Fitra
Fitra, or fitrah (Arabic: فطرة / ALA-LC: fiṭrah), is an Arabic word that has no exact English equivalent although it has been translated as 'primordial human nature', and as "instinct" or common sense ('urf). It has also been suggested that a close approximation, in terms of Western philosophy, is Kant's concept of 'ought'. In a mystical context, it can connote intuition or insight and is similar to the Calvinist term Sensus divinitatis.
According to Islamic theology, human beings are born with an innate inclination of tawhid (Oneness), which is encapsulated in the fitra along with compassion, intelligence, ihsan and all other attributes that embody what it is to be human. It is for this reason that some Muslims prefer to refer to those who embrace Islam as reverts rather than converts, as it is believed they are returning to a perceived pure state.
The perfect embodiments of fitra were Abraham and Muhammad.
Narrated Abu-Huraira:
Allah's Apostle said, "No child is born except on the fitra and then his parents make him Jewish, Christian or Magian (Zoroastrian), as an animal produces a perfect young animal: do you see any part of its body amputated?"
- Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 2, Book 23, Number 441
