Being a muslim brings so many blessings that we can barely count. All the good things we do will return as rewards and all the prayers we say bring us peace of mind.
In the pathway to our goal, there must be directions that we should follow in order to not get lost. If we can follow the directions, we will reach the destiny. To achieve the peaceful life of a muslim, there is a path we need to go through. There are also some rules along the path that we need to follow.
There are 5 Rules in Islam that muslim people need to understand. These 5 rules are the fundamental pillars which we can’t live without, otherwise we will be missing out the essential of being a muslim. To build a strong building, one must construct the tough pillars to support it. As a muslim, we must build the strong pillars. Though we can’t easily get them done all at once, we can put an effort brick by brick. Building a strong construction isn’t an overnight work. It takes a hard work and a process for a lifetime achievement.
So, what are the 5 Rules in Islam that we need to know? Check out below.
5 Rules in Islam (A Basic to Understand)
In this article, we will talk about each rule in Islam. They will be put in order of their level of necessity. The first rule is the most important, followed by the others.
1. Statement of Faith (Syahadat)
The first rule in Islam is the statement of faith, called syahadat. There are 2 sentences in syahadat. By saying these 2 statements, you confess that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.
The first sentence means that we believe in only Allah and no one else. There is no creator of the universe but Allah. He is the only one to worship and he has no father nor son.
The second sentence means that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. With the message sent through holy Qur’an, Prophet Muhammad led us to have faith in Allah and do the benevolence.
For someone who wants to convert to Islam, saying this will make them a muslim. It’s a pledge for us to say that we are willing to have faith in Allah. When we are willing to be a muslim, we shouldn’t just say those statement of faith. We need to do what we should do and leave what we shouldn’t do.
2. Prayer (Sholat)
The most essential deed that every muslim has to do is say our prayer or sholat. It’s the first thing to be asked when we die. We do it five times a day on the specified time. It’s highly suggested for men to do it in congregation at the masjid while for women it’s better to do it at home. It’s a mandatory to say the prayers 5 times a day, but there are also other prayers that are not mandatory.
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Those who are obliged to sholat must be
- Islam,
- Mature (Baligh),
- Clean (not being in menstrual or postnatal period), and
- Sensible.
To be able to say the prayer, there are also some conditions to follow.
- Clean from whatever cancels the wudhu and sholat. Before we can say our prayers, we need to clean ourselves through wudhu.
- Cover the body appropriately. Men must cover the body from the belly button to the knees, while women must cover the whole body except the face and the palm.
- The time for sholat has come. The five prayers times are Subuh, Dhuhr, Ashar, Maghrib and Isha.
- Face the qibla. Qibla’s direction is toward Ka’bah in Makkah. Wherever we are, when we are about to pray, we should face the qibla.
There are also some conditions that can cancel the prayer, as mentioned below. Take account that these things can cancel the prayer if we do it in the middle of the prayer, which means it won’t cancel the wudhu (ablution).
- Eat and drink deliberately.
- Talk deliberately for the purpose other than prayers.
- Leave one of the prayers’ conditions and do not complete it in the middle or in the end of the prayer.
- Make a lot of movements for another purpose.
- Laugh way too hard.
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3. Fasting
There is a month in a year where all muslim is obliged to fast. Fasting means that we are abstain from food, drink, and any other thing that can break the fast in a specified time which starts from the dawn to the dusk. Every Ramadan, we are all obliged to fast for the whole month. In this holy month, we are also highly suggested to do more of prayers and charity because the rewards will be many times higher than in the other months.
To do the fasting, a muslim must state his intention before starting the fast. It’s suggested to eat before the sun comes up. During the fast time, we do not only avoid ourselves from food and drink, but also from anger, sexual intercourse between husband and wife, intentional vomit and some other things that can break the fast.
Although fasting is compulsory, for those who can’t fast due to health and distant trip, there can be the other deeds to replace the obligatory. Women on their period may not pray nor fast, but they can do it on the other days. Elders or people who are not able to fast can give food for other people as charity.
4. Charity
The next rule in Islam that we need to follow is to give charity for those who deserve. How much charity are we supposed to give? Who deserves the charity? We’re going to talk about it.
Every muslim who earns money for their living has an obligation to spend some of their earn for charity. This obligation is mandatory for a person whose earning is more than 520 times of rice price per kg. If someone’s earning has reached that, they have to spend minimum 2,5% of the total earn.
For the example, Ali earns 600 USD each month. The price of a kg of rice where he lives is 1 USD, which means 520 x 1 USD is 520 USD. Ali’s monthly earning has reached 520 USD, so he has an obligation to spend 2.5% of his monthly earning for charity. The amount of his charity is 0.025 x 600 USD = 15 USD per month.
The other type of charity that every muslim has a mandatory to give is when Ied Mubarak day comes on Syawal 1st. Started from Ramadhan month to before the Ied prayer, muslim people have to give charity 2.5 kg of rice or money which amount is equivalent to 2.5 kg of rice.
5. Hajj
The hajj is highly suggested for those muslim people who can afford to come to Makkah. Those with low income are not obliged to do the hajj.
Those are 5 Rules in Islam that you need to understand. These are not the things to burden us, but to keep us on the right path.