Worship and Prayer Practices of Islam and Zoroastrianism Essay

Worship and Prayer Practices of Islam and Zoroastrianism - Essay Example The question of how these two religions, despite having almost the same origins, these two are very similar yet very distinct from each other. Examples of their similarities are that both religions are monotheistic by nature, that is their followers believe in one and only one God, Allah for the Muslims and Ahura Mazda for the Zoroastrians. Also both religions hold that Allah and Ahura Mazda had only one prophet sent to preach their teachings, namely: Muhammad for Allah and Zoroaster for Ahura Mazda. Another thing that connects both religions to one another and to any other religion is the belief in a place of salvation (heaven, in Christian terms) and a place of damnation (hell, in Christian terms). This paper discusses the worship and prayer practices of the two religions and how they similar and different in many aspects. Islam is the world's second largest religion, next to Christianity. Though it origins is Middle Eastern, its practice is not only limited in there but also other parts of the world such as Asia and Europe. According to 2005 estimates and census, there are about 900 million to 1.4 billion Muslims today. It is a monotheistic religion which believes that the one and only true God is Allah and Muhammad is his sole prophet. The "Islam" is derived form an Arabic term which means "to be subservient" or "to be obedient". This explains the humble nature of Muslims when it comes to their worship practices ("Islam"). Islam is a religion that is mainly divided into two: Sunni and Shia Islam. Sunni Islam is often referred to as orthodox Islam while Shia is a more contemporary form. The difference between these two factions is mostly based on political issues although lately there has been other deeper reason involved. Sunni Muslims comprise about 85% of the Muslim population while Shia is about 15%. Each division has 4 schools dedicated to the teaching of theology ("Afghanistan."). Some notable Muslims are: Ibn Sina known in the West as Aviccena "the doctor of doctors". He contributed many scientific and theological concepts in his time and was especially known for his works in chemistry and medicine. Another noble Muslim is El Zharawi or Albucasis, the "Father of Surgery". He was known to have written a 30-volume encyclopedia known as At-Tasrif, containing extensive discussions about medical and surgical procedures. Contemporary Muslims and converts to Islam include: Mike Tyson (Heavyweight boxer), Ice Cube (American rapper) and Malcolm X/Malcolm Little, an Afro-American Civil rights leader known by his Muslim name Malik Shabazz (Almed). Muslims refers to their sacred book as the Qu'ran or Koran in other languages, which is believed to have been handed by Allah himself to his prophet Muhammad. It is from the Qu'ran that the 5 tenets of Islam are derived: First: Shahadah, the belief in one and only one God, Allah and that his sole prophet is Muhamad. The second one is Salah, the recitation of the 5 daily prayers. The third one is Sawn, or fasting in the period of Ramadan. The fourth is Zakat, the giving of alms and the last on is Hajj or the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in one's lifetime ("Islam"). The Salat/Salah, the 5