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Mauritania
Index
The shahadah (profession of faith, or testimony)
states succinctly the central belief, "There is no God but God
(Allah), and Muhammad is his Prophet." The faithful repeat this
simple profession on ritual occasions, and its recital designates
the speaker as a Muslim. The God preached by Muhammad was known
to his countrymen, for Allah is the general Arabic term
for the supreme being rather than the name of a particular deity.
Rather than introducing a new deity, Muhammad denied the
existence of the pantheon of gods and spirits worshiped before
his prophethood and declared the omnipotence of God, the unique
creator. The term Islam means submission to God, and a
person who submits is a Muslim.
Muhammad is the "Seal of the Prophets," the last of the
prophetic line. His revelations are said to complete for all time
the series of revelations that had been given earlier to
Christians and Jews. God is believed to have remained one and the
same throughout time, but men are seen as having misunderstood or
strayed from his true teachings until set aright by Muhammad.
Prophets and sages of the biblical tradition, such as Abraham,
Moses, and Jesus, are recognized as inspired vehicles of God's
will. Islam, however, reveres as sacred only the message,
rejecting Christianity's deification of the messenger. It accepts
the concepts of guardian angels, the Day of Judgment,
resurrection, and the eternal life of the soul.
The duties of the Muslim form the "five pillars" of the
faith: the shahadah, salat (daily prayer),
zakat (almsgiving), sawm (fasting), and hajj
(pilgrimage). The believer prays facing Mecca five times a day.
Whenever possible, men pray in congregation at a mosque under
direction of an
imam (see Glossary),
or prayer leader, and on
Fridays are obliged to do so. Women are permitted to attend
public worship at the mosque, where they are segregated from the
men, but their attendance tends to be discouraged, and more
frequently they pray in the seclusion of their homes.
In the early days of Islam, a tax for charitable purposes was
imposed on personal property in proportion to the owner's wealth;
the payment purified the remaining wealth and made it religiously
legitimate. The collection of this tax and its distribution to
the needy were originally functions of the state. With the
decentralization of Muslim religious and political authority as
Islam spread to many countries, however, this became an
individual responsibility.
The ninth month of the Muslim calendar is Ramadan, celebrated
as the time during which the Quran was revealed to Muhammad. It
is a period during which Muslims must abstain from food,
drinking, smoking, and sexual activity during the daylight hours.
Exempted are the sick, soldiers on duty, travelers on necessary
journeys, young children, and menstruating, pregnant, or
lactating women. The well-to-do accomplish little work during
this period, and many businesses close or operate on reduced
schedules. Since the months of the lunar calendar revolve through
the solar year, Ramadan occurs during various seasons.
Finally, at least once during their lifetime, all Muslims
should if possible make the hajj to the holy city of Mecca
to participate in the special rites that occur during the twelfth
month of the lunar calendar. Upon completion of this and certain
other ritual assignments, the returning pilgrim is entitled to an
honorific title, Haj (fem., Hajjah).
In addition to prescribing specific duties, Islam imposes a
code of conduct entailing generosity, fairness, honesty, and
respect for others. It proscribes adultery, gambling, usury, and
the consumption of carrion, blood, pork, and alcohol. The
proscription of alcohol is irregularly enforced in most Muslim
countries, but since 1986 the Mauritanian government has strictly
enforced its prohibition.
Muslims traditionally are subject to sharia, which--as
interpreted by religious courts--covers most aspects of life.
Sharia was developed by jurists from the Quran and from the
traditions of the Prophet, and it provides a complete pattern for
human conduct. Sharia also serves as a normative legal code
(see Legal System
, ch. 4).
Data as of June 1988
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