THE MAN WHO CHANGED OUR WORLD
When Muhammad was visited by the Archangel Gabriel in 610 C.E., this event would set in motion an idea which would grow to have a dominating affect on nearly one-third of the world 's future population, affecting how they live, marry, eat, and their proclivity for war. It is very rare that a single individual would put forth an idea so foundational to the very life of the world that grew in its and his wake, and an idea whose impact would be felt in world affairs for centuries to follow. Arguably, it has happened only once before, and that was 600 years before the time of Muhammad, which is the time of the preachings of a man called Jesus Christ.
Muhammad was born around 570 C.E. His father died before
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Shortly after Muhammad 's death, the messages given to him by the angel, which his followers accepted to be "the words of God," were written down in a book called the "Qur 'an."
By the time of Muhammad 's death, Islam had become the primary religion of most of the Arabian Peninsula (Gordon 16). But it 's real influence, and his phenomenal legacy, was just beginning.
While many believe Islam initially spread because it was forced on those who lost the many wars of conquest, others argue that the conquered people willingly accepted what they believed were the benefits of worshiping a stronger, more victorious God. Islam also spread peacefully into areas where local rulers made alliances with caliphs, the chief Muslim civil and religious rulers, who, rather than his adopted son, are regarded as the successors of Muhammad (Wilkins 22). All of Muhammad 's natural sons are believed to have died in early childhood. Some followers thought his adopted son should be the natural leader of Islam upon the death of Muhammad, but that leadership was assumed by the caliphs with the strongest armies. Some might see this as an omen for this religion 's famous thirst for war.
Islam spread rapidly after Muhammad 's death, by both conquest as well as the conversion of pagans who had no strong religious views (Gordon 14). The spread of Islam was made
One of the first major reasons for the swift spread of Islam was
The spread of the Islamic faith throughout the Middle East is through the presence of these Muslim cities. As discussed in Document 4, the establishment of Medina contributed to the spread of Islam. This was where it started. Muhammad and his followers fled to Medina when the ruling class of Mecca started to persecute them. There, Muhammad was able to help the people accept the Islamic faith which helped the overall spread of Islam. Muslim cities are scatted throughout the Middle East (Document 9). The location of these holy cities allowed for a proper diffusion of the faith and is significant because, without these establishments, the spread of Islam would have come to an abrupt halt. Muslim cities are the driving force in the diffusion of Islam, and because of them, the Islamic faith has grown to become a worldwide leader in religious affairs.
Though the religion started in Mecca, Islam spread far and wide. Under the rule of Muhammad, the Four Caliphs, and the Umayyad caliphs, lands from Spain and North Africa to the Middle East became Muslim territory. (Document C). The expanding of Muslim lands exposed more people to the religion. Previously they may not have heard of Islam until the areas in which they lived in came under Muslim control. Later on, a golden opportunity for the Muslims came from their neighboring kingdoms, "Persia and Byzantium had both been engaged for decades in a long . . . series of wars with one another. Both were exhausted. (Document D). With both kingdoms, Persia and Byzantium, weakened, Muslims had a quick and effortless victory and were able to double the size of their kingdom. Altogether, the expansion of Muslim territory resulted in the spread of Islam due to more people being exposed to the Islamic
Lastly, Islam spread quickly through military campaigns which is depicted in “The Spread of Islam (map)” (Doc. C) This map shows how the people that were conquered by the Muslims chose to convert to Islam
One reason Islam spread fast was because Muslims used force. From the beginning, Muhammad believed that Arab Muslims should not attack other Muslims. However, they could raid non-Muslims and take their things. These were called ghazu raids (Document D). Later the raids got bigger and became military campaigns and spread across the middle east, North Africa, and into Spain (Document C). Without force, Islam would not have spread so quickly.
The rise of the Islamic religion and the growth of Islam’s territory happened rather quickly. During the life of their prophet and Islam’s originator, Muhammad, and interestly it even increased after his death, but how? Islam spread so fast after it was originated because of three things: trade, military conquest, and the appeal of its government.
The spread of Islam and Christianity. Both belief systems spread both rapidly and were efficient religions that brought great change for the greater good. They were the largest religions in the entire world and both happened to be monotheistic. Both religions share a similar history and tradition. Christianity appealed to the people because of their unwillingness to live on and how hopeless they were to move forward in poverty. Travel played an enormous role in conversion because of the missionaries sent out to unknown lands to spread the faith through trading routes (Christianity) and contacts (Islam). Islam prospered, on the other hand, with a vision of the angel Gabriel from Muhammed (became a god messenger and prophet of Allah). Interactions with other civilizations developed the Islamic World. These new religions led to more growth in the aspects of their social, economic, and political systems in addition to influencing other upcoming religions in history.
The spread of Islam throughout the world was among the most significant worldwide movements in history. Beginning as the faith of a small community of believers in Arabia in the seventh century, Islam rapidly became one of the major world religions. The core beliefs and culture of this faith is the belief that Muhammad (570-632), a respected businessman in Mecca, a commercial and religious center in western Arabia, received revelations from God that have been preserved in the Qur'an. The core of Islam remains the same today after 1396 years. Islam still translates to “submission” and Muslims still live by the Qur’an and follow the 5 Pillars of Islam. However, throughout the Pre-Islamic, Umayyad, and Abbasid
In 610 A.D., in a cave on the Arabian Peninsula, a merchant from Mecca, Islam named Muhammad was meditating when he was interrupted by the Angel Gabriel, who told him to recite and spread the words that Allah is the one God, which he would later be spread and known as Islam. So, how did Islam spread so quickly? Some people argue that Islam spread so quickly because of trade, military conquest, or treaties, taxes, and toleration. However, the main reasons why Islam spread so quickly was because of military conquest and taxes, treaties, and toleration.
In the 7th and 8th centuries, Islam spread from its beginnings in Arabia to cover the entire Middle East and parts of Africa, Asia, and Europe. As (Document 8) shows, by the year 750, Islam stretched from Eastern Persia in the Middle East, all the way to the westernmost edges of Spain and North Africa, bordering the Atlantic Ocean. Islam expanded so rapidly because of its techniques on conquering unstable areas and converting people to Islam, preventing setbacks and obstructions. Islam had three main reasons for its eminent prosperity. The way that Muslims treated the conquered people allowed for peace throughout the empire. Tolerance, combined with the military power, a disciplined army, and an overall appealing religion of Islam, provided the template that allowed the empire to expand to encompass an enormous amount of area.
Around the years of 632-750 C.E., Islamic followers created an empire that reached across North Africa into Europe and dominated the Middle East. Due to several aspects leading up to expansion such as war, geography, and establishing an organized impressionable government, the Islamic empire grew rapidly.
September 11, 2001. “Islam equals terrorism” is a thought of most people when they hear the word “Islam”, but many people don’t immediately think of the greatness of Islam, like how the religion spread so fast in such little time. Islam is the second-largest and the fastest-growing religion in the world that began in the 7th century. When Muhammad first began spreading his religion, he had as little as 70 families as members. A century after Muhammad’s death, Islam already spread to Europe and Asia. As of last year, there was about 50 Muslim-majority countries with approximately 1.5 billion people praising the religion. Islam is a religion with many requirements such as fasting, praying everyday, free-will donation, and many more. So, why would a religion with so many demanding rules become so popular? Islam spread quickly because of trade, military conquests, and because it was an amiable religion that was fair to all people with its laws set for the people.
Ordinary people can have an extraordinary impact on the world. At the top of Mount Hira in the year 610, Allah spoke to a humble merchant named Muhammad Ibn Abdallah, stating that He, Allah, was the one and only God. Within a hundred years of Muhammad’s death in 632, Islam, a religion that taught the importance of charity and “submitting to the will of Allah”, had sparked a new empire. The empire originated in the Middle East and quickly expanded across North Africa and into Europe (Background Essay). For an era that did not have the modern technology that made it easy to spread new ideas and beliefs, Islam dispersed rapidly due to active trade, the clear laws presented in the Qur’an and other religious texts, and an active army that allowed
Have you ever wondered why islam spread so quickly?It all began in a cave with a man named muhammad who received a vision of a new religion called Islam.Islam spread so quickly because of Trade routes,military conquest,the message, and the political order.
My first reason why Islam spread so quickly was because of trading. The reason why I choose trading was because It spread to the Isolated regions around the Indian Ocean and Africa because Islam Journeyed