Spread of Islam_EScharr

Arabia before Muhammad~ Mecca & its importance

1 CE

-It was an important trade stop.
-It was the religious center of Arabia.
-The freshwater well intrigued people to stay there.
-It was very diverse. (Arabs, Christians, Jews...)
-It had location of Kaaba. (shrine with 300 idols)

Arabia before Muhammad~ Early Arabs

1 CE

-Arab (abhar= to move or pass)
-Arabia's first inhabitants were Bedouins (nomadic Arabs)
-The origins were either from Africa or Mesopotamia.
-Biblical Tradition: Arabs are Semites.
-Qur'anic tradition: Arabs are descendants of Abraham's son.
-Valued camels and swords above all else.
-No strong central government
-Practiced animistic polytheism (many gods)

Arabia before Muhammad~Quraysh

1 CE

-A powerful local tribe of Arabs
-They encouraged tribes to leave their idols in Kaaba and protected them but for a profit.

Muhammad's call to Prophet~ Muhammad's early life

570

• As a young man, he worked for a wealthy widow, Khadija.
• He eventually married Khadija and they had 7 children but only the daughter, Fatima survived.
• He had a reputation as a seeker of solitude. (state of being alone).

Muhammad's call to Prophet~family

570

• He was born into Hashim family of powerful Quraysh tribe.
• Angels told the mother, Amina to name him Muhammad.
• Muhammad's father, Abdallah died before his birth and his mother died when he was 6.
• He was raised by his uncle, Abu Talib.

Caliph Abu Bakr

573

-He was one of Muhammad's original followers.
-After Muhammad's death, many of his closest advisors suggested Abu be the caliph.
-His first task was to reunite the community.

The life of Muhammad~ Marriage

585

• He was hired by Khadija bint al-Khuwaylid to get goods to Syria. -Soon later, they married.
• They had four daughters, one of which was Fatima. -Fatima was also called al- Zahra. -Fatima married Muhammad's cousin Ali.
• In some beliefs, Ali was the heir to Muhammad's throne.
• Muhammad had a happy marriage.

The life of Muhammad~ Suspecting something is wrong

610

~ When he was 40, started thinking something was wrong.
~ Many people were wealthy like his family but they didn't share it with the poor and the tribes were at constant war.
~ Disturbed by the problems he retreated to the mountains.
~ He stayed in a cave and prayed and fasted there.
~ His time there would form the basis of the holiday,Ramadan.

The life of Muhammad~ His visions and teachings

610

-17th day in the mountains, he discovered a vision. The angel Gabriel appeared.
- Gabriel revealed the sacred word of Allah in Arabic and commanded Muhammad to repeat the word and share it with other people. At first, he only shared the words with his wife and her Christian cousin. They told him to recite it and follow the command. He kept it to himself for 2 more years.
- He was chosen as a prophet to reveal Allah's will to the Arabic people.
- 612, he shared his visions by command of Gabriel.

The life of Muhammad~ Facing Discrimination

617

• Many people weren't happy with the message such as the Quraysh who believed in pagan gods.
• Merchants were also unhappy with him. -The leaders of the city declared a boycott against Muslims (the converts) which meant everyone was to refuse them food so that they would starve.

The life of Muhammad~ First Islamic Community

621

• Tribes from Yathrib came to Mecca for Muhammad.They didn't want to fight against themselves anymore. -They sought wisdom and councilling to help end it. -Muhammad's message made them all convert.

The life of Muhammad~ Leaving Mecca

622

-Muhammad and his followers fled from Mecca to Yathrib.
-The Quraysh were furious and wanted revenge because never before had an Arab tribe split to become its own.
- Status was then based on religious allegiances instead of kin or family.
- Their settlement would become the city of Medina.

The life of Muhammad~ Medina

622

Set up:
- He set out to build a Muslim city.
- He made precedents for the faith.
-His home served as the first mosque.
-The mosque was made to nurture the community.
Evolution of Islam:
-He had as many as 11 wives after his first died and even though the maximum is 4, the rule can be bent if it is to help her as it can be bent in other ways.
- Free worship was intended.
-The direction while praying was changed.(quiblah) It was changed from Jerusalem to Mecca.

Constitution of Medina

622

• It was put together by Muhammad to establish the first Islamic state. -It assigned Jews and Christians rights and responsibilities. -He gave freedom of religion in exchange for tax -marked them as dhimmis (protected people in the Muslim state)

The life of Muhammad~ His death and his impact

632

• He united most of the region under his leadership.
• Islam kept spreading around the world even after his death. -Today, more than 1.5 billion Muslims are present.
• They are all followers of Muhammad and his religious concepts and way of life.

Arabia after Muhammad's death

632

-Even after Muhammad's death, his message had still spread.
-Around 100,000 Muslim Arabs were at his death.
-It wasn't clear who would lead the Muslim faith.
-Some of the tribes he converted had fallen away and some refused to give zakat and others found new prophets to inspire them.

Abu Bakhr- areas he conquered

632

• He got Central Arabia under Muslims' control. -After that, he scoped out other countries to get under his control other than the Arabian Peninsula after the Riddah Wars.

Caliph Umar- Areas he conquered

632

• Was the second of 4 caliphs
• He conquered Byzantine Empire. -Conquered Mesopotamia and Syria -Conquered Iran and Egypt

Caliph Umar- accomplishments

632

-credited for basic policies of Islamic Empire for years
-allowed conquered people to live with how they choose to live with a special tax
-claimed a harsh but fair ruler

Abu Bakhr- Riddah Wars

633

-These were series of wars between Arabs and Muslims.
-Some Arab leaders refused to follow Abu Bakhr because they claimed their commitment was to Muhammad not Islam.
-He led the wars to regain support.
- One battle was at Aqraba which was bloody but he got the rebelling Arabs to join.

Caliph Uthman-areas he conquered

644

-He expanded to include Iran, North Africa, and the Caucuses.

Caliph Uthman-accomplishments

652

-assembled a committee to complete and standardize Quran with Umar then ordered other versions to be destroyed.
-He memorized the whole Quran

Caliph Ali~first fitna

656

-internal conflict
-war that created split between Muslims
-656-661
-was because disaggreement about who should be caliph

Caliph Ali- Trouble with Ali

656

• Some Muslims claim Ali's rule was troubled from the start. -he was passed over 3 times -Ali's rise to caliph set off the first civil war between Muslims.

Umayyad Dynasty-areas conquered

661

-It conquered North Africa, Spain, and parts of Central Asia and doubled its size.

Umayyad Dynasty- problems

661

• only 10% of non-muslims converted to Islam under their rule. -It fell to rebel fighters in 750.

Abbasid Dynasty

750

-The empire before set their eyes on the West which included North Africa, Southern Europe, and the Meditteranean but the Abbasid had their eyes on the East.
-Established city at Baghdad

The Crusades

1095

-violent campaigns by Christian armies against Muslims
-9 crusades made to Israel
-Most fighting was in Jerusalem, Palestine, Syria, Egypt, and Anatolia.
- Established Crusader states, such as Edessa, Galilee, Antioch, and Tripoli.
-In 1291, they were defeated and Muslim armies took control once again.
-Successful crusades did little to expand christianity