A Quick Introduction To Islam
Daniel Masters, Isma'il Kaka and AbdurRahman R. Squires
The
word "Islam" is an Arabic word which means "submission to the will of God". This word comes from the
same root as the Arabic word "salam", which means
"peace". As such, the religion of Islam teaches that
in order to achieve true peace of mind and surety of heart, one must submit to
God and live according to His Divinely revealed Law. The most important truth
that God revealed to mankind is that there is nothing divine or worthy of being
worshipped except for Almighty God, thus all human beings should submit to
Him.
The
word "Muslim" means one who submits to the will of
God, regardless of their race, nationality or ethnic background. Being a Muslim
entails willful submission and active obedience to God, and living in
accordance with His message. Some people mistakenly believe that Islam is just
a religion for Arabs, but nothing could be further from the truth. Not only are
there converts to Islam in every corner of the world, especially in England and
America, but by taking a look at the Muslim World from Bosnia to Nigeria, and
from Indonesia to Morocco, one can clearly see that Muslims come from many
various races, ethnic groups and nationalities. It is also interesting to note
that in actuality, more than 80% of all Muslims are not Arabs - there are more
Muslims in Indonesia than in the whole Arab World! So though even though it is
true that most Arabs are Muslims, the large majority of Muslims are not Arabs.
However, anyone who submits completely to God and worships Him alone is a
Muslim.
Continuity of the Message:
Islam is not a new religion because "submission to the will of
God", i.e. Islam, has always been the only acceptable religion in the
sight of God. For this reason, Islam is the true "natural
religion", and it is the same eternal message revealed through the ages
to all of God's prophets and messengers. Muslims believe that all of God's
prophets, which include Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, brought the
same message of Pure Monotheism. For this reason, the Prophet Muhammad was not
the founder of a new religion, as many people mistakenly think, but he was the
Final Prophet of Islam. By revealing His final message to Muhammad, which is an
eternal and universal message for all of mankind, God finally fulfilled the
covenant that He made with Abraham, who was one of the earliest and greatest
prophets. Suffice it to say that the way of Islam is the same as the way of the
prophet Abraham, because both the Bible and the Qur'an portray Abraham as a
towering example of someone who submitted himself completely to God and
worshipped Him without intermediaries. Once this is realized, it should be
clear that Islam has the most continuous and universal message of any religion,
because all prophets and messengers were "Muslims",
i.e. those who submitted to God's will, and they preached "Islam", i.e. submission to the will of Almighty
God.
The Oneness of God:
The foundation of the Islamic faith is belief in the Oneness of Almighty God - the
God of Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus. Islam teaches that a pure belief in One
God is intuitive in human beings and thus fulfills the natural inclination of
the soul. As such, Islam's concept of God is straightforward, unambiguous and
easy to understand. Islam teaches that the hearts, minds and souls of human
beings are fitting receptacles for clear divine revelation, and that God's
revelations to man are not clouded by self-contradictory mysteries or
irrational ideas. As such, Islam teaches that even though God cannot be fully
comprehended and grasped by our finite human minds, He also does not expect us
to accept absurd or demonstrably false beliefs about Him. According to the
teachings of Islam, Almighty God is absolutely One and His Oneness should never
be compromised by associating partners with Him - neither in worship nor in
belief. Due to this, Muslims are required to maintain
a direct relationship with God, and therefore all intermediaries are absolutely
forbidden. From the Islamic standpoint, believing in the Oneness of God means
to realize that all prayer and worship should be exclusively for God, and that
He alone deserves such titles as "Lord" and "Savior". Some religions, even though they believe on "One God", do not make all of their worship and prayers for
Him alone. Also, they also give the title of "Lord"
to beings that are not All-Knowing, All-Powerful and Un-Changing - even
according to their own scriptures. Suffice it to say that according to Islam,
it is not enough that people believe that "God is
One", but they must actualize this belief by proper conduct. In short,
in the Islamic concept of God, which is completely based on Divine Revelation,
there is no ambiguity in divinity - God is God and man is man. Since God is the
only Creator and continual Sustainer of the Universe, He is transcendent above
His creation - the Creator and the creature never mix. Islam teaches that God
has a unique nature and that He is free from gender, human weaknesses and
beyond anything which human beings can imagine. The Qur'an teaches that the
signs and proofs of God's wisdom, power and existence are evident in the world
around us. As such, God calls on man to ponder over the creation in order to
build a better understanding of his Creator. Muslims believe that God is
Loving, Compassionate and Merciful, and that He is concerned with the daily
affairs of human beings. In this, Islam strikes a unique balance between false
religious and philosophical extremes. Some religions and philosophies portray
God as just an impersonal "Higher Power" who is
uninterested, or unaware, of the life of each individual human. Other religions
tend to give God human qualities and teach that He is present in His creation,
by being incarnate in someone, something - or even everything. In Islam,
however, Almighty God has clarified the truth by letting mankind know that He
is "Compassionate", "Merciful", "Loving" and the
"Answerer of Prayers". But He as also emphasized
strongly that "there is nothing like unto Him", and
that He is high above time, space and His creation. Finally, it should be
mentioned that the God that Muslims worship is the same God that Jews and
Christians worship - because there is only one God. It is unfortunate that some
people mistakenly believe that Muslims worship a different God than Jews and
Christians, and that "Allah" is just the "god
of the Arabs". This myth, which has been propagated by the enemies of
Islam, is completely false since the word "Allah" is
simply the Arabic name for Almighty God. It is the same word for God which is
used by Arabic-speaking Jews and Christians. However, it should be clarified
that even though Muslims worship the same God as Jews and Christian, their
concept of Him differs somewhat from the beliefs of other religions - mainly
because it is based completely on Divine Revelation from God. For example,
Muslims reject the Christian belief that God is a Trinity, not only becaue the
Qur'an rejects it, but also because if this was God's true nature, He would
have clearly revealed it to Abraham, Noah, Jesus and all of the other
prophets.
The Qur'an:
The Arabic world "Al-Qur'an" literally means "the
recitation". When used in regards to Islam, the word Qur'an means God's
final message to mankind that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. The Qu'ran,
sometimes spelled Koran, is the literal the word of
God - as it clearly says time and time again. Unlike other sacred scriptures,
the Qur'an has been perfectly preserved in both its words and meaning in a
living language. The Qu'ran is a living miracle in the Arabic language; and is
know to be inimitable in its style, form and spiritual impact. God's final
revelation to mankind, the Qur'an, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad over a
period of 23 years. The Qur'an, in contrast to many other religious books, was
always thought to be the Word of God by those who believed in it, i.e. it
wasn't something decreed by a religious council many years after being written.
Also, the Qu'ran was recited publicly in front of both the Muslim and
non-Muslim communities during the life of the Prophet Muhammad. The entire
Qur'an was also completely written down in lifetime of the Prophet, and
numerous companions of the Prophet memorized the entire Qur'an word-for-word as
it was revealed. So unlike other scriptures, the Qur'an was always in the hands
of the common believers, it was always thought to be God's word and, due to
wide-spread memorization, it was perfectly preserved. In regards to the
teachings of the Qur'an - it is a universal scripture, and it is addressed to
all of mankind, and not to a particular tribe or "chosen
people". The message that it brings is nothing new, but the same message
of all of the prophets - submit to Almighty God and worship
Him alone. As such, God's revelation in the Qur'an focuses on teaching
human beings the importance of believing in the Unity of God and framing their
lives around the guidance which He has sent. Additionally, the Qur'an contains
the stories of the previous prophets, such as Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus;
as well as many commands and prohibitions from God. In modern times in which so
many people are caught up in doubt, spiritual despair and "political correctness", the Qur'anic teachings offer
solutions to the emptiness of our lives and the turmoil that is gripping the
world today. In short, the Qur'an is the book of guidance par excellence.
The Prophet Muhammad :
Unlike the founders of many religious, the final prophet of Islam is a real documented
and historical figure. He lived in the full light of history, and the most
minute details of his life are known. Not only do Muslims have the complete
text of God's words that were revealed to Muhammad, but they have also
preserved his saying and teachings in what is called "hadith" literature. This having been said, it should be
understood that Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad was only a man chosen
by God, and that he is not divine in any way. In order to avoid the misguided
wish to deify him, the Prophet Muhammad taught Muslims to refer to him as "God's Messenger and His Slave". The mission of the last
and final prophet of God was to simply teach that "there is
nothing divine or worthy of being worshipped except for Almighty God",
as well as being a living example of God's revelation. In simple terms, God
sent the revelation to Muhammad, who in turn taught it , preached it, lived it
and put it into practice. In this way, Muhammad was more that just a "prophet" in the sense of many of the Biblical prophets,
since he was also a statesman and ruler. He was a man who lived a humble life
in the service of God, and established an all-encompassing religion and way of
life by showing what it means to be an ideal friend, husband, teacher, ruler,
warrior and judge. For this reason, Muslims follow him not for his own sake,
but in obedience to God, because Muhammad not only showed us how to deal with
our fellow human beings, but more importantly, he showed us how to relate to
and worship God, worship Him in the only way pleasing to Him. Like other
prophets, Muhammad faced a great deal of opposition and persecution during his
mission. However, he was always patient and just, and he treated his enemies
well. The results of his mission were very successful, and even though his
mission started in one of the most backward and remotes places on earth, within
a hundred years of the death of Muhammad, Islam had spread from Spain to China.
The Prophet Muhammad was the greatest of all of God's prophets, not because he
had new doctrines or greater miracles, but because the results of his mission
have broght more human beings into the pure and proper belief in the One True
God than any other prophet.
The Islamic Way of Life:
In the Holy Qur'an, God teaches human beings that they were created in order to
worship Him, and that the basis of all true worship is God-consciousness. Since
the teachings of Islamic encompass all aspects of life and ethics,
God-consciousness is encouraged in all human affairs. Islam makes it clear that
all human acts are acts of worship if they are done for God alone and in
accordance to His Divine Law. As such, worship in Islam is not limited to
religious rituals. The teachings of Islam act as a mercy and a healing for the
human soul, and such qualities as humility, sincerity, patience and charity are
strongly encouraged. Additionally, Islam condemns pride and self-righteousness,
since Almighty God is the only judge of human righteousness. The Islamic view
of the nature of man is also realistic and well-balanced. Human beings are not
believed to be inherently sinful, but are seen as equally capable of both good
and evil. Islam also teaches that faith and action go hand-in-hand. God has
given people free-will, and the measure of one's faith is one's deeds and
actions. However, human beings have also been created weak and regularly fall
into sin. This is the nature of the human being as created by God in His
Wisdom, and it is not inherently "corrupt" or in need
of repair. This is because the avenue of repentance of always open to all human
beings, and Almighty God loves the repentant sinner more than one who does not
sin at all. The true balance of an Islamic life is established by having a
healthy fear of God as well as a sincere belief in His infinite Mercy. A life
without fear of God leads to sin and disobedience, while believing that we have
sinned so much that God will not possibly forgive us only leads to despair. In
light of this, Islam teaches that: only the misguided
despair of the Mercy of their Lord. Additionally, the Holy Qur'an, which
was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, contains a great deal of teachings about
the life hereafter and the Day of Judgment. Due to this, Muslims believe that
all human beings will ultimately be judged by God for their beliefs and actions
in their earthly lives. In judging human beings, Almighty God will be both
Merciful and Just, and people will only be judged for what they were capable
of. Suffice it to say that Islam teaches that life is a test, and that all
human beings will be accountable before God. A sincere belief in the life
hereafter is key to leading a well-balanced life and moral. Otherwise, life is
viewed as an end in itself, which causes human beings to become more selfish,
materialistic and immoral.
Islam for a Better Life:
Islam
teaches that true happiness can only being obtained by living a life full of
God-consciousness and being satisfied with what God has given us. Additionally,
true "freedom" is freedom from being controlled by
our base human desires and being ruled by man-made ideologies. This stands in
stark contrast to the view of many people in the modern world, who consider
"freedom" to be the ability to satisfy all of their
desires without inhibition. The clear and comprehensive guidance of Islam gives
human-beings a well-defined purpose and direction in life. In addition to being
members of the human-brotherhood of Islam, its well-balanced and practical
teachings are a source of spiritual comfort, guidance and morality. A direct
and clear relationship with Almighty God, as well as the sense of purpose and
belonging that ones feels as a Muslim, frees a person from the many worries of
everyday life. In short, the Islamic way of life is pure and wholesome. It
builds self-discipline and self-control thought regular prayer and fasting, and
frees human-beings from superstition and all sorts of racial, ethnic and
national prejudices. By accepting to live a God-conscious life, and realizing
that the only thing that distinguishes people in the sight of God is their
consciousness of Him, a person's true human dignity is realized.
Read
more articles by the Authors at: http://www.muslim-answers.org
Daniel Masters, Isma'il Kaka and AbdurRahman R. Squires
The
word "Islam" is an Arabic word which means "submission to the will of God". This word comes from the
same root as the Arabic word "salam", which means
"peace". As such, the religion of Islam teaches that
in order to achieve true peace of mind and surety of heart, one must submit to
God and live according to His Divinely revealed Law. The most important truth
that God revealed to mankind is that there is nothing divine or worthy of being
worshipped except for Almighty God, thus all human beings should submit to
Him.
The
word "Muslim" means one who submits to the will of
God, regardless of their race, nationality or ethnic background. Being a Muslim
entails willful submission and active obedience to God, and living in
accordance with His message. Some people mistakenly believe that Islam is just
a religion for Arabs, but nothing could be further from the truth. Not only are
there converts to Islam in every corner of the world, especially in England and
America, but by taking a look at the Muslim World from Bosnia to Nigeria, and
from Indonesia to Morocco, one can clearly see that Muslims come from many
various races, ethnic groups and nationalities. It is also interesting to note
that in actuality, more than 80% of all Muslims are not Arabs - there are more
Muslims in Indonesia than in the whole Arab World! So though even though it is
true that most Arabs are Muslims, the large majority of Muslims are not Arabs.
However, anyone who submits completely to God and worships Him alone is a
Muslim.
Continuity of the Message:
Islam is not a new religion because "submission to the will of
God", i.e. Islam, has always been the only acceptable religion in the
sight of God. For this reason, Islam is the true "natural
religion", and it is the same eternal message revealed through the ages
to all of God's prophets and messengers. Muslims believe that all of God's
prophets, which include Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad, brought the
same message of Pure Monotheism. For this reason, the Prophet Muhammad was not
the founder of a new religion, as many people mistakenly think, but he was the
Final Prophet of Islam. By revealing His final message to Muhammad, which is an
eternal and universal message for all of mankind, God finally fulfilled the
covenant that He made with Abraham, who was one of the earliest and greatest
prophets. Suffice it to say that the way of Islam is the same as the way of the
prophet Abraham, because both the Bible and the Qur'an portray Abraham as a
towering example of someone who submitted himself completely to God and
worshipped Him without intermediaries. Once this is realized, it should be
clear that Islam has the most continuous and universal message of any religion,
because all prophets and messengers were "Muslims",
i.e. those who submitted to God's will, and they preached "Islam", i.e. submission to the will of Almighty
God.
The Oneness of God:
The foundation of the Islamic faith is belief in the Oneness of Almighty God - the
God of Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus. Islam teaches that a pure belief in One
God is intuitive in human beings and thus fulfills the natural inclination of
the soul. As such, Islam's concept of God is straightforward, unambiguous and
easy to understand. Islam teaches that the hearts, minds and souls of human
beings are fitting receptacles for clear divine revelation, and that God's
revelations to man are not clouded by self-contradictory mysteries or
irrational ideas. As such, Islam teaches that even though God cannot be fully
comprehended and grasped by our finite human minds, He also does not expect us
to accept absurd or demonstrably false beliefs about Him. According to the
teachings of Islam, Almighty God is absolutely One and His Oneness should never
be compromised by associating partners with Him - neither in worship nor in
belief. Due to this, Muslims are required to maintain
a direct relationship with God, and therefore all intermediaries are absolutely
forbidden. From the Islamic standpoint, believing in the Oneness of God means
to realize that all prayer and worship should be exclusively for God, and that
He alone deserves such titles as "Lord" and "Savior". Some religions, even though they believe on "One God", do not make all of their worship and prayers for
Him alone. Also, they also give the title of "Lord"
to beings that are not All-Knowing, All-Powerful and Un-Changing - even
according to their own scriptures. Suffice it to say that according to Islam,
it is not enough that people believe that "God is
One", but they must actualize this belief by proper conduct. In short,
in the Islamic concept of God, which is completely based on Divine Revelation,
there is no ambiguity in divinity - God is God and man is man. Since God is the
only Creator and continual Sustainer of the Universe, He is transcendent above
His creation - the Creator and the creature never mix. Islam teaches that God
has a unique nature and that He is free from gender, human weaknesses and
beyond anything which human beings can imagine. The Qur'an teaches that the
signs and proofs of God's wisdom, power and existence are evident in the world
around us. As such, God calls on man to ponder over the creation in order to
build a better understanding of his Creator. Muslims believe that God is
Loving, Compassionate and Merciful, and that He is concerned with the daily
affairs of human beings. In this, Islam strikes a unique balance between false
religious and philosophical extremes. Some religions and philosophies portray
God as just an impersonal "Higher Power" who is
uninterested, or unaware, of the life of each individual human. Other religions
tend to give God human qualities and teach that He is present in His creation,
by being incarnate in someone, something - or even everything. In Islam,
however, Almighty God has clarified the truth by letting mankind know that He
is "Compassionate", "Merciful", "Loving" and the
"Answerer of Prayers". But He as also emphasized
strongly that "there is nothing like unto Him", and
that He is high above time, space and His creation. Finally, it should be
mentioned that the God that Muslims worship is the same God that Jews and
Christians worship - because there is only one God. It is unfortunate that some
people mistakenly believe that Muslims worship a different God than Jews and
Christians, and that "Allah" is just the "god
of the Arabs". This myth, which has been propagated by the enemies of
Islam, is completely false since the word "Allah" is
simply the Arabic name for Almighty God. It is the same word for God which is
used by Arabic-speaking Jews and Christians. However, it should be clarified
that even though Muslims worship the same God as Jews and Christian, their
concept of Him differs somewhat from the beliefs of other religions - mainly
because it is based completely on Divine Revelation from God. For example,
Muslims reject the Christian belief that God is a Trinity, not only becaue the
Qur'an rejects it, but also because if this was God's true nature, He would
have clearly revealed it to Abraham, Noah, Jesus and all of the other
prophets.
The Qur'an:
The Arabic world "Al-Qur'an" literally means "the
recitation". When used in regards to Islam, the word Qur'an means God's
final message to mankind that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. The Qu'ran,
sometimes spelled Koran, is the literal the word of
God - as it clearly says time and time again. Unlike other sacred scriptures,
the Qur'an has been perfectly preserved in both its words and meaning in a
living language. The Qu'ran is a living miracle in the Arabic language; and is
know to be inimitable in its style, form and spiritual impact. God's final
revelation to mankind, the Qur'an, was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad over a
period of 23 years. The Qur'an, in contrast to many other religious books, was
always thought to be the Word of God by those who believed in it, i.e. it
wasn't something decreed by a religious council many years after being written.
Also, the Qu'ran was recited publicly in front of both the Muslim and
non-Muslim communities during the life of the Prophet Muhammad. The entire
Qur'an was also completely written down in lifetime of the Prophet, and
numerous companions of the Prophet memorized the entire Qur'an word-for-word as
it was revealed. So unlike other scriptures, the Qur'an was always in the hands
of the common believers, it was always thought to be God's word and, due to
wide-spread memorization, it was perfectly preserved. In regards to the
teachings of the Qur'an - it is a universal scripture, and it is addressed to
all of mankind, and not to a particular tribe or "chosen
people". The message that it brings is nothing new, but the same message
of all of the prophets - submit to Almighty God and worship
Him alone. As such, God's revelation in the Qur'an focuses on teaching
human beings the importance of believing in the Unity of God and framing their
lives around the guidance which He has sent. Additionally, the Qur'an contains
the stories of the previous prophets, such as Abraham, Noah, Moses and Jesus;
as well as many commands and prohibitions from God. In modern times in which so
many people are caught up in doubt, spiritual despair and "political correctness", the Qur'anic teachings offer
solutions to the emptiness of our lives and the turmoil that is gripping the
world today. In short, the Qur'an is the book of guidance par excellence.
The Prophet Muhammad :
Unlike the founders of many religious, the final prophet of Islam is a real documented
and historical figure. He lived in the full light of history, and the most
minute details of his life are known. Not only do Muslims have the complete
text of God's words that were revealed to Muhammad, but they have also
preserved his saying and teachings in what is called "hadith" literature. This having been said, it should be
understood that Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad was only a man chosen
by God, and that he is not divine in any way. In order to avoid the misguided
wish to deify him, the Prophet Muhammad taught Muslims to refer to him as "God's Messenger and His Slave". The mission of the last
and final prophet of God was to simply teach that "there is
nothing divine or worthy of being worshipped except for Almighty God",
as well as being a living example of God's revelation. In simple terms, God
sent the revelation to Muhammad, who in turn taught it , preached it, lived it
and put it into practice. In this way, Muhammad was more that just a "prophet" in the sense of many of the Biblical prophets,
since he was also a statesman and ruler. He was a man who lived a humble life
in the service of God, and established an all-encompassing religion and way of
life by showing what it means to be an ideal friend, husband, teacher, ruler,
warrior and judge. For this reason, Muslims follow him not for his own sake,
but in obedience to God, because Muhammad not only showed us how to deal with
our fellow human beings, but more importantly, he showed us how to relate to
and worship God, worship Him in the only way pleasing to Him. Like other
prophets, Muhammad faced a great deal of opposition and persecution during his
mission. However, he was always patient and just, and he treated his enemies
well. The results of his mission were very successful, and even though his
mission started in one of the most backward and remotes places on earth, within
a hundred years of the death of Muhammad, Islam had spread from Spain to China.
The Prophet Muhammad was the greatest of all of God's prophets, not because he
had new doctrines or greater miracles, but because the results of his mission
have broght more human beings into the pure and proper belief in the One True
God than any other prophet.
The Islamic Way of Life:
In the Holy Qur'an, God teaches human beings that they were created in order to
worship Him, and that the basis of all true worship is God-consciousness. Since
the teachings of Islamic encompass all aspects of life and ethics,
God-consciousness is encouraged in all human affairs. Islam makes it clear that
all human acts are acts of worship if they are done for God alone and in
accordance to His Divine Law. As such, worship in Islam is not limited to
religious rituals. The teachings of Islam act as a mercy and a healing for the
human soul, and such qualities as humility, sincerity, patience and charity are
strongly encouraged. Additionally, Islam condemns pride and self-righteousness,
since Almighty God is the only judge of human righteousness. The Islamic view
of the nature of man is also realistic and well-balanced. Human beings are not
believed to be inherently sinful, but are seen as equally capable of both good
and evil. Islam also teaches that faith and action go hand-in-hand. God has
given people free-will, and the measure of one's faith is one's deeds and
actions. However, human beings have also been created weak and regularly fall
into sin. This is the nature of the human being as created by God in His
Wisdom, and it is not inherently "corrupt" or in need
of repair. This is because the avenue of repentance of always open to all human
beings, and Almighty God loves the repentant sinner more than one who does not
sin at all. The true balance of an Islamic life is established by having a
healthy fear of God as well as a sincere belief in His infinite Mercy. A life
without fear of God leads to sin and disobedience, while believing that we have
sinned so much that God will not possibly forgive us only leads to despair. In
light of this, Islam teaches that: only the misguided
despair of the Mercy of their Lord. Additionally, the Holy Qur'an, which
was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad, contains a great deal of teachings about
the life hereafter and the Day of Judgment. Due to this, Muslims believe that
all human beings will ultimately be judged by God for their beliefs and actions
in their earthly lives. In judging human beings, Almighty God will be both
Merciful and Just, and people will only be judged for what they were capable
of. Suffice it to say that Islam teaches that life is a test, and that all
human beings will be accountable before God. A sincere belief in the life
hereafter is key to leading a well-balanced life and moral. Otherwise, life is
viewed as an end in itself, which causes human beings to become more selfish,
materialistic and immoral.
Islam for a Better Life:
Islam
teaches that true happiness can only being obtained by living a life full of
God-consciousness and being satisfied with what God has given us. Additionally,
true "freedom" is freedom from being controlled by
our base human desires and being ruled by man-made ideologies. This stands in
stark contrast to the view of many people in the modern world, who consider
"freedom" to be the ability to satisfy all of their
desires without inhibition. The clear and comprehensive guidance of Islam gives
human-beings a well-defined purpose and direction in life. In addition to being
members of the human-brotherhood of Islam, its well-balanced and practical
teachings are a source of spiritual comfort, guidance and morality. A direct
and clear relationship with Almighty God, as well as the sense of purpose and
belonging that ones feels as a Muslim, frees a person from the many worries of
everyday life. In short, the Islamic way of life is pure and wholesome. It
builds self-discipline and self-control thought regular prayer and fasting, and
frees human-beings from superstition and all sorts of racial, ethnic and
national prejudices. By accepting to live a God-conscious life, and realizing
that the only thing that distinguishes people in the sight of God is their
consciousness of Him, a person's true human dignity is realized.
Read
more articles by the Authors at: http://www.muslim-answers.org