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Islam

Monotheistic Abrahamic religion founded by Muhammad

Islam is an Abrahamic religion based on the Quran and the teachings of Muhammad. The monotheistic religion has an estimated 2 billion worldwide adherents, called Muslims. Islam is the world's second-largest religious population after Christianity. Muslims believe that there is a primordial faith that was revealed many times through earlier prophets and messengers, including Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, and they believe that Islam is the universal and complete version of this faith. Muslims consider the Quran to be the verbatim word of God and the unaltered, final revelation. Alongside the Quran, Muslims also believe in previous revelations, such as the Tawrat (Torah), the Zabur (Psalms), and the Injil (Gospel). They believe that Muhammad is the main and final prophet of God, through whom the religion was completed, and after whom no new prophet or divine law will come. The teachings and normative examples of Muhammad, called the Sunnah, documented in accounts called Hadith, provide a constitutional model for Muslims. Islam is based on the belief in the oneness and uniqueness of God (tawhid), and belief in the afterlife (akhirah) with the Last Judgment—wherein the righteous will be rewarded in paradise (jannah) and the unrighteous will be punished in hell (jahannam). The Five Pillars, considered obligatory acts of worship, are the Islamic oath and creed (shahada), daily prayers (salah), almsgiving (zakat), fasting in the month of Ramadan (sawm), and a pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj). Islamic law (sharia), touches on virtually every aspect of life, from banking and finance and welfare to men's roles and women's roles and the environment. The two main religious festivals are Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. The three holiest sites are Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, the Prophet's Mosque in Medina, and Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound in Jerusalem. Islam originated in Mecca c. 610 CE. Muslims believe this is when Muhammad received his first revelation. By the time of his death, most of the Arabian Peninsula had converted to Islam. Islam expanded beyond Arabia under the Rashidun Caliphate. The two main Islamic branches are Sunni Islam (87–90%) and Shia Islam (10–13%). Sunni and Shia Muslims together constitute nearly the entire global Muslim population, with estimates ranging from approximately 1.7–1.8 billion Sunnis to 285–300 million Shias worldwide. While the Shia–Sunni divide initially arose from disagreements over the succession to Muhammad, they grew to cover a broader dimension, both theologically and juridically. The Sunni canonical hadith collection consists of The Six Books, while the Shia canonical hadith collection consists of The Four Books. Muslims make up a majority of the population in 53 countries. Approximately 12% of the world's Muslims live in Indonesia, the most populous Muslim-majority country; 31% live in South Asia; 20% live in the Middle East–North Africa; and 15% live in sub-Saharan Africa. Muslims are also present in the Americas, China, and Europe. Muslims are the world's fastest-growing major religious group, primarily due to a higher fertility rate and younger age structure compared to other major religions. Islam is projected to be the world's largest religion by the end of the 21st century, surpassing that of Christianity.