Faithful Reflections

Worship at the centre - and the whole of ordinary life orbiting it What Is Ibadah? Worship in Islam Beyond Prayer Islamic Research Notes · Basics of Faith · 31 minute read Before you start Ask most people what worship means and you'll get a description of a ritual - kneeling, fasting, a building you visit on a set day. Islam uses a far wider word. Ibadah covers the prayer mat, but it also covers your job, your marriage, how you speak to a neighbour, and moving broken glass off the pavement. This is the long version of my notes: what the word means at its root, why the Qur'an insists righteousness isn't posture, how intention turns the ordinary into worship, where the five pillars fit, and an honest section on the weak narrations that circulate constantly on this topic. Every hadith here is named and sourced. What's on this page The split I inherited without noticing What ibadah actually means Four categories, and only one is ritual My prayer, m...

A shield with fruit growing off it - protection first, then everything that grows from it What Is Taqwa? Meaning, Benefits and Good Character Islamic Research Notes · Basics of Faith · 29 minute read Before you start Someone asked the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ which deed most often gets people into Paradise. The answer was two words: taqwa, and good character. This is the long version of my notes on both - what taqwa means at its root and why "fear of God" undersells it, what the early scholars said it looks like in practice, the benefits the Qur'an attaches to it, why good character isn't a separate item but the same thing arriving in the world, and honestly where I've got this wrong myself. Every narration is named and sourced. What's on this page The two-word answer What taqwa actually means Why "fear of God" undersells it The thorn path The command given to everyone What it looks like in practice The correction I needed Whe...