Essay/Term paper: Islamic religion

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Religion

Todays Muslims are branded as terrorists
or fudamentalist. But their religion is a gentle religion. On
the Arabian Penninsula, home of the Arabs, was isolated
and they were able to develop their civilization without
outside influences. It is about 1 million miles square, that is
located between the Red sea and the Persian Gulf. There
are two distinctive regions. The first has well-watered
valleys between mountains and the second is arid plains
and desert. Grass grows quickly during the showes of the
rainy season. In ancient times the Arabs were bedouin
(nomads that hersed sheep, goats, and camels. and lived in
tents made made of felt from camel or goat hair.) They ate
fresh or dried dates and drank milk from their herds. On
special occasions they ate mutlon. their tribes were made of
related families. They valued family ties becuase because
they ensured they ensured protection and survival. They
had a chief (sheikh). The sheikh ruled as long as the tribe
allowed him. They had a counsil of elders. There was
warfare over waterholes and pastures. Their way of
punishment is an eye for sn eye and a tooth for a tooth. To
improve warrior skills they had camel and horse. They had
story telling in frount of the campfire. They had poetry
about battles, desert, camels, horses, and love. In 500
A.D. they started a town called Makkah, which was fifty
miles inland of the Red sea. Trade was mostly of animal
producys for weopeans dates grains, spices, jewels ivory,
silk, and perfumes. They had caravans travel there from as
for china. Arabs had and worshipped many ditied business
ties were replaceing family ties, and old tribal laws were not
adequat Byzantine and the Persin armies were threatining to
conquer them. The tribes had the some language but they
had no central goverment, or sense of unity, The Arabs
searched for new beliefs. The prohet of Islam was
muhammad. He was born in Makkah in 570 A. D. . He
was orphaned at an early age and was adopted by his
uncle. He worked as a carovan leader on a trade route. He
was know to be honest and able. His employer khadij'a ,a
weakthy window if age 40, put him in charge of this
business and proposed marriage to him. He went to a cave
outside the city in 610 A.D. to pray and fast reveloution
(vision) there. He was told to recite. "Recite in the name of
your lord, the creator who created man from clots of
blood. Rwcite! Your lord os the most bountiful one who by
the pen has taught mankind things they didn't know.'' His
second vision to rise and worn people. In 613 A.D. he
preached to his family and friends that there was one god.
And all that belived in him are equal.The rich shared with
poor lots of the converts were poor. The rich merchants
and the religious leaders did not like,Mushamad and the
Muslims were persecuated. After some theats on his life in
632 A.D. he sent 60 families to Yathrib.And then follewes
them in secret(Known then as the Hjrah immirgration). 622
A.D. os know on the Musslim calandar as the frist year.
Muhamad became the rules of Yathris then it was called
Medinch al-Neb orMadinah ''the city of the priphet.''The
Madinch Compact of 624 A.D. was the foundation of
Islanie state. Muhamad was the Judge and commander in
chief. Quxan was their bible of Ialam. They extended
proection, to Jews and christiand who accepted Islams
political authoriyt. Makkems invaded Yathrib,and the
Muslims fought in self defense.The Makkans were
defeated. And the Muslims won support of the Arab
groups outside of Madinsh. They later invaded Makkah
and hod little resistance.They accepted Islamic Religion and
Muhammad. Islanic Religion and Muhammed. They
destroyed idols, and turned the shrine of prohet Abraham
into a place of worship. Makkah was the spiritual capital
and Mdinth into the political capital. In 631 A.D. the
Arabian Peninsula was supported by an army representing
each of the Arab tribes. Muhammad later died at Madinah
in 632 A.D. Beliefs The Quran was the divine messages
from God over a peroid of 22 years. It was written down
or memorized that was compiled into a written
collection(Quran). is the final matters of faith and lifestyles.
It was written in Arabic. It is stories, teachings, and
exhorations of what is written in the Bible. Values Basic
Moral values in the Quran are similar to Christanity and
Judasim.Murder, lying, stesling and adultury are
condemened.Honor parents, protect wideous and orphans,
show kindness to neighoors and give maney to the poor.
They weren't allowed to eat pork. drink alchol; gambaling.
They have rules for marriage, disorce, family life businss
prastices, and property inheritences. Law is not seperated
from religion. There is no rated in order of clergy. Sharii' ah
organization moral principles into a body of law. Based on
Quren and Hadith ( sayings of Muhammad) covered all
aspects of Muslism private and public lifes. Five pillars of
Islam faith Confessions of faith: "There is no god but God,
and Muhammad is the messenger of God." All Muslisms
are requiered to submit to god's will as given in the Quran.
Muhhammad role is stress in the Confession, that he is just
the messenger and not devine.. Musliums think that he is
the last and the greatest of the Prophets. They see life as a
preparation of Judgement Day. And when they rise from
the grave, they will be judge dor their actions( heaven or
hell). allah is also the god of the Jews, christans, Adam ,
Abraham, Moses, and Jeuses. They are all given c onsider
to be prophets. Musliums have great respect for the Bible,
Judasim, and Christianity. They believe that the Arabs rea
decendents of Ishmauel, son of Abraham. Prayer: They
pray five times a day sunrise, noon, afternoon, sunset and
evening facing Makkah using the same motion and words.
They kneel, bow, and touch their foreheads to the ground
(sign of submission). They pray no matter what. Friday at
noon in a mosque( shrine, court, school, and shelter).
Imam(leader of the prayer) can be any male with the
proper religous training. Alms are chartity done privately
and a state tax. Fasting: Is in the month of Ramadan ( the
ninth month of the Ariabian calander).They can not eat or
drink from sunrise to sunset. After the fasting they have a
three day feast. Children, sick and pregant women are
excempt. Cannon sounds for the prayers. Pilgemage-
(Haji) everyone goes to Makkah at least once in their life.
Once they go they are honored in their community. Haji is
two months and ten days after Ramadum fast. They have
three days of ceremony, prayer, and sacrifice. Now they
worship at Kaaba, Nakkah, and madinah. It is a visible
expression of unity and an expression of ideas. Role of
Women "Men are responsible for women". Womens
postion is largely defined by her relationship with her male
relatives and Husbends. They stopped the tribusl killing of
baby girls. They limited polygamy down to 4 wives. But
they had to be equal to each other. Women had control
over her own property and she could inhert property from
her father and remarry. Their lives are invested into the
family and household. Muisana the wife of Mu'awiyat
wrote: " The coarse cloth woven in serenity of the desert Is
more precious to me then lucuries robes of a Queen I love
the bedouins tent, caressed by the murmuring breeze and
standing amid boundless horizons, More than the glided
halls of marble in their royal splender. I feel more at ease
with my simple crust than with the delicies of the court; I
prefer to rise early with the caravan Rather than to be inthe
golden glare of the sumptous escourt. The barking of the a
watchdog keeping away strangers Pleases me more than
the sounds of the trbourine played by court singers; I prefer
a desert cavlier, generous and poor To a fat lout inn purple
living behind closed doors." -Najib Ullah, Islamic literature
Men Men were active in politics, army, bussiness, and
fields. They went to the bath houses for relaxation and to
work out. Boys entered school at age seven. They take
writing and reading. Which are Arab admires. They went to
Madrasa ( theroloigical school) after they finished regular
school. Houses They are plain with very little furnture. They
used carpets, small objects of art, and pillows. They sat on
the rug and used pillows to lean on. During meals
household members sit in a circle and ate from large trays
of bread, fruits, and meats. Islamics Trade spices, textiles,
glass, and carpets. Men met in bazaars ( market places) to
converse and business. food was difficult to grow in alot of
Islamic country. They Irragated, rotated, and fertilized land.
Large landowners who owned the more productive got
grants from the goverment. they hire nearby farmers to
help. They produced wheat, rice, beans, cucumbers, celery
and perfume. Islamic scientest translate the scintfic books
into Arbaic. They invented algebraand equations to define
curves and lines. Their work in geometry lead to invention
of trigometry. They accuratly predicted the solar eclipses.
they accuratly measured the circumfrence and size. they
were unmatched until the 1990's. They produce the most
accurate maps of the eatern Hemesphere. They developed
alchemy, the branch of science that try to convert iron into
gold. al-Ruiz classfied chemical subsyances into animal,
plant or mineral. He wrote a medical encyclepida and a
handbook that told the differences betwees small poxs and
measles. Their knowledge of medicine was centuries ahead
of the rest of the world.