Week+4,+Religion

Islam: Indonesia’s main religion!    In Indonesia the main religion is Islam. The people that practice Islam are called Muslims, and for the past two weeks I have been learning about the customs, celebrations and special days for Muslim people.  For a start, you may need to know just how many people in Indonesia practise Islamic. The percentage of Muslims in Indonesian is a massive 88%! Now it’s time for my first bit of information: Customs. Some of the many customs for Muslims is the Five Pillars and the Islamic Law. The Five Pillars are based on: Faith and belief in the Oneness of God, believing in the prophethood of Muhammad, doing daily prayers, helping the needy and self-purification through fasting. The Islamic Law is a thing that all Muslims follow. Now you know the basics, lets party! Muslims celebrate just like us Aussies, by going to parties, meeting up with family and friends, and lots of things like that. Celebrating for Islamic people is a way of thanking Allah, the True One God. As well as partying, Muslims celebrate by taking a bath too. When all Muslims celebrate Eid it’s a time for children and adults to get new clothes. Onto where Muslim people worship their gods. They go to a place called a mosque, which is a tall tower with a domed roof. When people go into a mosque they always take off their shoes to keep them clean for praying. Interesting, there is no pictures or statues in any mosques, and there is usually a different area for women in them. Services are held every day but the most important day is Friday, at noon. All Muslims go to a mosque on Fridays, because of its important’s.

Last, but certainly not least, is special days in the Islamic culture. The first one is Milad-Al-Nabi, which id the Prophet Muhammad’s Birthday. This is celebrated on the 12th of Rabi-ul-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar. Another special day, or month more like it, is Ramadan. This is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, and the month where Muslims everywhere go on a fast for the day light hours. The third special day is Eid-ul-Fitr, or Id-ul-Fitr, which is a Muslim holiday. Eid-ul-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan, which is obviously the fasting month.