Unit 7: The Rise of Islam. What was Arabia like before Muhammad ?

Unit 7: The Rise of Islam

What was Arabia like before Muhammad?

Arabia, the Birthplace of Islam The Arabian Peninsula is a desert region with

little fertile soil (primarily around oases).Most Arabs lived in

desert tribes (Bedouins) which were centered

around families & were ruled by clans

Arabia was not united under a single gov’t, but

Arabs did have a common language (Arabic)

Most Arabs were polytheistic

Arabia, the Birthplace of Islam But, Arabia was the intersection of 3 continents (Africa, Asia, & Europe) so it was an important

region for trade & had lots of cultural diffusion

One of the wealthiest trade cities in Arabia

was Mecca, at the crossroads of two

major caravan routes.

Mecca was also a religious city; The

Ka’aba was a house of worship that held statues of

hundreds of gods

Arabs made pilgrimages to Mecca to visit

the Ka’aba

Overview of Islam ■Around 600 AD, a new

monotheistic religion began called Islam:–The faith was

founded by the prophet Muhammad–His followers, called

Muslims, spread Islam throughout the Middle East, Africa, Asia, & Europe

Who was Muhammad?

The Early Life of Muhammad■He was born in Mecca

in 570 into a powerful clan, was orphaned at a young age, & was raised by his grandparents

■As an adult, Muhammad became an honest & successful merchant

■He married Khadijah, a wealthy widow & started a family

What happened to Muhammad in 610?

Muhammad & Islam ■ Muhammad created Islam:–Muhammad’s work brought him into

contact with Jewish & Christian merchants

– In 610, Muhammad went to meditate in a cave and was told by the angel Gabriel that he was a prophet sent to Earth by God

– He began preaching a new monotheistic faith called Islam (“submission to the will of Allah”)

– His followers were known as Muslims (“one who has submitted”)

What is the basic concept of Islam?

Islam ■Basic beliefs of Islam:–Muslims believe in

one God, called Allah –Allah is the same

God worshipped by Jews & Christians –Muslims believe

Muhammad was the last of God’s prophets

The teachings of Mohammed were

written down in the Qur'an (Koran), the holy book of Islam

How did some people respond to Muhammad’s new religion?

Reactions to Islam–By 613, Muhammad

began preaching his new ideas in Mecca–Some people were

attracted to Islam–But, many people

feared Muhammad’s growing popularity & that Mecca would lose its status as a holy city

How did Muhammad react to violenceby non-Muslims in Mecca?

Islam Grows in Medina ■After years of attacks, in

622, Muhammad & his followers fled to Medina–This migration was

known as the Hijrah–In Medina, Muhammad

gained new converts who put Islam above their families & clans –He taught respect for

Christians & Jews (“People of the Book”)

What did Muhammad do afterhe gained converts & returned to Mecca?

Islam ■ In 630, Muhammad returned to Mecca with 10,000 troops

& conquered the city–He destroyed the

god statues in the Ka’aba, and called for prayer on the roof of the Ka’aba.–This time, the people in

Mecca converted to Islam and joined the umma (Muslim religious community)–In 632, Muhammad died

The Teachings of Islam

The First Pillar: Shahadah (Faith)

“There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the Messenger of

Allah”

The Second Pillar: Salat (Prayer)• Five times a day, Muslims

face toward Mecca and pray.• They may assemble at a

mosque (Islamic House of Worship) or wherever they find themselves.

The Third Pillar: Zakat (Alms)•Support the less

fortunate by giving money to the poor.

The Fourth Pillar: Siyam (Fasting)

•During the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Muslims fast.

•“Greater Needs than Bread”

The Fifth Pillar: Hajj (Pilgrimage)

• All Muslims must perform a pilgrimage to Mecca in their lifetime.

• Pilgrims wear identical garments so that they all stand before Allah as equals.

Jihad• Personal struggle

to do the right thing

• Twisted into the concept of Holy War

(Used by some to justify violence)

Qur’an – Holy Text of Islam■Qur’an - final authority

on all religious matters■Complete guide to life;

ethical and moral behavior

■Written in Arabic- must be learned since only Arabic can be used in worship.

■Acts as unifying force

Shari’a•Islamic law applied to everyday family life, moral conduct, and business and community life of Muslims • No separation of religious law from civil and criminal law•Unites all Muslims.

Women in Islamic Society•Spiritually equal with men

•Protected under law – inheritance laws guaranteed women a share of her parents’ and husband’s property

•Right to education•Consent to marriage•Divorce possible but difficult for women

•Overtime adapt Persian customs- separation of women•Purdah – Veiling or concealing women

What happened to Islam after Muhammad’s death?

Class Discussion:Who will take over after

Muhammad dies?

Islam After Muhammad Under Rightly Guided Caliphs

■When Muhammad died in 632, the Muslim community elected a new leader called a caliph (“successor”)

■ The first 4 caliphs all knew Muhammad & promised to stay true to the Qur'an & Muhammad’s message

Muhammad & the 4 Rightly Guided Caliphs

The Rightly Guided Caliphate ■ The first caliph was

Muhammad’s friend & father-in-law, Abu Bakr:– His goal was to keep

Muslims united under his gov’t (“caliphate”)

– He used jihad to control & expand the Muslim empire into Syria and the Persian Empire

The Rightly Guided Caliphs ■ The empire expanded

under the next caliphs

During the Rightly Guided Caliphates, the Islamic Empire expanded “Dar-al-Islam”

(the areas where Islam is practiced)

The caliphate never forced non-Muslims to convert, especially “People of the Book”

& allowed religious tolerance as long as taxes were paid to the empire

The caliphs used the Shari'a (laws of Islam) to govern the empire

The Islamic Empire ■ After Muhammad, Islamic

leaders created an empire:–The Islamic Empire had

well-trained troops that conquered nearby regions (weakening Byzantine and Persian Empires)–The massive empire led

to great wealth for Muslims & new opportunities to spread Islam

How did the Muslims treat conquered people?

■Special tax on non-Muslims- but allowed to practice own religion and live under own laws■Some Christians and Jews allowed to

have key roles in Muslim Empire■People convert to Islam- simple

message, no religious hierarchy, everyone is equal

The Umayyad Empire■ After Ali’s death (the

last of the Rightly Guided Caliphs) in 661 led to a civil war for control of the empire: – The clan that came

to power started the Umayyad Empire

– But the rise of the Umayyads led to a division in Islam

The Sunni-Shi’a – Division of IslamBefore the Umayyads, caliphs were elected

members of Muhammad’s family■ Shi’a Muslims rejected

the Umayyads■ The Shi’a believe

that caliph must come directly from Muhammad’s bloodline

■ The descendants are divinely inspired. They believe in martyrdom as a demonstration of faith

■ Sunni Muslims accepted the rule of the Umayyads

■ The Sunni believe caliphs should follow Muhammad’s example, but don’t have to be relatives

■ They believe the caliph should be a pious Muslim, a leader not a religious authority

Third Group: Sufis

•Muslim mystics- meditation, fasting, other rituals

•Pursue a life of poverty and devotion to spiritual path.

•Missionary work spreads Islam

•Whirling Dervishes in Turkey an example

The Umayyad Empire■The Umayyads expanded the empire which brought wealth & new Islamic converts.■Capital moved from Mecca to Damascus ■Umayyads surrounded with ceremony.■Relied on local officials (Byzantine and Persian influence)

Under the Abbasids, the Islamic Empire grew

to its greatest extent

In 750, the Umayyad Empire was overthrown by the Abbasids

In 732, the Muslims were halted at the Battle

of Tours

Muslims expand into Spain•Spanish Muslims called Moors (Moriscos)•Spanish Jews called Maranos•Spain is center of great cultural achievements under Islamic rule•Arts and literature and science Greek ideas taught and discussed•Wonderful architecture- Alhambra in Granada•Also take control of Sicily

The Abbasid Empire (750 to 1258):■ The Abbasid caliphate built

a strong gov’t bureaucracy to rule their empire

■ Capital - Baghdad■Muslim merchants

expanded wealth by trading across Africa, Indian Ocean, and Mediterranean Sea

■Minarets-towers of mosques whereby the muezzin (mosque official) calls the faithful to prayer

The Abbasid Empire

Wealth from trade led to

a golden age, a time of great

Muslim achievements

in science, math, medicine, & architecture

Decline of the Abbasid Caliphate(Preview of what is to come…)

Seljuk Turks –migrate from Central Asia to Middle East in the 900s and threaten the Byzantine Empire

• Adopt Islam• Leader called a sultan• Fight the Christians in Constantinople• The Crusades – more on them in a few weeks

Mongols

• Genghiz Khan- 1216- marches across Central Asia

• Loots Baghdad –kills the last Abbasid caliph- eventually the Mongols convert to Islam

• Tamerlame- over runs Persia and Mesopotamia then heads toward India (more on that soon)

Golden Age of Islam: Achievements Muslims during the Islamic Empire developed

innovations that are still used today because:

– The Islamic world was rich, diverse and creative. United diverse cultures including: Greeks, Chinese, Hindus, Arabs, Persians, Turks and others all contributed.

– Muslims helped spread ideas as well as goods along their trade routes (camel caravans) that connected Asia, Europe and Africa.

– Scholars read about and preserved Greek and Roman ideas.

– Islamic laws encouraged social mobility and the freeing of slaves.

By 750 AD, Muslim leaders built an empireThe Islamic Empire

connected diverse people through religion & tradeMuslim scholars

focused on learning & developed

numerous cultural achievements that are still used today

Trading and Commerce■Merchants seen as an honorable

occupation■Extensive trade routes help to

spread Islam via camel caravans■“Arabic” numerals from India■Sugar from India■Papermaking from China■Prosperous money economy–Sakk - Arabic word for check–Partnerships and letters of credit

Manufacturing■Guilds regulate prices of hand made

items–Steel swords from Damascus–Leather from Cordoba–Cotton textiles from Egypt–Carpets from Persia

City Building and Architecture■ Architecture- used domes and arches

■ The City of Baghdad – the Abbasids’ capital city was one of the most glorious in the world. It took 100,000 architects and workers four years to build the capital.

■Mosques – an important type of building was the mosque, the Muslim house of worship. Mosques usually had towers, courtyards, & prayer rooms. The designs reflected the great diversity of the empire.

Jerusalem – Dome of the Rock

Art and Music■Muslims developed a type of art known

as arabesque, that used ornate, abstract drawings and geometric patterns to decorate objects and books. (No worship of idols)

■Calligraphy, the art of beautiful handwriting, was considered to be the best art form of the day.

■ Textiles and music were two other influential ways that Muslim art developed during the period.

Bookmaking and Literature■Muslims learned how to make paper from the

Chinese and began making lots of books. Baghdad had over 100 bookshops.

■ Arab and Persian stories, poetry and prose were collected into books. A famous example is A Thousand and One Arabian Nights .– In this book, a wife tells her husband a new tale

each night, including Aladdin and the Magic Lamp, Ali Baba and Sinbad the Sailor, that are still known today.

– Poetry- Firdawsi- history of Persia- The Book of Kings

– Omar Khayyam- The Rubaiyat- collection of 4 line poems

Scholarship and Learning■Arabic language helped promote

learning.■Boys and girls- elementary education■ Scholars came together in Baghdad to

do research and translate texts from Greece, Persia, India and China into Arabic at the “House of Wisdom”.

■ Ibn Rushd (Averroes) - put all knowledge except the Quran to the test of reason

■ Ibn Khaldun- scientific study of history

Mathematics■Muslims based their work in math in

part on ideas from India and classical Greece.

■One scholar, Al-Khwarizmi, is called the “Father of Algebra” which is used to solve problems with unknown numbers.

■Algebra helped popularize Arabic numerals in Europe and spread the concept of zero. In fact, the word zero comes from an Arabic word meaning “something empty”.

Science & Technology■Muslim scholars made great advances

in astronomy.■Compasses & astrolabes (an instrument

that uses position of objects in the sky to find one’s location) could be used to locate the direction of Mecca.

■Restoration of old irrigation systems, built dams and aqueducts and used waterwheels to help the water supply.

Geography and Navigation■Muslim scholars examined plants and

animals in different regions and divided the world into climate zones.

■Created extremely accurate maps that include trade routes and information about lands under Muslim rule.

■ Travelers, like Ibn Battuta, recorded information about their journeys all over the Muslim lands and beyond.

Medicine■ Muslims established the world’s first hospitals and

based their knowledge on the works of ancient Greece, Mesopotamia and Egypt.

■ Doctors and Pharmacists have to pass tests to practice.

■ Doctors treated ailments through drugs, diet and exercise. They also performed operations and used stitches after surgeries.– Treat cataracts through surgery.

■ The Persian philosopher, Ibn Sina was also a great doctor who wrote amassed an encyclopedia that discussed the treatment of diseases.

■ Muhammad al Razi composed a textbook on medicine

Recreation■ Fun was also a part of the Islamic

culture and two favorite pastimes were:–Polo – Borrowed from the Persians,

polo is a sport in which teams on horseback use mallets (wooden sticks) to strike a ball through a goal.–Chess – Was probably invented in

India and borrowed from the Persians, but this game of skill was spread across Muslim lands and introduced into Europe.