The Five Pillars: Shahadah & Salah (WJEC Eduqas GCSE Religious Studies): Revision Note

Shahadah: The Muslim statement of faith

What is Shahadah?

• Shahadah is the first of the Five Pillars of Islam that all Sunni Muslims follow

  • It is the Muslim statement of belief or declaration of faith and describes the key message of Islam that all Muslims must accept

• The basic statement of Shahadah is that there is no God but Allah, and Muhammad (pbuh) is his messenger

• Muslims believe that this statement is key to their religion and that everything else in Islam centres around these key beliefs

Image

There is no God but Allah (Tawhid)

• The first part of Shahadah is the key belief that “There is no god except Allah” 

  • This is known as Tawhid

• Muslims must believe that there is only one God, Allah, and that he is one and without equal, the only being worthy of worship

• The Qur’an states this belief

• Only Allah gave humans life, provides for everyone and answers prayers

• Worshipping anything else but Allah is considered shirk, a serious sin that is described as unforgivable in the Qur’an

• At the time of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), idol worship was common in Makkah. Muhammad (pbuh) preached against this and encouraged people to believe in Tawhid

Muhammad (pbuh) is his Messenger (Risalah)

• The second part of Shahadah means that Muslims must believe that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was a messenger of Allah

  • This belief in prophets is known as Risalah

• Muslims believe that Muhammad (pbuh) was human, not a god

  • He was a man who dedicated his whole life to serving Allah

  • He was the key to humanity receiving the full and unaltered message of Allah

• The Qur’an calls Muhammad (pbuh) “an excellent model” (Surah 33:41) for how to live

• Muslims have the greatest respect for Muhammad (pbuh)

  • One way of showing this is that when using the Prophet’s name, they would say “Peace and blessings be upon him” (pbuh) afterwards

Salah: Preparation for prayer

The history and significance of Salah

• Salah is the second of the Five Pillars of Islam and one of the Ten Obligatory Acts for Shi’a Muslims

• It is the compulsory prayer that takes place five times each day

• The Qur’an teaches Muslims about Salah

• “What is certain” in this context means death, so this passage calls on believers to worship Allah for their entire lifetime

  • This passage also mentions bowing down to Allah, which is a key element of performing Salah

• All of the prophets taught about worship, and the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) showed Muslims how they should pray 

How do Muslims prepare for Salah?

• Muslims will perform Salah at set times of the day as stated in the Qur’an 

• These times include just after dawn, just after midday, late afternoon, just after sunset and after dark

• In practice, life and work commitments make it difficult to always observe all of these times; therefore, some prayers can be combined (Shi’a Muslims commonly do this)

Image

Ablution in preparation for Salah

• Muslims must prepare themselves for prayer by spending a few moments reflecting on their Niyyah (intentions)

• They must also spiritually cleanse themselves before prayer

• This is achieved by a ritual washing called Wudu, following special instructions so that they do it in the right order

  • The ritual involves washing faces, hands and feet under running water

  • Mosques have special rooms for this, and running water is used

  • In the desert, a dry wash of sand and dust can be used, which is called tayammum

  • Wudu allows Muslims to fully concentrate on prayer

Image

• During prayer, Muslims must be facing the holy city of Mecca

  • Mosques have a Mihrab, on the Qiblah wall, which shows the direction they face when praying

  • Some Mosques have carpets that have the pattern of prayer mats facing Mecca on them

  • A special compass can also be used to find the direction

The process of Salah

• Muslims will face the city of Makkah for Salah because that is where the Ka’aba is located

• During prayer, Muslims perform a set sequence of movements called a rak’ah as they pray

  •  Movements in the sequence include:

    • Standing (qiyam)

    • Bowing (ruku’)

    • Prostrating (sajdah)

    • Kneeling (qa’dah)

• Muslims recite set prayers in Arabic from the Qur’an, Sunnah and Hadith

The rak'ahs

What are the rak’ahs?

• All Muslims pray towards Mecca and perform rak’ah during the prayers, such as prostration (bowing) before God to show submission

• Adhan literally means “announcement” in Arabic and refers to the Islamic call to prayer that takes place five times a day in some countries

• There are specific actions that take place during Muslim prayer

  • While standing, Muslims recite the first chapter from the Qur’an

  • While bowing, Muslims say in Arabic, “Glory be to my Lord who is the greatest”, three times

    • This bowing position shows that they believe God to be great

  • Returning to an upright position, they recite a praise to God

  • They kneel with their forehead, nose, hands, knees and toes touching the floor

    • This is called prostration, which signifies complete obedience to God

    • They recite, “How perfect is my Lord the most high”

  • Muslims then sit and recite, “God is greatest”, and after pausing for a few seconds, they repeat, “God is greatest”

Image

Aims of prayer

What are the aims of prayer for Muslims?

• Muslims believe that through Salah they can communicate directly with Allah

• Therefore, praying five times a day can deepen their relationship with Allah

• They will also pray to seek help if they are troubled

• They will pray for help in improving their behaviour

• Praying five times a day is obligatory for all adults to show their commitment to their faith

• Children are encouraged to participate and develop the practice of prayer; they will learn to pray from a very young age as they grow up in the Muslim faith

• The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said that the first question Allah will ask his followers in the akhirah (afterlife) will be about salah