Islam is built on both belief and action. The heart of that action is captured in a well-known hadith in which the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said, as reported in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim: "Islam is built upon five…" — the five pillars below. This page is a practical starting point for learning them. It focuses on the essentials that Muslims broadly agree on; where the schools of law (madhhabs) differ in detail, we note it rather than picking sides.
The Five Pillars of Islam
These are the framework of a Muslim's practice — a statement of faith, and then four acts of worship that shape the day, the year, and a lifetime.
Shahada
Salah
Zakat
Sawm
Hajj
1 · Shahada — the testimony of faith
The Shahada is the declaration that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad ﷺ is His Messenger. Saying it with sincere belief is what makes a person a Muslim, and it is repeated in every prayer.
أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ
Ashhadu an lā ilāha illā Allāh, wa ashhadu anna Muḥammadan rasūlu-llāh.
"I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah."
2 · Salah — the five daily prayers
Salah is the formal prayer performed five times a day, facing the Kaaba in Makkah. It is the first act a person will be asked about on the Day of Judgement. Prayer connects the believer to Allah throughout the day and is obligatory on every adult, sane Muslim. A full step-by-step guide is below.
3 · Zakat — obligatory charity
Zakat is a yearly charity due from Muslims whose wealth reaches a minimum threshold (the nisab) and has been held for a lunar year. For money, gold and silver, the rate is 2.5% of qualifying wealth. It purifies wealth and is given to defined categories of recipients named in the Quran (Surah at-Tawbah 9:60), such as the poor and the needy. Zakat is distinct from voluntary charity (sadaqah), which can be given any time.
4 · Sawm — fasting in Ramadan
Sawm is fasting from dawn (Fajr) until sunset (Maghrib) during the month of Ramadan — abstaining from food, drink, and marital relations, while striving to guard the tongue and behaviour. It builds God-consciousness (taqwa). The elderly, the sick, travellers, and menstruating or pregnant women have concessions, with missed days made up or compensated as the Shariah specifies.
5 · Hajj — the pilgrimage to Makkah
Hajj is the pilgrimage to the Sacred House (the Kaaba) in Makkah, performed in the month of Dhul-Hijjah. It is obligatory once in a lifetime for every Muslim who is physically and financially able. Its rites — including standing at Arafah, circling the Kaaba (tawaf), and walking between Safa and Marwah — commemorate the family of the Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him).
Wudu — the ablution before prayer
Prayer requires being in a state of ritual purity. Wudu is the washing that achieves this. Allah says in the Quran (Surah al-Ma'idah 5:6): "O you who believe, when you rise to pray, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, wipe your heads, and wash your feet up to the ankles." These four are the Quranic obligations; the Sunnah adds the fuller sequence below. Begin with the intention (niyyah) in the heart to purify yourself for worship.
After finishing, it is a recommended Sunnah to say the Shahada. Wudu is broken by using the toilet, passing wind, deep sleep, and other matters detailed in fiqh; when broken, it must be renewed before praying.
How to pray — Salah step by step
Below is a single unit of prayer, called a rak'ah. Each of the five daily prayers is simply a number of rak'ahs repeated in the same pattern. Face the Kaaba (the qiblah), stand with the intention of the specific prayer in your heart, and begin.
Step 1 · Takbir al-Ihram — opening the prayer
Raise your hands to your shoulders or ears and begin the prayer by saying:
اللَّهُ أَكْبَرُ
Allāhu Akbar
"Allah is the Greatest." From this moment you are in prayer; worldly speech and movement stop.
Step 2 · Qiyam — standing and reciting al-Fatihah
Place the right hand over the left on the chest and recite the opening chapter, Surah al-Fatihah, which is obligatory in every rak'ah:
الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
Al-ḥamdu lillāhi rabbi-l-ʿālamīn, ar-Raḥmāni-r-Raḥīm…
"All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds, the Most Merciful, the Bestower of Mercy…" In the first two rak'ahs, a further short passage of the Quran is then recited.
Step 3 · Ruku — bowing
Say Allahu Akbar, then bow with a straight back, hands on the knees, and say three times:
سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْعَظِيمِ
Subḥāna rabbiya-l-ʿaẓīm
"Glory be to my Lord, the Most Great."
Step 4 · Standing up from ruku (i'tidal)
Rise to standing while saying:
سَمِعَ اللَّهُ لِمَنْ حَمِدَهُ
Samiʿa-llāhu liman ḥamidah
"Allah hears the one who praises Him." Once fully standing, respond: Rabbanā wa laka-l-ḥamd — "Our Lord, and to You is all praise."
Step 5 · Sujood — prostration
Say Allahu Akbar and prostrate so that seven parts touch the ground: the forehead and nose, both palms, both knees, and the toes of both feet. Say three times:
سُبْحَانَ رَبِّيَ الْأَعْلَى
Subḥāna rabbiya-l-aʿlā
"Glory be to my Lord, the Most High."
Then say Allahu Akbar, sit up briefly, and prostrate a second time saying the same words. This completes one rak'ah.
Step 6 · Tashahhud — the sitting testimony
After every second rak'ah, and at the end of the prayer, sit and recite the tashahhud:
التَّحِيَّاتُ لِلَّهِ وَالصَّلَوَاتُ وَالطَّيِّبَاتُ السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكَ أَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ
At-taḥiyyātu lillāhi wa-ṣ-ṣalawātu wa-ṭ-ṭayyibāt, as-salāmu ʿalayka ayyuha-n-nabiyyu wa raḥmatu-llāhi wa barakātuh…
"All greetings, prayers and good things are for Allah. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and the mercy of Allah and His blessings…" This continues with the testimony of faith and, in the final sitting, blessings upon the Prophet ﷺ (the salawat).
Step 7 · Taslim — ending the prayer
Turn the face to the right, then to the left, each time saying:
السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللَّهِ
As-salāmu ʿalaykum wa raḥmatu-llāh
"Peace and the mercy of Allah be upon you." With this the prayer is complete.
The five daily prayers and their times
Each prayer has a window of time defined by the sun. The number of obligatory (fard) rak'ahs is fixed; many Muslims add recommended (Sunnah) rak'ahs before or after.
| Prayer | Arabic | Time | Fard rak'ahs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fajr | الفجر | From dawn until sunrise | 2 |
| Dhuhr | الظهر | After the sun passes its zenith (midday) | 4 |
| Asr | العصر | Late afternoon until sunset | 4 |
| Maghrib | المغرب | Just after sunset | 3 |
| Isha | العشاء | After twilight, through the night | 4 |
Prayer times shift daily with the sun and your location. You can find accurate times for where you are on the Prayer Times page.