In the name of Allah, Most Beneficent, Most Merciful

 

 

Assalamu 'alaykum (peace be with you).

We like to welcome our new Muslim brothers and sisters into Islam and have prepared a guide for their further studies to find out the beauties and bounties of Islam and to put the resources of the entire Muslim Ummah (community) within reach.

  This resource guide covers four main areas

The first section is a summary of basic Islamic teachings and practices. The second section concerns advice for Muslims on the path to truth. The third section is a listing of the best books for a Muslim to read. And finally, a listing of basic Islamic terms that you, as a new Muslim, ought to learn is provided. May your path to knowledge be fruitful and may your road to truth lead you to the right way. Ameen

To become a Muslim you only have to sincerely believe in and say the following phrase:

"Ash hadu an la ilaha ill Allah wa ash hadu anna Muhammadar Rasul Allah."

"I declare there is no god but Allah and I declare that Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is the Messenger of Allah."

 Section 1
Basic Islamic Teachings

I. Beliefs

Islam has seven main beliefs. They are contained in the formula known as the Iman ul Mufassal. It goes as follows, "Amantu bil lahi wa mala-ikatihi wa kutubihi wa rasulihi wal yowm ul akhiri wal qadri, khayrihi wa sharihi min Allahi ta'ala wal ba'ith ba'ed al mowt."

In English it means, "I believe in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, the Last Day, Measurement, both the good and the bad are from Allah, and in life after death."

A. Allah. This is the name for "God" in Arabic. Allah is not a human, not a male and not a female. We only say the term "He" when referring to Him because there is no "It" in Arabic. All nouns are automatically masculine or feminine. Allah created everything and was never created. He is never born, He never has children and the human mind cannot encompass His magnitude and greatness. He is loving but just, merciful but stern. Only by surrendering to His will can we come into accordance with His universal will.

B. Angels: They are not human, nor male or female. They are the servants of Allah and never rebel against him. We believe in a devil-creature called Shaytan (Satan) but he is not a fallen angel. He is a creature called Jinn who rebelled against Allah. Angels record our good deeds and bad and are behind the events of nature and enforce Allah's will in the universe, although He doesn't need their help.

C. Books: Allah has sent revelation to thousands of humans throughout history. Some of those revelations were organized bodies of teachings meant to be recorded as "books" whether written or oral to be handed on to future generations. We know the names of five of these books. They are: the scrolls of Ibrahim, (Abraham), the Torah of Musa, (Moses), the Zabur (Psalms) of Dawud, (David), the Injeel of 'Esa (Gospel of Jesus) and the Qur'an of Muhammad (peace be upon them all). Only the last book has survived until the present day. All others have been lost or altered so much so that they are all but worthless.

D. Messengers: These are Allah's Prophets and Message-bringers to whom Allah gave revelation. Every nation and race on earth received at least one in the past. They all taught the same message: to surrender to Allah and do right. Thus we say they all taught Islam. The first was Adam and the last was Muhammad (saw). The Qur'an mentions the name of 25 Prophets and Messengers.

E. The Last Day: Human history will end one day. Allah will end the earth at some future date and all human beings that ever lived will be raised up for Judgment Day. After each person's good and bad deeds as well as their beliefs are examined, they will be sent to either Paradise (Jannah) or Hell (Jahannam).

F. Measurement: Allah has measured the length of our life in this world, our economic status, where we will die, etc. The word "Qadr" is sometimes translated as destiny or pre-destination or even fate. But the word actually means, "to measure."

G. Life After Death: Eternal life in either Heaven or Hell for our souls based on what we believed and did while we lived in the world.  Some people will be taken out of hell and admitted to heaven when the term of their punishment is over. For more details about beliefs please read our article titled Muslim Articles of Faith.

 

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