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Athan: the call for prayers; muaththin
is one who performs athan. Athbat: plural of thabat, one who is
widely recognized as an authority in his own field. `Atiyya: gift, present, grant, boon `Awl: one sought during the time of need, a
reliable helper Bada': starting point, the very beginning of
something, the onset Bara'ah: dissociation or renunciation Baytul-Mal: Islamic government's state
treasury Diwan: a collection of poems Faqih: jurist, one who is knowledgeable in
Islamic jurisprudence Fatawa: plural of fatwa, a religious
edict or decision Fiqh: the science of Islamic jurisprudence Firqa: group, party, sect Furü`: branches of the faith Hadith: (singular:) tradition, a statement
made by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh); its plural is: ahadith Hajj: Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca during the prescribed period Ihram: pilgrimage garb, white unwoven cotten
shroud worn by pilgrims Ijtihad: the degree one reaches in order to
be qualified as a mujtahid, one who is capable of deriving religious decisions on
his own Imam: leader of an ummah, a group of
people (small or big); he may be the one who leads others in congregational prayers, or a
supreme relgious authority, or one of the Twelve Infallible Imams (as) Isnad: the method whereby one hadith
is traced and in the end attributed to a muhaddith, traditionist, one who
transmitted it the first time Jahiliyya: pre-Islamic period of ignorance Janaba: uncleanness caused by seminal
discharge Jihad: a struggle, an effort exerted, or a
war waged in defense of Islam Jizya: a protection tax paid by non-Muslims
living under Muslims' control in exchange for their exemption from the military service Kafir: infidel, apostate, atheist, one who
does not believe in the existence of the Creator Kalam: the science of logic Kalima: synonymous to "shahada," it
is a Muslim's declaration of faith (that is, to testify that there is no god except Allah,
and that Muhammad (pbuh) is the Messenger of Allah), and it is always pronounced in Arabic Khiraj: the combination of all religious taxes collected at the end of the Islamic lunar year Khums: one-fifth of one's savings (usually
paid by Shi`a Muslims) set aside from annual income Khutba: lecture, sermon; a speech delivered
on a specific occasion Kufr: apostacy, infidelity, disbelief Kunyat: usually applied for a parent, it is
the way of calling him or her by the name of his or her oldest son (such as saying
"father of so-and-so" or "mother of so-and-so"), or it may be applied
out of respect, a tradition usually followed in Arab countries, and it is applied as a
prefix to one's name. Maqam: standing place, a place where one
usually stands to preach or address the public Mawla: depending on its usage, it may mean
either "master" or "slave," or it may mean one who is most fit for a
specific position of honor and prestige. Derived from the adjective awla (one who
is best qualified), it means: the person who is best suited to be the religious and
temporal leader of all Muslims. Mu'min: believer, one who has iman,
conviction, true belief Mujtahid: one who acquires the degree of ijtihad
and thus becomes capable of deriving religious decisions on his own Musnad: a compilation of traditions (ahadith)
which are consecutively and chronologically traced to their transmitters Mut`a: temporary marriage Mutawatir: consecutively reported, traced by a perfect chronological chain of ascertained narrators of hadith Najasa: uncleanness, impurity Najwa: a silent supplication Nuthur: plural of nathr, one's pledge
to do something very good to show appreciation for the Almighty's favorable response to
his supplication and the attainment of his worldly wish Qayyim: person in charge of something, one
charged with authority Qibla: direction towards the Ka`ba, Mecca Sadaqa: (singular:) charity offered
voluntarily; its plural is: sadaqat Sahabah: (singular:) companions of the Holy
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh); its plural is: sahabi Shari`a: Islam's legislative system Shubha: (singular) doubt, suspicion; its
plural is: shubuhat Shüra: the principle of mutual consultation,
Islam's form of democracy Siqaya: the act of providing water to the
thirsty free of charge Sunan: plural of sunnah: a highly
commended act of worship or way whereby a Muslim seeks nearness to Allah Tabi`i: (singular:) one who accompanied for a
good period of time and learned from a sahabi, a companion of the Holy Prophet
Muhammad (pbuh); its plural is: tabi`in Tafsir: (singular:) exegesis or explanation
of Qur'anic verses; its plural is: tafasir Tahara: purification, the act of removing najasa,
uncleanness or impurity Takbir: the act of glorifying Allah by
declaring in an audible voice: "Allaho Akbar!" Allah is Great! Taqiyya: one's way of exerting precaution in
order to save his life when it is in jeopardy, Shi`as' way of trying to survive against
the presence of sure perils Taqlid: the concept of following a mujtahid
or an authority recognized as the a`alam, the most knowledgeable in Islamics Tashahhud: the testimony regarding Allah
being the Lord and Muhammad (pbuh) being His Servant and Messenger; it is the uttering of
"Ashhadu an la ilaha illa-Allah, wa anna Muhammad abdoho wa rasooloh" Tawatur: consecutive reporting, the tracing
of one particular hadith to its respective chronological chain of narrators Tawhid: the concept of the absolute Unity of
God, the belief that God is One and indivisible, One - and Only One - God Tawwabin: the penitent ones, those who
repented their reluctance to go to the rescue of Imam Husain (as) when he was confronted
with Yazid's armies and who enlisted under the military command of al-Mukhtar and pursued
those who massacred Imam Hussain ibn Ali ibn Abu Talib (as) and killed them Thiqat: plural of thiqah, a
trustworthy authority `Ulema: plural of `alim,
scholar-theologian Usül: the basics of jurisprudence Waqf: a piece of property dedicated for the
promotion of any particular good cause Wilayat: supreme authority that combines both
temporal and religious authority Zakat: Literally, it means
"purification;" it is a compulsory 2.5% tax on one of three categories of
wealth: 1) metal coins (gold, silver, etc.), 2) grain crops (barley, wheat, grain, rice,
etc.), and 3) animals raised for food consumption. Zakat is somehow a complicated
issue, and for details, readers are advised to consult books dealing with fiqh.
Among its types are: zakat al-mal (taxable wealth accumulated during one full
year), and zakat al-fitr (a tax to be paid by the head of a household at the
commencement of the fast of the month of Ramadan). And surely Allah knows best...
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