A mountain just outside Madina, much loved by the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, at the foot of which the Muslims fought their second major battle against the pagan Qur'aish of Makka in 3AH. The Qur'aish army of 3,000 men, under the leadership of Abu Sufyan, attacked the Muslim army of about 700-1,000 men. The battle went well at first, but the Muslims nearly lost the battle for two reasons. Firstly, some fifty archers disobeyed the Prophet Muhammad and left their posts, leaving the Muslims open to an attack from their rear; and secondly, there was treachery on the part of some 300 Munafiqeen (hypocrites) led by 'Abdallah ibn Ubai, who deserted the Muslims during the battle. Many great companions, and in panicular the uncle of the Prophet, Hamza, 'the lion of Allah', were killed in this battle. See Bani Nadheer. See Holy Qur'an, Aali 'Imran (3):121-128, 140- 180.

Also spelled as 'Ulamaa. Plural of 'Alim. The people of knowledge from amongst the Muslims who act on what they know and do what they say.

Muslims who are in charge or in authonty, or who are leaders. The Muslims are ordered to obey all their commands as long as they do not contradict the commandments of Allah Ta'ala and the teachings of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. See Holy Qur' an, An-Nisaa (4):59.

Unity of Worship. To believe that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah "Wahdahu La Shareeka'Lah" ("Alone without Partner") . See Tawheed .

Umar ibn al-Khattab. The second of the four "Al-Khulafaa ar- Rashideen", the Rightly-Guided Khalifas, the other three being:

1. Abu Bakr as-Siddiq.
2. Uthman ibn 'Affan.
3. Ali ibn Abi Talib.

An unlettered person. This term is used in the Qur'an to describe the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, who could neither read nor write and who never received any formal education. To the unbeliever here is food for thought: how could an illiterate man have brought such a completely perfect book (the Holy Qur'an), perfect in its meaning, message, grammar and overall content, if it were not with divine help? No other book exists on earth that has such perfect content and structure. A challenge to all unbelievers! Mankind and Jinn! Assemble together and try to produce just one Surah (chapter) like it. You will never be able to do it, even if you were to try until the Day of Resurrection you will not succeed! No created being has ever been or ever will be able to meet this challenge, for the Holy Qur'an is truly the Book of Allah. Plural: Ummiyeen. See Khatam Anbiyaa.

Community or Nation. The body of the Muslims as one distinct and integrated community. The Unimah of Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, refers to every Ins wal Jinn (mankind and Jinn) born after the final message was revealed through the Holy Prophet Muhammad who have embraced Islam. The Ummah ofMuhammad, may the blessings and peace of Allah be on him and all his community (those who have lived in the past, those who are alive now and those who will live in the future), can be subdivided into two groups:

1. Ummat ad-Da'wa - the nation that was called upon to believe in Allah Ta'ala and the Last Day.
2. Ummat al-Isteajaba - the nation that responded to the call of Muhammad. Another name for this Ummah is "Al- Ummah al-Islamiah" ("the Islamic Nation"). Allah Subhana wa Ta'ala commanded the Ummat al-Isteajaba to hold together and not to disagree. Unfonunately , this decree has been ignored, and in fulfilment of the Last Messenger's prophecy, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, there are now 73 different groups of Muslims, only one of whom possesses and protects the original teachings of Islam as brought and embodied by him.

Unlettered persons. Singular: Umm-me. See Umm-me

Mother of the Faithful. A title given to each of the wives of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, may the blessings and peace of Allah be on him and his family.

• A pilgrimage to Makkah, but not during the Hajj period. It is also called "the Lesser Pilgrimage". Umra consists of four steps:
  1. Put on the Ihram at the appointed Miqat station. Then proceed to Makka reciting the Talbiyah (aloud for men and quietly for women). See Ihram, Miqat. Talbiyah.
  2. Do Tawaf of the Ka'aba seven times. During the Tawaf one may do any Du'a (and in any language) to Allah Ta'ala if one wishes. But remember to point the palm of the right hand and say "Allahu Akbar" at the start of each circuit. Each circuit starts and ends at the Hajar al-Aswad (the Black Stone). See Tawaf, Du'a.
  3. Go to Safa and start the Sa'i to Marwa. The Sa'i consists of walking between Safa and Marwa seven times (each direction is considered as one time). Men must jog between two prescribed points.
  4. Shave or trim the hair after the completion of the Sa'i. It is then permissible to change out of lhram.
• Synonym for Ruqba. See Ruqba.

The official language of Pakistan.

Also spelled as 'Urfut. The tree whose fruit is Maghafir, Forgiveness.

Principles of Islamic law, drawn from the original fundamental primary sources.

One of the greatest companions of the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace. He was the third of the four Rightly-Guided Khalifaas (Al-Khulafaa ar- Rashideen). He ruled from 24AH to 36AH. He was martyred at his home by the supporters of Abdallah ibn Sabaa, the infamous Jew who pretended he had become a Muslim in order to cause discord between Uthman and the Muslim Ummah by creating a new and false sect within Islam. See Khalifaa.