Muslim Beliefs Flashcards
What is Hadith?
the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad
What is Shari’ah?
the holy law of Islam which covers all aspects of life
Which Muslims believe in the six beliefs of Islam?
Sunni Muslims
What do Sunni Muslims believe are the 6 beliefs of Islam?
Sunni Muslims believe that there are six articles of faith which a Muslim must believe to be accepted as a Muslim:
- belief in Allah
- belief in his angels
- belief in his holy books
- belief in his messengers
- belief in the Last Day
- belief in life after death.
What do Sunni Muslims believe about the 6 beliefs of Islam?
- The first five beliefs (all apart from belief in life after death) are based on verses from the Quran, but the full six are based on a hadith of the Prophet Muhammad.
- Hadith are second in authority to the Qur’an for Sunni Muslims because they believe Muhammad was the final prophet so his words must be important.
- Hadith are one of the bases of the Shari’ah.
Sunni Muslims often describe the six beliefs as:
- Tawhid (the unity of Allah) - belief in Allah
- Risalah (the messengers of Allah) - belief in angels, holy books and messengers
- Akirah (the last things) - belief in the Last Day and life after death.
Why are the six beliefs very important for Sunni Muslims?
- They summarise the Muslim faith.
- Believing in Tawhid shows that Muslims believe God is the only one, the all-powerful creator, who is the same God worshipped by Jews and Christians.
- Believing in angels shows that God can communicate with humans via his special beings.
- Believing in the prophets of God shows that Islam is both the first religion (it began with the Prophet Adam) and the last religion (the
final prophet is Muhammad). - Believing in the holy books of God shows that God has sent books to show humans what to believe and how to live. It also shows that the holy books given to Jews and Christians were distorted, and that the Qur’an is God’s final word to humanity, given in a form that can never be distorted.
- Believing in Akirah means people will be judged by Allah at the Last Day and sent to heaven or hell on the basis of how they have lived their lives.
What do most Sunni Muslim communities believe that the six beliefs mean?
- All people are created equal in the sight of Allah. No one is superior to another except because of their piety and righteousness. No one should be judged on their gender, colour, ethnicity or disabilities.
- In Islam there are no priests, priesthood or holy men with special authority. The only intermediaries between God and humans are angels, and since belief in Risalah means there can be no prophets after Muhammad, no humans can have God’s special authority.
- People are born free of any sin and bear no responsibility for the faults and sins of other people. Only after reaching the age of puberty can people be held responsible for their actions in this life.
- Salvation comes through believing the six beliefs and living the Muslim life as set out in the Qur’an and hadith.
What are 2 SofAs about the six beliefs of Islam?
- A hadith of the Prophet says that Muslims must believe in Allah, his angels, his holy books, his Messengers, in the Last Day and life after death.
- The Qur’an says that those who do not believe in God and his angels and his scriptures and his messengers and the Last Day are not Muslims.
What is Adalat?
God’s attribute of justice
What is Ahmadiyya?
a Muslim sect founded in Pakistan by Yirza Ahmad
What is Ayatollah?
the highest ranking religious leader in Twelver Shi’ism
What an Imam?
for Shi’as, successor of the Prophet Muhammad, but ‘imam’ with a small’i’ is a prayer leader for Sunnis
Who are Ismaili?
Shi’as who believe the seventh Imam, Isma’il, was the final Imam
Who is Mujtahid?
a Shi’a scholar with sufficient training and knowledge to interpret the Shari’ah
What is a sect?
group with different religious beliefs from those of a larger group to which they belong
What is Usul ad-Din?
the five roots of Shi’ah Islam
What are the five roots in Shi’a Islam?
Shi’a Muslims have the five roots of faith (Usul ad-Din) rather than the six beliefs as the basis of their faith:
- Belief in the oneness of Allah (Tawhid) and all Allah’s characteristics that come from his oneness.
- Belief in Allah’s justice (Adalat) - the universe works according to laws established by Allah and the way it operates is fair and just.
- Belief in Allah’s prophets from Adam to Muhammad
- Belief in the successors of Muhammad (Imams) - belief that the chosen descendants of the Prophet Muhammad were given special powers by Allah. These Imams are the ones who determine what the Quran means and what the law should be (most Shi’as believe there have been Twelve Imams - referred to as Twelvers). Today specially able religious leaders (mujtahids or ayatollahs) do this job.
- Belief in the Day of Judgement, with judgement being based on believing the five roots and following the Shi’a Shari’ah.
Why are there the 5 roots of Shi’a Islam?
The five roots developed in order to sum up what one must believe to be a Shia Muslim and to express in simple terms which beliefs differentiate Shi’a Muslims from Sunni Muslims.
Why are the five roots in Shi’a Islam important?
- they are the basis of Shi’a Islam; it is from the roots that the religion grows
- they are the five principles of faith and show a person what they must believe to be a Shi’a Muslim
- they come from the teachings of the Quran and the Twelve Imams
which means they are of utmost importance to Shi’a Muslims - Shi’a Muslims believe that unless they understand and believe the five roots, they will not be able to perform the acts of worship necessary to live the Muslim life
- they are the beliefs that Muslims must hold if their practices are to be correct and ensure that they go to heaven.
What is the difference between the 6 beliefs of Sunni Islam and the 5 roots of Shi’a Islam?
- Most Sunni Muslims have never heard of the five roots but they accept roots 1, 2, 3 and 5 as they are the same as the six beliefs.
- Root 4 is the essential difference between Sunni and Shi’a Muslims.
What are the differences of the five roots within Shi’a Islam?
- There are many different sects within Shi’a Islam and their origins have led to the five roots having different levels of importance, in particular the fourth root about the successor of Muhammad.
- Most Shi’as are Twelvers, that is they believe there were twelve imams after Muhammad and the twelfth went into hiding (the Hidden Imam) and is in contact with Shi’a leaders.
- ## The Ismaili Shi’as (Seveners) believe that the seventh imam, Ismail, was the final Imam. The Nizari Khoja branch of Ismailis believe that the Imamate continued from Isma’il to the present day, and that their current leader, the Agha Khan, is the Imam.
Which beliefs (6 or 5) did the Ahmadiyya accept?
The Ahmadiyya, who developed from Ismailis in Pakistan 150 years ago, accept the Sunni six beliefs rather than the Shia five roots, although they believe their founder, Mirza Ahmad, received a special message.
What is a SofA about the five roots in Shi’a Islam?
There is a Shi’a hadith which says that if you do not know the Imam of the age, you will die a heathen.
What is Bismillah?
the words at the beginning of each surah (except Surah 9), ‘In the name of Allah, the Merciful. the Compassionate’
What is shirk?
the sin of associating
other things with God; it is the worst sin
What is Tawhid?
God’s unity/oneness of God
What is the Ummah?
the Muslim community
What do Muslims call ‘God’?
- Muslims always refer to God as Allah because this is the word used for God in the Quran and is the Arabic for God.
- Allah has no plural form and using it confirms the fundamental Muslim belief that God is the one and only God.
Where are Muslim beliefs about Allah’s nature found?
Muslim beliefs about Allah’s nature are found in the Quran (especially the ninety-nine names) which Muslims believe is God’s actual words to humanity.
What are the main characteristics of God revealed in the Qur’an?
- Oneness (Tawhid)
- Omnipotence
- Beneficence and mercy
- Justice (Adalat)
- Allah’s transcendence and immanence
What do Muslims believe about Oneness (Tawhid)?
- This is the basis of Islam
- Allah’s unity means he has no partners, no helpers and especially no equals.
- Muslims feel that the Christian belief in God as a Trinity, and in Jesus as the Son of God, is an insult to Allah’s unity.
What do Muslims believe about Omnipotence?
- Allah has created the universe and so must have complete power over it
- Islam means submission to God’s will and a Muslim is one who has submitted their will to God’s will because God is so great
What do Muslims believe about beneficence + mercy?
- every surah except Surah 9 begins with the bismillah: In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate
- His mercy is shown in the way he sent prophets to show people how to live and will forgive them if they fail in their attempts to live the perfect Muslim life
What do Muslims believe about justice (adalat)?
Allah’s justice is shown in the way the universe works and in the holy law, the Shari’ah, Allah has given to make sure that humans deal fairly and justly with each other.
What do Muslims believe about Allah’s transcendence and immanence?
- Allah is totally beyond the material and so beyond human experience, and yet is close to humans and can be contacted by humans because of his immanence.
- Transcendence and immanence are a great mystery: God is both far beyond humans and yet also close to them.
Why are the characteristics of Allah important for Muslims?
- Tawhid means that one God created everything and so Muslims must try to preserve the oneness of nature. This also means the Muslim community itself must be a unity (this is called the ummah) which follows one law, the Shari’ah
- Tawhid also means Muslims must only worship Allah; indeed the worst sin a Muslim can commit is the sin of shirk which is to associate others with Allah - this is why there are no images or statues in the mosque.
- Allah’s omnipotence means Allah is in control of everything that happens
- Allah’s compassion and mercy means Muslims should be merciful and forgiving to those who cause them offence
- Allah’s justice means that Muslims must behave justly to other people and ensure that the world is governed in a fair way by following the Shari’ah
- Allah’s transcendence shows that Allah is worthy of humanity’s worship and praise since he is greater than anything.
- Allah’s immanence means that Allah is part of the universe he has created and so science and learning can discover Allah and Allah can be contacted by humans
Which characteristic can all of Allah’s characteristics be summed up by?
- All Allah’s characteristics can be summed up by Tawhid
- Everything comes from Allah’s oneness and unity which is why a Muslim should seek the oneness of humanity and the unity of humans with nature
What are 5 SofAs about the nature of Allah?
- Surah 112 says that God is the one and only God.
- Surah 2 says that God is loving, self-subsisting and eternal.
- Surah 2 says the Qur’an is the book whose guidance is sure
- Surah 50 says that God is nearer to man than his jugular vein
- Surah 2 says that God is everywhere and all-powerful.
What is Ka’aba?
the shrine in Makkah which Muslims face to say prayers and which is the centre of hajj
What are Khalifahs?
Allah’s stewards or vicegerents
What is Makkah
the city in Arabia where Muhammad was born
What is Sunnah?
the example and way of life of the Prophet Muhammad
What is a vicegerent?
a person appointed to look after things on behalf of a ruler
What do Muslims believe about prophets (overview)?
- Muslims believe Allah created humans to look after the earth for him (Allah’s khalifahs or vicegerents) and they need prophets to know how to do this
- Islam teaches that the prophets were all ordinary humans, who were only special because they were chosen to receive Allah’s messages
- All the prophets except Isa were married and had children
- Each prophet brought Islam in its perfect form but their message was ignored, distorted or forgotten and so Allah had to send new prophets.
Who are the main prophets of Islam?
- Adam
- Ibrahim (Abraham)
- Isma’il
- Musa (Moses)
- Dawud (David)
- Isa (Jesus)
- Muhammad
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Adam?
- Adam was the first prophet of Islam created by Allah to look after the earth
- The devil (Iblis) tempted Adam and his wife to disobey Allah and they were sent to earth where Allah forgave them and gave Adam his guidance as the first prophet
- According to the hadith, Adam built the first House for Allah (Ka’aba) in Makkah (Mecca) to thank Allah.
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Ibrahim (Abraham)?
- Ibrahim (Abraham) was the greatest of the prophets before Isa Jesus)
- Ibrahim rejected the polytheism (worshipping many gods) of his family, condemned their idolatry and showed them the truth of Islam.
- Ibrahim restored the Ka’aba after it had been destroyed and established it as a place of pilgrimage
- Ibrahim was given the first holy book of
Sahifa Ibrahim (the Scrolls of Abraham).
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Isma’il?
- Isma’il, Ibrahim’s son, helped his father rebuild the Ka’aba and is regarded as the prophet to the Arabs
- Muslims believe him to be the ancestor of Muhammad
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Musa (Moses)?
- Musa (Moses) was born a Jew, according to the Quran, but brought up by Pharaoh’s wife
- Allah called him to lead the Jews out of slavery in Egypt and into God’s promised land
- Musa was given the holy book of Tawrat (Torah), but the people distorted or rejected his message.
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Dawud (David)?
Dawud (David), the great King of Israel, was chosen as a prophet and given the holy book of Zabur (Psalms) because of the distortion of the Tawrat.
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Isa (Jesus)?
- Isa (Jesus) is a major figure in the Quran, which says he had a virgin birth and performed many miracles
- The Qur’an claims that Allah stopped the Jews from executing and crucifying him and raised Isa to Himself so that he never died
- Isa was given the holy book Injil (Gospel), but the Quran insists he was only an ordinary man and a prophet, not the son of God.
What do Muslims believe about the prophet Muhammad?
- Muhammad was called by Allah to bring his final message in a holy book (the Quran) which could never be distorted.
- Muhammad is the seal of the prophets (acting like the seal put on a letter to prove who it came from and to make sure nothing could be added)
- As the seal, Muhammad is the final prophet and therefore the perfect example for Muslims
What do Muslims ALSO believe about prophets? (p.2)
- Every prophet was called by Allah and given Allah’s true message to give to the people of earth and so their teachings should be followed.
- Prophets were just ordinary human beings.
- The Qur’an is the final unalterable word of God.
- Muhammad received the final message from Allah so Islam is both the first and the last religion
- Muhammad was the final prophet, and so good Muslims should follow his Sunnah because his was the last example of how to live.
What are 4 SofAs about the Risalah (prophets)?
- The Qur’an says that Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but true in the faith of Islam.
- The Qur’an says that Moses was a specially chosen messenger and prophet.
- The Qur’an says that Christ, the son of Mary, was a human being and no more than an apostle.
- Surah 33 says that Muhammad is the apostle of God, and the seal of the prophets.
