Crusades Final Exam Part Two The use of Jihad by Nur Al-din and his role in Muslim Recovery Nur Al-din played an instrumental role in uniting the Muslim world for the first time since the arrival of the Crusaders through the use of jihad as a powerful tool and driving force behind the Muslim recovery. Nur Al-din used jihad to rally the fractured Muslim world, revitalize and heal it, and gain for himself political power and legitimacy. Although his career as a military leader of jihad was less noteworthy to Muslim chroniclers, Nur Al-din made tremendous contributions to the Muslim world both in the religious and military arenas. Role in Muslim Recovery Throughout his career, Nur Al-din was able to unite the Muslim world and bring about recovery …show more content…
It is clear that Nur Al-din gained much on account of jihad, particularly caliphal legitimacy, and power of Syria and Egypt. At the same time however, as Carol Hillenbrand emphasizes “Muslim chroniclers are at pains to portray him as a pious Sunni Muslim ruler and a zealous fighter of jihad against the Franks”. Regardless of Nur Al-din’s motivation, however, the contributions that he made to jihad and the Muslim recovery were imperative to the success of the Muslim world. Concluding Remarks Nur Al-din used jihad to rally the Muslim world under his banner, which allowed him to both revitalize and heal the fractured Muslim powers, and gain for himself political influence, authority, and legitimacy. Nur Al-din left behind a great legacy as both personal and public jihadist and left a solid foundation of ideology built by jihad propaganda for Salah al-Din to build upon in the coming years. The powerful tool of jihad that Nur Al-din used would continue to be the driving force that would lead to the end of the crusader state in the years to
...y by compiling a summary of Islamic history, and, by doing so, creates a complete Islamic history that can go toe to toe with European history. As a result, his argument stands to be thorough, suggesting that Islamic history indeed plays a role in today’s international world
Livingston, John W., and Al-Jabarti. "The Rise of Shaykh al-Balad 'Ali Bey al-Kabir: A Study in
Pipes, Daniel. “How Elijah Muhammad Won.” Commentary. Jun. 2000, vol. 109 issue 6, p31, 6p. Academic Search Elite. EBSCOhost. .
The Nation of Islam, which Malcolm X was an important member of, is not a religious organization as the name suggests but rather an organization whose goal was to make the lives of African Americans better instead of actually teaching the proper ethics of Islam. One of the main objectives of this organization was Black Nationalism, through which Black leaders can control the areas where there is a majority of African Americans. This cause was greatl...
All in all, this short selection of Usama’s writings does much to further the understanding of the effects on the crusades on many Muslims during this period, though since this was written by an affluent elite it does not describe much of the general populous’ experience. It also provides a good overview of the interactions between Muslims themselves. This was a time fraught with danger and division but Usama’s work shows that a common thread kept many together and preserved a civilization that still exists to this very day.
For forty-one year’s Muhammad spread the word of the Nation of Islam, slowly but steadily attracting new members (biography.com). Muhammad built the religion from a small fringe group into a large and complex organization that attracted controversy along with its new prominence (biography.com). His legacy within the Nation of Islam intact, Muhammad, or simply “The Prophet,” is widely remembered for transforming a small temple into a nationwide movement with hundreds of thousands of devoted followers, culminating in an irrevocable effect on black culture and U.S. history (blackhistorynow.com).
“Jihad was but one of the reactions that Muslims had toward the Franks. But given its prevalence in the medieval Islamic sources—understanding this concept and its history in the years leading up to the era of the Crusades is important.” states Cobb (Cobb, page
Likewise, Goodwin illustrates how the use of categorical terrorism can be seem being used by Al-Qaida during the attacks of 9/11. Nonetheless, it is evident that Al-Qaida is unusual in terms of using terrorism to influence the rise of unity rather than trying to overthrow a standing state. For the purpose of instigating a pan-Islamic revolutionary movement, Al-Qaida tries to unite all Islamic people under one state to develop umma, or Muslim community. The logic of Al-Qaida remained that if their “revolutionaries” could illicit a reaction from the powerful US state, resulting in oppression of the middle-eastern region, that Al-Qaida could, as a result, unite all Muslims to counter this suggested oppression. Although the end goal of Al-Qaida clear failed, it does suggest the organization’s attempt at implementing categorical terrorism.
Writing about a topic that has been on an upward slope of controversy and criticism within the past two decades, Fred Donner a notable Islamic History professor at the University of Chicago whom has written multiple texts about the origins of Islam, tells the tale of the beginnings of Islam and how it would be shaped into its current manifestation today with Muhammad and the Believers. Donner admirably conveys the early history of Islam and its success to its centrality and “Believers’ Movement” opposed to many western historians accrediting it to the need of social and economic reform. Muhammad and the Believers is split up into five chapters, all of which Donner imparts his main thesis of Islam being a group of believers (mu’minun) opposed
Violent Jihad as a struggle against one’s enemies has its root in [these] situations. When the Islamic religion spread over the region, Jihad became a religious tenet and assumed the form of a peaceful, internal struggle to strive for the good and reject the evil in one’s action. Violent, external conflict was never r...
According to Amin Maalouf, “It seems clear that the Arab East still sees the West as a natural enemy. Against that enemy, any hostile action-be it political, military, or based on oil-is considered no more than legitimate vengeance. And there can be no doubt that the schism between these two worlds dates from the Crusades, deeply felt by the Arabs, even today, as an act of rape” (Amin Maalouf). When reflecting on The Crusades Through Arab Eyes, this quote always sticks out as the most powerful piece of Maalouf’s work. As a growing college student this quote brings harsh reality to the world I live in. I believe as you grow through life, you become more and more aware of the world around you through education. In order to be aware you must be educated; The Crusades Through Arab Eyes has done just that by opening my eyes to a world and viewpoint I have never before considered.
Hilāl, ʻAlī Al-Dīn. Islamic Resurgence in the Arab World. New York, NY: Praeger, 1982. Print.
I have been somewhat critical of the author at times, but this is only because he opens the door for the reader to think. I would not be able to formulate opinions if he hadn’t questioned whether Muhammad was being a fair and effective leader. After all, he greatly changed the course of history as we know it. Cook’s objective way of looking at Muhammad’s life allows one to attain a clear view of just how deep of an impact he made.
Throughout his life, the Prophet Muhammad proved to be exceptionally adept at uniting diverse groups, negotiating a series of alliances and loyalty arrangements that spanned religious, tribal, ethnic, and familial lines (Berggren 2009). Among other things, this ability enabled Muhammad to forge a shared identity and found a nascent Islamic state from a diverse and even heterogeneous community (Rahman 1982; Ernst 2003, pp. 87-93). This diversity proved to be both a source of strength and conflict for Islam, and following the death of Muhammad early Islamic communities engaged in extensive debates not only about the nature of his teachings or how to carry his legacy forward, but also about the terms that should be used to define his authority. Although this debate produced a colorful array of movements within the tapestry of early Islamic civilization, this essay offers a critical examination of two particularly distinct perspectives on the nature of prophetic authority: namely, those articulated
Rumi was a 13th century Persian Sunni Muslim. His body of work in poetry is still loved around the world today and he is considered to be the best-selling poet of all time. It is doubtful, however, that this was the intent Rumi had or wished for; rather, he was influenced by other Persian poets, notably Attar and Sanai, to express his deep and passionate love for his Islamic faith and adherence to Sufism. Sufism allowed Rumi the ability to have an intensity for his religion that transcended his earthly body and mind.