Islam

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Islam

• World History I
• Heritage High School
• Mr. Irwin

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Main Idea

• Muhammad unified the Arab people both politically
  and through the religion of Islam.

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Birthplace of Islam

• Originated in Saudi Arabia
• Early Islamic cities Medina and Mecca
• Founder Muhammad

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Terminology

• The religion is called ISLAM.
• The people are MUSLIMS.
• An ARAB is someone
• Who can trace ancestry to tribes of Arabia
• Whose first language is Arabic
• And/or who is a citizen of a country where Arabic
  is the official language or the country is a
  member of Arab League

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Setting the Stage

• The cultures of the Arabian Peninsula were in
  constant contact with each other for centuries.
• Southwest Asia (aka the Middle East) was a bridge
  between Africa, Asia, and Europe, where goods
  were traded and ideas were shared.
• Arabian Peninsula crossroads of 3 continents
• Africa
• Asia
• Europe

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Crossroads of Trade Ideas

• Bedouins were nomads who lived in the desert and
  organized into tribes called clans.
• Bedouins provided security and support.
• Areas in the desert with more fertile soil and
  the larger oases had enough water to support
  farming communities.
• Larger towns near the western coast of Arabia
  became market towns for local, regional, and long
  distance trade goods.
• Merchants from the Byzantine and Sassanid
  (Persian) Empires moved along caravan routes,
  trading goods from the Silk Road.
• Spices and incense
• Information and ideas from outside Arabia
• Mecca important stop on the trade route
• Caravans carrying religious pilgrims stopped in
  Mecca during the holy months
• Mecca had a simple house of worship called the
  Kaaba
• It was associated with Abraham

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Myth 1

• Most Muslims are Arabs who live in the Middle
  East.

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Reality

• Of more than 1 billion Muslims worldwide, only
  about 1/5 are Arabs.

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Try to Guess

• Which country has more Muslims than any other
  country in the world?

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Answer

• Indonesia - with over 200 million Muslims.
• Note The U.S. has about 5 million Muslims.

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Myth 2 Muslims have a strange religion and
worship a god called Allah.
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Reality Muslims are monotheistic and worship
the same one God as Christians and Jews.
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Founder Muhammad The Prophet

• Born in Mecca, Arabia.
• Orphaned as a young boy
• Became involved in the Arabian caravan trade.
• He eventually married a wealthy widow
• Became unsatisfied with wealth, so he spent many
  hours meditating and praying in the caves around
  Mecca.
• Believed that God spoke to him through the angel
  Gabriel
• Religion of Islam based on his revelations

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Muhammad and Monotheism

• Muhammad believed that the one, true God had
  spoken to him, and became a monotheist.
• Believed that the God who spoke to him was the
  same God of the Jews and Christians.
• Also believed that he was the Seal of the
  Prophets or Gods final prophet.
• Accepted and believed in other Judeo-Christian
  prophets including Moses and Jesus
• Islam Arabic for submission to the will of
  Allah
• Muslim one who has submitted

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Keep this in mind

• Allah is the Arabic word for God.

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The Hijra

• Because the people of Mecca feared Muhammads
  teachings would lead to the neglect of the
  traditional Arabic gods
• Afraid it would lose position as a pilgrimage
  center which would lead to loss of economy
• In 622 C.E., A warning of assassination forced
  Muhammad and his followers to leave Mecca
• They settled in Yathrib (200 miles north) and
  this became known as the Hijra
• Yathrib was later renamed Medina which mean city
  of the prophet
• During the next decade, as the Muslims and the
  people of Mecca battled each other, Meccas power
  declined

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Return to Mecca

• In 630 C.E., Muhammad and 10,000 followers
  marched to the outskirts of Mecca, and facing
  defeat the people of Mecca surrendered
• Muhammad entered Mecca and went to the Kaaba and
  the idols were destroyed
• He then spoke to the people about Allah was the
  one true God, and pardoned everyone who fought
  against him
• He also made Mecca a holy place which allowed
  Mecca to regain its position as a pilgrimage
  center
• Most of the people converted to Islam and pledged
  loyalty to Muhammad
• They united into a Muslim religious community
• Muhammad united the people and was made a
  political leader, but fell ill and died on June
  8, 632 C.E.

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Holy Book The Qur'an (Koran)

• Official religious text of Islam
• Muslims believe that the words of the Qur'an are
  Gods words to Muhammad
• Also used as a book of guidance for Muslims

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Why it Matters

• Islam is the worlds fastest growing major
  religion, and therefore it has a strong impact on
  millions of people.

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Myth 3

• Muslims believe it is okay to kill civilians in a
  holy war (jihad).

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Reality

• Only Muslim extremists (groups like Al-Qaeda)
  believe this. Most Muslims did not agree with
  jihads.

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Five Pillars of Faith

• The Five Pillars of Faith are five critical
  beliefs/actions for Muslims to live a good life
  according to the faith

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Shahadah Profession of Faith

• It is a statement that professes monotheism and
  accepts Muhammad as Gods messenger
• Translated from Arabic as "I profess that
  There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is the
  messenger of God."

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Salat - Prayers

• Must pray 5 times (at certain times) a day facing
  Mecca

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Zakah Paying of Alms

• Alms charity to the poor
• If able to do so, Muslims must give at least 2.5
  of income
• This is mandatory, or NOT optional

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Sawm Fasting during Ramadan

• Muslims must abstain from food and drink, from
  dawn to dusk during this month, and are to be
  especially mindful of other sins.
• The fast is meant to allow Muslims to seek
  nearness to Allah, to express their gratitude to
  and dependence on him, to atone for their past
  sins, and to remind them of the needy.

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Hajj Pilgrimage to Mecca

• All Muslims, if able to do so, must make the
  pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in their life
• Shows devotion to Allah

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Myth 4

• Most Muslim women wear veils over their faces and
  are treated very badly.

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Reality

• Muslim women have many different styles of dress.
  (Very few cultures require women to cover their
  faces.)
• The treatment of women varies from country to
  country and family to family.
• Some Muslim countries, like Pakistan, have had
  female prime ministers. The U.S. has never had a
  female president.
• Muhammad is believed to have said that they
  should be good to the women

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Pakistani dress (left) Saudi Arabian (right)
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Types of Islamic dress for Women
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Spread of Islam
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Spread of Islam

• Appeal of straightforward requirements of human
  conduct and promise of heavenly rewards
• Much diffusion along trade routes
• Caravans (groups traveling in a long line) helped
  spread
• Spread into Fertile Crescent, Iran, and Central
  Asia then eventually into Byzantine Empire and
  Africa
• Arabic language spread with Islam
• Quran was not translated into other languages

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After Muhammad

• Death of Muhammad leads to civil war and split
  in Islam
• Argument over who was to succeed Muhammad
• Muhammad had not named a successor or instructed
  his followers how to choose one
• Rightly Guided Caliphs
• Caliph title that means successor or deputy
• The rightly guided caliphs were
• Abu-Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali
• They were rightly guided because they used the
  Quran and Muhammads actions as guides to
  leadership

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Internal Conflict Creates a Crisis

• Murder of Uthman triggered a civil war
• A family known as the Umayyads came to power
• Set up the hereditary system of succession
• Also moved Muslim capital to Damascus
• Made it easier to control conquered territories
• Also abandoned the simple life of previous
  caliphs and began to surround themselves with
  wealth and ceremonies similar to non-Muslim rulers

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Sunni Shia Split

• Sunni believed that the leader should be elected
• Muhammads closest friend, Abu Bakr, was elected
• Makes up about 70-85 of Muslims
• Shia/Shiite believed leadership should have
  passed to Muhammads cousin/son-in-law Ali
• Successor should be descendent of Muhammad
• The Sufi is a group that believed in the Umayyads
  rule but thought they were too concerned with the
  luxuries of life
• They gave up the luxuries and pursued a life of
  poverty and devotion.

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Muslims Control Areas of 3 Continents

• When the Abbasids came to power, they murdered
  the remaining members of the Umayyads family.
• Abbasids strength lay in the former Persian
  lands (Iran, Iraq, and central Asia).
• Abbasids moved the capital to Baghdad to solidify
  their power

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Reasons for Muslim Success

• Muslim armies were well disciplined and expertly
  commanded
• Armies were able to overwhelm forces unaccustomed
  to their warfare
• Byzantine and Persian Empires has been fighting
  each other making it easy for the Muslims to take
  over lots of their land

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More Turning Points

• Conquest and capture of Damascus and Jerusalem
• Baghdad became an Islamic capital
• Major trading city
• Defeat of Muslims at Battle of Tours in 732
• Stopped Muslim expansion into Western Europe

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Muslim Trading Power

• Two major sea trading zones (Mediterranean Sea
  and Indian Ocean) linked the Muslim empire to a
  world system of trade by sea
• Land trade connected the Islamic Empire to the
  Silk Road which connected the empire to China,
  India, and Europe
• It encouraged flow of trade, and so they set up
  banks along the trade routes
• A lot of wealth flowed into the empire

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Cultural Contributions of Islam

• Muslims combined and preserved the traditions of
  many peoples and encouraged advanced learning in
  a variety of areas
• Many of the ideas developed during this time
  period became the basis of todays scientific and
  academic studies

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Muslim Society

• Four Social Classes
• Upper class included those who were Muslim at
  birth
• Second class included people who converted to
  Islam. Paid higher taxes, but not as high as the
  third class
• Third class consisted of the protected people.
  Protected people were Christians, Jews, and
  Zoroastrians
• Last class consisted of slaves. These slaves
  were prisoners of war and all were non-Muslim

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Role of Women in Muslim Society

• Shaira gave Muslim women specific and legal
  rights concerning
• Marriage
• Family
• Property
• The Quran provided for the care of
• Widows
• Orphans
• Allowed for divorce
• Protected womens inheritance
• Muslim women had more rights than European women
  of the same time period

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Emphasis of Academic Advancement

• Muslims had practical reasons for supporting
  advancement in science and math
• Wanted only the best curing their illnesses
• Needed astronomers and mathematicians to
  calculate times of prayer
• Both Umayyads and Abbasids encouraged scholars to
  collect and translate scientific and
  philosophical knowledge texts
• Translated Greek and Roman texts into Arabic
• In 800s, Caliph al-Mamun opened in Baghdad a
  combined library, academy, and translation center
  called the House of Wisdom
• Allowed Islamic culture to advance while Europe
  largely lagged behind because of lack of education

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Architecture

• Greatest example of cultural blending in the
  Muslim world
• Mosques tended to blend Byzantine architecture
  with Muslim ideas
• Huge domes, vaulted ceilings
• Dome of the Rock found in Jerusalem
• Built on the site of Solomons Temple

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Architecture
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Language and Literature

• Language Arabic
• The Quran is the standard for all Arabic
  literature and poetry
• During the Abbasid caliphate, literature included
  poems about nature and pleasures of life

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Example of Arabic alphabet
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Medical Advances

• Al-Razi, Persian scholar, was considered the
  greatest physician of the Muslim world
• He wrote an encyclopedia called Comprehensive
  Book that drew on knowledge from Greek, Syrian,
  Arabic, and Indian sources
• Also wrote about smallpox and measles
• Believed people needed clean air to heal

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Science and Math

• Muslims translated and studied Greek texts
• But did not follow Greek methods of solving
  problems
• Preferred to solve problems by conducting
  experiments
• Math basis of all knowledge
• Invented algebra
• Advances in math related to study of astronomy
• Observatories charted stars, comets, and planets
• Ibn al-Haytham made proposals about optical
  vision that led to development of lenses for
  telescopes and microscopes

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Muslims borrowed the concept of zerofrom India
and developed Arabic numerals.
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Philosophy and Religion

• Ibn Rushd in his writings tried to harmonize
  Aristotles and Platos views with those of Islam
• Argued that Greek philosophy and Islam had the
  same goal to find the truth
• Scholars translated works of Aristotle and Plato
  into Arabic

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Art

• Islam forbade the depiction of living beings
• Based on the idea that only Allah can create life
• Pictures of living beings were considered
  idolizing
• Many turned to calligraphy, the art of beautiful
  handwriting
• Decorative art such as woodwork, glass, ceramics,
  and textiles were also used as a creative outlet

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Impact of Islam

• Islam is an important religion, which shares many
  beliefs and practices with Christianity and
  Judaism.
• Muslims live in many different countries. Islam
  is especially widespread in Africa, Asia, and
  southeastern Europe (the Balkans).
• Islam has had a great impact on world art and
  culture.