THE FIVE PILLARS OF ISLAM

The Five Pillars of Islam

Extracts from a Public Talk by : Dr Zakir Naik

As-salaam wa-alaikum wa-rahmatullahi wa-barakatuhu.

May peace, blessings and mercy of Almighty Allah be on all of you.

Our beloved Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said – It is mentioned in Sahih Bukhari Vol. 1, Hadith No.2, that:  Islam is based on five principals, five pillars. The first pillar is the Tawheed:

“La ilaha Ill Allah, Muhammad ur Rasulullah”.

That, There is no god but Allah, and Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) is the messenger of God.

The Holy Quran says in Surah Al-Baqarah, Ch. 2, Verse 177:

“It is not righteous that you turn your face to the east or west, but it is righteousness that you believe in Allah (Almighty God), you believe in the hereafter, you believe in the angels, you believe in the messengers, and you believe in the Books”.

The best definition that a Muslims can give you of Almighty God… Allah (SWT), is in the Holy Quran Surah Ikhlas, Ch. 112, Verse 1 to 4, which says:

“Say: Allah, He is one and only. Allah, the absolute and eternal. He begets  not, nor is He begotten. And there is nothing like Him”.

This is a four line definition of Allah (SWT)… of Almighty God. What we Muslims say…  ‘If any person, any entity who claims him to be Almighty God, if he fits in this four line definition of God, then we Muslims have no objection in accepting that candidate, as Almighty God. But the Holy Quran also says in Surah Isra, Ch. 17, Verse 110, it says:

“Say: “Call upon Allah, or call upon Rahman: by whatever name ye call upon Him, (it is well): for to Him belong the Most Beautiful Names…”

That means you can call Allah (SWT)… Almighty God by any name, but it should be a beautiful name. It should not conjure up a mental picture, and the Quran gives not less than 99 different attributes to Almighty God… Ar-Rahim, Ar-Rahman, Al-Jabbar, Al-Kahar, Al-Kuddus, no less than 99 attributes to Almighty God. He is Merciful, He is Beneficient and, etc. But the crowning one is, Allah. Now, why we Muslims prefer calling Almighty God by the Arabic word Allah, instead of the English word God? The reason we Muslims prefer calling Allah (SWT) by the Arabic word Allah, because the English word God – it can be played around with. You can play mischief with the English word God. For example, if you add an ‘s’ to the God, it becomes Gods. In Islam, there is nothing like Allahs, there is no plural of Allah.

Qurab states in Ch 112,  Verse 1:

“Say He is Allah, one and only”.

If you add ‘dess’ to god, it becomes goddess… meaning a female god. In Islam, there is nothing like male Allah, or female Allah. Allah (SWT) has got no gender. He is unique. If you add father to god, it becomes godfather – that he is my godfather, he is my guardian. There is nothing like Allah-father, or Allah-abba, in Islam. Allah, is a unique word. If you add a mother, to Allah… to God, it becomes godmother. There is nothing like or Allah-mother or Allah-ammi,  in Islam. If you prefix a tin before God, it becomes  tin-god… meaning fake. There is nothing like tin Allah, in Islam.

We Muslims prefer calling Allah (SWT), by the Arabic word Allah… than by the English word God. Otherwise Quran says in Surah Isra, Ch. 17, Verse 110, also in Surah Araf, Ch. 7, Verse 180, in Surah Taha, Ch. 20, Verse 20, and Surah Al-Hashr, Ch. 59, Verse 24, that:

“You can call Allah, by any name but to Him belongs the most beautiful name”.

It should be a beautiful name. It should not conjure up a mental picture, and the Holy Quran further says in Surah Anam, Ch. 6, Verse 108:

“Revile not ye those whom they call upon besides Allah, lest they out of spite revile Allah in their ignorance. Thus have We made alluring to each people its own doings. In the end will they return to their Lord, and We shall then tell them the truth of all that they did.”

That means… abuse not those who worship gods besides Allah, lest in their ignorance, they will revile they will abuse Allah (SWT). So a Muslims is prohibited from abusing those people who worship gods besides Allah, lest in their ignorance they will abuse Allah (SWT).

The second pillar of Islam, is Salaah. Many people translate the word Salaah, as ‘Prayer’. To pray, is to ask for help… to beseech – how a person beseeches in the court of law, to ask for help. Prayer does not denote the complete meaning of the Arabic word, Salaah, because in Salaah… besides asking for help, we also praise Allah (SWT), we also get guidance in the Salaah, so therefore the English word Prayer, does not denote the complete meaning of the Arabic word Salaah. The more appropriate meaning that I say, I verily prefer calling it as programming, because we Muslims… we are programmed in our Salaah. We are programmed in what is wrong, and what is right – do the good things, do not do the bad things, do not rob, do not cheat, do the good things, love our neighbour, etc, etc.

We Muslims are supposed to pray 5 times a day – the Fajr Salaah, which is in the morning before sunrise – the Zohar Salaah, after the sun reaches highest, that is early in the afternoon – the Asr Salaah, late in the afternoon, that  is before the sunsets – the Maghrib Salaah, after the sun sets immediately, and the Isha Salaah, that is late in the evening or the early in the night. We have to pray minimum 5 times a day.

For a healthy body, the doctor will tell you – You should have three meals a day. Similarly for a spiritual soul, you should offer Salaah, 5 times a day, minimum. And whenever we offer Salaah, when we enter the Mosque, we remove our footwear -this was the commandment given to Prophet Moses (Peace be upon him). It is mentioned in the Holy Quran in Surah Taha, Ch. 20, Verse 11 and 12:

“When he approached the fire he heard a voice… ‘Oh! Moses verily I am your Lord ; take off thy shoes for thou art in the sacred valley of Dua”.

This was the commandment given to Prophet Moses (Peace be upon him) which we Muslims follow – We take off our footwear when we offer Salaah. Besides that, we are hygienic people, who want to see our place of worship as clean. And since we do prostration, we do not want to prostate in mud, dirt and filth which comes along with the footwear – We are hygienic people. Before offering Salaah, the Holy Quran says in Surah Maidah, Ch. 5, Verse 5:

“O ye believe, when you prepare yourself for Salaah, when you prepare yourself for prayers, wash your face, and your hands, and arms, up to the elbow – rub your head with water, wash your feet upto  the ankle”.

It is the ablution – In Arabic, it is called as wudhu. It is compulsory that before we offer Salaah, we should do ablution, we should wash ourselves. Because we are hygienic people, we want to be clean before we appear in front of the Lord. And besides that, it is also a mental preparation – that mentally we are being prepared, that now we are going to appear in front of Allah (SWT), in front of Almighty Lord. Our beloved Prophet said – it is mentioned in Sahih Bukhari, Vol. No. 1, in the Book of Adhan, Ch. No. 75, Hadith No. 692:

“When you stand for Salaah, stand shoulder to shoulder”.

In another Hadith, it says that:

“When you stand for Salaah, stand shoulder to shoulder, so that the devil does not come in between you”.

You Know the Onida T.V. ad it has the devil with two horn and a tail. Our Prophet (pbuh) was not talking about the devil which you see in the Onida T.V. ad or in the comic strip with two horns and a tail. He was referring to the devil of rascism, devil of casteism, devil of colour, of wealth, means irrespective of whether you are rich or poor, whether you are black or white, whether you are from America or from China or from India or from Pakistan, whether you are from a noble family, or you are not from a noble family. When you offer Salaah, stand shoulder to shoulder, so that it shows the best Universal brotherhood, five times a day. Five times a day when we offer Salaah, irrespective from which ever part he is coming, whether he is rich or poor, whether he is black or white, when they stand for Salaah, we Muslims, we stand shoulder to shoulder. Universal brotherhood… the best example, practical example… so that the devil of racsism, the devil of colour, the devil of cast, the devil of wealth does not come in between the brothers.

And the best part of the Salaah, is the sujud… is the prostration. The Arabic word sujud, is mentioned in the Quran, no less than 92 different times. And the Psychologists, they tell us, that the mind is not directly under our control. The body, it is directly under our control but our mind, keeps on wandering. So to humble the mind, you have to humble your body – And which is the better way, than the way we Muslims do. We put the highest part of the body… that is the forehead, to the lowest part of the ground, and then say… “Glory be to Allah (SWT), Who is the most greatest, glory be to Allah, Who is the most highest.”

And if you analyse, that when we offer Salaah there various benefits of the Salaah (i.e. prayers). Normally, throughout the day, there are electrostatic charges given out from the brain. When we do sujud, these charges get grounded – there is grounding of the frontal lobe, there is grounding of these charges. How, we have a three pin plug and a two pin plug… Three pin plug grounds. That does not mean, that if you put your hand below the head you will get a shock. It is not that grounding as in the electric grounding, but it is dominance of the frontal lobe. Normally when you live, you always stand erect – blood is being pumped by the heart to the brain, but it is not sufficient for a very healthy brain. So when you do sujud, extra blood flows from the heart to the brain, due to gravity. This extra flow of blood, is a requirement for a very healthy brain. So when we do sujud, extra blood flows in to the brain, which is very good for a healthy brain. When we do sujud, there is extra blood supply to the skin of the face, which prevents “Chill bane”. When we do sujud, the secretion of the sinuses… the Aismodal synus, Magniotal synus, they get drained – there are less chances of a person suffering from Synusitis.

Normally when you breath, only 2/3rd of your lungs capacity is utilised. The remaining 1/3rd is known as residual air. But when we do the sujud, and when your breath in the sujud, the abdominal vicra, it presses against the diaphragm. The diaphragm presses against the lower part of the lungs, and even the residual air… the 1/3rd air is exhaled out, so more fresh air enters in to the lungs, in which there are less chances of that person suffering from lung diseases.

When we do sujud, there is drainage of secretion of the Bronchial tree, in which there are less chances of a person suffering from Bronchitis. When we so sujud, there is increased vynus return, to the Abdominal vicra… when we do sujud there is less chances of having Hemroid. There are several benefits. When you do kayaam, ruku, sujud… when you stand up, and when you get up from the sitting position, the calf muscles are being activated. The calf muscles are referred to as peripheral heart, because they supply blood to the lower part of the body. So when you do kayaam, ruku, sujud… when you stand up, sit up, prostate, get up… the calf muscles are activated, and it increases the blood supply to the lower part of the body. When you stand up bow down and prostrate the vertebrae is being exercised you have less chances of having disease of vertebrae. There are several medical benefits only of salaah. But we Muslims, we do not offer salah, for these medical benefits – these are only side dishes. We offer salaah, to praise Allah (SWT) to thank… Allah (SWT). That is our main dish. The medical benefits are side dishes – we do not pray for these medical benefits. It may attract a person, who does not believe in Islam – that okay, you get medical benefits…  he may come closer to salaah. But we Muslims offer salaah, to thank Allah (SWT)… to praise Him – That is our main objective.

The third pillar is Zakat. The Arabic words Zakat, means purification… it means growth. In Islam every rich person who has a saving of more than the nisaab level, more than the minimum wealth, that is seven and a half  tola of gold, He should give 2.5% of  that saving every lunar year, in charity – and the criteria to do the charity is given in Surah Tauba Ch. 9, Verse 60, which says:

“Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer the (funds); for those whose hearts have been (recently) reconciled (to Truth); for those in bondage and in debt; in the cause of Allah. and for the wayfarer: (thus is it) ordained by Allah, and Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom.”

These are 8 categories given in Surah Tauba, Ch.9,V  60, to whom this Zakat can be given. It is compulsory for every rich Muslim, who has saving of more than the nisaab level, he should give 2.5% of that saving, every lunar year, in charity. I ask a question, that if every human being in the world gives Zakat,… gives 2.5 % of his excess wealth in charity…  poverty will be eradicated from this world. There will not be a single human being who will die of hunger. That is why the Holy Quran says, in Surah Hashr, in Ch. 59, Verse 7, that:

“It prevents the wealth from circulating among the rich…”

That is, the rich will not become more richer. It prevents the wealth from circulating amongst the rich. The Holy Quran says in Surah Taubah, Ch. 9 Verse 34, that:

“Those who bury gold and silver, and spend it not in the way of Allah (SWT), do not give charity, announce to them a grievous penalty. That on the day of Judgement, heat will be produced from this wealth, from fire of hell, and they will be branded on their fore heads, on their flanks, and on their back. And it will be told to them, that you hoarded the wealth – now have a taste of your wealth”.

Hoarding of wealth, is prohibited in the Holy Quran – You cannot hoard wealth.

The fourth pillar is Hajj. Every Adult Muslim who has the means to perform Hajj, that is pilgrimage to the Holy city of Makkah, should at least do it once in his life time. And I say that the Hajj is the best practical example in the world, of Universal brotherhood – There is not a better example. In Hajj, there are 2.5 million Muslims who gather in Makkah. In Mina, in Arafat… the holy land, 2.5 million Muslims from various part of the world,  from America, England, Japan, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Singapore and various part of the world. And the men, they dress up in two pieces of unsewen cloth preferably white – so that the person standing next to you, when he is performing the pilgrimage, you cannot make out whether the person standing in front of you is a king or a pauper. You cannot come to know, whether he is rich or poor. All of the Muslims from various parts of the world… they collect – It is the biggest annual gathering of the world. 2.5 million Muslims, 25 lakhs Muslims, they gather there and they perform their pilgrimage, and they are dressed in the same simple unsewen pieces of cloth – Best example of Universal brotherhood.

In the Holy Quran, Surah Hujurah, Ch.49, Verse 13, which says:

“O human kind, We have created you from a single pair of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye shall recognize one another, and not that you shall despise one another”.

And the most honoured in the sight of Allah (SWT) is the one who has taqwaa, who has righteousness, who has God-consciousness, who has piety. The Holy Quran says that… ‘The whole of the human kind, has been created from a single pair of a male and a female’. And God Almighty has divided them into nations and tribes, so that they shall recognise each other not that they shall despise each other – That I am superior to you… or you are superior to me. And the Prophet said that… ‘No Arab is superior to a Non-Arab, neither a Non-Arab superior to an Arab, neither a White superior to a Black, nor a Black superior to a White’.

The Quran says – the only criteria for judgement, in Surah Hujrat, Ch. 49, Verse 13:

“The only criteria for judgement in the sight of Allah (SWT) is not sex, it is not caste, it is not colour, it is not wealth, it is not age, it is taqwaa, it is God-consciousness, it is peity, it is righteousness, it is by God-consciousness… not by wealth, colour or nobility”.

These are the guidance given by the Holy Quran, for Universal brotherhood.

The fifth pillar is observing fast during the month of Ramadan. That every adult Muslims should fast, should abstain from having food and drink, from sunrise to sunset, in the complete lunar month of Ramadan. The Holy Quran says in Surah Al-Baqarah, Ch. 2, Verse 183, that:

“Ramadan has been prescribed to you, as it was prescribed earlier, to the people who came early before you, so that you may learn self restrain”.

The reason for fasting has been described in the Holy Quran, for self restraint. And the Psychologists, they tell us today, that if you can control your hunger,.. you can control almost all your desires.

That is what Quran says, that… Ramadan has been prescribed to you, so that you may learn self restrain, you may control your desire. If you can control your hunger, you can control almost all your desires. And there are various benefits, that if a person can abstain from having alcohol, from sunrise to sunset, he can very well abstain from having alcohol, from the cradle to the grave. If he can abstain from smoking from sunrise to sunset, he can very well abstain from smoking, from the cradle to the grave. It gives an opportunity to improve yourself. I call it the over hauling – like how your  machine requires servicing… like the service, your car requires every three months, every four months… your motor cycle every five month, etc. If you allow me to call the human being a machine, I would say… It is the most complicated machine on the face of the earth. Ramadan is a servicing of the human body – one lunar month, every lunar year… servicing.

Ramadan has several medical benefits even of the Salaah. I would not like to go in to detail. But it also improve, increases the intestinal absorption when you fast, it increases your intestinal absorption.

These were in a nutshell the five pillars of Islam. If you remember the Prophet said these are the pillars of Islam, these are the principles of Islam. This does not constitute the complete Islam. Many people have a misunderstanding that if they do these 5 things they become very good Muslims. These are only the 5 pillars, and any engineer will tell you, that if the pillar is strong, then hopefully the structure will be strong. If the foundation is strong, then the structure will be strong, so if we follow these 5 pillars correctly, then InshaAllah the structure will be correct. And the other structure, the do’s and dont’s are mentioned in the Holy Quran. How a person should lead his life, is mentioned in the Holy Quran.

The Holy Quran says in Surah Dhariyat, Ch. 51, Verse 56:

“That We have created the jinn and the men, not but to worship Me”.

That means, God Almighty created the jinn and the men, only to worship Him. What is the meaning of the Arabic word Ibadah? It comes from the root word ‘Abd’ which means, following His commandment. Many people have a misconception that Salaah… prayer is the only form of Ibadah. Salaah is one of the high forms of Ibadah – But it is the not the only form of Ibadah.

Whatever commandments of Allah (SWT) -if you are following them you are doing Ibadah. If you abstain from prohibited food like Alcohol, you are doing Ibadah of Allah (SWT) Almighty God. Quran says in Surah Al-Maidah, Ch. 5, Verse 90, that:

“Alcohol is prohibited”.

If you are honest in your business, you are doing Ibadah… you are doing worship of Allah(SWT). If you love your neighbours, you are doing Ibadah of  Allah (SWT)… as the Quran says in Surah Al-Maun, Ch. 107, Verse 7:

“Provide neighbourly needs”.

If you abstain from back biting, speaking ill about people behind their back, you are doing worship of Allah (SWT). Quran says in Surah Al-Humuza, Ch. 104:

“Woe to every kind of scandal, monger and backbiter”.

Quran says in Surah Hujurat, Ch. 49, Verse 11 to 12, that:

“Do not defame others, do not be sarcastic, do not call others by nickname, avoid suspicion for suspicion in many cases is a crime. Do not speak ill about others behind their back, are you ready to eat the dead meat of your brother, means if you backbite, if you speak ill about any body else it is as though your are eating the dead meat of your brother.”

What does it mean? – Eating dead meat had been prohibited in the Holy Quran. Eating dead meat of your brother, is double crime. Even the animals that eat human being, they do not the dead meat of their own brother. So the Quran says… ‘If you backbite, if you speak ill about other people behind their back, it is a double crime. First speaking ill about any one without proof is a crime… speaking ill about any one without proof, behind their back is double crime, because he cannot support himself. Eating dead meat is a crime, eating dead meat of your brother is a double crime. The Quran says that… ‘If you backbite… are you ready to eat the dead meat of your brother’? And Allah gives the reply… “Nay, you will abhor it?” So if you abstain from backbiting, you are doing worship of Allah (SWT)… you are doing Ibadah.

Quran says in Surah Isra, Ch. 17, Verse 23 to 24, that:

“I have ordained for you that you should worship none but Me, and that you should be kind to your parents”.

After worshipping Allah (SWT) – Allah says… ‘We should be kind to our parents. And if any one of them, or both of them reach their old age, do not say a word of contempt – do not even say ‘uff’ to your parents. But lower to them your wings of humility, and address them with honour, and pray to Almighty God, that… Bless them, as they cherished me in childhood’. You have to love and respect your parents… If you love and respect your parents, you are doing worship of Allah (SWT).

Monasticism, celibacy is prohibited in Islam. Our beloved Prophet said in Sahih Bukhari, Vol. 7, Ch. 3, in the Book of Nikaah, Hadith No. 4:

“Oh young people whoever has the means to get married, should get married. That will help to lower your gaze, and guard your modesty”. The Prophet said… “Whoever does  not marry, is not of me”.

It is compulsory in Islam, to marry. If you are marrying, you are doing worship of Allah (SWT). If you have sex with your wife, and abstain from adultery, you are doing worship of Allah (SWT). Because Quran says in Surah Isra, Ch. 17, Verse 32, that:

“Come not close to adultery, for it is an evil deed, an unjust deed, and an evil opening roads to other evils.”

It is a shameful deed, an evil opening roads to other evils, so if you have sex with your wife and abstain from adultery, you are doing Ibadah. The Holy Quran says in Surah Nisa, Ch. 4, Verse 19, that:

“Treat your wives on a footing of equity and kindness, even if you dislike her”.

Quran says… ‘You should love her and treat her with equity’. If you dress up modestly, that is Ibadah… that is worship of Allah (SWT). In short, any commandments you follow of Allah (SWT), that is worship of Almighty God. If you abstain from those things that Allah has prohibited, you are doing Ibadah, you are doing worship of Allah (SWT). Islam has got a dual role – It caters to the body as well as the soul. There is not a single teaching of Islam, which is against humanity. People may think… ‘This teaching of Islam is wrong’ – due to lack of knowledge. They may have less information either about Islam, or about the statistics of the world. Therefore they may think this teaching of Islam.. that allowing a man to marry more than one wife is a wrong teaching. But if you have the correct information, correct knowledge of Islam and the correct statistics of the world, there is not a single teaching of Islam which is against humanity. Every teaching of Islam, is either beneficial to the body or to the soul, of the being.

The Holy Quran says in Surah Mulk, Ch. 67, Verse 2:

“Allah has created death and life to test which of you is good is deed”.

This life that you are leading, is a test for the Hereafter. It is a test that we are undergoing – If we fail, you go to hell. And the criteria for salvation,is given in Quran. Quran says in Surah Al-Asr, Ch. 103, Verse 1 to 3:

“By the token of time, man is verily in a state of loss, except for those who have faith, who have righteous deeds, those who exhort people to the truth… that do dawah and islaah… those who exhort to patience, and perseverance”.

These are the minimum 4 criteria for any human being, to go to heaven. He should have faith, he should have righteous deeds, he should exhort people to the truth, and should exhort people to patience and perseverance. Only having for two or three of these criteria, will not transport you to the heaven – you should have all the four criteria, for a human being to enter Jannah. Holy Quran says in Surah Al-Baqarah, Ch. 2, Verse 25:

“There is no compulsion in Religion”.

But many people quote this and stop. The complete verse says:

“There is no compulsion in Religion, truth stands out clear from error”.

You have to present the truth. You cannot force anyone on the point of sword, at the point of the gun – that is not allowed in Islam. You have to present the truth – if he agrees Alhamdolillah, well and fine. If he does not agree, you can not force anyone. Truth stands out clear from error. But we have to present the truth to them.

I would like to end my talk, with the Verse from the Holy Quran from Surah Nahl, Ch. 16, Verse 125:

“Invite all to the way of thy Lord, with wisdom and beautiful teachings, and argue with them, and reason with them, in ways that are best and most gracious”.

Wa-akhiru dawaana anil hamdulillahi rabbil aalamin.