Muhammed’s career• Born circa 570 A.D. into the Banu Hasim clan of the

influential Quraysh tribe in Mecca. His father died before his birth and he lost his mother at age 6. He was raised by his uncle Abu Talib and his uncle’s wife Fatimah.• Worked first as a shepherd, then as a trader. Limited

literacy if not illiterate. Good speaking skills and memory. Known as “the Trustworthy One”. • His reputation and manner caught the attention of a

wealthy widow Khadijah who hired him first to lead her caravans, and who eventually proposed marriage to him. They had one daughter, Fatimah, and 3 adopted daughters. • First revelation – c 610 (M. is around 40) in the month

of Ramadan. These revelations continue for 20 more years until his death.

Mohammed in Mecca• M., as he approached middle age, often went alone on

retreat into the wilderness to pray and meditate.

• In 610 during on of these retreats he felt an overwhelming presence (the angel Jabril) telling him “Recite”. This happened on 3 separate occasions. He repeated what he heard to his wife Kadijah, and again to her cousin Waraqa bin Nawfal, an old and revered Christian. He told them he believed the sincerity of Mohammed’s message and that he was being called as God’s prophet to the Arabs.

• He received a few more revelations, then all revelations stopped for 2 years. When they began again, he had over 100 different revelations spanning over a 20 years until his death. He committed them to memory and repeated them to others. His followers gradually wrote them down and they became the Quran.

• Meccan period of his mission 610-622. Preaches, peaceful.Hijra to Medina – 622 (needs to get out of Mecca). First year of Islamic calendar. Medinan period of his mission,

622-632. Establishes a polity that warfare is necessary to survive and be respected among hostile surroundings.

Death – 632

2 distinct periods in the Mission of Mohammed

Messengers and Prophets of God in Islam

God has sent many messengers and prophets before Muhammed

Partial list: Adam Nuh (Noah) Hud (Arabian prophet) Salih (Arabian prophet) Ibrahim (Abraham) Lut (Lot) Ishaq (Isaac) Isma‘il (Ishmael) Yusuf (Joseph) Scripture: Tawra

Musa (Moses) Harun (Aaron)

Daud (David) Scripture: Zubur (Psalms)

Ilyas (Elias, Elijah)Suleiman (Solomon)Yunus (Jonah)Yahya (John the Baptist)‘Isa (Jesus). Scripture: Injil (Gospel)

The Quran begins with the Shahādawhich has 2 parts

First part isLā ilāha illa Allāh “There is no god but God...”It is followed by the second partMuhammad Rasūl Allāh “...and Muhammad is His prophet.”

With 1st wife Sarah

With second wife Hagar (Egyptian)

Isaac IshmaelJacob (Israel)

12 sons, 12 tribes of Israel

Became a great people: the Arabs

Abraham/Ibrahim

Ishmael (Hebrew, "may God hear"), in the Old Testament, the elder son of the Hebrew patriarch Abraham, and in Islamic tradition, an ancestor of the Arab peoples. His story (see Genesis 16, 21, 25) is interwoven with that of Isaac. Ishmael's mother was Hagar, Egyptian handmaid to Abraham's wife, Sarah, who was barren. In answer to her prayers, Sarah conceived and was delivered of a son, Isaac. Having thus satisfied Abraham, Sarah demanded that Hagar and Ishmael be driven away. Hagar and her son fled to the south. Ishmael settled in the wilderness, married an Egyptian woman, and became the progenitor of 12 tribes of desert nomads. The region occupied by these Ishmaelites included most of central and northern Arabia. Muslims regard themselves as the descendents of Ishmael and view Hagar as the true wife of Abraham, and Ishmael (or Ismail) his favored son. In this version, Ishmail, not Isaac, was offered for sacrifice by Abraham (Quran 37:101)

½ brothe

rs

The Main beliefs of Islam

•Allah•His angels•His scriptures•His messengers•The Last Day (final judgment)

The 5 Pillars of Islam(the most important religious requirements)

•Shahada: see slide 10•Salah (salat) - prayer five times a day•Ramadan: daytime fasting during the month of Ramadan. •Zakah (zakat) - alms or tax for the poor.•Hajj - pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in one’s life during the month of Dhu al-Hijja.

Sunni + Shi’a IslamChoosing as the successor of Mohammed divides the

communityThose who chose Abu Bakr came to be called the Sunni Muslims

Those who chose Ali came to be called the Shi’a Muslims Sunna – in Arabic means the normative “behavior” or “practice” of Islam Shi’at – means “the faction”.

• Abu Talib, uncle of M., who raised and protected him.• Abu Bakr; right hand man,

ally, gives his daughter Fatima to be M’s favorite wife• Ali ; cousin of M. and early,

loyal follower who marries Fatima, M’s daughter.

Those closest to Mohammed

MENWOMEN* Khadija: first wife of M.Widow. Monogamous. After Khadija he married several widows. •Ayesha – favorite wife of Mohammed, given at age 14. Daughter of Abu Bakr.•Fatima – daughter of M. and Khadija

The first Caliph is chosen

• When Muhammad died in 632 CE, his closest relatives (Fatima and Ali) took charge of the funeral arrangements. While they were preparing his body, Abu Bakr, Umar, and Abu Ubaidah ibn al Jarrah met with the leaders of Medina and elected Abu Bakr as caliph without consulting Fatima or Ali. • Ali and his family were upset, but accepted the appointment for the sake

of unity in the early Muslim community

1st Caliph Abu Bakr 2nd Caliph Umar (assassinated in 644) 3rd Caliph Uthman: appointed by Umar, first Umayyid . Assassinated in 657. The community now appoints Ali as 4th Caliph Ali (656-661). He sets up his caliphate in Kufah (in present day Iran). His caliphate is contested by Ummayids, there is civil war, and he is assassinated. His son Husayn turns it over to the Umayyids in the interests of peace, but in the end is still assassinated.

Damascus: new Umayyid capital. Arabic: official language.

Conflicts with Persia and Byzantium are very successful. Empire expands to N. Africa

Policy toward the conquered: they may chose to convert to Islam or they may keep their native religion and pay

tax and live as dhimmi with limited freedoms.

Caliphates after Mohammed (632 )

The 4 Righteous CaliphsASHURA:

Shi’as commemorating the martyrdom of Hussayn, with men beating their backs or cutting their heads.

Shi‘as split further based on arguments over which of M’s descendents should rule• Zaydīs (Fivers)• Ismā‘īlīs (Seveners)• Imāmīs (Twelvers)

Shi’ite genealogy

The hidden imam went into occultation in the 9th century and will eventually make himself present as savior and judge of the world.

Sunnis believe the savior Mahdi is yet to come.