Part One: SEERAH (Biographical Sketch) CHAPTER

C:\Users\Admin\Dropbox\The Message - Material of Maulana\16. Books and Review\Apa's Books\Life And 40 After belief in God and the Prophet, four practices enjoy the status of pillars of Islam—fasting, prayers, zakah (almsgiving) and the hajj (pilgrimage to Makkah). Abdullah ibn Umar said that the Messenger of Allah said: “The foundation of Islam has been laid on five principles: to bear witness that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad œ is His Prophet; to offer prayers (salah); to give alms (zakah); to perform the Hajj and to keep the fast during Ramadan.” These five principles form the pillars of Islam. Just as a house stands on pillars, so does Islamic faith on these tenets. However, the performance of these rituals is not all that is desired. What is much more important is the true spirit in which these are performed. Without the spirit the form is meaningless. All these different observances–faith, prayer, fasting, charity, pilgrimage–are not mere rituals, but are the source of receiving the choicest divine blessings. Faith, the most important of all is, in essence, belief in the truth of divine realities. Prayer is an exercise in physical and mental prostration before God, aimed at banishing all notions of personal greatness. Fasting teaches one to be steadfast in one’s trust of God. Charity entails the recognition of others’ claims upon one, so that one shall not forfeit one’s own share in God’s bounty. The Pilgrimage serves to unite God’s servants around their Maker. The Spirit of Faith One is required to testify to one’s faith, in the oneness of God and the prophethood of Muhammad. But its spirit lies in its acceptance. Through this article of faith a man accepts God and all His attributes. He also accepts that God sent Muhammad œ to this world as the eternal guide for all mankind. If this reality reaches one’s heart, it becomes a part of one’s being. One’s heart opens to the truth and reality. There are seven things which are essential for a Muslim to believe in. These come under the heading of Iman Mufassal, a detailed declaration of faith. They are to believe in one God, in His angels, in His revealed Books, in all of His messengers, in the Last Day (the Day of Judgement), in Taqdir (the