Religions: The beginnings and growth of Islam - The narrative

In Medieval European times, Mohamed was born in the Middle East, about five hundred years after Jesus. Mohamed is not believed to be a divine human, even though his revelations now written in the Quran are considered to be sent from God through him as the messenger. The Muslim calendar begins in 622 and one quarter of the world has grown up in Islamic tradition and culture following the teachings of Mohammad. His messages are considered the final testament or revelation from God and as in most religions, it teaches about the oneness of God.  At the time, in tribal Arabia, Islam began a time of uniting societies, in areas that lived in a pretty much lawless society, previously centered around worshiping various idols of numerous tribes. It  had been a culture of surviving through revenge upon one’s neighbor for wrongdoings and oneness was certainly not customary. 

Mohammad was an orphan, although born to a wealthy family and tribe. Whereas Jesus was a carpenter, Mohamed became a merchant, learning from his uncle, travelling through Arabia. During this early career, he achieved titles of trustworthiness and truthfulness and when he was twenty-five years old he received his first revelation on a mountain which has similarities to Moses and the sermon on the mount. However, Mohammad initially did not think of himself as a prophet but through his sharing of future revelations to those close to him, he gained followers, and was encouraged to start teaching publicly.  This public demonstrative action threatened the establishment, just as Jesus was seen to do, but Mohamed’s life story is less sad than Jesus and he was not crucified. 

As his teachings were so politically different to customary culture, his own tribe began to persecute early Muslims and Mohammad and his following were forced to leave Mecca, fleeing to protected areas where Christian Kings sometimes ruled. This has similarities to how modern-day refugees have to abandon war ridden countries.  Unlike Jesus, Mohamed marries, and his wife, the first Muslim, actually proposes to him.She is Khadija and fifteen years his senior. They have a daughter Fatima, and the marriage lasted twenty-five years. When she dies, Mohammad goes on to have another thirteen wives. It is said by scholars that this was to help widows who were no longer virgins, and could therefore no longer marry. The polygamy incorporated unwanted women into tribes, and as Mohammad only bore two other children with all these wives, it seems a plausible societal kindness at the time to have had these multiple marriages. 

As the persecuted early Muslims began conglomerating outside of Mecca to smaller surrounding Medina's, which is a word for city, they began to culturally influence society and political life. There were also many significant battles where Muslims were often outnumbered three to one, yet they were victorious time and time again. Growing from the first three hundred army to ten thousand soldiers, Muslims began to conquer surrounding areas and this is how Islam spread across the North of Africa, into Spain of Southern Europe, and up to Pakistan in the east.  It is for this reason perhaps that Islam is understood by many westerners as a militant religion. But one must understand its origins in the context of that historical time which helped to spread its ideology.

Muslims recognize the Christian Jesus as a prophet, but not as the son of God, just as the Jews. The difference between the Quran and Bible, apart from content and language, is that even though both books are considered to be inspired by God, in the Quran, Mohammad is the only author or interpreter, whereas the Bible has multiple authors and interpreters.  In principle, Islam values correlate with most religions in that living a moral life, being good and charitable to others and surrendering one’s self to God are the key pillars. The word  Islam actually means ‘surrender’thus to God.

It has customary, traditional rituals, just as Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity of which the most important are the following. Praying five times a day and at a mosque at dawn and sunset, while facing Mecca in the east. During this, one is shoe-less and has previously cleansed their feet before taking position, head down on an individual carpet or yoga like mat. Just as Christian Catholics dip their fingers in water, and conduct hail Mary gestures on the forehead and body. Or take communion with a sip of wine from a goblet and a piece of bread, to honour Christ’s blood and body. Each  religion has its cultural sacraments.

We can also though critique Islamic overall logic as we can do with Christianity and Buddhism, because although the religion advocates peace and surrender to a one God and embracing humanity as one, there are also many more highly charged military verses in the Quran than the bible. This finds its root in how Islam grew and spread taking its historical place on the world stage.  We could and should ask, why do some Muslims read the Quran and become suicide bombers and others not?

Whilst no religious book is perfect, it is unfortunately, human interpretations tainted with bias, who in their own subjective interpretations, undertake to perform acts of violence because of their belief. Westerners blame some of those highly questionable verses, in ancient texts such as the Quran.  But the Bible also has provocative verses and how would a biased person against other religions takes a verse such as  “those who are not with us are against us.” Modern day suicide bombers, take things literally and use out of context verses, implementing them in the contemporary world to conduct and support their narrow-minded views by killing innocent people in the name of an old religion. This I do not believe is what any God or Mohammad would have advocated. It is certainly also not what the majority of peace-loving Muslims believe either. It is unfortunate therefore, that a small group of radical fundamentalists, taint their own people with a reputation that they do not deserve.

After Mohammad died, Islam continued to grow and spread. The successors of Mohammad conquered many of the ancient Empire cities such as Byzantium, Anatolia, and Persian areas over a period of thirty years. This empire formation was a nomadic movement and political cultural change, where local ruling families and urban populations converted to Islam. Some scholars liken it to the crusades or Spanish inquisition where Islam forced people to convert or die. However, although force was sometimes used, conversion of many was voluntary.  Spiritual motives and the birth of the Islam Golden Age, incorporated gifted global scholars from India, China and Europe to Baghdad, which became the new center of learning, similar to how democracy and philosophy had grown in ancient Hellenic Greece. 

The new empires the Muslims won over, meant the inheritance of much infrastructure, architecture and culture which Islam maintained, adding to knowledge, using that particularly of the Indians and Chinese. Baghdad was a cosmopolitan collection of Jewish, Christian and Arabic intellectuals from 900 to 1200 AD who made significant new contributions to mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, medicine and geography. Many Greek and Sanskrit texts were translated to Arabic, the father of algebra is named after his Arabic name and there was a movement to the Indian decimal system which is why we probably do not use roman numerals.  There were cultural changes in science and the Arab, Khayyam, a Poet, mathematician and philosopher investigated Pascal’s triangle, five hundred years before Pascal.

To understand this powerful bridge in the extension of human knowledge through science and art, one could liken the golden age of Islam to a kind of Middle East renaissance. This is perfectly captured in the poem of Khayyam, which F. Scott Fitzgerald, a famous American novelist and short story author translated to: “And that inverted bowl, which we call the sky, where under crawling cooped we live and die, lift not thy hands to it for help, for it rolls impotently on, as thou or I.”  

                         Holy city of Mecca at night with thanks to TravelDigg.com for the photo

As Muslims congregated towards cities, being ruled under one ruling class, they moved towards a oneness in spirituality under one God as well. Between the 8^th and 13^th century the Islamic empire was a beacon of intellectual growth during the dark ages of Europe and they were the light bearers of the west.  Arabic was the language of learning for the whole of the civilised world, excluding the far east and they contributed much towards human progress. Universities were established in Cairo, Baghdad  and Cordova in Spain. Christian Europe learned its earliest lessons in science, astronomy, chemistry, and mathematics from the Mussulman. They invented the first telescope, measured the size of the earth and grew  their noble philosophy, that all is from God and that there is no love in the heart of man there if there is not the breath of God. Bertrand Russel, a British philosopher, logician, mathematician, historian, writer, social critic, and political activist, wrote in his History of Western Philosophy,  “In our dark ages during 699 to 1000, Islam flourished from India to Spain. What was lost to Christendom was not lost to civilisation. To us, western European civilisation is the only civilisation but this is a narrow view.”  

That all being said, just as in Christianity, and other religions we can  critique the logic of some Islamic verses in its holy book.  In the Quran, just as in the Bible, we find verses inspired by an apparently loving God that are quite highly charged in violence. This obviously finds its root in how Islam historically grew, as it was under persecution at the time despite the religion and new culture spreading. Only human hand can think about violence and surely no god would advocate such? Just as in some verses of the Bhagavad-Gita there are questionable verses we translated to modern time. This is not to say that holy books do not contain wisdom. They do, but there are also contradictions and ungodly things. We could and should ask for example,  why fundamentalist Muslims read the Quran and become suicide bombers but peace loving Muslims do not? Do we blame the book or the people? Whilst no religious book is perfect, they remain unfortunately, biased, human interpretations. Those that undertake to perform acts of violence using religious texts have allowed their faith to pass the border of sane and have become fanatic. 

Westerners blame fundamentalist terrorism on the Quran, but the Christian bible also has questionable verses. It is just perhaps fortunate, that in our modern world, there are no Christians that take a Biblical verse such as “those who are not with us are against us,” literally, and act to embody an age-old book’s’ supposed wisdom. It remains dangerous and ignorant to interpret ancient literature, and apply it to modern day society.  Whether we believe in God or not, taking others’ lives to enforce our belief is not what any God or peace loving prophet such as Mohammad would have advocated. Despite his being embroiled in tribal wars at the birth and initial growth of Islam. It is certainly also not what the majority of peace-loving Muslims believe either. It is a shame  that a small group of radical fundamentalists, taint their own people with a reputation that they do not deserve. One can only hope that ancient texts are updated and modernized so that those who desire faith in an ancient religion, are not mislead by past history to enforce their beliefs in the now.   Majidd Nawaz, an ex- Muslim extremist, now BBC columnist and talk show presenter is trying to show practising Muslims just exactly what in the Quran is wrong. It, and the Bible needs some updating if it is to be applicable to contemporary society.  I am certain, God would not disapprove.