Download Islam-Submission to Allah

Islam
An Abrahamic Religion
Strict

monotheists
Believe:
Allah,
God
the Judeo-Christian
The
Torah and the Bible, like
the Qur’an,is the word of God
Peoples of the Book
The Prophetic Tradition
Adam
Noah
Abraham
Moses
Jesus
Muhammad
The Origins of the Qur’an
 Muhammad received first revelation
from angel Gabriel in the Cave of
Hira in 610.

622  Hijrah  Muhammed
flees Mecca for Medina.
* The beginning of the
Muslim calendar

Muhammad’s revelations were
compiled into the Qur’an after
his death.
1. The Shahada
 The testimony

The declaration of faith:
There is no god worthy of
worship except God, and
Muhammad is His
Messenger [or Prophet].
1
2. The Salat
 The mandatory prayers
performed 5 times a day:
* dawn
* noon
* late afternoon
* sunset
* before going to bed

Wash before praying

Face Mecca and use prayer rug
2
3. The Zakat
 Almsgiving (charitable donations)

Muslims believe that all things
belong to God

Zakat means both “purification”
and “growth”

About 2.5% of your income
3
4. The Sawm
 Fasting during the holy month
of Ramadan


Considered a method of selfpurification
No eating or drinking from
sunrise to sunset during
Ramadan
4
5. The Hajj
 The pilgrimage to Mecca

Must be done at least once in a
Muslim’s lifetime

2-3 million Muslims make the
pilgrimage
every
year
5
5. The Hajj
 Those who complete pilgrimage
can add the title hajji to
their name
5
The Dar al-Islam
The World
of Islam
1
2
3
4
5
The Dome of the Rock
Mosque in Jerusalem
Mount Moriah Rock
where Muhammad ascended into heaven
Other Islamic Religious
Practices
 Up to four wives allowed at once

No alcohol or pork

No gambling

Sharia  body of Islamic law to
regulate daily living

Three holiest cities in Islam:
* Mecca, Medina, Jerusalem
Essential Question:
Why was Islam
able to spread so
quickly and convert
so many to the
new religion?
The Spread of Islam

Easy to learn and practice

No priesthood

Teaches equality
Non-Muslims, “dhimmi” who were
“Peoples of the Book,” were allowed
religious freedom, but paid additional
taxes


Easily “portable”  nomads & trade
routes

Jihad (“Holy War”) against pagans
and other non-believers (“infidels”)
Muslims in the World
Today
Countries with the Largest
Muslim Population
1. Indonesia
183,000,000
6. Iran
62,000,000
2. Pakistan
134,000,000
7. Egypt
59,000,000
3. India
121,000,000
8. Nigeria
53,000,000
4. Bangladesh
114,000,000
9. Algeria
31,000,000
10. Morocco
29,000,000
5. Turkey
66,000,000
* Arabs make up only 20% of the total
Muslim population of the world.
From Umayyad to Abbasid Empires
ARAB
ISLAMIC
Rise of Abbasid Party
• The party traced its descent from Muhammad’s
uncle, al-Abbas.
• Al-Abbas’ great great grandson, Abu al-Abbas
led his forces against Umayyads
• His allies were
– Shi’a
– Mawali (Islamic converts) to gain acceptance in
community of believers
• Captured Umayyad capital in Syria
• At “Reconciliation Banquet” al-Abbas
slaughtered remaining Umayyad family
Early Abbasid Era
• Began to reject Shi’a and Malawi (non-Arab
converts) allies…and defended Sunni Islam
• Built centralized, absolutist imperial order
• New capital: Baghdad on Tigris River
– Baghdad became richest city in the world (only
Constantinople came close)
• Had palace with jeweled thrones and harems
– Image of elitism was important
• For more than a century, able to collect revenue and
preserve law over much of empire
Islamic Conversion and Mawali
Acceptance
• Mass conversions to Islam were
encouraged throughout empire
• Most converts were won over peacefully
because of appeal of Islamic beliefs and
advantages they enjoyed:
- didn’t have to pay head tax
- educational opportunities
- jobs as traders, administrators, judges
Town & Country: Commercial
Boom and Agrarian Expansion
• Abbasid Era was a great time of urban
expansion and growth of merchant and
landlord classes.
• Tang & Song Dynasties in China were also
reviving middle merchant class. (results of
falls of Rome/Han)
• Arab DHOWS - trading vessels with
triangular (lateen) sails were used from
Mediterranean to South China Sea
– Later influenced European ship design
Town & Country: Commercial Boom
and Agrarian Expansion, cont..
• Muslim merchants formed joint ventures with
Christian and Jewish traders
– Each merchant had different Sabbath so they
could work 7 days a week
• Merchants grew rich supplying cities with
goods throughout the empire
• Much wealth went to charity (required by
Qur’an)
– Hospitals and medical care of Abbasid Empire
surpassed those of any other civilization of that
time
Town & Country: Commercial Boom
and Agrarian Expansion, cont..
• Much unskilled labor was left to slaves
• Some slaves were able rise to positions of
power and gain freedom
• Huge estates might have slaves,
indentured servants or sharecroppers
The First Flowering of Islamic Learning
• Early contributions from Abbasid were great
mosques and palaces. Ex: Dome of the Rock
• Advances in religious, legal and philosophical
discourse
• Science and Math!
– preserved Greek works of medicine, algebra, geometry,
astronomy, anatomy, and ethics
• Arabic traders in India carried Indian number
system across Mediterranean and into Northern
Europe
– What’s the impact?
Global Connections:
Early Islam & the World
• Abbasid Empire was “go-between” for
ancient civilizations of Eastern
Hemisphere
– Role grew as Arab trade networks expanded
• Islam pioneered patterns of organization
and thinking that would affect human
societies in major ways for centuries
• 5 Centuries = Spread of Islam played
dominant role in the Afro-Eurasian World
Global Connections:
Early Islam & the World…cont.
• In the midst of achievement, Muslims had some
growing disadvantages, especially to Europeans
• Muslim divisions would leave openings for
political problems
Growing intolerance and orthodoxy led to the
belief that the vast Islamic world contained all
requirements for civilized life, which caused
Muslim people to grow less receptive to
outside influence and innovations…led to
isolation at a time when Christian rivals were
in a period of experimentation and
exploration