What Is the Difference between the Five Pillars and the Articles of Faith?
Answered by Imam Yama Niazi
Question
What is the difference between the five pillars and the six articles of faith?
Answer
The five pillars of Islam are those matters which relate to the outward. All of them, if you examine them, are doing or saying things outwardly.
The articles of faith are based on the hadith of Jibril (peace be upon him), and those are about faith. Essentially it is about what we believe in as Muslims and the core matters that relate to beliefs.
There is a complete course on this at SeekersGuidance called ‘The Essentials of Belief for Muslim Youth,’ and I recommend you take that course for a more in-depth look at the Articles of Faith.
In summary, both are correct. One is based on the outward matters of practice, while the other is about the inward beliefs.
Allah knows best
[Imam] Yama Niazi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Imam Yama Niazi has studied with local scholars in the USA for a number of years which culminated in him becoming an imam of the Islamic Society of Santa Barbara for 8 years. He served the community by teaching and leading prayers. In 2015 he founded “the blessed tree “a nonprofit specifically for bridging gaps between the Muslim community and others. He has spoken on many Muslim platforms throughout the USA and Canada and conducted programs in local communities in North America. He is an instructor at SeekersGuidance.
