Reflection Paper
The main feature of Muslim religion at the beginning was its simplicity. For instance, to become a Muslim was enough to pronounce the formula: “There is no God but Allah and Muhammad - his prophet”. Despite this, religious practice and rituals in Islam are not so simple. Moreover, every Muslim must follow them strictly, without any doubt and irresponsibility. Islam, unlike other religions, does not have an aim of self-perfection for people; it requires only an act of absolute devotion to Allah. Therefore, complicated system of rituals is one of the main characteristics of Islam.
There are not so many practices in Muslim ritual tradition, but followers of Islam must follow them strictly and undoubtedly. So, the main are Five Pillars of Islam, in other words, Five Pillars of Faith. First is Shahadah, the statement, which must proclaim every Muslim and which I have already mentioned. The second is Salat, a prayer. What is important that no matter what, Muslim must pray five times a day: at dawn, noon, afternoon, after sunset and early night. Prayer precedes the obligatory ritual of Purification. Salat consists of the proclamation of various religious formulas. Mainly they are passages from the Koran, accompanied by the set of strictly regulated bows and other body movements. Prayer can be done individually and collectively. Friday is a special day for Muslims, when they go to the mosque for midday prayer and a sermon. The third is Zakat, which means the obligation of charity or giving alms for people who need help, especially poor one. The fourth Pillar is Sawm, fasting, which is obligatory for every Muslim and consists in the abstention from food and any other amusements. The fasting period is during month of Ramadan and it is long for 30 days, during which it is forbidden to eat, drink, smoke, and take part in any entertainment from sunrise till sunset. Although, after sunset Muslims can eat and drink. The last fifth Pillar is called Hajj and it means the pilgrimage to the holy city Mecca. In other words, it is a physical and spiritual journey, which every Muslim must do at least once in his life in order to see and pray at places where Muhammad was.
Following these main Five Pillars of faith is very important for every Muslim, as it demonstrates how strong his faith is and that he puts it on the first place, despite the influence of the modern secular society and its rules.
Except Five Pillars, there are other rituals in Islam such as Sunnat, the rite of circumcision, which is preceded by cutting the hair and the test on knowledge of the main prayers. Usually boy must be at the age of seven. The ritual of marriage, Nikkah, is also very important in the life of every Muslim and, of course, the ritual of burying, Dzhinaza. The Birth rituals in Muslims consist in what child will first hear and taste. Therefore, first words must say father into the right ear, which are the First Pillar of faith, and a child’s first food must be sweet.
Nowadays Muslim practice of sacred war is wide popular, or it is also called Jihad, which means a sacred struggle for the faith. Although, meaning of this ritual is very contradictory in different streams of Islam.
