How To Become Muslim

 

All praise be to Allah,
the Lord of the universe. May peace and blessings of Allah be upon Mohammad, His
last messenger.

"Some people have a
wrong notion that entering into the Islamic fold requires an announcement from
the concerned person in the presence of high ranking scholars or shaikhs or
reporting this act to courts of justice or other authorities. It is also thought
that the act of accepting Islam, should, as a condition, have a certificate
issued by the authorities, as evidence to that effect.

We wish to clarify
that the whole matter is very easy and that none of these conditions or
obligations are required. For Allah, Almighty, is above all comprehension and
knows well the secrets of all hearts. Nevertheless, those who are going to adopt
Islam as their religion are advised to register themselves as Muslims with the
concerned governmental agency, as this procedure may facilitate for them many
matters including the possibility of performing Hadj (Pilgrimage) and Umrah."
[1]

To become Muslim, you have to pronounce the Testimony of Faith 'Shahada',
with sincere faith.  

The implication of the Shihada
is that you believe that there is only one God, Allah, Who alone deserves to be
worshipped. It also implies that you believe in Muhammad, peace be
upon him, as the Messenger of God, and you believe in his message. It
also means that you believe in all of God's Prophets, including Jesus, peace be
upon him, who is a Messenger of God and NOT divine or son of God.

If you accept this, the only thing
that remains for you to become Muslim, is to say the Shahada, while
believing in it with your heart word for word as follows:



"I bear witness that there is no God except Allah, and I bear witness that
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah"

then repeat this same testimony
in Arabic as follows:

"Ash hadu anlla ilaha ilallah,
wa ash hadu anna Muhammadan rasul ullah" 

(you may listen to the pronunciation by clicking here     … anyways
don’t worry about perfect pronunciation)

Of course faith is not only words but
is complemented with action, so upon reciting the Shahada one should begin to
learn and uphold his/her duties as a Muslim.  The main pillars of Islam as
you know are:

•  The Five Daily Prayers 

•  Annual charity to the poor
  and needy

•  Fasting the month of
  Ramadan

•  Pilgrimage to Mecca (once
  in a life time for those who are able)

The next step now after the Shahada
is to take a complete shower (bath) with the intention of purifying
yourself to be ready for prayers.

For information about learning the
prayers and other resources for new Muslims please refer to the
New Muslim's Page

Finally, be sure to contact
Islamway team and share with us the great news about your decision to become
Muslim.  We will be happy to provide you with all the assistance we can
inshAllah and put you in touch with other brothers and sisters in your
community.  

[1]  Extract
from "HOW TO BECOME A MUSLIM" originally prepared & published by
Cooperative Office for Call and Guidance - Riyadh.