Episode 5

Abdal Hakim Murad – Understanding Islam Series: The Five Pillars of Islam

About this lecture

The first in a series of classroom-style lectures held at the world famous Abiquiu Madressa in New Mexico. The primary objective of this series was to educate non-Muslim teachers about the fundamental Islamic beliefs and practices within the context of an interactive and intensive spiritual retreat. In introducing this ambitious topic, Abdal Hakim Murad, a lecturer in theology at Cambridge University in England, asks two very engaging questions: What happens when you try to grasp the meaning and reality of another faith and why is Islam worth studying? After providing a more than adequate answer, he proceeds on to the much anticipated overview of the five pillars of Islam. Murad provides a highly intellectual perspective that is useful for non-Muslims as well as Muslims. (Recorded at the Dar al Islam Teachers’ Institute seminar). Other topics discussed: Islamic “clergy”, humility in studying another religion, the modern Muslim resurgence, Islamic “fundamentalism”, “Muhammadanism”, the Hadith of Gabriel, the idea of original sin, mosque architecture, and wudu (ablution).