Togo - West Africa - page 886

'LittleBigPlanet', was withdrawn from sale after a Muslim playing a trial version of the game alerted Sony that a
piece of background music included two phrases from the Quran. It could, he said, be considered blasphemous by
Muslims for its combination of music and sacred words from Islam's holy book. Fearful of alienating Muslim
gamers, Sony recalled the game and removed the song in question before releasing it back onto the market.
But the decision was viewed somewhat differently in West Africa. The offending song was 'Tapha Niang', re-
corded by Mali's master kora (harp-like instrument) player Toumani Diabaté, which had appeared on his ac-
claimed 2006 album Boulevard de l'Independence . Diabaté, a devout Muslim whose favourite live-music venue
in Bamako was recently transformed into an Islamic cultural centre, denied that the song was in any way blas-
phemous. 'In my family there are only two things we know', he told the BBC, 'the Quran and the kora '. Ex-
pressing his disappointment, he went on to say that it was entirely acceptable in Mali for Islamic tenets to be put
to music as a way of glorifying Islam.
The Five Pillars of Islam
The five pillars of Islam (the basic tenets that guide Muslims in their daily lives) are as
follows:
Shahada (the profession of faith): 'There is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is his Prophet' is the fundamental tenet
of Islam.
Salat (prayer): Muslims must face Mecca and pray at dawn, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset and nightfall. Prayer times are
marked by the call to prayer, which rings out across the towns and villages of the Sahel.
Zakat (alms): Muslims must give a portion of their income to the poor and needy.
Sawm (fasting): Ramadan commemorates Mohammed's first revelation, and is the month when all Muslims fast from
dawn to dusk.
Haj (pilgrimage, usually written hadj in West Africa): Every Muslim capable of affording it should perform the haj , or
pilgrimage, to the holiest of cities, Mecca, at least once in his or her lifetime. The reward is considerable: the forgiving
of all past sins. This can involve a lifetime of saving money, and it's not unusual for families to save up and send one
member. Before the advent of air travel, the pilgrimage often involved an overland journey of a year or more. In West
Africa, those who complete the pilgrimage receive the honorific title of Hadj for men, and Hadjia for women.
Islamic Customs
In everyday life, Muslims are prohibited from drinking alcohol, eating carrion, blood
products or pork (which are considered unclean), eating the meat of animals not killed in
the prescribed manner, and eating food over which the name of Allah has not been said.
Adultery, theft and gambling are also prohibited.
Islam is not just about prohibitions but also marks the important events of a Muslim's
life. When a baby is born, the first words uttered to it are, in many places, the call to pray-
er. A week later there is a ceremony in which the baby's head is shaved and an animal sac-
rificed in remembrance of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice his son to Allah. The major
event of a boy's childhood is circumcision, which normally takes place between the ages
of seven and 12. When a person dies, a burial service is held at the mosque and the body
is buried with the feet facing Mecca.