History of the Middle East balance of power in the Muslim world as Egypt once again emerged as a major power. Religion always played a prevalent role in Middle Eastern culture, affecting learning, architecture, and the ebb and flow of cultures. When Muhammad introduced Islam, it jump-started Middle Eastern culture, inspiring achievements in architecture, the revival of old advances in science and technology, and the formation of a distinct way of life. Islam primarily consisted of the five pillars of belief, including confession of faith, the five prayers a day, to fast during the holy month of Ramadan, to pay the tax for charity (the
Sunni Islam principal articles of faith known as the six pillars of "iman" (Arabic for "faith"), which are believed to be essential. These are These six articles are what "all" present-day Sunnis agree on, from those who adhere to traditional Sunnism to those who adhere to latter-day movements. Additionally, classical Sunni Islam also outlined numerous other cardinal doctrines from the eighth-century onwards in the form of organized creeds such as the Creed of Tahawi, in order to codify what constituted "Sunni orthodoxy." While none of these creeds gained the importance attributed to the Nicene Creed in Christianity, primarily because ecumenical councils never