ISLAM

Islam simply means a total submission to the Will of Allah, our Creator, peacefully. Submission means to accept and accordingly act upon His Guidance through His last Prophet Mohammad صلّی اللہ علیه وسلّم to live a life based on the instructions taught in the Qur'an, the Holy and Noble Words of our Lord. It contains directives for all the key aspects of one's life. So, after acknowledging the 6 articles of faith, which is the polishing for one's mind and heart, one must embrace and put into practice the 5 pillars of Islam, which is as follows :

1- The Declaration of Faith (Shahada) :

This is the official proclamation of one's affirmation of their faith in the tawheed - Unity of Allah, by testifying in front of a certified authority like a registered mosque or an Islamic Centre witnessed by atleast two other muslims. This is an important step, so as to be known as a muslim and experience the blessings of being in the muslim community. 

2- Prayer (Salah) :

A muslim MUST pray 5 times to remain as a true muslim, apart from the hypocrites. As regards his inner self disputing it's validity or disagreeing with the number of times, or any aspect of it's obligatory parts, that's for our Lord to deal with. But, for a muslim to be recognised as such, he/she must do the outward prayer to save themselves from being labelled as a hypocrite or even worse a kaafir. This is because of the hadith (sayings and actions of Prophet Mohammad) which says : 

Jabir bin Abdullah says: I heard the Messenger of Allah  صلّی اللہ علیه وسلّم saying this: The difference between a man (Muslim) and shirk and kufr is the abandoning of salaah. (Sahih Muslim: Kitab ul Iman: Book 001, Number 0147)

Prayer times are:

Fajr (Dawn) - 2 units 

Zuhr (Noon) - 4 units 

'Asr (A/noon) - 4 units 

Maghrib (evening) - 3 units 

'Isha (night) - 4 units 

Making Wudu/Ablution before Prayer
How to pray?
Where to pray and what to wear?
More info on Prayers

3- Obligatory Charity (Zakah) :

It is mandatory for a muslim to pay zakah, which is the charity due to the poor people within one's family (not parents, as it is a duty to serve them, not a charity), relatives, friends or others in the neighborhood. It can also be given to the deprived and orphans around the world too. In fact, the eligibility is categorized into 8 types: 

Fuqaraa: The poor ones who own property in excess of basic necessities but below the value of Nisab. 

Masakeen (The Needy): Persons of extreme poverty who possess no wealth whatsoever. 

Aamileen (Zakat collector): Those persons who are appointed by an Islamic Head of State or Government to collect Zakat. It is not necessary that this be a needy person. 

Muallafatul Quloob: Those poor and needy persons who are given Zakat with the intentions of solidifying their hearts because they maybe recently converted to Islam or to bring them closer to Islam. 

Ar-Riqaab: slaves whose masters have agreed to set them free on a payment of a fixed amount. Zakat may be used to purchase their freedom. 

Ibnus-Sabeel: A traveler, who, whilst wealthy at his residence, is stranded and in need of financial assistance. 

Al Ghaarimeen: A person whose debts exceeds his assets and his net assets (after deducting his liabilities) is below the Nisab limit. To determine whether a person qualifies, his basic necessities of life (house, furniture, clothes, vehicle, etc.) will not be taken into account. It is conditional that the debts were not created for any un-Islamic or sinful purpose. 

Fi Sabeelillah: Those who are away from home in the path of Allah. Those in Jihaad, those seeking knowledge or a stranded Haji may be assist with Zakat if they are in need. 

In Sharia (Islamic Law) niṣāb (نِصاب) is the amount a Muslim's net worth must exceed for them to be obligated to give zakat. Several hadith have formulas for calculating niṣāb, the most prominent of which declares that No Zakāt is due on wealth until one year passes. Zakat is determined based on the amount of wealth acquired; the greater one's assets, the greater the tax. Unlike income tax in secular states niṣāb is not subject to special exemptions. In Islam niṣāb is 20 dinārs for gold and 200 dirḥams for silver [dubious – discuss]. The dinār is a gold coin weighing one mithqal (4.25 grams) and the dirḥam is a silver coin weighing 0.7 mithqal (2.975 grams). The niṣāb is applicable to the cumulative stock of dinārs, dirḥam and any other zakatable valuables, such as merchandise that has been in store for at least one year. As long as the total value of the zakatable valuables exceeds the value of the niṣāb zakat must be paid.

The idea is to not let anyone hungry, clothless and homeless, while one is living an above average life with plenty to feed one's family and still have sufficient savings. Zakat basically means purification; and through this pillar, Allah wants to purify our lives in general and wealth in particular, from evils like hoarding, extravaganza, unlawful sources of income (as a strict criteria for zakat to be acceptable as charity is to be halal, ie, lawful) and thereby convert this act of worship into blessings in our rizq (sustenance), life and aakhira.

4- Fasting (Sawm) :

Fasting is ordained on the muslims in the 9th Islamic month of Ramadan. It's a total abstain from food, drink and intimacy from partners. The muslim should fast for 29 or 30 days based on the sighting of the new moon marking the start of the next month. It starts from the fajr (dawn) time till maghrib (sunset) time, after which one should break the fast and resume eating, drinking and being with one's partner intimately. This is to purify one's morals and refresh our faith, acts of worship, character and piety towards our Lord. It has been scientifically proven to enhance the body and mind, detoxifying our system and controlling excesses in our habits of eating and drinking. It also reminds us of the poor by experiencing the hunger pangs and dryness of thirst that they suffer. One who misses it has to make up for it after this month ends and the first day of Eid-ul-fitr is over.

Do's and Don'ts while fasting

5- Pilgrimage (Hajj) :

This is a ritual done atleast once in a lifetime by those who can afford the travel and accomodation expenses incurred during this holy trip to Makkah in Saudi Arabia. This place houses the holy Kaaba, the cubical block in the centre that is clothed in black, being the focus of direction towards which muslims all over the world must face to have their 5 times prayers approved by Allah. Men can travel alone but women must be accompanied by a mahram, means those she can't marry, like her father, brother, husband, son, nephew, grandson etc.