Lesson 1: The Beginning Of Islam
This lesson deals with pre-Islamic Arabia, Muhammad and the Qur'an.
Islam is currently the second most practiced religion in the world, as well as the fastest growing. It has significant communities throughout the entire world, and is known in the histories of several continents. It is humbling to realize that all of this was derived from the actions of an average, orphaned Arabian tribesman in the seventh century CE. However, with their strong belief in the will of God, Muslims could not imagine the chain of events any other way.
The life of Muhammad is particularly interesting, as is the case with all founders of religion. Though the Qur'an itself takes preeminence above the prophet, a fascinating wealth of literature has grown around the life of the prophet. Take for instance his ability to settle disputes – there is a legend that describes a conflict between four leading chiefs, each one wanting the honor of restoring an object to its pedestal. Muhammad suggests all four carry a carpet with the object in its center, to allow all four equal honor. Stories like this demonstrate both the ingenuity Muhammad was said to have possessed, and the reverence with which he is remembered.
Following these sections there will be two discussion questions and a collection of multiple choice questions. Both of these have very specific purposes – discussion questions allow you, the student, to grow in your critical understanding of the material, while multiple choice questions allow you to grow in confidence in your ability to recall important facts and details relating to the material studied. Please use both of these sections, at your leisure, to ensure that your grasp on the material is strong.
Pre-Islamic Arabia
Like other major religions, such as Judaism and Christianity for example, Islam was born in a region of the world with its own distinct religious traditions already in place. What makes the emergence of Islam different from the development and emergence of the aforementioned faiths, however, is the fact that Islam drew more from the very outside traditions surrounding it (especially Zoroastrianism, Judaism, and Christianity) than from its own indigenous traditions – though there are significant elements drawn from Arabian religions that existed at the time.
Prior to the birth of Islam, the people in Arabia – and the city of Mecca, where Islam was born – were polytheistic, meaning the existence of a multitude of deities was recognized and all received some degree of organized worship. The groups were not culturally homogeneous, but rather several groups existed within the same region. As well, Zoroastrians, Jews, and Christians had migrated to the region, in varying numbers, over a period of time. Thus, monotheism was a form of religious expression already known to the clans of Arabia – however, they were comfortable with their polytheistic world view, and co-existed with the other faiths. Allah, “the god”, was already known at this time, but he was not the focal point of all religious devotion.
The group of clans from which Muhammad traced his ancestry were known as the Bedouin tribes, which were not politically or religiously aligned. They used a building, known as the Kaba, as a central shrine. This building was located in the city of Mecca, and when nomadic clans came to the city all warring between tribes would stop so that pilgrims could enter the Kaba and worship the idols of the many gods contained therein. At the center of the Kaba there was a large mysterious stone, thought now to be part of a meteorite that had fallen to earth.
Animism was a popular form of religious belief amongst the Bedouin people; this belief gave reverence to the spirit indwelling in all forms of existence. As well, there was widespread belief in jinn, or genies as they are known in the West.
Islam generated the end of these beliefs – monotheism was the order of the day, and ideas of idolatry and animism were discouraged. However, the Kaba remained a central point of worship, and belief in jinn continued – they are even mentioned in the Qur'an – though both of these ideas would be developed to be congruent with the monotheistic world view.
The Qur'an presents us with the idea that Islam was the religion of Abraham, who was the first Muslim. It is believed that Abraham had a key role in the building of the Kaba, though it was tainted with idolatry long after his death. The Islamic tradition also holds Abraham's son, Ishmael, as very important. Interestingly, in the Jewish tradition he is regarded as wicked and the other son, Isaac, is held in high esteem; in Islam Ishmael is seen as a prophet. He is regarded as the father of the Arabs.
