Islam as the Origin of Various Rituals
Islam has given rise to numerous rituals, as illustrated by the fact that Muslims customarily bow a specific number of times during certain prayers and perform ritual washing in a prescribed manner before prayer. The essence of Muslim ritual most often lies in its aim to induce spiritual states that allow the soul to best receive the Word of Allah and thereby deepen the believer’s devotion. In the mosque during the month of Ramadan, on pilgrimage, and on other important occasions, Muslims draw upon traditions describing the actions of Muhammad or the behavior of the patriarch Abraham in order to ritualize their own actions.
Various Occasions
Occasions such as New Year’s Day are, for many Muslims, celebrations most often devoted to fasting. Some commemorations recall Noah’s departure from the Ark after the flood, when he was extremely hungry. Other festive days remember the Prophet’s birth and the time of his journeys to Jerusalem and to heaven. On the occasion of the Prophet’s birthday, it is customary to support the latest achievements of science. Young men who have advanced in their studies are given the opportunity to demonstrate their accomplishments, while children perform scenes from the Prophet’s life.
Throughout the Muslim world, Friday is a special day—a Muslim Sabbath—when attendance at the mosque is obligatory. In addition to the reading of the Qur’an, a sermon is usually delivered in the mosque, linking the day’s scriptural passage with the believer’s life. The remainder of the day is an ideal opportunity for families to rest together. For example, in Cairo, Friday is the day when the zoo receives the highest number of visitors.
Many Muslims believe that Wednesday is a day of blessings, which is why it has become the most popular day for weddings. The final Wednesday of each lunar month is particularly significant, as popular religion holds that it carries the evil attributed to each month (a belief undoubtedly influenced by the diminishing moonlight and the growing dominance of darkness). The last Wednesday of the month is considered a day when believers may obtain special blessings that protect against death and the forces of darkness.
Origins of Rituals
The origins of rituals in many world religions lie in the customs of religious traditions that preceded them. Thus, Christian rituals adapted Jewish customs, and Buddhist rituals adopted Hindu practices. Islam was no exception: Arabs who accepted the teachings of Muhammad were often influenced by pre-Islamic nomadic customs. In cases where these customs were not officially recognized by Muslims, they remained in the background and shaped popular Muslim religion.
Discussing nomadic beliefs related to sacred stones and jinn, Joseph Henninger describes nomadic views of the dead as follows:
“It has not been sufficiently proven that it was customary to consider the dead as extremely powerful, anti-human beings. Rather, it is more accurate to say that they appeared as those who lacked security and required the support of the living. This is why offerings to the dead do not constitute a universal cult of the dead, but rather the continuation of social obligations even after death. On the other hand, ancestors […] were objects of true worship. People not only slaughtered animals and swore oaths at their graves, but also erected stone structures, just as they did at the sanctuaries of local gods. Like sanctuaries, these graves were places of refuge.”
Muslim Beliefs
Muslim beliefs reduced the influence of the dead, as Muslims held that Allah had sent them either to the Fire or to the Garden. Nevertheless, the burial sites of revered dead—especially recognized saints—have always been important in Islam and often functioned as sanctuaries. Women and others on the margins of society would gather in such places, where they could pour out their troubles to a saint and receive the support of companions.
Those drawn by the saint’s aura and in need of help reveal their problems, while those present typically support the supplicant. In this way, a solidarity of the suffering may emerge. A person in pain may return home without carrying the burden of distress alone or suffering in silence; he or she is comforted by the knowledge that others have also prayed to Allah to ease their path. In fact, a typical shrine developed ritual principles that uniquely combined prayer to the saint with communal comfort.
Ideals
Despite its apparent simplicity and its intolerance of sacred images and pompous worship, Islam undoubtedly created powerful rituals. With the emergence of ever more legal norms, many aspects of life acquired a ritualized character. As in Judaism, followers of Islam, concerned with proper conduct, prohibited pork and alcohol. They also ensured the separation of genders and of teachers and students, among other regulations.
With the ideal in mind, life was divided into periods of work, prayer, and rest at home or in the village square, thereby ritualizing a large portion of the average Muslim’s time.
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Sources: Denise Larder Carmody, John Tully Carmody. Ibid.
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