Iman (Faith)
Belief in Allah's oneness, His angels, books, messengers, the Day of Judgment, and divine predestination.
Iman (faith) is the inner foundation of all Islamic worship, including prayer. In Sunni Islam, iman is traditionally defined as believing with the heart, professing with the tongue, and acting with the limbs. The Prophet (peace be upon him) defined iman in the famous Jibril hadith: "That you believe in Allah, His angels, His books, His messengers, the Last Day, and divine predestination — its good and its evil" (Sahih Muslim).
Imam Abu Hanifah authored "al-Fiqh al-Akbar" (The Greatest Understanding), one of the earliest Sunni theological works that systematically defines the articles of iman. Iman is closely connected with prayer — the Quran calls prayer "iman": "And Allah would not let your iman (i.e., prayers) be lost" (2:143).
Sunni scholars discuss whether iman increases and decreases. The majority, including Imam al-Shafi'i and Imam Ahmad, hold that iman rises with obedience and falls with sin, while the Hanafi school traditionally considers the core of iman to be unchangeable. All, however, agree that prayer is the most important manifestation of iman after the declaration of faith.
Related terms
Masjid al-Nabawi (The Prophet's Mosque)
The Prophet Muhammad's mosque in Medina, the second holiest mosque in Islam.
Madhhab (School of Law)
An Islamic school of law with its own methodology for legal derivation from the sacred sources.
Maghrib (Sunset Prayer)
The fourth daily prayer, performed just after sunset.
Khums (One-Fifth)
The obligatory payment of one-fifth of the year's surplus in Shia Islam.
Sujud al-Sahw (Prostration of Forgetfulness)
Two extra prostrations performed to compensate for errors in prayer.
Minaret (Prayer Tower)
The mosque's tower, from which the adhan (call to prayer) is traditionally recited.