Islam

4 Pages 897 Words

The literal meaning of Islam is peace or surrender of one’s will; in other words, losing oneself for the sake of God and surrendering one’s own pleasure for the pleasure of God. Islam is a religion which impacts every part of life, from eating and sleeping to working and playing. Allah, the almighty one, is the name of the God of the Muslims. The Muslims believe that Allah is an all-powerful, magnificent God who has created the universe and controls even the smallest detail of everything, much like the beliefs of Christians and Jews. Muslims believe that Allah is one, indivisible, and they believe in all the prophets and holy figures of the Christians and Jews including Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon, Mary, Jesus, and others. Muslims also recognize another prophet named Muhammad, who is a direct descendant of Abraham through his first born son, Ishmael.
Muhammad was born in Mecca in 570 A.D. and is the heart and soul of Islam. His father died just before he was born and his mother died when Muhammad reached the age of six. As an adult, he worked as a caravan driver and married several times. As a sacred person, Muhammad would retreat to caves and ponder over the differences of many diverse religious beliefs. At the age of forty, he had his first revelation which he initially thought might have been a hallucination. However, after confiding in his wife, Khadijah, he became convinced that his experience was a true communication from God. Muhammad had many more revelations after the first in which he began to communicate more openly with his people. Following the death of his wife and uncle, Muhammad experienced his “Night Journey” in 620 A.D. At this point, the angel Gabriel guided him upwards to the heavens where he encountered the angels, the great prophets, and at last, the all-mighty God. This was the confirmation Muhammad needed to confirm that he was a prophet and messeng...