Islamic revival and Islamist movements

Further information: Islamic revival and IslamismThe 20th century saw the Islamic world increasing exposed to outside cultural influences, bringing potential changes to Muslim societies. In response, new Islamic "revivalist" movements were initiated as a counter movement to non-Islamic ideas. Groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt and Jamaat-e-Islami in Pakistan advocate a totalistic and theocratic alternative to secular political ideologies. Sometimes called Islamist, they see Western cultural values as a threat, and promote Islam as a...

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Modern times (1918–present)

Further information: Fall of the Ottoman Empire, Arab Revolt, Arab–Israeli conflict, and Iranian revolutionBy the early years of the 20th century, most of the Muslim world outside the Ottoman empire had been absorbed into the empires of non-Islamic European powers. After World War I losses, nearly all of the Ottoman empire was also parceled out as European protectorates or spheres of influence. In the course of the 20th century, most of these European-ruled territories became independent, and new issues such as oil wealth and relations with the...

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Islamic dynasties (1030–1918)

The Seljuk Turks conquered Abbassid lands, adopted Islam and become the de facto rulers of the caliphate. They captured Anatolia by defeating the Byzantines at the Battle of Manzikert, thereby precipitating the call for Crusades. They fell apart in the second half of the 12th century giving rise to various semi-autonomous Islamic dynasties such as the powerful Ayyubids who conquered Egypt and a Jerusalem in the name of Islam. In the 13th and 14th centuries the Ottoman Empire (named after Osman I) emerged from among these "Ghazi emirates" and established...

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Crusades, Reconquista and Mongol invasion

Main articles: Crusades and ReconquistaFurther information: Mongol invasion of Central Asia and IlkhanateStarting in the 9th century, Muslim conquests in the West began to be reversed. The Reconquista was launched against Muslim principalities in Iberia, and Muslim Italian possessions were lost to the Normans. From the 11th century onwards alliances of European Christian kingdoms mobilized to launch a series of wars known as the Crusades, aimed at reversing Muslim military conquests within the eastern part of the former Roman Empire, especially...

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Golden Age (750–1258)

Main article: Islamic Golden AgeFurther information: Muslim Agricultural RevolutionBy the late 9th century, the Abbasid caliphate began to fracture as various regions gained increasing levels of autonomy. Across North Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia, emirates formed as provinces broke away. The monolithic Arab empire gave way to a more religiously homogenized Muslim world where the Shia Fatimids contested even the religious authority of the caliphate. In the 10th century the powerful Ghaznavids conquered the Persian region and a large...

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Rise of the caliphate and civil war (632–750)

Further information: Succession to Muhammad, Muslim conquests, and Battle of KarbalaMuhammad began preaching Islam at Mecca before migrating to Medina, from where he united the tribes of Arabia into a singular Arab Muslim religious polity. He made his last farewell sermon at the age of 63 in the year 632 and died 72 days later.[79] Right after his death disagreement broke out over who would succeed him as leader of the Muslim community. Umar ibn al-Khattab, a prominent companion of Muhammad, nominated Abu Bakr, who was Muhammad's intimate friend...

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History

Main articles: Muslim history and Spread of IslamIslam's historical development resulted in major political, economic, and military effects inside and outside the Islamic world. Within a century of Muhammad's first recitations of the Qur'an, an Islamic empire stretched from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to Central Asia in the east. This new polity soon broke into civil war, and successor states fought each other and outside forces. However, Islam continued to spread into regions like Africa, the Indian subcontinent, and Southeast Asia. The Islamic...

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Jihad

Main articles: Jihad and Islamic military jurisprudenceJihad means "to strive or struggle" (in the way of God) and is considered the "Sixth Pillar of Islam" by a minority of Sunni Muslim authorities.[67] Jihad, in its broadest sense, is classically defined as "exerting one's utmost power, efforts, endeavors, or ability in contending with an object of disapprobation." Depending on the object being a visible enemy, the devil, and aspects of one's own self, different categories of Jihad are defined.[68] Jihad, when used without any qualifier, is understood...

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Etiquette and diet

Main articles: Adab (behavior) and Islamic dietary lawsMany practices fall in the category of adab, or Islamic etiquette. This includes greeting others with "as-salamu `alaykum" ("peace be unto you"), saying bismillah ("in the name of God") before meals, and using only the right hand for eating and drinking. Islamic hygienic practices mainly fall into the category of personal cleanliness and health, such as the circumcision of male offspring. Islamic burial rituals include saying the Salat al-Janazah ("funeral prayer") over the bathed and enshrouded...

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Law

Main articles: Sharia and FiqhThe Sharia (literally: "the path leading to the watering place") is Islamic law formed by traditional Islamic scholarship, which most Muslim groups adhere to. In Islam, Sharia is the expression of the divine will, and "constitutes a system of duties that are incumbent upon a Muslim by virtue of his religious belief".[62]Islamic law covers all aspects of life, from matters of state, like governance and foreign relations, to issues of daily living. The Qur'an defines hudud as the punishments for five specific crimes:...

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Religion and state

Main articles: Political aspects of Islam, Islamic state, and CaliphateMainstream Islamic law does not distinguish between "matters of church" and "matters of state"; the ulema function as both jurists and theologians. In practice, Islamic rulers frequently bypassed the Sharia courts with a parallel system of so-called "Grievance courts" over which they had sole control. As the Muslim world came into contact with Western secular ideals, Muslim societies responded in different ways. Turkey has been governed as a secular state ever since the reforms...

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Duties and practices

Five PillarsMain article: Five Pillars of IslamThe Five Pillars of Islam (Arabic: أركان الإسلام) are five practices essential to Sunni Islam. Shi'a Muslims subscribe to different sets of pillars which substantially overlap with the Five Pillars.[55]The Five Pillars of Islam are:The shahadah[56], which is the basic creed or tenet of Islam that must be recited under an oath with the following specific statement: "'ašhadu 'al-lā ilāha illā-llāhu wa 'ašhadu 'anna muħammadan rasūlu-llāh", or "I testify that there is none worthy of worship except God...

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Predestination and free will

Main articles: Predestination in IslamIn accordance with the Sunni Islamic belief in predestination, or divine preordainment (al-qadā wa'l-qadar), God has full knowledge and control over all that occurs. This is explained in Qur'anic verses such as "Say: 'Nothing will happen to us except what Allah has decreed for us: He is our protector'…"[52] For Muslims, everything in the world that occurs, good or evil, has been preordained and nothing can happen unless permitted by God. According to Muslim theologians, although events are pre-ordained, man...

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Resurrection and judgment

Main article: QiyamaBelief in the "Day of Resurrection", yawm al-Qiyāmah (also known as yawm ad-dīn, "Day of Judgment" and as-sā`a, "the Last Hour") is also crucial for Muslims. They believe that the time of Qiyāmah is preordained by God but unknown to man. The trials and tribulations preceding and during the Qiyāmah are described in the Qur'an and the hadith, and also in the commentaries of Islamic scholars. The Qur'an emphasizes bodily resurrection, a break from the pre-Islamic Arabian understanding of death. It states that resurrection will...

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Muhammad

Main article: MuhammadMuhammad (c. 570 – June 8, 632) is the prophet of Islam. He was a religious, political, and military leader who founded the religion of Islam. Muslims view him not as the creator of a new religion, but as the restorer of the original, uncorrupted monotheistic faith of Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and others. In Muslim tradition, Muhammad is viewed as the last and the greatest in a series of prophets—as the man closest to perfection, the possessor of all virtues.[44] For the last 23 years of his life, beginning at age 40, Muhammad...

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Angels

Main article: Angels in IslamBelief in angels is crucial to the faith of Islam. The Arabic word for angel (malak) means "messenger", like its counterparts in Hebrew (malakh) and Greek (angelos). According to the Qur'an, angels do not possess free will, and worship God in perfect obedience.[42][improper synthesis?] Angels' duties include communicating revelations from God, glorifying God, recording every person's actions, and taking a person's soul at the time of death. They are also thought to intercede on man's behalf. The Qur'an describes angels...

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Qur'an

Main articles: Islamic holy books and Qur'anSee also: Origin and development of the Qur'anMuslims consider the Qur'an to be the literal word of God; it is the central religious text of Islam.[35] Muslims believe that the verses of the Qur'an were revealed to Muhammad by God through the angel Gabriel on many occasions between 610 and his death on June 8, 632. The Qur'an was reportedly written down by Muhammad's companions (sahabah) while he was alive, although the prime method of transmission was orally. It was compiled in the time of Abu Bakr,...

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God

Main article: God in IslamSee also: Oneness of God (Islam) and AllahIslam's fundamental theological concept is tawhīd—the belief that there is only one god. The Arabic term for God is Allāh; most scholars believe it was derived from a contraction of the words al- (the) and ʾilāh (deity, masculine form), meaning "the god" (al-ilāh), but others trace its origin to the Aramaic Alāhā.[32] The first of the Five Pillars of Islam, tawhīd is expressed in the shahadah (testification), which declares that there is no god but God, and that Muhammad is God's...

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Articles of faith

Main articles: Aqidah and ImanThe Qur'an states that all Muslims must believe in God, his revelations, his angels, his messengers, and in the "Day of Judgment".[21][improper synthesis?] Also, there are other beliefs that differ between particular sects. The Sunni concept of predestination is called divine decree,[22] while the Shi'a version is called divine justice.[improper synthesis?] Unique to the Shi'a is the doctrine of Imamah, or the political and spiritual leadership of the Imams.[23]Muslims believe that God revealed his final message to...

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Etymology and meaning

Main article: S-L-MThe word Islam is a verbal noun originating from the triliteral root s-l-m, and is derived from the Arabic verb Aslama, which means "to accept, surrender or submit." Thus, Islam means acceptance of and submission to God, and believers must demonstrate this by worshiping him, following his commands, and avoiding polytheism. The word is given a number of meanings in the Qur'an. In some verses (ayat), the quality of Islam as an internal conviction is stressed: "Whomsoever God desires to guide, He expands his breast to Islam."[17][improper...

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Islam

For other meanings, including people named 'Islam', see Islam (disambiguation).Islam (Arabic: الإسلام‎ al-’islām, pronounced [ʔislæːm] ( listen)[note 1]) is the religion articulated by the Qur’an, a religious book considered by its adherents to be the verbatim word of the single incomparable God (Arabic: الله‎, Allāh), and by the Prophet of Islam Muhammad's demonstrations and real-life examples (called the Sunnah, collected through narration of his companions in collections of Hadith). Islam literally means submission to God (see Islam (term)).[1]An...

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