Primary Practices

The Druze have seven pillars to which they hold sacred and make up their moral system.  The seven Pillars:  speaking the truth within, helping the community, abandoning false beliefs, avoidance of confusion and evil, accept divine unity in humanity, acceptance of al-Hakim's acts, submission in accordance to al-Hakim's will.  In addition, the Druze do not accept converts and only the initiated can read the Druze writings and attend secret rituals.  If the Druze fear that their religion is a threat to their lives or because of military conflicts, then they can and will deny their faith and/or pretend to practice the majority religion wherever they are.

A Druze Temple where rituals are held

A book explaining the pillars of Islam

Their practices are various Jewish, Christian, Gnostic, Neoplatonic, and Iranian elements, however, are combined under a doctrine of strict monotheism, believing    that God had manifested himself as Al-Hakim Bi-amr allah.  They believe in the transmigration of the soul, and work hard in live to ensure this goes smoothly after death. Druze hold the Qur'an to be sacred, but look upon it as an outer shell, holding an "inner, esoteric meaning" and do not read from it daily, in fact they do not practice reading a creed or in obtaining multiple wives and fasting. Their religious texts are known collectively as "Kitab Al Hikma", the book of wisdom.  The Druze believe that prayer and ritual are unnecessary, and consider it to be a state of being, not something that one does at different parts of the day

(Left: A woman surrounded by cloth in the shape of prayer hands showing that prayer is a part of us)