Glossary

Adda':
On time: when prayer is performed on its prescribed time. (See qadhaa').

Adhan:
The call for prayer.

Al-Adhhar:
Most evident - a level of certainty in reaching a ruling by a Mujtahid.

Al waladu lilfirash:
The born baby belongs to the bed where it was conceived.

Asr:
Afternoon prayer.

Ba'adaz zawaal:
After the disc of the sun descends towards the West. (See zawaal).

Batil:
Invalid and unlawful, e.g. A contract becomes batil when it does not satisfy the divine, practical laws of Islam.

Dhuhr:
Noon or lunch-time prayer.

Eid:
Festivities marking the end of the fasting season, or festivities of sacrifice after hajj.

Farsakh:
A unit of distance, equivalent to eleven kilometres.

Fatwa:
Religious edict.

Fidya:
Redemption (from certain religious obligations by a material donation or ritual act).

Ghusl:
Obligatory bathing that is required after certain acts or occurrences.

Hady:
Sacrificial offering.

Hajj:
The pilgrimage to Mekka undertaken according to the prescribed ritual during the month of Thil Hijja.

Hajjatul Islam:
A Muslim's maiden pilgrimage to Mekka, that is obligatory when you can afford the journey.

Halal:
Lawful for use, consumption, or to act upon.

Haqqul ikhtisas:
Prerogative.

Haraam:
Unlawful or forbidden for use, consumption, or to act upon.

Haram:
The Holy Precinct of Mekka.

Haraj rafie' littakleef:
An untenable situation that could waive the fulfilment of certain religious obligations.

Hawlayn:
Two years.

Haydh:
Menstruation.

Ibadaat:
Acts of worship.

Ijarah:
Hire.

Ihram:
The special two-garment seamless attire worn by pilgrims. Also, the state of ritual consecration during which the pilgrim abstains from certain acts, such as not combing, not shaving, and observing sexual continence.

Ihtiyat luzumi:
Obligatory precaution that must be followed.

Ijtihad:
(lit. exertion) - the process of arriving at judgements on points of religious law using reason and the principles of jurisprudence (usul al-fiqh).

Isha:
Evening prayer.

Ishkal:
Problematic or grey area: Difficult to approve of or consent to.

Istihadha:
Undue menses.

Istihalah:
Transformation.

Istinqath:
Recovery of money from the unbelievers.

Jamarat:
Places of the three stone slabs representing the devil, at Mina. (See rami)

Ji'aala:
Fee, charge, reward.

Kaffarah:
Atonement or expiation: making repayment for some failure to act, harm done to another, etc.

Khums:
A type of religious levy, equivalent to one fifth of taxable income.

Ma fith thimmah:
Repayment of a debt: When prayer is performed to compensate for unsaid ones.

Maghrib:
Sunset prayer.

Maghsoub:
Usurped.

Mahaarim:
One's immediate relatives - according to a certain classification detailed in Shari'a law.

Majhoulil Malik:
That whose owner is unknown.

Makrooh:
Makrooh (undesirable) act.

Manasikul Hajj:
Pilgrimage rites.

Marji' pl. Maraji':
(lit. reference point for emulation, or religious authority) - A cleric who, through his knowledge and probity, is qualified to be followed in all points of religious practice and law by the generality of shiah Muslims.

Mujtahid:
A clergyman who has studied sufficiently and achieved the level of competence necessary to interpret shari'a law (see Ijtihad).

Mukallaf:
Comopos mentis (The person obligated to observe the precepts of religion).

Musafir:
Traveller.

Musalaha:
Mutual agreement between the Marji' or his agent and the follower on matters of religious dues.

Mustahab:
A voluntary, and meritorious, act of worship. (See wajib - obligatory).

Mutlaqan:
Absolutely, or under any circumstances.

Najis:
Ceremonially unclean: some things are inherently najis, others can become najis through contact with an inherently najis substances.

Nifas:
Bleeding that occurs after childbirth, miscarriage, or abortion.

Niyyah:
Intention, i.e. to designate which prayer, or other act of worship one is about to perform and that its sole purpose is to seek nearness to Allah.

Niyyah of qurbal mutlaqah:
(The intention of prayer done with a view to seeking nearness to Allah, i.e. without designating whether it is adaa' or qadhaa').

Nushouz:
Recalcitrance (dislike, abhorrence) of a wife towards her husband.

Qadhaa':
In lieu : when a prayer is performed at a later time.

Qasr:
A shortened form of prayer: A concession for a musafir (traveller) to perform a two raka'a prayer instead of the full four raka'a one (see tamam).

Qiblah:
The direction, of the Ka'ba, one must face while praying.

Raka'a:
The bowing act in a prayer.

Rami:
Throwing seven pebbles or small stones at Jamarat on Eid day, the 11th and the 12th of Thil Hijjah. (See Jamarat).

Risalah Amaliyah:
Manual of articles of Islamic acts, usually published by a Marji'.

Sadaqa:
Legally prescribed alms tax.

Sa'y:
Seven laps of brisk walking between the mounts of Safa and Marwah - an obligatory part of hajj.

Shari'a:
Religious law.

Shari'i:
Islamic or legal.

Subh:
Dawn prayer.

Tahir:
The state of being ceremonially clean, the opposite of najis.

Tamam:
A full four-raka'a prayer. (See qasr).

Tanazul:
Foregoing one's right.

Taqleed:
The following, by a lay person, of a learned cleric (Mujtahid ) in matters of religious practice.

Taqseer:
Cutting one's hair, clipping one's moustache or beard, or cutting off the nails - an act that heralds the exit from the state of ihram.

Tarakhus:
The point at the periphery of a town where, for example, adhan could be heard.

Tawaf:
Circumambulation - Turning seven times around the Ka'ba.

Tawafun Nisa':
(lit., women's circumambulation - an integral part of hajj devotion, the performance of which and that of its prayer heralds the return of sexual relations between man and wife.

Thil Hijjah:
The month of the Arabic lunar calendar during which hajj is performed.

Ulema:
Scholars or doctors of religion.

Umrah:
Lesser hajj, or visitation that can be performed at any time, except the days of hajj in the month of Thil Hijjah.

Umrah Mufradah:
A type of lesser hajj.

Umrah Tamattu':
A visitation ritual that is obligatory before performing hajj.

Urf:
Generally accepted practice, custom, or usage.

Wajib:
An obligatory act of worship. (See mustahab - a voluntary act).

Wudhu:
An act of ablution that is required before the performance of certain actions.

Wuquf:
Devotional stay at Arafat, Mash'ar and Mina as part of hajj rituals.

Zawaal:
The zenith of the sun, just before it declines towards the West.