Life of Muhammad and Islam

The Life of Muhammad: Muhammad was born in Mecca around the year 570 in the Arabian Peninsula Arabian Peninsula Desert Nomadic Tribes Polytheistic Domestication of the camel Crossroads of trade and cultures Religious melting pot Mecca: sight of pilgrimage and Ka’aba

The Life of Muhammad: Worked as a merchant Muhammad marries Khadija and have 4 daughters and 2 sons Meditates often At 40, hears a voice speaking to him Voice of the angel Gabriel

Beginnings of Islam Message was that the only true god is Allah Unlike Jesus (who Christians believe was God's son) Muhammad was a mortal He preached a strong social justice message about equality and poverty Islam: submission to the will of Allah Muslim: one who submits to the will of Allah (follower of Islam)

The beginnings of Islam Muhammad begins to attract young and working class followers The ruling elite feared Muhammad and his followers and began to persecute them Mohammad leaves Mecca in 622 following an attack on his followers Moves to Medina (Yathrib) Becomes a political and military leader in addition to religious one Begins tradition of uniting religion and politics

Return to Mecca Marches on Mecca with 10,000 followers in 630 Mecca’s leaders surrender Muhammad destroys tribal polytheistic idols in the Ka’aba Converts many new followers Join the Umma (Muslim religious community) Muhammad dies in 632

Main Beliefs of Islam

Koran (or the Qur'an) Holy Book of Islam Written account of revelations to Muhammad Contains ethical guidelines and laws Many commandments, few stories Introduced life after death and heaven & hell (divine reckoning) Written in Arabic Only Arabic version is considered the true word of Allah

Islamic Beliefs Muslims believe that God had previously revealed Himself to the earlier prophets of the Jews and Christians Muslims accept the teachings of both the Jewish Torah and the Christian Gospels They believe that Muhammad was a mere mortal, not divine They believe that Islam is the perfection of the religion They do not use clergy to interpret the holy scripture Moses

The Five Pillars

The Five Pillars 1-Declaration of Faith (Shahada) Muslims must state that there is not God but Allah and Muhammad is his prophet. 2. Daily Prayer (Salaah) Muslims must pray five times a day facing the Kaaba in Mecca. Pre Dawn Noon Afternoon Sunset Evening

The Five Pillars 3. Charity (Zakah) Muslims are supposed to help others and donate part of their income to charity. 4. Fasting-Ramadan (Sawn) Muslims must fast from sunrise to sunset during the holy month of Ramadan which celebrates the recording of the Quran.

The Five Pillars 5. Pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj) If you are physically and financially able you must travel to Mecca once in your lifetime

Timelapse of praying at the Ka’aba https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKI6PtbIZzM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7q_LcqbvKI

Life as a Muslim Shari’ah Law: a set of laws which regulate many aspects of Muslim life No separation between church and state covers family life, business, government, and moral conduct Muslims are expected to practice honesty and justice in dealing with others and are forbidden to gamble, eat pork, drink alcohol, or engage in dishonest behavior.

Period after Muhammad Muhammad dies in 632, but didn’t name a successor Muhammad’s close friend Abu Bakr becomes the first caliph Umar, Uthman, and Ali follow after him Together they are the “rightly guided” caliphs Worked to expand influence of Islam outside the Arabian peninsula

Sunni vs. Shi’a

The Islamic Map