What is Islam?
Islam is an Abrahamic religion, like Christianity and Judaism which literally mean submission to the will of God in the Arabic language. Adherants of Islam are known of Muslims.
Islam is not merely a religion that prescribes ritual worship but a complete lifestyle which provides teaches everything from hygiene to good governance.
Islam is not founded on mere on blind faith rather it is grounded in sound logic and common sense. The foundational belief of Islam is the testimony of faith which is asserting:
“That there is none worthy of worship except the one true God and Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the Messenger and servant of God.”
God
Islam teaches us about the existence of God, who is the Creator of everything. Just as a complex machine like a phone cannot come into existence on its own or by chance similarly this intricately designed universe could not have come into existence through mere chance. There is an intelligent designer behind this, who is God.
Islam teaches us that anything that is created cannot be God, because by definition God is uncreated. Thus, no human being, idol, animal, plant or inanimate object can be God.
Islam also teaches that there is only one God. As we know there is only ever one prime minister in a country similarly thus, there is only one Master of the Universe, not two, or three or more. Otherwise, there would be chaos. Just as every product comes with a user manual, similarly God, provided human beings with user manuals to live a good life. These manuals such as original unaltered Torah, Gospels and Psalms were all revealed by God and Muslims believe in all of them.
Revelation
The final unaltered instruction manual that God sent to this world is the Quran, the holy scripture of Islam. The Quran is considered to be an authentic and unaltered word of God, because it is preserved in its original language, which is Arabic, with the exact same words and meanings as it was revealed 1400 years ago. This is evidenced by the millions of people who memorise the Quran all across the world cover to cover without even being native speakers of Arabic. Moreover, manuscripts in Birmingham Museum have been discovered which have been carbon dated to the era of the Prophet Muhammad which are exact copies of the Quran we have today.
The Quran teaches us that the purpose of human existence is to worship the one true God and live a morally upright life, which is pleasing to God. By doing so, after our death, God will reward us with his Paradise of eternity and protect us from eternal punishment in Hell fire, reserved for those who reject the truth and lead a life displeasing to God.
Muhammad (pbuh)
The Quran was revealed over a period of 23 years to man by the name of Muhammad (peace be upon him [pbuh]), who was born 1400 years ago in a city called Mecca, present day Saudi Arabia. Islam teaches us that He is a human messenger of God. Muslims do not worship him, rather follow him as a role model of an ideal human being, similar to how Muslims view Jesus as exemplary human being, worthy of emulation.
Muhammad was known as an honest and trustworthy person even before he became a Messenger of God. He was not literate person, hence he could not have written the Quran of his own accord. He was extremely forgiving to his enemies, championed the rights of women and children and transformed Arabia from a land of ignorance to a land of education. Despite essentially becoming the de facto ruler of Arabia in 23 years, he lived a life of poverty, frequently not having enough to eat. His sole purpose in life was to spread the message of the one true God so that human beings live a good life and achieve their ultimate goal of Paradise after their death.