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World Religions, Sixth EditionWarren Matthews
Chapter Ten:
IslamThis multimedia product and its contents are protected under copyright law. The following are prohibited by law:• any public performance or display, including transmission of any image over a network;• preparation of any derivative work, including the extraction, in whole or in part, of any images;• any rental, lease, or lending of the program.
Arabic Background
Arabic society is based on clan and tribe
There is no constitution or police protection, only the tribe
Loyalty runs both ways
Bedouin tribes travel all the time
City tribes participate in commerce, putting together caravans for
distant trading
Arabic Background
The city of Mecca has always been a religious and commercial
center
The Ka´bah was a religious center
Originally had 360 idols installed
Housed the Black Stone, a symbol of divine power
Commercial caravans across Arabia were commonly organized in
Mecca
The Grand Mosque, Mecca, Site of the Holy Ka´bah
Life of Muhammad
Born in 570 CE in the city of Yathrib
Born after his father's death
Sent for six years to live and grow as a bedouin boy
Orphaned when his mother died on a trip to Yathrib
Raised by his grandfather and then his uncle
Life of Muhammad
Led caravans for Khadijah, a wealthy widow and trader
Muhammad married Khadijah at age twenty-five
The two were married for twenty-five years before she died
Had at least two sons
Had four daughters – Zaynab, Ruqayyah, Umm-Khulthum,
and Fatima
Married several other wives later in life
All his children except Fatima died before he did
Life of Muhammad
In 610 CE, Muhammad was meditating in a cave on Mt. Hira
Received message from the angel Gabriel
Was terrified by the experience
Looked for reassurance to a one-god believer
Assured him that this was typical of a message from God
Accepted by wife Khadijah
She encouraged him to proclaim his message
Early converts were members of his family and persons of no
status
Life of Muhammad
Leaders in Mecca were unreceptive
Especially the Quraysh tribe, the guardians of the Ka´bah
Opposition included derision and economic boycott
Eventually there were assassination attempts
In 620 CE, relatives in Yathrib asked him to arbitrate conflicts
He accepted but required them to become Muslims
Yathrib became the setting of the Muslims as a community
Following an assassination attempt, he left Mecca to locate in
Yathrib (which therefore became know as “Medina”)
Life of Muhammad
Living in Medina
Muhammad formed the ummah (the community of Muslims)
Continued to receive revelations of parts of the Qur´an
Continued to deal with opposition
Consolidated rule in Medina
Conducted an on-again, off-again war with Mecca
Dealt with the other tribes in Arabia
Sometimes diplomatically
Sometimes militarily
Life of Muhammad
In 630 CE, Muslims reached a victory at Mecca
Meccans negotiated a surrender
Ka´bah remained
Idols were destroyed
Pilgrimage to Mecca remained
Continued expansion of Muslims militarily
Defeated by the Byzantine empire
Muhammad made his farewell pilgrimage to Mecca in 632 CE,
delivered a final sermon, and died there
The Ascent of Muhammad to Heaven on Buraq, Guided by Gabriel
Five Pillars of Islam
Shahada – a sincere declaration of faith in the oneness and
uniqueness of God, and in Muhammad’s role as messenger of God
Salat – prayer in a prescribed manner at five designated times daily
Zakat – payment of a portion of one’s income for the support of
disadvantaged Muslims
Sawm – fasting during the daylight hours of the month of Ramadan
Hajj – travel, if one is physically and financially able, at least once in
one’s lifetime to the city of Mecca during the month of pilgrimage
Muslims Praying in Malaysia
Islam After Muhammad
The Qur´an is the Word of God
It is the very mind of God, which cannot make mistakes nor change
It cannot be translated, since God cannot change
The Sura (chapters) of the Qur´an are organized by length (not
sequence)
Many parts of the Qur´an are considered excellent Arabic poetry,
although the longer ones less so
Some find contradictions in the Qur´an
Eighteenth-Century Qur´an created for the Sultan of Morocco
Islam After Muhammad
The Sunna are collections of reports, or “hadiths,” of the words and
actions of Muhammad
These do not hold the same weight as the words of God
However, they uphold Muhammad as a model
He best understood God’s will for a person’s speech and
behavior
He acted accordingly
Islam After Muhammad
Caliph (successor)
Muhammad did not name a successor
Community was split three ways
Community chooses best replacement
Family member of Muhammad
Best among companions
Companions chose Abu Bakr
Father-in-law to Muhammad
Military leader
Islam After Muhammad
Caliph (successor)
Eventually Islam split over whether to follow the designated caliph
or a member of Muhammad's family (Ali)
Ali and his son were murdered by the caliph's followers
Ali's followers left the others and became the Shi´a Muslims
Followers of a spiritual leader called an “imam”
The others, who followed the caliph, became know as Sunni
Islam After Muhammad
Expansion under the Caliphs
Raids into Byzantium resulted in conquest of the Middle East
Egypt and North Africa were conquered
Persia fell
European advance was checked at Tours in 732 CE
Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians were tolerated
The experiences in governing large areas provoked much thought
and development in Islamic thinking
Muslim Expansion from Arabia into Middle East, North Africa, Europe, Asia
Islam After Muhammad
Shari´a Muslim law developed from:
Ijma – consensus of Muslim religious specialists
Qiyas – drawing analogies from examples in the Qur´an and
Sunna to new situations not explicitly mentioned in those texts
Ra´y – personal judgment of the arbitrator
Islam After Muhammad
Schools of Sunni Shari´a
HanafiHanafi
MalikiMaliki
ShafiShafi´ii
HanbaliHanbali
Comparison of Shi´ites and Sunnis
Shi´ites, a minority (10-15 percent), regard themselves as pious,
true descendents of Muhammad’s family, guardians of revelations
Beliefs include celebration of history of persecution and martyrdom
with accompanying rituals of self-flagellation
Sunnis reject Shi´ite claims and argue that the caliph need not be a
blood relative of Muhammad
Rather, for Sunnis, election is a legitimate form for succession
Comparison of Shi´ites and Sunnis
For Shi´ites, leadership is matter of majority rule
They reject Sunni claims for the “hidden imam” who will appear as
the Mahdi
Shi´ites believe that the Mahdi rules through their imams whereas
Sunni caliphs are limited to things such as leading services in the
mosque
Although they initially divided over questions of proper succession,
additional differences developed over time
Muslim Spiritual Experiences
Sufis are Muslim mystics whose goal was experiencing union with
God
Al-Ghazali, a highly respected scholar, became interested in
mysticism and left teaching to pursue this life
Taught that to submit to God and his revelation was highest
practice
Brought respect to Sufism
Overcame tension with the orthodox community
Muslim Spiritual Experiences
The experience of God is sought by sincere Muslims, though it is
second to submission
Asceticism, though not a rule, was admired
Theology in forms of speculation on nature of God, apologetics, and
explanation of devotional life of mystics
Dancing Dervishes Whirling into a State of Ecstasy
Muslims and Other Religions
Conquered persons that were “peoples of the Book” (Jews and
Christians) were not required to convert to Islam
Instead they paid taxes to retain their faiths
They also remained, at best, second-class citizens
All others were given the choice of conversion or death
Muslims and Other Religions
European Crusades
Response to stories of the harsh treatment of pilgrims visiting the
Holy Lands
Answer to appeals for help by the Byzantine Empire
Temporary successes
Established a Latin Kingdom in Palestine for a short time
Marked by massacres and mistreatment by both sides
Muslim influence on Architecture at the Alhambra in Grenada, Spain
Muslim Responses to Modernism
Muhammad Ibn ´Abd al-Wahhab argued for an outright rejection of
modernism, espousing a purist, fundamentalist vision of Islam
Wahhabism has struck a responsive chord in Saudi Arabia and parts
of Africa, India, and Indonesia
Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (1838-1897) was one leader for Muslims in
the fight against the colonialism of Muslim territories by European
powers
Muhammad Abduh (1849-1905) in Egypt and Sayyid Ahmad Khan
(1817-1898) in India held that Islam was entirely compatible with
rationalism and science
The Taj Mahal, the Muslim Mausoleum in Agra, India
Islam in the U.S.
Muslims of the Midwest are frequently descendants of Syrian and
Lebanese Muslims who immigrated to the United States around the
turn of the twentieth century
Muslims on the East Coast are frequently recent immigrants from
more conservative Islamic countries such as Pakistan, Iran, and
Saudi Arabia
Islam in the U.S.
Black Muslims in the U.S. share the innovative interpretations of
Islam offered by early advocates of Black Islam, such as:
Noble Drew Ali (1886-1929)
Elijah Muhammad (1897-1975)
Malcolm X (1925-1965)
Two major Black Muslim organizations in the U.S. today:
American Muslim Mission, an organization recognized for its
orthodoxy by many immigrant Muslims in the United States
Nation of Islam, holds innovative interpretations of Islam offered
by early Black Islam advocates, led by Louis Farrakhan
Islam Worldview
Oneness and uniqueness of God upheld as a central conviction
Emphasis placed on submission of one’s will to the will of God
Annual communal celebrations
Id al-Fitr, marking the end of the fast of Ramadan
Muhammad’s birthday
Judgment occurs after death, determines fate in paradise or hell
The World
God created a good world
Rejected tendency towards pantheism of earlier leaders
Islam Worldview
Humans are created to enjoy God’s creation
All things are good in proper perspective
Women are men’s helpers, though they have some privileges
Sin is refusal to submit to God
Salvation is acknowledging God and his prophet Muhammad
Ethics are encouraged through practice of the Five Pillars of Islam,
which strengthen success in living
Afterlife is dependent on earthly deeds and God’s judgment