The 5 pillars of Islam

The first and most fundamental pillar: to testify that there is no deity worthy of worship but Allah, and that Muhammad is His Messenger. It is the doorway into Islam and the ground of every act of worship. Accepted sincerely, it erases every sin that came before (Muslim 121) and makes a Muslim of whoever says it with conviction.

The five daily prayers (Fajr, Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, Isha) are the direct link between the believer and Allah — a non-negotiable duty for every Muslim past puberty and of sound mind. The Prophet ﷺ said: “What stands between a man and disbelief is abandoning the prayer” (Muslim 82). Prayer washes away sins: “If a river ran at the door of one of you and he bathed in it five times a day, would any dirt remain? — No. — Such are the five prayers: by them Allah wipes away sins” (Bukhari 528).

Zakat — literally “purification” and “growth” — is an annual due of 2.5% of net wealth for those whose assets pass the nisab for a full lunar year (hawl). It goes to the 8 categories named in the Quran (9:60): the poor, the needy, its collectors, hearts to be reconciled, captives to be freed, the indebted, the cause of Allah, and the stranded traveller. Unlike sadaqah, which is voluntary, zakat is a right the poor hold over the wealth of the rich.

Fasting the month of Ramadan (the 9th hijri month) — abstaining from food, drink and intimacy from dawn (Fajr) to sunset (Maghrib). Obligatory for every Muslim past puberty and in health; the sick, travellers, and women who are pregnant, nursing or menstruating are excused and make the days up later. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever fasts Ramadan out of faith and seeking reward, his past sins are forgiven” (Bukhari 38). Beyond the abstaining, the fast builds self-mastery, compassion for the hungry, and nearness to Allah.

The Hajj is the pilgrimage to the Kaaba in Mecca, once in a lifetime, for every Muslim with the physical, financial and practical means. It runs only from the 8th to the 13th of Dhu al-Hijjah (the 12th hijri month) and gathers over 2 million pilgrims of every origin each year, all in two pieces of white cloth (ihram) that mark absolute equality before Allah. It comprises a sequence of rites: ihram, tawaf, sa‘i, Arafat, Muzdalifah, the stoning, the sacrifice. The Prophet ﷺ said: “An accepted Hajj has no reward but Paradise” (Bukhari 1773).