' ( ar, فرض) or ' () or fardh in Islam is a religious duty commanded by
God
In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...
Persian
Persian may refer to:
* People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language
** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples
** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...
,
Pashto
Pashto (,; , ) is an Eastern Iranian language in the Indo-European language family. It is known in historical Persian literature as Afghani ().
Spoken as a native language mostly by ethnic Pashtuns, it is one of the two official langua ...
,
Urdu
Urdu (;"Urdu" '' Malay (''spelled fardu or fardhu'') in the same meaning.
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
who obey such commands or duties are said to receive ''hasanat'' (), ''ajr'' () or ''thawab'' () each time for each good deed.
''Fard'' or its synonym ''wājib'' () is one of the five types of
ahkam
''Ahkam'' (, ar, أحكام "rulings", plural of ()) is an Islamic term with several meanings. In the Quran, the word ''hukm'' is variously used to mean arbitration, judgement, authority, or God in Islam, God's will. In the early Islamic peri ...
() into which
fiqh
''Fiqh'' (; ar, فقه ) is Islamic jurisprudence. Muhammad-> Companions-> Followers-> Fiqh.
The commands and prohibitions chosen by God were revealed through the agency of the Prophet in both the Quran and the Sunnah (words, deeds, and ...
categorizes acts of every Muslim. The
Hanafi
The Hanafi school ( ar, حَنَفِية, translit=Ḥanafiyah; also called Hanafite in English), Hanafism, or the Hanafi fiqh, is the oldest and one of the four traditional major Sunni schools ( maddhab) of Islamic Law (Fiqh). It is named a ...
fiqh, however, does not consider both terms to be synonymous, and makes a distinction between ''wajib'' and ''fard'', the latter being obligatory and the former slightly lesser degree than being obligatory.
Individual duty and sufficiency
The
Fiqh
''Fiqh'' (; ar, فقه ) is Islamic jurisprudence. Muhammad-> Companions-> Followers-> Fiqh.
The commands and prohibitions chosen by God were revealed through the agency of the Prophet in both the Quran and the Sunnah (words, deeds, and ...
distinguishes two sorts of duties:
* Individual duty or ''farḍ al-'ayn'' () relates is required to perform, such as daily prayer ('' salat''), and the pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in a lifetime if the person can afford the journey ('' hajj''). An individual not performing this will be punished in the afterlife (but can be excused on basis of incapability), but if he enjoins and fulfils its necessity will be rewarded.
* Sufficiency duty or ''farḍ al-kifāya'' () is a duty which is imposed on the whole community of believers (''
ummah
' (; ar, أمة ) is an Arabic word meaning "community". It is distinguished from ' ( ), which means a nation with common ancestry or geography. Thus, it can be said to be a supra-national community with a common history.
It is a synonym for ' ...
''). The classic example for it is
janaza
Funerals and funeral prayers in Islam ( ar, جنازة, Janazah) follow fairly specific rites, though they are subject to regional interpretation and variation in custom. In all cases, however, sharia (Islamic religious law) calls for burial o ...
(Funeral prayer): the individual is not required to perform it as long as a sufficient number of community members fulfill it.
See also
*
Dua
In Islam, ( ar, دعاء , plural: ' ) is a prayer of invocation, supplication or request, even asking help or assistance from God.
Role in Islam
Muslims regard this as a profound act of worship. Muhammad is reported to have said ...
*
Makruh
In Islamic terminology, something which is ''makruh'' ( ar, مكروه, transliterated: ''makrooh'' or ''makrūh'') is a disliked or offensive act (literally "detestable" or "abominable"). This is one of the five categories (''al-ahkam al-kham ...
*
Mustahabb
''Mustahabb'' () is an Islamic term referring to recommended, favoured or virtuous actions.
''Mustahabb'' actions are those whose ruling ('' ahkam'') in Islamic law falls between '' mubah'' (neutral; neither encouraged nor discouraged) and '' ...
*
Wallace Fard Muhammad
Wallace Dodd Fard, also known as Wallace Fard Muhammad or Master Fard Muhammad (; reportedly born February 26, – disappeared ), was the founder of the Nation of Islam. He arrived in Detroit in 1930 with an obscure background and several alia ...
Ahkam
*
Ahkam
''Ahkam'' (, ar, أحكام "rulings", plural of ()) is an Islamic term with several meanings. In the Quran, the word ''hukm'' is variously used to mean arbitration, judgement, authority, or God in Islam, God's will. In the early Islamic peri ...
, commandments, of which fardh are a type
*
Mustahabb
''Mustahabb'' () is an Islamic term referring to recommended, favoured or virtuous actions.
''Mustahabb'' actions are those whose ruling ('' ahkam'') in Islamic law falls between '' mubah'' (neutral; neither encouraged nor discouraged) and '' ...
, recommended but not required
Other religions
* Mitzvah (somewhat similar Jewish concept)
* Dharma (somewhat similar Hindu/Buddhist/Sikh concept)