1. Islam Practices Key terms:
Adhan : The call to prayer five times a day.
Caliph: A successor of Muhammad (pbuh) as the spiritual leader of Islam.
Hadith: The teachings of Muhammad (pbuh)
Hajj: Pilgrimage to Makkah and the fifth pillar of Islam.
Imam: Prayer leader
Jihad: The greater or lesser striving for the way of Allah.
Jumu’ah: Friday prayers where the Khutbah is read.
Khutbah: The name for the sermon on Friday in the mosques.
Makkah: Holy city of Islam in Saudi Arabia with the great mosque housing the Ka’aba.
Mihrab: Indented archway in the mosque showing the direction of the Ka’aba.
Minbar: The raised platform used by the Imam to deliver the Friday sermon.
Minaret: Tower on the outside of the mosque used fro the call to prayer.
Qurbani: The sacrifice of animals during Eid ul-adha.
Rak’ah: A sequence of prayer containing actions and recitations.
Ramadan: The holy month of fasting for 29/30 days.
Salah: Compulsory prayer five times a day and the second pillar of Islam.
Sawm: Pillar of fasting.
Shahadah: Declaration of faith – to believe in One God and Muhammad (pbuh) as the Prophet of Allah.
Tabarra: expressing hatred towards evil.
Tawalla: expressing love towards good.
Topi: Prayer hat worn by Muslim men.
Twelver Shi’a: part of the Shi’a sect of Islam who believe in the twelve imams as leaders.
Wuzu: The symbolic washing and purification of the mind and body before Salah.
Zakah: Almsgiving to the poor which benefits the Muslim community.
Declaration of faith:’There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his messenger’. Muslims should say this several times a day.
Muslims should pray five times a day; at sunrise, around noon, late afternoon, after sunset, and late evening. he Qur’an.
Charitable giving. Zakah encourages generosity and compassion. usually 2.5% of a person’s surplus wealth each year.
Ramadan is the 9th month of the Muslim calendar. Muslims are obliged to fast during it. This teaches self-discipline.
Every Muslim should do hajj (pilgrimage to Makkah) at least once. It’s only obligatory if you can afford it and your well enough.
Islam Practices
Khums – A kind of tax Shi’as pay each year on any ‘profit’ they earn at a rate of 20%
Shi’a Muslims follow the Ten Obligatory Acts. Four of these are Salah, Sawm, Zakah and Hajj.
Tawalla and Tabarra. They come as a pair and mean ‘love’ and ‘aloofness’. Muslims should ‘love’ those who follow Allah and avoid anyone who’s an enemy of Allah or Muhammad.
They come as a pair and mean, ‘enjoy what is right and forbid what is wrong’.
Amr-bil-Maroof and Nahi Anil Munkar
Jihad – The word means ‘struggle’ or ‘striving’. There are two types, the ‘greater’, Muslims personal struggle to live a good life, and the ‘lesser’, Muslims struggle to defend Islam against it’s critics.
See also revision notes on festivals, page 24 of revision guide!