Overview of Islam.

Salat

Muslims must perform five daily prayers throughout the day as a form of submission to God.

Zakat

Zakat, or alms-giving, is a mandated giving of charity to the poor and needy by able Muslims based on the wealth that he or she has accumulated.

Sawm

Sawm, or fasting, is an obligatory act during the month of Ramadan. Muslims must abstain from food, drink, and sexual intercourse from dawn to dusk during this month, and are to be especially mindful of other sins that are prohibited. This activity is intended to allow Muslims to seek nearness to God as well as remind them of the needy.

Hajj

The Pilgrimage Mecca is an important practice for Muslims to perform.

The Hajj is a pilgrimage that occurs during the month of Dhu al-Hijjah in the city of Mecca. The pilgrimage is required for all Muslims who are both physically and financially able to go and is to be done at least once in one's lifetime.

Muslims believe the Quran is only perfect as revealed in the original Arabic text. Translations are the result of human effort, and are deficient because of the differences in human languages. Under the leadership of Muhammad and his successors, Islam rapidly spread by religious conversion and military conquest. The Sunni-Shi'a split in Islam started with Muhammad, followed by a dispute over the leader in the Muslim community-Although Muhammad said several times Ali was to succeed him. After the Sunni-Shi'a split the beliefs were changed. Sunnis only regard the first four caliphs. Shi'a generally reject the first three caliphs. Islam practices started to change in different parts of the religion.

Islam is the second largest religion in the world. The Muslim population is estimated at about 1.4 billion-Only 18% of Muslims live in the Arab world; 20% are found in Sub-Saharan Africa, about 30% in the South Asian region of Pakistan, India, and Bangladesh. The largest population is in Indonesia. Their also Muslim populations in China, Europe, Central Asia, and Russia. If Muhammad was here today he will shocked to see his religion literally scattered. Muhammad's teachings were diffused across the region as they spread across the region. Islam is broken into different groups and there is civil war between certain groups especially the Sunnis and Shia's. In conclusion the religion of Islam has been continually altered, but some of the basic beliefs stand to this day and that is what keeps the different denominations intact.