Small Surah
| (1) | सूरह कुरैश Surat Al-Quraysh |
| लिईलाफि कुरैशिन। | |
| इलाफिहिम रिहलतशीताई वस्सैफ। | |
| फल यअबुदु रब्ब हाज़ल बैंतिलजी। | |
| अत -अ महुम मिन जुईव। | |
| व अमन हुम् मिन खौफ | |
| (2) | Surah Al-fil |
| अलम तरा कैफ फअल रब्बुका बी बिअश्हाबिल फील. | |
| अलम यजअल कैदहुम फ़ी तज्लिलिव -वअरसल अलैहिम तैरन अबाबील। | |
| तरमीहिम बिहिजरतिम मिन सिज्जील। | |
| फजलहुम् क-आस्फीम मअकुल। | |
| (3) | Surah “Al-Kausar ” |
| इन्ना अतयना कल कौसर। | |
| फ़ सल्लि लि रब्बि क- वन -हर | |
| इन्ना शानिआक़ा हुवल अबतर | |
| (4) | Surah “Al-Kafirun” |
| कुल या अैय्युहल काफिरून। | |
| ला आ अबुदू मा ताअबुदन। | |
| वला अन्तुम आबिदूना मा आअबुद। | |
| वला अना आबिदु-मा अबत्तुम। | |
| वला अन्तुम आबिदुन मा आअबुद। | |
| लकुम दीनूकुम वलीयदीन। | |
| (5) | Surah “Al-Masad” |
| तब्ब्त यदा अबी लहबिवतब्ब। | |
| मा अग्ना अनहु मालूहू मा कसब। | |
| सयस्व नारन जात लहुबिवमरअतूहू हम्मा लतल हतब। | |
| फी जिहिदा हबलूम मिमसद | |
| (6) | Surah “Al-Ikhlas” |
| कुल हूवल्लाहू अहद। | |
| अल्ला हुस्समद | |
| व् लम यालिद व् लम यूलद। | |
| व् लम यकूलहू कुफुवन अहद। | |
| (7) | Surah “Al-Falaq” |
| कुल आअूजु बिरब्बिल फलक। | |
| मिन शर्री मा खलक। | |
| व् मिन शर्री गासिकिन इजा वकब। | |
| व् मिन शर्री न्नफ्फासति फिल अूकदी। | |
| व् मिन शर्री हासिदिन इजां हसद। | |
| (8) | Surah “An-Nas” |
| कुल आअूजु बिरबिन्नासि। | |
| मालिकिन्नासि। | |
| इलाहीन्नासि। | |
| मिनशर्रील वस्विसिल खन्नासि। | |
| अल्लजी यु वस्विसु फी सुदुरिन्नास। | |
| मिनल जिन्नति वन्नास। | |
| (9) | सूरह अस्र |
| वल अस्र | |
| इन्नल इन्सा -न लफ़ी खु खुस्र | |
| इल्लल लज़ी ना आमनू नू व अमि लु लुस सा लि हा ति ति व तवा सौ बि ल हक़कि व तवा सौ बि स सब्र | |
| (10) | ija jul jilatil surah |
| इज़ा ज़ु ज़ुल ज़ि लति ल अरजु जु ज़ि लज़ा लहा | |
| व अख रजति ल अरजु जु अस्का लहा | |
| वक़ा लल इं इंसा नु नु मा लहा | |
| यौ मइजि न तु तुहद्दि सु सु अख़बा रहा | |
| बि अन्न रब्बका अव्हा लहा | |
| यौ मइजि य यस दु दुरून ना सु सु अश्ता तल लि यु युरौ अअ’ मा लहुम | |
| फमय यअ’मल मि स्का ला ज़र रति न खै खैरै रै यरह | |
| वमै मै यअ’मल मि स्का ला ज़र्र र्रति न शररै रै यरह | |
| (11) | Surah Al Qadr |
| इन्ना अनज़ल नाहु फ़ी लैयलतिल कद्र | |
| वमा अदराका मा लैयलतुल कद्र | |
| लय्लतुल कदरि खैरुम मिन अल्फि शह्र | |
| तनज्जलुल मलाइकातु वररूहु फ़ीहा बिइज़्नि रब्बिहिम मिन कुल्लि अम्र | |
| सलामुन हिय हत्ता मत लइल फज्र | |
| (12) | Surah Teen |
| वत्तैनी वज़ जैतून: | |
| वतूरि सीनीन: | |
| वहादल बलदिल अमीन: | |
| लक़द ख़लक़न इंसाना फ़ी अह्सनी तक़्वीम: | |
| सुम्मा रददनहू असफ़ला साफ़िलिन: | |
| इल्लललज़ीना आमनू व अमिलुस्सालिहाती फ़लाहुम अज्रुन गैर मम्नून: | |
| फ़मा युकज़्ज़िबुका बादु बिद्दीन: | |
| अलैसल लाहू बि अह्कमिल हाकिमीन | |
| (13) | Surah अलम नशरह |
| अलम नशरह लका सदरक व वदअना अन्का विज़रक | |
| अल्लज़ी अन्क़दा ज़हरक व रफ़अना लका ज़िकरक | |
| इन्ना मअल उसरि युसर इन्ना मअल उसरि युसरा | |
| फ़ इज़ा फरगता फंसब व इला रब्बिका फरगब | |
Islamic views-1
The term “Islam” is a verb form of the word “salima”, meaning “to be safe.” Islam is monotheistic Abrahamic religion that originated in Saudi Arabia in the 7th century CE. A Muslim is an adherent of Islam. There are over 1.98 billion Muslims — a quarter of the world’s population, making Islam the second-largest religion in the world. It is also the religion for the poor. Islam means “submission to the will of God”.
A Muslim may also be called Musalmaan in Hindi or Urdu, Moslem or Mohammedan, because the religion of Islam was founded by Prophet Mohammed.
Five Pillars of Islam
Islam calls for Muslims to practice the “five pillars”:
- 1. Tawhid (faith): Believe in God, believe that there is only one God, and that Prophet Muhammad was his messenger.
- 2. Sallah (prayer): Muslims pray 5 times a day — dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset and nightfall. When they pray, they face the city of Mecca. This prayer ritual is called namaz in Persian, Turkish and Urdu.
- 3. Zakah (charity): All Muslims who can afford to donate money are obligated to do so to help the community.
- 4. Sawm (fasting): Fasting during Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic year. Muslims do not eat or drink from dawn till sunset for one lunar month. After Ramadan, there is a holiday called Eid al-Fitr (which means “festival of end-fast” in English). On Eid al-Fitr, Muslims usually go to the mosque in the morning for a special religious service, and then have a party with families and friends.
- 5. Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca): Every able-bodied Muslim, whether man or woman, is obliged to make the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their life. Muslims believe Mecca to be a holy city because the Masjid al-Haram (‘Sacred Mosque’) — the holiest site in Islam — is in Mecca. In 630 CE Prophet Mohammed declared it a site of pilgrimage after his triumphant return to the city after years of exile in Medina.
There were 1.8 billion Muslims in the world as of 2015 – roughly 24% of the global population – according to a Pew Research Center estimate. But while Islam is currently the world’s second-largest religion (after Christianity), it is the fastest-growing major religion. Indeed, if current demographic trends continue, the number of Muslims is expected to exceed the number of Christians by the end of this century.
Although many countries in the Middle East-North Africa region, where the religion originated in the seventh century, are heavily Muslim, the region is home to only about 20% of the world’s Muslims. A majority of the Muslims globally (62%) live in the Asia-Pacific region, including large populations in Indonesia, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Iran and Turkey.
The Muslim population in Europe also is growing; we project 10% of all Europeans will be Muslims by 2050.
How Islam spread so quickly in the world?
There are many reasons why Islam spread so quickly. First Mecca was connected to many global trade routes. Another important reason was their military conquered lots of territory. A third factor was the Muslims fair treatment of conquered peoples.
The expansion of the Arab Empire in the years following the Prophet Muhammad’s death led to the creation of caliphates, who occupied a vast geographical area and sought converts to Islamic faith.
The people of the Islamic world created numerous sophisticated centers of culture and science with far-reaching mercantile networks, travelers, scientists, hunters, mathematicians, doctors, and philosophers.
Historians distinguish between two separate strands of converts of the time. One is animists and polytheists of tribal societies of the Arabian Peninsula and the Fertile crescent; the other is the monotheistic populations of the Middle Eastern agrarian and urbanized societies.
The Arab conquerors generally respected the traditional middle-Eastern pattern of religious pluralism with regard to the conquered populations, respecting the practice of other faiths in Arab territory, although widespread conversions to Islam came about as a result of the breakdown of historically religiously organized societies.
Historians distinguish between two separate strands of converts of the time. One is animists and polytheists of tribal societies of the Arabian Peninsula and the Fertile Crescent; the other is the monotheistic populations of the Middle Eastern agrarian and urbanized societies. For the polytheistic and pagan societies, apart from the religious and spiritual reasons each individual may have had, conversion to Islam “represented the response of a tribal, pastoral population to the need for a larger framework for political and economic integration, a more stable state, and a more imaginative and encompassing moral vision to cope with the problems of a tumultuous society.” In contrast, for sedentary and often already monotheistic societies, “Islam was substituted for a Byzantine or Sassanian political identity and for a Christian, Jewish or Zoroastrian religious affiliation.” Initially, conversion was neither required nor necessarily wished for: “ The Arab conquerors did not require the conversion as much as the subordination of non-Muslim peoples. At the outset, they were hostile to conversions because new Muslims diluted the economic and status advantages of the Arabs.”
Only in subsequent centuries, with the development of the religious doctrine of Islam and with that the understanding of the Muslim Ummah, did mass conversion take place. The new understanding by the religious and political leadership led in many cases to a weakening or breakdown of the social and religious structures of parallel religious communities such as Christians and Jews. With the weakening of many churches, for example, and with the favoring of Islam and the migration of substantial Muslim Turkish populations into the areas of Anatolia and the Balkans, the “social and cultural relevance of Islam” were enhanced and a large number of peoples were converted. During the Abbasid Caliphate, expansion ceased and the central disciplines of Islamic philosophy, theology, law, and mysticism became more widespread, and the gradual conversions of the populations within the empire occurred. Significant conversions also occurred beyond the extents of the empire, such as that of the Turkic tribes in Central Asia and peoples living in regions south of the Sahara in Africa through contact with Muslim traders active in the area and Sufi orders. In Africa it spread along three routes—across the Sahara via trading towns such as Timbuktu, up the Nile Valley through the Sudan up to Uganda, and across the Red Sea and down East Africa through settlements such as Mombasa and Zanzibar. These initial conversions were of a flexible nature.
The Islamic Golden Age started with the rise of Islam and establishment of the first Islamic state in 622.
The introduction of paper in the 10th century enabled Islamic scholars to easily write manuscripts; Arab scholars also saved classic works of antiquity by translating them into various languages. The Arabs assimilated the scientific knowledge of the civilizations they had overrun, including the ancient Greek, Roman, Persian, Chinese, Indian, Egyptian, and Phoenician civilizations.
Scientists advanced the fields of algebra, calculus, geometry, chemistry, biology, medicine, and astronomy.
Many forms of art flourished during the Islamic Golden Age, including ceramics, metalwork, textiles, illuminated manuscripts, woodwork, and calligraphy.
The Islamic Golden Age refers to a period in the history of Islam, traditionally dated from the 8th century to the 13th century, during which much of the historically Islamic world was ruled by various caliphates and science, economic development, and cultural works flourished. This period is traditionally understood to have begun during the reign of the Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid (786–809) with the inauguration of the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, where scholars from various parts of the world with different cultural backgrounds were mandated to gather and translate all of the world’s classical knowledge into the Arabic language. The end of the age is variously given as 1258 with the Mongolian Sack of Baghdad, or 1492 with the completion of the Christian Reconquista of the Emirate of Granada in Al-Andalus, Iberian Peninsula. During the Golden Age, the major Islamic capital cities of Baghdad, Cairo, and Córdoba became the main intellectual centers for science, philosophy, medicine, and education. The government heavily patronized scholars, and the best scholars and notable translators, such as Hunayn ibn Ishaq, had salaries estimated to be the equivalent of those of professional athletes today. The School of Nisibis and later the School of Edessa became centers of learning and transmission of classical wisdom. The House of Wisdom was a library, translation institute, and academy, and the Library of Alexandria and the Imperial Library of Constantinople housed new works of literature. Nestorian Christians played an important role in the formation of Arab culture, with the Jundishapur hospital and medical academy prominent in the late Sassanid, Umayyad, and early Abbasid periods. Notably, eight generations of the Nestorian Bukhtishu family served as private doctors to caliphs and sultans between the 8th and 11th centuries.
The idea that Islam was spread by the sword has had wide currency at many different times and the impression is still widespread among the less reflective sections of the media and the wider public that people converted to Islam because they were forced to do so. This is, of course, a very useful argument in all sorts of ways. It allows non-Muslims to explain the otherwise problematic fact that so many people converted to Islam when it was, clearly, an inferior or even completely wicked religion. Claiming that people were forced to convert meant avoiding the difficult idea that people might have converted because of inadequacies or failings among the Christian clergy or worse, the intolerable thought that Islam was the true religion and that God was on the side of the Muslims. So much easier, then, to say that people were converted because they had no choice or rather that the choice was between conversion and death. In this paper I want to consider the role that violence and armed might played in the spread of Islam in the central Middle East between the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632and about the year 1000. By the central Middle East I mean the lands between Egypt in the west and Iran in the east. All these lands, Iraq, Syria, Palestine, Egypt and Iran were conquered in the years between 632 and 650. It was an astonishing series of campaigns and victories, campaigns and victories which have affected the history of the area ever since. If we want to abandon cliché and take this discussion further, we must start off with the Quran and ask what the Muslim sacred text says about conversion and violence. The Quran contains a number of passages instructing the Muslims as to how they should relate to the unbelievers and the different passages seem to give very mixed messages. There are a group of verses which recommend peaceful argument and discussion with the non-Muslims in order to convince them of the error of their ways. 16:125, for example, exhorts the Muslims to “Invite all to the way of your Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching: and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: For your Lord knows best who has strayed from His path, and who receives guidance”. A number of verses suggest that at least some Muslims were very reluctant to join military expeditions and they are rebuked for staying at home and doing nothing when they should have been fighting “ in the path of God”. The number and urgency of these exhortations suggests that there was a quietist group among the early Muslims who were, for whatever reason, reluctant to fight aggressive wars for their new religion. In some passages those who do not fight are shown to be missing out on the temporal benefits of victory as well as rewards in the life to come. Sura 4:72-4, makes it clear to them“ Among you is he who tarries behind, and if disaster overtook you [the Muslim force], he would say “God has been gracious unto me since I was not present with them”. And if bounty from Godbefell you, he would surely cry, as if there had been no friendship between you and him: “Oh, would that I had been with them, then I would have achieved a great success. Let those fight inthe path of God who sell the life of this world for the other. Whoever fights in the path of God, whether he be killed or be victorious, on him shall We bestow a great reward” Other verses stress only the spiritual rewards Sura 9: 38-9 for example, reads, “Obelievers! What is the matter with you that when it is said to you, “March out in the path of God” you are weighed down to the ground. Are you satisfied with the life of this world over the Hereafter? The enjoyment of the life of this world is but little when compared with the life of the Hereafter. If you do not march forth, He will afflict you with a painful punishment, and will substitute another people instead of you. You cannot harm Him at all, but God has power over everything”. Here we find the idea, expressed in so many pious conquest narratives, that there wards of the afterlife were, or at least should be, the motivating factor for the Muslim warrior.There are also passages which suggest a much more militant and violent attitude to nonMuslims. The classic statement of these views in the Qur’an comes in Qur’an 9:5 “When the sacred months are past [in which a truce had been in force between the Muslims and their enemies], kill the idolators wherever you find them, and seize them, besiege them and lie in waitfor them in every place of ambush; but if they repent, pray regularly and give the alms tax, then let them go their way, for God is forgiving, merciful”. This verse can almost be considered the foundation text for the Muslim conquests and its terms are echoed in numerous accounts of the surrender of towns and countries to Muslim arms. It is somewhat tempered by other verses suchas 9.29 “Fight those who do not believe in God or the Last Day, and who do not forbid what hasbeen forbidden by God and His Messenger [Muhammad], and those among the People of the Book who do not acknowledge the religion of truth until they pay tribute [jizya], after they have been brought low”. This verse, and others like it, make it clear that the People of the Book (that isChristian and Jews who have revealed scriptures) should be spared as long as they pay tribute and acknowledge their position as second class citizens.Muslim scholars trying to reconcile these apparently contradictory statements claimed that the earlier, more pacific passages were abrogated or replaced by the later ones. The militant verses, especially 9:5 cited above therefore represent to final Muslim view on Holy War. However, it would be wrong to imagine that the argument was cut and dried at the time of the early Muslim conquests and it was not until almost two hundred years after the death of the Prophet that the definition of jihād began to be formalized by such scholars as Abd Allāh b.Mubārak (d. 797)1. Quran certainly provided scriptural support for the idea that Muslims could and should fight the unbelievers, but at no point does it suggest that they should be presented with the alternative of conversion or death. The alternatives are conversion, submission and the payment of taxes or continuing war. Some, like the distinguished Syria jurist Sufyan al-Thawri (d. 778) argued that violent jihad could only be justified if it was defensive. Many later ascetics and mystics argued that there were two sorts of jihad, the lesser jihad which involved military force against the unbelievers and the greater jihad which was the internal struggle every good Muslim conducted with his own impious and unworthy thoughts and deeds.
The nature of the early Muslim conquests in the Middle East made forcible conversional most impossible. The Muslim armies were comparatively small, between ten and twenty thousand are possible estimates for the numbers in the armies which conquered Syria and Iraq, probably fewer in Egypt and Iran. To be sure, more Arab Muslims emigrated from Arabia to settle in the newly conquered areas but even so the Arab Muslims were a small minority, perhaps10% of the population of Egypt and perhaps 20% of the most densely settled area, Iraq. In these circumstances, forcing unwilling people to convert was out of the question. According to the traditional accounts, much of the Arab conquests was achieved by treaty and we have texts of many of these agreement. Here, for example is the treaty that was made by the Caliph Umar with Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, probably 638:“In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate. This is the assurance of safety(amān) which the servant of God Umar, the Commander of the Faithful, has given to the people of Jerusalem.. He has given them an assurance of safety for themselves, for their property, their churches, their crosses, the sick and healthy of the city and for all the rituals which belong to their religion. Their churches will not be inhabited by Muslims and will not be destroyed. Neither they, nor the land on which they stand, nor their cross, nor their property will be damaged. They will not be forcibly converted. No Jew will live with them in Jerusalem. The people of Jerusalem must pay the poll-tax like the people of other cities and must expel the Byzantines and the robbers. Those of the people of Jerusalem who want to leave with the Byzantines, take their property and abandon their churches and crosses will be safe until the reach their place of refuge. The villagers (ahl al-ar ) (who had taken refuge in the city at the time of the conquest) may remain in the city if they wish but must pay taxes like the citizens.
Retaining its emphasis on an uncompromising monotheism and a strict adherence to certain essential religious practices, the religion taught by Muhammad to a small group of followers spread rapidly through the Middle East to Africa, Europe, the Indian subcontinent, the Malay Peninsula, and China. By the early 21st century there were more than 1.5 billion Muslims worldwide. Although many sectarian movements have arisen within Islam, all Muslims are bound by a common faith and a sense of belonging to a single community. This article deals with the fundamental beliefs and practices of Islam and with the connection of religion and society in the Islamic world. The history of the various peoples who embraced Islam is covered in the article Islamic world.
From the very beginning of Islam, Muhammad had inculcated a sense of brotherhood and a bond of faith among his followers, both of which helped to develop among them a feeling of close relationship that was accentuated by their experiences of persecution as a nascent community in Mecca. The strong attachment to the tenets of the Qurʾānic revelation and the conspicuous socioeconomic content of Islamic religious practices cemented this bond of faith. In 622 CE, when the Prophet migrated to Medina, his preaching was soon accepted, and the community-state of Islam emerged. During this early period, Islam acquired its characteristic ethos as a religion uniting in itself both the spiritual and temporal aspects of life and seeking to regulate not only the individual’s relationship to God (through conscience) but human relationships in a social setting as well. Thus, there is not only an Islamic religious institution but also an Islamic law, state, and other institutions governing society. Not until the 20th century were the religious (private) and the secular (public) distinguished by some Muslim thinkers.
Followers of Islam aim to live a life of complete submission to Allah. They believe that nothing can happen without Allah’s permission, but humans have free will. Islam teaches that Allah’s word was revealed to the prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel.
Muslims believe several prophets were sent to teach Allah’s law. They respect some of the same prophets as Jews and Christians, including Abraham, Moses, Noah and Jesus. Muslims contend that Muhammad was the final prophet. Mosques are places where Muslims worship.
Some important Islamic holy places include the Kaaba shrine in Mecca, the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, and the Prophet Muhammad’s mosque in Medina. The Quran (or Koran) is the major holy text of Islam. The Hadith is another important book. Muslims also revere some material found in the Judeo-Christian Bible.
Followers worship Allah by praying and reciting the Quran. They believe there will be a day of judgment, and life after death. A central idea in Islam is “jihad,” which means “struggle.” While the term has been used negatively in mainstream culture, Muslims believe it refers to internal and external efforts to defend their faith. Although rare, this can include military jihad if a “just war” is needed. The prophet Muhammad, sometimes spelled Mohammed or Mohammad, was born in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, in A.D. 570. Muslims believe he was the final prophet sent by God to reveal their faith to mankind. According to Islamic texts and tradition, an angel named Gabriel visited Muhammad in 610 while he was meditating in a cave. The angel ordered Muhammad to recite the words of Allah. Muslims believe that Muhammad continued to receive revelations from Allah throughout the rest of his life. Starting in about 613, Muhammad began preaching throughout Mecca the messages he received. He taught that there was no other God but Allah and that Muslims should devote their lives to this God.
Hijra, Abu Bakr
In 622, Muhammad traveled from Mecca to Medina with his supporters. This journey became known as the Hijra (also spelled Hegira or Hijrah), and marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar.
Some seven years later, Muhammad and his many followers returned to Mecca and conquered the region. He continued to preach until his death in 632.
Sunnis and Shiites
When Muhammad died, there was debate over who should replace him as leader. This led to a schism in Islam, and two major sects emerged: the Sunnis and the Shiites. Sunnis make up nearly 90 percent of Muslims worldwide. They accept that the first four caliphs were the true successors to Muhammad. Shiite Muslims believe that only the caliph Ali and his descendants are the real successors to Muhammad. They deny the legitimacy of the first three caliphs. Today, Shiite Muslims have a considerable presence in Iran, Iraq and Syria. After Muhammad’s passing, Islam began to spread rapidly. A series of leaders, known as caliphs, became successors to Muhammad. This system of leadership, which was run by a Muslim ruler, became known as a caliphate. The first caliph was Abu Bakr, Muhammad’s father-in-law and close friend. Abu Bakr died about two years after he was elected and was succeeded in 634 by Caliph Umar, another father-in-law of Muhammad.
Other Types of Islam
Other, smaller Muslim denominations within the Sunni and Shiite groups exist. Some of these include:
Wahhabi: This Sunni sect, made up of members of the Tameem tribe in Saudi Arabia, was founded in the 18th century. Followers observe an extremely strict interpretation of Islam that was taught by Muhammad bin Abd al-Wahhab.
Alawite: This Shiite form of Islam is prevalent in Syria. Followers hold similar beliefs about the caliph Ali but also observe some Christian and Zoroastrian holidays.
Nation of Islam: This primarily Black, Sunni sect was founded in the 1930s in Detroit, Michigan. Black Muslims now comprise one-fifth of all Muslims in the United States.
Sufism: A mystical denomination of Islam, those who follow the Sufi faith seek to attain a purer state of existence through their personal and direct relationship with God.
Kharijites: This sect broke from the Shiites after disagreeing over how to select a new leader. They are known for radical fundamentalism, and today are called Ibadis.
The Quran (sometimes spelled Qur’an or Koran) is considered the most important holy book among Muslims. It contains some basic information that is found in the Hebrew Bible as well as revelations that were given to Muhammad. The text is considered the sacred word of God and supercedes any previous writings. Most Muslims believe that Muhammad’s scribes wrote down his words, which became the Quran. (Muhammad himself was never taught to read or write.) The book is written with Allah as the first person, speaking through Gabriel to Muhammad. It contains 114 chapters, which are called surahs. Scholars believe the Quran was compiled shortly after Muhammad’s death, under the guidance of Caliph Abu Bakr.
Major Muslim’s Beliefs :
Belief in the Oneness of God: Muslims believe that God is the creator of all things, and that God is all-powerful and all-knowing. God has no offspring, no race, no gender, no body, and is unaffected by the characteristics of human life.
Belief in the Angels of God: Muslims believe in angels, unseen beings who worship God and carry out God’s orders throughout the universe. The angel Gabriel brought the divine revelation to the prophets.
Belief in the Books of God: Muslims believe that God revealed holy books or scriptures to a number of God’s messengers. These include the Quran (given to Muhammad), the Torah (given to Moses), the Gospel (given to Jesus), the Psalms (given to David), and the Scrolls (given to Abraham). Muslims believe that these earlier scriptures in their original form were divinely revealed, but that only the Quran remains as it was first revealed to the prophet Muhammad.
Belief in the Prophets or Messengers of God: Muslims believe that God’s guidance has been revealed to humankind through specially appointed messengers, or prophets, throughout history, beginning with the first man, Adam, who is considered the first prophet. Twenty-five of these prophets are mentioned by name in the Quran, including Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. Muslims believe that Muhammad is the last in this line of prophets, sent for all humankind with the message of Islam.
Belief in the Day of Judgment: Muslims believe that on the Day of Judgment, humans will be judged for their actions in this life; those who followed God’s guidance will be rewarded with paradise; those who rejected God’s guidance will be punished with hell.
Belief in the Divine Decree: This article of faith addresses the question of God’s will. It can be expressed as the belief that everything is governed by divine decree, namely that whatever happens in one’s life is preordained, and that believers should respond to the good or bad that befalls them with thankfulness or patience. This concept does not negate the concept of “free will;” since humans do not have prior knowledge of God’s decree, they do have freedom of choice.
Difference between sunni and shia:
Sunni Muslims believe that the Prophet did not explicitly declare a successor. Shia Muslims believe that the Prophet publicly designated his cousin and son-in-law, Hazrat Ali (peace be upon him), as the first in a line of hereditary Imams from the Prophet’s family to lead the community after him.
The primary difference between them lies in their beliefs regarding the rightful successor to Prophet Muhammad. While Sunnis believe that the caliphate should be chosen by consensus, Shias believe that it should be passed down through Prophet Muhammad’s bloodline, specifically through his cousin Ali and his descendants. Here’s a primer on the differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims.
In terms of religious belief and practice there are more similarities than differences between Sunni and Shi‘a Muslims and the idea that Sunnis and Shi’as have been in perpetual conflict is historically inaccurate. Sunni-Shi‘a differences are often blamed for increased tensions and violence among Muslims in the Middle East and elsewhere, but in terms of belief and practice the two have much in common. In countries where Sunni and Shi‘a population share fairly evenly balanced, they tend to accept one another and live together peacefully. In countries where one group predominates and holds power tensions tend to be greater with the minority population stigmatized and sometimes subject to violence or terror attacks. Geo-political conflict in the country or wider region rather than ideological differences lie behind these disputes. In some countries, sectarian conflicts are more likely to occur between different Sunni groups than between Sunnis and Shi‘as.
In terms of religious belief and practice there are more similarities than differences between Sunni and Shi‘a Muslims. Shi‘ism should not be thought of as a later branch or off-shoot of Sunni Islam. The two traditions have their origins in a dispute following the death of the Prophet in 632 about who should succeed him and have authority among Muslims. The idea that Sunnis and Shi‘as have been in perpetual conflict since this dispute is historically inaccurate.• Sunni Islam and Shi‘ism only assumed their current forms in the ninth century, after the collection of the Prophet’s sayings (Hadith) and the end of the line of Shi’a Imams. Although Shi‘a Muslims only constitute between 10% and 13% of the global Muslim population, they form the majority in five countries: Iran, Bahrain, Azerbaijan, Iraq and Lebanon. Recent conflicts between Sunnis and Shi‘as in the Middle East have arisen from political rather than religious differences, although these have had an ideological component.
Islamic views-2
Prophet Muhammad and Islam :
A man meditating alone in a cave near Mecca received a religious vision. This vision laid the foundations for a new religion. The year was 610 and the man’s name was Muhammad. And the belief system that arose from Muhammad’s ideas became the basis of one of the world’s most widely practiced religions: Islam. Muhammad was born around 570 in the city of Mecca, located on the Arabian Peninsula. Both of his parents died before Muhammad was six and he was raised by his grandfather and uncle. His family belonged to a poor clan that was active in Mecca politics.
The rise of Islam is intrinsically linked with the Prophet Muhammad, believed by Muslims to be the last in a long line of prophets that includes Moses and Jesus. Because Muhammad was the chosen recipient and messenger of the word of God through the divine revelations, Muslims from all walks of life strive to follow his example. After the holy Qur’an, the sayings of the Prophet (hadith) and descriptions of his way of life (sunna) are the most important Muslim texts. Muhammad was born into the most powerful tribe in Mecca, the Quraish, around 570 A.D. The power of the Quraish derived from their role as successful merchants. Several trade routes intersected at Mecca, allowing the Quraish to control trade along the west coast of Arabia, north to Syria, and south to Yemen. Mecca was home to two widely venerated polytheistic cults whose gods were thought to protect its lucrative trade. After working for several years as a merchant, Muhammad was hired by Khadija, a wealthy widow, to ensure the safe passage of her caravans to Syria. They eventually married. When he was roughly forty, Muhammad began having visions and hearing voices. Searching for clarity, he would sometimes meditate at Mount Hira, near Mecca. On one of these occasions, the Archangel Gabriel (Jibra’il in Arabic) appeared to him and instructed him to recite “in the name of [your] lord.” This was the first of many revelations that became the basis of the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam. These early revelations pointed to the existence of a single God, contradicting the polytheistic beliefs of the pre-Islamic Arabian Peninsula. Initially overwhelmed by the significance of what was being revealed to him, Muhammad found unflinching support in his wife and slowly began to attract followers. His strong monotheistic message angered many of the Meccan merchants. They were afraid that trade, which they believed was protected by the pagan gods, would suffer. From that point forward, Muhammad was ostracized in Mecca. For a time, the influence and status of his wife and his uncle, Abu Talib, the chief of the clan, protected Muhammad from persecution. After they died, however, Muhammad’s situation in Mecca became dire. Emigration became the only hope for Muhammad and his followers’ survival. In 622, they headed to Medina, another oasis town, where they were promised freedom to practice their religion. The move from Mecca to Medina is known as the hijra—the flight—and marks year 1 of the Islamic, or hijri, calendar. In Medina, Muhammad continued to receive divine revelations and built an ever-expanding community around the new faith. The conflict with the Quraish continued, but after several years of violent clashes, Mecca surrendered. Muhammad and his followers soon returned and took over the city, destroying all its pagan idols and spreading their belief in one God.
While meditating in a cave on Mount Hira, Muhammad had a revelation. He came to believe that he was called on by God to be a prophet and teacher of a new faith, Islam, which means literally “submission.” This new faith incorporated aspects of Judaism and Christianity. It respected the holy books of these religions and its great leaders and prophets — Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and others. Muhammad called Abraham “Khalil” (“God’s friend”) and identified him as Islam’s ancient patriarch. Islam traces its heritage through Abraham’s son Ishmael. Muhammad believed that he himself was God’s final prophet.
In Medina, the local people welcomed Muhammad and his followers. There, Muhammad built the first mosque, or Islamic temple, and began to work to separate Islam from Judaism and Christianity, which had originally influenced him. Whereas his followers had originally prayed while facing toward Jerusalem, he now had them face toward Mecca. Muhammad continued to have revelations from Allah. The ideas from these revelations formed the basis of a poetic text called the Koran, which contains the fundamental ideas of Islam.
Muhammad fought a number of battles against the people of Mecca. In 629, Muhammad returned to Mecca with an army of 1500 converts to Islam and entered the city unopposed and without bloodshed. Before his death two years later, he forcefully converted most of the Arabian Peninsula to his new faith and built a small empire.
Unfortunately, Muhammad had not designated a successor. The struggle over leadership that followed his death has divided Muslims to this day, creating a division in Islam between the Sunnis and Shiites. Despite these problems, a vast Islamic empire was created over the next 12 centuries that would build a base of worshipers unrivaled by any other religion.
Muhammad died at the age of sixty-two. He never claimed to be a god or anything other than a mere mortal. His tomb is located in Medina, the City of the Prophet. No provision was made to continue Muhammad’s work after he died. One division thought his successor should be a blood relative. This division led to the Shia (or Shi’ite) branch of Islam, which makes up about 15 percent of Muslims. Others felt that the successor should be a worthy follower and did not need to be a blood relative. This branch became known as Sunni, which makes up about 84 percent of Muslims.
Prophet muhammad islamic dream interpretation
Prophet (pbuh) said, “A good vision (ru’ya) is from Allāh and a bad dream (hulm) is from Satan; so if one of you sees anything (in a dream which he dislikes), he should spit on his left side thrice and seek refuge with Allāh from its evil, and then it will never harm him” (Sahih al-Bukhari, 3118).In addition, the Qur’an describes the dream stories of Prophet Yūsuf (Joseph) (pbuh), and these passages provide some of the most important references to dream interpretation used by Muslim scholars. The Qur’an further describes the Prophet Abraham receiving a dream, in which he is instructed to sacrifice his son, and Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) dreaming on the night before a battle.[2] Dream interpretation, or oneiromancy, has become an established science in Muslim literature. Muslims use the Arabic terms Tabir or Tafsir to describe dream interpretation. The most famous dream interpreter in Islamic history is Ibn Sirin (653-728 C.E.).[25,26] Ibn Sirin’s system for dream interpretation reflects the fact that both the Qur’an and Hadith teach Muslims to respect the spiritual and psychological significance of the dream experience. Ibn Sirin thought that the interpretation of the content of a dream depends on the personal characteristics and life circumstances of the dreamer, as well as on the meaning of the dream itself.[25] Ibn Khaldūn (1332-1402 C.E.), a great Muslim scholar and thinker, considered dream interpretation to be a science.[27] In his monumental work Muqaddimah (An Introduction to History), he divided dreams into three types: first, those from God (Allāh): dreams that are clear and unmistakable in their meaning and content. Second, those from Angels: dreams that are received in the form of allegory and require interpretation.
What is Prophet Muhammad’s story :
Prophet Muhammad was the prophet and founder of Islam. Most of his early life was spent as a merchant. At age 40, he began to have revelations from Allah that became the basis for the Koran and the foundation of Islam. By 630 he had unified most of Arabia under a single religion.
Prophet Muhammad was born in approximately 570 CE in Mecca. He was the son of Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb. His father, Abdullah, the son of Quraysh tribal leader Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim, died a few months before Muhammad’s birth. His mother Amina died when he was six, leaving Muhammad an orphan.As Muhammad (peace be upon him) was growing into a young adult the community started to take notice of him. He built a good reputation for himself as he would tend sheep for the people of Makkah, safeguard their possessions, speak the truth, be reserved in his demeanor, and use sound judgement. Well before prophethood he was the best of his people in character and in attitude. He was known for being generous, patient, truthful, and sincere. The people of Makkah admired his noble character and gave him the title al-Ameen (the trustworthy). He later found employment with a successful merchant in Makkah by the name of Khadija. She had a reputation for being a savvy businessperson. He became one of Khadija’s agents and would travel on behalf of her to do business in Syria. Khadija was very impressed with his good character, honesty, and sincerity. Khadija would eventually take an interest in him, and not long after the two would get married. Muhammad (peace be upon him) married Khadija at the age of 25.
Prophet muhammad wives are 11 :Khadijah was the first wife of Prophet Muhammad, whom she met as a widow of a wealthy merchant but had become prosperous in her own right. She hired Muhammad as a business agent but soon came to see him as a suitable husband. According to most sources she was about 40 and Muhammad about 25 when they married. Khadijah bore him six children, including two sons who died in infancy. She gave Muhammad support and encouragement when he received his first revelations and remained loyal to him when many prominent Makkans began to oppose him. While she lived, Muhammad took no other wives. He loved, missed and remembered Khadijah for the rest of his life.Sawdah bint Zam’aAfter a marriage of twenty-five years the Prophet’s first wife, Khadijah passed away. He was left alone to raise a small family and found that he could not devote enough time to calling the people to Islam so he decided to marry again. He chose a widow named Sawdah bint Zam’a. Sawdah and her first husband were amongst the very early converts to Islam who immigrated to Abyssinia. Her husband passed away in exile and she was left a poor widow with small children. Prophet Muhammad sought approval for their marriage from Sawdah’s non-Muslim parents. The parents agreed and then directed him to seek approval from Sawdah herself. With this union, Sawdah’s and the Prophet’s households merged and the Prophet had more time to carry out the prophetic mission. They were married for three years before Prophet took another wife. Sawdah had the great honor of being an immigrant for the sake of Islam on two occasions, to Abyssinia and then to Medina. She was the first of a number of widows the Prophet married. Sawdah had a reputation for being a kind, charitable and jovial woman.Aishah bint Abu BakrAishah was the daughter of Abu Bakr, one of Prophet Muhammad’s closest friends and supporters. Her betrothal to him at a young age fortified that relationship. Aishah was raised as a Muslim while most of the close companions were converts to Islam. After marriage she and the Prophet became extremely close and many ahadith attest to this fact. She was his beloved wife and an extremely intelligent scholar of Islam. She is credited with narrating more than 2000 ahadith and became noted for her sharp intelligence, love of learning and impeccable judgment. Aishah was one of only three of Prophet Muhammad’s wives who memorized the entire Quran. Among her notable attainments were that she was the only wife that was with the Prophet when he received revelation and it was in Aishah’s arms that the Prophet died. Aishah was widowed at the age of 18 or 19 years old and went on to teach and play a significant role in the dissemination of Islam for more than 40 years.Hafsah bint Umar ibn Al-KhattabProphet Muhammad’s fourth wife was Hafsah, the daughter of one of Prophet Muhammad’s closest confidantes, Umar ibn Al-Khattab. Their marriage was an astute political alliance. Hafsah had been married at a young age and participated in the migrations to both Abyssinia and Medina. Sadly she was widowed when only eighteen years old but she then had the honor of marrying Prophet Muhammad and linking the Al-Khattab family with the Prophet’s family. Hafsah and Aishah were the youngest of Prophet Muhammad’s wives and both had similar personalities; they were strong, determined women and for the most part seemed to get on well. Hafsah was able to both read and write and, like Aishah, memorized the entire Quran. She was both pious and intelligent and would spend hours pondering over the verses of the Quran. It was Hafsah who had the great honor of being the custodian of the first Mushaf which came into her possession after the death of her father. Hafsah was married to the Prophet for eight years, and after his death she lived for another thirty four years.Zaynab bint KhuzaymahZaynab was the first of Prophet Muhammad’s wives that did not come from the tribe of Quraish. She died less than one year after her marriage and as a consequence very little is known about her. Before this marriage she had earned the title of Mother of the Poor due to her work with the poor and her generosity to them. There is some dispute about how many times Zaynab was widowed before her marriage to Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him. However her last husband died in battle and her marriage to Prophet Muhammad set a precedent for others to follow. Muslim men no longer feared that their deaths in battle would mean starvation and neglect for their families. It became honorable to marry the widows of the deceasedUmm Salamah bint Abu UmayyahUmm Salamah married Prophet Muhammad at the age of twenty nine, after her first husband died from the wounds he received while fighting in the battle of Uhud. Umm Salamah and her husband were part of the migration to Abyssinia. Her life was filled with examples of patience in the face of trials and tribulations. She and her husband were among the first to leave Mecca bound for Medina when she was forced to endure separation from her husband and the abduction of her son. At the death of her husband she made du’a to Allah: “O Lord, reward me for my affliction and give me something better than it in return, which only You, the Exalted and Mighty, can give.” Marriage to the Prophet of Allah answered that du’a. Umm Salamah narrated more than 300 hadiths, many of them concerning women. She accompanied the Prophet on many of his expeditions and was married to him for seven years until his death. Umm Salamah outlived all the other wives and died at the age of eighty four.Juwayriyah bint al-HaarithJuwayriyah came to the Prophet’s attention when she was captured in the battle against the tribe Banu Mustaliq. She was the 20 years old daughter of the chief of Banu Mustaliq and her marriage brought about an alignment between her tribe and the Muslims.When Prophet Muhammad married Juwayriyah it allowed the tribe to enter Islam with honor by removing the humiliation of their defeat. As soon as the marriage was announced, all the war booty that had been taken from Banu Mustaliq was returned, and all the captives were set free. Juwayriyah was married to the Prophet for six years, and lived for another thirty-nine years after his death. She died at the age of sixty-five.Zaynab bint JahshZaynab, a young girl from the noble line of Quraish was once married to Prophet Muhammad’s freed slave and adopted son Zayd, a man who was very close to the Prophet. Like all young girls brought up in relative luxury she had very high expectations for marriage and Zayd did not fit the description of the man she had in mind. However to please the Prophet her family allowed the marriage to take place. Their marriage was short lived and stormy and to please both of them, Prophet Muhammad allowed them to divorce. This caused a dilemma because divorce was frowned upon and left a woman in a difficult situation; as a way to please all parties including Zaynab’s family she was married to Prophet Muhammad. Verses in the Quran were revealed to deal with this matter and by marrying Zaynab, Prophet Muhammad demonstrated that in Islam an adopted son is not the same as a natural son. Zaynab joined the growing family of Muhammad and was known for her generosity and charitable works. She died at the age of fifty.Umm Habibah bint Abu SufyanRamlah, also known as Umm Habibah was the daughter of Abu Sufyan a leader of the Quraish and at that stage an enemy of Islam. She declared her faith without fear of the consequences to herself and she held fast to her faith when she was severely tested. After converting to Islam and suffering persistent oppression, Umm Habibah and her husband joined the migration to Abyssinia. Her husband died thereafter. She was alone is a strange country with a young daughter and no visible means of support. When the Prophet heard of her predicament he offered to marry her. She accepted. The king of Abyssinia, who had secretly converted to Islam and was a good friend to the fledgling Muslim community, provided her mahr and witnessed the marriage contract. It was some years before she was able to join her husband in Medina. She was married to Prophet Muhammad for four years until he passed away.Safiyyah bint Huyayy ibn AkhtabSafiyyah was born in Madinah to Huyayy ibn Akhtab, the chief of the Jewish tribe Banu Nadir. Banu Nadir had been expelled from Madinah and settled at Khaybar. In 629 CE, the Muslims were victorious at the Battle of Khaybar and Safiyyah was taken captive. Muhammad suggested that Safiyyah convert to Islam, she agreed, and become Muhammad’s wife. Despite her conversion, Muhammad’s other wives teased Safiyyah about her Jewish origin. Prophet Muhammad once said to his wife: Safiyyah was twenty-one years old when the Prophet died. She lived for another 39 years, passing away in Medina at the age of 60.Maymunah bint al-HaarithMaymunah, or Barra as she was then called, yearned to marry the Prophet and offered herself to him in marriage. He accepted. Maymunah lived with the Prophet for just over three years, until his death. She was very good natured and her nephew, Ibn Abbas, who later became the greatest scholar of the Quran, learned much from her knowledge
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