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The Nation of Islam

By Carlton Causey & John January


World Religions 110-DO1


J F
E I
Understanding the NOIs Beliefs
The movements doctrine cannot be truly understood without
studying the sociological and cultural soil from which the NOI grew,
the mention of slavery among certain black people, and the teachings
of a few black leaders who promoted black nationalism. All of their
contributions preceded and influenced the rise of the NOI.
Black Nationalism
Black Nationalism: Consciousness of who blacks are as a people; knowledge of
their true origin (knowledge of self); a sense of their ultimate purpose or destiny;
in some cases a desire to set up an independent state in Africa for the emigration
of African Americans, with an independent economy, commerce, and political
power.
Black Nationalist Credo: Red for the blood of the race, black for the color of the
race, and green for an independent homeland.

Forerunners of the NOI
The 19
th
centurys cultural, political, and religious soil produced two
early 20
th
century black nationalist activists - Marcus Garvey and
Noble Drew Ali, who in turn influenced the social and religious belief
system of the NOI.
Marcus Garveys Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)
and the Moorish Science Temple of Noble Drew Ali were, in essence,
the political and religious forerunners of the NOI. Some scholars
believe that Garveys movement emphasized more the political and
social, while Alis group was largely religious and esoteric.
Marcus Garvey The Black Moses
(1887-1940)
Marcus Garvey, who was born on August 17
th,
1887 in St. Anns Bay,
Jamaica, is most known as the man who had fashioned the largest mass
movement in the history of the African American. In 1914, he founded
the United Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) to help bring
millions of lower-class African Americans to a sense of racial pride and
self containment both commercially and educationally.
Though Garvey did not possess a theology that identified with his
movement, his goal was to ally himself with theologians of different
faiths who shared his view that anything white was no good for
blacks. He joined and practiced Prince Hall Freemasonry (masonry for
blacks) which played an important role in molding his organization of
the UNIA.
Garveys vision was to move African Americans back to their homeland
of Africa in a fifty-year time span. He firmly believed in One God! One
aim! One destiny! and that all Africans were the true heirs of the
ancient Egyptian civilization.
Of all the black leaders, Marcus Garvey would be the most influential
upon leaders of the NOI. His independent commerce and industry, his
desire for a separate state, his ideology that saw white Europeans as an
inferior race, and his support of a black God were all to become
trademarks of the NOI.

Noble Drew Ali - The Prophet
(1886-1929)
Timothy Drew was born on January 8
th
, 1886 in Clinton, Sampson County, North
Carolina. Accounts of Drews ancestry describe him being the adopted son of a tribe of
Cherokee Native Americans.
In 1902, during his early teenage years, he became a merchant sea mariner and traveled
to Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Morocco. Tradition has it that on a visit to North Africa,
Timothy Drew received a mission from the King of Morocco to teach Islam to the
Negroes in the United States.
In 1913, the Moorish Science Temple of America was established after Ali moved to
Newark, New Jersey. Considering numbers alone, the Moorish Science Temple was not
as influential as the Garveyite movement.
Early on, Ali was obsessed with the esoteric philosophies of the East. He was initiated
into Freemasonry, ascending past the 33
rd
Degree to become an honorary member of
the Shriners and the Rosicrucians.
According to Ali, Morocco was the place of origin for all blacks, who he called Asiatics,
and that all white people were of European decent. He taught that blacks were, in
reality, the Moors - a tribe of Africans (Moabites) that inhabited the north and south
western shores of Africa. In the 8
th
century C.E., they conquered parts of Spain and
brought with them the religion of Islam to the West.
Noble Drew Alis institution of a Moorish heritage for blacks, separation in the context of
religion, and the ultimate destruction of the oppressors were all answers to the
fundamental problem facing black people in his time. Through his movement, he went
on to give thousands of African Americans identity, social and religious adhesion, and
hope for the future. He is known by the Moorish Science Temple and latter-day
members of the NOI simply as The Prophet of Allah.
Moorish Science Temple Of America: Beliefs & Practices that
influenced the NOI
The Moorish Science Temple did not teach classical Islam, but instead mixes the Islamic expressions of Ismailiyya, Ahmadiyya, and
Sufism with Freemasonic symbolism, the Gnosticism of Eliphas Levi, the curriculum of the ancient Egyptian mystery system,
Buddhism, Taoism, Rosicrucianism, and black nationalism.
Members of the Moorish Science Temple believed that Noble Drew Ali was the 3
rd
reincarnation of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam,
who was a reincarnation of Jesus. They also believed that Marcus Garvey was a forerunner to plant the seed in the people and
prepare them to be received by Noble Drew Ali.
They call themselves Moors and reject labels they consider derogatory, such as Black, colored, and Negro.
For Ali and his followers, the white man is the Devil (one cannot read material from the NOI for long and not find this teaching).
Interracial marriages are forbidden.
Women are separated from men during worship services and prayed 3 times a day while facing Mecca.
Newly initiated members are given I.D. cards with new names (one of the 99 names of Allah), usually a suffix attached to their
surnames like Ali, El, Karriem, Abdul, Shabazz, Muhammad or Bey (The same thing is done today in the NOI).
The Grand Sheikh or Governor of the temple wore a black fez on their heads and distinctive clothing symbolizing that they were of
the highest rank. Male initiates also wore the fez (color variations indicated other meanings and social order positions). Women in the
Temple would wear turbans with clothing that covered up their bodies.
All members must abide by a strict moral code and dietary sanctions (infidelity, slothfulness, alcohol, meat, and eggs are taboo).
Sacred Text: The Holy Koran of the Moorish Science Temple of America (not to be confused with the orthodox Islamic Quran), also
known as Circle 7 Koran because of its cover design. Made in 1927, the Koran is a work of more than 60 pages containing the core
teachings of Noble Drew Ali. Its philosophy is much akin to gnostic, esoteric thought.
Wallace D. Fard The Stranger of the East
(1877-1934)
Wallace D. Fard (pronounced Farrad) is the founder of the Nation of
Islam. Very little is actually known about his life; there are many theories
and speculations.
Fard arrived in Detroit, Michigan on July 4
th
, 1930 with a mysterious
background and used several different aliases. He set up the first Temple in
Detroit where it is said he had as many as 8,000 followers between 1930-
34. He disappeared in 1934 under unknown circumstances.
During his first appearance in 1910, before coming to Detroit, he most
likely came under the influence of Marcus Garvey and was in direct contact
with Noble Drew Ali (Fard claimed to be a reincarnation of Ali).
Contrary to popular belief, not all blacks were supportive of Fards NOI.
Black leaders from other organizations saw Fard as a cult leader who was
dangerous to the well-being of society. They encouraged the Detroit police
to keep pressure on him and his movement.
Whatever may be said of W. D. Fard, one thing is for certain he started a
massive black nationalist movement and became a Christ-like figure of the
black community in the span of a few years. To the post-Fardian NOI, he is
Master Fard Muhammad, Allah in person, God in the flesh.
Teachings of W. D. Fard
Marcus Garvey and Noble Drew Ali had a profound impact
upon Fards Nation of Islam. He incorporated their biblical
prophecies, various books on Freemasonic symbolism,
mystical Islam, the Jehovahs witness writings of Judge
Joseph Rutherford, and Christian Baptist fundamentalism
through the preacher Frank Norris into his theological
framework.
His message was characterized by his ability to utilize to the
fullest measure the environment of his followers. Their
physical and socio-economic difficulties alike were used to
illustrate a new teaching that, in their opinion, came directly
from the divine.
Fard taught that blacks are actually a lost Asiatic tribe,
wandering in the wilderness of North America. To him,
they are the original people of the Earth and are
ontologically superior to the white Europeans who he
thought to be an inferior race that had been grafted from
the black man and lost their original color. He believed the
original homeland of black people was Mecca and taught
that Arabic was their native language with Islam as their
true religion.
Fards controversial remarks about white people are
grounded not only in the influence of Noble Drew Ali and
Marcus Garvey. There is an interesting history of the
white race in the doctrinal annals of W. D. Fard that is the
central concept of the NOI the creation of the white race
by the evil scientist Yakub.

Yakub: Creation of the White Race
The story of Yakub is the central myth of the NOI. It
explains the origin of the white race and offers the reason
for its hateful and domineering nature. It also provides
the theological ground for the NOI to state that Allah will
one day destroy the whites in the battle of Armageddon.
W. D. Fard taught Elijah Muhammad that the history of the
gods and the black race goes back about 76 trillion years.
Throughout this history, there were experiments
performed by rebellious gods and other personages (the
most popular being Yakub). Over 66 trillion years ago, one
of the gods attempted to destroy the Earth with a mighty
explosion. The experiment failed but did crack off a huge
chunk, which became the moon. During this time, taught
Fard, the Asiatic black nation (called the Tribe of Shabazz)
discovered the rich valley along the Nile River and settled
there.
According to Master Fard Muhammad, Yakub was born
6,600 years ago 20 miles outside of Mecca. Later on in his
life, he became an evil scientist, who, in rebellion against
his people, started a series of genetic experiments to
create a new man from the original man through 600 year
breeding and birth-control process called grafting.
The Honorable Elijah Muhammad The Messenger
(1897-1975)
Elijah Poole was born October 7
th
, 1897, in Sandersville, GA as one of 13
siblings. Since both his parents were sharecroppers, he grew up during the
oppression of blacks by whites. His formal education was minimal, only
learning the bare rudiments of reading, writing, and arithmetic before he
had to go to the fields to help his family earn a living.
Since his father was a Baptist Minister, he grew up as the preachers son
and received special treatment from people in the churches where his
father preached. Elijah came to love the Bible through his fathers sermons
and studied the Bible frequently, often to the point of despair for not
being able to understand it as he would have liked.
Occasionally, he and his father engaged in theological debates when Elijah
discovered flaws in logic and biblical errors. He believed something was
missing, from his fathers preaching, some hidden truth that had not been
made clear.
As a youth, Elijah exhibited a tell it like it is mentality when it came to
Christianity. Theological disagreements with his father resulted in him not
wanting to become a member of the church unless he fully understood
the churchs doctrine.
During this time Elijah grew up quickly, unfortunately being exposed to the
evils of white society and its violent treatment of blacks, which played an
important role in his view of Christianity and American society. These
traumatic experiences produced psychological wounds on Elijah and did
much to validate what his teacher, W. D. Fard, would later instill in him.
After moving to Detroit, Michigan with his family in 1923,
Elijah joined Garveys UNIA where he had found identity,
purpose, and an avenue through which he could interpret
his experiences in Georgia and Detroit. Sometime in 1924,
He was initiated into the Prince Hall Masonic Lodge (many
of the early converts to Fards NOI were either Black Masons
or Moors).
Elijah Muhammad is to all NOI members a human success
story. He went from poor beginnings in Georgia to leading a
mass movement in Chicago, Illinois. He would lead this
movement until his death in 1975. Slavery, white racist
violence, and an inherent desire to seek for truth brought
him from Sandersville, GA, into the Lost-Found NOI of
Master Fard Muhammad, who he recognized as Allah in
person.
Given the mysterious appearance and disappearance of W.
D. Fard along with his relatively short time of leadership, the
name of Elijah Muhammad has, in the eyes of many outside
the movement, become synonymous with the NOI. His 40-
year long ministry as head of the organization and his
forthright style of oratory combined to make him a staple of
the movement and popular in the media, which considered
him to be the most powerful black man in America.

Teachings of Elijah Muhammad
Elijahs experiences as a child at the hands of white
racism, his economic and emotional suffering as a young
man during the Great Depression trying to support his
family, his distaste for Christianity, and his meeting W. D.
Fard, all contributed to his interpretation of religion and
the world around him.
Most of his teachings were drawn from the doctrinal well
of Noble Drew Ali (sometimes with variations) and his
teacher, W. D. Fard. Elijah did not believe in the Allah of
the Quran and traditional Islam. Additionally, he wasted
no time in attacking Christianity. Elijah taught that
Christianity is the white mans religion and that it only
served the white mans oppression of so-called
Negroes; justifying their brutality and violence of Allahs
people.
His temple speeches and books are filled with mockery of
basic Christian doctrinal teachings, replacing Jesus with
Fard, prophecies of his return, the creation of the white
race by Yakub, their destruction by the Mother Plane at
the end of days, and the resurrection of the mentally
dead Asiatic black nation by Allah. Ultimately his
teachings are neither Christianity nor traditional Islam.


Malcolm X El Hajj Malik El Shabazz
(1925-1965)
Malcolm Little was born May 19
th
, 1925 in Omaha, Nebraska. His
childhood was filled with misery as he and his 8 siblings suffered
from abuse by their parents. At the age of 6, his father died in a
streetcar accident. Four of his six brothers died violent deaths,
three at the hands of white men. Malcolms childhood experiences
played a profound part in shaping his ideology and preparing him
for conversion to Elijah Muhammads Lost-Found NOI.
It was in prison from 1947-48 that he had come into contact with
the teachings of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, studied widely
in philosophy, Christian/Islamic theology, world religions, and
Jehovahs Witnesses literature.
While lying in bed in his cell on night, Malcolm had a vision of a
spiritual presence. He was convinced that it was the spirit of the
deceased Master Fard Muhammad that appeared to him.
For the next 3-4 years, Malcolm was instrumental in converting
fellow inmates to Fards teachings. He utilized prison-sanctioned
debate competitions to hone his skills toward one day becoming
the premier spokesperson and apologist for the NOI.
In August 1952, Malcolm received parole and traveled to Chicago to
hear Elijah Muhammad preach. He changed his name to Malcolm X
(the X meant he no long identified with his slave name). Two
years later, he became the minister of Temple #12 in Philadelphia
and Temple #7 in New York.


On June 5, 1959, Malcolm embarked on a Middle Eastern tour of
the Muslim world. Evidencing his importance and rise to power
within the NOI, he was treated as a dignitary while in Egypt.
Malcolm moved to Saudi Arabia where he was rudely awakened
by the first seeds of contradiction as he witnessed the legal
enslavement of Africans by Saudis.
The combination of putting up with contradictions between
traditional Islam and the NOI, fighting the turmoil caused by
Elijah Muhammads infidelity, his unsuccessful plea for
reinstatement after he was suspended from his position in the
NOI in 1963, and reports of threats on his life and family by
members of the NOI left Malcolm with no choice but to leave
the organization.
On April 13, 1964, Malcolm set out to make the Hajj (sacred
pilgrimage to Mecca). Not long after this, his name was changed
to El Hajj Malik El Shabazz and he converted from Fardian Islam
to Sunni Islam, emphasizing that Islam embraced all people of
every race and color.
Teachings of Malcolm X
As a temple speaker, Malcolm was explosive. His offensive
remarks about white people and Christianity soon won him
recognition as a leader.
From Malcolms perspective, his prison-time study of religious
text, especially the Bible, led him to believe that Jesus was a
black man, Ezekiels Wheel is the Mother Plane (a half-mile-by-
half-mile spaceship carrying bombs for Armageddon), and the
Book of Revelation foretells the total destruction of the white
race through Allahs (Fards) use of the Mother Plane.
Malcolms social, political, and theological teachings continued
throughout the 1950s and early 1960s. He rejected
integration, ridiculed the white mans government, and
attacked the central doctrines of Christianity.
Likening the Honorable Elijah Muhammad to the biblical
Moses, Malcolm praised him as the one who showed the way
to freedom and deliverance, as well as the one who led them
away from integrating with the white system.
He taught that the three gods (the Trinity) of the Christian
religion were an abomination in Allahs sight, and that
Christianity revered only the white mans desire to enslave the
original man, the black Asiatic race.

Minister Louis Farrakhan Current Leader Of The NOI
Malcolm X was assassinated when Louis Farrakhan (at
the time known as Louis X) was minister of the Boston
Mosque and a rising star in the movement. In 1967,
Elijah Muhammad made Farrakhan the national
spokesperson for the NOI.
Through Farrakhan, Elijah campaigned to attract the
upper echelons of black society. As the NOI rose in land
holdings, commercial businesses, and national-scale
industries in the early 1970s, the image that Elijah
Muhammad brought to his movement was even more
appealing in the public eye than when the movement
began to flourish from the mid-1940s into the 1950s.
Farrakhans speeches and sermons were characterized
by the usual rhetoric about white devils, their
destruction in the coming war of Armageddon, the fall of
America, the uselessness of the white mans religion, the
teachings of Allah (Fard) and his chosen messenger
(Elijah Muhammad), and the need of all NOI followers to
live healthy and clean lives.
To this day, he continues his role as head of the Lost-
Found Nation of Islam, claiming to be divinely chosen to
carry on the work of W. D. Fard and Elijah Muhammad.

Other Leaders & Splinter Groups of the NOI
In the years when Elijah Muhammad was still alive and following his death, several
splinter groups formed. The leaders of these sects, for one reason or another felt
the need to break away from the Messengers teachings or to restore the
Messengers teachings after his death.
Under Warith Deen Muhammads leadership Fard was de-deified, whites were
allowed to join, the Mother Plane did not exist, the Fruit of Islam was abolished,
and the NOIs stand on racial separation was a thing of the past. He renamed the
Nation of Islam the World Community of Islam in the West. His father, Elijah
Muhammad, was no longer considered the Messenger of Allah. He auctioned off
the movements newspaper, farming projects, and other properties to bring his
fathers organization out of debt.
John Muhammads Nation of Islam claims to be the original NOI. He states that since
he is Elijah Muhammads brother, he therefor is the lawful heir and leader of Fards
NOI. John Muhammad continues faithful to the Messengers teachings and claims
to have seen Fard, who continues to speak through him.
Silas Muhammad leads the Lost-Found Nation of Islam in Atlanta, Georgia. The
group broke away from the NOI when Elijah Muhammad died.
The Hanafi Muslims follow Sunni Islam, breaking away from Elijah Muhammads
teachings while he was still alive.
Clarence 13X broke away from the Messenger to form The Five-Percent Nation (also
known as The Five Percenters or The Nation of Gods and Earths), which is probably
the most popular among all the groups that split away from the NOI because its
influence gave rise to the entire genre of Hip-Hop music and culture in the 1980s up
until now.
The United Nation of Islam was founded by a man named Solomon. It continues the
Allah in the flesh theology but instead names Solomon as Almighty God in person.
The Bible & Quran of the NOI
The NOIs theology starts with the social condition of the
time in which its theology was birthed. It could be
interpreted as an expression of protest against the white
establishment.
The NOIs theology is a mixture mainly of Christianity and
Islam, but it is neither Christianity or Islam. It utilizes
Christian and Islamic terms and draws from the Bible and
the Quran, but its definitions of many of those terms are
not those of the Bible or the Quran. For this reason, it is
protested by Christians and orthodox Muslims.
Elijah Muhammad and his disciples have no regard about
the historical contexts of either the Bible or the Quran;
the scriptures are not regarded as being literal or
historical events of the past. They say the Bible is a
corrupt and poison book, while the Quran is perfect and
holy, but both can teach truth if interpreted by the
Messenger (Elijah Muhammad), who in turn received
proper interpretation from Allah (Fard).
The Theology of Time: God(s) of the NOI
Straying very far away from traditional Islam, the NOI claims that
God is a finite being with human characteristics. In the beginning,
the black God created himself out of total darkness. He was the
only being in the universe. In Elijahs cosmology, the Earth was
created about 76 trillion years ago. This is also around the time
when the first atom that birthed God moved in time.
God as the Original Man: The first God was a man he is the
original black man, the first God and the first human being to
ever exist. Alluding to Genesis 1:26, Elijah Muhammad reasons
that since God created man in his own image and likeness, God
must then be a man. Muhammad reasons further that in the
scriptures God acts with all five senses. God, then, must be a
human being.
God as the Black Race: Allah is the Black Race in a collective
sense. On the one hand, it refers to the first God, a black man
who came into existence eons ago out of darkness. On the other
hand, the original man is the black race. For this reason, all NOI
followers believe themselves to be Gods.
Fard as The Supreme God Allah: According to Elijah Muhammad,
W. D. Fard is the present God. His wisdom is infinite and he
came to end the 6,000 year rule of the white race. Todays NOI
worships Almighty God, Allah, who appeared in the person of
Master Fard Muhammad. The NOI draws parallels between W. D.
Fards ministry and Jesus ministry. Any interpretations of Jesus
being the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies predicting his
birth and ministry are removed and replaced with Fard.

The Fruit of Islam (FOI)
The Fruit of Islam is the name given to the
military training of the men (predominantly
young males) that belong to Islam in North
America. It was created by W. D. Fard in 1933
to help defend the members of the NOI and all
others.
The FOI existed until the death of Elijah
Muhammad in 1975. When Warith Deen
Muhammad took control of the Nation of
Islam he disbanded the Fruit. The organization
was then reorganized by Farrakhan when he
reestablished the NOI.
According to one Nation of Islam website: The
responsibility of the FOI is that of head of the
house: protection, provision and maintenance
of the Nation of Islam (all original people).
Saviours Day
Saviours Day is a holiday of the NOI established by Elijah
Muhammad to celebrate the birth and ministry of its
founder, W. D. Fard. To members of the NOI, It symbolizes the
beginning of black peoples independence from the rule of
white civilization.
Under Farrakhan's leadership, the annual commemoration
has become a three-day gathering with speakers, seminars
and workshops.
Over the years, the event has showcased prized items such as
a Holy Quran owned by Elijah Muhammad, historic photos,
old organizational uniforms and garments, paper documents
and expensive collectables that were given to the NOI by
leaders of foreign countries.
When Elijah Muhammad started the celebration, he called it
Saviour's Day. Farrakhan moved the apostrophe, changing it
to Saviours' Day to add Elijah Muhammad as a saviour along
with Master Fard Muhammad.
The Million Man March
The Million Man March was a massive gathering of African Americans in Washington D.C. on
October 16, 1995. The National African American Leadership Summit and the Nation of
Islam worked in conjunction alongside local chapters of the NAACP to make the March a reality.
This assembly of black men was organized and hosted by Farrakhan who called for all able-bodied
African American men to come to the nations capital to address the problems of the black
community and call for unity and revitalization of African American communities.
Besides the keynote address by Minister Farrakhan, several prominent speakers addressed those
that gathered at the Washington Mall including civil rights activists and musicians.
The message of most of the speeches called for black men to "bring the spirit of God back into
your lives. These marchers were also encouraged to register to vote to build black political
power.

Sources
The Supreme Wisdom: Solution To The So-Called Negroes Problems by Elijah Muhammad
Yakub: The Father of Mankind by Elijah Muhammad
The Theology of Time by Elijah Muhammad
The Fall of America by Elijah Muhammad
The Secrets of Freemasonry by Elijah Muhammad
The God Tribe of Shabazz - The True History by Elijah Muhammad
The Mother Plane by Elijah Muhammad
The True History of Master Fard Muhammad by Elijah Muhammad
The Golden Age of the Moors by Ivan Van Sertima
The Sufis by Idries Shah
The Five Percenters: Islam, Hip-Hop and the Gods of New York by Michael Muhammad
Knight
Selected Writings and Speeches of Marcus Garvey by Marcus Garvey
By Any Means Necessary (Malcolm X Speeches and Writings) by Malcolm X
Servants of Allah: African Muslims enslaved in the Americas by Slyviane A. Diouf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beliefs_and_theology_of_the_N
ation_of_Islam
http://hermetic.com/moorish/7koran.html
http://www.dralimelbey.com/moorish-holy-temple-of-science-
of-the-world.html
http://www.moorishsciencetemple.org/#!islam-is-yours/c8s9
http://www.noi.org/noi-history/
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History.html
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of-islam-nation-of-islams-security.html#.U9fWRaysSaY
http://www.noibaltimore.org/foi.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fruit_of_Islam
http://sacreddriftmoc.wordpress.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saviours'_Day
http://www.examiner.com/article/nation-of-islam-exhibit-
unveils-unique-history
http://www.noi.org/about-million-man-march/
http://www.blackpast.org/aah/million-man-march-1995
http://newsone.com/2062043/million-man-march/
http://rvbeypublications.com/id102.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five-Percent_Nation

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