# What Do Muslims Believe? > Muslims confess one God, Muhammad as his messenger, and the Qur’an as God’s word. The usual list is six articles of faith and five pillars. Sunni and Shia Muslims share that core and differ on leadership after Muhammad. - Canonical: https://apologetics.wiki/islam/what-do-muslims-believe - Religions: Islam - Denominations: none - Beliefs: none - Tags: islam - Updated: 2026-10-10 - Author: [Paul Ambrose](https://apologetics.wiki/author/hi-its-paul) ([GitHub](https://github.com/hi-its-paul)) Muslims believe that God is one, that Muhammad is his messenger, and that the Qur’an is God’s word. A Muslim is a person who confesses that. Islam is the religion. Sunni and Shia Muslims share that confession and differ on who should have led after Muhammad. ## Key points - [Qur’an 3:19](https://quran.com/3/19) (Saheeh International) says the religion in the sight of God is Islam. [Qur’an 22:78](https://quran.com/22/78) says he named them Muslims. - [Qur’an 4:136](https://quran.com/4/136) and [Qur’an 2:285](https://quran.com/2/285) name belief in God, his angels, his books, his messengers, and the Last Day. [Qur’an 54:49](https://quran.com/54/49) says all things were created with predestination. Those lines are the usual six articles of faith. - [Sahih al-Bukhari 8](https://sunnah.com/bukhari:8) (Muhammad Muhsin Khan), a Sunni hadith, says Islam is based on five: the testimony, prayer, zakat, Hajj, and the fast of Ramadan. - [Qur’an 4:48](https://quran.com/4/48) says God does not forgive association with him, and forgives what is less than that for whom he wills. - Sunni and Shia beliefs are on their own pages. [What Do Sunni Muslims Believe?](/sunni-islam/what-do-sunni-muslims-believe) [What Do Shia Muslims Believe?](/shia-islam/what-do-shia-muslims-believe) - Christians confess that the one God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and that Jesus is God. [The Trinity](/christianity/the-trinity) ## What is the difference between Islam and Muslim? Islam is the name of the religion. Muslim is the name of a person who belongs to it. [Qur’an 3:19](https://quran.com/3/19) (Saheeh International) states the first of those words: > Indeed, the religion in the sight of Allāh is Islām. And those who were given the Scripture did not differ except after knowledge had come to them - out of jealous animosity between themselves. And whoever disbelieves in the verses of Allāh, then indeed, Allāh is swift in [taking] account. [Qur’an 22:78](https://quran.com/22/78) says he named them Muslims, in the religion of Abraham, and tells them to strive for God, to pray, and to give zakat. Arabic is the language of the Qur’an. It is not a third religion beside Islam. [Who Is Allah?](/islam/who-is-allah) Square brackets in Saheeh International are the translator’s explanations. They are not extra Arabic words. ## Is Islam a religion or a way of life? It is a religion, and the Qur’an treats that religion as covering worship and ordinary life. [Qur’an 5:3](https://quran.com/5/3) says, in the middle of a long ruling on food, that God has perfected the religion, completed his favor, and approved Islam as religion. [Qur’an 2:177](https://quran.com/2/177) puts belief in God, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets in the same sentence as prayer, zakat, keeping a promise, and patience in poverty and in battle. [What Is the Difference between Islam and Christianity?](/islam/islam-vs-christianity) sets that beside the Christian confession. ## What are the six articles of faith? [Qur’an 4:136](https://quran.com/4/136) tells believers to believe in God and his Messenger, the Book sent down on him, and the Scripture sent down before. It then says that whoever disbelieves in God, his angels, his books, his messengers, and the Last Day has gone far astray. [Qur’an 2:285](https://quran.com/2/285) says the Messenger and the believers believe in God, his angels, his books, and his messengers, and that they make no distinction between any of his messengers. [Qur’an 2:177](https://quran.com/2/177) lists God, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets. The decree is the sixth item in the usual list. [Qur’an 54:49](https://quran.com/54/49) says all things were created with predestination. [Qur’an 9:51](https://quran.com/9/51) says they will not be struck except by what God has decreed. [Qur’an 4:136](https://quran.com/4/136) itself names five of the six, not the decree. Sunni and Shia Muslims both recite this confession. They do not share one account of who led the community after Muhammad. That difference is [the difference between Sunni and Shia Islam](/islam/sunni-vs-shia). ## What are the five pillars? Prayer, zakat, fasting, and pilgrimage are in the Qur’an. [Qur’an 2:43](https://quran.com/2/43) says to establish prayer and give zakat. [Qur’an 2:183](https://quran.com/2/183) says fasting is decreed. [Qur’an 3:97](https://quran.com/3/97) says pilgrimage to the House is due from whoever is able to find a way. [Qur’an 3:18](https://quran.com/3/18) says God witnesses that there is no deity except him. The count of five, and the order that puts Hajj before the fast, is a Sunni hadith. [Sahih al-Bukhari 8](https://sunnah.com/bukhari:8) (Muhammad Muhsin Khan): > Narrated Ibn 'Umar: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said: Islam is based on (the following) five (principles): 1. To testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and Muhammad is Allah's Messenger (ﷺ). 2. To offer the (compulsory congregational) prayers dutifully and perfectly. 3. To pay Zakat (i.e. obligatory charity) . 4. To perform Hajj. (i.e. Pilgrimage to Mecca) 5. To observe fast during the month of Ramadan. That collection is Sunni hadith. The Qur’an verses on prayer, zakat, fasting, and pilgrimage are the book Sunni and Shia Muslims share. [Which Muslims Accept Which Hadith?](/islam/which-muslims-accept-which-hadith) [What Are Hadith and Sira?](/islam/what-are-hadith-and-sira) ## Sunni and Shia Sunni Muslims count Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali as the first four caliphs and treat Bukhari and Muslim as the most authoritative hadith. Shia Muslims say leadership belonged to Ali and his descendants. Those pages state each confession in that community’s sources. This page does not repeat them. [What Do Sunni Muslims Believe?](/sunni-islam/what-do-sunni-muslims-believe) [What Do Shia Muslims Believe?](/shia-islam/what-do-shia-muslims-believe) [Sunni Islam](/sunni-islam) [Shia Islam](/shia-islam) [What Is a Caliphate?](/islam/what-is-a-caliphate) [Who Was Muhammad?](/islam/who-was-muhammad) [What Is the History of Islam?](/islam/history-of-islam) [When Was Islam Founded?](/islam/when-was-islam-founded) ## What is the worst sin in Islam? Association of anyone with God. [Qur’an 4:48](https://quran.com/4/48) (Saheeh International): > Indeed, Allāh does not forgive association with Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whom He wills. And he who associates others with Allāh has certainly fabricated a tremendous sin. [Qur’an 31:13](https://quran.com/31/13) records Luqman telling his son that association with God is great injustice. [Qur’an 4:171](https://quran.com/4/171) tells the People of the Scripture not to say “Three,” and says God is exalted above having a son. Christians confess the Son. [Tawhid and Christian Monotheism](/islam/tawhid-and-christian-monotheism) [Can God Have a Son?](/islam/can-god-have-a-son) ## What does the Qur’an say about women? It does not publish a list of things a woman cannot do. It does set shares of inheritance, and it does give a husband a sequence that ends in a strike. [Qur’an 4:11](https://quran.com/4/11) says God instructs them concerning children: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females. [Qur’an 4:34](https://quran.com/4/34) (Saheeh International) says men are in charge of women. The words in square brackets, including “[lightly],” are the translator’s, not a second Arabic word: > Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allāh has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth. So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the husband's] absence what Allāh would have them guard. But those [wives] from whom you fear arrogance - [first] advise them; [then if they persist], forsake them in bed; and [finally], strike them [lightly]. But if they obey you [once more], seek no means against them. Indeed, Allāh is ever Exalted and Grand. [Qur’an 33:35](https://quran.com/33/35) lists Muslim men and Muslim women, believing men and believing women, and the same pairs through fasting, guarding their private parts, and remembering God, and says God has prepared forgiveness and a great reward for them. ## What does the Qur’an say about sex between men? [Qur’an 7:80](https://quran.com/7/80) has Lot ask his people whether they commit an immorality no one before them had committed. [Qur’an 7:81](https://quran.com/7/81) says they approach men with desire, instead of women, and calls them a transgressing people. The verses are about that act in the story of Lot. They do not use a modern political name for it. ## The Christian claim Christians grant that God is one. They confess that the one God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and that the Word was God. [John 1:1](/bible/john/1/1) (King James Version): > In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [John 20:28](/bible/john/20/28) records Thomas calling the risen Jesus Lord and God. [Matthew 28:19](/bible/matthew/28/19) sends the disciples to baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. [Jesus in the Qur’an and the Gospels](/islam/jesus-in-the-quran-and-the-gospels) [Did Jesus Die on the Cross?](/islam/did-jesus-die-on-the-cross) [Was Jesus a Muslim?](/islam/was-jesus-a-muslim) [What Do Christians Believe about Muhammad?](/islam/what-do-christians-believe-about-muhammad) ## Frequently asked questions ### Is Islam a Christian religion? No. Islam confesses one God and denies that God is a Trinity and that Jesus is his Son. [What Is the Difference between Islam and Christianity?](/islam/islam-vs-christianity) ### Do Muslims believe in Jesus? They honor him as the Messiah, born of Mary, a prophet, and not God. On the usual reading of [Qur’an 4:157](https://quran.com/4/157), he was not crucified. [Qur’an 3:45](https://quran.com/3/45) calls him the Messiah. [What Does Messiah Mean?](/christianity/what-does-messiah-mean) ### Which US state has the most Muslims? This page does not rank states or populations. It states what the Qur’an and this hadith say Muslims believe. ### Is Islam the same as Arabic? No. Arabic is the language of the Qur’an. Islam is the religion. A person who speaks Arabic is not a Muslim by that fact, and most Muslims are not Arabs. ## Passages quoted on this page ### Qur’an 22:78 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/22/78) > And strive for Allāh with the striving due to Him. He has chosen you and has not placed upon you in the religion any difficulty. [It is] the religion of your father, Abraham. He [i.e., Allāh] named you "Muslims" before [in former scriptures] and in this [revelation] that the Messenger may be a witness over you and you may be witnesses over the people. So establish prayer and give zakāh and hold fast to Allāh. He is your protector; and excellent is the protector, and excellent is the helper. ### Qur’an 4:136 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/4/136) > O you who have believed, believe in Allāh and His Messenger and the Book that He sent down upon His Messenger and the Scripture which He sent down before. And whoever disbelieves in Allāh, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day has certainly gone far astray. ### Qur’an 2:285 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/2/285) > The Messenger has believed in what was revealed to him from his Lord, and [so have] the believers. All of them have believed in Allāh and His angels and His books and His messengers, [saying], "We make no distinction between any of His messengers." And they say, "We hear and we obey. [We seek] Your forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the [final] destination." ### Qur’an 54:49 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/54/49) > Indeed, all things We created with predestination. ### Qur’an 5:3 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/5/3) > Prohibited to you are dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allāh, and [those animals] killed by strangling or by a violent blow or by a head-long fall or by the goring of horns, and those from which a wild animal has eaten, except what you [are able to] slaughter [before its death], and those which are sacrificed on stone altars, and [prohibited is] that you seek decision through divining arrows. That is grave disobedience. This day those who disbelieve have despaired of [defeating] your religion; so fear them not, but fear Me. This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved for you Islām as religion. But whoever is forced by severe hunger with no inclination to sin - then indeed, Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful. ### Qur’an 2:177 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/2/177) > Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is [in] one who believes in Allāh, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveler, those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves; [and who] establishes prayer and gives zakāh; [those who] fulfill their promise when they promise; and [those who] are patient in poverty and hardship and during battle. Those are the ones who have been true, and it is those who are the righteous. ### Qur’an 9:51 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/9/51) > Say, "Never will we be struck except by what Allāh has decreed for us; He is our protector." And upon Allāh let the believers rely. ### Qur’an 2:43 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/2/43) > And establish prayer and give zakāh and bow with those who bow [in worship and obedience]. ### Qur’an 2:183 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/2/183) > O you who have believed, decreed upon you is fasting as it was decreed upon those before you that you may become righteous - ### Qur’an 3:97 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/3/97) > In it are clear signs [such as] the standing place of Abraham. And whoever enters it [i.e., the Ḥaram] shall be safe. And [due] to Allāh from the people is a pilgrimage to the House - for whoever is able to find thereto a way. But whoever disbelieves [i.e., refuses] - then indeed, Allāh is free from need of the worlds. ### Qur’an 3:18 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/3/18) > Allāh witnesses that there is no deity except Him, and [so do] the angels and those of knowledge - [that He is] maintaining [creation] in justice. There is no deity except Him, the Exalted in Might, the Wise. ### Qur’an 31:13 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/31/13) > And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Luqmān said to his son while he was instructing him, "O my son, do not associate [anything] with Allāh. Indeed, association [with Him] is great injustice." ### Qur’an 4:171 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/4/171) > O People of the Scripture, do not commit excess in your religion or say about Allāh except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, was but a messenger of Allāh and His word which He directed to Mary and a soul [created at a command] from Him. So believe in Allāh and His messengers. And do not say, "Three"; desist - it is better for you. Indeed, Allāh is but one God. Exalted is He above having a son. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And sufficient is Allāh as Disposer of affairs. ### Qur’an 4:11 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/4/11) > Allāh instructs you concerning your children [i.e., their portions of inheritance]: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females. But if there are [only] daughters, two or more, for them is two thirds of one's estate. And if there is only one, for her is half. And for one's parents, to each one of them is a sixth of his estate if he left children. But if he had no children and the parents [alone] inherit from him, then for his mother is one third. And if he had brothers [and/or sisters], for his mother is a sixth, after any bequest he [may have] made or debt. Your parents or your children - you know not which of them are nearest to you in benefit. [These shares are] an obligation [imposed] by Allāh. Indeed, Allāh is ever Knowing and Wise. ### Qur’an 33:35 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/33/35) > Indeed, the Muslim men and Muslim women, the believing men and believing women, the obedient men and obedient women, the truthful men and truthful women, the patient men and patient women, the humble men and humble women, the charitable men and charitable women, the fasting men and fasting women, the men who guard their private parts and the women who do so, and the men who remember Allāh often and the women who do so - for them Allāh has prepared forgiveness and a great reward. ### Qur’an 7:80 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/7/80) > And [We had sent] Lot when he said to his people, "Do you commit such immorality as no one has preceded you with from among the worlds [i.e., peoples]? ### Qur’an 7:81 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/7/81) > Indeed, you approach men with desire, instead of women. Rather, you are a transgressing people." ### John 20:28 King James Version. > And Thomas answered and said unto him, My LORD and my God. ### Matthew 28:19 King James Version. > Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: ### Qur’an 4:157 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/an-nisa/157) > And [for] their saying, "Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, the messenger of Allāh." And they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them. And indeed, those who differ over it are in doubt about it. They have no knowledge of it except the following of assumption. And they did not kill him, for certain. ### Qur’an 3:45 Saheeh International. [Open on quran.com](https://quran.com/3/45) > [And mention] when the angels said, "O Mary, indeed Allāh gives you good tidings of a word from Him, whose name will be the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary - distinguished in this world and the Hereafter and among those brought near [to Allāh]. ## Sources Numbered to match the HTML References list. Item 1 is `#ref-1` under `#references`. Scripture links to the King James Version on this site. 1. [Qur’an, 3:19; 4:136; 2:285; 54:49; 4:48; 4:34; 33:35; 7:80](https://quran.com/3/19) (Saheeh International. The link is the first passage. Square brackets in that translation are the translator’s explanations.) 2. [Sahih al-Bukhari 8, Belief, hadith 8](https://sunnah.com/bukhari:8) (Muhammad Muhsin Khan. Sunni hadith. The five items, with Hajj before the fast of Ramadan.) 3. [Gospel of John, 1:1; 20:28](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/john/1/1). King James Version 4. [Gospel of Matthew, 28:19](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/matthew/28/19). King James Version ## See also - [Can God Have a Son?](https://apologetics.wiki/islam/can-god-have-a-son) — The Qur'an condemns the claim that God has taken a son, especially a son by a consort. Christians deny that picture and still confess the eternal Son. - [Did Jesus Die on the Cross?](https://apologetics.wiki/islam/did-jesus-die-on-the-cross) — The Qur'an is widely read as saying Jesus was not crucified. The Gospels, Paul, and two Roman-era historians say he was. - [Did Paul Invent Christianity?](https://apologetics.wiki/islam/did-paul-invent-christianity) — Muslims often say Paul turned the prophet Jesus into a divine saviour. The creed he says he received, and the apostles he names, are the test of that claim. - [Do Muslims and Christians Worship the Same God?](https://apologetics.wiki/islam/do-muslims-and-christians-worship-the-same-god) — Is Allah the same God? Muslims and Christians both confess one Creator, the God of Abraham. They do not confess the same account of who that God is: Christians say Jesus is God, and the Qur'an denies it. - [Does Jesus Do What Only God Does?](https://apologetics.wiki/islam/does-jesus-do-what-only-god-does) — The Qur'an says God gives life to the dead, is the First and the Last, and comes with the angels. The Gospel says Jesus does those things. ## History [View history on GitHub](https://github.com/Apologetics-Wiki/apologetics-wiki/commits/main/src/content/articles/what-do-muslims-believe.md)