Islam

Ablution (wudu) — Ritual washing before prayer. (⇦ Go Back)

Adalat/justice — Part of the nature of God in Shi’a Islam; the belief that God is fair. (⇦ Go Back)

Adam — One of the prophets of Allah. The father of humankind; built the Ka’aba. (⇦ Go Back)

Akhirah (life after death) — Belief in a new stage of life after death. (⇦ Go Back)

Angels — They are spiritual beings created from elements of light. They gave God’s messages to the prophets and watch over humans. (⇦ Go Back)

Arafat — Part of the Hajj pilgrimage. Place where Prophet Muhammad preached his last sermon and pilgrims gather to pray. (⇦ Go Back)

Ashura — Important festival in Shi’a Islam, to commemorate the martyrdom of Hussein (Muhammad’s grandson). Sunni Muslims observe Ashura as a day of repentance for sins in the belief that they will be forgiven. (⇦ Go Back)

Authority — Having power and status. The Qur’an has supreme authority as the word of Allah, this means it must be believed and obeyed. (⇦ Go Back)

Beneficence — Literally ‘doing good’. One of the 99 Beautiful Names of Allah and belief about his nature, the generosity that Allah shows to humans. (⇦ Go Back)

Day of Judgement — The day when Allah will decide about individual deeds and on reward or punishment. (⇦ Go Back)

Fairness — Belief about the nature of God; refers to Allah’s justice. He treats all humans equally and as they deserve. (⇦ Go Back)

Fasting — Not eating or drinking; one of the Five Pillars is Sawm during Ramadan. (⇦ Go Back)

The Five Pillars — Important duties for Muslims which support the main principles of Islam. Shahadah, salah, zakah, sawm and hajj. (⇦ Go Back)

The five roots of Usul ad-Din — The foundations of the faith in Shi’a Islam; five key beliefs: Tawhid (the Oneness of God), Adalat (justice), prophethood, imamate, resurrection. (⇦ Go Back)

Friday prayer/Jummah — Friday prayers in the mosque, where a sermon (khutbah) is heard. (⇦ Go Back)

Giving alms — Giving alms means giving to those in need, eg money, food, time. A key practice in Islam; one of the Five Pillars/Ten Obligatory Acts (Zakah). (⇦ Go Back)

The Gospel — Holy book /source of authority ; literally ‘good news’ and it is the good news about Isa (Jesus), who was a prophet of Islam. (⇦ Go Back)

Greater jihad — The personal struggle of every Muslim to live by the teachings of their faith. (⇦ Go Back)

Hajj — One of the Five Pillars/Ten Obligatory Acts; pilgrimage to Makkah, which all Muslims must undertake at least once in their lives, unless prevented by problems over wealth or health. (⇦ Go Back)

Heaven — Referred to as Paradise; Allah’s reward after death to those who have been faithful to him and who have repented of their sins. (⇦ Go Back)

Hell — It is a place of great suffering after death for those who have rejected the Qur’an’s teachings and have led a wicked life. For some it will last forever. (⇦ Go Back)

Human accountability — The belief that everyone must take responsibility for their actions and will be questioned about them on the Day of Judgement. (⇦ Go Back)

Human freedom — Humans have control over their thoughts, feelings and actions. (⇦ Go Back)

Human responsibility — Humans are responsible for most of what they do because they have free will and so will be accountable on the Day of Judgement. (⇦ Go Back)

Ibrahim — One of the prophets of Allah. He rebuilt the Ka’aba. (⇦ Go Back)

Id-ul-Adha — Festival; celebration of the Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son for Allah. (⇦ Go Back)

Id-ul-Fitr — Festival; celebration that comes at the end of Ramadan and marks the end of fasting. (⇦ Go Back)

The imamate — One of the Five Roots of Usul-ad-Din, ‘Leadership.’ Shia belief in the twelve imams who succeeded Muhammad as the leaders of Islam. (⇦ Go Back)

Immanence — The belief that God is close to humanity ad involved in the world. (⇦ Go Back)

Jibril — Angel who dictated the Qur’an to Muhammad; on Judgement Day he will assist with the weighing of a person’s deeds. (⇦ Go Back)

Jihad — 'To struggle’. The personal or collective struggle against evil. (⇦ Go Back)

The Ka'aba — Part of the Hajj pilgrimage; cube-shaped building in the centre of the Grand Mosque in Makkah. All Muslims face towards it when they pray. (⇦ Go Back)

Khums — One of the Ten Obligatory Acts in Shi’a Islam; practice of alms giving. (⇦ Go Back)

Lesser jihad — This refers to the military struggle to defend Islam. It is carried out according to strict and clear cut rules. (⇦ Go Back)

Makkah — Place of pilgrimage during Hajj; the spiritual centre of Islam. (⇦ Go Back)

Mercy — Belief about the nature of God and one of Allah’s 99 Beautiful Names; God’s willingness to forgive the sins of those who repent. (⇦ Go Back)

Mika’il — Angel who gives spiritual and material help to humans; on Judgement Day he will assist with the weighing of a person’s deeds. (⇦ Go Back)

Mina — Site of pilgrimage during Hajj; where pilgrims take part in the stoning of pillars. (⇦ Go Back)

Mosque — Muslim place of worship. (⇦ Go Back)

Movements (rak’ahs) — Actions and ritual movements made during salah (prayer) consisting of recitations, standing, bowing and prostration. (⇦ Go Back)

Muzdalifah — Site of pilgrimage during Hajj; where pilgrims hold a night prayer and rest after the Stand on Mount Arafat. (⇦ Go Back)

Muhammad — The last and greatest of the prophets. He received the Qur’an and his Sunnah and Hadiths are also important sources of authority. (⇦ Go Back)

The Night of Power — The night on which Muhammad received the first revelations of the Qur’an. (⇦ Go Back)

Omnipotence — All-powerful; belief about the nature of God and one of the 99 Beautiful Names of Allah. (⇦ Go Back)

Pilgrimage — A religious journey to a holy site/sacred place, it is an act of worship and devotion. (⇦ Go Back)

Predestination — One of the Six Articles of Faith in Sunni Islam; the belief that everything that happens has been decided already by Allah. (⇦ Go Back)

The Psalms — Holy book/source of authority; sacred prayers and poems written by King Dawud (David), a prophet of Allah. (⇦ Go Back)

The Qur’an — Holy Book and most important source of authority in Islam. It was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad and is the final revelation of God to humankind. (⇦ Go Back)

Ramadan — Month during which Muslims fast (sawm) from dawn to sunset. (⇦ Go Back)

Recitations — Part of the practice of salah (prayer); the reciting of verses from the Qur’an. (⇦ Go Back)

Resurrection — One of the Six Articles of Faith and Five Roots of Usul ad-Din; belief that after death, all people will be raised from the dead to face judgement. (⇦ Go Back)

Revelation — When God is revealed to humans; belief that Allah shows his nature and will through the words of the Qur’an. (⇦ Go Back)

Risalah (Prophethood) — One of the Six Articles of Faith and Five Roots of Usul ad-Din; belief in the prophets as messengers sent by God to communicate to people. (⇦ Go Back)

Salah — Prayer; one of the Five Pillars/Ten Obligatory Acts. (⇦ Go Back)

Sawm — Fasting from dawn to dusk during Ramadan; one of the Five Pillars/Ten Obligatory Acts. (⇦ Go Back)

The Scrolls of Abraham — Holy book/source of authority; individual revelations to Ibrahim that were written on parchment but have perished. (⇦ Go Back)

The Shahadah — Muslim declaration of faith; one of the Five Pillars. (⇦ Go Back)

Shi’a Islam — Muslims who believe in the Imamate, successorship of Ali. (⇦ Go Back)

Six articles of faith — The foundations of the faith in Sunni Islam; six key beliefs: Tawhid (the Oneness of God), Angels, Holy Books, Prophethood, Akhirah, Predestination. (⇦ Go Back)

Sunni Islam — Muslims who believe in the successorship of Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali. (⇦ Go Back)

Tawhid (the Oneness of God) — One of the Six Articles of Faith and Five Roots of Usul ad-Din; the oneness and unity of Allah. (⇦ Go Back)

The Ten Obligatory Acts — These are requirements for Shi’a Muslims. They include salah, sawm, zakah, hajj and jihad (duties also for Sunni Muslims) but the final five are not part of the Sunni tradition – khums, encouraging good, discouraging wrong, showing love for God and people, disassociation with enemies of God. (⇦ Go Back)

The Torah — Holy book/source of authority; given by God to the prophet Musa (Moses) on Mount Sinai. (⇦ Go Back)

Zakah — One of the Five Pillars and Ten Obligatory Acts; giving alms. (⇦ Go Back)