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God's Oneness and Uniqueness

The cornerstone of Islam is the belief in the One and Only God, which is the faith in God's oneness and uniqueness. God has no partner, son, daughter, helper, or competitor. There is nothing that even remotely resembles Him, for He is unique. By repeating it in many varying formulations, the Qur-an has abundantly made this clear. One can observe this notion as summarized in the 112th Chapter of

the Noble Qur-an: "Say:

He is Allah the One and Only; Allah the Eternal Absolute; He begetteth not nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him." (Qur-an,112-1-4)

Belief in the one and only God frees man from superstitious beliefs of dependence on all sorts of imagine powers or forces of nature and affirms to him that he depends exclusively on and is responsible to the one and only power that is real in the deepest sense of the word. 

Furthermore, it requires that we look upon all humanity as one family under the omnipotence of God-the Creator and Nourishes of all.

Islam rejects the idea of the "chosen people", making pure intention, faith in God and good deeds as the only way to reach heaven.  Thus, a direct relationship is established with God. It is open to all alike without any discrimination or intercession.

The Five Pillars of Islam

In Islam, the term "worship" covers any action that one does in accordance with the will of Allah. It can be mental, physical, spoken, or otherwise.  All such actions will be rewarded. There are five acts of worship that are so fundamental that the Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) grouped them together as the five pillars of Islam. Every Muslim is expected to fulfill these obligations.  They are:

1 -The Declaration of Faith

Recognizing and acknowledging the monotheistic, nature of Allah stands at the core of Islam. This consists of a public affirmation that "there is no god but Allah, and Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) is His Messenger." The Prophethood of Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) obliges Muslims to follow his exemplary life in every respect. One cannot be a Muslim until he states this fact in the presence of Muslim witnesses.

2-The Five Daily Prayers

A Muslim must perform the five daily prayers. These and must be performed at specific times, corresponding roughly with dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset, and nightfall.  The prayers can be made in any clean place, but it is preferable to pray them in congregation in a mosque, for this communal undertaking acts as a reminder that all Muslims are indeed equal.  When many people are praying together, it becomes clear that color, economic status, Social position, and all other artificial distinctions have no importance to Allah, for all Muslims are commanded to stand together, shoulder to shoulder, foot to foot and prostrate themselves before Him. There are no exceptions. Prayers also elevate the individual to a higher level of morality, purify his heart, and help him to resist his desire to engage in forbidden activities.

3. The Zakah (All The purification due)

Zakah (All The purification due) is a proportionately fixed contribution (2.5% of specified minimum amount annually) collected from the wealth and earnings of the well-to-do and rich. It is spent on the poor and needy in particular, and the welfare of the society in general. The payment of Zakah purifies one's income and wealth and also to establish economic balance to reduce resentment and envy between a society's poor and rich classes. It also helps to achieve social justices in the society.

4. Fasting during the Month of Ramadan

Fasting, according to the Islamic definition, means total abstention from food, drink, smoking, conjugal relationships and evil intentions from dawn until sunset. It teaches love, sincerity and devotion. It develops patience, unselfishness, self-restraint, social conscience and willpower to bear hardships. And also it gives the body a much-needed rest and improves ones health by getting rid of excess weight.

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