Symbols of Islam

Title: Symbols of Islam
Writer: Tanja Al Hariri-Wendel
Publisher: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc
Year: 2002

Part I – Arabia in the pre-Islamic Period

Telling about the pagan Arabs before Islam came.
The pagan Arabs held the similar animism and dynamism as Indonesians. For example, because they believed that the spirits resided in the ground, they offered up a sacrificial animal when constructing a house, digging a well, cultivating fallow land, and beginning other similar projects. People sprinkled the blood of the sacrifice animal on the chosen place in order to avoid the wrath of the spirits. Additional spirits were said to live in trees and bushes, and they were also said to exist as household spirits in people’s residences. The raven was said to be a symbol of death and separation.

Part II
Telling about the Prophecy of Muhammad for around twenty-three years - thirteen years in
Mecca, ten years in Medina
.
This part also mentions about
1. Several calligraphy of Surah in the Koran; the ninety-nine Most Beautiful names of God.
2. Destiny and Predestination

…verily never will
God change the condition
Of a people until they
Change it themselves
(with their own souls)….
(Surah 12.11)

A question concerning predestination deals with a more difficult theological question. This one involves the freedom of will an individual has in conduction his life and the sole responsibility that person has for his deeds. Each living being is only responsible for his or her own actions.

3. Angels
4. The Jinns
5. Judgment Day; Death is simply an intermediate stop before the next life.
6. Prayer; Five times a day: Dawn praying, midday praying, afternoon praying, evening praying and night praying.
7. Giving Alms – Zakat: for purification and help for the needy
8. Fasting
9. The Pilgrimage to Mecca
10. Jihad
Jihad means ‘struggle’. Islam differentiates between 2 struggles. The lesser Jihad (jihad al-asrar) and the great Jihad (Jihad al-akbar).

The lesser jihad is the struggle against external forces. It is not allowed as an offensive attack, only a defense.

The great jihad is the jihad al-nafs, the internal struggle of the individual with his weaknesses, bad characteristics, bad habits, and his soul.

11. Festivals of Islam: Two big festivals of Islam are ‘Id al-Fitr and ‘Id al-Adha.
12. Islamic Chronology: Hijrah Year based on lunar year consisting of 354 days and no leap year.
13. Personal Occassions – stages in the life of human beings How Islam view each stage, such as birth, marriage and death & funeral.

Part III Oriental Superstition

This chapter discusses about apocryphal or unauthorized additions, such as ruqya; the vow – Al-Nadhr, amulets (using talismans or lucky charms is prohibited as it is considered as the practice of Shirk [polytheism] which means does not totally believe in Allah), belief in spirits, and soothsaying (is also forbidden).