What Does Islam Clearly Command?

Ask a Muslim what their religion asks of them, and you may first hear about prayer and fasting. Keep listening, and you will hear about mothers and fathers, neighbours and orphans, honest trade and kept promises. In Islam, serving God and serving people are not two separate religions. They are one.

This page sets out the great commands on which all Muslims agree. Its companion, What Islam Forbids, covers the other side of the picture.

One verse that sums it up

Every Friday, in mosques around the world, many preachers end their sermon by reciting a single verse that captures Islam’s moral vision:

۞ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَأْمُرُ بِٱلْعَدْلِ وَٱلْإِحْسَٰنِ وَإِيتَآئِ ذِى ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ وَيَنْهَىٰ عَنِ ٱلْفَحْشَآءِ وَٱلْمُنكَرِ وَٱلْبَغْىِ ۚ يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ ﴿٩٠﴾

Indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded.

Justice, ihsan — doing good beautifully, beyond what is required — and generosity to family: these three commands frame everything else on this page.

Worship God alone

The first command in Islam is to worship God alone, without partners. From this flow the acts of worship that every Muslim shares: the five daily prayers, the yearly zakat for the poor, fasting in Ramadan and the pilgrimage for those who are able. The Qur’an repeatedly pairs establishing prayer with giving zakat (Qur’an 2:43), as if to say that a person’s relationship with God and their care for the needy cannot be separated. See The Five Daily Prayers and Zakat: The Right of the Poor.

Justice — even against yourself

Justice is one of the most frequent commands in the Qur’an. Muslims are told to give back what has been entrusted to them and to judge between people fairly (Qur’an 4:58), even when it means testifying against themselves or their own relatives (Qur’an 4:135). Remarkably, justice is owed even to people one dislikes:

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ كُونُوا۟ قَوَّٰمِينَ لِلَّهِ شُهَدَآءَ بِٱلْقِسْطِ ۖ وَلَا يَجْرِمَنَّكُمْ شَنَـَٔانُ قَوْمٍ عَلَىٰٓ أَلَّا تَعْدِلُوا۟ ۚ ٱعْدِلُوا۟ هُوَ أَقْرَبُ لِلتَّقْوَىٰ ۖ وَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِيرٌۢ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ ﴿٨﴾

O you who have believed, be persistently standing firm for Allah, witnesses in justice, and do not let the hatred of a people prevent you from being just. Be just; that is nearer to righteousness. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is Acquainted with what you do.

This is a high standard: one’s feelings, loyalties or grievances can never justify treating anyone unfairly. See Justice in Islam.

Kindness to parents

In the Qur’an, honouring parents comes immediately after the worship of God — so closely that the two are mentioned in the same breath:

۞ وَقَضَىٰ رَبُّكَ أَلَّا تَعْبُدُوٓا۟ إِلَّآ إِيَّاهُ وَبِٱلْوَٰلِدَيْنِ إِحْسَٰنًا ۚ إِمَّا يَبْلُغَنَّ عِندَكَ ٱلْكِبَرَ أَحَدُهُمَآ أَوْ كِلَاهُمَا فَلَا تَقُل لَّهُمَآ أُفٍّۢ وَلَا تَنْهَرْهُمَا وَقُل لَّهُمَا قَوْلًۭا كَرِيمًۭا ﴿٢٣﴾ وَٱخْفِضْ لَهُمَا جَنَاحَ ٱلذُّلِّ مِنَ ٱلرَّحْمَةِ وَقُل رَّبِّ ٱرْحَمْهُمَا كَمَا رَبَّيَانِى صَغِيرًۭا ﴿٢٤﴾

²³And your Lord has decreed that you not worship except Him, and to parents, good treatment. Whether one or both of them reach old age [while] with you, say not to them [so much as], "uff," and do not repel them but speak to them a noble word. ²⁴And lower to them the wing of humility out of mercy and say, "My Lord, have mercy upon them as they brought me up [when I was] small."

Not even a sigh of irritation is allowed, and the image of lowering the wing of humility pictures an adult child sheltering ageing parents as a bird shelters its young. The Prophet ﷺ gave mothers a special place:

Narrated Abu Huraira: A man came to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) and said, "O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Who is more entitled to be treated with the best companionship by me?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Your mother." The man said. "Who is next?" The Prophet said, "Your mother." The man further said, "Who is next?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Your mother." The man asked for the fourth time, "Who is next?" The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Your father

See Parents in Islam.

Honesty and keeping promises

Muslims are commanded to fulfil their contracts and commitments (Qur’an 5:1), and the Qur’an warns that every promise will be asked about (Qur’an 17:34). The Prophet ﷺ, known even before his prophethood as al-Amin, “the trustworthy”, described dishonesty as a mark of hypocrisy rather than faith:

Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "The signs of a hypocrite are three: 1. Whenever he speaks, he tells a lie. 2. Whenever he promises, he always breaks it (his promise ). 3. If you trust him, he proves to be dishonest. (If you keep something as a trust with him, he will not return it)

A Muslim’s word should be enough. Honesty in speech, fairness in business and reliability in agreements are acts of faith, not only good manners. See Good Character in Islam.

Kindness to everyone around you

The Qur’an lists the people to whom a believer must do good, widening the circle step by step: parents, relatives, orphans, the needy, near neighbours and distant ones, companions, travellers and those in one’s care (Qur’an 4:36). The Prophet ﷺ tied this kindness directly to faith:

Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Anybody who believes in Allah and the Last Day should not harm his neighbor, and anybody who believes in Allah and the Last Day should entertain his guest generously and anybody who believes in Allah and the Last Day should talk what is good or keep quiet. (i.e. abstain from all kinds of evil and dirty talk)

Feeding the hungry, caring for orphans and helping people out of hardship are described in the Qur’an as the steep path a person must climb (Qur’an 90:12-16). Mercy extends even to animals and the natural world; see Animals in Islam.

Faith that shows

On all of these commands — worshipping God alone, prayer and charity, justice, honesty, kindness to parents, keeping promises and caring for others — Muslims of every school agree. Scholars may differ on details of how some are carried out, but never on whether they matter; see Where Muslims Differ, and Why It’s Okay.

Islam judges a person not only by what they avoid but by the good they actively do. Its commands describe a life in which faith is visible: in a fair deal, a kept appointment, a phone call to an elderly mother, a meal for a hungry neighbour. That, Muslims believe, is what it means to surrender to a God who is Himself just and merciful.