Hi my name is Nashmian Basit.  I have blonde hair and blue eyes.  I have a mother, a father, and one older sister.  I am adventurous and very organized, although school is not my favorite thing. 

In two months I am going on my 1st hajj (which is the only required hajj, but if you have enough money you can go on other hajj's) to the HOLIEST city, Mecca which is just about 21 North and 40 East.  The hajj is a pilgrimage to Mecca, this is very vital for an Islamic person to go to.  It’s basically the submission to God. 

This time of year, during the month of Ramadan, we the Muslim fast.  Ramadan is the ninth month of the Arabic calendar.  During this month people suppose that Allah revealed the first verses of the Qur'an (the holy book of Islam).  If today was a day during the month of Ramadan we wouldn’t be eating (fasting), we are allowed to drink water or basically any drink but we are not allowed to eat. 

The Shari ‘a is a religious law of Islam.  Shari ‘a means “way to the water” or “the way” of Islam’s agreement with the Qur ‘an and Sunna.  Shari ‘a is based on teachings of the Qur ‘an.  Shari ‘a deals with everyday life including politics.

There are Five Pillars of Islam; these are five duties present in every Muslim.  The duties are as follows:  Shahadah which is the profession of faith, Salah which is a ritual prayer, Zakah which is alms tax, Sawm is fasting during Ramadan and Hajj the pilgrimage to Mecca.  We Muslims think that The Five Pillars of Islam are very important for everyday life because that’s what should be there, examples; every Muslim should think about Allah and their faith every day, the ritual prayer should also be done every day because of the profession of faith “pillar”, and you need to contribute to the alms tax, during Sawm is most important because of the fasting duty, every Muslim should fast during Ramadan (it shows respect). 

For those of my readers who aren’t familiar with the Muslim religion, I will tell you a few things that will move you along with my Islamic readers.  Muhammad founded our religion, Muslim.  We believe in one God, Allah.  My friend Maya, from the Jewish religion believes in God.  We religions believe that there is one God, but we believe in different God’s.  With the statement said above “We believe in ONE God, Allah”, it means we are a monotheistic religion, meaning we only believe in ONE God.  A polytheistic religion believes in more than one God.

I hope you learned something new by reading my Muslim religion blog.

                                                                                                -- Nashmian Basit

My name is Maya Barton.  I am typically expressed as the everyday girl.  I have blue eyes and brown hair.  My family insists of my mom, my dad, my sister and my brother.  I am also (to what I think) very meticulous and extremely intelligent.

This upcoming month I am going on a trip to Jerusalem, the HOLIEST city, which is just around 32 North and 35 East!  During my trip I am going to visit a rabbi which is basically “a religious teacher” or more literally “the great one”!  A rabbi can answer questions that people have (of his community) about everyday life and or behavior.  A rabbi can also serve as a counselor, giving people advice and guidance on basically every subject possible…examples:  raising children and getting married.  Another job of the rabbi is to help people become better people.

The Jewish temple of worship is a synagogue or “the house of prayer”. Synagogues usually have a huge hall that people pray in (the main sanctuary).  I love coming here to express my inner thoughts. 

When I think of my religion, Judaism, I think about that we ONLY believe in our ONE God, meaning we are the monotheistic.  In contrast, polytheistic religions believe in MORE than ONE God. 

During my trip I saw very significant items that are key to the Jewish Religion.  The first object I saw was the menorah; this item is a seven branched candelabrum which is used in Jerusalem.  During the Hanukkah season there is a nine branched candelabrum, which is then lit by olive oil.  I also saw the Torah, which is a very essential document in the Jewish Religion, the inspired words of God.  Torah means teaching, instruction, scribe, or law in Hebrew.

During my visit I ran into an Islamic shopkeeper, he explained to me that he will soon be going on a hajj.  For those of you that don’t know what a hajj is, it is the pilgrimage to Mecca.  It is very essential to go on this during your life, because it is their submission to God.  A person must go on a hajj EVERY year, to fulfill their dreams of being submitted to and by God.

The shopkeeper added additional information about The Five Pillars of Islam; these are five duties present in every Muslim.  The duties are as follows:  Shahadah which is the profession of faith, Salah which is a ritual prayer, Zakah which is alms tax, Sawm is fasting during Ramadan and Hajj the pilgrimage to Mecca.  These are very important to the Islam Faith.

I hope you learned something new by reading my blog!

                                                                        --Maya Barton