Jama Masjid India

Description:  Muslims want to share their perspective on life with everybody they encounter .   They want others to feel as light hearted as they do and here is why. If you discovered something so amazing you felt like jumping up and down in excitement, what is the first thing that you would want to do?  If you worked out the answer to a puzzle and knew others were trying to do the same thing, how would you feel, how would you react?  If you discovered the meaning of life or the secrets of the universe, what would you do with that knowledge? If you worked out a way of banishing fear and sadness and replacing it with eternal happiness what would you do?  Most people would not be able to contain their excitement and would want to tell as many people as possible.  They would want to tell everyone what they had discovered in the hope that they would be just as thrilled and just as excited.  And that is the short and concise answer to why Muslims ...

(part 1 of 2): Access to information does not stop the misconceptions about Islam Description:  A brief look at the first three of ten common myths about Islam. Ever since the Muslims swept out of Arabian Peninsula to establish the Islamic Empire there have been myths and misconceptions surrounding the Islamic way of life.  Nearly 1500 years ago the worship of One God changed the known world; however myths still surround Islam even though the people of the world have access to unprecedented amounts of information. In this two part article we will examine 10 of the most common myths that today cause misunderstanding and intolerance. 1.       Islam encourages terrorism.  In the second decade of the 21 st  century this is probably the biggest myth about Islam.  In a time when it seems that the world has gone mad with the killing of innocents it must be reiterated that the religion of Islam sets out very specific rules for war ...

Description:  The article will present the most important aspects of Islam: core beliefs, religious practices, Quran, teachings of Prophet Muhammad, and the  Shariah .  A simple article that synthesizes Islam in a nutshell. It is difficult to limit all of Islam into a few core values.  Nevertheless, the most important beliefs and religious practices were identified by Prophet Muhammad himself.  Thus, there is general agreement on them among all Muslims.  It provides an interesting comparison since modern Jews and Christians do not have similar uniformity in their belief systems.  Christians, for example, have numerous creeds [1]  and Jews do not have any agreed upon beliefs.  Modern Jews mostly agree over the 613 commandments that Maimonides, a Jewish rabbi from Muslim Spain,  recorded and classified in the 12th century. Additionally, Muslim scholars, past and present, have also identified and in certain cases agreed on the core tea...

(part 1 of 2) Description:  Over a billion people from all races, nationalities and cultures – this part gives an introduction to who Muslims are and their contribution to the world. Muslims come from all races, nationalities and cultures across the globe. They have varied languages, foods, dress, and customs; even the way they practice may differ. Yet they all consider themselves to be Muslim. Less than 15% of Muslims live in the Arab world; a fifth are found in Sub-Saharan Africa; and the world’s largest Muslim community is in Indonesia. Substantial parts of Asia, and almost all Central Asian republics, are Muslims. Significant Muslim minorities are found in China, India, Russia, Europe, North America and South America. Over a billion people from all races, nationalities and cultures across the globe are Muslims-from the rice farms of Indonesia to the desert heart of Africa; from the skyscrapers of New York to the Bedouin tents in Arabia. How did the spread of Isl...

Quran and Sunnah (part 1 of 2) Description:  The religion of Islam is based upon the Quran (the Word of God) and the Sunnah (teachings and attributes of Prophet Muhammad).  Part 1: Quran: The Primary Source of Islam. The ultimate manifestation of God’s grace for man, the ultimate wisdom, and the ultimate beauty of expression: in short, the word of God.  This is how the German scholar, Muhammad Asad, once described the Quran.  If one were to ask any Muslim to depict it, most likely they would offer similar words.  The Quran, to the Muslim, is the irrefutable, inimitable Word of God.  It was revealed by God Almighty through Prophet Muhammad, may the mercy and blessings of God be upon him.  The Prophet himself had no role in authoring the Quran, he was merely a Messenger, repeating the dictates of the Divine Creator: “He (Muhammad) does not speak of his own desire.  It is no less than an Inspiration sent down to him.” (Quran 53:3-4) The Qu...

Description:  What is the spiritual path in Islam and what is its place in the life as a whole? To answer this it is necessary to study carefully the difference between the Islamic concept of spirituality and that of other religions and ideologies. Without a clear understanding of this difference it often happens that, when talking about the spirituality in Islam, many of the vague notions associated with the word ‘spiritual’ unconsciously come to mind; it then becomes difficult for one to comprehend that this spirituality of Islam not only transcends the dualism of spirit and matter but is the nucleus of its integrated and unified concept of life. Body-Soul Conflict The idea which has influenced most the climate of philosophical and religious thought is that body and soul are mutually antagonistic, and can develop only at each other’s expense. For the soul, the body is a prison and the activities of daily life are the shackles which keep it in bondage and arrest its grow...

(part 1 of 2) Description:  Some of the most common questions asked about Islam. Part 1: What is Islam?  What are Muslims?  Who is Allah?  Who is Muhammad? 1.      What is Islam? Islam is the name of the religion, or more properly the ‘way of life’, which God (Allah) has revealed and which was practiced by all of the Prophets and Messengers of God that He sent to mankind.  Even the name stands out unique among other religions in that it means a state of being; it does not refer to any particular person, such as Christianity, Buddhism or Zoroastrianism; a tribe like Judaism; or a nation like Hinduism.  The root Arabic word from which Islam is derived implies peace, safety, salutation, protection, blamelessness, wholesomeness, submission, acceptance, surrender, and salvation.  Islam specifically means being in the state of submission to God, worshipping Him Alone, and reverently accepting and obeying His Law.  Throu...