5+Pillars+of+Islam+Document

Reading taken from // Muslim Holidays( //Fountain Valley, CA: Council on Islamic Education, 2002), 65-69  The word Islam means “peace through submission to God.” Muslim practice is defined by the //Qur’an //(holy scripture){is this the literal translation, or simply the context’s definition?} and the //Sunnah//, or example set by Prophet Muhammad and transmitted through the //Hadith// (recorded words and deeds). Islam is a universal religion, meaning that anyone may accept its beliefs and become a Muslim, or follower of Islam. A Muslim is “one who seeks peace through submission to God.” This means striving to reach a goal rather than achieving a fixed identity. “Seeking the face of God” is an expression often used to describe this lifetime goal. To fulfill the identity of a Muslim, a person must carry out certain acts, and live a  moral, God-fearing life.  These basic acts required of a Muslim are called the Five Pillars. Accepting Islam requires only that a person state the basic creed, “There is no god but God” and “Muhammad is the messenger of God.” That is the first of the five basic acts or duties. The Five Pillars of Islam are: (1) //shahadah// -- to state belief in One God and the prophethood of Muhammad, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(2) //salat// -- to pray five obligatory prayers each day, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(3) //siyam// -- to fast from dawn to sunset during the month of Ramadan each year, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(4) //zakat// – to pay obligatory charity each year, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(5) //hajj// -- to make the pilgrimage to Makkah once in a lifetime. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The following sections describe the pillars in detail. **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">1. Shahadah (the Islamic Creed) **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The declaration of faith in Islam is a simple statement that <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">begins //Ashud anna//,” (“I witness that”), and continues with the statement //La illaha illa Allah// <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(“There is no god but God”), and ends with the affirmation //wa Muhammad rasul Allah// (“and  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muhammad is the messenger of God”). The first part defines the role of the Muslim, a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">continuous striving throughout life. This striving reaches into all aspects of personality and <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">activity toward the self{but it hasn’t been explained exactly what they are striving for… What does it mean for a muslim to seek “peace through submission”? Isn’t this a contradicting idea to having an individual personality, yet striving for the suppression of that personality for the sake God?}, the family and the community, to the entire community of humankind <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and the natural environment. The second part affirms the existence of one God by negating the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">existence of any other creature that people might worship, or any partner with God{So muslims have no belief in Hell, or the Devil? As much as people do not wish to admit it, damnation and the Devil are a huge parts of Christianity, the religion upon which Islam is directly based. Why would muslims feel the need to live a moral “God fearing” life if there is essentially no punishment? }. It underlines <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">the Muslim’s direct relationship with God as a witness and as a servant of God. No central <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">authority nor privileged persons stand between God and the individual. The third part of the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">creed witnesses that God sent prophets to humankind, as stated in the scriptures revealed before <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">the Qur’an. Then, it affirms that Muhammad was a prophet, or messenger who received <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">revelation (the Qur’an) and guidance from God. Among the earlier revelations mentioned in the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Qur’an are the Torah (given to Moses), the Psalms (given to David) and the Evangelion (given  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">to Jesus). This series of prophets and revelation includes—among others—Adam, Noah, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon, Jesus, and Muhammad, according to  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">the universally accepted teachings of Islam. The Qur’an states that what was revealed to  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muhammad confirmed the basic message of the earlier scriptures.{So, what was revealed to Muhammad had no importance(just a reiteration of other previous religious works)? Why don’t they go in depth about the beliefs, and talk about the differences between the religions more, when listing the various shared prophets?} <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">2. Salah (Muslims’ Daily Prayer) **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">is the five daily prayers that are the duty of every Muslim. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muslims perform the recitations and physical movements of //salah// as taught by their prophet <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muhammad, according to Islamic sources. Each of the five prayers can be performed within a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">window of time. (1) between dawn and sunrise, (2) noon to mid-afternoon, (3) between midafternoon <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and just before sunset, (4) at sunset, and (5) after twilight until nighttime. Prayer time <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">is determined by the sun’s position, which Muslims today calculate by clock time, using charts <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">that change with the longer and shorter days of each season. Before praying, Muslims perform a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">brief ritual washing{similar to the Christian practice of using Holy Water in Church.}. This purification prepares the worshipper for entering the state of prayer, of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">standing before God. It is a symbol of the cleansing effect of prayer. No matter what language <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">they speak, all Muslims pray in the Arabic language.{How do they learn? Isn’t it just like how a parrot can learn to speak as a parlour trick?} <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">In the //salah//, Muslims recite specific words and selected verses from the Qur’an while standing, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">bowing, kneeling with the hands and forehead touching the ground, and sitting. Each cycle of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">movements is one //rak’at//, or unit of prayer, and each of the five prayers has between two and <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">four units{They directly measure their faith through “units of prayer”? Isn’t that sort of immoral or unfair to those who don’t know the language, or aren’t the most devout? What about those who can’t speak, or are mentally handicapped? What is the Muslim policy on that?}. At the end of the prayer, and throughout their lives, Muslims pray informally {subservience does not = friendship. I would think for all the emphasis on being God’s servant, they would show more formal relationship. The heart and will of a God is near-impossible to know, so what do they hope to gain by treating God as they would an ordinary person? This reminds me of the book Persepolis.}, asking <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">for guidance and help in their own words. They also recite special prayers passed down as the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">words of the prophets. If two or more Muslims pray together, one of them will be the //imam// <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(prayer leader), and the others form rows behind the //imam//. //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Masjid //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">is the Arabic name for an Islamic house of worship. The common English term //mosque// is  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">a French version of the Spanish word //mezquita//. The //masjid// is named after the position of prayer <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">called //sujud//, which means kneeling with the hands and forehead touching the ground. The //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">masjid //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">is a simple, enclosed space oriented towards the city of Makkah (on the Arabian  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Peninsula ) where Islam’s holiest place—the Ka’bah –--is located. There is no furniture except <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">mats or rugs, and Muslims stand shoulder to shoulder in rows, following the movements of the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">prayer leader all together{This is a huge contradiction!The document says there is no formal authority involved in Islam, yet they have the basic equivalent of a priest? }. Because of these movements and the closeness of the worshippers, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">women pray together in rows behind the men. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">3. Sawm (Fasting) **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">During one month each year, Muslims fast, meaning that they do not eat or  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">drink anything between dawn and sunset. Fasting is a duty for adults, but many children <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">participate voluntarily, for at least part of the day, or only a few days. The fast begins with //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">sahoor //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">(a pre-dawn meal). While fasting, Muslims perform the dawn, noon and afternoon <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">prayers, and go about their normal duties. At sunset, Muslims break their fast with a few dates <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and water, then pray, then eat //iftar// (a meal that breaks the fast). //Iftar// is usually eaten with family <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and friends, or at the //masjid//, which hosts meals donated by community members for all. After <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">the evening prayer, many Muslims go to the //masjid// for congregational prayers that feature a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">reading of one thirtieth of the Qur’an each night. They complete the whole Qur’an by the end of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">the month. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The Qur’an links fasting with the practice of earlier prophets and religions: “//You who believe!// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you that you may learn self restraint //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">.”(Qur’an 2:183) <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The fast begins at dawn on the first day of Ramadan, the tenth month <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">of the Islamic lunar calendar. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muslims may fast individually during the year, but doing it as a community magnifies the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">experience. The rhythm of life changes, and people’s relations soften{Wouldn’t they normally become more tense, as hunger is a source of irritation for many people? For example, during the Christian fast, Lent… }. Daily schedules change, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and some workplaces and schools can adjust their schedules. Living outside majority Muslim <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">countries, Muslims find ways to cope and make the most of Ramadan. Gathering with others is  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">an important part of that, whether in homes or in //masjids// and community centers. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Each individual experiences hunger and its discomforts, but in a few days, the body gets used to  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">it. Muslims are supposed to fast in the spirit as well, and make extra effort to avoid arguments, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">conflicts and bad words, thoughts, and deeds. Fasting builds will-power against temptation, helps <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">people feel sympathy for those in need, and encourages generosity toward others. Fasting causes <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">physical and psychological changes, and many claim that it is a healthy way to purify the body. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Fasting helps people to reevaluate their lives spiritually, and draw closer to God. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">3. **Zakah (Charity as a Duty)** is the annual giving of a percentage of a Muslim’s wealth and <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">possessions beyond basic needs. The word means "purification," meaning that a person is  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">purified from greed by giving wealth to others. When Muslims have cash savings for a year, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">they give 2.5% of it as //zakat. Zakat// on other forms of wealth, such as land, natural resources, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and livestock is calculated at different rates{How do you calculate things like that? Doesn’t that eventually mean they’d be left with little to nothing?This is rather reminiscent of the basics of communism (people are all equal, everyone helps each other under the main power.)}. Paying the //zakat// reminds Muslims of the duty to  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">help those less fortunate, and that wealth is a gift entrusted to a person by God rather than a   <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">possession to be hoarded selfishly. Prophet Muhammad set the precedent that //zakah// was <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">collected and distributed locally, and what remained after meeting local needs was <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">distributed to the larger Muslim community through the general treasury. //Zakah// money <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">belongs to several categories of persons: “//The alms are only for the poor and the needy, and// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">those [public servants] who collect them, and those whose hearts are to be reconciled, and to // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">free the captives and the debtors, and for the cause of Allah, and for the wayfarers; a duty // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">imposed by Allah. Allah is knower, Wise //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">.” (Qur’an 9:60). <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muslims may distribute //zakah// to needy and deserving people and groups on their own, and each <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">person is responsible for figuring out the amount owed. Of course, 2.5% is a minimum amount, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">and more may be given. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Islamic traditional sources mention charity often. A //hadith// of the Prophet said: “//Charity is a// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">necessity for every Muslim.” //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">He was asked: //‘What if a person has nothing?’ The Prophet// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">replied: ‘He should work with his own hands for his benefit and then give something out of such // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">earnings in charity.’ //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The Companions asked: //‘What if he is not able to work?’// The Prophet said: //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">‘He should help poor and needy persons.’ //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The Companions further asked: //‘What if he cannot do// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">even that?’ //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The Prophet said: //‘He should urge others to do good.’// The Companions said: //‘What// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">if he lacks that also?’ //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The Prophet said: //‘He should check himself from doing evil. That is also// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">charity //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">.’”{put in other terms, this sounds really negative…If you have nothing, work hard, and then give it away. If you are crippled, help out other people. If you cannot help others, Complain and tell others to be good.} <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;"> **<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">5. Hajj (Journey to Makkah) ** <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">The basic act of worship in Islam is the pilgrimage (journey) to the city of Makkah during a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">certain time of year. The //hajj// rites symbolically reenact the trials and sacrifices of Prophet <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Abraham, his wife Hajar, and their son Isma’il over 4,000 years ago. {Why is it that Abraham’s name is not changed but his wife and son’s names have been?}Muslims must perform the //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">hajj //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">at least once in their lives, provided their health and finances permit. The //hajj// is performed <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">annually by over 2,000,000 people during the twelfth month of the Islamic lunar calendar, //Dhul-// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Hijjah //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">. In commemoration of the trials of Abraham and his family in Makkah, which included <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son in response to God’s command, Muslims make a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">pilgrimage to the sacred city at least once in their lifetime. The //hajj// is one of the “five pillars” of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Islam, and thus an essential part of the faith and practice of Muslims. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Muslims from all over the world, including the United States, travel to Makkah (in today’s Saudi  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Arabia). Before arriving in the holy city, Muslims enter a state of being called **//ihram//**. They <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">remove their ordinary clothes and put on the simple dress of pilgrims--two seamless white sheets <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">for men, and usually, white dresses and head covering for women. The pilgrims are dressed in  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">the same simple clothes. No one can tell who is rich, famous or powerful. White clothes are a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">symbol of purity, unity, and equality before God. The gathering of millions of pilgrims at  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Makkah is a reminder of the gathering of all humans before God at the Judgment Day. It is a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">symbol of the Muslim ummah, because pilgrims gather from all corners of the earth. It is a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">symbol of the past, because the pilgrims visit places where Abraham and his family faced the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">challenge of their faith, and where Muhammad was born and preached. Pilgrims go around the <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Ka’bah. According to Islamic teachings, it was the first house of worship for one God on earth. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Pilgrims call //“Labbayka Allahumma Labbayk,”// which means //“Here I am at your service, O// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">God, here I am!” //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">This echoes the call of Abraham in the Hebrew Bible, in answer to the call of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">God. Pilgrims also walk seven times between the hills named **Safa** and **Marwah**, where they <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">recall how Ishmael’s mother searched for water for him, and the spring of water called Zam-zam <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">flowed under his foot, and still flows. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Other stations of the pilgrimage are nearby Makkah, where they perform prayers, camp <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">overnight, and stand all together on the Plain of Arafat asking for God’s forgiveness and <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">guidance. They recall Abraham’s struggle with Satan by casting pebbles at three stone columns. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Pilgrims complete the hajj by sacrificing a sheep or other animal, whose meat is to be shared <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">with family, friends, and those in need. Nowadays, a meat processing plant near the place of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">sacrifice helps distribute the meat around the world{Why would someone build a large meat factory next to a sacrificial altar? Isn’t that exploitative?}. The sacrifice reminds of the Biblical and <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Quranic story telling how Abraham was willing to sacrifice even his son for God, and a ram <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">appeared in the boy’s place. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Pilgrims leave the state of ihram by trimming or cutting their hair and returning to Makkah for a  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">final visit to the Ka’bah. A //hadith// of Prophet Muhammad says that a pilgrim “//will return as free// //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">of sin as a newborn baby //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">.” The pilgrimage brings Muslims from all around the world, of  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">different nationalities, languages, races, and regions, to come together in a spirit of universal <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">humanity to worship God together. //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">And when We made the House at Makkah a place of assembly and a place of safety for // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">humankind, saying: Take as your place of worship the place where Abraham stood to // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">pray. And We laid a duty upon Abraham and Ishmael: Purify My house for those who go // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">around and those who meditate therein and those who bow down in worship. // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">And when Abraham prayed: My Lord! Make this a city of peace region of security and // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">feed its people with fruits, such of them as believe in God and the Last Day, He // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">answered: As for him who disbelieves, I shall leave him content for a while, then I shall // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">compel him to the doom of fire--a hapless journey’s end! // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">And remember when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations of the House, with this // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">prayer: Our Lord! Accept from us this service. Lo! Thou, only Thou, art the Hearer, the // //<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt;">Knower. // <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">From Surat al-Baqara, Ayah 125-128 (adapted from Marmaduke Pickthall translation)
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16pt;">The 5 Pillars of Islam **