Islam Flashcards
Pre-Islamic world
Mecca was a center of worship and devotion for the Arab nomadic tribes that inhabited the region; polytheism predominated; Kabba is the site for pilgrimage in Mecca.
The Hanefites
A tribe that rejected idol worship and polytheism in favor of monotheism and was influenced by Judaism and Christianity; these people had an influence on Mohammed, who in 610CE got his first vision of Allah during meditation and was subsequently declared prophet by the Hanefites; afterward, Mohammed, whose teachings were unpopular in Meccap, moved to Medina, where he found followers.
After Mohammed
Two potential successors:
Ali, Mohammed’s cousin and son-in-law, whose proponents became known as the Shiites.
Abu Bakr, Mohammed’s friend and confidant, whose followers became known as the Sunnis.
The Quran / Koran
Considered to be the words of Allah given to Mohammed; 114 Surahs (chapters); no chronology; believed by the Muslims to be an Earthly copy of actual tablets residing in heaven; passed on to followers by Mohammed via sermons, poems, and other methods.
The Hadith
A collection of sayings or utterances of Mohammed (like an appendix to the Koran); Sharia law often relates to the teachings of the Hadith; basis of Sunni education; often used to clarify the teachings of the Koran.
Islam
A faith based on the teachings of the prophet Mohammed, with at its cornerstone the belief that Allah is the only true god; Islam teaches that human life doesn’t begin at birth and that Allah created the souls of men before the world came into being; the sacred texts of Islam are the Koran and the Hadith.
The 5 pillars of the Islamic faith
Shahada: declaration of faith; Allah is the only god, and Mohammed was God’s prophet
Prayers: 5 times a day, oriented toward Mecca
Charity
Fasting: Ramadan
Hajj: pilgrimage in Mecca, at least once in a lifetime
Sharia law (true path)
Governs all aspects of a Muslim’s life: the worship of Allah, commercial activities, marriage/divorce, criminal law…
Off-shoots of Islam
Sufism: the mystical sect of Islam (8th century); holds that Mohammed’s revelation is incomplete and that all humans can gain spiritual liberty through revelation about and from God.
Bahai movement: 19th century, Iran; Mirza Ali Muhammad began teaching that he also received revelation from Allah.
The Abbasid caliphate (750-1258CE)
The golden age of Islam; Baghdad’s House of Wisdom; the Canon of medicine; the Arabian nights…
Fundamental Islam
Wahhabism (Saudi Arabia, centuries ago): fundamentalist sect of Islam; calls for jihad. Muslim brotherhood (Egypt, 20th century): founded to remove westerners from the country.
