History of Islam Flashcards
What is pre Islamic Arabia know as?
Jahilliya- a period of ignorance
Political and social background
Families in clans in tribes Each tribe has a leader called a shaykh They deal with clan elders People had loyalty to their clan/tribe Raids of other tribes Tribes offered protection
Moral background?
Infanticide was common especially girls
Raids on other tribes was accepted
In cities: crime gambling drinking poverty prostitution
What did pagans think?
Nomads and pagans Had idols that represent different spirits or gods Tribes had special idols Allah was a god 3 daughters of allah- Al-hat, Al uzza, Manat Pilgrimage to Mecca to worship idols 360 idols in ka’ba in Mecca Polytheism
Religious background?
Pagans Nomads Judaism Zoroastrianism Christianity Hanif
Zoroastrian beliefs?
Ahura Mazda is god
Gave birth to twin spirits- Angra Mainya and Spenta Mainya
Good and bad spirits to represent our choices
Where was Judaism in Arabia?
Medina
Christian beliefs?
Different schools of thought about the nature of Jesus
Was he fully human, fully divine or a mixture?
What is a hanif?
Believed in one god
Had a strict code of conduct
Variations in the nature of Jesus?
Monophysite- one nature, simultaneously human and divine
Nestorian- his human and divine natures were individually distinct from each other
Docetist/ Gnostics- he only appeared to be human but was really spiritual
What did Muhammad think of jahiliyya?
Didn’t like polytheism or the gambling, poverty, drinking etc
Started meditating more in the hills outside Mecca
The night of power
Cave Hira, mount Nur
Angel Jibril
Only one God and one message
People have distorted the message and need to get back on the straight path
Muhammad is the seal of the prophets and there will be no more after him
What did he do with the first revelation?
He didn’t know if it was real so went to Khadijah and her cousin Waraqa
They convinced him and he began to preach in Mecca
Khadija wrote them down for him
What did he preach?
Monotheism Slavery is wrong Gambling drinking etc all wrong Women are equal Regular prayer times
Who reverted first?
Abu Talib- his uncle
Abu Bakr- his best friend
The night journey
Muhammad taken on a spiritual journey
Winged beast called a buraq
Went to Jerusalem then to heaven and met other prophets
Prayer negotiated for 5 times a day
Why did people dislike Mohammed?
Religious grounds
He rejected polytheism
Economic grounds
Challenged the pilgrimage to Mecca which brought money
The Hijra
Because of people hating muhammed in Mecca they planned to kill him
They went to his home but his cousin Ali took his place in his bed to fool them
Muhammed and Abu Bakr his in a cave and a spider spun a web over the opening to protect them
They then went on to medina
What did muhammed do in Medina?
He let a camel choose where to build his house so as not to offend anyone
He thought Jews would be easier to convert because of their monotheism
How did muhammed convert the people of medina?
He let them have their old tribal system with him as an overall leader
He earned the nickname Trustworthy One
Offered protection
Introduced Zakah to support the needy
Changed direction of prayer from Jerusalem to Mecca
How to unite medina?
He wrote a formal constitution to protect from outside attack Zakah for the needy He married tribes together Offered protection after battles Established conditions for trade
How did he deal with threat from Mecca?
He United medina so they stood together against he threat
He carried out raids on camel caravans and trained his followers
He’s a good negotiator
How did he convert the whole of Arabia?
He married the daughter of the head of a clan and got his followers to do the same
He wrote to powerful people in surrounding empires about islam
The battle of Badr raised his profile
People liked the idea of the ummah
What was the Battle of Badr?
Probably most influential battle
Initiated by muhammeds order to attack a Quraysh caravan during the sacred month when war was banned
It is argued as the lesser of two evils
300 Muslims vs 1000 meccans
He was successful which convinced people to convert
