Download Abbasid Decline and the Spread of Islamic Civilization

ABBASID DECLINE AND THE
SPREAD OF ISLAMIC
CIVILIZATION
REVIEW QUESTIONS
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What group finally ended the Abbasid caliphate in 1258?
What was the name of the mystics/missionaries of Islam during this
period?
What was one issue that has always plagued Islamic governments,
going back to Sunni-Shia split?
What is the island country in Asia that today has the most Muslims
in the world?
Whose learning did the Abbasid scholars improve upon?
PEOPLE AND PLACES
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Muhammad
Harun al-Rashid
Baghdad
Jerusalem
Delhi
ABBASID CALIPHATE
ABBASID DECLINE
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Emerging Issues in the Reign of Caliph al-Mahdi
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Courtly excesses
Failure to bring to back the Shia meant terrorism
Unable to solve succession issues
Harun al-Rashid’s(786-809) Impact
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Originally dependent on Persian advisors
Thousand and One Nights
Death caused civil war and the rise of slave mercenary armies that
eventually became power players
A DRAWN OUT DEATH
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Treasury drained by constant civil violence and attempts to create new
capital
More taxation added to peasant’s burden, causing them to abandon
irrigation works and villages, leading to banditry
Provinces began to secede by the mid-10th century, then invaded, like the
Buyids in 945 who then made the caliphs puppets
Later the Seljuk Turks did the same thing, invigorating the dynasty by
purging the Shia and defeating the Byzantines
They soon came under attack from Crusaders, who had mixed success,
though they did gain knowledge
Trade was a more important source of exchanges however
MESSED UP BY THE MONGOLS
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Raids begun by Genghis Khan,
Baghdad defeated by grandson
Hulegu in 1258
This formed the llkhanate
Mongols stopped by Mamluks in
Egypt
Baghdad pillaged again by Timur
in 1401, never again regained
prominence
GOLDEN AGE
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While rural areas declined, cities
had rapid growth as a result of
trade, with a large professional
class
This benefited artists and artisans,
seen in rugs and architecture
Arabic remained state language
but Persian became the language
of culture
Elegant style of writing on a variety
of subjects, such as the history of
Persia in the Shah-Nama
ISLAMIC TEXTILES
BRONZE
GLASS AND CERAMICS
MST STUFF
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Originally compilers, then creators
and correctors of Greece
Artisans and scholars combined
in geography and astronomy for
amazing results
In chemistry, classifying of
material substances and
objective experiments
Corrections to Greeks in math
and sohcahtoa created
Amazing hospitals, with trained
doctors and advancements in
optics and the bladder
Trading brought Chinese
technology
TECHNOLOGY
THE DARK SIDE OF GOLDEN
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Harems of caliphs increased
demand for slaves of both
genders, who were often
intelligent and had more freedom
Women’s rights decreased by
staying in the house and marrying
younger
Slightly better for poor women,
who could participate in economic
activities
What other civilization was having
its cultural golden age during this
period, while having
subordination of women?
RELIGIOUS CHANGES
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Though there was new mysticism, the ulama grew increasingly hostile to
foreign ideas
Much of the religious vitality in the later Abbasid period came from Sufis,
who were mystics who sought a personal union with Allah
Sufism was a reaction to the ulama’s belief of Allah’s abstract divinity, as
the Sufis tried to delight in the presence of Allah in the world
Sufi’s used a variety of methods to find Allah such as bodily denial,
meditation, and drugs
The organized Sufis converted many in India and Indonesia, as a result of
the people’s belief in their magical/healing powers
Their mosques became centers of regional political power and their tombs
became veneration sites
ARRIVAL IN INDIA
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Very different from other invasions
of India
The religions were as opposite as
possible, a notable example being
in egalitarianism
Always tensions, but peaceful
interaction usually occurred
First invasion in 711 a result of
pirate attacks on Arab traders
Conquered peoples left alone,
treated as dhimmi
This initial contact brought Indian
culture and learning to Islam,
particularly numerals
STUFF TO SULTANATE
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After raids for years by a
Turkish slave dynasty,
Muhammad of Ghur,
establishes a capital at Delhi
Under a succession of five
dynasties the Delhi Sultanate
rules fluctuating territory in
north India until Mughals
Muslim migrants swelled
Muslim numbers, which were
greatest in the northwest and
the east
Hindus originally believed
Muslims would assimilate
CONVERSION AND ACCOMMODATION
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Few forced converts, most drawn from specific regions or low-caste groups
such as untouchables
Many converts were Buddhists as a result of Muslim sacking of temples,
debased teachings, lack of organization, and corruption
Group conversions were essential and often were prompted by a desire to
escape the jizya and intermarriage
Though they would work for and profit from them, Hindus remained aloof
towards the Muslims
Muslims partially assimilated, adopting Hindu customs such as female
subordination
Also set themselves on the top of the caste system
STAND-OFF
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To compete with Islam Hinduism
placed more emphasis on cults of
specific gods, called bhaktic cults
Leaders in both religions rejected
to fuse, promoting the differences
Though India would never be fully
absorbed like other areas, it was
fundamental for Islam’s growth
INDONESIAN ISLAM
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Trade brought Islam to the trading
hub of Indonesia, as the trade
was increasingly controlled by
Muslims from south India
Conversions took off after the fall
of the Buddhist Shrivijaya empire
in the 13th century because they
helped trade
Sufi’s brought by merchants
slowly moved outward from the
ports, the key conversion being
Malacca
SUFI EFFECT
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More syncretism in harder to
convert places like Java, while
areas like Bali and Ceylon could not
be touched
Converts believed in Sufi’s magic
and infused Hinduism, Buddhism,
and animism
Less Islamic law emphasis, less
patriarchy
Pre-conversion practices retained
and expanded
Though this period is often referred to
as the Dark ages by Euro-centrists, the
golden age of Islamic culture shows it
was anything but. The incredible
spread of Islam also shows the
flexibility of the civilization, again
defying Western stereotypes. Islam
was the first global civilization, so
that’s why it is the only culture that
gets a direct sequel in Stearns.
Thanks for coming.