HowToDoThings.com Islam

How To Differentiate Between a Sunni Muslim and a Shiite Muslim

Timmy — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 19:31:28 -0500

“After my death my nation will be divided into 70 sects, all will go to hell but one.” This is what the prophet Mohammad foretold, and this is what happened as far as I know, but surely no one can tell which sect will go to heaven concerning the second part of the prophecy, although each sect proclaims that they’re the ones. The two major sects in Islam are the Sunni sect and the Shiite sect. They are called Sunnis because they follow the Sunna of the Prophet Mohammad, which means his sayings and doings. And the others are called Shiites because they are the followers or supporters of Ali ibin abi Talib, the Prophet’s Cousin and son-in-law, so they’re called Shi’at Ali, or the partisans of Ali. You can tell if a person is a Sunni or Shiite based on names, appearance, slight differences in prayers, places of prayers, and certain special rituals and celebrations.

How To Fast During Ramadan

sadaf — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:51:32 -0500

Ramadan is one of the most blessed months in the Islamic Calendar. It is a month of worship, which requires a Muslim to fast from dawn to dusk, consecutively for twenty-nine or thirty days. Every Muslim knows that fasting in Ramadan is obligatory. Some have been doing it all their life, more as a cultural byproduct of being born in a Muslim household than as an expression of religious commitment; others start at a later stage in life, perhaps after converting to Islam. What stands true for all, however, is the fear of this form of worship being "difficult to do." Below is a practical guide to how Muslims can make fasting in Ramadan both easier and more spiritually rewarding:

Make your intention Allah's pleasure:

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How To Strengthen Your Faith in Allah

sadaf — Fri, 07 Mar 2008 12:53:04 -0600

All of us, being human, experience fluctuations in our level of faith -- denoted by the Arabic word "imaan" -- during the course of our day-to-day lives. It is perfectly normal to experience this. For Muslims, what is faith or "imaan"? It is the belief that resides in our hearts regarding Allah, His revealed Divine books (Quran, Bible, Torah, Abraham's scriptures), His Prophets, His angels, His Divine Decree (or what is more commonly knows as "fate"), and the Last Hour or Last Day (when all humans will be resurrected for account-taking of their actions).