Al-Masih ad-Dajjal Al-Masih ad-Dajjal (المسيح الدجّال Al-Masīḥ ad-Dajjāl, “the false messiah, liar, the deceiver”) is an evil figure in Islamic eschatology. He is said to have come from several different locations, but generally from the East, usually between Syria and Iran, comparable to the Christian understanding of the appearance of the...
Creation Myth A creation myth (or cosmogonic myth) is a symbolic narrative of how the world began and how people first came to inhabit it. While in popular usage the term myth often refers to false or fanciful stories, members of cultures often ascribe varying degrees of truth to their creation myths. In the society in...
Islamic Mythology Islamic mythology is the body of myths associated with Islam and the Quran. Islam is a religion that is more concerned with social order and law than with religious myths. The Oxford Companion to World Mythology identifies a number of traditional narratives as “Islamic myths“. These include a creation myth and a vision of afterlife, which Islam shares to some extent...
Women In Islam versus Judaeo-Christian Tradition This article explains the women in Islam versus Judaeo-Christian tradition. The Myth & the Reality Introduction Five years ago, I read in the Toronto Star issue of July 3, 1990 an article titled “Islam is not alone in patriarchal doctrines”, by Gwynne Dyer. The...
Women In Islam Situation of women in Islam is vary widely between and within different Muslim societies. At the same time, their adherence to Islam is a shared factor that affects their lives to a varying degree and gives them a common identity that may serve to bridge the wide...
What Is Sharia? Sharia, Sharia law, or Islamic law (شريعة) is a religious law forming part of the Islamic tradition. It is derived from the religious precepts of Islam, particularly the Quran and the Hadith. In Arabic, the term sharīʿah refers to God’s immutable divine law and is contrasted with fiqh, which refers to its human scholarly interpretations. It has been described as “one of the major intellectual...
Criticism Of Islamism This article covers the criticism of Islamism. The ideas and practices of the leaders, preachers, and movements of the Islamic revival movement known as Islamism (also referred to as Political Islam) have been criticized by Muslims (often Islamic modernists and liberals) and non-Muslims. Among those authors and scholars who have criticized Islamism, or...
Islamism Islamism is a concept whose meaning has been debated in both public and academic contexts. The term can refer to diverse forms of social and political activism advocating that public and political life should be guided by Islamic principles or more specifically to movements which call for full implementation of sharia. It is...
Jihad With Different Aspects Jihad literally means striving or doing one’s best to achieve something, and its practitioners (mujahidin) are those who devote themselves fully to obtaining God’s good pleasure by opposing those forces that seek to defeat His religion and the upholding of His word. It is far more...
Islam And Secularism This article covers the relationship between Islam and secularism. Secularism has been a controversial concept in Islamic political thought, owing in part to historical factors and in part to the ambiguity of the concept itself. In the Muslim world, the notion has acquired strong negative connotations due to...
Jihad Jihad is an Arabic word which literally means striving or struggling, especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform to God’s guidance, such as the struggle against one’s evil inclinations, proselytizing, or efforts toward the moral betterment of the...
Tanzil Tanzil (تنزيل) “sending down”, Inzal (انزال) “bringing down”, and nuzul (نزول) “descending”, and other words based on the triconsonantal root verb nazala (نزل ) “to descend”, refer to the descent of God’s message from heaven to earth where it was revealed to the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad. See also: Prophet Muhammad and Hadith In the Qur’an — where...
Happiness And Religion The relationship between religion and happiness has been the focus of much research. The present review provides a critical examination of this research and, in particular, focuses on conceptual and methodological concerns. The majority of studies report a positive association between measures of religion and happiness; however,...
Iranian Religions Iranian religions are religions which originated in Greater Iran. Background The beliefs, activities, and cultural events of the ancient Iranians in ancient Iran are complex matters. The ancient Iranians made references to a combination of several Aryans and non-Aryan tribes. Aryans, or ancient Iranians, worshiped natural elements such as the sun, sunlight and thunder, but they eventually shifted...
Cosmology In Medieval Islam This article covers cosmology in medieval Islam. Islamic cosmology is the cosmology of Islamic societies. It is mainly derived from the Qur’an, Hadith, Sunnah, and current Islamic as well as other pre-Islamic sources. The Qur’an itself mentions seven heavens. See also: Cosmology Metaphysical principles Duality In Islamic thought the cosmos includes both the Unseen...
Science And The Concept Of Science This article covers the relationship between science and the concept of science. Despite the disasters, science and technology have brought to mankind and the mistakes of the purely scientific approach in seeking the truth, as well as the failure of science and technology to...
Science and Religion In The Holy Book This article covers science and religion in the Holy Book (the Quran). Science regards as ‘scientific’ the facts established through empirical methods. Therefore, the assertions, which have not yet been established through observation and experiment, can only be theories or hypotheses. Science cannot...
Science And Religion – M. Fethullah Gulen This article covers the relationship between science and religion – M. Fethullah Gulen. Science considers any fact, established through empirical methods, to be scientific. Therefore, assertions not established through observation and experiment are only theories or hypotheses. As science cannot be sure about...
Muslim Quotes A Muslim is an adherent of the religion of Islam. Muslims consider the Quran to be the verbatim word of God as revealed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous Muslim quotes and Muslim sayings collected over the years from a variety of sources. May...
Divine Wisdom in The Shooting Stars and Meteor Showers Is There a Divine Wisdom in or Does Religion Have Something to Say about the Shooting Stars or Meteor Showers? In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate Assuredly, We have adorned the world’s heaven with lamps, and We have...