1.
Muhammad
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Muhammad is the prophet of Islam. From a secular historical perspective he was a religious, political, from an Islamic perspective, he was Gods Messenger sent to confirm the essential teachings of monotheism preached previously by Adam, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and other prophets. He is viewed as the prophet of God in all branches of Islam. Muhammad united Arabia into a single Muslim polity and ensured that his teachings, practices, born approximately 570 CE in the Arabian city of Mecca, Muhammad was orphaned at an early age, he was raised under the care of his paternal uncle Abu Talib. Muhammad gained few early followers, and met hostility from some Meccan tribes, to escape persecution, Muhammad sent some followers to Abyssinia before he and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina in the year 622. This event, the Hijra, marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar, in Medina, Muhammad united the tribes under the Constitution of Medina. In December 629, after eight years of intermittent conflict with Meccan tribes, Muhammad gathered an army of 10,000 Muslim converts, the attack went largely uncontested and Muhammad seized the city with little bloodshed. In 632, a few months after returning from the Farewell Pilgrimage, he fell ill, before his death, most of the Arabian Peninsula had converted to Islam. The revelations, which Muhammad reported receiving until his death, form the verses of the Quran, regarded by Muslims as the Word of God and around which the religion is based. Besides the Quran, Muhammads teachings and practices, found in the Hadith and sira literature, are upheld by Muslims. The name Muhammad means praiseworthy and appears four times in the Quran, Muhammad is sometimes addressed by designations deriving from his state at the time of the address, thus he is referred to as the enwrapped in Quran 73,1 and the shrouded in Quran 74,1. In Sura Al-Ahzab 33,40 God singles out Muhammad as the Seal of the Prophets, the Quran also refers to Muhammad as Aḥmad more praiseworthy. The name Abū al-Qāsim Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbd al-Muṭṭalib ibn Hāshim, begins with the kunya Abū, the Quran is the central religious text of Islam. Muslims believe it represents the words of God revealed by the archangel Gabriel to Muhammad, the Quran, however, provides minimal assistance for Muhammads chronological biography, most Quranic verses do not provide significant historical context. An important source may be found in the works by writers of the 2nd. These include the traditional Muslim biographies of Muhammad, which additional information about Muhammads life. The earliest surviving written sira is Ibn Ishaqs Life of Gods Messenger written c.767 CE, although the work was lost, this sira was used verbatim at great length by Ibn Hisham and Al-Tabari. Another early history source is the history of Muhammads campaigns by al-Waqidi, many scholars accept the earliest biographies as accurate, though their accuracy is unascertainable
2.
Prophetic biography
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In the Arabic language the word sīra or sīrat comes from the verb sāra, which means to travel or to be on a journey. A persons sīra is that person’s journey through life, or biography, encompassing their birth, events in their life, manners and characteristics, in modern usage it may also refer to a persons resume. It is sometimes written as seera, sirah or sirat, all meaning life or journey, in Islamic literature, the plural form, siyar, could also refer to the rules of war and dealing with non-Muslims. The phrase sīrat rasūl allāh, or al-sīra al-nabawiyya, refers to the study of the life of Muhammad, the term sīra was first linked to the biography of Muhammad by Ibn Shihab al-Zuhri, and later popularized by the work of Ibn Hisham. In the first two centuries of Islamic history, sīra was more known as maghāzī, which is now considered to be only a subset of sīra. Early works of sīra consist of historical reports, or akhbār. Sometimes the word tradition or hadith is used instead, the sīra literature includes a variety of heterogeneous materials, containing mainly stories of military expeditions undertaken by Muhammad and his companions. These stories are intended as historical accounts and used for veneration, the sīra also includes a number of written documents, such as political treaties, military enlistments, assignments of officials, letters to foreign rulers, and so forth. It also records some of the speeches and sermons made by Muhammad, some of the sīra accounts include verses of poetry commemorating certain events and battles. While some of which are considered to be of a quality and lacking authenticity. At later periods, certain type of stories included in sīra developed into their own separate genres, one genre is concerned with stories of prophetic miracles, called aʿlām al-nubuwa. Another genre, called faḍāʾil wa mathālib — tales that show the merits and faults of individual companions, enemies, and other notable contemporaries of Muhammad. Some works of sīra also positioned the story of Muhammad as part of a narrative that includes stories of prophets, Persian Kings, pre-Islamic Arab tribes. Parts of sīra were inspired by, or elaborate upon, events mentioned in the Quran and these parts were often used by writers of tafsir and asbab al-nuzul to provide background information for events mentioned in certain ayat. The main difference between a hadith and a report is that a hadith is not concerned with an event as such. Rather the purpose of hadith is to record a religious doctrine as a source of Islamic law. By contrast, while a khabar may carry some legal or theological implications, in terms of structure, a hadith and a khabar are very similar. Thus starting from the 8th and 9th century, many scholars have devoted their efforts to both kinds of texts equally, also some historians consider the sīra and maghāzī literature to be a subset of Hadith
3.
Muhammad in Mecca
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The Islamic prophet Muhammad was born and lived in Mecca for the first 52 years of his life. Orphaned early in life, he known as a prominent merchant. He married his first wife, the wealthy 40-year-old widow Khadijah at the age of 25 and he would also marry Aisha later in his life. According to the Muslim tradition, Muhammad began receiving revelations at the age of 40. The key themes of his messages in Mecca were the oneness of God and the rejection of polytheism, generosity towards the poor and the needy, some of his peers respected his words and became his followers. Many others, including leaders, opposed, ridiculed and eventually boycotted his clan. Several attempts were made on his life, when his uncle and chief protector, Abu Talib, who was the head of the clan of Banu Hashim died, Muhammad migrated to Medina in 622, where he had many followers who agreed to help and assist him. For the Muslims, Muhammad is just the last prophet of the unique religion preached by the other prophets before him, the Quran is considered to be the most credible primary source for the life of Muhammad in Mecca. Next in importance are the works survived from the writers of 3rd. Modern biographers of Muhammad try to reconstruct the economic, political and social aspects of Mecca, the historical works by later Muslim writers include the traditional Muslim biographies of Muhammad and quotes attributed to him, which provide further information on his life. The earliest surviving written sira is Sirah Rasul Allah by Ibn Ishaq, although the original work is lost, portions of it survive in the recensions of Ibn Hisham died 833 CE) and Al-Tabari. Many, but not all, scholars accept the accuracy of these biographies, henri Lammens rejected all the accounts of Muhammads life in Mecca but later scholars generally agree that Lammens went too far. Studies by J. Schacht and Goldziher has led scholars to distinguish between the traditions touching legal matters and the historical ones. According to William Montgomery Watt, in the legal sphere it would seem that sheer invention could have very well happened, in the historical sphere, however, aside from exceptional cases, the material may have been subject to tendential shaping rather than being made out of whole cloth. Hadith compilations are records of the traditions or sayings of Muhammad and it might be defined as the biography of Muhammad perpetuated by the long memory of his companions and community for their exemplification and obedience. The development of hadiths is a vital element during the first three centuries of Islamic history, There had been a common tendency among the earlier western scholars against these narrations and reports gathered in later periods, such scholars regarding them as later fabrications. Wilferd Madelung has rejected the stance of indiscriminately dismissing everything not included in early sources, sunni Islam For Sunnis, after the Quran the most widely accepted and famous collection of traditions is Sahih al-Bukhari. Imam Bukhari, the author of the book is said to have spent over 16 years gathering over 1,600,000 traditions, Most of these traditions deal with the life of Muhammad
4.
Hegira
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The Hegira or Hijrah is the migration or journey of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Yathrib, later renamed by him to Medina, in the year 622. In June 622, after being warned of a plot to him, Muhammad secretly left his home in Mecca to emigrate to Yathrib,320 km north of Mecca. Yathrib was soon renamed Madīnat an-Nabī, but an-Nabī was soon dropped, so its name is Medina, the Hijrah is also often identified erroneously with the start of the Islamic calendar, which was set to Julian 16 July 622. Muhammad himself did not join this emigration, in that year, his followers fled Meccas leading tribe, the Quraysh, who sent emissaries to Ethiopia to bring them back to the Arabian Peninsula. However, the Negus refused to send them back, in Mecca, at the pilgrimage season of 620, Muhammad met six men of the Banu Khazraj from Medina, propounded to them the doctrines of Islam, and recited portions of the Quran. Impressed by this, the six embraced Islam, and at the Pilgrimage of 621 and this is known as the First Pledge of al-Aqaba. At their request, Muhammad sent with them Mus‘ab ibn Umair to teach them the instructions of Islam, biographers have recorded the considerable success of Musab ibn Umair in preaching the message of Islam and bringing people under the umbrella of Islam in Medina. They invited him to come to Medina as an arbitrator to reconcile among the hostile tribes and this is known as the second pledge at al-Aqabah, and was a politico-religious success that paved the way for his and his followers immigration to Medina. Following the pledges, Muhammad encouraged his followers to migrate to Medina, during the early seventh century, Medina was inhabited by two types of population, Jewish and pagan Arabs. The Jews there had three principal clans – Banu Qaynuqa, Banu Nadir, and Banu Qurayza, the Arab pagans had two tribes – the Banu Aws and Khazraj. At that time, the Jews there had the hand with their large settlement. Traditional rules for maintaining law and order became dysfunctional, and, without a man with considerable authority over things. As the pagan Arabs of Medina lived in proximity to the Jews, they had gained some knowledge about their scriptures. According to Muslims tradition, after receiving divine direction to depart Mecca, Muhammad began taking preparation, on the night of his departure, Muhammads house was besieged by men of the Quraysh who planned to kill him in the morning. Soon, Muhammad joined Abu Bakr, left the city, next morning, the besiegers were frustrated to find Ali on Muhammads bed. Fooled and thwarted by Muhammads plan, they rummaged the city in search for him, and some of them reached the threshold of the cave. When the Quraysh came to know of Muhammads escape, they announced heavy reward for bringing Muhammad back to them, unable to resist this temptation, pursuers scattered in all directions. After staying for three days, Muhammad and Abu Bakr resumed their journey and were pursued by Suraqa bin Malik, but each time he neared Muhammads party, his horse stumbled and he finally abandoned his desire of capturing Muhammad
5.
Muhammad in Medina
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The period of Muhammad in Medina started with the Hijra in 622 and ended with the conquest of Mecca in December 629. A delegation from Medina, consisting of the representatives of the important clans of Medina. There was fighting in Yathrib mainly involving its Arab and Jewish inhabitants for around a hundred years before 620, the delegation from Medina pledged themselves and their fellow-citizens to accept Muhammad into their community and physically protect him as one of themselves. Muhammad instructed his followers to emigrate to Medina until virtually all of his followers had left Mecca, being alarmed at the departure of Muslims, according to the tradition, the Meccans plotted to assassinate him. He fooled the Meccans who were watching him, and secretly slipped away from the town, by 622, Muhammad had emigrated to Medina, then known as Yathrib, a large agricultural oasis. Following the emigration, the Meccans seized the properties of the Muslim emigrants in Mecca, Muhammad also adopted some features of the Jewish worship and customs such as fasting on the Yom Kippur day. According to Alford Welch, the Jewish practice of having three daily prayer rituals appears to have been a factor in the introduction of the Islamic midday prayer. The first group of converts to Islam in Medina were the clans who had not produced great leaders for themselves but had suffered from warlike leaders from other clans. This was followed by the acceptance of Islam by the pagan population of Medina. This was, according to Ibn Ishaq, influenced by the conversion to Islam of Sad ibn Muadh, Muslims, like Jews, were at that time praying towards Jerusalem. In the Constitution of Medina, Muhammad demanded the Jews political loyalty in return for religious, the Jewish clans however kept aloof from Islam though in the course of time there were a few converts from them. After his migration to Medina, Muhammads attitude towards Christians and Jews changed, the Quran at this time states that it will relate to the Children of Israel most of that about which they differ. Muhammad delivered Quranic verses permitting the Muslims, those who have been expelled from their homes, in March 624, Muhammad led some three hundred warriors in a raid on a Meccan merchant caravan. The Muslims set an ambush for the Meccans at Badr, aware of the plan, the Meccan caravan eluded the Muslims. Meanwhile, a force from Mecca was sent to protect the caravan, the force did not return home upon hearing that the caravan was safe. The battle of Badr began in March 624, though outnumbered more than three to one, the Muslims won the battle, killing at least forty-five Meccans and taking seventy prisoners for ransom, only fourteen Muslims died. They had also succeeded in killing many of the Meccan leaders, Muhammad himself did not fight, directing the battle from a nearby hut alongside Abu Bakr. In the weeks following the battle, Meccans visited Medina in order to ransom captives from Badr, many of these had belonged to wealthy families, and were likely ransomed for a considerable sum
6.
Farewell Pilgrimage
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The Farewell Pilgrimage was the last and only Hajj pilgrimage Muhammad, prophet of Islam, participated in 632 CE. Muhammad lived in Medina for 10 years and had not performed Hajj in full, the people of Medina and surrounding towns gathered in the city to accompany the Islamic Prophet during the Hajj rituals. Before his departure, he appointed Abu Dujana Ansari as governor of Medina during his own absence, on the 25th of Dhu al-Qidah,4 nights before the end of Dhu al-Qidah, he left Medina, accompanied by all his wives. Before arriving in Mecca, Muhammad stayed at Miqat and taught people the manners of wearing Ihram and he made ghusl and then put on Ihram for Hajj. His Ihram clothing was two pieces of Yemeni unsewed white cotton that later on became his shroud, and moved on so that he did his noon prayers in the mosque of Shajara, later, Muslims built some mosques at the places Muhammad stayed prayed. The next day, Muhammad and his companions arrived Masjid al-Haram and they entered from the gate of Dar al-Salam, went to the Kaaba and touched black stone. Then Muhammad proceeded to Circumambulation of the Kaaba, finally once again touched Black Stone, kissed it and cried long near it. Then, he did two Rakat of prayer behind the The Station of Abraham. After his prayers, he drank from the Zamzam well, prayed and then went to Mounts Al-Safa and Al-Marwah, when he arrived there, turned toward Kaaba and long prayed to God and jog-trotted part of the way. When he arrived at Mount Al-Marwah, stopped and prayed, on the eighth sunset of Dhu al-Hijjah, Muhammad left for Mina and stayed there for a night. Then he passed along on his camel, al Qaswa, till he reached Mount Arafat, as he ascended the mountain, he was surrounded by thousands of pilgrims chanting Talbiyah and Takbir. By Muhammad’s order, a tent was erected for him on the east side of Mount Arafat at a spot called Namirah and he rested until the sun passed the zenith, then he rode on his camel until he reached the valley of Uranah. There he delivered a sermon about different social rights of Muslims and led Zuhr, then he moved to plain of Arafat, stayed there and spent the afternoon in supplication. Upon the sunset, Muhammad rode towards Mashar al-Haram and advised pilgrims that slowly pass the way, Islamic Prophet did his Maghrib and Isha prayer in Mashar al-Haram then made a rest. At the down, he prayed and supplicated before God, which is so much recommended in Hajj, in the morning, he went towards Mina and straightly to Jamrah of Aqaba and threw seven pebbles at it. He then went to place of sacrifice and sacrificed 63 camels and he gave Ali 37 camels from a hundred camels he had brought with himself from Medina to sacrifice. They eat little from what they sacrificed and gave the rest for charity, then a barber got his head shaved by his order. He went to Mecca, circumambulated the Kaaba and did Zuhr prayer in Masjid al-Haram
7.
Muhammad's first revelation
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According to Islam, Muhammads first revelation was the event in which Muhammad was visited by the archangel Gabriel in 610 CE, who revealed to him a verse from the Koran. The event took place in a cave called Hira, located on the mountain called Jabal an-Nour, near Makkah. According to biographies of Muhammad, while on retreat in a cave near Mecca, Gabriel appears before him. When he was nearly 40, he used to spend hours alone in prayer. He was concerned with the ignorance of divine guidance, social unrest, injustice, widespread discrimination, fighting among tribes and this created inclination in him to engage himself in solitary worshipping. Thereupon the angel caught hold of him and embraced him heavily, and thy Lord is Most Bountiful, – Who taught by the pen– Taught man that which he knew not. Perplexed by this new experience, Muhammad made his way to home where he was consoled by his wife Khadijah, Waraqah was familiar with Jewish and Christian scriptures. Islamic tradition holds that Waraqah, upon hearing the description, testified to Muhammads prophethood, when Muhammad told him what had happened to him, Waraqah replied, This is Namus that Allah sent to Moses. I wish I could live up to the time when people would turn you out. Muhammad asked, Will they drive me out, a few days later Waraqah died. Tabari and Ibn Ishaq write that Muhammad told Zubayr, when I was midway on the mountain and you are the apostle of Allah and I am Gabriel. I raised my head towards heaven to see who was speaking and you are the apostle of Allah and I am Gabriel. I stood gazing at him moving neither forward nor backward, then I began to turn my face away from him, there is doubt about the period of time between Muhammads first and second experiences of revelation. Ibn Ishaq writes that three years elapsed from the time that Muhammad received the first revelation until he started to preach publicly, bukhari takes chapter 74 as the second revelation however chapter 68 has strong claims to be the second revelation. Ḥadīth is literally speech, recorded saying or tradition of Muhammad validated by isnad, with Sirah Rasul Allah these comprise the sunnah, according to Aishah, the life of Muhammad was practical implementation of Quran. The first and foremost exegesis/tafsir of the Quran is found in hadith of Muhammad, therefore, study of hadith elaborates the importance and context of pertinent event. He used to go in seclusion in the cave of Hira where he used to worship continuously for days before his desire to see his family. He used to take him the journey food for the stay
8.
Military career of Muhammad
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The military career of Muhammad lasted for the final ten years of his life when he served as the leader of the ummah, the head of state at Medina. Muhammad spent his last ten years, from 622 to 632, Muhammad and his Companions had earlier migrated from Mecca to Medina in what is known as the Hijra following years of persecution by the Meccans. They also sent out parties against Arabic-speaking communities ruled under the Roman Empire, Muhammad was believed by the Muslims to be divinely chosen to spread Islam in the world, and Muhammad ultimately permitted warfare as one aspect of this struggle. After the first battle of Badr against the Quraysh, he is reported as having said We have returned from the lesser Jihad to the greater Jihad, Muslims who did not migrate were subject to increased persecution. And the threat to the life of both the Ansar and the Muslims was such that they were reported as having to sleep by their weapons all night, sa‘d then challenged him to commit any such folly if he wanted to court a risk to the Meccan trading caravans. As tensions escalated the Muslims began to take defensive measures such as stationing guards around Muhammad, the Muslims, who fled Meccas persecution to Medina, had left all their possessions and houses in Mecca, which were unlawfully expropriated by the Meccans. This sacrifice is repeatedly mentioned in the Quran where they are promised forgiveness, the Muslims were initially not given permission to fight. Small groups of men were sent for intelligence gathering. The Caravan raids refer to a series of raids which Muhammad, the raids were generally offensive and carried out to gather intelligence or seize the trade goods of Caravans financed by the Quraysh. The Muslims declared that the raids were justified and that God gave them permission to defend against the Meccans persecution of Muslims, by expanding their military operations and negotiating with the nomads, the Muslims had created an alliance with greater resources than Mecca, alone, could muster. The Meccans in their turn made alliances with Bedouin tribes, two large alliances faced each other, poised for further warfare. By old custom, during the months of pilgrimage, tribal hostilities stopped, in March 628, Muhammad put on the garb of a pilgrim and taking a force and camels for sacrifice, set out for Mecca. According to the early chronicler Ibn Ishaq, Muhammad took 700 men, according to Watt, Muhammad took 1400 to 1600 men. The Meccans did not accept the Muslim professions of peaceful intent and sent out a party against them. The Muslims evaded them by taking a route through the hills around Mecca. Ibn Ishaq describes a period of embassies and counter-embassies, including a bold foray by Uthman ibn Affan into the city of Mecca. The Meccans told the Muslims that Uthman had been killed and open warfare seemed imminent, Uthman was revealed to be alive, and the Meccans expressed their willingness to negotiate a truce. Some elements wanted a confrontation, but Muhammad held out for a peaceful resolution, the treaty of Hudaybiyyah committed both sides to a ten-year truce
9.
Diplomatic career of Muhammad
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Muhammad is documented as having engaged as a diplomat during his propagation of Islam and leadership over the growing Muslim Ummah. He established a method of communication with other tribal or national leaders through letters, assigned envoys, or by visiting them personally, instances of written correspondence include letters to Heraclius, the Negus and Khosrau. Although it is likely that Muhammad had initiated contact with leaders within the Arabian Peninsula. When Muhammad arrived in Medina in 622, local tribes, mainly the Banu Aus, Muhammad addressed this by establishing the Constitution of Medina, a document which regulated interactions between the different factions, to which the respective parties agreed. This was a different role for him, as he had remained only a religious figure during his time in Mecca, the result was the eventual formation of a united community in Medina, as well as the political supremacy of Muhammad. Muhammad also participated in agreements and pledges such as Pledges of al-Aqaba, the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, and he reportedly used a silver seal on letters sent to other notable leaders who were requested to convert to Islam. Hilf al-Fudul was a created by Muhammad in the pre-Islamic era. Muhammads commencement of public preaching brought him opposition from the leading tribe of Mecca. Although Muhammad himself was safe from persecution due to protection from his uncle, Abu Talib ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib, a number of Muslims were mistreated by the Quraysh, some reportedly beaten, imprisoned, or starved. It was then, in 615, that Muhammad resolved to send fifteen Muslims to emigrate to Axum to receive protection under the Christian ruler, the Negus, Aṣḥama ibn Abjar. Emigration was a means through which some of the Muslims could escape the difficulties and persecution faced at the hands of the Quraysh, it also opened up new trading prospects. The Quraysh, on hearing the attempted emigration, dispatched a group led by Amr ibn al-As and they were unsuccessful in their chase however as the Muslims had already reached safe territory, and so approached the Negus, appealing to him to return the Muslim migrants. Jafar ibn Abī Tālib is quoted according to Islamic tradition as follows, for this reason, our people have risen against us, have persecuted us in order to make us forsake the worship of Allah and return to the worship of idols and other abominations. They have tortured and injured us, until finding no safety among them, we have come to your country, the Negus, seemingly impressed, consequently allowed the migrants to stay, sending back the emissaries of Quraysh. It is also thought that the Negus may have converted to Islam, in early June 619, Muhammad set out from Mecca to travel to the town of Taif in order to convene with its chieftains, and mainly those of Banu Thaqif. The reason for Muhammad directing his efforts towards Taif may have due to the lack of positive response from the people of Mecca to his message until then. Having been beset and pursued out of Taif, the wounded Muhammad sought refuge in a nearby orchard, resting under a grape vine, it is here that he invoked God, seeking comfort and protection. Muhammad is said to have rejected the proposition, saying that he would pray in the hopes of succeeding generations of Taif coming to accept Islamic monotheism, in the summer of 620 during the pilgrimage season, six men travelling from Medina came into contact with Muhammad
10.
Muhammad after the occupation of Mecca
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The period of Muhammad after the conquest of Mecca started with the Conquest of Mecca in 630 and ended with his death in 632. This period was preceded by the period of Muhammad in Medina, the Muslim army entered and occupied Mecca in the year 630 CE. In 628 the Meccan tribe of Quraish and the Muslim community in Medina signed a truce called the Treaty of Hudaybiyya, however, Muhammad considered the treaty broken. When he learned that a Muslim army of 10,000 soldiers was marching towards Mecca, he converted to Islam, Muhammad acted generously to the Meccans, demanding only that the pagan idols around the Kaaba be destroyed, now there are no idols there. The battle ended in a victory for the Muslims, who captured enormous spoils. The Battle of Hunayn is one of two battles mentioned in the Quran by name, in Sura. The Hawazin and their allies, the Thaqif, began mobilizing their forces when they learnt from their spies that Muhammad, the confederates apparently hoped to attack the Muslim army while it besieged Mecca. Muhammad, however, uncovered their intentions through his own spies in the camp of the Hawazin, only four weeks had elapsed since quitting Medina. Modern historians have been unable to reconstruct the course of the battle from this point onwards because the different Muslim sources describing the battle give contradictory accounts. Because Malik ibn Awf al-Nasri had brought the families and flocks of the Hawazin along, some Bedouins fled, and split into two groups. One group went back, resulting in the Battle of Autas, while the group found refuge at al-Taif. The Siege of Taif took place in 630 CE, as the Muslims besieged the city of Taif after their victory in the Battle of Hunayn, however, the city did not succumb to the siege. One of their chieftains, Urwah ibn Masud, was absent in Yemen during that siege, hadith of Mubahela The Battle of Tabouk was a military expedition said to have been led by Muhammed in October 630 CE. According to Muslim biographies, Muhammed led a force of as many as 30,000 north to Tabouk in present-day northwestern Saudi Arabia, though not a battle in the typical sense, if historical the event would represent the opening conflict in the coming Byzantine-Arab wars. There is no contemporary Byzantine account of the events, and much of the come from later Muslim sources. The term Ghassān refers to the kingdom of the Ghassanids, Thaqif, the main tribe of the town of Taif adopted Islam in 632. Which was exiting since they were beat in the battle of Hunayn against the muslims Muhammad became ill and his health took a serious turn on a Thursday. He summoned his companions and announced that he wanted to write a will, the first person to reply was Umar, answering that there was no need for any will, arguing that Muhammad was ill and that Umar had the Quran which was sufficient for him
11.
Quran
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The Quran is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims believe to be a revelation from God. It is widely regarded as the finest work in classical Arabic literature, the Quran is divided into chapters, which are then divided into verses. The word Quran occurs some 70 times in the text of the Quran, although different names, according to the traditional narrative, several companions of Muhammad served as scribes and were responsible for writing down the revelations. Shortly after Muhammads death, the Quran was compiled by his companions who wrote down and these codices had differences that motivated the Caliph Uthman to establish a standard version now known as Uthmans codex, which is generally considered the archetype of the Quran known today. There are, however, variant readings, with minor differences in meaning. The Quran assumes familiarity with major narratives recounted in the Biblical scriptures and it summarizes some, dwells at length on others and, in some cases, presents alternative accounts and interpretations of events. The Quran describes itself as a book of guidance and it sometimes offers detailed accounts of specific historical events, and it often emphasizes the moral significance of an event over its narrative sequence. The Quran is used along with the hadith to interpret sharia law, during prayers, the Quran is recited only in Arabic. Someone who has memorized the entire Quran is called a hafiz, some Muslims read Quranic ayah with elocution, which is often called tajwid. During the month of Ramadan, Muslims typically complete the recitation of the whole Quran during tarawih prayers, in order to extrapolate the meaning of a particular Quranic verse, most Muslims rely on the tafsir. The word qurʼān appears about 70 times in the Quran itself and it is a verbal noun of the Arabic verb qaraʼa, meaning he read or he recited. The Syriac equivalent is qeryānā, which refers to reading or lesson. While some Western scholars consider the word to be derived from the Syriac, regardless, it had become an Arabic term by Muhammads lifetime. An important meaning of the word is the act of reciting, as reflected in an early Quranic passage, It is for Us to collect it, in other verses, the word refers to an individual passage recited. Its liturgical context is seen in a number of passages, for example, So when al-qurʼān is recited, listen to it, the word may also assume the meaning of a codified scripture when mentioned with other scriptures such as the Torah and Gospel. The term also has closely related synonyms that are employed throughout the Quran, each synonym possesses its own distinct meaning, but its use may converge with that of qurʼān in certain contexts. Such terms include kitāb, āyah, and sūrah, the latter two terms also denote units of revelation. In the large majority of contexts, usually with an article, the word is referred to as the revelation
12.
Isra and Mi'raj
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The Isra and Miraj are the two parts of a Night Journey that, according to Islam, Muhammad took during a single night around the year 621. It has been described as both a physical and spiritual journey, a brief sketch of the story is in surah al-Isra of the Quran and other details come from the hadith collections of the reports of the teachings, deeds and sayings of Muhammad. In the Isra part of the journey, Muhammad travels on the steed Buraq to the farthest mosque where he leads other prophets in prayer and he then ascends to heaven in the Miraj journey where he speaks to God, who tells Muhammad what salah is. This remembrance of this journey is one of the most significant events in the Islamic calendar, the events of Isra and Miraj are referred to briefly in the Quran. For greater detail, they have discussed in Hadith literature. Of the hadith, two of the best known are by Anas ibn Malik, who would have been a boy at the time of Muhammads journey of Miraj. Within the Quran itself, surah al-Isra, the 17th chapter, in it, the first verse briefly describes the Isra. There is also information in a later verse and another sura, an-Najm. Glory to Him Who carried His servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Furthest Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed and he it is Who is All-Hearing, All-Seeing. Remember when We said to you that your Lord encompasses mankind in His knowledge, nor did We make the vision We showed you except as a test to people, as also the accursed tree in the Quran. And he saw him a time, By the lote-tree of the Extremity Near which is the Garden of Refuge When there covered the lote-tree that which covered it. He saw some of his Lords greatest wonders, from various hadiths we learn much greater detail. The Isra is the part of the journey of Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem and it began when Muhammad was in the Great Mosque, and the Archangel Jibrīl came to him, and brought Buraq, the traditional heavenly steed of the prophets. Buraq carried Muhammad to the al-Aqsa Mosque, the Farthest Mosque, Muhammad alighted, tethered Buraq to the Temple Mount and performed prayer, where on Gods command he was tested by Gabriel. It was told by Anas ibn Malik that Muhammad said, Jibrail brought me a vessel of wine, a vessel of water and a vessel of milk, Jibrail said, You have chosen the Fitrah. Muhammad was then taken to Sidrat al-Muntaha – a holy tree in the heaven that Gabriel was not allowed to pass. The place referred to in the Quran as The farthest mosque, however, the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem was not built during Muhammads lifetime. The Jerusalem interpretation was advanced by the earliest biographer of Muhammad – Ibn Ishaq – and is supported by numerous ahadith, when the Rashid caliph Umar conquered Jerusalem after Muhammads death, a prayer house was rebuilt on the site
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Splitting of the moon
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The splitting of the moon was a miracle attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It is derived from the Quranic verses 54, 1-2, most Muslim commentators interpret the event as a literal split in the moon, while some others identify it as an event that will happen at judgement day or an optical illusion. Early traditions supporting a literal interpretation are transmitted on the authority of companions of Muhammad such as Ibn Abbas, Anas bin Malik, Abdullah bin Masud, according to the Indian Muslim scholar Abdullah Yusuf Ali, the moon will split again when the day of judgment approaches. He says that the verses may also have an allegorical meaning, the Quranic verses 54, 1-2 was part of the debate between medieval Muslim theologians and Muslim philosophers over the issue of the inviolability of heavenly bodies. The narrative was used by some later Muslims to convince others of the prophethood of Muhammad and it has also inspired many Muslim poets, especially in India. Verses 54, 1-2 of the Quran reads, The Hour is nigh, but if they see a Sign, they turn away, and say, This is transient magic. Early traditions and stories explain this verse as a miracle performed by Muhammad, most Muslim commentators accept the authenticity of those traditions. The following verse 54,2, But if they see a Sign, they turn away, another tradition from Malik transmitted through other chains of narrations, mentions that the mount Nur was visible between the two parts of the moon. A tradition narrated on the authority of Jubayr ibn Mutim with a chain of transmission says that the two parts of the moon stood on two mountains. This tradition further states that the Meccan responded by saying Muhammad has taken us by his magic, if he was able to take us by magic, he will not be able to do so with all people. Traditions transmitted on the authority of Ibn Abbas briefly mention the incident, traditions transmitted on the authority of Abdullah bin Masud describe the incident as follows, We were along with Gods Messenger at Mina, that moon was split up into two. One of its parts was behind the mountain and the one was on this side of the mountain. Gods Messenger said to us, Bear witness to this 039,6725 The narrative was used by some later Muslims to convince others of the prophethood of Muhammad. An eclipse is visible in one country but not in the one, in one place it is total. Al-Zamakhshari, a commentator of the Quran, acknowledged the splitting of the moon as one of Muhammads miracles. But he also suggested that the splitting might take place only on the day of judgment, the Muslim scholar Yusuf Ali provides three different interpretations of the verse. He holds that all three are applicable to the verse, Moon once appeared cleft asunder at the time of Muhammad in order to convince the unbelievers. It will split again when the day of judgment approaches, Yusuf Ali connects this incident with the disruption of the solar system mentioned in 75, 8-9
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Miracles of Muhammad
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Miracles of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad are a number of supernatural occurrences, which according to Islamic tradition were made by Muhammad during his lifetime. These miracles are shown either in the Quran or, in the vast majority of cases, Muhammads miracles encompass a broad range, such as the multiplication of food, manifestation of water, hidden knowledge, prophesies, healing, punishment, and power over nature. According to historian Denis Gril, the Quran does not overtly describe Muhammad performing miracles, however, several miracles are reported in the Quran and miracles appear early and often in the hadith and the hadiths are indispensable in elucidating Muhammads miracles. Splitting of the moon Isra and Miraj According to Ali ibn Sahl Rabban al-Tabari, Muhammads success, on several occasions he provided food and water supernaturally. He comforted a palm tree that was crying and upset after he stopped leaning on it during his sermons and he caused two trees to move at his command. His migration from Mecca to Medina and he quenched the thirst of thousands of his soldiers during the Battle of Tabouk and enabled them to use water for ablution after causing water to pour forth. He caused a well to swell with water during the event of the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, enabling his followers with him to drink and he threw a handful of dust at some of the enemy during the Battle of Badr, causing them to be blinded. This miracle is mentioned in the Quran, Sura Al-Anfal, Verse 17, when the Jews of Medina claimed that the hereafter belonged to them alone, a Quranic verse was revealed saying Then wish for death. If you are speaking the truth, Muhammad predicted they would not be able to wish for death and his statement was proven correct, despite the Jews eagerness to disprove the reality of his Prophethood. This challenge was repeated in another Quranic verse and again was never met by the Jews and he told his companion, Uthman, that a calamity would befall him, which would be followed with his entering paradise, this eventuated during Uthmans Caliphate. He told his companion, Ammar ibn Yasir, that the unjust party would kill him and he said that God would make peace between two large Muslim groups through his grandson Hasan ibn Ali, this eventuated with the Hasan–Muawiya treaty. He said that he would one of the enemies of the Muslims, Ubay ibn Khalaf. Before the Battle of Badr, he showed exactly where each of the chiefs would be killed. He said that a part of his nation would raid by sea and he said that his daughter Fatimah would be the first of his family to die after him, which eventuated. He told his wives that the most charitable one among them would be the first to die after him and he caused Abdullah ibn Masud to convert to Islam after he made a barren ewe, which produced no milk, to produce milk. He spit into Alis sick eye, during the Battle of Khaybar and his companions would hear the food before him praising God. He caused it to rain during a drought in Medina, invoke blessings of Allah upon him. Thereupon he said, O Allah, make an increase in his wealth, anas said, By Allah, my fortune is huge and my children, and grand-children are now more than one hundred
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Muhammad's views on Jews
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Muhammads views on Jews were demonstrated through the contact he had with Jewish tribes living in and around Medina. Muhammad later fought battles with these tribes on the basis of violations of the constitution, Muslims, like Jews, were at that time praying towards Jerusalem. During the height of Muslim persecution in Mecca, Muhammad was offered the position of arbitrator in the highly diverse Medina and their opposition may well have been for political as well as religious reasons. According to Watt, Jews would normally be unwilling to admit that a non-Jew could be a prophet, mark Cohen adds that Muhammad was appearing centuries after the cessation of biblical prophecy and couched his message in a verbiage foreign to Judaism both in its format and rhetoric. The Talmud reports that there were prophets among the gentiles before the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple, the prophet Jonah was sent on a mission to speak to the gentiles of the city of Nineveh. According to Judaism, the destruction of the first Jerusalem Temple resulted in the deprivation of the period of Nevua on earth with Malachi as the last of the authentic prophets, the Jews, according to Watt, could argue that some passages in the Quran contradicted their ancient scriptures. The Jews may have hoped for greater influence if Ubayy had become a ruler, Watt writes that the Islamic response to these criticisms was, The Quran, met these intellectual criticisms by developing the conception of the religion of Abraham. While the knowledge of Abraham came from the Old Testament and material based on that, Abraham could be regarded as the ancestor of the Arabs through Ishmael. It was also a fact that he was not a Jew or Christian, since the Jews are either to be taken as the followers of Moses or as the descendants of Abrahams grandson. At the same time Abraham had stood for the worship of God alone, the Quran therefore claimed that it was restoring the pure monotheism of Abraham which had been corrupted in various, clearly specified, ways by Jews and Christians. Watt states that the charge of altering the scripture may mean no more than giving false interpretations to some passages, the corruption of previously revealed books is referred to as tahrif. The Quran also stated there was nothing surprising in Muhammads rejection by Jews. The Quran also criticized the Jews for believing that Ezra is the Son of God, michael Cook considers the charge of considering Ezra as the Son of God to be petty or obscure. The Encyclopedia Judaica article on Ezra says, Muhammed claims that in the opinion of the Jews and these words are enigma because no such opinion is to be found among the Jews, even though Ezra was singled out for special appreciation. In the Constitution of Medina, Jews were given equality to Muslims in exchange for political loyalty, however, after each major battle with the Medinans, there were accusations of Jewish tribal treachery for aiding the enemies of the community in violation of the Constitution of Medina. After Badr and Uhud, the Banu Qainuqa and Banu Nadir, respectively, were expelled with their families, after the Battle of the Trench in 627, the Jews of Banu Qurayza were accused of conspiring with the Meccans. Though Qurayza does not appear to have committed any hostile act and been overtly correct in their behaviour. Marco Scholler believes the Banu Qurayza were openly, probably actively, supporting Meccans, nasr writes that it was discovered that Qurayzah had been complicit with the enemy during the Battle
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Muhammad's views on Christians
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Muhammads views on Christians were demonstrated through his interactions with them. He interacted with Christians while in Mecca, and sent a force to fight the Byzantines at the Battle of Mutah, at the age of nine, or according to some sources twelve, Muhammad went to Syria with his uncle Abu Talib and had interactions with Christians. One important contact was with the Nestorian monk Bahira in Bosra and this narrative is found in multiple accounts of Sira literature. Another narrative found in the Sira of Ibn Sad shows that while Muhammad was working for Khadija, once they reached Bostra in the south of Syria, Muhammad was reported to have taken shelter underneath a tree. A monk named Nestor approached Maysarah asking him who was the man underneath the tree, explaining to the monk whom he was, Nestor quickly responded, None other than a Prophet is sitting beneath that tree. Waraqah ibn Nawfal was a Nestorian monk, first cousin to Muhammads wife Khadija and he was the first man to tell Muhammad that he was a prophet based on the first revelation he received in the cave of Hira. Waraqah is said to have believed in Muhammad as a true prophet, after the early Sahaba faced intense persecution from the Meccan elites, Muhammad sent 90 of his followers to Abyssinia. There the Muslims were received by the Christian king Aṣḥama ibn Abjar, ashama was known to have been one of Muhammads close companions. There are a few revelations of the Quran revealed in the Meccan period which seem to promote tolerance of Christians as People of the Book, according to the tradition preserved at Sinai, Muhammed both knew and visited the monastery and the Sinai fathers. The Koran makes mention of the Sinai holy sites, in the second year of the Hegira, corresponding to AD626, a delegation from Sinai requested a letter of protection from Mohammed. This was granted, and authorized by him when he placed his hand upon the document, in AD1517, Sultan Selim I confirmed the monastery’s prerogatives, but took the original letter of protection for safekeeping to the royal treasury in Constantinople. At the same time, he gave the monastery certified copies of this document, according to traditional Islamic sources, in 628 Muhammad sent a letter to Heraclius inviting him to Islam. The Byzantine emperor received it while on a pilgrimage in Jerusalem, according to Sunni tradition, Abu Sufyan ibn Harb came forward and a discussion between them took place. In 629 according to tradition, Muhammad sent a force of 3,000 men to fight 100,000 Byzantines near Al Karak, the Battle of Mutah ended when both sides retreated. The city of ancient-Najran, which is called Ukhdud today, is located just outside present-day Najran approximately 1200 miles south of Medina, ancient-Najran was a Christian city located at the intersection of two main caravan routes. The city was also in a geographical place which allowed it to boom with agriculture. One can infer that this played a significant role in Muhammad’s interest in the city, due to this interest, the Christian identity became vulnerable to Islam first in the Meccan period with the increase of the Qu’ran availability throughout the Arabian Peninsula. However, it was not until the Medina Period that the first interactions between the Christians of Najran and Muhammad took place and it was during Muhammad’s time in Medina that he began inviting different groups to Islam
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Succession to Muhammad
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The succession to Muhammad raises questions about the leadership of Islam after his death, Muhammads successor, how they should be elected, conditions of legitimacy and the role of successor. Answers to these questions have led to divisions in the Muslim community since the first century of Muslim history, giving rise to the Sunni, Shia. After Muhammads death in AD632, disagreement broke out over who should succeed him as leader of the Muslim community, since none of his sons survived into adulthood, hereditary succession was not an option. Umar, a prominent companion of Muhammad, nominated Abu Bakr, others added their support, and Abu Bakr was made the first caliph. This choice was disputed by some of Muhammads companions, who believed that Ali, his cousin, during the First and Second Fitnas the Islamic community divided into a number of groups, each of which had a specific idea about successorship. After the Rashidun caliphate evolved into monarchies and sultanates, Sunnis held power in most areas, Shias emerged in opposition. Sunnis believe that although Muhammad did not appoint a successor, Abu Bakr was elected the first caliph by the Muslim community, Shias believe that Muhammad named his successor, Ali, at Ghadir Khumm, Muslim leadership belonged to the person determined by divine order. The two groups also disagree on Alis attitude towards Abu Bakr and the two caliphs who succeeded him, Umar and Uthman ibn Affan, Ali believed that he could fulfil his imamate without fighting. Zaydis disagree with the Twelver Shia, after the death of Abu Bakr, Ali raised Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr. When Muhammad ibn Abi Bakr was killed by the Ummayads, Aisha raised, Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakrs mother was from Alis family, Qasims daughter, Farwah bint al-Qasim, was married to Muhammad al-Baqir and was the mother of Jafar al-Sadiq. Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr was the grandson of Abu Bakr, the first caliph, the Zaydis believe that Zayd ibn Ali was betrayed by the people in Kufa, who told him, May God have mercy on you. What do you have to say on the matter of Abu Bakr, Zayd ibn Ali said, I have not heard anyone in my family renouncing them both nor saying anything but good about them. Historical works of later Muslim writers include the traditional Muslim biographies of Muhammad and quotes attributed to him, the earliest surviving written sira is Sirah Rasul Allah by Ibn Ishaq. Although the original work is lost, portions survive in the recensions of Ibn Hisham, many scholars accept the accuracy of these biographies, although this accuracy is uncertain. Studies by J. Schacht and Ignác Goldziher have led scholars to distinguish between legal and historical traditions, according to William Montgomery Watt, although legal traditions could have been invented, historical material may have been primarily subject to tendential shaping rather than invented. Hadith compilations are records of the traditions of Muhammad—his biography, perpetuated by community memory for it guidance, the development of hadith is a crucial element of the first three centuries of Islamic history. Early Western scholars mistrusted the later narrations and reports, regarding them as fabrications, the only contemporary source is The Book of Sulaym ibn Qays by Sulaym ibn Qays. This collection of hadith and historical reports from the first century of the Islamic calendar narrates events relating to the succession in detail, at a small gathering attended in Saqifah a companion of Muhammad, Abu Bakr, was nominated to lead the community
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Hadith of the pen and paper
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This is a sub-article to the Succession to Muhammad. The Hadith of the pen and paper is a hadith in Islam about an event when the Islamic prophet Muhammad expressed a wish to write something down, the hadith is referenced in both Shia and Sunni traditions. Shias also refer to it as The Calamity of Thursday, Muhammad became ill in the year 632 and his health took a serious turn on a Thursday. It is reported that Muhammad asked for writing materials to write a statement that would prevent the Muslim nation from going astray forever. The first person to reply was Umar, answering that there was no need for the statement, arguing that Muhammad was ill, Umar said, The Prophet is seriously ill and you have the Quran, so the Book of Allah is enough for us. The people present in the house differed and quarrelled, some said Go near so that the Prophet may write for you a statement after which you will not go astray, while the others said as Umar said. When they caused a hue and cry before the Prophet, Allahs Apostle said, narrated Ubaidullah, Ibn Abbas used to say, It was very unfortunate that Allahs Apostle was prevented from writing that statement for them because of their disagreement and noise. Sunnis tend to view this as Sahih and have included it in Sahih al-Bukhari, jubair reported from Ibn Abbas that he said, Thursday, and what about Thursday. Then tears began to flow until I saw them on his cheeks as it they were the strings of pearls and he said that Allahs Messenger said, Bring me a shoulder blade and ink-pot, so that I write for you a document you would never go astray. They said, Allahs Messenger is in the state of unconsciousness, Sunnis tend to view this as Sahih and have included it in Sahih Muslim. The primary narrator here is Ibn Abbas, and at time he was ten to fifteen years old. Sunni and Shii Muslims interpret this event and its significance differently, Sunni Muslims refer to this episode as the Event of Thursday. It is generally seen as an event and a test by Muhammad of the Sahabah. The companions are considered to have chosen to do the thing and passed the test. Further Sunnis say it was not a matter of disobedience but rather it was Umars Ijtihad in that situation. The following passage is cited as evidence, This day have I perfected your religion for you, completed My favour upon you, shias point out that obedience to Muhammad was required from every Muslim at all times. The Quran orders Muslims regarding Muhammad, So take what the Messenger assigns to you, therefore it was not the place of anyone to take matters into their own hands. The idea that Umar disobeyed Muhammad out of love is an unproven assumption and they refer back to the events of Ghadir and Da‘wat dhul-‘Ashīrah which show that Muhammad had already nominated Ali as his successor
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Saqifah
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The Saqīfah, also known as Saqīfah Banī Sāidah, was a roofed building used by a Jewish tribe called Banu Saidah, a faction of Banu Khazraj tribe of the city of Madinah in Hejaz, western Arabia. The name of the house is used as shorthand for the event, or the gathering, on the day Muhammad died, the Medinan Muslim or Ansar gathered in the Saqifah to discuss the future and leadership of the Muslims. There were two Ansar tribes, the Khazraj and the Aws, both were present, however, the Muhajirun, or Muslim emigrants from Mecca, had not been notified of the gathering. Muhammad Ibn Jarir Tabari writes in his Tarikh at page 456, Volume II that ‘Umar came to the door of the Prophets house and he sent a word to Abu Bakr, Come immediately, I have urgent business with you. Abu Bakr sent message to him that he had no time, ‘Umar sent another message, We have come across a critical issue. Abu Bakr came out and was informed secretly about the gathering of the Ansars in the Saqifah by Umar, ‘Umar said that they should go there at once and both of them moved. After a tumultuous debate, the details of which are highly contested and they initially refused to take the oath to Abu Bakr and were known as the Shiah Ali or Follower of Ali. They did so because Ali himself didnt take the oath as described by Shia sources, though Sunnis do not give much importance to this event. Shias still consider the Event at Saqifah to be one of the points in Islamic history where Ahlul Bayt. Ali observed active passivity in the following the event of Saqifah. Ali chose not to voice his opposition to the decision of appointing Abu Bakr as this would cause much fitna among the early Muslims. The Sunnis consider this to be wrong as Ali would take active participation in the stately matters, one of the earliest accounts of Saqifah is to be found in Ibn Ishaqs sira, or biography of Muhammad. It is based on the words of Umar himself, as reported to Ibn Ishaq by Ibn Al-Abbas, Abu Bakr and Umar were sitting with some of the Muhajirun, the emigrants from Mecca. Having heard that the Ansar were meeting, they went to stop Ansar from it, one three Muhajirun went to Saqifah as they had no intentions to select a ruler, but only to stop the Ansar. There, Abu Bakr addressed the Ansar, Abu Bakr argued that only a leader from the Quraysh, Meccas leading clan, could keep the community intact. Only the Quraysh were universally recognized as a clan, worthy of leadership. He suggested that the meeting choose either Umar or Abu Ubaidah ibn al Jarrah as a leader, one of the Ansar suggested that the Ansar should choose a leader for themselves and the Meccans should choose another for themselves. Abu Bakar mentioned the sayings of Muhammad and convinced a number of Ansar that the leader can be from Quraysh only
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Sahabah
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The term aṣ-ṣaḥābah refers to the companions, disciples, scribes and family of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. This form is definite plural, the singular is masculine sahabi. Later scholars accepted their testimony of the words and deeds of Muhammad, the testimony of the companions, as it was passed down through trusted chains of narrators, was the basis of the developing Islamic tradition. The most widespread definition of a companion is someone who met Muhammad, believed in him and died as a Muslim. ”Anyone who died after rejecting Islam and those who saw him but held off believing in him until after his passing are not considered Sahaba but Tabiin. In their view, the Quran has outlined a high level of faith as one of the qualities of the Sahabah. Hence, they admit to this list only those individuals who had contact with Muhammad, lived with him. This view has implications in Islamic law since narrations of Muhammad transmitted through the Sahabah acquire a status of authenticity. Lists of prominent companions usually run to 50 or 60 names, the book entitled Istîâb fî marifat-il-Ashâb by Hafidh Yusuf bin Muhammad bin Qurtubi consists of 2,770 biographies of male and 381 biographies of female Sahabah. According to an observation in the book entitled Mawâhib-i-ladunniyya, a number of persons had already converted to Islam by the time Muhammad died. There were 10,000 by the time Mecca was conquered and 70,000 during the Battle of Tabouk in 630. Some Muslims assert that they were more than 200,000 in number, indeed, He was to them Kind and Merciful. In Islam, there are three types of Sahabah, The people who were Muslims at the time of Badr, but those who believed and did not emigrate - for you there is no guardianship of them until they emigrate. And if they seek help of you for the religion, then you must help, and Allah is Seeing of what you do. Quran, sura 8, ayah 72 And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favor of Allah upon you - when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favor, and you were on the edge of a pit of the Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be guided, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah, and those with him are forceful against the disbelievers, merciful among themselves. You see them bowing and prostrating, seeking bounty from Allah and their mark is on their faces from the trace of prostration. That is their description in the Torah, Allah has promised those who believe and do righteous deeds among them forgiveness and a great reward. The people who were Muslims before victory at Mecca and went into exile and they are also high in degree, especially those who were present at Hudabiyah
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History of Islam
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The history of Islam concerns the political, economic, social, and cultural developments of the Islamic civilization. Despite concerns about reliability of sources, most historians believe that Islam originated in Mecca. A century later, the Islamic empire extended from Iberia in the west to the Indus river in the east, polities such as those ruled by the Umayyads, Abbasids, Fatimids, and Mamluks were among the most influential powers in the world. The Islamic civilization gave rise to many centers of culture and science and produced notable astronomers, mathematicians, during the 19th and early 20th centuries most parts of the Muslim world fell under influence or direct control of European Great Powers. Their efforts to win independence and build modern nation states over the course of the last two centuries continue to reverberate to the present day, the following timeline can serve as a rough visual guide to the most important polities in the Islamic world prior to the First World War. It covers major historical centers of power and culture, including Arabia, Mesopotamia, Persia, Levant, Egypt, Maghreb, al-Andalus, Transoxania, Hindustan, dates are approximate, consult particular articles for details. The study of the earliest periods in Islamic history is difficult by a lack of sources. For example, the most important historiographical source for the origins of Islam is the work of al-Tabari, while al-Tabari was an excellent historian by the standards of his time and place, use of his work as a source is problematic for two reasons. For one, his style of historical writing permitted liberal use of mythical, legendary, stereotyped, distorted, Second, al-Tabaris descriptions of the beginning of Islam post-date the events by a large amount of time, al-Tabari having died in 923 CE. Differing views about how to deal with the sources has led to the development of four different approaches to the history of early Islam. All four methods have some level of support today, the descriptive method uses the outlines of Islamic traditions, while being adjusted for the stories of miracles and faith-centred claims within those sources. Edward Gibbon and Gustav Weil represent some of the first historians following the descriptive method, on the source critical method, a comparison of all the sources is sought in order to identify which informants to the sources are weak and thereby distinguish spurious material. The work of William Montgomery Watt and that of Wilferd Madelung are two source critical examples, on the tradition critical method, the sources are believed to be based on oral traditions with unclear origins and transmission history, and so are treated very cautiously. Ignaz Goldziher was the pioneer of the critical method. The skeptical method doubts nearly all of the material in the traditional sources, an early example of the skeptical method was the work of John Wansbrough. Nowadays, the popularity of the different methods employed varies on the scope of the works under consideration, for overview treatments of the history of early Islam, the descriptive approach is more popular. For scholars who look at the beginnings of Islam in depth, after the 8th century CE, the quality of sources improves. For the time prior to the beginning of Islam—in the 6th century CE—sources are superior as well, Islam arose within the context of Late Antiquity
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Salawat
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Salawat or aṣ-ṣalātu ʿala -n-nabī or Darood Sharif is an invocation which Muslims make by saying specific phrases to compliment the Islamic prophet Muhammad. O Allah, let Your Peace come upon Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as you have peace to Ibrahim. Truly, You are Praiseworthy and Glorious, Allah, bless Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as you have blessed Ibrahim and his family. Truly, You are Praiseworthy and Glorious, proponents of this practice state that if the Durood-i-Naariya is recited daily, it will augment the strength of the plaintiff. Madih nabawi Nasheed Sufi music Ya Muhammad Durood Shareef Collection of Durood Shareef
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Mawlid
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Mawlid is the observance of the birthday of the Islamic prophet Muhammad which is celebrated in Rabi al-awwal, the third month in the Islamic calendar. 12 Rabi al-awwal is the accepted date among most of the Sunni scholars and this seven days period, i. e. 12–17 Rabi al-awwal, is assigned by Islamic Republic of Iran as the unity week. The origin of Mawlid observance dates back to the period of the early four Rashidun Caliphs of Islam, the Ottomans declared it an official holiday in 1588. The term Mawlid is also used in parts of the world, such as Egypt. Mawlid is recognized as a holiday in most of the Muslim-majority countries of the world except Saudi Arabia. Shaykh Faraz Rabbani states that the Mawlid is generally approved of across the four Islamic schools of law, Mawlid is derived from the Arabic root word, meaning to give birth, bear a child, descendant. In contemporary usage, Mawlid refers to the observance of the birthday of Muhammad, the date of Muhammads birth is a matter of contention since the exact date is unknown and is not definitively recorded in the Islamic traditions. The issue of the date of the Mawlid is recorded by Ibn Khallikan as constituting the first proven disagreement concerning the celebration. Among the most recognisable dates, Sunni Muslims believe the date to have been on the twelfth of Rabi al-awwal and this celebration was introduced into the city Sabta by Abu lAbbas al-Azafi as a way of strengthening the Muslim community and to counteract Christian festivals. The early celebrations, included elements of Sufic influence, with sacrifices and torchlight processions along with public sermons. The celebrations occurred during the day, in contrast to modern day observances, emphasis was given to the Ahl al-Bayt with presentation of sermons and recitations of the Quran. This Shia origin is noted by those Sunnis who oppose Mawlid. Among Sunnis, the Mawlid celebration emerged in the 12th century, among Muslim scholars, the legality of Mawlid has been the subject of intense debate and has been described as perhaps one of the most polemical discussions in Islamic law. Traditionally, most Sunni and nearly all of the Shia scholars have approved of the celebration of Mawlid, while Wahhabi and Ahmadiyya scholars oppose the celebration. The Damascene Shafii scholar Abu Shama also supports the celebration of the Mawlid as does the Maliki scholar Ibn al-Hajj who spoke positively of the observance of the Mawlid in his book al-Madhkal. Likewise, the Shafii Egyptian scholar Ibn Hajar al-Haytami was a supporter of the Mawlid. This was supported and commented on by the Egyptian scholar and former head of Al-Azhar University Ibrahim al-Bajuri, another Hanafi Mufti Ali al-Qari too supported the celebration of the Mawlid and wrote a text on the subject as did the Moroccan Maliki scholar Muḥammad ibn Jaʿfar al-Kattānī. Ibn al-Jazari, a Syrian Shafii scholar considers the celebration of the Mawlid to be a means of gaining Paradise, in the Muslim world, the majority of Sunni Islamic scholars are in favor of the Mawlid
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Muhammad in Islam
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Muḥammad ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbdul-Muttalib ibn Hashim, in short form Muhammad, is considered by Muslims to be the last Rasul and Nabi sent by Allah to guide humanity to the right way. The religious, social, and political tenets that Muhammad established in the light of Quran became the foundation of Islam, Muslims often refer to Muhammad as Prophet Muhammad, or just The Prophet or The Messenger, and regard him as the greatest of all Prophets. He is seen by Muslims as a possessor of all the virtues, as an act of respect, Muslims follow the name of Muhammad by the Arabic benediction sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, a practice instructed by Qur’an and Hadith. The deeds and sayings in the life of Muhammad – known as Sunnah – are considered a model of the life-style that Muslims are obliged to follow. Recognizing Muhammad as Gods final messenger is one of the requirements in Islam which is clearly laid down in the second part of the Shahadah. The Qur’an chiefly refers to Muhammad as Messenger and Messenger of God, and asks people to him so as to become successful in this life. Born in about 570 CE into a respected Qurayshi family of Mecca, because of persecution of the newly converted Muslims, upon the invitation of a delegation from Medina, Muhammad and his followers migrated to Medina in 622 CE, an event known as Hijra. A turning point in Muhammads life, this Hijra also marks the beginning of Islamic calendar. Despite the ongoing hostility of the Meccans, Muhammad, along with his followers, took control of Mecca in 630 CE, treated its citizens with generosity, and ordered to destroy all the pagan idols. By the time he died in 632, his teachings had won the acceptance of Islam by almost all the tribes of the Arabian Peninsula. The Qur’an enumerates little about Muhammads early life or other details, but it talks about his prophetic mission, his moral excellence. According to the Qur’an, Muhammad is the last in a chain of prophets sent by God, throughout the Qur’an, Muhammad is referred to as Messenger, Messenger of God, and Prophet. Some of such verses are 2,101,2,143,2,151,3,32,3,81,3,144,3,164,4, 79-80,5,15,5,41,7,157,8,01,9,3,33,40,48,29, and 66,09. Other terms are used, including Warner, bearer of glad tidings, the Quran asserts that Muhammad was a man who possessed the highest moral excellence, and that God made him a good example or a goodly model for Muslims to follow. The Quran disclaims any superhuman characteristics for Muhammad, but describes him in terms of human qualities. In several verses, the Quran crystallizes Muhammad’s relation to humanity, according to the Quran, God sent Muhammad with truth, and as a blessing to the whole world. The Quran also categorizes some theological issues regarding Muhammad, the most important among them is the edict to follow the teachings of Muhammad. The Quran repeatedly commands people to follow God and his Messenger in verses including 3, 31-32,3,132,4,59, and 4,69
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Judaism's views on Muhammad
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Very few texts in Judaism refer to or take note of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. Some of them deny Muhammads declaration of receiving divine revelations and call him a false prophet, in Judaism, prophets were seen as having attained the highest degree of holiness, scholarship, and closeness to God and set the standards for human perfection. The Talmud reports that there were more than a million prophets, the Talmud reports that there were prophets among the gentiles. The prophet Jonah was sent on a mission to speak to the gentiles of the city of Nineveh. In the Middle Ages, it was common for Jewish writers to claim that Muhammad was ha-meshuggaʿ, a term of contempt used in the Jewish Bible for those who believe themselves to be prophets. Among others, the old sage and man of letters Abu Afak from the Ubaeda tribe who wrote a poem which would be indicted by Muhammad himself, as warranting the capital sentence by assassination. The extant of it was preserved in Islamic biography and it may have been severe, Maimonides alleges that Muhammad was a false prophet. In his Epistle to Yemen he wrote After arose the Madman who emulated his precursor, but he added the further objective of procuring rule and submission and he invented what was well known. As it is said, For then I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech so that all of them call on the name of the Lord. Nethanel explicitly considered Muhammad a true prophet, who was sent from Heaven with a message that applies to the Arabs. However, Al-Fayymis explicit acceptance of Muhammads prophecy was rare and virtually unknown until recent times beyond his native Yemen, the apocalyptic Midrash Secrets of Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, compares Muhammad, a prophet sent to Ishmael according to Gods will, to the Jewish Messiah. Secrets of Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai has been published as a part of a number of Midrash collections, a recent Hasidic edition was included in the book called Yalkut ha-Royim, endorsed as authoritative by Rabbi Moshe Teitelbaum, the former leader of the Satmar Hasidim. One Yemenite Jewish document, found in the Cairo Genizah, suggests that many Jews had not only accepted Muhammad as a prophet, however, some historians suggest that this document, called Dhimmat an-nabi Muhammad, has been fabricated by Yemenite Jews for the purpose of self-defence. Islam and Judaism Judaisms view of Jesus Muhammads views on Jews
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Medieval Christian views on Muhammad
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During the Early Middle Ages, the Christian world largely viewed Islam as a Christological heresy and Muhammad as a false prophet. By the Late Middle Ages, Islam was more typically grouped with heathenism, a more relaxed or benign view of Islam only developed in the modern period, after the Islamic empires ceased to be an acute military threat to Europe, see Orientalism. The earliest documented Christian knowledge of Muhammad stems from Byzantine sources, in contrast to the Islamic views of Muhammad, the Christian image stayed highly negative for over a millennium. The earliest Christian knowledge of Muhammad stems from Byzantine sources, written shortly after Muhammads death in 632, another participant in the Doctrina replies about Muhammad, He is deceiving. For do prophets come with sword and chariot, …ou will discover nothing true from the said prophet except human bloodshed. Though Muhammad is never called by his name, there seems to have knowledge of his existence. It also appears that both Jews and Christians viewed him in a negative light, according to the Encyclopædia Britannica Christian knowledge of Muhammads life was nearly always used abusively. Another influential source was the Epistolae Saraceni or the “Letters of a Saracen” written by an Oriental Christian, from the 9th century onwards, highly negative biographies of Muhammad were written in Latin, such as the one by Alvarus of Cordoba proclaiming him the Anti-Christ. Christendom also gained knowledge of Muhammad through the Mozarabs of Spain, such as the 9th-century Eulogius of Cordova. In the 11th century Petrus Alphonsi, a Jew who converted to Christianity, was another Mozarab source of information on Muhammad, medieval scholars and churchmen held that Islam was the work of Muhammad who in turn was inspired by Satan. Muhammad was frequently calumniated and made a subject of legends taught by preachers as fact, a verbal expression of Christian contempt for Islam was expressed in turning his name from Muhammad to Mahound, the devil incarnate. Others usually confirmed to pious Christians that Muhammad had come to a bad end, according to one version after falling into a drunken stupor he had been eaten by a herd of swine, and this was ascribed as the reason why Muslims proscribed consumption of alcohol and pork. In another account of the ban, Muhammad learns about the Bible from a Jew. Muhammad and the monk get drunk and fall asleep, the Jew kills the monk with Muhammads sword. He then blames Muhammad, who, believing he has committed the crime in a drunken rage, leggenda di Maometto is another example of such a story. It also ascribed the Muslim holiday of Friday dies Veneris, as against the Jewish and the Christian, to his followers depravity as reflected in their multiplicity of wives. In Dantes Divine Comedy, Muhammad is in the ditch of the eighth circle of hell. His guts hung between his legs and displayed His vital organs, including that wretched sack Which converts to shit whatever gets conveyed down the gullet
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Historicity of Muhammad
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The earliest Muslim sources of information for the life of Muhammad is the Quran, which gives very little information and whose historicity has been questioned. Next in importance is the literature and Hadith, which survive in the historical works of writers from the second, third. The main Islamic source on Muhammads life are Muslim sources written in Arabic and these sources are known as sīra and hadith. According to traditional Islamic scholarship, all of the Quran was written down by Muhammads companions while he was alive, the written compilation of the whole Quran in its definite form as we have it now was not completed until many years after the death of Muhammad. Modern scholars differ in their assessment of Quran as a source about Muhammads life. In contrast, Solomon A. Nigosian writes that the Quran tells us little about the life of Muhammad. F. E. Peters states, Few have failed to be convinced that what is in our copy of the Quran is, in fact, what Muhammad taught, and is expressed in his own words. To sum this up, the Quran is convincingly the words of Muhammad, Peters argues that The search for variants in the partial versions extant before the Caliph Uthman’s alleged recension in the 640s has not yielded any differences of great significance. They also question the accuracy of some the Qurans historical accounts, but where the accepted facts are consciously put upside down, their approach is disastrous. Serjeant stated, Hagarism. is not only bitterly anti-Islamic in tone and its superficial fancies are so ridiculous that at first one wonders if it is just a ‘leg pull’, pure ’spoof’. Gerd R. Puins initial study of ancient Quran manuscripts found in Yemen led him to conclude that the Quran is a cocktail of texts, some of which may have been existent a hundred years before Muhammad. Puin has stated that he believes the Quran was a text rather than simply the Word of God as revealed in its entirety to Muhammad in the seventh century A. John Wansbrough believes that the Qu’ran is a redaction in part of sacred scriptures. Some of the reaction is undoubtedly due to its radicalness. Wansbroughs work has been embraced wholeheartedly by few and has been employed in a piecemeal fashion by many. Many praise his insights and methods, if not all of his conclusions, there is considerable academic debate over the real chronology of the chapters of the Quran. The Carbon-14 tests applied to this Quran date its parchment to 645-690 AD with 95 percent accuracy, paleography has dated the Sana manuscripts to 690-750 AD. The hadith collections include traditional, hagiographic accounts of the verbal and physical traditions of Muhammad, in general, the majority of western academics view the hadith collections with caution. Bernard Lewis states that The collection and recording of Hadith did not take place several generations after the death of the Prophet
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Criticism of Muhammad
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Criticism of Muhammad has included reference to Muhammads sincerity in claiming to be a prophet, his morality and his marriages. Criticism has existed since the 7th century, when Muhammad was decried by his non-Muslim Arab contemporaries for preaching monotheism, during the Middle Ages he was frequently seen in Christendom as a heretic, and/or possessed by demons. In the Middle Ages, it was common for Jewish writers to describe Muhammad as ha-meshuggah, the earliest Christian knowledge of Muhammad stems from Byzantine sources, written shortly after Muhammads death in 632. Another participant in the Doctrina replies about Muhammad, He is deceiving, for do prophets come with sword and chariot. …ou will discover nothing true from the prophet except human bloodshed. One Christian who came under the dominion of the Islamic Caliphate was John of Damascus. The second chapter of his book, The Fount of Wisdom, titled Concerning Heresies, John claimed that an Arian monk influenced Muhammad and the writer viewed the Islamic doctrines as nothing more than a hodgepodge culled from the Bible. Among the first sources representing Muhammad is the polemical work Concerning Heresy of John of Damascus, in this manuscript, the Syrian priest represents Muhammad as a false prophet, and an Antichrist. The phoneme h and the gemination of m do not exist in Greek so it has disappeared from Johns uses, from the 9th century onwards, highly negative biographies of Muhammad were written in Latin, such as the one by Álvaro of Córdoba proclaiming him the Antichrist. Since the 7th century, Muhammad and his name have been connected to several stereotypes, many sources mentioned exaggerated and sometimes wrong stereotypes. These stereotypes are born in the East but adopted by or developed in Western cultures, One common allegation laid against Muhammad was that he was an impostor who, in order to satisfy his ambition and his lust, propagated religious teachings that he knew to be false. Some medieval ecclesiastical writers portrayed Muhammad as possessed by Satan, a precursor of the Antichrist or the Antichrist himself, a more positive interpretation appears in the 13th century Estoire del Saint Grail, the first book in the vast Arthurian cycle, the Lancelot-Grail. This mission however failed when Muhammads pride caused him to alter Gods wishes, nevertheless, Muhammads religion is portrayed as being greatly superior to paganism. The Tultusceptrum de libro domni Metobii, an Andalusian manuscript with unknown dating, the story argues God was concerned about the spiritual fate of the Arabs and wanted to correct their deviation from the faith. He then sends an angel to the monk Osius who orders him to preach to the Arabs, Osius however is in ill-health and orders a young monk, Ozim, to carry out the angels orders instead. Ozim sets out to follow his orders, but gets stopped by an angel on the way. The ignorant Ozim believes him to be the angel that spoke to Osius before. The evil angel modifies and corrupts the original message given to Ozim by Osius, from this followed the erroneous teachings of Islam, according to the Tultusceptrum
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Al-Masjid an-Nabawi
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Al-Masjid an-Nabawī is a mosque established and originally built by the Islamic prophet Muhammad, situated in the city of Medina in Saudi Arabia. Al-Masjid an-Nabawi was the mosque built in the history of Islam and is now one of the largest mosques in the world. It is the second-holiest site in Islam, after Masjid al-Haram in Mecca and it is always open, regardless of date or time. The site was adjacent to Muhammads house, he settled there after his Hijra to Medina in 622 CE. He shared in the work of construction. The original mosque was an open-air building, the mosque served as a community center, a court, and a religious school. There was a platform for the people who taught the Quran. Subsequent Islamic rulers greatly expanded and decorated it, in 1909, it became the first place in the Arabian Peninsula to be provided with electrical lights. The mosque is under the control of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, the mosque is located in what was traditionally the center of Medina, with many hotels and old markets nearby. It is a pilgrimage site. Many pilgrims who perform the Hajj go on to Medina to visit the mosque due to its connections to the life of Muhammad. After an expansion during the reign of the Umayyad caliph al-Walid I, it now incorporates the final resting place of Muhammad and the first two Rashidun caliphs Abu Bakr and Umar. One of the most notable features of the site is the Green Dome in the south-east corner of the mosque, originally Aishas house, where the tomb of Muhammad is located. In 1279, a cupola was built over the tomb which was later rebuilt and renovated multiple times in late 15th century. The current dome was added in 1818 by the Ottoman sultan Mahmud II, the mosque was built by Muhammad in 622 after his arrival in the city of Medina. After the Battle of Khaybar, the mosque was enlarged, the mosque extended for 47.32 metres on each side and three rows of columns were built beside the west wall, which became the place of praying. The mosque remained unaltered during the reign of the first Rashidun caliph Abu Bakr, the second caliph Umar demolished all the houses around the mosque except that of Muhammads wives to expand it. The new mosques dimensions became 57.49 metres ×66.14 metres, sun-dried mud bricks were used to construct the walls of the enclosure
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Possessions of Muhammad
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Possessions of the Islamic prophet Muhammad are known with unique names. He got 2 through inheritance,3 as booty and some from being given as gifts, eight of the nine swords of Muhammed are in the Topkapi Palace, Turkey. The 9th one is in Cairo, Egypt, al-’Adb is the name of sword meaning “cutting” or “sharp. ”This sword was sent to Muhammad by one of his friends just before the Battle of Badr. Muhammad also used this sword at the Battle of Uhud and his followers used it to demonstrate their fealty to him, currently the sword is in the Husain mosque in Cairo, Egypt. Al-Ma’thur, also known as “Ma’thur al-Fijar” is the sword which was owned by Muhammad before he received his first revelations in Mecca and this sword was given to him due to the will of his father. When Muhammad migrated from Mecca to Medina, the remained with him until it was transferred to Ali ibn Abi Talib. The length of blade of this sword is 99 cm, the handle is make of gold in the shape of two serpents, and is encrusted with emeralds and turquoise. Near the handle is a saying, Abdullah ibn Abdul-Muttalib. This sword is housed in the Topkapi Museum, Istanbul and it is said that the weapons of the house of Muhammad were kept among his family just like the Ark was kept with the Israelites. The sword is preserved in the Topkapi museum, Istanbul, the blade of this sword is 140 cm in length. Al-Battar sword was taken by Muhammad as booty from the Banu Qaynaqa and it is called the “sword of the prophets” and is inscribed in Arabic with the names of David, Solomon, Moses, Aaron, Joshua, Zechariah, John, Jesus, and Muhammad. It also has a drawing of King David cutting off the head of Goliath, the sword also features a Nabataean inscription. The length of blade of this sword is 101 cm and it is currently in the Topkapi Museum in Istanbul, along with eight of the nine preserved swords of Muhammad. It is claimed by some to be the sword that Jesus will use when he returns to Earth to defeat the anti-Christ, Hatf is a sword which Muhammad took as booty from the Banu Qaynaqa. It is said that King David took the sword “al-Battar” from Goliath as booty when he defeated him, God gave King David the ability to work with iron, to make armour and weapons and instruments of war, and using his ability made for himself a sword. It was thus that the Hatf sword came about, resembling the al-Battar and he used this sword and it was passed onto the tribe of Levites who kept the weapons of the Israelites until it passed into the hands of Muhammad. Nowadays this sword is housed in the Topkapi museum, the blade of this sword is 112 cm in length and has a width of 8 cm. Qal’i sword is known as “Qal’i” or “Qul’ay. ”The name may be related to a place in Syria or a place in India near China, some scholars said that the adjective “qal’i” refers to “tin” or “white lead” which was mined in different locations
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Relics of Muhammad
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Traditionally, Islam has had a rich history of the veneration of relics, especially of those attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. As a result of the influence of these perspectives, some contemporary Muslims influenced by these ideologies have rejected the practice of relic-veneration altogether. The most genuine relics prophetic relics are believed to be housed in Istanbuls Topkapı Palace. His son Abd Allāh related this from him, if it is asked, Why did the Prophets Companions not do this. Since we have not had the fortune of sharing this, we throw ourselves on his grave as a mark of commitment, reverence. Do you not see what Thābit al-Bunānī did when he kissed the hand of Anas ibn Malik and placed it on his face saying, This is the hand that touched the hand of the Messenger of God. Muslims are not moved to these matters except by their love for the Prophet, as they are ordered to love God. The 17th-century French explorer Jean-Baptiste Tavernier wrote about his discussions with two treasurers of Constantinople, who described the standard, mantle and the seal. Two centuries later, Charles White wrote about the mantle, the standard, the beard, tooth, and footprint of Muhammad, the last of which he saw personally. The battle standard of Muhammad, known in Turkish as Sancak-ı Şerif, was believed to have served as the curtain over the entrance of his wife Aishas tent. Selim I acquired it, and had it taken to the Grand Mosque of Damascus where it was to be carried during the annual Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, realising its political possibilities, Murad III had it sent to Hungary as an incentive for his army. The keys to the box were traditionally held by the Kislar Agha. The Holy Mantle, Hırka-i Şerif, or Burda is an item of clothing that was given as a gift by Muhammad to Kab ibn Zuhayr, whose children sold it to Muawiyah I, the founder of the Umayyad dynasty. After the fall of the Umayyads, the Mantle went to Baghdad under the Abbasids, to Cairo under the Mamluks, the famous Poem of the Mantle was composed by the eminent Imam al-Busiri in praise of Muhammad and his miraculous mantle. Tavernier described it as a coat made of goats hair with large sleeves. The Officer sends to the Overseer of the Treasury, for a large golden Cauldron, which is brought in thither by some of the Senior-Pages. It is so capacious, according to the description which they gave me of it, as to contain the part of a Tun, and the out-side of it is gamishd, in some places, with Emeralds. That done, with the water he fills a great number of Venice-Chrystl Bottles, containing about half a pint
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Arabic
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Arabic is a Central Semitic language that was first spoken in Iron Age northwestern Arabia and is now the lingua franca of the Arab world. Arabic is also the language of 1.7 billion Muslims. It is one of six languages of the United Nations. The modern written language is derived from the language of the Quran and it is widely taught in schools and universities, and is used to varying degrees in workplaces, government, and the media. The two formal varieties are grouped together as Literary Arabic, which is the language of 26 states. Modern Standard Arabic largely follows the standards of Quranic Arabic. Much of the new vocabulary is used to denote concepts that have arisen in the post-Quranic era, Arabic has influenced many languages around the globe throughout its history. During the Middle Ages, Literary Arabic was a vehicle of culture in Europe, especially in science, mathematics. As a result, many European languages have borrowed many words from it. Many words of Arabic origin are found in ancient languages like Latin. Balkan languages, including Greek, have acquired a significant number of Arabic words through contact with Ottoman Turkish. Arabic has also borrowed words from languages including Greek and Persian in medieval times. Arabic is a Central Semitic language, closely related to the Northwest Semitic languages, the Ancient South Arabian languages, the Semitic languages changed a great deal between Proto-Semitic and the establishment of the Central Semitic languages, particularly in grammar. Innovations of the Central Semitic languages—all maintained in Arabic—include, The conversion of the suffix-conjugated stative formation into a past tense, the conversion of the prefix-conjugated preterite-tense formation into a present tense. The elimination of other prefix-conjugated mood/aspect forms in favor of new moods formed by endings attached to the prefix-conjugation forms, the development of an internal passive. These features are evidence of descent from a hypothetical ancestor. In the southwest, various Central Semitic languages both belonging to and outside of the Ancient South Arabian family were spoken and it is also believed that the ancestors of the Modern South Arabian languages were also spoken in southern Arabia at this time. To the north, in the oases of northern Hijaz, Dadanitic and Taymanitic held some prestige as inscriptional languages, in Najd and parts of western Arabia, a language known to scholars as Thamudic C is attested
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Persian language
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Persian, also known by its endonym Farsi, is one of the Western Iranian languages within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European language family. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan and it is mostly written in the Persian alphabet, a modified variant of the Arabic script. Its grammar is similar to that of many contemporary European languages, Persian gets its name from its origin at the capital of the Achaemenid Empire, Persis, hence the name Persian. A Persian-speaking person may be referred to as Persophone, there are approximately 110 million Persian speakers worldwide, with the language holding official status in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan. For centuries, Persian has also been a cultural language in other regions of Western Asia, Central Asia. It also exerted influence on Arabic, particularly Bahrani Arabic. Persian is one of the Western Iranian languages within the Indo-European family, other Western Iranian languages are the Kurdish languages, Gilaki, Mazanderani, Talysh, and Balochi. Persian is classified as a member of the Southwestern subgroup within Western Iranian along with Lari, Kumzari, in Persian, the language is known by several names, Western Persian, Parsi or Farsi has been the name used by all native speakers until the 20th century. Since the latter decades of the 20th century, for reasons, in English. Tajiki is the variety of Persian spoken in Tajikistan and Uzbekistan by the Tajiks, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, the term Persian as a language name is first attested in English in the mid-16th century. Native Iranian Persian speakers call it Fārsi, Farsi is the Arabicized form of Pārsi, subsequent to Muslim conquest of Persia, due to a lack of the phoneme /p/ in Standard Arabic. The origin of the name Farsi and the place of origin of the language which is Fars Province is the Arabicized form of Pārs, in English, this language has historically been known as Persian, though Farsi has also gained some currency. Farsi is encountered in some literature as a name for the language. In modern English the word Farsi refers to the language while Parsi describes Zoroastrians, some Persian language scholars such as Ehsan Yarshater, editor of Encyclopædia Iranica, and University of Arizona professor Kamran Talattof, have also rejected the usage of Farsi in their articles. The international language-encoding standard ISO 639-1 uses the code fa, as its system is mostly based on the local names. The more detailed standard ISO 639-3 uses the name Persian for the dialect continuum spoken across Iran and Afghanistan and this consists of the individual languages Dari and Iranian Persian. Currently, Voice of America, BBC World Service, Deutsche Welle, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty also includes a Tajik service and an Afghan service. This is also the case for the American Association of Teachers of Persian, The Centre for Promotion of Persian Language and Literature, Persian is an Iranian language belonging to the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European family of languages
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Shia Islam
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Shia is a branch of Islam which holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated Ali ibn Abi Talib as his successor. Shia Islam primarily contrasts with Sunni Islam, whose adherents believe that Muhammad did not appoint a successor, instead they consider Abu Bakr to be the correct Caliph. Adherents of Shia Islam are called Shias of Ali, Shias or the Shia as a collective or Shii individually, Shia Islam is the second-largest branch of Islam, in 2009, Shia Muslims constituted 10–13% of the worlds Muslim population. Twelver Shia is the largest branch of Shia Islam, in 2012 it was estimated that perhaps 85 percent of Shias were Twelvers. Shia Islam is based on the Quran and the message of Muhammad attested in hadith, Shia consider Ali to have been divinely appointed as the successor to Muhammad, and as the first Imam. The word Shia means follower and is the form of the historic phrase shīʻatu ʻAlī, meaning followers of Ali, faction of Ali. Shia and Shiism are forms used in English, while Shiite or Shiite, as well as Shia, the term for the first time was used at the time of Muhammad. At present, the word refers to the Muslims who believe that the leadership of the community after Muhammad belongs to Ali, nawbakhti states that the term Shia refers to a group of Muslims that at the time of Muhammad and after him regarded Ali as the Imam and Caliph. Al-Shahrastani expresses that the term Shia refers to those who believe that Ali is designated as the Heir, Imam and caliph by Muhammad, for the Shia, this conviction is implicit in the Quran and history of Islam. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing, Shia search for the true meaning of the revelation to get the purpose of the life blood and the human destiny. Shia Muslims believe that just as a prophet is appointed by God alone and they believe God chose Ali to be Muhammads successor, infallible, the first caliph of Islam. The Shias believe that Muhammad designated Ali as his successor by Gods command, Ali was Muhammads first cousin and closest living male relative as well as his son-in-law, having married Muhammads daughter Fatimah. Ali would eventually become the fourth Muslim caliph, after the Farewell Pilgrimage, Muhammad ordered the gathering of Muslims at the pond of Khumm and it was there that Shia Muslims believe Muhammad nominated Ali to be his successor. The hadith of the pond of Khumm was narrated on 18th of Dhu al-Hijjah of 10 AH in the Islamic calendar at a place called Ghadir Khumm, located near the city of al-Juhfah, Saudi Arabia. Muhammad there stated, Shia Muslims believe this to be Muhammads appointment of Ali as his successor, when Muhammad died in 632 CE, Ali and Muhammads closest relatives made the funeral arrangements. While they were preparing his body, Abu Bakr, Umar, Ali and his family accepted the appointment for the sake of unity in the early Muslim community. Alis rule over the early Muslim community was often contested, as a result, he had to struggle to maintain his power against the groups who betrayed him after giving allegiance to his succession, or those who wished to take his position. This dispute eventually led to the First Fitna, which was the first major civil war within the Islamic Caliphate, the Fitna began as a series of revolts fought against Ali ibn Abi Talib, caused by the assassination of his political predecessor, Uthman ibn Affan
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Fatimah
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Fatimah bint Muhammad was the youngest daughter of the Islamic Nabi Muhammad and Khadijah, therefore, one of the members of Muhammads Bayt. She was a wife of ‘Ali and mother of Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, the 11th century dynasty ruling Egypt at the time of the Crusades, the Fatimids, claimed descent from her. For Muslims, Fatimah is an example and Fatimah is one of the most popular girls names throughout the Muslim world. Fatimah is a character in the religion of Islam and is considered a role model for all Muslim women. Although there is controversy between different sects of Islam regarding her role, she is the daughter of Muhammad and is loved and venerated by all Muslims. Fatimah was born in Mecca to Khadija, the first of Muhammads wives. Twelver Shia sources, however, state that she was either two or five years after the first Quranic revelations, but that timeline would imply her mother was over fifty at the time of her birth. Fatimah had three sisters named Zainab, Umm Kulthum, and Ruqayyah and two brothers named Tayyab and Qasim respectively, Iranians celebrate Fatima Zahra’s birth anniversary which is also designated as Mothers Day in the country. Fatimah is given titles by Muslims to show their admiration of her moral and physical characteristics. The most used title is al-Zahra, meaning the shining one and she was also known as al-Batul as she spent much of her time in prayer, reciting the Quran and in other acts of worship. Besides, amongst 125 famous veneration titles, she has also honored with the title of Umm-ul-Aaima. Umm Abeeha Umm al-Hasanayn Umm al-Hasan Umm al-Husayn Umm-ul-Aaima, following the birth of Fatimah, she was personally nursed, especially she was brought up by her father, contrary to local customs where the newborn were sent to wet nurses in surrounding villages. She spent her early youth under the care of her parents in Mecca in the shadow of the tribulations suffered by her father at the hands of the Quraysh. One time, while Muhammad was performing the salat in the Kaaba, Amr ibn Hishām, Fatimah, upon hearing the news, rushed to her father and wiped away the filth while scolding the men. Following the death of her mother, Fatimah was overcome by sorrow and she was consoled by her father, who informed her that he had received word from angel Gabriel that God had built for her a palace in paradise. Many of Muhammads companions asked for Fatimahs hand in marriage, including Abu Bakr, Muhammad turned them all down, saying that he was awaiting a sign of her destiny. Ali, Muhammads cousin, also had a desire to marry Fatimah, when he went to see Muhammad, he could not vocalise his intention but remained silent. Muhammad understood the reason for his being there and prompted Ali to confirm that he had come to seek Fatimah in marriage and he suggested that Ali had a shield, which if sold, would provide sufficient money to pay the bridal gift
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Ali
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‘Ali ibn Abi Talib was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic Nabi Muhammad, ruling over the Caliphate from 656 to 661 ACE, and was Imam of Shi‘ite from 632 to 661 ACE. ‘Ali was the first young male who accepted Islam, after migrating to Medina, he married Muhammads daughter Fatimah. Ali took part in the early caravan raids from Mecca and later in almost all the battles fought by the nascent Muslim community and he was appointed caliph by Muhammads Companions in 656, after Caliph Uthman ibn Affan was assassinated. ‘Alis reign saw wars and in 661, he was attacked and assassinated by a Kharijite while praying in the Great Mosque of Kufa. ‘Ali is important to various Sunni and Shi‘ite denominations politically, legislatively and spiritually, while Sunnis consider Ali the fourth and final of the Rashidun caliphs, Shi‘ites regard ‘Ali as the first Imam after Muhammad due to their interpretation of the events at Ghadir Khumm. Shias also believe that ‘Ali and the other Shi‘ite Imams are the successors to Muhammad. This disagreement split the Ummah into the Sunni and Shia branches, ‘Alis father, Abu Talib, was the custodian of the Kabah and a sheikh of the Banu Hashim, an important branch of the powerful Quraysh tribe. He was also an uncle of Muhammad, Alis mother, Fatima bint Asad, also belonged to Banu Hashim, making Ali a descendant of Ismail, the son of Ibrahim. Many sources, especially Shii ones, attest that Ali was born inside the Kaaba in the city of Mecca, according to a tradition, Muhammad was the first person whom Ali saw as he took the newborn in his hands. Muhammad named him Ali, meaning the exalted one, Muhammad had a close relationship with Alis parents. When Muhammad was orphaned and later lost his grandfather Abdul Muttalib, Ali was born two or three years after Muhammad married Khadijah bint Khuwaylid. When Ali was five or six years old, a famine occurred in and around Mecca, affecting the economic conditions of Alis father, Muhammad took Ali into his home to raise him. The second period of life began in 610 when he declared Islam at the age of 10. When Muhammad reported that he had received a revelation, Ali, then only about ten years old, believed him. According to Ibn Ishaq and some authorities, Ali was the first male to embrace Islam. Tabari adds other traditions making the claim of being the first Muslim in relation to Zayd ibn Harithah or Abu Bakr. Some historians and scholars believe Alis conversion is not worthy enough to him the first male Muslim because he was a child at the time. Hence the Shia say of Ali that his face is honoured, the Sunnis also use the honorific Karam Allahu Wajhahu, which means Gods Favour upon his Face
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Hasan ibn Ali
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Al-Ḥasan ibn ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, commonly called Hasan, was the second Shi‘ite Imam, succeeding his father Ali, and preceding his younger brother Al-Husayn. He was the son of ‘Ali and Muhammads daughter, Fatimah. Sunni Muslims respect him as a grandson of the Islamic Nabi Muhammad, and he abdicated after six or seven months, and Mu‘awiyah succeeded him to become the first Umayyad Caliph. For the rest of his life, al-Hasan lived in al-Medinah, in seclusion, until he died at the age of 45 or 46 and his wife, Jada bint al-Ashat, is commonly accused of having poisoned him. Al-Hasan was known for donating to the poor, and being kind to them and bondmen, when Al-Hasan was born in the year 624 CE, Muhammad slaughtered a ram for the poor on the occasion of his birth, and chose the name Al-Ḥasan for him. Fatimah shaved his head and gave the weight of his hair in silver as alms, according to Shiite belief, theirs was the only house that archangel Gabriel allowed to have a door to the courtyard of al-Masjid an-Nabawi. Both Shi‘ite and Sunni Muslims consider Al-Hasan to belong to the Bayt of Muhammad, Ahl al-Kisa’ and he also reportedly predicted that Al-Hasan would make peace between two factions of Muslims. In the year 10 AH a Christian envoy from Najran came to Muhammad to argue which of the two parties erred in its doctrine concerning ‘Isa. Accordingly, in the Shiite perspective, in the verse of Mubahalah, the phrase our sons would refer to Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, our women refers to Fatimah, and ourselves refers to ‘Ali. In response al-Kadhim recited the verses Quran,6,84 and Quran,6,85 and then asked Who is Jesus father, Jesus had no father, said Harun. It is related that Harun asked Musa to give him more evidence, so in the verse, Our sons refers to Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn. Al-Hasan was one of the guards defending ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan when the attackers went round the latter, during the reign of ‘Ali, he was a participant in the Battles of Siffin and Nahrawan. According to Donaldson there was not a significant difference between the idea of Imamate, or divine right, expressed by each Imam designating his successor and other ideas of succession at first. This is why Muhammad did not nominate a successor, as he wanted to leave the succession to be resolved by the Muslim Community on the basis of the Qur’anic principle of consultation. The question Madelung proposes here is why the family members of Muhammad should not inherit other aspects of Muhammads character such as Hukm, Hikmah, after ‘Ali was assassinated, Al-Hasan became the Caliph of the Ummah, in a manner which followed the custom established by Abu Bakr. Performing a good act is love for us, the family of the Prophet, Qays ibn Sad was the first to give allegiance to him. Qays then stipulated the condition that the Bayah should be based on, on the Qur’an, the Sunnah of Muhammad, and on the condition of a Jihad against those who declared Halal that which was Haram. As soon as the news of Al-Hasans selection reached Mu‘awiyah, who had been fighting ‘Ali for the caliphate, he condemned the selection, letters exchanged between Al-Hasan and Mu‘awiyah before their troops faced each other were to no avail
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Husayn ibn Ali
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Al-Ḥusayn ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib, was the grandson of the Islamic Nabi Muhammad, and the son of ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib and Fatimah the daughter of Muhammad. He is an important figure in Islam, as he was a member of the Ahl al-Bayt of Muhammad and Ahl al-Kisa’, Al-Husayn became the Imam of Shi‘ites after the death of his older brother, Al-Hasan, in 670 ACE. His fathers supporters in Al-Kufah gave their allegiance to him, however, he told them he was still bound to the peace treaty between Al-Hasan and Muawiyah I and they should wait until Mu‘awiyahs death. Later, Al-Husain did not accept the request of Mu‘awiyah for the succession of his son, Yazid I and he insisted on his legitimacy based on his own special position as a direct descendant of Muhammad and his legitimate legatees. As a consequence, he left Medina, his home town, there, the people of Al-Kufah sent letters to him, asking his help and pledging their allegiance to him. So he travelled towards Al-Kufah, but, at a place near it known as Karbala’ and he was killed and beheaded in the Battle of Karbala’ on 10 October 680 by Shimr Ibn Thil-Jawshan, along with most of his family and companions. Anger at Al-Husayns death was turned into a rallying cry that helped undermine the Umayyad caliphates legitimacy, Al-Husayn is highly regarded by Shi‘ite Muslims for refusing to pledge allegiance to Yazid, the Umayyad caliph, because he considered the rule of the Umayyads unjust. His action at Karbala fuelled the later Shia movements, Al-Husayn was the son of ‘Ali ibn Abi Ṭalib, and his wife Fatimah. His maternal grandparents were Muhammad and Khadijah bint Khuwaylid, and his grandparents were Abu Talib. Husayn and his brother Hasan were the last descendants of Muhammad living during his lifetime, there are many accounts of his love for them which refer to them together. Allah loves those who love Hussain, Hussain is a grandson among grandsons. A narration declares them the Masters of the Youth of Paradise, the Shia maintain that the infallibility of the Imam is a basic rule in the Imamate. According to Wilferd Madelung, Muhammad loved them and declared them as people of his Bayt very frequently and he has also said, Every mothers children are associated with their father except for the children of Fatima for I am their father and lineage. Thus, the descendants of Fatimah were descendants of Muhammad, according to popular Sunni belief, it refers to the household of Muhammad. Shia popular view is the members of Muhammads family that were present at the incident of Mubahalah, according to Muhammad Baqir Majlisi who compiled Bihar al-Anwar, a collection of ahadith, Chapter 46 Verse 15 and Chapter 89 Verses 27-30 of the Qur’an are regarding Al-Husayn. In the year AH10 a Christian envoy from Najran came to Muhammad to argue which of the two parties erred in its doctrine concerning ‘Isa. Accordingly, in the verse of Mubahalah, in the Shi‘ite perspective, the phrase our sons would refer to Al-Hasan and Al-Husayn, our women would refer to Fatimah, and ourselves would refer ‘Ali. Mu‘awiyah, who was the governor of Al-Sham under ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan, had refused ‘Alis demands for allegiance, after ‘Ali was assassinated and people gave allegiance to Al-Hasan, Mu‘awiyah prepared to fight with him
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Ahl al-Kisa
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Ahl al-Kisa, or the People of the Cloak, refers to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, his daughter, Fatimah, his cousin and son-in-law Ali, and his two grandsons Hassan and Husayn. They are also referred to as Aal al-Aba and in Farsi as Panj-tan Aal-e Aba or simply Panj-tan, the origin of this belief is found in the Hadith of the Event of the Cloak and the Hadith of Mubahala. This hadith is graded authentic by Shia Muslims and Sunnis, however many Sunnis plead a different interpretation, the Ahl al-Kisa, along with their descendants, the Imams, form the Shia definition of Ahl al-Bayt, the People of the House, or the family of Muhammad. The three larger branches of Shia Islam differ on the nature of the Ahl al-Kisa and the Imams. The two largest branches, the Twelvers and the Ismailis, consider them to be in a state of ismah, or infallibility, in contrast, the third branch, the Zaidis, view them only as political figures with the duty to lead revolts against corrupt rulers and governments. Another Shia group, the Dhammiyya Shia, believed that the five people under the cloak made up one unity, the Hadith of the Cloak refers to the Ahl al-Kisa. The hadith is an account of an incident where Muhammad gathered Hassan, Husayn, Ali, and Fatimah under his cloak. This is referred to in hadiths, including within Sahih Muslim. This hadith is central to the Shia beliefs and it also serves as the majority Shia doctrine that this line of descendants are infallible, pure, and sinless. The Shia believe that the shows that Muhammad, Fatima, Ali, Hasan. A narration attributed to Aisha reports, that Gods Apostle went out one morning wearing a cloak of the black camels hair that there came Hasan b. He wrapped him under it, then came Husain and he wrapped him under it along with the other one, albeit, most Sunni would accept the Sahih hadith and concur with the Shia that the special privilege is conferred on the five. The Shia counter-argument is that the verse itself says only, implying that the blessing of this merit is exclusive to a group and one other than the wives. The Shia also point out that the changes to a masculine tone in the final part of the verse whereas it was feminine before that. As Laudian Professor of Arabic at the University of Oxford, Wilfred Madelung made the observation on the verse of purification. The pronoun referring to them is in the plural, while the preceding part of the verse is in the feminine plural. In spite of the obvious Shia significance, the majority of the reports quoted by al-Tabari in his commentary on this verse support this interpretation. According to Laura Veccia Vaglieri in Encyclopaedia of Islam A verse of the Ḳurʾān says, “God wishes only to remove from you the uncleanness, Thus, it has been said, it is no longer a question of the Prophet’s wives, or of them alone
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Imam
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Imam is the name of an Islamic leadership position. It is most commonly used as the title of a leader of a mosque. In this context, imams may lead Islamic worship services, serve as community leaders, the Sunni branch of Islam does not have imams in the same sense as the Shia, an important distinction often overlooked by those outside of the Islamic faith. Friday sermon is most often given by an appointed imam, all mosques have an imam to lead the prayers, even though it may sometimes just be a member from the gathered congregation rather than an officially appointed salaried person. Women imams may only lead amongst female-only congregations, the person that should be chosen, according to Hadith, is one who has most knowledge of the Quran and Sunnah and is of good character, the age being irrelevant. The term is used for a recognized religious scholar or authority in Islam, often for the founding scholars of the four Sunni madhhabs. It may also refer to the Muslim scholars who created the analytical sciences related to Hadith or it may refer to the heads of the Prophet Muhammads family in their generational times, Imams have a meaning more central to belief, referring to leaders of the community. Twelver and Ismaili Shia believe that these imams are chosen by God to be perfect examples for the faithful and they also believe that all the imams chosen are free from committing any sin, impeccability which is called ismah. These leaders must be followed since they are appointed by God, here follows a list of the Twelvers imams, Fatimah, also Fatimah al-Zahraa, daughter of Muhammed, is also considered infallible but not an Imam. Shia believe that the last Imam will one day return, see Imamah and List of Ismaili imams for Ismaili imams. At times, imams have held both secular and religious authority and this was the case in Oman among the Kharijite or Ibadi sects. At times, the imams were elected, at other times the position was inherited, as with the Yaruba dynasty from 1624 and 1742. The Imamate of Futa Jallon was a Fulani state in West Africa where secular power alternated between two lines of hereditary Imams, or almami, in the Zaidi Shiite sect, imams were secular as well as spiritual leaders who held power in Yemen for more than a thousand years. In 897, a Zaidi ruler, al-Hadi ilal-Haqq Yahya, founded a line of such imams, ruhollah Khomeini and his successor Ali Khamenei are officially referred to as Imams in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Several Iranian places and institutions are named Imam Khomeini, including a city, an airport, a hospital. Women as imams Mufti Encyclopædia Britannica Online, center for Iranian Studies, Columbia University. Encyclopaedia of Islam and the Muslim world, vol.1, encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. Translated by Sherrard, Liadain, Sherrard, Philip, london, Kegan Paul International in association with Islamic Publications for The Institute of Ismaili Studies
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The Fourteen Infallibles
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The Fourteen Infallibles in Twelver Shia Islam are the Islamic prophet Muhammad, his daughter Fatima Zahra, and the Twelve Imams. All are considered to be infallible under the concept of Ismah. Accordingly, they have the power to commit sin but by their nature are able to avoid doing so, the Infallibles are believed to follow only Gods desire in their actions because of their supreme righteousness, consciousness, and love for God. They are also regarded as being immune to error in matters, in calling people to religion. Shias believe the Fourteen Infallibles are superior to the rest of creation, Ahl al-Bayt Ahl al-Kisa Imamah Ismah Shia Islam Twelve Imams Twelvers Encyclopedias Ahmed, M. Mukarram. The Concept of Mahdi in Twelver Shiism, encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. The Divine Guide in Early Shiism, The Sources of Esotericism in Islam, the Spirituality of Shii Islam, Belief and Practices. Ahl Al-Bayt The Celestial Beings on the Earth, archived from the original on October 6,2014. Kegan Paul International in association with Islamic Publications for The Institute of Ismaili Studies, theology of Discontent, The Ideological Foundation of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. The Shiite Religion, A History of Islam in Persia and Irak, a Brief Biography of Hazrat Fatima. A Brief Biography of Imam Hasan al-Askari, archived from the original on February 20,2015. Muslim Identities, An Introduction to Islam, dictionary of Qur’ānic Terms and Concepts. Nasr, Seyyed Hossein, Dabashi, Hamid, Nasr, Seyyed Vali Reza, expectation of the Millennium, Shiism in History. The life of Imām Zayn al ‘Abidin, archived from the original on August 16,2014. The Life of Imam Muhammad Al-Jawad, archived from the original on July 13,2014. The scale of wisdom, a compendium of Shia Hadith, imamate, The vicegerency of the Holy Prophet. The Just Ruler in Shīʻite Islam, The Comprehensive Authority of the Jurist in Imamite Jurisprudence, the Most Learned of the Shia, The Institution of the Marja Taqlid
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Sunni Islam
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Sunni Islam is the largest group of Islam. Its name comes from the word Sunnah, referring to the behavior of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. According to Sunni tradition, Muhammad did not clearly designate a successor and this contrasts with the Shia view, which holds that Muhammad intended his son-in-law and cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib to succeed him. Political tensions between Sunnis and Shias continued with varying intensity throughout Islamic history and they have been exacerbated in recent times by ethnic conflicts, as of 2009, Sunni Muslims constituted between 87–90% of the worlds Muslim population. Sunni Islam is the worlds largest religious denomination, followed by Catholicism and its adherents are referred to in Arabic as ahl as-sunnah wa l-jamāʻah or ahl as-sunnah for short. In English, its doctrines and practices are sometimes called Sunnism, while adherents are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis, Sunnites, Sunni Islam is sometimes referred to as orthodox Islam. The Quran, together with hadith and binding juristic consensus form the basis of all traditional jurisprudence within Sunni Islam, sunnī, also commonly referred to as Sunnīism, is a term derived from sunnah meaning habit, usual practice, custom, tradition. The Muslim use of this term refers to the sayings and living habits of the prophet Muhammad, in Arabic, this branch of Islam is referred to as ahl as-sunnah wa l-jamāʻah, the people of the sunnah and the community, which is commonly shortened to ahl as-sunnah. One common mistake is to assume that Sunni Islam represents a normative Islam that emerged during the period after Muhammads death, and that Sufism and Shiism developed out of Sunni Islam. This perception is due to the reliance on highly ideological sources that have been accepted as reliable historical works. Both Sunnism and Shiaism are the end products of centuries of competition between ideologies. Both sects used each other to further cement their own identities and doctrines, the first four caliphs are known among Sunnis as the Rashidun or Rightly-Guided Ones. Sunni recognition includes the aforementioned Abu Bakr as the first, Umar who established the Islamic calendar as the second, Uthman as the third, Sunnis believe that the companions of Muhammad were the best of Muslims. Support for this view is found in the Quran, according to Sunnis. Sunnis also believe that the companions were true believers since it was the companions who were given the task of compiling the Quran, furthermore, narrations that were narrated by the companions are considered by Sunnis to be a second source of knowledge of the Muslim faith. A study conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2010 and released January 2011 found that there are 1.62 billion Muslims around the world, Islam does not have a formal hierarchy or clergy. Leaders are informal, and gain influence through study to become a scholar of Islamic law, according to the Islamic Center of Columbia, South Carolina, anyone with the intelligence and the will can become an Islamic scholar. During Midday Mosque services on Fridays, the congregation will choose a person to lead the service
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Muhammad's wives
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Muhammads wives or Wives of Muhammad were the eleven women married to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Muslims refer to them as Mothers of the Believers, Muslims use the term prominently before or after referring to them as a sign of respect. The term is derived from Quran 33,6, The Prophet is closer to the believers than their selves, and his wives are their mothers. Muhammads life is traditionally delineated as two epochs, pre-hijra in Mecca, a city in western Arabia, from the year 570 to 622, all but two of his marriages were contracted after the Hijra. Of his thirteen wives and/or concubines only two bore him children, a fact which has described as curious by Cornell University Professor of Near Eastern Studies David S. Powers. In Arabian culture, marriage was contracted in accordance with the needs of the tribe and was based on the need to form alliances within the tribe. Virginity at the time of marriage was emphasized as a tribal honor, Watt states that all of Muhammads marriages had the political aspect of strengthening friendly relationships and were based on the Arabian custom. Esposito points out some of Muhammads marriages were aimed at providing a livelihood for widows. He noted that remarriage was difficult for widows in a society that emphasized virgin marriages, francis Edwards Peters says that it is hard to make generalizations about Muhammads marriages, many of them were political, some compassionate, and some perhaps affairs of the heart. Muhammads first marriage lasted 25 years, according to Islamic belief, the main objectives of Muhammads marriages can be divided into four. Helping out the widows of his companions, creating family bonds between him and his companions. Spreading the message by uniting different clans through marriage, increasing credibility and sources for conveying his private family life. However, with wives, there were a lot more sources to the knowledge. Therefore, his marriages gave more women the opportunity to learn, Muhammads first marriage was at the age of 25 to the 40-year-old Khadijah. He was married to one woman until the age of 50, with the exception of Aisha, Muhammad only married widows and divorced women or captives. At age 25, Muhammad wed his wealthy employer, the 40-year-old merchant Khadija and this marriage, his first, would be both happy and monogamous, Muhammad would rely on Khadija in many ways, until her death 25 years later. They had two sons, Qasim and Abd-Allah, both died young, and four daughters—Zaynab, Ruqaiya, Umm Kulthum and Fatimah. Shia scholars dispute the paternity of Khadijas daughters, as they view the first three of them as the daughters from previous marriages and only Fatimah as the daughter of Muhammad and Khadija
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