guide humanity to the straight path of ALLAH swt.
The 5 daily prayer is obligated to all muslims.Whoever fails to follow it,the person make a sin.It is one of the way to get pleasure from ALLAH swt,strengthen the belief to ALLAH,and to purify our heart and soul.

Pay zakat is an act purify the property of the people and clears it from the shares which do not belong to it anymore,the share must be distributed among the due beneficiaries,form of internal security against selfish greed,& minimize the sufferings of the needy and poor members of society .

Fasting in the month of Ramadhan is obligated also to all muslims in during 30 days.Start from rise of sun of daytime till sunset of day.Avoid from eating,drink and sexual intercourse during fasting period.It is a way to practice our patience,being unselfishness,and fight against nafs totally.And last but not least is,perform Hajj.It is obligatory at least once on lifetime upon respective physicaly,mentally,matured,financially able muslims.Muslims perform Hajj at Ka’abah in Makkah,Saudi Arabia.It is sunnah of Prophet Abraham A.S..It is to confirm the commitment of the muslims to God and their readiness to forsake material interests in His service. It is to strengthen the faith in Allah swt,reminder/feel the situation of Judgement Day.

Beside the five pillars of Islam,there is another part which is the Pillars of Iman/testimony of faith.There are six pillars of Iman.The first one is,Believe in Allah.We believe in One God 'Allah', Supreme and Eternal, Infinite and Mighty, Merciful and Compassionate, Creator and Provider.The second testimony is believe in Angel.Eventough we cannot see this creature but we must put our believe in it,as it has stated many times in Al-Quran about angel.The characteristic of angel is that they are purely spiritual and splendid beings whose nature requires on food, drink or sleep. They spend their days and nights in the worship of God.

The third statement is believe in revelation revelead by Allah to his messenger like Zabur,Taurah,Injil,Al-Quran.As ummah of Prophet Muhammad PBUH,we should follow Quran as our guidance,due to the only authentic and complete guidance book.

The fourth statement is believe in believes in all Messengers of God. Every known nation had a Messenger from God. They were chosen by God to teach mankind and deliver His divine message and give warnings about the sin the nation doing. The Quran mentions the name of twenty five of them. Among them Prophet Muhammad PBUH stands as the last Messenger and leader of all prophet.

The fifth statement is belive in hereafter,we believe after we dead,after the world is destroyed,we will face Allah for the judgement based on our amal in past(in the world).To enter heaven,we must have good faith(IMAN) or good records,else we will enter hell.

The last testimony of faith is believe in Qadha and Qadhar.All muslim believes in the timeless knowledge of Allah and His power to plan and execute His plans and nothing could happen in His Kingdom against His will. His knowledge and power are in action at all times and command over His creation. He is wise and merciful, and whatever He does must have a meaningful purpose. If this is established in our mind and hearts, we should accept with good faith all that He does, although we may fail to under stand it fully, or think it is bad.

In conclusion,it can be conclude that Islam is a religion main root based on kalimah syahadah which is Kalimah “Lailahaillah Muhammadu Rasullulah”,guided with the book revealed by Allah to Prophet Muhammad SAW which is the Al-Quran.The basic of Islam is in 5 pillar of Islam,Testimony of faith/Pillars of Iman.To be a muslim the person must accept every criteria in Pillars of Islam and pillars of Iman.The Islamic teachings is revealed by Allah swt itself and tought to prophet Muhammad saw,thus Prophet Muhammad is not the founder of Islam,He is the Messenger of ALLAH SWT.Islamic teaching is applicable to our daily life due to its comprehensiveness.