Islam 101
A Muslim's day
Prayer, food, greetings and the calendar
3 min, Intro
What does practising Islam look like day to day? Five prayers spread through the day. Halal food and no alcohol. A greeting of peace, Friday prayers, and a calendar that follows the moon.
Draft written with AI help: awaiting scholar review
The thread
This lesson follows a Muslim through an ordinary day. Five prayers mark the hours from dawn to night. Food and drink follow their own rules. People greet each other with peace. And over the whole year runs a calendar that follows the moon.
A day shaped by prayer
First, the sun. Muslims pray five times a day, at times set by the sun: dawn (Fajr), just after midday (Zuhr), afternoon ('Asr), sunset (Maghrib) and night ('Isha').
Each prayer takes a few minutes. It can be prayed on any clean surface, facing Makkah.
Friday has its own gathering. At midday on Fridays, men gather at the mosque for the Jumu'ah prayer and a short sermon. Women are welcome, but not required, to attend.
فَإِذَا قَضَيۡتُمُ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ فَٱذۡكُرُواْ ٱللَّهَ قِيَٰمࣱا وَقُعُودࣱا وَعَلَىٰ جُنُوبِكُمۡۚ فَإِذَا ٱطۡمَأۡنَنتُمۡ فَأَقِيمُواْ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَۚ إِنَّ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ كَانَتۡ عَلَى ٱلۡمُؤۡمِنِينَ كِتَٰبࣱا مَّوۡقُوتࣱا ١٠٣
103 When you have finished the prayer, remember Allah, standing, sitting, or lying down. But when you are safe again, establish regular prayer. Indeed, prayer is prescribed for the believers at specific times.
Five short pauses give a Muslim's day its shape.
What is on the plate, and what is not
At the table, the key word is halal. It means permitted.
The Qur'an forbids pork, blood, animals that died by themselves, and meat dedicated to other than God.
Meat should be slaughtered quickly, with a sharp blade, with God's name said over it. Here the schools differ. The Hanafi school requires saying the name. The Shafi'i school holds it is recommended.
Alcohol and other intoxicants are forbidden.
What about food from Jews and Christians? The Qur'an allows the food of the People of the Book, Jews and Christians. Scholars differ on whether this covers today's commercial meat.
حُرِّمَتۡ عَلَيۡكُمُ ٱلۡمَيۡتَةُ وَٱلدَّمُ وَلَحۡمُ ٱلۡخِنزِيرِ وَمَآ أُهِلَّ لِغَيۡرِ ٱللَّهِ بِهِۦ وَٱلۡمُنۡخَنِقَةُ وَٱلۡمَوۡقُوذَةُ وَٱلۡمُتَرَدِّيَةُ وَٱلنَّطِيحَةُ وَمَآ أَكَلَ ٱلسَّبُعُ إِلَّا مَا ذَكَّيۡتُمۡ وَمَا ذُبِحَ عَلَى ٱلنُّصُبِ وَأَن تَسۡتَقۡسِمُواْ بِٱلۡأَزۡلَٰمِۚ ذَٰلِكُمۡ فِسۡقٌۗ ٱلۡيَوۡمَ يَئِسَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ مِن دِينِكُمۡ فَلَا تَخۡشَوۡهُمۡ وَٱخۡشَوۡنِۚ ٱلۡيَوۡمَ أَكۡمَلۡتُ لَكُمۡ دِينَكُمۡ وَأَتۡمَمۡتُ عَلَيۡكُمۡ نِعۡمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ ٱلۡإِسۡلَٰمَ دِينࣱاۚ فَمَنِ ٱضۡطُرَّ فِي مَخۡمَصَةٍ غَيۡرَ مُتَجَانِفࣲ لِّإِثۡمࣲ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورࣰ رَّحِيمࣰ ٣
3 Forbidden to you are carrion, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which is sacrificed to other than Allah; and that which is killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by being gored; and that which is partly eaten by a predator unless you slaughter it [before it dies]; and that which is sacrificed to idols. Also it is forbidden to use arrows [of chance] to determine your decisions. This is all evil practice. Today the disbelievers have lost all hope in [eliminating] your religion, so do not fear them but fear Me. Today I have perfected your religion for you, completed My favor upon you, and have chosen Islam as your religion. But if anyone is compelled by severe hunger, not intending to sin, then Allah is All-Forgiving, Most Merciful.
No pork, no alcohol, and God's name said over the meat.
Peace, and the moon
When Muslims meet, the greeting is as-salamu 'alaykum: peace be upon you. The reply is wa 'alaykum as-salam: and upon you be peace.
The Prophet told his followers to spread this greeting widely.
Over the days runs a longer clock. The Islamic calendar follows the moon: twelve months of 29 or 30 days, about eleven days shorter than the solar year.
So Ramadan and the two Eids move through the seasons, over a 33-year cycle.
Shall I not tell you of something which, if you do it, you will love one another? Spread the greeting of peace among yourselves.
Sahih Muslim 54 Sahih In Sahih Muslim
The calendar is lunar, so Ramadan moves about eleven days earlier each year.