GREL 101 Islam
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- Basics about Islam.
- 2nd largest world religion. 20% of Muslims live in Middle East. The largest population lives in Indonesia. 2nd Pakistan, 3rd Indonesia, 4th Bangladesh.
- About Muhammad\'s early life?
- Born in Arabia to the Qurayash tribe. Muhammad was a caravan trader. He was poor and orphaned and lived with his uncle Abu Talib. Later, he works as a merchant for his rich future wife Khadija. He has a lot of spiritual struggles.
- What are sacred sites for pilgrimages?
- Ka-bah, Two Hills, Stone Pillars, Well of ZamZam
- About Muhammad\'s beginning of Islam?
- He is meditating in a cave when he is approached by Gabriel who wants to make him a prophet. His wife\'s cousin Waraqa, a Christian, confirms this confrontation as valid. Muhammad then becomes a prophet and spreads the word in Mecca. Meccans don\'t take it too well since everything he says is opposite of what they believe.
- About Abraham myth?
- Abraham is married to Sarah. They cannot have children, so he impregnates his maid Hagar with Ishmael. Then Sarah becomes pregnant with Isaac. Sarah wants Hagar and Ishmael gone, so Abraham sends them to the desert. They all end up going to Mecca and Abraham and Ishmael restore the Ka\'Bah because the Arabs had been worshiping idols. The Two Hills is where Hagar looked water. The Well of ZamZam is where she found water. Stone pillars represent Satan.
- About Muhammad in Mecca?
- The tribe of Quraysh issues a death sentence. His uncle Abu Talib steps forward and protects him, not in support of Islam, but because he\'s family. Crisis year 619 occurs for Muhammad as his wife dies abd Abu Talib dies. In 620, Medina approaches him and asks him to serve as an arbitrator to sort out their political problems. He agrees as long as they make him leader.
- About Muhammad\'s move to Medina?
- Muhammad\'s move to Medina is called hijra. This is important as the Muslim calendar begins in 622, the year Muhammad arrived. It marks the formation of the ideal society, Uunmah.
- About Muhammad\'s 10 years in Medina?
- 622 to 632. Wars with Mecca ensue. Mecca wins many battles, but Muhammad and his followers survive. People begin to believe that God really is on his side. Muhammad dies in 632.
- Importance of political leadership?
- Crucial for Islam. The four caliphs were Muhammad\'s companions. There was a civil war over whether Ali is an appropriate choice for caliph and he is assassinated by his followers who believe he has made too many concessions to the Umayyads and they feel betrayed. His followers then accept leadership from Ali\'s sons Hasan and Husseyn. They form the Shia party. The Umayyad are later known as Sunnis, or follows of the Sunnah.
- About Sunnis and Shiites?
- 85% Sunni. Democracy is necessary to choose leader. 15% Shiite. Iraq has large population of Shiites. Leaders should be descendants of Muhammad. The 12 Imams were rightful successors.
- About the 12 Imams?
- They were descendants of Muhammad, so they inherit his leadership and charisma.
- About the 12th Imam?
- In 874, he goes into hiding. In 940, he goes into total concealment. He never dies, and no one knows who he is even today. Known as the Great Mahdi, he will return and Judgment Day will occur.
- About Islam creation?
- Same as Genesis story, but there\'s 6 days rather than 7. The day of rest is excluded because it could be interpreted as God is weak, undermining his power.
- About God?
- One god. Sovereign and transcendent. Idolatry is very taboo.
- About humans?
- Created in God\'s image. Soul is born pure. The problem lies in sin, which is a separation from God and not submitting to the will of Allah. People forget to be good or are ignorant as a human tendency.
- Path of Ultimate Transformation?
- Submitting to the will of Allah. Reminding people to be good. Prophets help do this for people. Also keep the knowledge of God through the Five Pillars.
- What are the 5 Pillars?
- Confession (shahadah), Prayer (salat) 5 times daily, Fasting (sawm) during Ramadan, Paying Zakat, and Pilgrimage or Hajj to Mecca.
- What is the jihad?
- A struggle for religious perfection and for God\'s cause by bearing arms.
- What is the Sharia?
- Islamic law based on Qur\'an and Sunnah or customs of the prophet. Deals with aspects of daily life.
- About Friday prayers?
- Called Jumu\'ah. It\'s a congregational prayer each Friday afternoon.
- What is Mawlid?
- Celebration of Muhammad\'s birth. 12th day of 3rd month. Dolls and candy given to kids.
- What is Muharram/Ashura?
- Muharram: first month; associated with Hijjra of Muslims from Mecca to Medina. Ashura: day of fasting on tenth of Muharram. For Shiites, the anniversary of Ali\'s martyrdom. Recognized with a play.
- What is the Eid al-Fitr or Feast of Fast-Breaking?
- A feast celebrating the end of Ramadan.
- What is Ramadan?
- The month of daytime fasting. 9th month in the year.
- About the Sufis?
- Sort of a group of Muslim hippies. Love is a central theme. Inner path to God is called Tariqa, which involves meditation and detachment from self. Outer path is called Shari\'ah, which is Islamic law.
- About Modernist Muslims?
- Combine Western ideas with Islam ideas on matters of politics, education, gender equality, and pluralism.
- About Islamists?
- traditionalists. Islam is not just a religion, but a political system also.
- About Wahhabism?
- A form of Islamism. It\'s a movement to restore Islam to its original purity with highly disciplined followers.
- About reading Treatment of Women?
- Contemporary criticism led to establishment of women\'s rights. Previously, women had zero rights and infant females were often buried alive. Discusses inheritance rights, divorce rights, and how men must respect women. Women still not equivalent to men through this document. Men still have authority over women. Good women are obedient and disobedient women may be beaten.
- About reading Sunni Creed?
- Written by al-Ashari in 900AD. Allah is the one as no other is worthy of his praise. In the Coming Hour, Allah will raise the dead. Allah has a face, hands, and eyes and can hear and see, giving him human-like qualities. Believers succeed while nonbelievers fail.
- About reading Shi\'i Creed?
- Distinguished from Sunni creed by the belief that the 12 Imams and other leaders should be descendants of Allah. There have been 124,000 prophets and 124,000 representatives. The leaders of them include Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad, the leader of the rest. God created nothing more excellent than Muhammad and the subsequent Imams. The 12th Imam will someday reveal his identity and the world will be filled with justice and equity. Those who ascribe divinity to Ali or another Imam are more wicked than non-Muslims. Those who killed prophets or Imams are lower than low. Sunnis are hypocrites. Prophets\' ancestry goes from Adam to Abdallah, Muhammad\'s father.