Transcript Towards Understanding Islam and Muslims

Towards Understanding Islam
& Muslims
Ramadan
The Month of Fasting and Qur'an
Compiled by
Ahmad Sultan
[email protected]
AhmadSultan.com
2003-2004
Greetings of Islam
• AsSalamu Alaikum
Peace be upon you
• Wa Alaikum AsSalam
and upon you be peace
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Outline
• Basic terminology
– Islam, Muslim, Allah, Worship
• Islam as a System/Way of Life
– Core Beliefs and Practices.
• “Articles of Faith”
• “Pillars of Islam”
• Ramadan
– Fasting, Breaking Fast, Night Prayers, Qur’an, Seclusion, End of
Ramadan
• Why do Muslims Fast?
– Spiritual, Moral, Mental and Physical impacts of fasting
• Conclusion
3
Terms for Better Understanding
• All Arabic words have a three letter root without
vowel sounds
• SLM
• SiLiM = safe, secure, sound
• SALAM = peace
• ISLAM = submission, surrender, obedience
• MUSLIM = the person who acts in accordance
with Islam
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What is Islam?
• Pronounced with “s” not “z”
• ISLAM is related to one of the names of God (A-Salam:
The Peace)
• Islam means “attaining peace within oneself and with
what’s around through submission to God” (The source of
Peace)
• Not named after a person/tribe, rather the Creator
• It is the name of the religion.
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What is Islam?
• Not a new religion
– goes back to the prophet and patriarch Abraham
– It is a continuation, and confirmation of the primordial
(original) monotheistic message from the time of Adam
• A way of life: a system that addresses social, economical,
and political arenas maintaining in focus the belief in One
God, and following His commandments
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Who is a Muslim?
• Pronounced with short u/o, and “s” not “z” sound
• Anyone/thing that submits to God and follows His
Commandments/Laws
• Legal definition
– Whosoever declares:
• “There is no god but God and Mohammed is his
servant and Messenger”
• anyone can be a Muslim regardless of race,
nationality, ethnicity or color
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Who Are Muslims?
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
1.3 billion world wide
NOT ALL MUSLIMS ARE ARAB
NOT ALL ARABS ARE MUSLIM
18-20% Muslims are from the Arab world
Indonesia Largest (220million)
8 million in the U.S.
450,000 in Chicagoland
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Allah (God)
• Allah is a contraction of
Al-Elah = The God
• He is The Creator
• It is the same word used for
God, as well, for Arabic
speaking Christians and
Jews
• Term does not imply
gender; like god/goddess
• Term cannot be pluralized;
like gods/goddesses
Bible. O.T. Genesis. Arabic. 1821. Risius
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AEBADA
•
ABD
– A Slave, Obedience with Submission, Worship, …
•
AEBADA means
– The functions of the slaves/servants in submission and obedience to the
commands of their Lord in recognition of his greatness with heart filled
with gratefulness to His bounties upon them
– A comprehensive/collective name of all that Allah (God) likes and accepts
in sayings and deeds whether apparent or concealed
•
In Islam, all aspects of life is AEBADA, with proper intention and conduct
according to Islamic teaching
– “Say: my Salat (Prayer), acts of Sacrifice, life and death is for Allah, the
Lord of the world. In that I was commanded, and I am among those who
submit (Muslims)
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Islam a Way of Life
• As a way of life, Islam provides systems of
– Beliefs to free the minds, and encourages seeking
knowledge
– Worship to fulfill the spirit and increase the strength
– Manners to grow personality and cooperation
– Laws ensure rights, outline duties and guarantees
justice for all
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Core Beliefs and Practices
• Articles of Faith
• Pillars of Islam
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What Do Muslims Believe In?
• God (Allah)
The One and only
• Angels
Other unseen creatures
• Books
Divine revelation
• Messengers
Guides to mankind
• Day of Judgment
Life After Death & Accountability
Articles of Faith
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How do Muslims Practice?
1. Declaration of Faith
(Shahada)
Islam
2. Prayer (Salah)
Bedrock of Islam
Pillars of Islam
Pilgrimage (Hajj)
Formal acts of AEBADA. The
Fasting (Sawm)
•
Alms Giving (Zakat)
5. Pilgrimage (Hajj)
Prayer (Salat)
4. Fasting Ramadan (Sawm)
Ground
Foundations
3. Alms Giving (Zakah)
Declaration of Faith (Shahada)
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Ramadan
• RAMADAN: derived from RMD means: heat, thirst and
dehydration
• Ninth month in Islamic calendar (Lunar)
• Fasting Ramadan is the fourth obligatory pillar of Islam
• Month of Qur’an
• “The month of Ramadan in which was revealed the Qur’an, a
guidance for mankind and clear proofs for he guidance and the
criterion (between right and wrong).” Qur’an 2:185
• Activities
– Fasting (Siyam), Night Prayers (Qiyam), Seclusion (Aitikaf), Ends
with celebration (Eid ulFitr)
– Closeness to God, increasing the performance of good deeds and
generosity
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Siyam (Fasting)
• SIYAM: derived from SAM means: Abstain (from doing
something)
– Abstaining from food, drink and intimate marital relations from
dawn until sunset while having the inwardly intention of fasting
• Obligatory at the age of puberty
– Exempted are the travelers, the ill, the elderly and the pregnant,
breastfeeding or menstruating woman
• Not new to man
– ”O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was
prescribed to those before you that you may (learn) self-restraint
(piety)..." Qur'an 2: 183
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Siyam (Fasting) (cont.)
Fasting
Regular activity
NIGHT
DAY
DAWN
Pre-Dawn
Meal
SUNSET
Break-Fast Meal
Community Iftar (Break-Fast17Meal)
Qiyam (Night Prayer)
Regular activity
Fasting
NIGHT
DAY
SUNSET
Fasting
Break-Fast
Meal
Time of Qiyam
• QIYAM: QAM: Stand
• “Verily, the rising by night is very
hard and most potent and good for
governing oneself, and most suitable
for (understanding) the Word (of
Allah)” Qur’an 73:6
DAWN
Pre-Dawn
Meal
Voluntary (Qiyam)
Night Prayers
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Aitikaf (Seclusion)
• AITIKAF:
– AKF: Sticking to something
and holding oneself
on/within it
– Staying in the Mosque or
Mesjid (place of
prostration) with the
intention to getting closer to
God
In Columbus,
Ohio, a
Moroccan
computer
science student
at Ohio State
finds a quiet spot
to read the
Koran while
waiting for
evening prayer at
the Omar Ibn
Kahttab mosque.
(AP/WWP)
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Aitikaf (Seclusion)
• Last ten days of
Ramadan during
which falls the night
the Qur’an was first
revelation to Prophet
Muhammad
– The Night of
Decree/Power/Fat
e (Laylatu AlQadr)
Muslim worshippers study at the Islamic
Cultural Center of New York.
(Jeff Christensen/REUTERS/TimePix)
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The Night of Decree/Power/Fate
(Laylatu Al-Qadr)
In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the
Merciful
1.
We have indeed revealed this (Message) in the
Night of Power:
2.
And what will explain to thee what the night of
power is?
3.
The Night of Power is better than a thousand
months.
4.
Therein come down the angels and the Spirit by
Allah.s permission, on every errand:
5.
Peace!...This until the rise of morn!
Qur’an 97
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Qur’an
The First Source of Islam
• 114 Chapters (Suras)
– Each with a title, and start with “In the
Name of God, Most Gracious, Most
Merciful” (113)
– Not one word has changed over the
centuries
• Revealed over 23 years
– First verses reveled in one of the last
nights of Ramadan (Lailatul-Qadr)
– The exact words revealedby God
through the Angel Gabriel to Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH)
• Memorized by Millions
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The Qur’an
• Its basic theme is the
relationship between God and
His creatures
• It provides guidelines for a
just society, proper human
conduct and an equitable
economic system
Copy of the Qur’an of Caliph Uthman,
kept in Tashkent
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End of Ramadan
1. Alms Giving (Zakatu Al-Fitr)
• Charity of breaking the Fast (Zakatu Al-Fitr)
– Alms given prior to the end of the month of Ramadan
to the needy
– Normally given in grain or the food of the locality
– It is different than one pays on wealth
– Everyone must pay
– Way of sharing the blessings
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End of Ramadan
2. Prayer and Sermon (SalatulEid and Khutba)
•
Eid prayer is strongly recommended
and an important tradition in Islam:
men, women and children participate.
•
Self Preparation for 'Id Prayer
–
–
•
Time:
–
–
•
It is a time for everyone to be in their
best appearance
There is also a tradition that one should
eat something, preferably dates, before
going to the Eid al-Fitr prayer
The time for the Eid prayer is midmorning
Followed by a community sermon or
khutba
Place:
–
It is better to hold 'Id prayers in an open
place or ground if there is no obstacle
like rain or bad weather.
Eid Prayer -Kashmir
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End of Ramadan
3. Feast (Eidu Al-Fitr)
• Celebration that marks
the end of Ramadan.
• Visit family members
• Enjoy meals together
• Wear new clothes
• Children receive gifts
from relatives
• Amusement rides for
children are set up in
the streets
Egyptian women
decorate their
daughters with
balloons after
performing morning
prayers of Eid al-Fitr,
the end of the Islamic
month of Ramadan.
Eid Celebration –
Amusement Ride
Damascus
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End of Ramadan in America
4. Feast (Edu Al-Fitr) cont.
The holy day of Eid
al-Fitr marks the
end of Ramadan.
Members of the
Islamic Center of
America in
Dearborn,
Michigan, celebrate
the day with
prayers.
(AP/WWP)
Eid Celebration –
Eid Stamp
USA
President George W. Bush takes a
small break to hear what
Alexandria Hudome, 3, has to say
as he reads a poem to Muslim
children during Eid Al-Fitr at the
White House December 17, 2001
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Conclusion
• Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic Lunar
Calendar
• During Ramadan
– Muslims perform Siyam (Fasting), the third pillar of
Islam is performed
– Qur’an was revealed
– Month to renew the spiritual and self disciplinary
aspects through extra prayers at night, reciting the
Qur’an, contemplation, acts of charity, and socialization
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References
•
“The Nobel Qur’an”, Translations of the meanings by Yousef Ali, Picthal, and
Shaker.
– http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/
•
•
“Fiqh as-Sunna”, As-Sayyed Sabiq
Islam in Your Life – Spirituality
–
–
–
–
–
–
•
•
•
•
•
http://www.masnet.org/spirit.asp?id=602
“Fasting & Ramadan”, Dr. Jamal Badawi
“Rules of Siyam”, Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hanooti
“Ramadan, The Blessed Month”, Sheikh Muhammad Al-Hanooti
Why Do Muslims Break Their Fast with Dates?
“Seize the Ramadan Opportunity”, Safa Alshiraida
http://sol.as.arizona.edu/~dave/digital/images/newmoon_small.jpg
http://usinfo.state.gov/products/pubs/muslimlife/
http://www.suite101.com/article.cfm/islam_in_the_us/52772
www.whitehouse.gov/.../2001/12/images/20011217-4-1.html
http://usembassy.state.gov/tokyo/wwwhso0082.html
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