Free Term Paper on the Analysis of Islam
| Religiological
Analysis of the Islam Through the Koran and Hadith Islam may
be considered as an exotic religion to many in the western part of the globe.
The impression that Westerners have is usually obtained through the media
representing Islamic countries or groups in the middle of a Holy War. The wars,
called
Jihad, are usually waged by Islamic Fundamentalist who use terrorism to
get their messages across giving Islam a negative reputation. Because of the
lack of understanding of this highly publicized religion, many conflicts arise
between the people who live in eastern and western worlds. In turn, this causes
problems amongst different cultures through various political and religious
battles that result from these misconceptions. In order to prevent future
strife, it is important for people all over the world to have a better
understanding of other religions. To interpret Islam from a objective point of
view it is easier to use Religiological Analysis, a system that that breaks the
religion down into specific terms: Epistemology, Ontology, Anthropology,
Psychology, Teleology, and Methodology. The Epistemology of Islam is contained
in the sacred book called the Koran that was revealed in Arabic to the Prophet
Muhammad in exact words of God through the Angel Gabriel. The Koran means
Recollect, Clarify, Recital, Reading, and Criterion. It contains truths about
everything and functions as a recollection of all previously revealed books.
When Muhammad was forty years old, he had his first revelation and continued to
do so for the next twenty-two years, remembering each revelation and then having
them written down by scholars. The whole book consists of chapters that were
believed to be put in order by Muhammad himself and are word for word from God.
This book is the most widely read and memorized book in the world and because of
the number of people memorizing the book it helped it remain unchanged for the
past fourteenth centuries. Containing truths about the world and our existence
till the end (Judgement Day), it is also a guide for us on a way to live and
worship God. Besides the Koran, Sunnah, known as the customs or practices of the
Prophet Muhammad are also considered sources of knowledge by Muslims who hold
him as an exemplary human and try to emulate his actions and lifestyle. His
actions, and sayings were recorded and reported in what is know as the Hadith, a
collection of his doings in his whole life. Together, the Koran, Sunnah and
Hadith are held to be the primary sources of knowledge for Muslims teaching them
how to live their life, worship, and tells them about the truths of existence
and Unique Divinity, God. Another source of knowledge can be derived from what
pious scholars agree upon to be accurate about Islam and the practices of
Muhammad. Also, Reason and Intuition are sources that are not in contradiction
to faith according to Muslims, but rather reinforce Islam\'s claims on truth.
Intuition is said to be knowledge that comes directly from God and comes through
meditation, contemplation, prayer, and fasting. However, for Muslims, the most
realistic knowledge and important type of truths are of God. Islam’s Ontology or
Ultimate Reality, is Allah (Arabic for One God). This simply states that there
is nothing more real and certain than God. God is the Ultimate Truth and Creator
of all things, the reason for existence. Another interesting quality of God is
that there are an infinite number of qualities and names of Allah. Mentioned to
us in the Koran are ninety-nine names of God, and this type of Ontology would be
under the study of Theology. The study of the degree of reality, Cosmology, is
between what is real, and less real, which are the two levels of reality
represented in the Koran. Unseen versus the seen, and the like. The Koran tells
us of truths where it may appear to be evident and we could understand, but
there are other truths that we are incapable of understanding or knowing of.
These would be the reality of the unseen. Eschatology is the study of what is
real concerning the end of time and is mentioned in the Koran as the Day of
judgement, or the Day of Resurrection where all that is living or dead will rise
again to be judged by God. Theology, Cosmology, and Eschatology are three types
of Ontological studies of Religiology that are used in order to better
understand Islam or the ‘reality’ of Islam, the levels of reality according to
our understanding, and God. Analyzing Islam Anthropologically reveals who we are
as Human Beings and our purpose in life, the Islamic Teleology, is to worship
Allah. Muslims, are those who ‘surrender’ to the Will of Allah (Muslim in Arabic
means surrenderer). But what makes us unique compared to the rest of God’s
creations, is that He has given us ‘Free Will’, the ability to do what we
choose. We are God’s most favorite creations more so even than angels and jinn,
beings that also exist besides humans. Humans can choose to worship God and
follow His path, or chose not to. Since we have the ability to make decisions in
life we should choose Goodness for we will be judged accordingly. Muslims choose
to follow the path of Allah and be righteous and concentrate much of their lives
in worship within their daily lifestyles. It is hard to live a life in modern
societies where others may not agree with your beliefs and still work to self
improve one’s self. According to Islamic Teleology, we should live a life that
will bring us to Paradise, not Hell, and strive to know God. This does not mean
that we are to spend every minute of our life in prayer like some Muslim Sufis
might, but to live a good life according to Shariah, Islamic Law, and according
to the Koran. The goal is to be able to live life in Modernization and to follow
the path to God through worship and good character. Psychologically analyzing
Islam involves answering what the state, the faculties and the nature of human
consciousness are. The nature of consciousness is usually always changing, never
really the same, or at the same state. The different states of consciousness can
be explained in four levels, the highest and closest to God is the ‘Self”
(nafs), at peace and harmony. It is a level of total spirituality where the soul
is most pure of human needs and wants. The next level is the ‘Intuitive Self’
which is the second highest state where it is close to the soul, but not fully
pure. It is like a higher sense of awareness that doesn’t come from any other
senses, but from our soul. The next is the ‘Blaming Self’ and then the
‘Compelling Self’ which are both like the good versus bad that are constantly at
battle with each other. We usually are within one of these two zones, but are
always going between one and the other. This is also where we battle with our
actions, wants and desires and where we usually make most of our decisions. A
person who is pious and close to God would usually be above these last two
states and in a more intuitive state where the person is close to their soul. We
use our faculties of consciousness, which are the body and it’s senses, the Self
(nafs), the mind, the heart (qalb), and the Spirit (ruh). The compelling
faculties are the body and senses, and they compel us to fulfill our desires. We
might crave things that are forbidden according to Islam, or want material
things because of our human wants and needs and it is the compelling and blaming
self that pull our decisions to one or another. Our mind and intellect is our
rational and reason that we use for thought. Our heart is not a mere physical
muscle, but an organ of consciousness that lies in the middle between the
bodies’ senses and the spirit, the next faculty of consciousness and the
highest. Our heart is pulled down by our desires that are created because of our
bodies and senses, and pulled upwards towards our spirit and true Self. This
explains the nature of human consciousness, like a struggle between truth and
purity of reality to the desires and wants of our compelling self. Each thing we
do or each thought usually puts our heart at a different position within the
line of battle between the spirit and the body. In order to elevate our
positioning of the heart, it is best to want to know God, and strive to be good
and moral. For Muslims it would be to follow the Koran as well as looking at the
Sunnah and Hadith for reference and use it all as a guide in worshipping Allah.
To see how Muslims attain their ultimate goal in life, go to heaven and have
knowledge of God, we observe Islam Methodologically. In the Koran it tells
Muslims how to achieve this through ritual practices, called the Five Pillars.
The five pillars in Islam are Shahada, Salat, Zakat, Sawm, and Hajj. Along with
these five pillars, Muslims are to follow the command of God according to the
Koran and follow the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad as well as to follow the
Islamic code of law, the Shariah. The Shariah gives guidelines and creates laws
that use reason to create order within society (an Islamic society is called
Ummah). It reaches all aspects of life economically, socially, politically, and
even legally. Many Islamic countries use the code of Shariah and include it
within their own government policies. Muslims methodology starts with the belief
(in God), Shahada the basis of Islam and the admittance of Faith. For new
converts to Islam, the process of Shahada represents their acceptance of Islam
and all of its aspects. Shahada in Arabic is, “La ilaha illa Allah, wa Muhammad
rasul Allah” and means “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His
messengers”. This statement relates Allah, the Prophet Muhammad and the
believers of Allah together and is the fundamental belief in Islam. Salat is the
ritual prayer done five times a day with patterns and prearranged times. Before
the ritual prayer can be done, one must go through a cleansing of certain parts
of the body using water if available, sand or something symbolic of the
purification. This cleansing involving the hands and arms, feet and ankles,
mouth and nostrils. Zakat means “purification” and is the purification that is
done through sharing with others, the needy, the poor, those in heavy debt, or
those less fortunate in general. Giving in the name of education health and for
strangers or travelers is also considered a type of charity. Through giving to
others, one’s own wealth and fortune becomes pure. Sawm is Ramadan, the Month of
Fasting for all who are able are to participate. It requires discipline in
physical desires such as mentioned by the ‘compelling self’ and also helps gives
participants a better understanding of those who are less fortunate because of
the self denial and examination that is supposed to occur through this process.
One month out of the year, the ninth month in the Muslim lunar calendar is the
month of Ramadhan and people are to abstain from food, drink, and sexual
activities. The fasting is done from daybreak to sunset and after these hours
regular consumption of food is allowed, but it is good to eat in moderation in
remembrance of those who cannot fill their stomachs. Hajj is the pilgrimage to
Mecca (Mekkah), Saudi Arabia at least once in a Muslim’s life. This must be done
during the last month of the Muslim calendar where Muslims go for the ritual of
the reenactment of the foundation of Islam. The first part of the ritual is a
visit to the Ka’ba a cube shaped structure that represents the existence of
Islam, where all Muslims are to pray towards for Salat. This pilgrimage cleanses
all previous sins committed in one’s life. With a better understanding of what
true Islam is, people can see how closely related many of the beliefs are to
Christianity and Judaism. Many of the other religions of the world have similar
codes of conduct for everyday living, and a common theme is usually acting as a
moral and good person. But a major theme for Islam is the belief in the Oneness
of Allah, and that there is nothing alike. Another common misconception is that
Islam is a religion of revenge and punishment, but in actuality, peace and
forgiveness are stressed. God is both the Merciful and the Punisher, but in much
of the Koran Allah is mentioned as the Most Merciful. The starting of each
prayer is done with Bismallah, “In the name of Allah, The Beneficent, The
Merciful”, not Allah The Punisher. Even though both are true, God is not seen as
an angry old man looking down upon humanity but as the Sustainer. Through
observing the qualities of Islam, one can see that it is a reasonable and
rational religion that benefits the followers as well as non-followers. With the
sharing, giving, self examination and discipline as well as the many other
qualities of Islam involved with one’s self, one can try to purify their self
and soul and then later on be rewarded for their good deeds. In a nutshell,
Religiological Analysis of Islam shows that it is a simple religion whose
followers believe in the Oneness and True Reality of Allah (God), follow the
sacred book of the Koran and try to follow the Prophet Muhammad’s exemplary
life. Existence is possible and sustained through His Will. A peaceful religion
that encourages justice and rational in life such as in the modern world, and to
bring people to a path of Purity. |
1.
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