CHAPTER TWO — The Four Pillars

The Four Pillars spirit, yet is so designed that its performance, as well as fulfilling its basic purpose, may achieve other important ends. The pillars of Islam may, in this respect, be likened to human limbs, each having a separate function, but inseparably attached to the body. 1. One significant aspect of these acts of worship is that, even if their basic aim, that is, bringing believers closer to God, is not being served, they are bound in some measure to benefit from them. For example, even if prayer and fasting do not bring worshippers closer to God (96:19), these practices may at least make them God fearing, and they consequently keep themselves away from indecency and evil (29:45). Fasting, in the words of the Prophet, will teach them to refrain from falsehood, promise-breaking and loud talk; it provides them with a shield against the onslaughts of the devil. 2. Each act of worship has been so designed that, as well as fulfilling its own specific purpose, it is closely and meaningfully linked with other acts of worship. For example, the real aim of hajj is to prepare the pilgrim for a missionary life—that of calling people to God. But the form it takes in the process is that of visits to sacred places and the performance of the rites of hajj, as a result of which the pilgrim receives a special share in the love of God and a heightened awareness of the life hereafter. He returns purified after this act of worship, and is able to lead a fuller and better religious life. 3. Every act of worship is aimed, essentially, at bringing the worshipper into close contact with God. But the different forms of its performance have been so designed that they meet other requirements of life as well, or, at least, strengthen man’s will to achieve other worthy goals. For example, prayer in congregation and the worldwide gathering for hajj serve as a platform for Muslim unity; similarly, fasting is beneficial for physical health and zakat makes for a well-organised economic system.