islam study guide Flashcards
(33 cards)
allah
the belief of one god; monotheism
muslim
“one who has submitted” – followed islam
islam
“submission to the will of god”
sunna
the proper way of living
shari’a
a system of law that regulates the muslim’s life
five pillars of faith
- faith - one god, muhammad is his prophet
- pray - five times a day, face mecca: the holy city, call to prayer
- charity/alms - give to the less fortunate
- fast during ramadan - fast from sunrise to sundown during the holy month
- hajj - pilgrimage to mecca, pray at kaaba
- there is no split between their religion and their daily lives
qu’ran
- holy book of the muslims
- written in arabic
- was revealed to muhammaad over a period of twenty-three years
people of the book
- christians, jews
- they all have a holy book with similar teachings as the qu’ran
- worshhip same god
- reconize jesus as a phropet
- however, muslims does not belive that jesus was a god or the son of god
sunni: one of the two largest groups of muslims
- devoted muslims can become caliphs even if not relaetd to muhammad
- supported the first three caliphs
- idea of majority rule
shi’a: one of the two largest groups of muslims
- only descendants of muhammad can become caliphs
- did not support the first three caliphs
- insist that only special muslims can interpret the qur’an
sufi: small group of muslims
- not concerned about the caliphs, as long as they’re muslim
- pursued a life of poverty
- fast, chant, meditation, prayer
- goal is to get their mind in a state closer to god
- didn’t like the lavish life the umayyad’s lived
muhammad: last prophet
- angel gabriel spoke to muhammad as a messenger for allah
- muhammad began to teach allah and monotheism
- his ideas were not accepted
- mecca was polytheistic
- thought it would hurt their economy
- ruled in medina (yathrib)
- “city of the prophet”
the hijrah: muhammad’s migration to yathrib (medina)
- left mecca because his followers were being attacked
- during the hijrah, muhammad attracted many followers
return to mecca
- 630 - muhammad and his followers marched back to mecca
- mecca’s leaders surrendered
- most meccans pledge their loyalty to muhammad and converted to islam
- muhammad died two years later
“rightly guided” caliphs
- before muhammad died, he had expressed a desire to spread faith
- the first four caliphs made great progress in spreading islam (in order of their rule)
- abu-baker
- umar
- uthman
- ali
- used the qur’an and sunna as guides to leadership
- abu-baker invoked jihad, because some tribes abandoned islam, and some refused to pay taxes
- 634 - abu-baker died, umar became the second caliph
- umar and his military conquered most of the byzantine empire, the muslim empire soon expanded 6000 miles from the atlantic ocean to the indus river
- muslim army was well-disciplined
- byzantine and sassanid empire had their own problems and were weak
- the people under their rule supported islam, they would welcome invaders
- 656 - uthman was murdered, which started a civil war
- mu’awiva challenged ali’s rule
- ali could not punish umar’s killers (ali did not know who was his killers”
- mu’awiva and ali’s armies fought
- muslim community attempts to assassinate both, only successful with ali
umayads
- ruled in damascuss (moved capital to damasscuss)
- abandoned the simple life, surrounded themselves in wealth
abbasids
- took control of the empire, overthrew the umayyads (murdered the remaining family members)
- ruled in baghdad (moved capital to baghdad)
- kay trade routes
- information from farther empire’s
- developed a strong bureauracy and treasury
- failed to keep potlitical control of the large territory
day of judgment
where they will be held accountable for their deeds by being judge by god
mosque
an islamic house of worship
imam
the one who leads muslims into prayer
kaaba
the holy shrine in mecca
arabian peninsula - the crossroad of three continents – [north] africa, europe, asia
- there is only a tiny strip of fertile land, the rest is desert (in the past, it was inhabited by arab herders)
- many arabs had chosen to settle down in an oasis or marketplace
- large towns became market towns for trade and goods
- trade routes connect arabia to major oceans and lands
social class
- muslims
- converts
- people of the book/protected people (christians, jews)
- slaves - non-muslims
battle of badr 624
- quraysh v. muhammad and his followers
- muhammad won