The word "Muslim" means one who submits to the will of Allah (God). The first principle of Islam is known as the Shahaadah (Testimony of Faith), and is as follows: "There is no one worthy of worship except Allah (God) and Muhammad is the Final Apostle (Messenger) of God.”
In a broader sense, anyone who willingly submits to the will of Allah is a Muslim. Thus, all the prophets preceding Prophet Muhammad, (S.A.W) May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon Him are considered Muslims.
One cannot judge Islam by looking at those individuals who have a Muslim name, but in their actions, they are not living or behaving as Muslims. Muslims are ordinary people like other humans; among them are the good and the bad. They are not infallible creatures and, therefore, make mistakes. When we mention the characteristics of a Muslim, we do not assume that all Muslims have these characteristics, but only those who follow -- to the best of their abilities -- the teachings of Islam.
These are Teachings of Islam, which the Muslims must abide to:
A Muslim is truthful, not dishonest
He/She is humble, not arrogant
He/She is moderate, not an extremist
He/She is honest, not corrupt
He/She is reserved, not garrulous
He/She is soft-spoken, not boastful
He/She is loving and solicitous to others, not unmindful of them
He/She is considerate and compassionate, not harsh
He/She is polite and helpful, not insulting and disrespectful to people
He/She is generous and charitable, not selfish and miserly
He/She is refined and gentle in speech, not prone to swearing or cursing
He/She is cheerful and generous, not bitter and resentful
He/She is grateful for what he has, not ungrateful
He/She is cheerful and pleasant, not irritable and gloomy
He/She is chaste and pure, not lustful
He/She is alert, not absent-minded
He/She is dignified and decent, not graceless
He/She is sincere and straightforward, not hypocritical
He/She is optimistic and hopeful, not cynical or pessimistic
He/She is confident and deep in faith, not doubtful and wavering
He/She is spiritually oriented, not materialistic
He/She always has faith in God’s mercy, not losing heart or becoming desperate
He/She is diligent and vigilant, not negligent to his duties
He/She is thankful to God and constantly prays to Him, not forgetful of His innumerable blessings.
He/She is humble, not arrogant
He/She is moderate, not an extremist
He/She is honest, not corrupt
He/She is reserved, not garrulous
He/She is soft-spoken, not boastful
He/She is loving and solicitous to others, not unmindful of them
He/She is considerate and compassionate, not harsh
He/She is polite and helpful, not insulting and disrespectful to people
He/She is generous and charitable, not selfish and miserly
He/She is refined and gentle in speech, not prone to swearing or cursing
He/She is cheerful and generous, not bitter and resentful
He/She is grateful for what he has, not ungrateful
He/She is cheerful and pleasant, not irritable and gloomy
He/She is chaste and pure, not lustful
He/She is alert, not absent-minded
He/She is dignified and decent, not graceless
He/She is sincere and straightforward, not hypocritical
He/She is optimistic and hopeful, not cynical or pessimistic
He/She is confident and deep in faith, not doubtful and wavering
He/She is spiritually oriented, not materialistic
He/She always has faith in God’s mercy, not losing heart or becoming desperate
He/She is diligent and vigilant, not negligent to his duties
He/She is thankful to God and constantly prays to Him, not forgetful of His innumerable blessings.
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