ISLAM

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ISLAM
Medina mosque
Mecca mosque
Muhammad preaches to early converts
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• Central Mosque
• Erin-Osun, Nigeria 2005

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Mosques in Erin-Osun, Nigeria 2005
Mosque next to Iyalojas

• Imams home/mosque

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Key terms

• Islam submission to the will of Allah (God)
  name of religion passed down from Allah to
  Muhammad
• Muslim one who submits one who practices the
  Islamic religion
• Quran recitation Allahs revelations to
  Muhammad for 23 years
• 114 chapters (surahs)
• 6,000 verses (ayahs)
• Poetic, spiritual, moral teachings
• Pre-hijra revelations belief in Allahs
  spirituality
• Post-hijra how to organize politically,
  economically, poor, disabled, crime, etc.

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Muhammad ibn Abdullah

• Born in Mecca in Saudi Arabia (c.570 632)
• Querysh ethnicity nomadic traders who
  controlled Mecca politically economically
• Khadijah wife 4 daughters
• 40 yrs. Mt. Hira to fast meditate, received
  revelations from Allah through Jibral,
• Only 1 God, Allah, Muhammad is last prophet
• Abraham founded the religious tradition, 1st
  prophet
• Jews Christians strayed from their faith, Ms
  role was to restore faith for all people
• Next 23 yrs. continued to receive revelations

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Muhammad ibn Abdullah

• preached in Mecca
• New beliefs challenged Querysh religious beliefs
  political/economic interests
• Querysh persecuted M so moved to Medina
• 622 Hijra emigration to Medina, 1st year of
  Islamic calendar
• ruled as supreme judge political leader of 1st
  Islamic state returned to control Mecca
• 632 Mohammad died at age 72

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Shia, Sunni, Sufi Islam

• Who should become caliph upon Ms death?
• Ali, husband of Fatima Shia Ali
• Abu Bakr, Ms disciple
• M selected Abu Bakr Sunni
• Shia today 10-15 of Muslims
• Sunni today 85-90 of Muslims
• Sufism mystical ascetic spiritual practices,
  no Sharia, spiritual teachers have direct union
  w/Allah (shayks, pirs, walis, marabouts)

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Stereotypes

• Orientalism (Edward Saids Orientalism, 1979)
  Western style of dominating, imagining,
  misrepresenting having authority over the East
• Islam inherently violent, called for holy wars
  to convert people
• Post 9/11/01 backward religion, terrorists,
  violent fanatics who want to suppress freedom
  dissent
• Reality fastest growing of major religions
• 1.3 billion pple, 1/5 world population

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5 Pillars of Islam

• Shahada profess faith in Allah Muhammad
• Salat pray 5 times/day, facing Mecca
• Sawam fast during Ramadan (9th month)
• Zakat give alms to support poor, orphans,
  disabled in your community
• Hajj make pilgrimage to Mecca (12th month)

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Aspects of Islam

• Cosmology heaven, earth, hell
• Humans represent God on earth, judged according
  to deeds
• Must follow Gods will, path of righteousness
• Weak easily tempted, must repent
• Islam submit to the will of Allah
• Day of reckoning righteous to heaven, evil to
  hell
• Sharia Islamic law politics codes for
  criminal law, family, marriage different schools
  of Islamic law (Maliki, Hanifa, Al-Shafi,
  Hanbali)

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Gender, family, marriage

• Early research focused on texts, distorted
  realities, male researchers no access to women
• Quran forbids female infanticide all sexual
  immorality
• Sharia law
• Women inherit ½ parents estate
• Women are ½ legal status of men
• Polygyny practiced but not universally
• Arranged marriages education, age, class, sex
• Economic, political, cultural factors influence
  practices no rigid norms

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The Veil
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• Pre-Islamic origins Mesopotamian, Persian,
  Jewish, Christian, Byzantine cultures
• Hijab meanings
• Sacred divide between men women
• Outward symbol of separation
• Modesty
• Morality
• Purdah enforced seclusion of women
• Revival movements women reclaim veil
• Protection from strangers
• Desexualizes work environment
• Anti-western colonialism imperialism attacked
  Islamic cultural identity

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Islamic Civilizations

• Islam spread from Arabic region (Middle East) to
  North Africa, Spain, and Asia
• Early civilizations Baghdad (Iraq), Cairo
  (Egypt), Cordoba (Spain), Palermo (Sicily)
• Baghdad (750 1258)
• Universities
• Translated texts from Greek, Roman, Hindu,
  Persian cultures into Arabic synthetic
  philosophy
• Algebra, geometry, trigonometry, physics,
  astronomy, philosophy, art, architecture,
  medicine
• Arabic (700-1300, Middle Ages) worlds major
  intellectual scientific language influenced
  the West

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Western colonization

• 1095-1291 Crusades, EU launched military
  expeditions to defeat Islamic dynasties return
  Holy Land to Christian rule
• EU wanted control of Eastern trade routes
  (spices, silk, cotton)
• 1400s Portuguese establish ports from Arabia
  to SE Asia, controlled spice trade
• 1800s EU colonizes Middle East seeking raw
  materials new markets

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British French colonies

• Suez canal 1869, connected Mediterranean Sea
  W/Gulf of Suez
• 101 miles long
• immediate and dramatic effect on world trade
• combined w/ American Transcontinental railroad,
  allowed entire world to be circled in record time
• British French owned
• increased EU penetration colonization of Africa

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• Egypt British colony in 1882 sugar, cotton
• Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco French colonies
  railroads, mining, agriculture
• Iran N. Iran was Russian colony, S. Iran was
  British tobacco
• SE Asia Dutch in 1917 sugar, coffee, tobacco,
  indigo
• Malaysia British tin, rubber, Chinese labor

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Post-WWII colonies

• French North Africa, Lebanon, Syria
• British Egypt, Iraq, Palestine, South Asia
• Dutch SE Asia
• Colonial economies based on cash crops tea,
  coffee, sugar, tobacco, cotton, opium
• Independence/nationalist movements, new
  nation-states in 1960s
• Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, Iran,
  Indonesia, Malaysia, Kuwait, Iraq, Tunisia,
  Syria, Jordan

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Post-colonial Islamic Reform movements

• Egypt
• Women are equal to men in constitution
• Anti-sexual discrimination laws
• Women involved in medicine, law, engineering,
  management, government, etc.
• Liberal divorce laws
• Turkey Tunisia prohibit polygyny
• Saudi Arabia
• Gender segregation schools, jobs, transport,
  public entrances, etc.

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Why Islamic resurgent movements in 1970s?

• 1967 Arab-Israeli war Arab territories lost to
  Israel, turned to Islamic faith for strength
• Oil boom Allahs will revenues in Libya, Iran,
  Saudi supported fundamentalist movements
• Disillusionment w/capitalism socialism looked
  to Islamic solution
• Iran success Islamic revolution overthrew
  secular, Western-influenced shah

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Irans Islamic Revolution

• 1500s Shia Islam became state religion today,
  90 of Iranians are Shia
• Shia leaders
• Mullahs village preachers
• Mujtahids religious judges
• Ayatollahs religious scholars, moral
  political leaders
• Shahs political rulers

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• Iran modernizes
• economy, military, education
• Educated elite Western democratic values
  representative govt.
• Opposed Shahs absolute power
• Shia critique shah gave West permission to
  undermine Islam
• 1925-1979 Pahlavi dynasty
• Shia leaders viewed as obstacles to modernization
• Secular laws replaced Sharia law
• No more veil
• 1963 White Revolution
• Shah was Great Satan, puppet of US govt.
• Commercial agriculture, land reform, capitalism,
  landless peasants, women vote, SAVAK secret
  police
• Ayatollah Khomeini arrested

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Opposition increases

• Rural migrants sided with Islamic clergy
• Westernized middle class democratic hopes
• University students Shia Islam like liberation
  theology, free them from foreign control
• Demonstrations, protests, fervor
• 1979 Ayatollah Khomeini led revolution
• Islamic Republic of Iran theocracy ruled
  by Shia clergy
• Political, cultural, social transformation

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Islamic Republic of Iran

• Mosques government offices, places of worship,
  local police all Iranians forced to register
• Purge Iran of Western influences
• Women forced to wear head scarves
• Family Protection Act abolished
• Minimum marriage age was 13, polygyny, divorce at
  will
• 10 year war against Iraq
• Struggle moderate democrats v. conservative
  fundamentalists

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Afghanistan

• 1800s
• British supported leaders
• Modernization (built roads, etc.)
• Unify/pacify ethnic groups
• 1920s-30s
• Economic development democracy failed
• Soviet Union supported Marxist movements
• 1970s
• Soviet Union sponsored 2 successful coups

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Resistance forms

• Afghanistan ethnic groups Pashtuns (47),
  Tajiks, Uzbeks, Turkmen, Kirghiz, Hazara,
  Baluchis, Sunni (88), Shia (12)
• Mujahidin holy warriors launched jihad (holy
  war) against Soviet-sponsored govt.
• 1979 Soviet Union invaded AF to repress resist.
• West gave financial military aid to Mujahidin
• Afghans fled to Pakistan
• Soviets withdrew
• 1980s-90s
• Islamic ethnic groups fought for power
• West w/drew support from Mujahidin, fearing
  revolution like Iran

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Taliban emerges

• Taliban religious students
• 1994 Islamic faction
• Afghan religious students recruited from schools
  in Pakistan
• Militia gained control over most of Afghanistan
• Strict Islamic guidelines norms
• No music, dancing, singing, kite flying, cards,
  chess, etc
• Men cant trim beards, women wear burqas
• Al Qaeda supports Taliban
• Headed by Osama Bin Laden Saudi
  multi-millionaire terrorist

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Take-home messages

• We must interpret multiple forms of Islam with
  respect to local cultural, historical,
  political contexts
• No essential Islamic tradition
• Islamic fundamentalisms have emerged within the
  context of Western colonialism, Western
  imperialism internal factional, sectarian, and
  class differences