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GLOSSARY 'Adil: fair, just 'Adl:
the concept of the justice of God Ahadith:
singular of hadith, a statement (usually attributed
either
to the Prophet [pbuh] or to one of the
members
of his Progeny [as] or companions) Ahilla:
plural of hilal, crescent 'Alien:
scholar, theologian, a highly knowledgeable person A'mal:
highly recommended acts of adoration `Arsh:
literally: throne, symbol of the Almighty's Authority Ashar:
plural of sahar, the time immediately preceding daybreak Athan:
the call for prayers; muaththin is one who performs athan. Ayat:
verse (from a sacred scripture) Barzakh:
the place and time wherein the souls of the dead live
a
life of their own prior to the Day of Judgment; see
the Holy
Qur'an, 23:100. Beed:
plural of abyad, white Dahr:
time, age, eternity Dinar:
an Islamic (now Arab) gold currency varying in weight Dirham:
an Islamic silver currency weighing approx. 3.12 grams Du 'a:
supplication, invocation Eid:
an Islamic feast, a joyous celebration, a merry
occasion Faaizeen:
winners Fajr:
daybreak Faqih:
jurist, one who is knowledgeable in Islamic jurispru
dence Farasikh:
plural of farsakh, parasang (a loan Persian word), a
measure
of length (distance). According to Lisan al
'Arab,
it may be three to six miles. "It is called so,"
the
author of Lisan al-`Arab goes on, "because one
who
walks one farsakh will have to sit to rest,"
suggesting
that the original meaning of the word is: to
halt, to come to a stand still, to rest. Fatawa:
plural of fatwa, a religious edict or decision Fiqh:
the science of Islamic jurisprudence Firdaws:
Paradise Fitra:
the amount (in cash or kind) paid to the needy at the
end
of the month of Ramadan; see text for more
details Ghazwa:
a military campaign, invasion Ghusul:
ceremonial bath Hadith:
(singular:) tradition, a statement made by Prophet
Muhammad
(pbuh); its plural is: ahadith Hadi:
sacrificial animals offered at Mecca's holy precincts Hajj:
Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca during the prescribed
period Halal:
Islamically permissible, admissible, allowed Hilal:
crescent, singular of ahilla Haram:
Islamically prohibitive, inadmissible, forbidden Hujja:
proof, argument, authority Huri:
heavenly wife with large lovely eyes married to the
male
residents of Paradise Ihram:
pilgrimage garb, white unwoven cotten shroud worn by
pilgrims Ijtihad:
the degree one reaches in order to be qualified as a
mujtahid,
one who is capable of deriving religious
decisions
on his own 'Ilihyeen:
the highest pinnacle of Paradise; see Holy Qur'an,
83:18. Imam:
leader of an ummah, a group of people (small or big);
he may be
the one who leads others in congregational
prayers,
or a supreme relgious authority, or one of the
Twelve
Infallible Imams (as) 'Isha:
nighttime, evening Isnad:
the method whereby one hadith is traced and in the
end attributed to a muhaddith, traditionist, one who
transmitted
it the first time I`tikaf
the act of remaining most of the time at a mosque for
prayers
and supplications
Iftar:
the time or the meal to break the fast Iqamah:
the statements recited immediately before starting the
ritual
prayer Isnad:
the rendering of a quoted statement to its chain of
narrators
and transmitters Israa:
night journey; usually a reference to the Prophet's
night
journey from Mecca to Jerusalem Jahannam:
hell Jahiliyya:
pre-Islamic period of ignorance Jami'a:
inclusive, universal, university Janabah:
uncleanness caused by seminal discharge Jannat:
heaven, Paradise, garden, singular of
jannaat Jihad:
a struggle, an effort exerted, or a war waged in
defense
of Islam Kaffara:
atonement from sin Kafir:
infidel, apostate, atheist, one who does not believe in
the
existence of the Creator Kalima:
synonymous to "shahada," it is a Muslim's declaration
of
faith (that is, to testify that there is no god except
Allah,
and that Muhammad (pbuh) is the Messenger
of
Allah), and it is always pronounced in Arabic Kantar:
in Arabic: qintaar, avarying weight of 100 rails (rotls);
a
ratl in Syria is roughly 3.202 kg., whereas in England
it
is 449.28 grams, and in Lebanon it is 2.566 kg. Khums:
one-fifth of one's savings (usually paid by Shi'a
Muslims)
set aside from annual income Kursi:
literally: chair, symbol of the Almighty's Seat of
Judgment
and Authority; see Holy Qur'an, 2:255 Khutba:
lecture, sermon; a speech delivered on a specific
occasion Kufr:
apostacy, infidelity, disbelief Labbayk:
an exclamation conveying the meaning of "At your
service!"
or "Here I am!" Ma'-ad:
the Return: a reference to the returning of the souls
to their
new bodies after the period of barzakh (see
above),
and their ultimate returning to their Maker
for judgment; generally, it
is used to refer to death
and the life hereafter. Majalis:
meetings or gatherings held to commemmorate certain
religious
occasion, mostly applied to those held during
the month of
Muharram or to recite the Fatiha for a
deceased person;
singular of majhs, a place where
people sit Marji` taqlid:
the highest theological authority-referee followed Mash 'ar:
a place where certain rites are to be conducted, a
sacred
area or place or precinct Mawla:
depending on its usage, it may mean either "master"
or
"slave," or it may mean one who is most fit for a
specific
position of honor and prestige. Derived from
the adjective
awla (one who is best qualified), it
means: the
person who is best suited to be the
religious and
temporal leader of all Muslims.
Mithqal:
a weight equivalent to 24 karats or 4.68 grams Mu'min:
believer, one who has iman, conviction, true belief Mujtahid:
one who acquires the degree of ijtihad and thus
becomes
capable of deriving religious decisions on his
own Musnad:
a compilation of traditions (ahadith) which are
consecutively
and chronologically traced to their
transmitters Mutawatir:
consecutively reported, traced by a perfect chronological chain of Nafl:
optional, non-compulsory, supererotatory, highly
recommended act of worship Najasa:
uncleanness, impurity Nathr:
One's pledge to do something very good to show
appreciation
for the Almighty's favorable response to
his
supplication and the attainment of his worldly wish Noor: divine or
celestial light Nubuwwah:
prophethood, the belief in prophets and their messages Qaniteen:
those who are constantly supplicating Qaza:
compensatory, making up for a missed rite Qibla:
direction towards the Ka'ba, Mecca Qyam:
standing Qudsi:
divine, related to the Almighty Qunoot:
supplication during prayers Rek'at:
prostration (during prayer or a ritual) Rukoo':
kneeling Sabeel:
path, way, avenue Sadaqa:
(singular:) charity offered voluntarily; its plural is:
sadaqadt Sadeed:
pus collected from bleeding wounds to be served to
the
sinners in hell when they ask for water to quench
their
thirst Sahaba:
(singular:) companions of the Holy Prophet Muham
mad
(pbuh); its plural is: sahabi Sahabi:
companion (e.g. of the Holy Prophet), one of the sahaba Saheefa:
tablet, scroll, parchment, a written document Sahih:
literally: authentic, correct, accurate; it is generally
used
to refer to the collection, group of collections, or
book,
of verified and authenticated ahadith of the
Holy
Prophet (pbuh) Shahada:
martyrdom Shahr:
month Shaikh:
also syakh, an honoring title with many meanings;
literally,
it means an old man; in Islamic theology and
philosophy,
however, it is used to denote a mentor,
professor,
or scholar of a high calibre Shari'a:
Islam's legislative system Shirk:
polytheism, the belief in the existence of partners with
God Shubha:
(singular) doubt, suspicion; its plural is: shubuhat Shura:
the principle of mutual consultation, Islam's form of
democracy Siddeeq:
one who testifies to the truthfulness of a prophet Sirat:
path, highway; same as Sabeel Siyam:
Islam's norm of fast Suhoor:
time or meal taken before daybreak in preparation to
fast
during the day Sunan:
plural of sunnah: a highly commended act of worship
or
way whereby a Muslim seeks nearness to Allah Tabi'een:
plural of tabi`, one who follows and learns from a
Sahabi Tabi'i:
(singular:) one who accompanied for a good period of
time
and learned from a sahabi, a companion of the
Holy
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh); its plural is:
tabi'een Tafsir:
(singular:) exegesis or explanation of Qur'anic verses;
its
plural is: tafasir Tahara:
purification, the act of removing najasa, uncleanness
or
impurity Takbeer:
the act of glorifying Allah by declaring in an audible
voice:
"Allaho Akbar!" Allah is Great!
life
when it is in jeopardy, Shi'as' way of trying to
survive
against the presence of sure perils Taqleed:
the concept of following a mujtahid or an authority
recognized
as the a `alam, the most knowledgeable in
Islamics Tanviyah:
The Day of Tarwiyah is the 8th of Thul-Hijjah when
the
pilgrims fill their water bags and prepare to go to
Mina. Tashahhud:
the testimony regarding Allah being the Lord and
Muhammad
(pbuh) being His Servant and Messenger;
it is the
uttering of "Ashhadu an la ilaha illa-Allah, wa
anna
Muhammad abdoho wa rasooloh" Tashreeq:
the cutting and sun-drying of sacrificed meat Tawaf:
circling around a certain sacred site Tawatur:
consecutive reporting, the tracing of one particular
hadith
to its respective chronological chain of
narrators Tawhid:
the concept of the absolute Unity of God, the belief
that
God is One and indivisible, One-and Only
One-God Tawwabeen:
the penitent ones, those who repented their reluctance
to
go to the rescue of Imam Husain (as) when he was
confronted
with Yazid's armies and who enlisted
under
the military command of al-Mukhtar and
pursued
those who massacred Imam Hussain ibn Ali
ibn
Abu Talib (as) and killed them Thakireen:
those who often mention the Name of the Almighty
and
Glorify Him
Thayyib:
a deflowered woman, a widow or divorcee Thireed:
pieces of bread cut and dipped in stew 'Ulema:
plural of 'dlim, scholar-theologian Ummah:
nation, group of people `Umra:
the pilgrimage to Mecca during any time other than
the
prescribed (first ten) days of the month of Thul
Hijjah Usoo1:
the basics of jurisprudence Wagf
a piece of property dedicated for the promotion of
any particular
good cause Wajib:
compulsory, obligatory, binding Wali:
person to whom wilayat is obligatory Wasi:
successor to a prophet Wilayat:
supreme authority that combines both temporal and
religious
authority Wisal:
fasting the last day of every lunar calendar month Wudu:
ablution Zakat:
Literally, it means "purification;" it is a compulsory
2.5% tax
on one of three categories of wealth: 1)
metal
coins (gold, silver, etc.), 2) grain crops (barley,
wheat, grain, rice, etc.), and 3) animals raised for food
consumption. Zakat is somehow a complicated issue,
and for details, readers are advised to consult books
dealing with fzqh. Among its types are: zakat al-mal
(taxable wealth accumulated during one full year), and
zakat al fitr (a tax to be paid by the head of a
household at the end of the fast of the month of Ramadan). Zihar:
the making of a similitude between the back of one's wife with that
of his mother; i.e. saying that his wife's back looks similar to his
mother's And surely Allah knows best... |