Facts about Islam: Consider the most amazing and interesting facts about Islam. Today Islam is one of the most widespread religions on our planet, its representatives can be found in all corners of the Earth.
In this article, we will analyze many facts about the culture of Islam, as well as facts about Muslims and their lives.
Amazing & Interesting Facts about Islam
1. The study of algebra flourished during the Islamic golden age. Algebra, from the Arabic “al-Jabr”, originated in the Islamic world.
2. Many academic traditions, including the distinction between graduates and undergraduates, began at the Al-Azhar Islamic University in Cairo.
The university was founded in the 10th century and is known for its philosophy and theoretical science.
3. A woman in Islam retains her last name after marriage. So she emphasizes that she remains her full-fledged personality, with her own identity.
4. When Christians came into contact with the Muslim world during the Crusades, they introduced the Muslim scholarship, which in turn helped spark European revival
5. Islamic astronomy was highly developed in the Middle Ages.
6. The first qualified, specially trained pharmacists appeared in the Islamic world, who made their own medicines and worked closely with doctors.
7. An Islamic writer from the 13th century described the circulatory system about 400 years before it was done in Europe.
8. Initially, Muslims took an “open” approach to sex, but over time this was lost, and discussions about sex became taboo.
Hoping to reverse this trend, Muslim activist Asra Nomani wrote The Islamic Bill of Rights for Women in the Bedroom to “uphold women’s right to pleasure.”
9. One Islamic saying says: “Allah is beautiful and loves beauty.”
Therefore, beauty has always been very important for Muslims. However, due to the strict prohibitions on idolatry, traditional Islamic art avoided depicting people or animals.
10. The Qur’an emphasizes that there must be tolerance between Muslims and non-Muslims.
Jews and Christians – people who, like Muslims, believe in One God, enjoy special respect in the Quran.
11. Bloodletting (hijama) frees a Muslim from prayer and fasting.
12. In Indonesia, home to the largest number of Muslims ( 2 20 million ), followed by Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh.
13. Muslims do not describe Islam as a religion. It’s a way of life for them.
14. Muslims believe that everything that obeys the natural law of God is “Muslim.”
15. Islam is one of three Abrahamic religions that have many of the same prophets and stories. The other two are Christianity and Judaism.
16. Muslims believe that Islam (or peaceful submission to God) is the message of Abraham. Thus, the emergence of Islam technically dates back to Abraham, who lived before Muhammad (7th century AD).
17. There are approximately 20 million Muslims in Europe today.
18. In the Middle Ages, the Muslim world had two huge advantages:
- they had a huge range of contacts, so they could exchange everything: from African gold to Chinese porcelain, European amber, and fur;
- Muslim artisans were highly skilled and there was always a demand for their goods.
19. Without Muslim traders, Europeans would have no rice, sugar, or coffee. Few people know such facts about Islam.
20. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is a prominent figure in Islam and is the only woman mentioned by name in the Qur’an.
21. Mary is mentioned in the Qur’an more often than in the entire New Testament, and more biographical information about her is contained in the Qur’an.
22. Most historians agree that Columbus was not the first to “discover” America and that researchers, including Muslims from West Africa, arrived there centuries before Columbus.
In fact, Columbus relied on the maps of the 12th-century Muslim scholar Al-Idrisi.
23. The vast majority of Muslims do not speak Arabic, they are not Arabs. A very interesting fact about the Islamic religion.
24. The pre-Islamic period in Arabia is usually called “jahiliyyah”, which means “days of ignorance. ” Before Islam, pagan idolatry flourished on the peninsula.
25. Translated from Arabic, Mecca means “place of the drinking bowl”. According to Muslims, there was a source that supported the life of Ishmael, the son of Abraham.
Later, Abraham, together with Ishmael, built a stone building on this site and dedicated it to the worship of the “one true God.” The modern structure is known as the “Kaaba” or “cube”.
26. Muslims believe that the Qur’an is a revised version of the Bible.
27. Muslims accept the original Bible as their authoritative scripture. However, since none of the biblical original texts have survived, Muslims follow what they believe to be the last word of God that has survived: the Qur’an.
28. Muslims believe that in the entire history of mankind, more than 124,000 prophets were sent to Earth, from Adam to Muhammad. Only 25 of them are named by name in the Qur’an.
29. Muslims do not believe in atonement for sins but in the law of personal responsibility. In other words, Islam teaches that everyone is responsible for their actions.
30. After the Chinese invented paper sometime in the 2nd century BC, Muslims were the first to mass-produce paper, developing a culture dependent on its abundance.
As a result, Muslim literacy has increased, and booksellers and libraries have become an integral part of every Islamic city.
31. Mongolian commander of the 15th century Tamerlane (Timur) created a richly decorated Koran measuring 1.5×2 meters, seven lines of font per page.
32. Like Judaism and Christianity, Islam originated in the Middle East.
33. Islamic advances in the use of paper are the main reason we read books today, not scrolls.
34. Arabic numerals, the numbers that the Western world uses today, were developed by Muslims.
35. Contrary to biblical tradition, most Islamic scholars point to Ishmael, rather than Isaac, as the alleged sacrifice in the story of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son at the behest of God.
36. “Quran” means “reading” in Arabic.
37. Muslims do not believe in the concept of original sin, so they do not need the atoning sacrifice of Jesus through His crucifixion and resurrection.
Muslims believe that we will be held accountable to God for our own actions. We cannot rely on anyone, not even Jesus or Muhammad, to be saved from our sins.
38. Muslims believe that God brought Jesus back to Himself.
39. In Islam, there are no clergy or representatives of the church hierarchy, as in Christianity. Any Muslim can lead prayer or perform other church duties.
However, in every mosque, there is an imam or one who “stands before” to pray and preach.
40. Muslims believe that Jesus Christ was the predecessor of Muhammad
41. Jesus is an important figure in the Qur’an. Like Christians, Muslims believe in the virgin birth of Jesus.
42. However, Muslims do not believe that Jesus is the Son of God. For them, he is one of the righteous prophets and is second only to Muhammad in importance.
43. After the death of Muhammad, Islam split into two main branches: Sunnis (85% of all Muslims) and Shiites (15%). There is also a small radical branch called the Kharijites. The split was due to a disagreement over who should be Muhammad’s successor.
44. Sunnis today make up 87-90% of the world’s Muslim population. Shia Muslims make up about 10%.
45. Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are monotheistic beliefs that worship the Gods of Adam, Abraham, and Moses.
They share a common belief in the oneness of God, sacred history, prophets, divine revelation, angels, and Satan.
46. To become a Muslim, a person of any race or culture must make a simple statement (“shahada”), testifying to the belief in the oneness of God and Muhammad is His prophet.
47. In 25 countries, more than 95% of the population is Muslim. Agree, such facts about Islam are quite unexpected.
48. The Qur’an says that “there should be no compulsion in religion” and that God created not one, but many religions.
49. Muslims believe that they must perform 5 actions known as the Five Pillars of Islam :
- Shahada (declaration of faith);
- Namaz (the obligation to pray five times a day);
- Zakat (donation to charity);
- Roza (fasting during Ramadan);
- Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca).
50. Islamic law divides food and other foods into three different types :
- Halal (foods that are allowed);
- Makrooh (foods that can be eaten, but not recommended);
- Haram (prohibited foods such as pork, certain types of cheese, and anything addictive such as alcohol).
51. Allah has 99 names.
52. The Islamic year is 11 days shorter than the European year. This is because the western year is based on the Earth’s orbit around the Sun and not on the phases of the moon.
53. The status of women in each of the Muslim countries is very different. Restrictions often stem not from Islam, but rather from the country’s cultural customs, which are sometimes mistakenly justified by Islam.
54. As in Judaism, male circumcision is mandatory in Islam. According to the example of Muhammad. Circumcision is a religious process of subjugating basic passions to the highest spiritual requirements of Islam.
55. Muslim men are allowed to marry Christian or Jewish women because these women are “People of the Book” or those who have divine revelation.
However, Muslim women should only marry Muslims or converts to Islam.
56. Islam has always recognized the right to divorce in certain circumstances.
57. Dogs in the Islamic world, as a rule, are not allowed into the house because they are considered unclean.
58. The translation of “jihad” as “holy war” is incorrect. In Arabic, “holy war” would be “harbun muqaddasa tur”. This is a phrase that is not found in the Qur’an or any other Islamic literature.
59. Islam and Islamic law condemn terrorism. These are facts you need to know about Islam.
60. In Islam, as in Judaism, marriage between cousins is quite common.
61. Jerusalem is the revered city of all three great monotheistic denominations.
63. Every Muslim should visit Mecca at least once in his life. This pilgrimage is called Hajj. More than 2.5 million pilgrims visit Mecca during the annual Hajj.
So, we have considered the most amazing and interesting facts about Islam.
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