Islam

The major difference between Sunnis and Shiites has to do with the succession of Muslim leadership after the death of the Prophet Muhammad. When Muhammad died, a council met to select his...

From the earliest days of Islam, Muslims rejected images depicting humans and animals. In the Islamic worldview, only Allah could create a living thing. It would be blasphemous for an artist to...

If we are talking about core beliefs and not about the Five Pillars, the five most important beliefs of devout Muslims are: Complete monotheism. It is very important to Muslims that they should...

First, we must note that it is not necessarily correct to say that Sunnis typically dislike Sufis. This varies widely depending on the country in which the Sunnis live. Many Sunnis accept Sufis...

I think that one reality that Muslims face in the 21st Century is the constant association of their religion with fanaticism, fundamentalism, and terrorism. I don't think that this is right or...

Islam expanded first across the Arabian peninsula and later into areas of Southwest Asia, Turkey, Southern Europe and North Africa. Each of these societies had its own gender-related customs and...

The fundamental distinction between Sunni and Shiite Islam involves differences of opinion regarding the rightful heir to the Prophet Muhammad, who advanced the cause of Islam throughout the...

The Sunnah is a way in which Muhammad's words can be adhered to as both law and also as a guide for an individual on how to live and what to do. The Sunnah serves as law because it comes from...

The term "Insha' Allah" is an expression of hope. It is similar to the Spanish term, "Ojala que," intending to express a sense of optimism in the future. It is a conditional expression in the...

Anyone who has read the Hadith would surely derive benefit from some or even all of the sayings, though Westerners and Western Christians mostly have not done so. For those who have read it, the...

The spread of Islam was extremely rapid, but it causes are not entirely certain as much of the documentation we have from the 7th century is fragmentary, partisan, or otherwise unreliable. One of...

The hajj, or pilgrimage to Mecca, is very significant to Islam. Indeed it is one of the "five pillars" of the faith, along with the belief in Allah and Muhammad his prophet, prayer five times a...

I had to pare down the original question, but I invite you to resubmit the other part as I think that it is a part of a valuable and needed discourse. Putting aside just for a moment the...

The article you were assigned to read was written by Mustafa Akyol, a Turkish journalist who has covered these issues in greater depth in his 2011 book, Islam Without Extremes: A Muslim Case For...

I think that part of where American or Western predispositions towards women and Islam arise in not being able to fully dissect and understand the complexities and nuances of the Islamic faith....

The answers to these questions are beyond what can be provided in this space here. Scholars have spent oceans of time analyzing them. The only hope I have is to give a small glimpse of what has...

Modern Islam retains strong Arabic, Persian, and Turkish influences. The official language of the Qu'ran is standard Arabic, a regional tongue shared by diverse communities across the Arabian...

A thesis is significantly longer and requires more original research than a seminar paper. Even on an undergraduate level, you are expected to research your topic quite thoroughly, show familiarity...

The pilgrimage to Mecca is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. Every Muslim who is able to both physically and financially must make the pilgrimage at least once in their life. The purpose of the...

The Five Pillars of Islam are: Faith in the one God. Muslims are obliged to bear public witness to the idea that there is only one God and that Muhammad is the prophet of God. Prayer. Muslims...

Islam can be described in a number of different ways. It looks different to adherents than to people who believe in other religions. In addition, there are different views of Islam even within...

There are many varieties of Islam, each with somewhat different beliefs and practices. However, there are the “Five Pillars of Islam” that are held in common by all Muslims. The first of these is...

There are two major differences between Sunnis and Shiites. One has to do with history and the other with scripture and religious authority. Historically, these two Islamic sects differ as to who...

The main purpose of fasting during Ramadan is to cleanse oneself and to become a better and more spiritual purpose. During Ramadan, Muslims are not just supposed to refrain from eating and drinking...

Hadith is a Muslim term that is used to refer to the sayings or acts or ideas of the Prophet Muhammad that are not included in the Koran. To Muslims, the Koran is, of course, the word of God....

There are three so-called "Abrahamic" religions that take the Hebrew Old Testament as a sacred text. While for Jewish people, that is the only scriptural text, Christianity adds to it the New...