The Muslim World 600-1650
Deserts, Towns, and Travelers The Arabian Peninsula was the crossroads of three continents: Africa, Europe, and Asia. Only a tiny strip of fertile land in the south and a few oases could support agriculture. The rest is desert that was, in the past, inhabited by nomadic herders. The Bedouin were organized into tribes called clans that provided security and support - life in the desert was a difficult one. Major values were courage, loyalty to family and warrior skills. Larger towns near the west coast of Arabia became market towns for local, regional, and long-distance trade goods.
Crossroads of Trade and Ideas By the early 600s, trade routes connected Arabia to the major ocean and land trade routes. Caravans traded goods from the Silk Roads to the east, transporting spices and incense from Yemen and other products to the west. Ideas were shared too The city of Mecca in the west became an important stop. People worshipped in the shrine in the city, the Ka aba. Monotheistic tradition, Muhammad, the prophet of Islam was born in Mecca.
The Prophet Muhammad Born into a clan of a powerful Meccan family. Orphaned at 6, raised by his grandfather and uncle. Little education, began working the caravan trade at a very young age. Muhammed began working as business manager for Khadijah, a wealthy businesswoman, whom he married when he was 25. Muhammad was interested in religion, often spending time alone in meditation. At the age of 40, Muhammad claimed a voice called to him while he meditated in a cave outside the city. According to Muslim belief, this was the voice of the angel, Gabriel. What shall I proclaim? asked Muhammed. The angel is said to have answered: Proclaim! In the name of they Lord and cherisher, who created man out of a mere clot of congealed blood. Proclaim! And they Lord is most bountiful. He who taught (the use of ) the pen taught man that which he knew not. Muhammad became convinced the voice was Allah, and that he, himself, was the last prophet. Convinced all that Allah was the one and only god, and all other gods must be abandoned, those who followed became Muslims.
The Prophet Muhammed (Cont) Islam means submission to the will of Allah. Muslim means one who has submitted. The first followers of Islam were Muhammad s wife, Khadijah and several close friends. By 613 CE, Muhammed was preaching publicly in Mecca. At first people were skeptical. Would switching to monotheism make Mecca lose its status as a pilgrimage center? Violence was one way people resisted Muhammed s teachings. Because of this, Muhammad and followers moved 200 miles away, to Yathrib. This was a turning point - more people attracted to Islam because of Muhammed s strength and bravery. Muhammad was officially a leader his people, politically, militarily, and religiously.
Return to Mecca Many Bedouin tribes converted to Islam. Mecca s power declined as a consequence of fighting with the Muslims. In 630, the prophet and 10,000 followers marched on Mecca, which surrendered. Muhammad went to Ka aba, declaring: Truth has come and falsehood has vanished. Idols were destroyed. The Arabian Peninsula was unified under Islam. The Dome on the Rock is a holy place where Muhammed is said to have ascended to Heaven to learn Allah s will. Jews revere the rock also, as the site where Abraham was prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac.
Islam in Practice 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. The holy book of Islam is Qur an. The Five Pillars of Islam: Faith: There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. This statement is ritual in daily life. Prayer: Five times a day, facing toward Mecca. Can be in a mosque, or any place of choosing. Alms: All Muslims are required to help those that are less fortunate, either directly or through a special tax. Fasting: During Ramadan - eating nothing between dawn and sunset. A simple meal is eaten at the end of the day. A greater need than bread. Pilgrimage: hajj - A trip to Mecca, at least once in one s lifetime. In the past, the journey was very difficult, across deserts, mountains, and seas. In Islam, there are no priests, individuals worship god (Allah) directly Muslims do not consume alcohol or pork. Shari a Law
1. 2. 3. 4. The Spread of Islam When Muhammad died in 632, he had appointed no successor. The Muslim community elected Abu -Bakr (Al close friend of Muhammed) as the first Caliph, or successor. He promised to uphold what Muhammad had stood for. Not everyone agreed that Abu-Bakr was the rightful successor. Dissent ensued with military force used to try and bring back order. By Abu-Bakr s death, the Muslim state controlled all of Arabia. Further successors continued conquest. Successes to Muslim conquest can be attributed to: Every win was seen as a sign from Allah Expertly trained military Weaknesses of the Byzantines and Persians - whom the Muslims fought. The persecution of religious dissenters who did not support Zoroastrianism or Christianity. (Persecutors were often saw invaders as liberators.) Religious tolerance was a factor for conquered peoples, making Islam more attractive.
Internal Conflict A series of assassinations of leaders after 656 triggered civil war. The caliph-choosing system was abandoned. The Muslim capital moved to Damascus, Syria - a distant region, made controlling conquered territories easier. Arab Muslims did not like the distance of between the old territory and Syria.. The Umayyad family came to power and abandoned the simple life of old caliphs surrounding themselves with wealth and luxury - this began a fundamental division of the Muslim community. Tsplit will forever be known as the Sunni-Shi a split. A minority of Muslims resisted the Umayyad rule, maintaining that the new leader must be a relative of Muhammad himself. This group became the Shi as, or party group of Ali (a slain caliph.) Those who did not resist became known as the Sunni, meaning followers of Muhammad s example. Some reacted to the luxurious life of the Sunnis and pursued a spiritual path toward meditation or chanting. The Umayyads were overthrown by the Abbasids in 750.
Muslim Expansion The Abbasids murdered all but one remaining family member of the Umayyad dynasty, who fled to Spain, establishing there another Umayyad dynasty. (Abd al-rahman.) The Muslim army advanced north toward Paris, but were halted at the Battle of Tours. They settled back in southern Spain, setting up a huge Muslim state called al-andalus. Back in the Middle East, the Abbasids controlled a vast, lucrative empire.
Muslim Social Structure & Achievements 1. 2. 3. 4. Cities of Islam had beautiful, walled cities like in Baghdad - with large urban centers. There were four social classes: Upper: Were Muslims at birth. Second: Were converts who paid higher taxes Third: Were the protected people Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians. Fourth: Were slaves, POWS, and other non-muslims. Muslim women of this period had more rights and freedoms than European women at the time. Women had access to education and public life (this would later change for women.) Women were responsible for raising children.
Women and Men in Early Islam Essential Question: How did the rise of Islam and the Arabic Empire Affect Women? The Qur'an seems to write in women and men as equals, but socially it did not play out that way: Men have authority over women because Allah has made theone superior to the other, and because they spend their wealth to maintain them. Good women are obedient, (Strayer, et al, 380). There was a mix of rights, restrictions, and protections for women. Infanticide was prohibited by Islam. Women controlled their own property and dowries. Marriage was consensual. Divorcewas permitted by either (easier for male.) Polygamy was an available option but only for males. Sexual interaction permitted with slaves for males, they were also encouraged to marry widows, orphans, slaves. With the expansion of the empire came the use of the veil and the seclusion of women in general: It is not permissible for a stranger to hear the sound of a pestle being pounded by a woman he does not know. If he knocks at the door, it is not proper for the woman to answer him softly ns easily because men s hearts can be drawn to [women] for the most trifling [reason]...however, if the woman has to answer the knock, she should stick her finger in her mouth so that her voice sounds like that of an old woman. (Strayer, et al, 318). Honor killing for breaking sexual taboos. Change in the Adam and Eve story. Most women shut out of outlets for religious life.
Variants of Hijab (Veils)
More Muslim Achievements There was a drive for science, desiring good doctors Math was used for astronomy to calculate prayer times. The quest for truth was a theme. (Muhammad himself had stressed the importance of learning.) The knowledge left in the vacuum of the fall of Rome was preserved by Muslim scholars. The House of Wisdom. They preserved the Greek arts. Medical achievements included Al-Razi discovery that cleaner air was connected to health and healing. Muslims developed algebra Muslim studies led to the development of microscopes. (optics - rays pass to the object to the eyes.) Bedouin poets Sufi poets The Thousand and One Nights Calligraphy Woodwork, glasswork, textiles Great Mosque of Damascus
Islam and India Essential Question: How would the encounter between Islam and Hinduism play out? Around 1000, Turkic-speaking warrior groups from Central Asia, recently converted to Islam, brought the faith to northern India. It would spread to much of India. Turks were now the third major carrier of Islam after the Arabs and the Persians. Early conquests were violent, invaders took vast amounts of treasure.
Islam and India (cont) Low-caste Hindus found Islam attractive. Converting to Islam gave individuals an opportunity to avoid paying taxes. Never more than 20-25% of the total population converted (unlike in the Middle East). Hinduism, with its rich culture of polytheism, and its pantheon of gods and their images was not conducive to the strict nature of monotheism and the denunciation of idolatry. Muslim notions of equality were not in line with the strict hierarchy of Hinduism. Still, some blended Islam and Hinduism, this led to Sikhism. *God could not be found neither in the temple nor in mosque. Look within your heart, for there you with find both [Allah] and Ram, (mystical poet, Kabir, Strayer, et al, 385). In the end, Muslims remained the minority.
Islam and Anatolia Essential Question: How was Anatolia more easily transformed into a Muslim state than India? The Christian/Greek legacy of the Byzantines, was weakened by internal problems. The Turks had invaded, and transformed the relatively small population of Byzantium into an Islamic state. (8 million in Anatolia vs, 48 million in India.) By 1500, 90% of the region was Muslim. Because of the bloody takeover and famine, Christians saw this as God s abandonment, and hence, the superiority of Allah. The population had been decimated by violence, famine, and flight. Christians had to dress a certain way and pay taxes, and were forbidden to ride horses, to be easily identifiable. New converts to Islam were welcome, common roots in monotheism made an easy transition possible. Women had more freedoms..
Islam and West Africa Essential Question: How did the spread of Islam in West Africa occur differently than in other areas? Islam accompanied traders across the Saharan desert, it was not imposed, but adopted at will. The centrality of monotheism was more easily spread along the trade routes than local, animism religions. It concentrated heavily in urban centers of the Western African empires of Ghana, mali, Songhay, and others through trade partnership and intellectual pursuits. It did not fully penetrate rural Africa until the 1800s. Libraries, Quranic schools, and mosques spread the Arabic language, but it never became the dominant one. Also, there was no Arabic migration like in other areas that were Islamized. Local non-muslims and their ways were tolerated by elites to keep the peace. Non-Muslim women entered city centers nearly naked, and were not resisted.
Islam and Spain Muslims conquered the Berber forces in the 8th century of Islamic expansion. By the 10th century, Muslim spain was a vibrant civilization, portrayed as a place of harmony and tolerance. The capital of Córodoba was one of the largest and most beautiful cities in the world. There was a combination of Christian, Jewish and Islamic cultures - astronomy, medicine, arts, architecture, and literature. By 1000 CE, 75% of Spain had converted to Islam, and/or adopted Islamic practices. (E.g. Veiled women, halal food, and intermarriage.) This golden age was limited and brief: Arabized Christians were considered second-class citizens. Sometimes Christians were persecuted. This quickly escalated tensions. Christian reconquest of Spain in 1200 sent Islam packing. In 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella went to Granada (last Arab stronghold, unifying the country under Christianity..)