Five Pillars of Islam

The Five Pillars of Islam (أركان الإسلام الخمسة, arkaan ul-islaam al-khamsa) are the five compulsory (Fard) duties for every Muslim. It is a set of beliefs specific to the Sunnis who belong to the mainstream, orthodox version of the religion.^[1] The concept is not found in the Qur'an but within the sirah and hadith, outside of which a specific formulation of the five pillars is absent.

Shahadah

The Shahadah, which means "testimony," is the Islamic profession of faith and the most important of the Pillars: "There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah." Its recitation in Arabic is a prerequisite to becoming Muslim.^[2] Shia Muslims add "and Ali is the friend of Allah" but do not consider the addition obligatory.^[3]

Salah

Salah is the practice of formal prayer in Islam. It is a ritual prayer with prescribed conditions, procedures, and times. It consists of five daily prayers: Fajr (dawn), Zuhr (noon), Asr (afternoon), Maghrib (evening), and Isha'a (night). Muslims must wash before prayer; this washing is called wudu ("purification").

The earliest Muslims, however, did not practice this ritual prayer. Muhammad founded Islam in 610, while prayer became obligatory after Isra and Mi'raj,^[4] around the year 621.

Sawm

Sawm is the term which refers to Islamic fasting. The observance of sawm during the Islamic month of Ramadan is compulsory.^[5] Adherents usually wake up before dawn and eat and drink to prepare for the fast. During the fast, they refrain from eating, drinking, smoking, and engaging in sexual intercourse from dawn (fajr) to sunset (maghrib).

The earliest Muslims, however, did not practice this ritual fast until two years after the Hijra, around the year 624:

Zakat

Zakat is an obligatory tax ^[6] required of Muslims, amounting to about 2.5% of one's wealth over the course of a year. Under the caliphates, the collection and expenditure of zakat was a function of the state (this still remains the case in countries such as Saudi Arabia).^[6] Slaves and horses owned by Muslims are exempt from this taxation,^[7][8] and it is generally agreed that non-Muslims are not to benefit from the almsgiving.^[9]

Zakat, like Sawm and Salah, was not practiced by the earliest Muslims, and began only the second year after Hijra, around the year 624.^[10]

Hajj

The Hajj is a pilgrimage to the city of Mecca which every able-bodied Muslim is obliged to make at least once in their life.^[11] The pilgrimage takes place on the 12^th month of the Islamic calendar (Dhu al-Hijjah). The main rituals include walking seven times around the Ka'aba, touching the Black Stone, traveling seven times between Mount Safa and Mount Marwah, and symbolically stoning the Devil in Mina.^[12]

It is not clear when the Hajj was prescribed, but most scholars believe it was after the Hijra.^[13]

Jihad and other pillars

Jihad is sometimes referred to as the sixth pillar of Islam,^[14] as it is also a compulsory duty. Muhammad referred to it as "better than standing in prayer for sixty years"^[15] and second in importance only to the belief in Allah and himself.^[16] According to some Shia sects, it is the seventh pillar (the first and second being Walayah, or having a personal relationship with Allah; and taharah, or purity).^[17]

See Also

• Qur'an Only Islam - Why it is Not Possible

References