The Importance of Islam in the Rise of Baghdad
The Prophet Muhammad is commonly referred to as the founder of Islam. Known as the “Holy Prophet” to Muslims, many believe he was the last prophet appointed by God for mankind. Muhammad brought together Arabia to form one Muslim polity. He made certain that his practices, lessons, and the Quran established the base of the religion of Islam. “Muslims look to his example for guidance in all aspects of life: eating; fasting; praying; the treatment of a spouse; the creation of contracts; the waging of war; and the conduct of diplomacy”(6, Reading 1). Muhammad had great leadership qualities, and was able to implement Islam all though Arabia by convincing the Arabian people, particularly the Bedouin
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Islam first gained prominence in the Arabian Peninsula in the seventh century. In a period of 150 years, leaders of the religious community conquered a vast amount of territory, where the people believed in many different religions. In the end, they aligned with the message that all religions are based on the individuality and unity of God, leading them to follow Islam. (Reading 5). One of the primary ways Islam was spread was through trade. Within a century, Islam conquered Palestine, Persia, Egypt, and went through North Africa and into Spain. Islam’s holiest city, Mecca, traded with vast empires–the Byzantine and Persian empires, so many people gained knowledge about Islam. Another reason why Islam spread so rapidly is because the religion had fair, simplistic, and logical rules and virtues, unlike other religions, which made it more relatable to people. The Bedouins contributed to the spread of Islam through Arabia, allowing them to conquer the land in Iraq, and form the city of Baghdad. Around 634 AD, the recently formed Muslim empire expanded into the region of Iraq, which was part of the Persian Empire. Muslim armies defeated the Persian Empire, and offered the primarily Christian Persians two options. They either had to accept and embrace Islam, or they were forced to pay a tax in order to get protection by the new
The town of Mecca was the birthplace of Islam, at first the leaders of the city refused the changing of this new religion and forced Muhammad to leave. Muhammad returned and preached to the people about what he had heard, that there is only one god. Islam spread quickly for two main reasons they are the message and military conquest.
For example, the spread of Islam to the Byzantines and the Persians. The other caliphs (Umar, Uthman and Ali) expanded the Islamic empire rapidly and grew faster than any other religion. The Muslims conquered a massive amount of land from the Indus River, across North Africa and into Spain. There were many factors that helped Islam succeed; for example, people would rather fight for God and their salvation instead of fighting for a king, the use of military force by the Muslims and how easy it was to convert to Islam.
“In 622, a small community of Muslims gradually migrated from Mecca to Medina” (Cleveland 11) they were in effect kicked out of Mecca because their leader, Muhammad “posed a challenge to the social, economic, and religious structure of the city” (Cleveland 10). By 750, this small group of outcasts had gained power over “an empire that stretched from Morocco to India” (Cleveland 17). The religion of Muhammad, Islam, grew even beyond this first empire and became the driving force behind future expansions for a millennium. There are quite a few factors that played into the initial success of these Islamic empires and by extension, Islam. However, the strength of its empires was not only in their ability to gain power but also in their ability to sustain it. As each Islamic empire grew, the number cultures and religions within it grew as well. The Koran provided some guidance on how to manage these different regions in addition; each empire devised creative methods of dealing with the immense diversity. The strength of these Islamic empires lied in their ability to maintain a strong centralized government firmly based in Islam, while adapting to accept vastly different cultures.
One way that Islam spread was through Military Force. Document A, has some reasons why Islam spread. In the battle 24,000 Muslims took part. With the help of Allah, some 70,000 of them were put to death and the rest of the army took fight reaching as far as Palestine, Antioch, Aleppo, Mesopotamia and Armenia. The battle was the fiercest and bloodiest fight ever.
We see in the mid-7th century the Muslim Invasions conquering Cathage, Alexandria, and Spain. By the Muslims increasing their empire, this led to a spread not only people, but also Islam. The Sunnah encourages Muslims to trade and make money to support themselves, such
Although there are many religious in history, Islam is one of the quickest spreading in the Middle East. According to Document A, cultural diffusion helped advance the religion of Islam. For example, the city of Mecca was the center of trade, which meant there were many trade routes connected to Mecca. Some trade routes travelled farther away, like to India or China and Islam's culture and religion grew from all the trading. Document B explains that Islam spread so quickly because the laws from their God appealed to many. In other words, the laws of the Muslim community were fair, wanted people to be kind not evil, told followers their property would not be stolen or destroyed and also promised them afterlife in paradise. People that were not
law, whose descendants were seen by the Shiites as the appropriate leaders. However, after Ali became the fourth caliph, he was assassinated.
One of the reasons why Islam spread so quickly was because of the trading that was happening about the time islam first began. The people how were trading goods with the muslims would spread the word about muhammad in their home towns. Muhammad lived in Mecca, which was a very important and rich town . Mecca was a major crossroads for for the caravan trade. Everything from silk to spices came through Mecca. People from every direction came to Mecca to trade. Muhammad and his followers would tell the traders about Islam and some
Unlike Christians, Muslims believe that the Prophet Muhammad spread their religion throughout the world. Islam began in the year 610, when the prophet Muhammad started receiving messages from Allah, through the Angel Gabriel. He started spreading the word to others and that is how the Islamic faith began. The Prophet Muhammad was born in 570 AD in Saudi Arabia, Mecca. Both of his parents passed away by the time he was 6 years old and he was raised by his uncle. Muhammad’s first job was a camel driver and later he started managing caravans for many merchants. In doing so, he was employed by a woman named Khadija. They soon got married and it was said that she made his life easier because Allah was through her. When Muhammad was in his 30’s, he would go to Mount Hira to be alone and pray.One day on the mountain while in solitude an angel came to him saying he was chosen to spread the word of Allah. At first, Muhammad said he was not the right one to do this mission however, the angel persisted. He went home to tell his wife and through his wife he found the courage to follow what the angel told him. Khadija was his first follower. In the first three years, he only converted 40 people in Mecca. It was only a small amount of people but it caused a lot of chaos in Mecca. Many of his followers were sentenced to death and Muhammad was next. As persecution was rising, Muhammad found out that he had followers in a city
Islam continued to spread by making the idea of being a Muslim sound great. The Muslim Empire didn’t force any Muslims to pay taxes(Doc 1). The idea of changing religions made a lot of sense money wise. The change to Islam was not a large difference, pray more, and eat a little less during sun up. The idea of going to paradise after your death seemed Marvelous (Doc 2). It also gave you an idea about fighting for the Muslim Army, if you died, you would be taken to Heaven with Allah and his Apostle. To some
Muhammad was the Prophet of the God. He was the last and final Prophet. His sudden death in 632 CE marked a time of challenge for Muslims as they faced the uncertainty of the future. The most imminent challenge the Muslim community faced was the prospect of who would be the heir to Muhammad. Who was the rightful heir? There was much divide on this subject throughout the Muslim community between the Sunnis and the Shi`a. Along with the uncertainty of who the authority of Islam would now be, the challenge of what kind of authority they would bring also plagued Muslims. Islam was still a developing religion amongst the already dominant religions of Judaism and Christianity so the Muslim community now had the challenge of still expanding their
Islam is a major world religion. Its origin can be traced back to 610 CE in Arabia. The basis of this religion is the revelations to the prophet Mohammad. Dissatisfied with his life, he traveled to deserts, hills, and the wilderness surrounding Mecca, where he lived, to meditate and reflect. He became a new man through his revelations, which many of his followers believe Allah transmitted to him through his angel Gabriel. Islam was originally an Arab religion, but many different beliefs and practices were added to it, making it extremely popular and aiding in its rapid spread. This new religion spread to many different areas surrounding Arabia, both under Mohammad and after his death. The Muslim Empire grew to encompass Spain and the Eastern Roman Empire as well Persia and Africa. Many different practices and methods were used to spread Islam. The religion itself was appealing to, in addition to the inhabitants of Arabia, other people in the surrounding areas because of its distinct religious beliefs and practices, such as the five pillars, as well as the humility and prayerfulness of the Islamic people. They fought cruel, vicious wars with their enemies. Many different things motivated the warriors to expand, but above all, the riches they would gain from the people of the Fertile Crescent encouraged them to expand.
The prophet Muhammad had a significant impact on the rise and spread of the religion Islam. According to World Civilizations, Muhammad “began receiving revelations transmitted from Allah,” and later these revelations became holy scripts in the Quran. Muhammad started off with very few followers but as the faith of Allah started to spread, he gained more followers and he became a threat to Mecca’s rulers. As mentioned in World Civilization, “in 622 Muhammad left Mecca for Medina where his skilled leadership brought new followers.” In Medina, Muhammad became the religious authority in the area and he used this power to conquer Mecca, a holy place for Islamic believers. By the time of his death, he was able to have created a religious empire that controlled all of the Arabian Peninsula.
In ancient Arabia, a merchant trader by the name of Muhammad ibn Abdallah claimed to have been receiving messages from Allah - the one true god. For two whole years before speaking up, Muhammad kept the words of the angels only between close family and friends. It is believed that pagan Arabs felt their religious beliefs were far less sophisticated than other religions such as the Jewish and Christian faith, given their lack of religious texts and prophets such as Jesus, Moses, and Abraham. In 622 CE Muhammad recited his teaching publicly in Mecca. Though eventually there was such a resistance to the teachings of Islam, largely attributed to its threat to local business during pilgrimages to Mecca, Muhammad decided to leave.
The Split of Islam More than thirteen centuries ago, an event forever influenced the modern world: the split of Islam. With repercussions that still impact the modern world, Islam split into two sects —Sunni and Shia. Islam, the world’s second largest religion, was founded in 622 CE by Muhammad on the Arabian Peninsula. After years and years of preaching, Muhammad gained numerous followers, known as Muslims, and made Islam a political force. Unfortunately, Muhammad died in 632 CE, leaving no successor.