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Islam is intimately connected with the Judeo-Christian tradition

Muslims are strictly monotheistic.

They believe in the Judeo-Christian God.

Muslims believe that the Torah and the Bible, like the Qur’an, is

the word of God.

“Allah” is the Arabic word for God. Christian and Jewish Arabs

use the same word to refer to God.

Muslims believe that people fall away from God and that He

sends a new “prophets” or Messenger.

Muhammad was God’s final Messenger.www.knowmuhammad.org

Belief in the prophets before Muhammad is a cornerstone of Islam.

Muslims believe in all the Judeo-Christian prophets ,they all were righteous who never displeases God.The total number of all the messengers is 124.0000 and the number of the prophets is 315. In Islam, a messenger is a righteous man who is sent by God following the same law of a certain prophet.A prophet is a certain righteous man who is sent by God with a new law.Moses is a prophet because he had a new lawJesus was a messenger because he had followed the law of Moses www.knowmuhammad.org

Core Concept of Islam

Islam means submission—submission to the will of AllahShari’ah or law of Islam expresses what these terms are (more below)Islam corrects all the crooked concepts that were interpolated in the Holy Book; He doesn’t need to rest; He knows all that is hidden; He doesn’t sleep...etc

www.knowmuhammad.org

Muhammad and the Qur’an

Muhammad was born in 570 A.D. in MeccaIn 610, in the Cave of Hira, he received his first revelation from the angel Gabriel.In 622, he left Mecca for Medina. This date marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar.By the time he died in 632, Islam was a thriving religion.The revelations he received were compiled into the Qur’an after his death.Qur’an was copied down in an authoritative form about 20 years after Muhammad died.


The Five Pillars of Islam

Shahada – Testimony

Salat – Prayer

Zakat – Almsgiving

Sawm – Fasting

Hajj - Pilgrimage


Shahada

To become a Muslim, you must confess by your

tongue the “Shahada” .

The confession of faith in Islam is to believe that

“There is no god worthy of worship except God

and Muhammad is His Messenger.”

The transliteration of “Shahada”is:

“La ilaha illa Allah; Muhammed rasul Allah.”


Salat

Salat is the name for the mandatory prayers

that are performed five times a day. Salat

means direct contact with God.

Salat is done five times a day in a certain times


ZakatMuslims believe that all things belong to God, and that wealth is therefore held by people in trust. Zakat means both ‘purification’ and ‘growth’. Muslims purify their possessions by setting aside a portion for those in need. For the most part, this involves a payment of at least 2.5% of one’s capital every year. Giving more is highly recommended.There is also “ Zakat Al Fitr” that is paid at the end of the fasting month( Ramdan)Also giving alms is an act of charity that is highly rewarded in Islam


Sawm- Fasting

Every year during the month of Ramadan, Muslims

fast from dawn until sunset. During this time, they

refrain from both eating and drinking. Fasting is

regarded principally as a method of self-purification.

It helps make a person more sympathetic with those

who go hungry and it allows for spiritual growth. The

end of Ramadan is marked by a festival called Eid-ul-

Fitr.www.knowmuhammad.org

Hajj

The Hajj is the annual pilgrimage

to Mecca. Every Muslim who is

physically and financially able is

required to go at least once in

his/her lifetime. 2-3 million people

go every year.The close of Hajj is markedby a festival called Eid-ul-Adha. Above is the Kaaba.


So How did Islam expand into a great world religion?

What social and governmental forms emerged in the world of Islam

Islam nearly conquered western Europe first in the 8th century—defeated at Tours in 732—and then in 1527 and again in 1683.


Jihad

“Jihad” among extremists refers to “Holy Wars”

against the infidels or of Territorial expansion.

Among moderates, Jihad refers to “Defense” of

one’s faith; and or an “inner struggle” to rid oneself

of evil and submit to Allah.


Emergence of Shia

Claim that ‘Ali’s descendents were the true successors to

Muhammad—Shia Ali is party of Ali, Muhammad’s son in

law.

Shia community recognizes the Imans, the successors to

‘Ali’s Spiritual Authority

Recognizes Koran only, not Koran but Sunna (traditional

teachings) as authoritative.

Sunni recognize Quran, Sunna, and Hadiths


Caliph

Caliph or “Deputy” refers to the Islamic rulers

after the death of Muhammad.

Abu-Bakr is first Caliph (632-624)

The first four caliphs expanded the kingdom still

further.

Caliphs have both religious & civil authority.


Imams

Spiritual leaders of Islam are the imamsImams are without sin and can interpret scripture

without errorInnovation possible only through an imam’s approvalBelief in the Mahdi (guided one) - messianic figure

who will lead the world into a time of peaceSunni and Shi’a disagree over the scope and power of Imams: for Sunni, the Imam is a prayer leader; for the Shi’a, the Imam is temporal leader—the True Caliph.


Eras of Islamic Civilization

570-632: Muhammad-Founder

632-661: First four Caliphs: - Expansion in Mideast—

Sunni-Shia Split.

661-750: Ommayad Dynasty-(Centered in Damascus)

Expansion in N.Africa & Spain

Eras of Islamic Civilization cont.

750-1258: Abbasid Dynasty, Golden Age at

Baghdad

1000s-1400s: Seljuks &Mongols

1453-WW I: Ottoman Empire; & Fragmentation


The Umayyad Caliphate

- Flourish from 661 to 750

- Centered in Damascus

- Nearly took Constantinople (674-77) but were deterred -

by Greek Fire

- Captured Spain but were defeated by Charles Martel

at Tours in 732.

- Weakness of Umayyads—only Arabs could be Muslims—

opposed by Abbasids who accepted Muslims of all

ethnicitieswww.knowmuhammad.org

The Abbasid Caliphate

Flourished from 750 to 1258Centered in BaghdadGreat libraries, academies, and schools.Translated classical Greek scholarship into Arabic—preserving it for posterityAchievements in Medicine, astronomy, and MathematicsMuslim states in West break away from Abbasid control beginning in 756.Seljuk Turks convert to Islam and conquer Abbasids (1055) but allow Abbasids to continue to ruleGenghis Khans Grandson topples Abbasids in 1258


Ottoman Empire (1300-1918)

The Ottoman Empire would rival that of China in

size and economic power.

But over time the Ottoman Empire would be

weakened until the twentieth century.

Yet under Suleiman the Magnificent (1520-1566)

the Ottoman Empire expanded into North Africa

and Syria.


Growth of the Ottoman Empire

For nearly 300 years the Ottomans expanded into the

Balkans and to Persia.

By 1683 the Turks controlled Hungary in Europe to the

Persian Gulf.

Initial Ottoman conquest and expansion was under

their able leader Osman (1299-1326).

Osman was a ghazi, or warrior, who was determined to

spread the faith.


Why Did The Ottomans Succeed?

Ottomans tolerated other faiths—didn’t fight

wars of religious exclusivism

Many in Old Byzantine Empire were weary of

corruption in Byzantine state


Key Events of the Ottoman State

1389 – Defeat the Serbs at Battle of Kosovo.

1396 – Crushed the Hungarians and foreign knights at

Nicopolis.

1402 – Tamerlane defeats the Ottomans near Ankara.

1453 – Turks capture Constantinople by Mohammed II.

1517 – Turks captured Cairo.

1529 – First siege of Vienna.

1683 – Second siege of Vienna.


Historic Contributions of the Islamic Civilizations

Rhazes (d. 925): Medical expert of the Abbasid

Dynasty who studied optics; Caesarian

operations and more.

Most famous treatise On Small Pox and Measles



• Avicenna (d. 1037): A Muslim scholar of the

Abbasid Dynasty who excelled in both Medicine

and Philosophy

• His Canon of Medicine was translated into Latin in

the 12th century and by the 16th century was in its

35th edition.



Aveorres (d. 1198): Philosopher of the Abbasid

Dynasty who tried to harmonize Islamc faith with

Aristotelian logic.


Distillation of Alcohol

• Developed about 800

• Al-kuhl means “the essense”


Astrolabe

Used for astronomy & for

navigation.

It is believed that the Muslim al-

Fazari (d.777A.D.) was the first

scientist in the MidEast to make

an astrolabe, following the

arrival of an Indian mission to

Baghdad.


Muslim Medicine

Muslim physicians were active in the

advancement of surgical techniques, and were

among the first to use narcotic and sedative drugs

in operations.


Omar Khyyam

Of the Abbasid Dynasty was the author of the

Rubaiyat and the Book of 1001 Nights.

“A Book of Verses underneath the Bough; A jug

of wine, a loaf of bread—and thou beside me in

the wilderness—Oh Wilderness were paradise

enow!”


Harun Al Rashid (800s)

An esteemed ruler of the Abbasid Dynasty who

exchanged gifts, and established friendly relations

with Charlemagne (ruler of the greatest Christian

Kingdom in Europe at that time).


Cordoba, Spain

From 756 - 1031, Cordoba

was a political and cultural

center for the Muslims.


Muslim Art & Architecture

The Muslim religion

prohibited the picturing of

human and natural forms.

Muslim art was thus

channeled into artistic

displays of great geometric

complexity and abstract

ornamentation. www.knowmuhammad.org

Muslim Art & Architecture

This Muslim mosque in

Seville, was built in 1172.

It was converted to a

Chrisitan Cathedral in

1248.


Muslim architecture


So If Islam was so cool, what happened?

Present Mindedness—who knows if we won’t all be

dead or Muslim?

Problem of Closed Revelation

Failure to form effective states

Weak/decadent rulers

Focus on moral reform and supernatural deliverance

rather than structural/material reform—Wahabbism.
