islam study guide Flashcards
1
Q
allah
A
the belief of one god; monotheism
2
Q
muslim
A
“one who has submitted” – followed islam
3
Q
islam
A
“submission to the will of god”
4
Q
sunna
A
the proper way of living
5
Q
shari’a
A
a system of law that regulates the muslim’s life
6
Q
five pillars of faith
A
- faith - one god, muhammad is his prophet
- pray - five times a day, face mecca: the holy city, call to prayer
- charity/alms - give to the less fortunate
- fast during ramadan - fast from sunrise to sundown during the holy month
- hajj - pilgrimage to mecca, pray at kaaba
- there is no split between their religion and their daily lives
7
Q
qu’ran
A
- holy book of the muslims
- written in arabic
- was revealed to muhammaad over a period of twenty-three years
8
Q
people of the book
A
- christians, jews
- they all have a holy book with similar teachings as the qu’ran
- worshhip same god
- reconize jesus as a phropet
- however, muslims does not belive that jesus was a god or the son of god
9
Q
sunni: one of the two largest groups of muslims
A
- devoted muslims can become caliphs even if not relaetd to muhammad
- supported the first three caliphs
- idea of majority rule
10
Q
shi’a: one of the two largest groups of muslims
A
- only descendants of muhammad can become caliphs
- did not support the first three caliphs
- insist that only special muslims can interpret the qur’an
11
Q
sufi: small group of muslims
A
- not concerned about the caliphs, as long as they’re muslim
- pursued a life of poverty
- fast, chant, meditation, prayer
- goal is to get their mind in a state closer to god
- didn’t like the lavish life the umayyad’s lived
12
Q
muhammad: last prophet
A
- angel gabriel spoke to muhammad as a messenger for allah
- muhammad began to teach allah and monotheism
- his ideas were not accepted
- mecca was polytheistic
- thought it would hurt their economy
- ruled in medina (yathrib)
- “city of the prophet”
13
Q
the hijrah: muhammad’s migration to yathrib (medina)
A
- left mecca because his followers were being attacked
- during the hijrah, muhammad attracted many followers
14
Q
return to mecca
A
- 630 - muhammad and his followers marched back to mecca
- mecca’s leaders surrendered
- most meccans pledge their loyalty to muhammad and converted to islam
- muhammad died two years later
15
Q
“rightly guided” caliphs
A
- before muhammad died, he had expressed a desire to spread faith
- the first four caliphs made great progress in spreading islam (in order of their rule)
- abu-baker
- umar
- uthman
- ali
- used the qur’an and sunna as guides to leadership
- abu-baker invoked jihad, because some tribes abandoned islam, and some refused to pay taxes
- 634 - abu-baker died, umar became the second caliph
- umar and his military conquered most of the byzantine empire, the muslim empire soon expanded 6000 miles from the atlantic ocean to the indus river
- muslim army was well-disciplined
- byzantine and sassanid empire had their own problems and were weak
- the people under their rule supported islam, they would welcome invaders
- 656 - uthman was murdered, which started a civil war
- mu’awiva challenged ali’s rule
- ali could not punish umar’s killers (ali did not know who was his killers”
- mu’awiva and ali’s armies fought
- muslim community attempts to assassinate both, only successful with ali
16
Q
umayads
A
- ruled in damascuss (moved capital to damasscuss)
- abandoned the simple life, surrounded themselves in wealth
17
Q
abbasids
A
- took control of the empire, overthrew the umayyads (murdered the remaining family members)
- ruled in baghdad (moved capital to baghdad)
- kay trade routes
- information from farther empire’s
- developed a strong bureauracy and treasury
- failed to keep potlitical control of the large territory
18
Q
day of judgment
A
where they will be held accountable for their deeds by being judge by god
19
Q
mosque
A
an islamic house of worship
19
Q
imam
A
the one who leads muslims into prayer
20
Q
kaaba
A
the holy shrine in mecca
21
Q
arabian peninsula - the crossroad of three continents – [north] africa, europe, asia
A
- there is only a tiny strip of fertile land, the rest is desert (in the past, it was inhabited by arab herders)
- many arabs had chosen to settle down in an oasis or marketplace
- large towns became market towns for trade and goods
- trade routes connect arabia to major oceans and lands
22
Q
social class
A
- muslims
- converts
- people of the book/protected people (christians, jews)
- slaves - non-muslims
23
Q
battle of badr 624
A
- quraysh v. muhammad and his followers
- muhammad won
24
Q
battle of the trench 627
A
- quraysh v. muslims
- muslims won
25
Q
golden age
A
- under the rule of the abbasids because it was a long period of stability, where trade, wealth, and learning prospered
- the arabian peninsula is a crossroad of trade routes, major trading centers that attracted merchants and scholars
- baghdad had so many architectural achievements, including parks, gardens, villas, baths, etc.
- house of wisdom: intellectual center in baghdad, library, and academy
- there was a lot of scholar studying maths and science in baghdad because it was considered the center of learning
- scholars located, preserved and translated texts from all over the empire
26
Q
business practices
A
- checking system
- currency
- banking system
- partnerships
27
Q
math
A
- al khwarizmi wrote a textbook explaining aljabr (algebra)
- arabic numerals
- geometry, trigonometry
28
Q
science
A
- interested in astronomy
- recorded experiments
- preferred to solve problems by observing and conducting experiments
29
Q
medicine
A
- hospitals
- doctors had to take and pass tests
- a-razi was the greatest physician of the muslim world
- pioneered the study of meages and smallpox
- wrote the encyclopedia “comprehensive book” on knowledge from other sources including his own
- treated poor people
- challenges stage social hierarchy and the religious leadership
- questioned galen’s writing
30
Q
engineering and agriculture
A
- horses, animals, zoology
- canals and irrigation system
31
Q
literature
A
- the qur’an
- “epic poems the rubaiyat” - omar khayyam
- “the shahnameh - the king’s book of kings”
- “ten thousand and one night”
- a collection of fairy tales and legends
- scholars also wrote books on their findings
- ibn khaldun
- historian on how climate and geography influenced people
32
Q
art and architecture
A
- there were no people in artworks because they thought that they would worship the idols instead of allah
- calligraphy: the art of writing
- geometric shapes and abstract art
- arabesque: floral designs (leaves etc.)
- arches and domes
- decorative arts, woodwork
