A Brief Introduction to Islam

This post is a farmer's attempt to aid in the understanding of a noble culture that has been misunderstood by the majority of Western society. Just as Christians study and follow scripture put forth in the Bible, likewise, Islam views the Quran as more than just a book. It provides millions of people with a way of life; the way of Islam. Written in Arabic and initially embraced by the Arabs it was not allowed translation until the 14th century. It is assessed by scholars that much of its endowment is corroded in the process of being translated, and thus, only those truly versed in Arabic can fully appreciate its splendor.

Muslims have a very authoritarian view of the Quran. To the Muslim, it is the revelation that ends revelation, the consummation of the profits' wisdom. It is the last scripture, and therefore, is complete in its requirements to Islam. The Quran is purely divine in the sense that Mohammad is its author. Mohammad, being a prophet, is infallible concerning prophecy.
The most outstanding characteristics of the Quran is the concern for human morality and the absolute supremacy of God. It is strongly monotheistic and depicts an unbending bough of justice. This idea of justice flows directly from the moral aspects of its content. It has unshakable concepts of right and wrong, and is taken by millions as the deciding authority on how to behave. I will use an English translation by A.J. Arberry in my endeavor to support the above statements and others which follow, concerning the idea of morality and social justice.

"Those who believe and do deeds of righteousness, and perform the prayer, and pay the alms - their wage awaits them with their Lord, and no fear shall be on them, neither shall they sorrow.

This passage also supports other important aspects of Islam, such as prayer, almsgiving, and the Day of Judgement. Another example of the precedence of justice and morality is presented in the following verse:

"O believers, be you securers of justice, witnesses for God, even though it be against yourselves, or your parents and kinsman, whether the man be rich or poor; God stands closest to either. Then follow not caprice, so as to swerve; for if you twist or turn, God is aware of the things you do."

Yet, here is another verse: "If you do good openly or in secret or pardon an evil, surely God is All-powerful." Here, "All-pardoning" suggests that if you do good, God will have mercy: "All-powerful" suggests God's absolutism, which is another very important aspect of the Quran.

To take an expedient approach in determining the underlying structure of the Quran, one need only recall the five pillars of Islam; (1) That there is only one God - Mohammed is the prophet of God, (2) prayer, (3) fasting, (4) almsgiving, and (5) the journey to Mecca. Numerous examples can be found in support of these, but for the sake of the reader, I will cite only a few

(1) That there is only one God, and Mohammad is His prophet:

"O mankind, I am the Messenger of God to you all, of Him to whom belongs the kingdom of the heavens and of the earth. There is no god but He. He gives life, and makes to die. Believe then in God, and in His Messenger, the Prophet of the common folk, who believes in God and His words, and follow him; haply so you will be guided."

(2) Prayer:

"The Quran is the Book wherein is no doubt, a guidance to the godfearing who believe in the Unseen, and perform the prayer."

Islam was primal in the downgrading of slavery. The following is a passage supporting such:

"True piety is this: to believe in God, and the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the Prophets, to give ones substance, however cherished, to kinsman, and orphans, the needy, the traveller, beggars, and to ransom the slave, to perform the prayer, to pay the alms."

(3) Fasting: This is a requirement of Islam, however, not to the degree of being detrimental to ones health. I offer the following scripture in support:

"O believers, prescribed for you is the Fast, even as it was prescribed for those that were before you- haply you will be godfearing- for days numbered; and if any of you be sick, or if he be on a journey, then a number of other days; and for those who are unable to fast, a redemption by feeding a poor man. Yet better it is for him who volunteers good, and that you should fast is better for you, if you but know; the month of Ramadan, wherein the Koran was sent down to be a guidance to the people, and as clear signs of the Guidance and the Salvation. So let those of you, who are present at the month, fast it; and if any of you be sick, or if he be on a journey, then a number of other days; God desires ease for you, and desires not hardship for you; and that you fulfil the number, and magnify God that He has guided you, and haply you will be thankful."

(4) Almsgiving:

The following is an excellent verse commanding Almsgiving ; "Know that, whatever booty you take, the fifth of it is God's, and the Messenger's, and the near kinsman's, and the orphan's, and for the needy, and the traveller."

(5) Journey to Mecca:

If at all possible, the faithful follower of Islam is to make a pilgrimage to Mecca. There are some constrictions which can be seen in the following passages, and also, ways of proper substitution for the journey.

"Fulfil the Pilgrimage and the Visitation unto God; but if you are prevented, then such offering as may be feasible. And shave not you heads, till the offering reaches its place of sacrifice. If any of you is sick, or injured in his head, then redemption by fast, or freewill offering, or ritual sacrifice. When you are secure, then whosoever enjoys the Visitation until the Pilgrimage, let his offering be such as may be feasible; or if he finds none, then a fast of three days in the Pilgrimage, and of seven when you return, that is ten completely; that is for him whose family are not present at the Holy Mosque - And fear God, and know that God is terrible in retribution."

I could expand a lot more on the Five Pillars of Islam, but suffice it to say they are the foundation and the core principles - please take note that there is nothing about strapping bombs to oneself and taking others' lives.

Circumstances of time and place necessitated the prophecy of Mohammad. There was the social unrest in Mecca and Medina, the movement toward monotheism, the reaction against Hellenism in Syria and Egypt, the decline of the Persian and Byzantine Empires, and a growing realization by the Nomadic Arabs of the opportunities for plunder in the settled lands around them. Yet these forces, and more like them that could be depicted, did not in themselves account for the rise and development of Islam into a world religion. Without the remarkable combination of qualities in Mohammad, it is improbable that the expansion would have taken place, and the military potential of the Arabs might easily have spent itself in raids on Syria and Iraq with no lasting consequence.

Through him -the revelations he made - the Arab world was given a framework of ideas within which the resolution of its social tensions became possible. The provision of such framework involved both insight into the fundamental causes of the social malaise of the time, and the genius to express this insight in a form which would stir the hearer to the depths of his being. He had these qualities to the extent that any prophet prior to him had shown. Mohammad was much more than a man; he was a wise man, and wisdom comes from God. He saw that the "given" structure in his prophecy was the basis on which to support a building of concrete policies and institutions. His God-given wisdom of this matter was shown by the rapid expansion of his small state to a world-empire after his death, and by the adaption of his social institutions to many different environments and their continuation for thirteen centuries.

He was the founder of a world religion - this, in itself, depicts him to be a prophet, for in the minds of many, he is. He proclaimed ideas connected with what is deepest and most central in human experience, with special reference to the particular needs of their day and generation. The mark of a great prophet is the profound attraction of his prophecy for those to whom it is addressed.

On the whole, Mohammad was remarkably free from pride. He was a man who worked at deep levels, and he had to have a beautiful relationship with God to have produced such relevant ideas concerning human existence. His prophecy has had a widespread appeal, not only in his own age, but in succeeding centuries. Perhaps not all of his prophecy seems completely true in the present time, but by God's grace, he was enabled to provide millions of men with a better religion than they had before they testified that there is no god but God and that Mohammad is the messenger of God.
When Mohammad died, the state he had founded was a "growing entity", able to withstand the shock of his removal and, once it had recovered from this shock, to expand at a rapid pace. The more one reflects on the "Prophet" and of early Islam, the more one is amazed at the vastness of his achievement. Circumstances provided him with an opportunity such as few men have had, but as a prophet, he was fully matched with the hour. Had it not been for his gifts as prophet, statesman, and administrator, his trust in God and firm belief that God had sent him, a notable chapter in the history of mankind would have remained unwritten.