Islam

The Five Pillars

The Five Pillars of Islam (arkan al-Islam) are the foundation of faith and religious practice. They are outlined thoroughly in the Hadith, one of the core doctrinal traditions of Islam. The Five Pillars differentiates Islam from other religions of the Book like Judaism, outlining theological and practical elements of faith that bear witness to the uniqueness of Muhammad as God's prophet, and the uniqueness of Allah as well (Esposito, 1999).

The first of the Five Pillars affirms Muhammad's being the sole messenger of Allah, and likewise underscores monotheism as the absolute, most important, element of Muslim theology. There is no other God but Allah, and Muhammad is His prophet: this is the First Pillar. The first phrase of the pillar could just as easily be embraced by Judaism, as there is to be no other God but the one God in any monotheistic faith. What differentiates...
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