As muslims we must follow the five pillars of islam. They are:

#1: Shahadah (Declaration of Faith): There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad (PBUH) is His messenger.

#2: Salah (prayers) five times a day at prescribed times:

     Fajr: from dawn until just before sunrise
     Zuhr: after mid-day until afternoon
     Asr: from late afternoon until just before sunset
     Maghrib: after sunset until daylight ends
     Isha: night until midnight or dawn

Salatul Jumu'ah: offered on Fridays in congregation during Zuhr time.

#3: Giving of Zakah, welfare contribution. Zakah is a compulsory payment and is neither charity nor a tax.
Payment of Zakah is a means of keeping our wealth clear of greed and selfishness. It also encourages us to be
honest in our earnings and expenditure.

#4: Sawm: Fasting during the entire month of Ramadan. All adult Muslims must fast from dawn to sunset every
day of Ramadan, the ninth month of the Islamic calender. This means abstaining from eating, drinking, smoking,
and conjugal relations during the hours of fasting. Sawm develops self-control and helps us to overcome
selfishness, greed, laziness, and other faults. In addition, a Muslim is expected to remain away from all bad
actions during his fast. He should not tell a lie, break a promise or do any deceitful act. The very purpose of
fasting is to make a Muslim able to control his passions, so that he becomes a person of good deeds and
intentions.

#5: Hajj: Pilgrammage to Mecca to vist Al-Ka`bah, the house of Allah(swt), at least once in one's lifetime. It
is performed during the period from the 8th to 13th Dhu'l Hijjah, the 12th month of the Islamic calendar.

For 23 years the Prophet (saw) struggled to establish the light of Islam in Arabia and in the last year of his life, the original opponents to Islam in Mecca finally surrendered. Upon the death of the Prophet Muhammed (saw), the nephew and son-in-law of the Prophet(saw), was divinely ordained to be the first of the 12 disciples or Imams. All of these disciples were divinely ordained and from the descendants of the Prophet (saw) from his daughter Fatima (as). The sayings and letters of Imam Ali (as) are compiled in the book Nahj al Balagha . After Imam Ali (as), the following 11 men were imams: Imam Hasan (as), Imam Hussein (as), Imam Zain-ul-Abideen (as), Imam Muhammed Baqir(as), Imam Jaffer as Sadiq(as), Imam Musa Kazim (as), Imam Ali Reza(as), Imam Muhammed Taqi (as), Imam Ali Naqi , Imam Hasan Al-Askari (as), and Imam Muhammad al-Mehdi (as).

Just a brief note on the Islamic calendar. Islamic months are counted according to the moon. They are lunar
months. An Islamic year has 354 or 355 days. Gregorian months are solar months; they are counted according to
the sun. All Islamic festivals are observed according to the actual sighting of the moon. That is why Islamic
festival dates are not the same every year.

The Islamic months are as follows: Muharram, Safar, Rabi'ul Awwal, Rabi'ul Akhir, Jumadal 'Ula, Jumadal 'Ukhra,
Rajab, Sha'ban, Ramadan, Shawwal, Dhul Qa'dah, Dhul Hijjah.

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1. Perfecting Man's Faith and Conviction
2. Seeking God is of the Essence
3. God and the Reasoning of the Experimental Sciences
4. Acceptance of Unseen Existence Involves Other Realities Besides God
5. Factors in the Spread of Materialism

"Al-Ghadir" and its Relevance to Islamic Unity by Ayatullah Murtada Mutahhari
Journey Into the Unseen World A fascinating description of Life After Death.
Marriage and Morals in Islam by Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi
Reflections of an American Muslim, Shahid Athar

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