What is Islam?

Islam is the religion, the way of life of Muslims of the world. There are over 1.5 billion Muslims spread across the globe in all nationalities, languages and ethnic backgrounds. Amazingly only 8% of All Muslims are Arab. 1 in 5 people who walk this Earth are Muslim. Islam was the religion of the first couple, Adam and Eve. It was also the religion of messengers of God like Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus. The essence of their message was:

Believe and obey the One true God and obey His messengers.

Islam means “Submission” or “Surrender” to the Will of God. It derives from the root word “salam,” meaning peace. Everything in this world Submits to all mighty God,the Sun, Moon, trees, animals…..everything that exists Submits to all mighty God. So when you submit yourself to God you would call yourself a “Muslim”.

In the Quran, God defines that the only purpose for which He created mankind is to Worship Him. Islam recognizes that humankind has free choice in whether to obey or disobey God, but ultimately we will be held accountable to God in the next life for the choices that we make in this life.

God sent Prophets to teach mankind how to worship Him; starting with Adam, including Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and the last of the messengers, Muhammad (peace be upon them all). The Islamic position is that all of these prophets came with the same message, that there is no deity worthy of worship except the One True God, known in Arabic as “Allah”.

Islam recognizes the close relationship between the body and soul. Whereas the body originates from the earth and has a defined period of life on this earth, the soul originates from God and does not die. Islam encourages the individual to focus on keeping the soul healthy, through the remembrance, obedience and worship of God. There should be a correct balance in strengthening the soul and not over-indulging with the pleasures of the body. Islam is a natural way of life that encourages one to give due attention to their relationship with God and His creation. Islam teaches that it is through the doing of good deeds and seeking the pleasure of God that souls find true happiness and peace. It is in this context that the word Islam derives from the root word “salam,” or peace.

Jesus (pbuh) was the second-last prophet of God. He foretold the coming of the last
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). prophet Muhammad’s message and mission is universal and will remain so till the end of this world. Belief in Islam means:

1.  Belief in One God.

2. Belief in all of God’s Messengers.

3. Belief in all the books sent down to his prophets. There were 5 books that were sent down, “Suhuf to Abraham”, “Torah to Moses”, “Zaboor(Psalms) to David”, “Enjeel to Jesus”, and the “Quran to Mohammad”(Pbuh).

4. Belief in the existence of Angels.

5. Belief in the Day of Judgment, life after Death, Heaven and Hell.

6. Beleif in the Divine Decree or Predestination, its good and its bad.

 Muslims are those who declare that there is no deity except Allah (Arabic for God) and that Muhammad is His messenger. They submit fully in obedience to Allah and mould their lives according to the teachings of the Holy Quran and prophet Muhammad.