The Six Beliefs and the Five Roots (1RA0)

Two lists, one faith

Muslims share the central beliefs of Islam, but different traditions organise those beliefs into different frameworks, and this specification asks you to know two of them. Sunni Muslims commonly learn the Six Beliefs of Islam. Shi'a Muslims learn the Five Roots of Usul ad-Din, which means the roots, or foundations, of religion. They overlap a great deal. Your job in the exam is to name the right one for the tradition the question asks about.

The Six Beliefs of Islam

The Sunni framework, set out in the hadith collection the spec references as Kitab al-iman 1:4. Each is named in Arabic, which is how the exam expects to see them:

Match each belief to what it means

Which belief is which?

Which of the Six Beliefs is about Allah's decree, and his knowledge of everything that happens?

• Al-Qadr
• Kutub
• Malaikah
• Akhirah

The Five Roots of Usul ad-Din

The Shi'a framework. These are the FOUNDATIONS of religion, not a complete list of Shi'a beliefs: Shi'a Muslims believe in the angels and the holy books as well, they simply are not among the five roots. Tawhid is expressed in Surah 112, which the spec references.

What the Five Roots add

Three of the Five Roots also appear in the Six Beliefs, under the same or a matching name. Select the TWO that do not.

• 'Adl, divine justice
• Imamah, the leadership of the imams
• Tawhid, the oneness of Allah
• Nubuwwah, prophethood

Pillars are not roots

This is the mix-up that costs marks in this topic, and it is easy to avoid once you have seen it stated plainly. • The Five Pillars (Shahadah, Salah, Zakat, Sawm, Hajj) are a framework of practice, learned in the Sunni tradition. They are things Muslims DO. • The Five Roots of Usul ad-Din are a framework of belief, in the Shi'a tradition. They are things Muslims BELIEVE. The Shi\'a framework of practice is the Ten Obligatory Acts. So Salah is a pillar, never a root, and Imamah is a root, never a pillar. Whenever you name one, say which tradition and which framework it belongs to.

What is wrong here?

A student writes: "The Five Roots of Usul ad-Din are Shahadah, Salah, Zakat, Sawm and Hajj." What is the error?

• Those are the Five Pillars, a Sunni framework of practice, not the Shi'a Five Roots of belief
• The five are listed in the wrong order
• There should be six of them, not five
• Nothing: the pillars and the roots are two names for the same list

The two frameworks

The Sunni framework is the _____ Beliefs of Islam; the Shi'a framework of belief is the _____ Roots of Usul ad-Din. Both begin with _____, the oneness of Allah. The root meaning divine justice is _____, and the root about the leadership of the imams is _____.

Answer it properly

An exam question asks: "Explain two of the Five Roots of Usul ad-Din." Work through how to answer it.

• First decision: which tradition is this question about, and what does that rule out?
• You choose Imamah as one of your two. What makes it a strong choice to write about?
• The mark scheme rewards a source of authority. What should you do?

Explain the two frameworks

Explain the difference between the Six Beliefs of Islam and the Five Roots of Usul ad-Din, and what the two frameworks have in common.

• Say which tradition each framework belongs to
• Name at least three items from each, in Arabic, with a short gloss for each
• Identify two beliefs that appear in both frameworks
• Explain what the Five Roots add, and make clear they are foundations rather than a complete list of Shi'a belief
• Finish by stating the difference between a root and a pillar, since that is the mistake examiners see most