The Five Pillars of Islam, are the 5 “must” of the religion, the framework of the Muslim life and the Islamic faith. This Five Pillars are, the Shahada or Testimony of Faith, the Salat or Prayer, the Zakat or Support of the Needy, The Fasting during the Holly month of Ramadan, and the Hajj or Pilgrimage to Mecca once in a lifetime.
The Shahada or Testimony of Faith is the most important pillar of Islam because is the acceptance of the existence of only One God. Its the “requirement” to convert to Islam, what must be said is “laa ilaha illa Allah, Muhammadun Rasoolu Allah” or translated to English “There is no true god but God (Allah), and Muhammad is the Messenger of God”. With this phrase the believer admits that only God must be worshiped, and that God has no son, no equal. In the second part, it is admitted that the Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), is the last messenger of God, but not the only one.
The Salat of Prayer is the second Pillar of Islam its the personal contact with God without intermediaries. There are Five prayers in the day, and they are a reminder of the love and respect that all Muslims feel for Allah, its a way to keep in our minds His name and that we belong and only worship Him. The prayers are made at dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset, and night.
The Zakat or Support for the needy is the third pillar of Islamand is the recognition that all we have belongs to Allah the Almighty. The Zakat is giving a specify percentage of what we have earn in the whole year to those who need it, not in an aim of charity but as a recognition that we all helped to create that wealth, the percentage of money a Muslim must give annually to the needy is 2.5 percent of its earnings.
Fasting, is the fourth pillar of Islam, in the Holly month of Ramadan, Muslims(adults) are encourage to fast from dawn until sundown, abstaining themselves of food, drink and sexual relations. This is a way to purify ourselves and also a way to gain true sympathy to the hungry, maintaining ourselves pure and humble.
The Hajj or the Pilgrimage to the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia is the Fifth pillar of Islam; the Hajj is an obligation for all Muslims that are economically and physically capable. The Hajj is a tradition that existed since the beginning of the times, even before the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, the city is consider holly because is home to the first temple (the Kaaba) to the True God made by Ibrahim (Abraham). In the Pilgrimage, Muslims from around the world stand one next to the other wearing simple Hajj clothes; rich stand next to poor, black next to white, woman next to men all equal worshiping the One God, Allah.
