FAQ's Depiction of Prophet Muhammad Forced Marriage Islam ethnicity and race Londonistan Article

The word "Islam" means submission rooted in peace. Peace means to be at peace with yourself and your surroundings and submission means submission to the will of God. So the word "Islam" is to achieve peace by submitting to the will of God.

Allah is the Arabic word for the one God. Arab Christians & others also use this word for God.

Allah is not God of Muslims only, the word simply means the one true infinite, unlimited god who created the universe.

The word "Muslim" means one who submits to the will of God. Believing in and declaring the Islamic testimony of belief, that "there is no diety worthy of obedience except the one true God and Muhammad is the messenger of God" in front of witnesses enters an individual into Islam, and makes them Muslim. In a broader sense, anyone who willingly submits to the will of God is a Muslim. Thus, all the prophets like Jesus, Moses and Abraham, preceding the prophet Muhammad are considered Muslims. The Qur'an specifically mentions Abraham, Moses, Jesus and all the 'biblical' prophets because, they had submitted to the will of God. One cannot judge Islam by looking at those individuals who have a Muslim name but in their actions, they may not be living or behaving as Muslims. The extent of being a Muslim can be according to the degree to which one is submitting to the will of God, in his beliefs and his actions.

In brief, Muhammad, may he rest in peace, was born into a noble tribe of Mecca in Arabia in the year 570 AD. His ancestry goes back to Prophet Ishmael (p), son of prophet Abraham (P). His father died before his birth and his mother died when he was six. He did not attend a formal school since he was raised first by a nurse as it was the custom those days, and then by his grandfather and then uncle. As a young man, he was known as a righteous person who used to meditate in a cave. At age 40, he was given the prophethood when the angel Gabriel appeared to him in the cave.

Subsequently, the revelations came over 23 years and were compiled in the form of a book called the Qur'an which Muslims consider as the final and the last testament of God. The Qur'an has been preserved, unchanged, in its original form and confirms truths in the Torah, the psalms and the Gospels in the Bible.

No. Muslims do not worship Muhammad (P) or any other prophets. Muslims believe in all prophets including Adam, Noah, Abraham, David, Solomon, Moses and Jesus. Muslims believe that Muhammad (P) was the last of the prophets. They believe that God alone is to be worshiped, not any human being.

Muslims think highly of Jesus (P) and his worthy mother, Mary. The Qur'an tells us that Jesus was born of a miraculous birth without a father. "Lo! The likeness of Jesus with Allah is the likeness of Adam. He created him of dust, and then He said unto him: "Be!" and he was" (Qur'an 3.59). He was given many miracles as a prophet. These include speaking soon after his birth in defense of his mother's piety. God's other gifts to him included healing the blind and the sick, reviving the dead, making a bird out of clay and most importantly, the message he was carrying. These miracles were given to him by God to establish him as a prophet. According to the Qur'an, he was not the son of God, god being above human things, but he was a prophet of God. (Qur'an, chapter Mary)

Muslims argue that there aren't sects in Islam, but there are two major strands of thought, the Shia and the Sunni. Both agree on the fundamentals, and the difference is often exagerated for political ends. Many Muslims argue that the difference between the two is minor compared to e.g.the differnece between Catholics and Protestants. Both have many things in common. They follow the same book - the Qur'an. They follow the same prophet Muhammad (P). Both offer their prayers five times a day. Both fast in the month of Ramadan. They both go for hajj, pilgrimage to Mecca. Those who follow Prophet Muhammad (P), in accordance with his sayings and actions, are called Sunni and those who aditionally follow the sayings and views of Ali (Muhammad's son-in- law), as the rightful Caliph after Prophet Muhammad (P), are called Shia. Shia means a partisan (party of Ali) and it started more as a political party to support Ali in his conflict with his political adversaries.

Most Shias live in Iran while the rest of the Muslim world is largely Sunni. Shias comprise about 10-percent of the Muslim population, although there are no accurate figures around.

There are five major pillars of Islam, which are the articles of faith. These pillars are

1) Belief (Iman) in one God and that Muhammad (P) is His messenger,

2) The five daily prayers (Salah) which are prescribed

3) Fasting (Siyam) which is required in the month of Ramadan,

4) Charity (Zakat) which is due to the poor, a tax on the wealth of the rich 5)Hajj which is the pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime if one can afford it physically and financially.

All the pillars should be of equal height and strength in a building in order to give the building its due shape and proportions. It is not possible that one would do hajj without observing fasting or without practicing regular prayers. However a building, which has pillars only, would not be a complete building, arguably usless. In order to make it a building, it has to have a roof, it has to have walls, and it has to have doors and windows. These things in Islam are the codes of Islam such as honesty, truthfulness, and many other humane qualities. Thus in order to be a Muslim, one should not only be practicing the pillars of Islam but should also have the highest possible attribute for being a good human being. Only then the building is completed and looks beautiful.

God established the system of accountability. Those who do good will be rewarded and those who do wrong will be punished accordingly. Thus, God created heaven and hell; there are admission criteria for both, and people will do time in various levels of hell according to their sins until the sin is paid for. Muslims believe that the present life is a temporary one. It is a test and if we pass the test, we will then be given a life of eternal pleasure in the company of good people in Heaven.

No. God does not punish people who have not had the evidences for the truth of Islam clearly, rationally and convincingly shown to them to the point where only pride, greed or arrogance can get in the way. Only that individual and God himslef will will know who reached that stage, the final Judgment is up to God himself, and each individual will be judged on a case by case basis. (Qur'an

2:62)

The Islamic year started from the migration (Hijra) of Prophet Muhammad (P) from Mecca to Medina in 622 AD. It is a lunar year of 354 days. The first month is called Muharram.

Eid al-Fitr, marks the end of fasting in the month of Ramadan and is celebrated with public prayers, feasts and exchange of gifts. Eid al-Adha marks the end of the Hajj or the annual pilgrimage to Mecca. After the public prayers, those who can afford, sacrifice a lamb or a goat to signify Prophet Abraham's obedience to God, shown by his readiness to sacrifice his son Ishmael.

According to the Qur'an, "There is no compulsion in religion" (2:256), thus, no one can be forced to become a Muslim. While it is true that in many places where Muslim armies went to liberate people or the land, they did carry the sword as that was the weapon used at that time. However, Islam did not spread by the sword because in many places where there are Muslims now, in the Far East like Indonesia, in China, and many parts of Africa, there are no records of any Muslim armies going there. To say that Islam was spread by the sword would be to say that Christianity was spread by guns, F-16's and atomic bombs, etc., which is not true. Christianity spread by the missionary works of Christians. 5% of all Arabs are Christians. The "Sword of Islam" could not convert all the non-Muslim minorities in Muslim countries. In India, where Muslims ruled for 700 years, they are still not the majority. In the U.S.A., Islam is the fastest growing religion and has 6 million followers without any sword around.

Don't Judge Islam by the behaviour of Muslims Many Muslims don't follow Islam, just as many people with Christian names don't follow the Bible. Muslims are not a monologue. Many Muslims also confuse many localised cultural practices with Islam due to poor education of the people in the nations from which they originate, meaning many have never even read the Quran in a language they underatand. For example practices such as forrced marriage, and wearing "Shalwar Kameez" are confused by Asian Muslims as something in Islam, rather than Indian Subcontinental culture. Would you judge a ferrari by the way a drunk driver drives it?