Islam

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Muhammad's first revelation (date)

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610

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Hijra: Muhammad's emigration from Mecca to Yathrib (date)

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622

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Death of Muhammad (date)

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632

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Death of Ali and beginning of the Umayyad empire (date)

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661

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Karbala (date)

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680

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End of the Umayyad empire and beginning of the Abbasid empire (date)

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750

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End of the Abbasid empire (date)

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1258

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sura

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Chapters in the Quarn

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Mecca

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pre-Islamic trade and religious center

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Kaaba

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(cube-shaped shrine of Mecca). It is the focal point of Muslims’ daily prayers and the annual pilgrimage.

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miraj

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(“ascension”): it refers to the ascent of Muhammad to heaven and into the divine presence.

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Why did Medina embrace Islam more than Mecca?

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Because it's residents had been living alongside Jewish Arabs and had come to respect monotheism.

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Hijra

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The migration or journey of Muhammad and his Companions from Mecca to Medina in 622 CE, marking the commencement of the Muslim era (calendar)

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Quraysh tribe

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Muhammad's Tribe, dominated trade route, protectors of shrines.

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Why did the Quranic revelations threaten the traditional tribal structure and Meccan oligarchy?

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- the revelations forbade the worship of other Gods and demanded the destruction of statues and images. Those revelations threatened business people, particularly those engaged in the pilgrimage trade of Mecca. This annual pilgrimage of Mecca and festival to the Kaaba (then a sanctuary of Arabian tribal religion) brought considerable revenues.

- the revelations condemned the socioeconomic inequities of Meccan life. The prophet denounced usury (lending money at exorbitant rates), the false contracts, the neglect and exploitation of the poor, orphans, and widows. He asserted that the rich had an obligation to the dispossessed in the form of religious tithes.

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Qibla

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direction of prayer

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hadith

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report or tradition of the sayings and deeds of the Prophet, containing his exemplary practice or sunna, the second source of authority for Muslims after the Quran

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sunna

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(“trodden path”) = originally tribal custom of pre-Islamic Arabs; later after the death of the Prophet, sunna = the example of the Prophet or the authoritative example of the way a Muslim should live.

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umma

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the world-wide Muslim community

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Caliph (Khalifah)

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Is one who represents, or acts on behalf of, another (that is Muhammad). The institution of the caliphate was modeled on the function of tribal shaykh or chief, who was first among equals. His authority then was of a moral and advisory nature.

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Abu Bakr

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Caliph

Abu Bakr was the Prophet’s father-in-law. He consolidated Muslim rule in Arabia.

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Umar

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Caliph

Under Umar, what are now Syria, Iraq, Iran, Egypt became Muslim. Umar took Jerusalem and all of Palestine came to be under Muslim rule. The Muslims did not destroy Jerusalem. The Muslim army respected Jews and Christians and their places of worship.

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Uthman

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Caliph

Another Muhammad’s father-in-law. Under the third caliph, Uthman, dissension arose. Uthman belonged to the Umayyad clan of the Quraysh tribe, a Meccan family who had long opposed Muhammad. Many of the early supporters of Muhammad opposed his election and accused him of nepotism. Uthman was also much criticized for establishing a standard version of the Quran.

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Ali

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Caliph

Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, the husband of Muhammad’s daughter Fatima. His reign never had universal acceptance. A power struggle ensued between Ali and the powerful Umayyad governor of Syria, who wanted Ali to hand over the assassins of Uthman for punishment. Ali was murdered.

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Why did Sunni and Shiite split?

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After the murder of the caliph Ali, his followers eventually called Shiites (partisans of the House of Ali), claimed that it was the divine right of the family of Muhammad to rule. When leadership is decided by other factors, they argued, disaster is imminent. Their opponents, the Umayyads, believed that succession should be kept within the tribe of the prophet, but not limited to his kin.

The U guys also killed the fourth Caliph, Husayn.

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Husayn

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son of Ali (Ali was the fourth caliph, cousin of Muhammad)

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Karbala

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Place where Husayn was murdered. Current pilgrimage destination of Shiites.

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Ashura

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The martyrdom of Husayn became one of the central dates in the Shiite calendar. It is commemorated with an annual festival called Ashura in which some men whip themselves to identify with the martyr’s suffering. Ashura is the tenth of the Muslim month of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar. In the days preceding Ashura people fast and martyrdom plays are performed.

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Imam in Shiism

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legitimate successor of the Prophet) = imam is used by the Shii for Ali and his descendants

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The Twelvers

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Shiite Sect

They acknowledge twelve imams after Husayn. Ismailis and Twelvers disagree on the identity of the Seventh Imam. The Twelvers constitute the majority of shiites and are dominant in Iran.

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Umayyad empire

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(661-750)
- their capital was in Damascus (Syria)
- Islam expanded across all of North Africa, entered Southern Spain. The French stopped Muslim invasion at the famous Battle of Tours in 732.
- The capitals of Muslim Spain were Cordoba and Granada. Arts flourished. Muslims, Jews, and Christians lived together in general harmony.
- Non-Arab Muslims resented being treated as second-class Muslims. They had to pay taxes that Muslims were exempt. In 750, they supported a revolution that wiped out the Umayyads.

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Abbasid empire

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- The Abbasids were the enemies of the Umayyads. They were the descendants of Muhammad’s uncle, al-Abbas.
- The Political center moved from Damascus to Baghdad.
- By 850 the empire was more fragmented than unified. There were competing spheres of influence in Spain, Iran, Egypt, North Africa, and Syria.

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shariah

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jurists (called ulama) devoted themselves to the formulation of Islamic law (Sharia = lit. the way to the water hole)

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Sufism

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Islamic Mysticism.

They took coarse woolen garments as their symbol. Probably they received the name Sufi from the Arabic word suf (wool). The word Sufi applied only to quite advanced mystics, ones who could be masters to beginners

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Sufist Goal:

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The Sufis’ goal is to drown their independent existence in union with God.

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shaykh

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Sufi Master

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Tariqa

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Sufi Brotherhood

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dhikr

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(“remembrance”). It applies particularly to the Sufi group practice of invoking the name of Allah.

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famous Islamic Empires:

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Ottoman and Mughal

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The Five Pillars:

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shahada, salat, hajj, zakat, sawm – Ramadan

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Salat

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One of five pillars, "prayer".

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Shahada

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“There is no God but the God (Allah) and Muhammad is the messenger of God.”

This profession of faith is called the shahada, which means witness or testimony

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Hajj

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Pilgrimage to Mecca. Every Muslim expected to do so at least once in their life.

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Zakat

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The payment of the zakat instills a sense of communal identity and responsibility.

It is a tithe on one’s accumulated wealth and assets, not just on one’s income (2.5 percent of their wealth).

It is not regarded as a voluntary offering, but as a duty imposed by God.

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Sawm

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Fasting. Ramadan

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Eid al-Fitr

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Muslim festival celebrating breaking the fast of Ramadan

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Eid al-Adha

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(The Day of Sacrifice)

The pilgrimage ends with the Feast of Sacrifice (Eid al-Adha). Those who can afford it can sacrifice an animal (camel, sheep, or horned animal). This sacrifice commemorates God’s command to sacrifice his son Ismail (Isaac in Jewish and Christian traditions.)