islam Flashcards
what is the story of abraham and how does it differ in the torah/old testament and the quran
in christianity and judaism, abraham is asked by god to sacrifice is only son isaac. abraham is fully willing and prepares to conduct the sacrifice while keeping isaac in the dark, but god stops him and makes the covenant with him
in islam, ibrahim receives a vision commanding him to sacrifice ishmael. ibrahim tells this to his son and he agrees but before they can continue god and his angels called out to him, stopped him, and made the convenant
what perspective is the quran told from
the quran is told in the first person. this is because it is a direct recording of gods messages to muhammad
how did islam originate
muhammad was a traveling merchant and he received a vision from arch angel gabriel about the divinity of allah, the same god in judaism and christianity. he then began spreading gods messages as a prophet
what was the hegra
when spreading his visions, muhammad faced criticism in his hometown of mecca. this is because the kaaba was an important tourist sight for many pagan religions which muhammad denounced. so muhammad’s messages would harm the economy of mecca
muhammad and his followers then relocated to medina, where he became not only a religious leader but a political leader due to his moral integrity and proficiency in business, peace negotiation, and military commandment
how did muhammad take back mecca
with his new military power from medina and other united tribes, he took back mecca and destroyed all the idols around the kaaba. he then circled around the kaaba seven times starting the tawaf.
what are the five pillars of islam
shahada - a declaration of faith, “there is no god but allah and muhammad is the messenger of allah”
salat - daily prayer 5 times a day at certain times, face towards the kaaba
sawm - fasting, fast from sunrise to sundown during the month of ramadan
hajj - a pilgrimage to the mecca and other holy sites related to muhammad and abraham
zakat - yearly 2.5% donation of wealth and assets to the less fortunate
what were the caliphs and the caliphates
caliphs were rulers of the islamic empire, called the caliphate. the four main caliphs were rashidun,
umayyad, abbasid, and ottoman
what large empires did the caliphs conquer
the sassanian empire and 2/3 of the byzantine empire
why were ppl willing to accept muslim leaders as new rulers
citizens disliked the current leaders’ corruption and imposing nature
muslim leaders ran government in a more secular manner with less emphasis on religion
some caliphates also allowed jews and christians to continue practicing their religion freely
what religious buildings did the islamic empires build
the mosque of damascus - demonstrates architectural feats, decorated with byzantine gold
dome of the rock - built a large gold dome around the rock where abraham was said to have almost sacrificed isaac, shows islam’s power in the region
what did the islamic empires do for infrastructure
the islamic empires built advanced water purification, water supply, and irrigation systems. this allowed for increased trade in the region
what happened after muhammad’s death
muhammad passed away only two years after taking mecca
medina fell into chaos and ceremony
two factions were created based on muhammad’s successor
what is the difference between shia and sunni muslims
sunni (87-90%) - believe muhammad wanted them to select a successor from their elders (first was abu bakr)
shia (10-13%) - believe ali, muhammad’s son in law/cousin, was selected to be successor
how did the hajj influence trade
during the hajj, borders were opened, allowing for people, goods, and ideas to freely travel
large amounts of trade also occurred in the image of muhammad, a merchant
why was baghdad a center for scholars
baghdad was located in the center of the caliph, allowing many people to easily travel to it
first had many marketplaces, leading to a need for education creating scholars
then brought in other scholars through trade
began uniting many different scholars from many different regions
what did the baghdad scholars do with ancient texts
scholars were dispatched to look for ancient greek and indian texts
some other religious groups saw the texts as blasphemous but muslim scholars began translating them into arabic
scholars both accepted and challenged old ideas leading to innovation through the scientific research process
what were some accomplishments of the islamic golden age
created foundations of algebra, trigonometry, astronomy, engineering
first theory of germs and made hospitals
detailed anatomy diagrams
advanced study eyes, removed cataracts, helped lead to first camera
how did paper help baghdad scholars
scholars encountered paper in asia and began using it to record innovations
these paper recordings then spread throughout europe
what is a golden age
a period of great happiness, prosperity, innovation, and achievement
what does cosmopolitan mean
including or containing many different countries
what are the people of the book
jews and christians
what was islamization
gradual spread of Islam throughout the middle east. arab conquests resulted in conversions that later also resulted in the fusion of local cultures and islamic traditions.
what were some political reasons for the islamic empires’ success
used a meritocracy until umayyad dynasty
learnt from the bureaucratic organization of past successful empires such as the sassanids and the byzantines
kept past political organization during conquest, employed local leaders, minimizing disruption
egalitarian society, emphasizing brotherhood
tolerated people of different cultures, specifically people of the book
didn’t rule forcefully
less corruption or forcefulness
did not force conquered people to join the army, unlike other empires
did not tax muslims to fund wars
what were some military reasons for the islamic empires’ success
adopted nomadic warriors
united tribes together who previously wanted to break off against common enemies through war
carefully planned military missions
early military success strengthened faith in allah
spoils of water equally disturbed among military providing funding
armies worked to keep peace
viewed as liberators due to past corruption
what were some religious reasons for the islamic empires’ success
islam was egalitarian, viewed everybody as equal in the eyes of allah
did not force religion on people. as long as they obeyed the laws, paid a tax, and did not revolt, people of the book could continue practicing their religion.
beliefs of equality, against enslavement of other muslims, gender equality
accepting of anybody who accepted allah as the one and only god
not many laws, making conversion a quicker process
believed allah was on their side and supporting them during wars
did not have to pay taxes, only had a moral obligation, zakat
promise of salvation
people converted for business reasons, merchants held in high regard
intermarriage
urbanization led many people to get closer together and exchange ideas
what trading partners did the islamic empires have and what goods did they receive
since baghdad was the end of the silk road and the islamic empire extended through north africa, the middle east, and europe, the islamic empires traded with china, india, europe, and african empires
some goods were paper, cotton, dyes, spices, coffee, ideas, agricultural methods, and textiles
what innovations did the islamic empires introduce or adopt
astrolabe - a form of compass and clock that could determine the direction of the mecca and the time of day, two important parts for muslim prayer
agricultural techniques - merchants kept records of different techniques they saw around the world making manuals that would be later used
paper manufacturing - adopted from captive chinese war prisoners
saddles - trade was conducted on camels due to their resilience in desert, developed saddles to carry heavier loads
compass - could tell the direction of mecca for prayer, originated in china
lateen sail - form of effective sail adopted from conquered mediterraneans, allowed for efficient over seas trade
caravanserai - rest stops / inns for merchants, offered food, shelter, water, animal care
how did islam influence trade
merchants were seen highly since muhammad was also a merchant, said that “couriers of the horizon and god’s trusted servants on earth,” said that honest merchants would stand among martyrs
hajj brought many people and therefore goods and ideas together in one area, security of mecca during hajj allowed for easy transport of goods
what were some islamic innovations in business
had banks where you could exchange cash for a sakk, could then exchange sakk in another bank for local currency, adopted in europe as the check
multiple people would invest into businesses so that if the business failed the losses weren’t as extreme
