Five Pillars Of Islam and Islam's Major Religious Events

Five Pillars Of Islam

Every Muslim must fulfill the obligations imposed by the five pillars of Islam. These obligations must be performed assiduously and wholeheartedly. These rituals and duties are woven into the lives of Muslims and give order and coherence to each and every day, taking precedence over all secular considerations. This means that, for a Muslim, Islam, submission to the will of God, is in the fullest sense, a way of life, not merely a part of life.

Observation of the five pillars of Islam involves a direct relationship between the Muslim and God. There is no need for a priestly intermediary. Because the Muslim's communication with God is direct and unmediated, the relationship is essentially honest and pure.

shahada, bearing witness that there is nothing worthy of worship but God and that Muhammad is God's messenger; salat, performing the prescribed Islamic prayer; zakat, almsgiving of a 2 1/2 % tax on one's asests; sawm, fasting from sunrise to sunset during the month of Ramadan; and hajj, performing the pilgrimage to Mecca.

Islam's Major Religious Events:

1. Ramadan - Month of Fasting
   
2. Laylat al-Quadr - Towards the end of Ramadan, Muslims observe the "Night of Power," which is when the first verses of the Qur'an were revealed to Muhammad.
3. Eid al Fitr - At the end of Ramadan "The Festival of Fast-Breaking."
4. Hajj - Pilgrimage in Mecca
5. Day of Arafat - During one day of the Hajj, pilgrims gather at the Plain of Arafat to seek God's mercy, and Muslims elsewhere fast for the day.
6. Eid al Adha - At the end of the annual pilgrimage, Muslims celebrate "The Festival of Sacrifice."

Source:Wikipedia.org