Download Islam

The Origins & Expansion
of Islam
Film: Islam: Empire of Faith
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Viewing Questions:
Links to Parts One/Two & Three
– Did you learn anything new about Islam from
the film?
– Did it challenge any of your preconceptions
about Islam, its history, or followers?
– Does the film (or do the filmmakers) have a
bias? If so, what is it?
– If the film is biased, do you trust the
information it provides?
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Take notes on these questions as you
view the film
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Isolated by desert – modern Arabian map
 No internal rivers or waterways
 Dominated by southern Arabian city-states
(where there is enough rain)
 Development of trade routes
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– Camel caravans, north/south along Red Sea
– Shipping to east Africa, Persia, India
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Fragmented politically and socially
Depiction of camel-herder Iglum’s life
Trade routes from southern to northern
Arabia
Bottom shows herder driving a camel
Top shows herder with servants or family
members at banquet – his own funeral
banquet?
Stele was carved from alabaster rock
It was created to show devotion to the
dead herder – the script curses anyone
who destroys the stele
Crossroads and Conflict
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Arabia – many religions over time – caught
between empires
Threatened by Christians in Ethiopia &
Byzantium
S. Arabian kings converted to Judaism in 400s
CE
Ruled by Ethiopians – forced conversion
Then ruled by Persians – toleration
Decline of s. Arabian kingdoms opened up space
for Bedouins, Mecca, and Islam
Rise of Mecca
Center for trade –
resting place for
camel caravans
 Place of pre-Islamic
worship – site of
Ka’ba – worship of
stone idols
 Expansionist tribe
Quraysh took over
around 500 CE
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Changing religious beliefs:
Stone carving from Felix Arabia, Yemen
Kingdom, 1st-3rd centuries CE
Evolution of meaning and use:
Pre-Islam: Probably first worshipped
as stone incarnation of a deity – similar
to Ka’ba
Then transformed into a representation
of a worshipper (added carved face)
Or revered as ancestor who should be
remembered
The Great Mosque of Mecca – Ka’ba in back
Muhammad & Allah
Muhammad born in 570 CE
 Camel trader – used to travel and different
cultures
 Revelations – 610 CE – angel Gabriel –
known to Jews and Christians
 Words came from Allah, “the one true god”
 Arabs knew Allah as one of their preIslamic polytheistic gods
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Religious Connections
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Muhammad drew on other monotheistic religions
Jews – Mosaic code of ethics and behavior
Christians – Judgment Day for all people
Zoroastrianism – struggle on earth between
good and evil
Muhammad said Jews and Christians were
“People of the Book”: same god, but book and
ideas mistranslated over time
Muhammad was last Prophet, the Messenger of
God, and would preach pure word from God
Qur’an & Arabic
Muhammad was illiterate
 He recited scripture to secretaries who
wrote it out: became the Qur’an (or
Koran)
 Religion became known as Islam (Arabic
for “submission” to will of God)
 Qur’anic text became means for
standardization of Arabic language
 Qur’an and Arabic became interconnected
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Hijrah to Medina
By 619, Muhammad had limited # of
followers in Mecca
 Invited to Medina (Mecca’s rival city)
 Polytheist tribes converted, but not Jews
 Muhammad added to Qur’an: Abraham,
not Moses, was principle prophet and
father of Arabs
 Jews and Christians had corrupted religion
 Abraham built Ka’ba shrine in Mecca
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Building Islam: The Five Pillars
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Muhammad had to build a community of believers
Islam provided stability in land of fragmentation
He built pure Islamic community, an umma, in Medina,
then defeated Mecca in battle (seen as divine message)
Five Pillars were basis for everyday life:
– Shahadah (one god & messenger)
– Salat (saying prayers 5 times daily while facing
Mecca)
– Zakat (giving alms to poor)
– Sawm (fasting during Ramadan)
– Hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca once during lifetime)
 Videos: Link #1, Link #2
Muhammad’s Death…
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Raised certain questions:
– Not so much about religious leadership b/c
Islam was based on individual worship
– But questions of political leadership of the
umma (community of believers) w/o
Muhammad
– Islam had grown in land of fractured politics
(tribal), so difficult to remain united
Caliphate
Solution to instability after M’s death
 Father-in-law Abu Bakr took over
leadership of umma, uniting religion and
politics – assumed title of caliph
 Combination of Islamic church and state
called a caliphate
 Contract between leader and followers
 Expansionist: believed in converting nonbelievers and imperial growth (632-732
CE)
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Jihad
Belief in Islam as universal religion,
applies to everyone
 Obligation of Muslims to convert nonbelievers and expand Islamic rule laid out
in Qur’an
 Expansionist beliefs led to imperial
conquests and growth
 Led to conflicts with Byzantine and Persian
empires
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Shari’ah Law
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Based on pre-Islamic Arabian social order
Religiously-based rules and obligations for
Muslims
Ways to regulate everyday life to make it easier
for Muslims to follow will of God
Rules to help create the umma – uniform laws
that united Muslims throughout caliphate
Protection for the weak
Respect for women (divorce, property)
But unequal power in society & relationships
Tolerance
Expansion of empire = what to do about
nonbelievers?
 Qur’an outlawed forced conversion
 Qur’an accepted ‘People of the Book’
 Nonbelievers taxed = helped support
caliphate
 Tolerance for other religions, particularly
Judaism, was widespread during caliphate
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Creation and Problems of
Empire
Islamic armies, led by Umar, took over
parts of Byzantine Empire (Egypt, Syria,
Lebanon)
 Egypt & North Africa
 Persia
 Questions arose: How to rule such a huge
empire?
 Emirs governed locally, didn’t always
follow caliphs directions
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Problems of Succession
Question of political rule: Who will
succeed last ruler? How?
 Issues of legitimacy in land of divisions
(tribes, families, empire, power)
 Splits in Caliphate b/c of problems of
succession
 Umar died; Uthman appointed caliph over
Ali
 Uthman gave titles to family members
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Lasting Divisions
Followers of Uthman (Umayyad family)
and Ali battled and split Islamic umma
 Umayyads claimed caliphate (political
power, dynastic succession)– led empire
for centuries
 Umayyads also formed Sunni sect –
majority sect, believed they were pure
followers of The Prophet
 Shi’ites were followers of Ali – minority
sect
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Islamic Expansion: Boundaries of Caliphate, 630-750 CE
End of
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8 -Century
Expansion
Caliphate had expanded into Spain and
India
 Internal divisions weakened power
 Shi’ites and Abbasid clan united to take
over caliphate from Umayyads
 Defeat of Arab-Berbers in France in 732
CE halted advance
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Islamic Architecture
Some early Islamic architects were Greeks
– adapted Greek/Roman architecture to
new needs and cultures
 Mosque: Islamic temple of worship
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– No depictions of God or people
– No seats
– Geometric and Arabic designs
– Minarets – towers to call people to prayer
Dome of the Rock
Islamic temple in
Jerusalem
Built on rock platform,
former site of Judaism’s
main temple, Solomon’s
Temple
Also site of Temple Mount
in Christian beliefs
Dome of the Rock sacred to Muslims because it was the site of Muhammad’s
Miraaj or ‘Night Journey’ to Jerusalem (Qur’an 17:1).
Interior, Dome of the Rock
Sacred rock on which Abraham sacrificed his son Isaac and from which
Muhammad took flight on his horse to heaven
Grand Mosque of Kairouan, Tunisia
Interior, Grand Mosque of Kairouan, Tunisia
Famous Mosques
– Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem, Israel
– Great Mosque of Kairouan, Tunisia
– Mezquita (Mosque) de Cordoba, Cordoba
Spain
Links
Islamic Art Link
Names and dates of caliphs
Video, 'Empire of Faith,' Parts 1 & 2
Video, ‘Story of God,’ Part 2