Islam / Muslim Religion

Islam is a monotheistic faith and the world's second-largest religion.
In Arabic, Islam means "submission" and is described as a Din, meaning "way of life" and/or "religion." Etymologically, it is derived from the same root as, for example, Salam meaning "peace" (also a common salutation). A more precise translation of the word Islam would be the serenity that is created by submission. The word Muslim is also related to the word Islam and means "one who surrenders" or "submits" to God.
Islam / Islamic / Muslim Beliefs
Followers of Islam, known as Muslims, believe that God (or, in Arabic, Allah) revealed his direct word for mankind to Muhammad (c. 570–632) and other prophets, including Adam, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. Muslims assert that the main written record of revelation to mankind is the Qur'an, which they believe to be flawless, immutable and the final revelation of God. Muslims believe that some parts of the Bible and the Torah may have been misinterpreted or distorted by their followers. With that perspective they view the Qur'an as corrective of Jewish and Christian scriptures.
Muslims hold that it is essentially the same belief as that of all the messengers sent by God to mankind since Adam, with the Qur'an (the one definitive text of the Muslim faith) codifying the final revelation of God. Islam sees Judaism and Christianity as derivations of the teachings of certain of these prophets - notably Abraham - and therefore see them as fellow Abrahamic religions, and People of the Book. Islam has two primary branches of belief, based largely on a historical disagreement over the succession of authority after Muhammad's death; these are known as Sunni and Shi'ite.
The basis of Muslim belief is found in the shahadatan ("two statements"): la ilaha illa-llahu; muhammadur-rasulu-llahi — "There is no god but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God." In order to become a Muslim, one needs to recite and believe these statements. All Muslims agree to this, although Sunnis further regard this as one of the five pillars of Islam.
There are six basic beliefs shared by all Muslims:
Belief in God, the one and only one worthy of all worship. Belief in the Angels. Belief in the Book (al-Quran / Koran) (sent by God). Belief in all the Prophets and Messengers (sent by God). Belief in the Day of Judgment (Qiyamah) and in the Resurrection. Belief in Fate (Qadar)
The Muslim creed in English:
"I believe in God; and in His Angels; and in His Scriptures; and in His Messengers; and in The Final Day; and in Fate, that Good and Evil are from God, and Resurrection after death be Truth. I testify that there is nothing worthy of worship but God; and I testify that Muhammad is His Messenger".
Islam God / Allah
The fundamental concept in Islam is the oneness of God (tawhid). This monotheism is absolute, not relative or pluralistic in any sense of the word. God is described in Sura al-Ikhlas, (chapter 112) as follows: Say "He is God, the one, the Self-Sufficient master. He never begot, nor was begotten. There is none comparable to Him."
In Arabic, God is called Allah, a contraction of al-ilah or "the (only) god". Allah thus translates to "God" in English. The implicit usage of the definite article in Allah linguistically indicates the divine unity. In spite of the different name used for God, Muslims assert that they believe in the same deity as the Judeo-Christian religions. However, Muslims strictly disagree with the Christian theology concerning the unity of God (the doctrine of the Trinity and that Jesus is the eternal Son of God), seeing it as akin to polytheism.
"O People of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth . The Messiah , Jesus son of Mary , was only a messenger of Allah , and His word which He conveyed unto Mary , and a spirit from Him . So believe in Allah and His messengers , and say not "three" . Cease! ( it is ) better for you! Allah is only One God . Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that he should have a son . His is all that is in the heavens and all that is in the earth . And Allah is sufficient as its defender." [Chapter 4 : Surah 171]
No Muslim visual images or depictions of God exist because such artistic depictions may lead to idolatry and are thus prohibited. Moreover, many Muslims believe that God is incorporeal, rendering any two or three dimensional depictions impossible. Instead, Muslims describe God by the many divine attributes mentioned in the Qur'an, and also with the 99 names of Allah. All but one Surah (chapter) of the Qur'an begins with the phrase "In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful". These are consequently the most important divine attributes in the sense that Muslims repeat them most frequently during their ritual prayers (called salah in Arabic, and in India and Pakistan called "namaz" (a Persian word)).

Meaning of Aum

Aum (also Om, ॐ) is the most sacred syllable in Hinduism, in which Vedic tradition it originated. The syllable is sometimes referred to as the "Udgitha" or "pranava mantra" (primordial mantra); not only because it is considered to be the primal sound, but also because most mantras begin with it. As a seed syllable (bija), it is also considered holy in Esoteric Buddhism. In Devanagari it is written ॐ (Unicode U+0950) and in Tibetan script ༀ (Unicode U+0F00).Origin: Found first in the Vedic scriptures of Hinduism, Aum has been seen as the first manifestation of the unmanifest Brahman (the single Divine Ground of Hinduism) that resulted in the phenomenal universe. Essentially, all the cosmos stems from the vibration of the sound 'Aum' in Hindu cosmology. Indeed, so sacred is it that it is prefixed and suffixed to all Hindu mantras and incantations. It is undoubtedly the most representative symbol of Hinduism. The OM symbol's left part, which is like a figure 3, is also a component of some Devanagari letters, where it means "this syllable has no initial consonant".Philosophy of AUMGods and Goddesses are sometimes referred to as Aumkar, which means Form of Aum, thus implying that they are limitless, the vibrational whole of the cosmos. Ek Onkar, meaning 'one god' is a central tenet of Sikh religious philosophy. In Hindu metaphysics, it is proposed that the manifested cosmos (from Brahman) has name and form (nama-rupa), and that the closest approximation to the name and form of the universe is Aum, since all existence is fundamentally composed of vibration. This is considered by some to be reminiscent of some current physical theories such as quantum physics and super string theory, which describe the universe in terms of vibrating fields or strings.It is frequently used to represent three subsumed into one, a common theme in Hinduism. It implies that our current existence is mithya, or 'slightly lesser reality,' that in order to know the full truth we must comprehend beyond the body and intellect and intuit the true nature of infinity, of a Divine Ground that is imminent but also transcends all duality, being and non-being, that cannot be described in words. Within this metaphysical symbolism, the three are represented by the lower curve, upper curve and tail of the ॐ subsumed into the ultimate One, represented by the little crescent moon-shape and dot, known as chandrabindu. Essentially, upon moksha, mukti, samadhi, nirvana, liberation, etc. one is able not only to see or know existence for what it is, but to become it. In attaining truth one simply realizes fundamental unity; it is not the joining together of a prior manifold splitting. When one gains true knowledge, there is no split between knower and known: one becomes knowledge/consciousness itself. In essence, Aum is the signifier of the ultimate truth that all is one.Examples of Three into One:Creation (Brahma)- Preservation (Vishnu)- Destruction (Shiva) into BrahmanWaking- Dreaming- Dreamless Sleep into Turiya (transcendental fourth state of consciousness)Rajas (activity, heat, fire)- Tamas (dullness, ignorance, darkness)- Sattva (purity, light, serenity/shanti) into BrahmanBody, Speech and Mind into OnenessThe Chandogya Upanishad (1.1.1-10) states, "The udgitha is the best of all essences, the highest, deserving the highest place, the eighth.""Aum" can be seen as Sri Ganesh, whose figure is often represented in the shape of Aum. He is thus known as Aumkar (Shape of Aum). Sri Nataraja, or the Hindu god 'Shiva' dancing his dance of destruction, is seen in that popular representation mirroring the image of Aum. It is said to be the most perfect 'approximation' of the cosmic existence within time and space, and therefore the sound closest to Truth. "The First Word Om (Aum) It is also called Pranav because its sound emanates from the Prana (vital vibration), which feels the Universe. The scripture says "Aum Iti Ek Akşara Brahman" (Aum that one syllable is Brahman).When you pronounce AUM: A - emerges from the throat, originating in the region of the navel U - rolls over the tongue M - ends on the lips A - waking, U - dreaming, M - sleeping It is the sum and substance of all the words that can emanate from the human throat. It is the primordial fundamental sound symbolic of the Universal Absolute." Today, in all Hindu art and all over India and Nepal, 'Aum' can be seen virtually everywhere, a standard sign for Hinduism and a vast but economical storehouse for the deep mythology inherent in the world's oldest religion.It has been argued that Aum can be translated, into English, as "Eternal Yea". Notes the Chandogya Upanishad, "That syllable, is a syllable of permission; for, whenever we permit anything, we say Aum." However, this is seen by others as a myopic perspective because the same Hindu scriptures, the Upanishads, that aver this function also attribute to it the divine property of the source of the universe. Aum is seen as the source of existence as we know it within the causal dimensions of time and space, and thus affirmatory meanings in languages are a natural progression. Aum is not only affirmation, but negation, and transcends both.The AUM sound is sometimes called "the 3-syllable Veda". The third syllable arises because in Devanagari and similar alphabets, a consonant at the end of a word is sometimes written as a separate consonant letter with the virama "no vowel" sign, and this combination is treated as a syllable when talking about Devanagari writing rather than about phonetics. The Sanskrit word omkāra (from which came Punjabi onkār, etc), literally "OM-maker", has two families of meanings: Brahma (god) in his role as creator, and thus a word for "creator". Writers' term for the OM sign.Some quotations from Hindu scriptures regarding AUMIn the Rig-Veda we find the following information; "One who chants om, which is the closest form of Brahman, approaches Brahman. This liberates one from the fear of the material world, therefore it is known as tarak Brahman.""O Vishnu your self-manifest name, om, is the eternal form of cognizance. Even if my knowledge about the glories of reciting this name is incomplete, still, by the practice of reciting this name I will achieve that perfect knowledge. "He who has unmanifested potencies and is fully independent, manifests the vibration omkara, which indicates Himself. Brahman, Paramatma, and Bhagavan are the three forms He manifests."Aum takes the form of Gayatri, then Veda and Vedanta sutra; then it takes the shape of Srimad Bhagavatam and the lila, the divine pastimes, of the Lord."Other traditions, interpretations and understandingsༀ Tibetan "Om" symbolWith Buddhism's evolution and breaking away from Vedic/Hindu tradition, Aum and other symbology/cosmology/philosophies were co-opted from the Hindu tradition. This character often appeared as "唵" in Buddhist scripts in East Asia. In Buddhism this syllable is almost never transliterated as Aum, but instead as Om. This syllable is also incorporated in the mantra "Om Mani Padme Hum".

Yin Yang

The Yin and Yang Symbol with black representing yin and white representing yang.
The symbol is a visual depiction of the intertwined duality of all things in nature, a common theme in w:Taoism. It is believed to be derived from the 11th century Tiandi Zhiran Hetu (Heaven and Earth’s Natural Diagram of the River), Hetu (Diagram of River), Luoshu (Chart of Luo), Xiantian tu (Diagram of Preceding Heaven) and Taijitu (太極圖) (Diagram of the Ultimate Power).

Explore Yourself

‘The unexamined life is not worth living’Socrates
Thinking about what you might like to do with your life is a big project. The thing to remember is — it’s your life — and everything has to start from where you are now.
Before you can visualise a future self, you need to look at yourself today — what interests you, what you are good at, what really matters to you — in order to evaluate possible future roles and careers which may be right for you.
Employers interested in recruiting students from the University of Gloucestershire consistently say that they are looking for graduates who are self-aware, who know their own strengths and weaknesses, who have reflected upon their experience to understand themselves better. Such people are likely to be an asset to any employer, because they have already begun to take responsibility for their own development. They will be the sort of employee who assesses their own performance critically, who looks for ways to use their strengths and seeks out opportunities to develop new skills, who interacts productively with colleagues and clients and is ready to take the initiative. If you engage in self-analysis, you can demonstrate your potential in these areas on the CV you send out for your first job after graduation.
The three sections below take you into some key areas for self-analysis.
The Story So Far — looking at the past to make sense of the presentIt’s All About You — your skills, interests, personal qualities, values and circumstances.

Meaning of Life

The meaning of life constitutes a philosophical question concerning the purpose and significance of human existence. This concept can be expressed through a variety of related questions, such as Why are we here?, What's life all about? and What is the meaning of it all? It has been the subject of much philosophical, scientific, and theological speculation throughout history. There have been a large number of answers to these questions from many different cultural and ideological backgrounds. Albert Camus observed, we humans are creatures who spend our lives trying to convince ourselves that our existence is not absurd. [1]
The meaning of life is deeply mixed with the philosophical and religious conceptions of existence, consciousness, and happiness, and touches on many other issues, such as symbolic meaning, ontology, value, purpose, ethics, good and evil, free will, conceptions of God, the existence of God, the soul and the afterlife. Scientific contributions are more indirect; by describing the empirical facts about the universe, science provides some context and sets parameters for conversations on related topics. An alternative, human-centric, and not a cosmic/religious approach is the question "What is the meaning of my life?" The value of the question pertaining to the purpose of life may be considered to be coincidal with the achievement of ultimate reality, if that is believed by one to exist.

Quotes of Life

How is one to live a moral and compassionate existence when one is fully aware of the blood, the horror inherent in life, when one finds darkness not only in one's culture but within oneself? If there is a stage at which an individual life becomes truly adult, it must be when one grasps the irony in its unfolding and accepts responsibility for a life lived in the midst of such paradox. One must live in the middle of contradiction, because if all contradiction were eliminated at once life would collapse. There are simply no answers to some of the great pressing questions. You continue to live them out, making your life a worthy expression of leaning into the light.

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