The meaning and origin of the word Islam
The word Islam means first and foremost peace. It is derived from the word Salem, which means, among other things, acceptance, devotion, acquiescence. The fullness of its concept is reconciliation, which can be achieved by man who places his life in the hands of God. The followers of Islam are Muslims. The outsider's answer to the question of how Islam came into being will be the social and religious currents that prevailed in Arabia at the time of Muhammad. But the Muslims themselves, the followers of Muhammad, will answer differently. For them, Islam did not begin with Muhammad in Arabia in the 6th century AD, but with God. "In the beginning God...", says Genesis I. The Qur'an also expresses this when it uses the word Allah, which literally means God. Not one of the gods, but God.
The relationship between Islam and biblical traditions
God created the world and then man. His first name was Adam. Adam and Eve are descended from Noah, who had a son named Shem, the Eye. From this name comes the word Semitic. His descendant was Abraham, who married Sarah. Sarah did not give him a son, so Hagar became Abraham's second wife. Hagar bore him a son, Ishmael, but then Sarah also became pregnant and gave birth to a son, Isaac. Sarah demanded that Abraham expel Hagar and Ishmael from the tribal community. Up to this point the Qur'an is identical to the Bible, but from here the stories are different. According to the Qur'an, Ishmael moved to the area where Mecca was later built. His descendants later became the Muslims, while Isaac remained in Palestine, his descendants being Hebrews, who were later called Judahites, or Jews.
The life and mission of the Prophet Muhammad
Following Ishmael's descendants in Arabia, in the second half of the 6th century AD we meet Muhammad, the prophet with whom Muslims believe Islam reached its final form. Before God, there had been authentic prophets, but he was the fulfillment, hence the name of the seal of the prophets. After that, no credible prophet has ever appeared. Later Muslims describe the world in which Muhammad was born as ignorant. Life in the desert conditions was never peaceful. The scarcity of material goods in this region institutionalised and regarded the journey as a proof of manliness. In the 6th century, however, a political impasse and the collapse of the leadership of the most important city, Mecca, exacerbated the turmoil. The religion of the time, which we might call animist polytheism, a polytheism that endowed nature with a soul, failed to stem the disintegration. It is impossible to imagine a more suitable situation for the outbreak of hidden riots, sudden skirmishes and blood feuds, some of which lasted for half a century. The circumstances called for a liberating hero.
This leader was born of the Korean tribe (Quarais), around 570 AD, and was named Mohammed, meaning "highly praised". He lost his parents at an early age. He was adopted by an uncle and raised with tender love. Mohammed's heart is said to have been opened and filled with light by angels of God. Tradition has succinctly described the young Muhammad's personality as pure of heart, kind and gentle of character. The future prophet was disheartened by the perceived lack of chivalry, general immorality and cynicism. Upon reaching adulthood, Muhammad accompanied caravans and at the age of twenty-five he entered the service of a wealthy widow named Khadijah. She was impressed by his wisdom and purity. Their relationship deepened, and mutual respect grew into love. They married and the marriage seemed happy in every way, even though she was fifteen years older than he. It was said, "God strengthened Muhammad through her, for she lightened his burden." After his marriage, it took fifteen years of preparation before he could begin his ministry. There was a cave near Mecca, which Muhammad visited more and more often when he needed solitude. Immersed in the mysteries of good and evil, unable to resign himself to the superstitions and fratricide that were then commonplace, "this passionate great heart" turned to God.
He was not interested in the desert djinn, but he was interested in a deity. The Meccans worshipped him as Allah, not as a single god, but as a supreme being. Often during his all-night vigils, Muhammad became convinced that Allah was greater than his countrymen supposed. This god is not one of many, not even the greatest. He is, as his name suggests, God himself, without rival.
Soon from the mountain cave came the most prominent phrase of the Arabic language, the deep, all-glowing cry that would gather the multitude and extend its power to the ends of the known world. "Lá iláha ill Alláha !", which means There is no god but God!
But first, around 610 AD, the prophets had to know their mission. On the Night of Power, the Book was opened to the prepared Spirit.
As Muhammad lay on the floor of the cave, the angel came to him in human form and said to him, "Speak! "Mohammed protested that he was not a messenger, but the angel did not budge.
"Proclaim in the name of your Lord, who created man from a clot of blood! Proclaim!
Your Lord is the most generous, who taught with a pen, taught man what he did not know." (Quran , 96:1-3)
When Muhammad woke up from his ecstasy, he felt that the sermon he had heard had burned into his soul. Terrified, he ran home and told Khadijah that he was either a prophet or mad. Khadijah did not believe him at first, but when he listened to the story, he was the first to come to his senses. The voice spoke again and again, and his command was always the same: Muhammad must proclaim what he had heard. Muhammad then dedicated his life to God and to humanity. In an age in which belief in supernatural phenomena was regarded as the routine activity of the saints, Muhammad did not want to deceive people. He stressed that Allah had not sent him to perform miracles. If signs were asked of him, they were not to proclaim the greatness of Muhammad but the greatness of God, and for that it was enough for the human eye to receive the wonders of nature. The only miracle that Muhammad considered as such was the content of the Qur'an. The Qur'anic doctrine provoked hostility from most people. The reason for this can be traced back to three factors: unconditional monotheism threatened polytheism, and with it the considerable revenue that the 360 pilgrims (for every day of the lunar year) who visited Mecca instead of the saint represented. His moral teachings demanded that citizens put an end to their debauched way of life, and finally his social content opposed the unjust order.
As these teachings were far from the taste and privilege of the Meccan leaders, they were naturally rejected. They began their attack by seeking to ridicule Muhammad. When this proved ineffective, they resorted to threats and then open persecution. This was to no avail, for the persecution only served to strengthen the will of the new prophet. He continued what he had begun, plunged into preaching, and called his hearers again and again to give up their evil lives and prepare for accountability.
The rise of Islam and its impact on the world
Mohamed's conditions were so bad that he could only confirm forty men in the first three years. But his enemies were unable to shut the hearts of Meccans forever to his teachings. Slowly but steadily, he convinced people with good speaking skills of the truth of his messages, so that by the end of the century hundreds of families had recognized him as a credible transmitter of Allah. By then, however, the Meccan nobles were so frightened that they decided to get rid of the troublemaker for good.
While Mohamed was going through the greatest crisis of his life, he was unexpectedly visited by a delegation of leading citizens of the city of Yasreb. This city lay 4,500 to 500 kilometres north of Mecca. Through pilgrims and others who visited Mecca and recounted what they had heard at home, Muhammad's teachings took strong root. After the delegation agreed to worship only Allah and follow the precepts of Islam, Muhammad accepted the invitation. The Meccan leaders then learned of the planned exodus and did their utmost to prevent it, but Muhammad and one of his companions evaded the guard and 'ran' to Yasrebbe. The Meccans were hot on his trail, but they still managed to reach their goal in 622. Muslims regard this exodus, known as the hijrah in Arabic, as the turning point in world history, and from here they begin their chronology.
Yasrebet was known as Medinat-al-Nabi, the city of the Prophet. After arriving in Medina, Muhammad's role changed from prophet to head of the administration. The rest of the ten years of his life were spent in the community of Medina. He brought together the city's five squabbling, heterogeneous tribes, including two Jews, and awakened in its inhabitants a spirit of cooperation they had never known before. His fame spread, and people flocked from all parts of Arabia to see the man who had performed this miracle. Then war broke out with the Meccans for control of all Arabia. The Meccans attacked Medina, in the end Mohammed prevailed. Eight years later, after 'running' from Mecca to Medina, the former refugee returned as a conqueror. In his typical manner, he forgave his former enemies. He visited Kaba, the cube-shaped shrine, dedicated it to the one and only Allah in place of the previous deities, the geographical centre of Islam, and there received the mass conversion of the city's inhabitants.
Muhammad himself then returned to Medina. He died two years later, in 632, with virtually all of Arabia under his rule. By the end of the century, his followers had conquered Armenia, Persia, Syria, Palestine, Iraq, North Africa, Spain and crossed the Pyrenees to the northeast. Muhammad created a nation and founded the religion of Islam, to which one fifth of the world's population belongs.
