yahoo post #9

Give a general overview of Muhammad and Islam: biography of Muhammad, main philosophical teachings, main practices, etc.
The religion and word Islam have two meanings. The first meaning is that of "peace" and the second meaning is that of "surrender." It is the religion that brings peace to the practitioner’s life once he has surrendered it over to God. Islam is a religion that continues with the revelations of Moses and Jesus but ends with Muhammad, The Prophet.

Muhammad was born in 570 A.D. in the city of Mecca in Arabia. His family was from the leading tribe, the Koreish. When he was a young boy, Muhammad was orphaned and later adopted by his uncle. When Muhammad was a young man he ventured into the caravan business. When he was 25 years old he would meet a 40 year old woman named Khadija, whom would become his wife. Fifteen years of marriage and life would pass before Muhammad’s life and the world would change. Muhammad would frequently seek quiet and alone time in a cave outside of Mecca to contemplate life’s eternal struggle since the polytheism and superstitions of his day provided no answer. Muhammad was reaching out to the one that the Meccans called Allah. It would be in this cave, during one of his vigils that he would receive his first revelation from the angel, Gabriel, "La ilaha illa ‘llah! There is no god but God!" Muhammad’s first convert was his wife, Khadija. She would be the one to convince Muhammad that what he was hearing were divine messages from God. Muhammad would continue to receive these divine messages for the next 23 years. Once Muhammad commenced to sharing his revelations with the populace of Arabia, he was met with much hostility from the leaders of Mecca. "The reasons for the hostility can be reduced to three: its uncompromising monotheism threatened polytheistic beliefs and the considerable revenue that was coming to Mecca from pilgrimages to its 360 shrines; its moral teachings demanded and end to the licentiousness that citizens clung to; and it social content challenged an unjust order." Despite the onslaught of hostility, Muhammad continued to share his revelations. In time, Muhammad would start to win over the hearts and minds of the people of Mecca, as well as the people of Yathrib, a city that was 280 miles away from Mecca. In 622 A.D., Muhammad and his followers would leave Mecca for Yathrib in what would be known as the hijra. Once in Yathrib, Muhammad would soon be given charge of the city. The city would soon be known as Medina, "the City of the Prophet." While proving to be a man capable of wearing many hats while leading Medina, Muhammad’s greatest success would be in his continuing to win over the hearts and minds of the people of Arabia. Again, this would lead to more hostility from the leaders of Mecca. Eight years after the hijra, Muhammad would march on Mecca in order to stem hostilities and to make Mecca the center of Islam. In 632 A.D., Muhammad would die as leader of all of Arabia.

According to Muhammad, the only miracle bestowed to the upon him for humanity was the Qur’an. He referred to the Qur’an as the "standing miracle." The Qur’an is the culmination of God’s revelations to humanity. The Qur’an is the "earthly center" of Islam.

The main philosophical teachings of Islam focus on four things: "God, Creation, the Human Self, and the Day of Judgement." Concerning God, Islam stresses God’s awesome power. It is God’s power that forces the believer to consider the reality that there is a right and wrong way to live one’s life; our choices have consequences in this world and the hereafter. It is God’s power that should be the deciding factor as to the kind of life we want to live. Concerning Creation, Islam stresses that God created the world and humankind deliberately. Due to God’s deliberate intentions, two things are revealed, the material world is real and that which was created is good. Concerning the Human Self, Islam stresses that humanity is innately good. If anything, humanity is guilty of forgetting its "divine origin." The Human Self has two obligations to God for his human existence, being thankful for his life and surrendering that life over to God. Finally, concerning the Day of the Judgement, Islam stresses a soul is either destined for "the Heavens or the Hells." When the day of "Reckoning" is afoot, an individual is left to judge himself before God.

The main practices of Islam are best captured in the Five Pillars of Islam. The Five Pillars teaches a Muslim to "walk the straight path." The first Pillar is the shahadah. The shahadah simply is a confession of faith in which a Muslim proclaims, "There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is His Prophet." The second Pillars is the canonical prayer. Muslims are expected to pray 5x’s a day. The prayer is intended to put perspective back into everyday life and to express gratitude for that life. The third Pillars is the practice of charity. Those who are comfortable in life and well-off are expected to share the wealth with those that are in need. The fourth Pillars is that every Muslim is expected to observe the holy month of Ramadan. Ramadan is the month in which Muhammad started to receive his revelations from God and when he went on the hijra. During Ramadan, every Muslim is expected to fast from sun-up to sun-down. The fast is intended to teach "self-discipline. It reminds one of one’s frailty and dependence. And if fosters compassion, for only the hungry know what hunger means." Finally, the fifth Pillar is the pilgrimage to Mecca. At least once in their lifetime every Muslim is expected to visit Mecca. The pilgrimage is intended to "heighten the pilgrim’s commitment to God" and to remind the Muslim that all of humanity is a brotherhood.

In regards to the social practices of Islam, Muslims refer to the Qu’ran, which discusses four areas of life: economics, the status of women, race relations, and the use of force. Concerning economics, the Qu’ran stresses against classism and injustices against those without means to defend themselves. Capitalism is encouraged so long as compassion overrides greed and Muslims do not forget the third Pillar of faith. Concerning the status of women, the Qu’ran "improved woman’s status incalculably. They forbade infanticide. They required that daughters be included in inheritance." Also, the Qu’ran "leaves open the possibility of woman’s full equality with man, an equality this is being approximated as the customs of Muslim nations become modernized." Most importantly, it was the idea of marriage that the Qu’ran contributed to the status of women. First, marriage is a done deal once the couple has intercourse. Second, women had a say as to whether or not they wanted to marry. Thirdly, the Qu’ran allows for divorce only as a last resort and they are allowed to keep the money provided to them by their husband before the marriage. Concerning race relations, Islam does not accept any racial injustice or bigotry whatsoever. Racial equality is a fundamental practice in Islam. Finally, concerning the use of force, Islam allows for the use of force if need be. "It must be either defensive or to right an horrendous wrong," yet, stresses that forgiveness is better.

What did you find most interesting about this reading?
What I found most interesting about this reading is the sheer practicality of the Qu’ran. It’s functions as a guide to everyday life and it’s a blue print on how to be a proper Muslim.

Discuss what you got out of the two films assigned.
* I was unable to access the BBC film *

In regards to the film, Muhammad, The Prophet, I learned that there was an attempt on Muhammad’s life by the leaders of Mecca. I also learned that Muhammad married 11 different women from 11 different tribes. I didn’t know that woman’s rights in Islam were centuries ahead of their Christian counterparts. These rights included the right to life, the right to an education, to inherit, and the right to undertake business transactions. I also didn’t know that the use of veils was a practice picked well after the death of Muhammad.

In regards to the film narrated by Ben Kingsley, The documentary describes the beginning of Muslim Faith. Islam, as it turns out, is vastly is understood. Islam is interwoven with western ideals. The documentary depicts how Islam has greatly influenced the world. Islam’s driving force is faith. Islam has influenced three continents. Islam introduced medicine and the numeric system. To the west, Islam has been distorted and feared throughout history, including present day. Islam spread to the four winds. The pilgrimage, or haj, to Mecca had become a tradition in a young mans life. Baghdad was able to capitalize on its centrality. It had become a city of wealth, and home to great thinkers. It became the pride of Islam. It had beautiful architecture and it was landscaped with mosques and parks. The finest citizens and greatest thinkers gathered at "the house of wisdom." The Muslims sought knowledge throughout the world. Islam spread out throughout the world. In Cordova, Spain a great Mosque was more technologically advanced than anything Europe. In the 11th century, Christianity and Islam came to head. The Crusades would last close to 200 years. Islam proved to be resilient and flourished despite oppression and aggression.