Transcript Islamic Culture - University of Hawaii

Islamic Culture
Islamic Religion
 religion of allegiance to God and his prophet Mohammed
 who lived around 570-632 and came from a family of
traders at Mecca.
 The religion's book of revelation, mediated by the
prophet, is the Koran.
 Islam means "entering into a condition of peace and
security with God, through allegiance or surrender to
him".
 Mohammed received his revelations over a period of 23
years from the Angel Jibreel, or Gabriel, who was
relaying the word of God.
 In Muslim eyes, Mohammed completes a succession of
prophets, including Abraham, Moses and Jesus, each of
whom refined and restated the message of God.
 Muhammad was born in 569 after Christ
 Lost most family members
 he served as a shepherd boy to some
neighbors.
 At the age of ten he accompanied his uncle to
Syria when he was leading a caravan there.
 set up a shop in Mecca.
 There he worked for a wealthy widow
 He called for a meeting of certain chieftains in
the city, and organized an order of chivalry,
called Hilf al-fudul, with the aim and object of
aiding the oppressed in Mecca, irrespective of
their being dwellers of the city or aliens.
 It is from this moment that we find
Muhammad becoming more and more
absorbed in spiritual meditations.
 Like his grandfather, he used to retire
during the whole month of Ramadan to a
cave in Jabal-an-Nur (mountain of light).
 The cave is called `Ghar-i-Hira' or the cave
of research. There he prayed, meditated,
and shared his provisions with the others
who happened to pass by.
 He was forty years old,
and it was the fifth
consecutive year since
his annual retreats, when
one night towards the end
of the month of
Ramadan, an angel came
to visit him, and
announced that God had
chosen him as His
messenger to all
mankind.
 The angel taught him the
mode of ablutions, the
way of worshipping God
and the conduct of
prayer.
 Then came a pause in revelation, extending over three
years.
 The news of the first vision had spread and at the pause
the skeptics in the city had begun to mock at him and cut
bitter jokes. They went so far as to say that God had
forsaken him.
 During the three years of waiting. the Prophet had given
himself up more and more to prayers and to spiritual
practices.
 revelations were then resumed and God guided him to
the right path: therefore he should take care of the
orphans and the destitute, and proclaim the bounty of
God on him
 This was in reality an order to preach; revelation;
warn people against evil practices, to exhort them to
worship none but the One God, and to abandon
everything that would displease God
 The Mission
 The Prophet began by preaching his mission secretly
first among his intimate friends, then among the
members of his own tribe and thereafter publicly in the
city and suburbs.
 He took necessary steps to preserve through writing the
revelations he was receiving, and ordered his adherents
also to learn them by heart. This continued all through
his life, since the Quran was not revealed all at once, but
in fragments as occasions arose.
 opposition degenerated in the course of time into
physical torture of the Prophet and of those who had
embraced his religion. These were stretched on burning
sands, cauterized with red hot iron and imprisoned with
chains on their feet. Some of them died of the effects of
torture, but none would renounce his religion.
 Social Boycott
 When a large number of the Meccan Muslims migrated
to Abyssinia, religious opponents sent an ultimatum to
the tribe of the Prophet, demanding that he should be
excommunicated and outlawed and delivered to the
pagans for being put to death.
 Every member of the tribe, Muslim and non-Muslim
rejected the demand.
 Thereupon the city decided on a complete boycott of the
tribe: Nobody was to talk to them or have commercial or
matrimonial relations with them.
 During the boycott, many children, men and women, the
old and the sick and the feeble starved to death
 After three dire years, four or five non-Muslims, more
humane than the rest and belonging to different clans
proclaimed publicly their denunciation of the unjust
boycott which ended this boycott
 The Ascension
 It was at this time that the Prophet Muhammad
was granted the mi'raj (ascension): He saw in a
vision that he was received on heaven by God,
and was witness of the marvels of the celestial
regions.
 Returning, he brought for his community, as a
Divine gift, the [ritual prayer of Islam, the salaat],
which constitutes a sort of communion between
man and God.
 The news of this celestial meeting led to an
increase in the hostility of non believers and the
Prophet was chased out of Mecca by pelting
stones which wounded him.
 Madinah
 The annual pilgrimage of the Ka'bah brought to
Mecca people from all parts of Arabia. The
Prophet Muhammad tried to persuade one tribe
after another to afford him shelter and allow him
to carry on his mission of reform.
 inhabitants of Madinah a neighbor of the Jews
and the Christians, had some notion of prophets
and Divine messages and were awaiting the
arrival of a prophet - a last comforter.
 Madinans embraced Islam, and led a contingent
of seventy-three new converts to Mecca, at the
time of the pilgrimage.
 Many Muslims emigrated to Madinah.
 In 622, the Prophet relocated to Madinah
whence starts the Hijrah calendar.
 Reorganization of the Community
 co-ordinated religion and politics and he invited the representatives of the
Muslims , non-Muslim inhabitants of the region: Arabs, Jews, Christians and
others, and suggested the establishment of a City-State in Madinah.
 developed a written constitution - the first of its kind in the world - in which he
defined the duties and rights both of the citizens and the head of the State the Prophet Muhammad was unanimously hailed as such - and abolished
the customary private justice.

The administration of justice became henceforward the concern of the
central organization of the community of the citizens.
 The document laid down principles of defense and foreign policy: it
organized a system of social insurance, called ma'aqil, in cases of too heavy
obligations.
 It recognized also explicitly liberty of religion, particularly for the Jews
 Muhammad journeyed to neighboring tribes to form treaties of alliance and
mutual help. They joined against Mecca.
 Struggle Against Intolerance and Unbelief
 the Meccans sent an ultimatum to the Madinans,
demanding the surrender or at least the expulsion of
Muhammad and his companions they sent a powerful
army against the Prophet but lost
 After a year of preparation, the Meccans again invaded
 Some Jews still remaining inside Madinah joined with
Mecca at a later stage upset all strategy, yet with a
sagacious diplomacy, the Prophet succeeded in breaking
up the alliance, and the different enemy groups retired
one after the other.
 Alcoholic drinks, gambling and games of chance were at
this time declared forbidden for the Muslims.
 The Reconciliation
 The Prophet was then successful at Hudaibiyah in the suburbs of
Mecca, not only the maintenance of peace, but also the observance
of neutrality in their conflicts with third parties.
 The Prophets religion spread to the foreign rulers of Byzantium, Iran,
Abyssinia and other lands. The Byzantine autocrat priest - Dughatur
of the Arabs - embraced Islam, but for this, was lynched by the
Christian mob; the prefect of Ma'an (Palestine) suffered the same
fate, and was decapitated and crucified by order of the emperor. A
Muslim ambassador was assassinated in Syria-Palestine;
 Mecca hoping to profit by the Muslim difficulties, violated the terms
of their treaty.
 Upon this, the Prophet himself led an army, ten thousand strong,
and surprised Mecca which he occupied in a bloodless manner
where he granted a general amnesty. Without leaving a single
soldier in the conquered city, the Prophet retired to Madinah. The
Islamization of Mecca, which was accomplished in a few hours, was
complete.
 In all these "wars," extending over a period of ten years, all the
peoples of the Arabian Peninsula and the southern regions of Iraq
and Palestine had voluntarily embraced Islam. Some Christian,
Jewish and Parsi groups remained attached to their creeds, and
they were granted liberty of conscience as well as judicial and
juridical autonomy.
 In the year 10 H., when the Prophet went to Mecca for Hajj
(pilgrimage), he met 140,000 Muslims there, who had come from
different parts of Arabia to fulfill their religious obligation.
 He addressed to them his celebrated sermon, in which he gave a
resume of his teachings: "Belief in One God without images or
symbols, equality of all the Believers without distinction of race or
class, the superiority of individuals being based solely on piety;
sanctity of life, property and honor; abolition of interest, and of
vendettas and private justice; better treatment of women; obligatory
inheritance and distribution of the property of deceased persons
among near relatives of both sexes, and removal of the possibility of
the cumulation of wealth in the hands of the few."
 The Quran and the conduct of the Prophet were to serve as the
bases of law and a healthy criterion in every aspect of human life.
 The Koran therefore corroborates, updates and
expands the Old and New Testaments.
 It contains 114 chapters, written in vivid, rhyming
prose, and was settled in its current form within
30 years of Mohammed's death.
 Main tenets Central to Islam is the absolute
sense that there can only be one God - Allah and that he is the source of all creation and
disposer of all lives and events. Hence, there is
no God but God and Mohammed is his
messenger.
 All people should become a single Umma community - witnessing to that fact. On the day
of judgment, all will rise from the dead and be
sent to heaven or hell.
 The Koran contains many moral
exhortations, forming the basis of Islamic
(sharia) law.
 It lays down generosity and fairness and
the requirements for daily prayer, alms
giving, abstinence during daylight hours in
the month of Ramadan and pilgrimage to
Mecca.
 After the prophet's death his community split into
followers of the caliph Abu Bakr and those who
supported Mohammed's closest relative, his
son-in-law, Ali ibn Abi Talib.
 This division between Shia (followers of Ali) and
Sunni (followers of the custom of the caliphate)
persists to this day. Although both share most of
the customs of the religion, Shiites place more
emphasis on the guiding role of the imam.
 About 90% of the world's Muslims are Sunni and
about 10% Shia.
Contributions of Islamic
Culture
architects designed buildings that defied gravity.
mathematicians created the algebra and
algorithms that would enable the building of
computers, and the creation of encryption.
doctors examined the human body, and found
new cures for disease.
astronomers looked into the heavens, named the
stars, and paved the way for space travel and
exploration.
The basis of the study of optics can be attributed
directly to the Muslims.
Al-Hassen bin Al-Haythem is considered the
founder of this field.
He and Al-Beirouni also logically came to the
conclusion, in disagreement with Aristotle, that
the speed of light is constant and that light is
composed of extremely small particles moving at
extremely high speeds,
which is the basis of the quantum nature of light,
an endlessly celebrated tribute to 20th century
science
 . Muhammad bin Mousa Al-Khawarizmi is
considered the founder of modern algebra
 Ghiath Edden Al-Kashi, approximated pi to 16
places past the decimal point.
 The system know as Pascal’s triangle, which
assists in factoring equations in the form of (a +
b)n, was developed by Al-Karkhi, and not Louis
Pascal.
 Later Muslim mathematicians were able to
factor equations as complex as fourth degree
equations; fifth degree equations are impossible
to factor
 The contribution of Muslim mathematicians to
algebra is integral to the development of all
sciences as mathematics is frequently referred
to as the language of science.
 Ibn Sina’s text the Canon of
Medicine, was used as a text
in Europe for centuries later,
and its popularity dwarfed
the books of Galen and
Hippocrates.
 Physicians like Abul Qasim
al-Zahrawi, Ibn Sina, and Ali
Abbas, wrote texts on
surgery that would form the
foundations of Western
Surgery
 Ibn Battuta was the only medieval traveler who is known
to have visited the lands of every Muslim ruler of his
time. He also traveled in Ceylon (Sri Lanka), China,
Byzantium and Russia. The mere extent of his travels is
estimated at over 75,000 miles
 The famous traveler Ibn Battuta lived by the motto 'never, if possible, cover any road a second time'. Fifty
years earlier than Marco Polo, he traveled, on horse,
camel, foot and boat, through all manner of lands,
including West Africa where he visited Timbuktu, Mali
and Niger.
 His interest was not only confined to geography. He
vividly described the prevailing political, economic and
social conditions, the position of women and religious
matters. He was appointed Qadi (Chief judge) of Delhi,
and spent the last twenty-three years of his life as Qadi
of Fez, Morocco, writing his comprehensive travel
document.
 Ibn Battuta started on his travels when he was 21 years
old in 1325. His main reason to travel was to go on a
Hajj, or the Pilgrimage to Makkah (Mecca), as all
Muslims are instructed to do. But his traveling went on
for about 29 years and he covered about 75,000 miles
visiting the equivalent of 44 modern countries.
 He met many dangers and had many adventures along
the way. He was attacked by bandits, almost drowned in
a sinking ship and was almost beheaded by a tyrant ruler
on his travels!
 Near the end of Ibn Battuta's own life, the Sultan of
Morocco insisted that Ibn Battuta dictate the story of his
travels to a scholar and today we can read translations
of that story called "Rihla - My Travels". It is a valuable
and interesting record of places which add to our
understanding of the Middle Ages.
 The Five Pillars of Wisdom
 There are five duties that one must live by if one is a
Muslim, these are often called the Five Pillars of
Islam.
 Shahada This is the main religious belief of all
Muslim people and it is a declaration of their faith.
The English words are;
 There is no god but Allah; Muhammad is the
messenger of Allah. Or as some muslims prefer...
"There is no god but the One God" meaning there is
only one God for all mankind.
 Anyone who says these words and means it can
become a Muslim.

Salah This is prayer. Muslims pray five times a day and follow a
special ritual to do so. Firstly they wash (wudu). This is a special
process...
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Wash hands up to the wrist three times
Wash mouth three times
Wash nostrils, breathing in and out through the nose three times
Wash arms up to elbows three times
Wipe head with wet hands, forehead to back, back to forehead
Rub outside the ears with wet fingers, inside with wet thumbs at the
same time
Wash feet up to the ankles three times
Raise one's face to the sky, pointing up with the index finger.
The water must be pure, if there is no clean water sand may be used.
The prayers are all said at the same times each day:
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Fajr- Morning, between dawn and sunrise
Zuhr - Mid-day or early afternoon
Asr - Late afternoon
Maghrib - Evening, around sunset
Isah - Night, before going to bed
ZAKAT
This is about looking after other people.
Each Muslim gives up a share of his
wealth each year to provide for those less
fortunate. The word zakat means to purify
or cleanse. As the person gives up a share
of his or her wealth they become cleansed
from selfishness and greed. This money
might be to provide education, keep up or
build mosques or help the needy.
1. HAJJ
All Muslims have a duty to try to make a
pilgrimage to the Ka'aba in Makkah at
least once during their lifetime. Very often
whole families will save to send one
person at a time. The men who make the
pilgrimage wear an ihram which is made
up of two sheets. They must not be sewn.
Also they wear special open shoes. This
clothing is a symbol of peace and
obedience to God. The pilgrimage follows
a set pattern.
o There is a day of preparation. The person bathes, dresses
in the ihram and tells everyone that he intends to perform
hajj. He walks round the Ka'aba seven times and usually
kisses the black stone. The Ka'aba is a cube covered in a
black cloth (kiswa) and it has a special black stone in the
corner where Abraham stood.
 Day 1, the pilgrims move to Mina about three miles away
to get here for the prayers at noon. They stay there over
night.
 Day 2 sees the journey from Mina to Arafat by
noon. A sermon is preached and pilgrims stay
there until sunset. This is the most important part
of a pilgrimage. After sunset they travel to
Muzdalifa for the evening and night prayers
o Day three is the Day of Sacrifice. Pilgrims collect a bag of
tiny pebbles which they carry back to Mina.
 They throw seven stone on Jamara 'Agba in memory
of the time that Abraham dismissed Satan in this
way. When that is complete a sacrifice of a goat or a
sheep is made, again that is in memory of when
Abraham was going to sacrifice his son as God had
ordered. Once that is complete the pilgrim cuts off a
lock of his hair. They walk once again round the
Ka'aba on the way back to Makkah and then dress in
their normal clothes.
 Days four, five and six are for relaxation.

 The effect of the pilgrimage is to bring together the
community and strengthen it.
HAJJ
 SAUM
This is all about Ramadam. The ninth month of the
Islam calendar. It is special because it is when
Muhammad (Pbuh) began receiving the messages
from God. For thirty days Muslims fast, they do not
eat or drink during daylight hours. It start when the
new moon is seen at the start of the month and
ends when the new moon is seen again at the end
of the month. The fast is to remind them how
difficult it is to be poor, hungry and thirsty in a hot
place. It reminds them to thank God for his gift of
the Qur'an. It also serves to make them think about
the essentials and luxuries of life and so not be
greedy
 Festival of Eid ul-Fitr
 At the end of Ramadam
which is the thirty day fast
there are a huge
celebration. Everyone
dresses in their best
clothes. They go to the
mosque to pray together.
Special celebration meals
are served up. Everyone
has a holiday and many
big family groups of
relations all get together.
Children are given sweets,
presents and often new
clothes. Muslims send
cards to each other to
celebrate this special time.
They often make offerings
to the poor and sometimes
buy each other presents.
 Eid-ul-Adha
 This is the other big festival
every year. It coincides with the
Hajj. It is to remember the time
when Abraham was going to
sacrifice his own son to prove
obedience to God. Muslims
consider that Abraham was a
prophet or messenger from
God. Again they go to the
mosque together for prayers.
Later in the day they sacrifice a
sheep and give one third of the
meat away to remember
Abraham's sacrifice.
 Children learn about Islam from birth. As
soon as a baby is born the first words it will
hear are the Shahadah (the declaration of
faith). Muslim baby boys are circumcised
whilst young. This is very often done at the
same time as the head shaving ceremony. On
the seventh day of a baby's life his or her
hair will be shaved off and the equivalent
weight of gold given to the poor. An offering
follows. Two sheep if it is a boy and one if it
is a girl. The meat is cooked and shared
between the whole family and visitors.