MOST OF HISTORY: THE FIRST HUMANS

1
W3.2 and 4.1 Growth and Development of World
Religions
WHGCEs High School Series Day One, Session 5
Craig Benjamin
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MS 3.2 Growth and Development of World
ReligionsHS Era 4 Expanding and Intensified
Hemispheric Interactions, 300-1500 C.E./A.D.4.1
Crisis in the Classical World, World Religions,
Trade Networks and Contact4.2 Growth of Islam
and Dar al-Islam

• Explain how world religions or belief systems of
  
• Hinduism
• Judaism
• Buddhism
• Christianity
• and Islam grew, and their significance.
• (Islam is included in MS CEs even though it came
  after 300 C.E./A.D.)

3
Six of the worlds major faiths and ethical
systems emerged establishing institutions,
systems of thought, and cultural styles that
would influence neighboring peoples and endure
for centuries.

• W3.2.1 Identify and describe the beliefs of the
  five major world religions.
• W3.2.2 Locate the geographical center of major
  religions and map the spread through the 3rd
  century C.E./A.D.
• W3.2.3 Identify and describe the ways that
  religions unified peoples perceptions of the
  world and contributed to cultural integration of
  large regions of Afro-Eurasia.

4
To Include

• Part One Buddhism and Hinduism
• Part Two Judaism and Christianity
• Part Three Islam

5
PART ONEBuddhism and Hinduism
www.mahindarama.com
www.physics.adelaide.edu

• Buddhism still popular in India, and has spread
  to all of Asia. Continues to expand around the
  world
• Shares some beliefs with Jainism. Both derived
  from the teachings of a great man both stress
  the humanity of their teacher (rather than his
  divinity) both teach non-violence both
  developed monastic traditions of celibacy and
  asceticism
• But Buddhism has a more modern appeal and remains
  popular all over the world in the 21st Century
  2nd fastest growing religion in the world today
• Buddha means someone who has awakened from
  sleep
• It was the Buddhas Great Awakening that
  resulted in the discovery of the eternal secret
  of the meaning of life

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Siddhartha Gautama Early Life

• Founder of Buddhism came from a kshatriya family,
  and he gave up his privileged position to seek
  enlightenment
• Born Siddhartha Gautama in c. 563 BCE in a small
  state in the foothills of the Himalayas
• His wealthy father kept his son in a sheltered
  life of luxury, determined that he would never
  know misery
• Siddhartha married his cousin and excelled in his
  studies he was being groomed to succeed his
  father as governor

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Humans and Suffering
pagecount.burningbird.net

• Became dissatisfied with his comfortable life,
  and on short journeys in his chariot around the
  palace he became aware for the first time of the
  frailty and mortality of humans
• Witnessed more and more misery and suffering
  amongst the ordinary people, and learned of monks
  who have withdrawn from the world to lead holy
  lives and perfect their souls
• Became determined to take up the ascetic life
  himself, and wander the land in the hope it would
  give him insight into suffering

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Search for Enlightenment

• About 524 BCE Siddhartha left his wife, family
  and luxurious home to lead the life of a holy man
  (inspired by a Jainist monk he had met)
• Wandered the Ganges Valley seeking enlightenment
  about the apparent inevitability of suffering
• Lived the life of an extreme ascetic, practicing
  virtual starvation and intense meditation
• However, none of these tactics gave him the
  answers he was seeking

Siddhartha as Meditating Ascetic Gandharan 2nd
C BCE
www.exoticindiaart.com
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Enlightenment Under the Banyan Tree

• Eventually abandoned asceticism as leading
  nowhere
• According to legend he sat down under a huge
  banyan (bo) tree to meditate upon a better path
• Determined to stay seated until he understood the
  problem of human suffering
• For 49 days he sat in meditation, tempted by
  demons with the pleasures of the flesh
• Just before dawn on the 50th day he gained the
  insights he sought into the elimination of
  suffering
• At that point he became the Buddha the
  enlightened one

Banyan Tree Buddhist Shrine
www.acay.com.au/silkroad/buddha
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Buddha and the Turning of the Wheel

• Buddha publicly announced his doctrine in c. 528,
  near the holy city of Banaras (modern Varanasi)
• Buddhists refer to this sermon as the Turning of
  the Wheel of Law because it was the beginning of
  his quest to promulgate the laws of righteousness

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Disciples and Death
Death of the Buddha. Gandharan 2nd C CE

• Quickly attracted disciples from all over the
  Ganges valley
• Organized them into a monastic order who wore
  yellow robes and traveled the land preaching
  Buddhism, living off donations
• For more than 40 years the Buddha himself led
  his disciples all over northern India
• Around 438 BCE he died at the age of 80, leaving
  his disciples with a final message
• Decay is inherent in all component things! Work
  out your salvation with diligence

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The Middle Way

• Buddhism called the Middle Way because it lies
  between normal human life and desire, and extreme
  asceticism
• Demands only a moderate form of renunciation and
  asceticism
• Philosophy is called Dharma (religious good
  deeds leading to a good afterlife) and is based
  on Four Noble Truths
• Four Noble Truths are
• 1. Suffering dominates our experience
• 2. The cause of suffering is desire
• 3. Suffering can be extinguished by
  extinguishing desire, thereby attaining nirvana
  the going out of the fire of desire)
• 4. There is an 8-fold path that leads out of
  suffering to nirvana

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The Noble Eight-Fold Path to Nirvana

• Eight-fold path calls for humans to lead balanced
  and moderate lives, rejecting both the devotion
  to luxury found in so many human societies, and
  the extreme asceticism of hermits and Jains
• Noble Eight-fold path means pursuing right
  views, right resolve, right speech, right
  conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right
  mindfulness and right concentration i.e.
  leading a decent, ethical, meditative life
• If they pursue the right path of personal effort
  and redemption, each individual (whatever their
  status) could escape the cycle of reincarnation
  and achieve the state of nirvana (perfect
  spiritual independence)
• Buddhism not originally a religion. Buddha
  criticized all earlier religions he was an
  agnostic with no knowledge of God or gods

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Social Appeal of Buddhism

• Like the Jains, Buddhism
• offered escape from the
• cycle of incarnation
• without the help of brahmin priests, and also
  rejected the caste system
• Message of Buddhism thus appealed strongly to the
  lower classes
• Because it did not demand extreme asceticism,
  Buddhism became far more popular
• Merchants became prominent in the ranks of early
  Buddhists, and often used Buddhism monasteries as
  inns when they traveled in Northern India

www.time.com/time/
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Appeal of Buddhism Language
Language was another important reason for the
immense and immediate appeal of Buddhism The
Buddha and his disciples avoided using Sanskrit
(literary language used by the brahmins in their
rituals) They used vernacular, local tongues
(like Kharosthi) instead that reached a much
larger audience
www.frithjof-schuon.com
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Buddhist Shrines and Stupas

• Early Buddhists recognized holy sites that became
  focal points for devotion
• Pilgrims flocked to sites associated with the
  Buddhas life
• Also popular were stupas - shrines housing relics
  of the Buddha and his first disciples

The Great Stupa at Sanchi, probably Constructed
by Ashoka, 3rd Century BCE
www.buddhanet.net/ sanchi.htm
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Monastic Organization

• Buddhists were also highly organized
• From the days of the Buddha himself, converts
  joined monastic communities where they dedicated
  their lives to the search for enlightenment
• Monasteries paid for and supported by gifts from
  pious lay supporters, allowing the monks to spend
  most of their time preaching and explaining the
  dharma to lay audiences
• During the centuries following Buddhas death,
  monastic organization proved extremely efficient
  at spreading the Buddhist message and gaining
  converts
• Eventually Buddhist monasteries began to accept
  gifts from wealthy benefactors and regard these
  bequests as acts of generosity that merited
  salvation
• Thus wealthy individuals could enjoy the comforts
  of the world, avoid the sacrifices demanded by
  early Buddhism, and still ensure salvation

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Takht-I-Bahi (Pakistan Today)
This monastery flourished from the 2nd C BCE to
the 4th C CE
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Support of Ashoka

• Early Buddhist movement also benefited
• immensely from patronage of the Indian
• Mauryan dynasty
• Ashokas own account suggests he adopted Buddhism
  c. 260 BCE after being sickened by the violent
  war he had waged against the Kalingans
• From that moment on he decided to pursue his aims
  through virtue, benevolence and humanity, rather
  than war
• May have also seen Buddhism as a faith that could
  help united culturally members of his vast,
  multicultural empire
• Gave up hunting, banned animal sacrifices, and
  eliminated most meat dishes from his table
• Also built monasteries and stupas throughout the
  empire, made personal pilgrimages to the holy
  sites of Buddhism, and sent missionaries to
  Bactria and Sri Lanka

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Developments in Later Buddhism

• Although Buddhism was more accessible than the
  extreme ascetic religions, it still made heavy
  demands on individuals seeking to escape the
  cycle of incarnation
• Pure Buddhism involved much sacrifice giving
  up personal property, desire for social standing,
  and detachment from family and the world
• Between the 3rd Century BCE and 1st Century CE,
  however, developments in Buddhist theology opened
  new, less demanding avenues for salvation,
  leading to an explosion in popularity for the
  faith
• The first of these developments were the
  deification of the Buddha
• Although the Buddha did not consider himself a
  god, some of his later followers did, helping
  converts channel their energies and identify more
  closely with the faith

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Boddhisatvas

• Second important development was the notion of
  the boddhisatva (an enlightened being)
• Boddhisatvas were individuals who had reached
  spiritual perfection and merited the reward of
  nirvana, but who intentionally delayed their
  entry into nirvana to help others who were still
  struggling
• Like Christian saints, boddhisatvas served as
  examples of spiritual excellence and inspiration

palimpsest.stanford.edu
Boddhisatva, Gandharan Sculpture, 2nd Century CE
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Mahayana Buddhism

• These developments in later Buddhism opened the
  faith to large numbers of people
• Proponents of this reformed version called it
  Mahayana (the greater vehicle which could carry
  more people to salvation)
• The earlier form was
• called Hinayana
• (the lesser vehicle)
• During the early centuries
• of the Common Era
• Mahayana Buddhism spread
• rapidly throughout India
• Eventually, with the opening
• up of the Silk Roads,
• Buddhist monks carried the
• faith to Central Asia, China,
• Japan, Korea and SE Asia

www.ibiblio.org
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Hinduism

• Buddhism generated new ideas and attracted
  widespread popularity in the early centuries of
  the Common Era
• At the same time Hinduism underwent a similar
  evolution that also transformed it into a popular
  religion of salvation
• Contemporary Hinduism is a syncretic religion
  incorporating Vedic texts, pre-Aryan practices
  and a range of deities
• Changes in doctrine and observances eventually
  resulted in a faith that addressed the needs of
  ordinary people

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Hindu Epics The Mahabharata

• The great epic poems the Mahabharata and
  the Ramayana illustrate the development of
  Hindu values
• Both works originated as secular tales
  transmitted orally about the great epic age of
  classical Indian history (c. 1500-500 BCE)
• The Mahabharata deals with a massive war for
  control of northern India between two groups of
  cousins
• Originally a secular work, the brahmins revised
  it and created a prominent role for the god Vishnu

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Ramayana

• Ramayana was also originally a tale of love and
  adventure involving the trial of the legendary
  Prince Rama and his wife Sita
• Rama traveled south to Sri Lanka to rescue his
  kidnapped wife from the demon king
• His alliance with Hanuman, the king of the
  monkeys, led to exciting clashes with his enemies
• Brahmins later revised the work to make Rama an
  incarnation of Vishnu, portraying Rama and Sita
  as the ideal Hindu husband and wife, devoted and
  loyal even in times of trouble

www.antarin.net
Rama and Sita Indonesian Version!
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The Bhagavad Gita

• A short poetic work, the Bhagavad Gita (song of
  the lord) illustrates both the obligations of
  Hinduism, and also its rewards
• The Gita was composed by many poets between 300
  BCE and 300 CE, taking its final revised form c.
  400 CE
• It illustrates an episode from the Mahabharata
  and takes the form of a dialogue between Arjuna
  (a kshatriya warrior) and his charioteer Krishna,
  a human
• incarnation of the
• god Vishnu
• Arjuna is reluctant to
• fight because the enemy
• includes many friends
• and relatives, so Krishna
• uses several arguments
• to persuade him to fight

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Krishnas Arguments

• Arjuna must not worry about his friends and
  relatives, because the soul does not die with the
  body his weapons to not have the power to touch
  the soul
• Arjunas caste imposes specific moral and social
  responsibilities upon him the duty of shudras
  was to serve, of vaishyas to work, of brahmins to
  learn the scriptures, and of kshatriyas to govern
  and fight
• Furthermore, and individuals social
  responsibilities also had spiritual significance
  failure to fulfill caste duties is in fact a
  grievous sin, whereas their observance brought
  spiritual rewards

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Hindu Ethics

• Hindu ethics thus differed greatly from those of
  earlier Indian moralists
• As represented in the Bhagavad Gita, only by
  active participation in the world and the meeting
  of caste responsibilities was it possible to
  attain salvation (i.e. not though detachment and
  renunciation of ordinary life)
• However, these duties should be performed in a
  detached fashion
• i.e. humans should not become
• emotionally involved in their
• actions, but should concentrate on
• the actions alone, with no thought
• of their consequences
• This led to the emergence of four
• specific aims of human life

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Four Principal Aims of Life

• Obedience to religious and moral laws (dharma)
• The pursuit of economic well-being and honest
  prosperity (artha)
• The enjoyment of social, physical and sexual
  pleasures (karma)
• The salvation of the soul (moksha)
• A proper balance of the first three aims would
  help individuals attain moksha

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Hindu Male Gods

• Principal Hindu gods are Vishnu, Shiva and Devi
• Vishnu evolved into a father-god who works
  continuously for the welfare of humanity
• Shiva a powerful god often associated with
  phallic symbols represents the cosmic force of
  change, and the reconciliation of the extremes
  and opposites of violence and passivity,
  eroticism and asceticism

Shiva
Vishnu
perso.wanadoo.fr/revue
www.asiasociety.org/arts
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Hindu Female Gods

• The wives of Vishnu (Lakshimi) and Shiva
  (Parvati) are powerful goddesses, stemming from a
  worship of female divinities as early as the
  Indus culture
• Devi a fully developed supreme Goddess, both
  tender mother and ferocious warrior wears a
  necklace of skulls and rides into battle on a
  lion
• She represents the creative power of the universe

Lakshimi and Vishnu
Dancing Devi
www.jorgebastosgarcia
www.joelcooner.com/Asian
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Growth in the Popularity of Hinduism

• Hinduism gradually replaced Buddhism as the most
  prominent religion in India, once Buddhism began
  to grow more remote from the masses
• Later Buddhist monks did not seek to communicate
  their message to larger society as zealously as
  their predecessors, while Hinduism attracted
  increasing popular support and patronage from the
  wealthy
• Guptan emperors and their successors patronized
  Hinduism in the same way Ashoka had Buddhism
• In India today Hinduism (and even the more recent
  faith of Islam) have completely eclipsed Buddhism

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Hinduism Today

• Most Indian Hindus today are devout followers of
  either Vishnu or Shiva, although there are
  thousands of Hindu gods, and animals like the cow
  are also considered as sacred
• Hinduism possesses no Bible or Koran nor does it
  have a single personal founder like Mahavira or
  Buddha
• There is no precise body of doctrine people are
  Hindu basically if they observe the rules of
  their caste

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Part 2 Judaism and Christianity

• Hebrews - minor player in history but responsible
  for three great world religions Judaism,
  Christianity and Islam
• Only source for much of their history is the Old
  Testament (final form only approved by council of
  rabbis in 90 CE)
• Speakers of the ancient Hebrew language
• The Israelites were a branch of Hebrews who
  eventually settled in Palestine
• The Jews were descendants of southern Israelites
  who inhabited the kingdom of Judah

www.loc.gov/exhibits/world
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Early Hebrews

• Early Hebrews were pastoral nomads who inhabited
  lands between Mesopotamia and Egypt during 2nd
  Millennium BCE
• As Mesopotamia prospered, some Hebrews settled
  in the regions cities

score.rims.k12.ca.us
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Abraham
Abraham
The Hebrew Patriarch Abraham came from the
Sumerian city of Ur Abraham (1900 BCE?) said to
have led his people out of Ur to Palestine
because of disorder in Sumer Hebrews took with
them Sumerian cultural customs, Hammurabis law
and the flood idea from the Epic of Gilgamesh
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To Israel!

• Eventually (1850/1700 BCE?) some Hebrews migrated
  from Palestine to Egypt
• According to the Bible, in c1300 under the
  leadership of Moses this branch moved from Egypt
  north to the land of Canaan (Palestine)
• Here they formed a loose confederation of 12
  tribes, known as the Israelites

Moses Parts the Red Sea? www.planetkilmer.com/movi
es
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Kingdom of Israel

• Israelites abandoned tribal structure adopted
  Mesopotamian-style monarchy
• Women had rights in their society but power
  concentrated in hands of male kings
• Bitter conflicts broke out with the Canaanites,
  and then with more powerful Philistines (
  Palestine) who captured the Ark of the Covenant
• Saul first king of Israel

www.ericlove.com
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David Slays Goliath
Sauls successor David (1000-970?) slew the
Philistine giant Goliath and recovered the Ark
From the South Face of the Abbey of St. Giles in
France www.vrcol.fa
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Solomon

• Under Davids successor Solomon (961-922 BCE)
  Israel reached the peak of its power - huge
  palace and large army based in cosmopolitan city
  of Jerusalem

The Judgment of Solomonc. 1620 Oil on canvas,
174 x 213 cmGalleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica,
Rome
VALENTIN DE BOULOGNE
41

• Archaeologists find no evidence of the reigns of
  David and Solomon
• Old Testament states that after the reign of
  David, tribal tensions resulted in the Kingdom of
  Israel splitting in two weaker states

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Israelite Religious Beliefs

• After the time of Moses, the religious beliefs of
  the Israelites became increasingly distinctive
• Early Hebrews had recognized many of the
  Mesopotamian gods, and believed that nature
  spirits dwelt in trees, rocks and mountains
• Moses embraced monotheism he believed there was
  only one god called Yaweh who was a supremely
  powerful deity and creator of the world
• When the kings of the Israelites built their
  capital in Jerusalem, they did not build a
  Mesopotamian ziggurat, but a temple in honor of
  Yaweh

www.killingthebuddha.com
The Hebrew letters yud, hey, vav, hey -- often
depicted in English as YHWH or Yahweh -- spell
the name of God.
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The Ten Commandments

• But as well as being the omnipotent creator of
  the universe, he was also a very personal god,
  with high moral and ethical standards expected of
  his followers
• In the Ten Commandments Moses warned his
  followers against antisocial behavior like lying,
  theft, adultery and murder
• After Moses death the Israelites wrote a
  detailed and elaborate law code which provided
  protection for widows, orphans, slaves and the
  poor

www.jsmatt.com
Moses by Rembrandt
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The Torah

• Between 1000-400 BCE the Israelite religious
  leaders compiled a set of holy scriptures (the
  Torah teachings) which laid out Yawehs
  laws and role in the affairs of mankind
• Torah taught that Yaweh would punish individuals
  and whole communities collectively if they did
  not obey his laws

www.forumuniversitaire.com
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The Diaspora
Israelite prisoners and Assyrian guards, Nineveh

• In 722 Assyrian forces conquered the northern
  kingdom of Israel, capturing 27,290 Israelite
  slaves and deporting them to other regions
• In 586 southern kingdom captured by king of
  Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, who also sent his
  captives into exile
• Persian king Cyrus allowed some captives to
  return home, but most of the Jews scattered all
  over the region
• This scattering referred to as the Diaspora
  (Greek for scattering)

46
Religion

• Israelites devotion to Yaweh only strengthened
  during this period of turmoil
• Between 9th and 6th Cs a series of prophets urged
  the Israelites to remain steadfast in their faith
• Prophets were moral and social critics who
  criticized materialism and an increasing interest
  in Mesopotamian fertility gods
• They warned that unless the Israelites changed
  their ways, Yaweh would punish them by sending
  conquerors
• Many took Assyrian and Babylonian conquests as
  proof of what the prophets said

Hebrew Prophets c. 1300Stone, Cathedral,
Strasbourg
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Influence on Other Monotheistic Religions

• Exiles who returned home after the Babylonian
  conquest organized several small Jewish states as
  tributaries of the great empire that dominated SW
  Asia after the 6th C BCE
• They also built distinctive religious communities
  based on their special relationship with Yaweh,
  the teachings of the Torah, and a concern for
  righteousness
• In this way the Jews maintained a strong sense of
  identity as a separate and distinct people, even
  as they participated in the larger, complex
  society of SW Asia
• Eventually, Jewish monotheism, scriptures and
  moral concerns would profoundly influence the
  development of both Christianity and Islam

48
The Rise of Christianity Developments in Judaism
During the Early Empire

• During the reign of the Julio-Claudians, Judaism
  underwent a major transformation
• Judea became a Roman protectorate ruled by
  procurators like Pontius Pilate (26-36 CE) Jews
  restless and unhappy, waiting for a Messiah
• Some groups like the Essenes developed a form of
  Judaism that became a link to the emergence of a
  new religion Christianity

One of the Dead Sea Scrolls
www.johnpratt.com
The Dead Sea Scrolls were written by the Essenes
John the Baptist an Essene
49
Destruction of Jerusalem
Jewish nationalists eventually launched an
uprising in 66 CE. The Romans crushed the
revolt and destroyed the Temple in Jerusalem!
All that remains of it today is the Wailing
Wall
50
Jerusalem Temple Mount and Wailing Wall
51
Life and Teachings of Jesus

• Jesus born in Bethlehem in Judea c. 2 or 3 BCE
• After working as a carpenter traveled Judea
  preaching love for his fellow humans, and
  practicing miracles
• When he reached Jerusalem for Passover he was
  greeted by huge crowds, hoping that he would lead
  a radical nationalist movement against the Romans
• When they realized he had no intention of this,
  they turned against him
• Betrayed by Judas he was charged with treason by
  Pontius Pilate and crucified

Byzantine Icon of the Crucicixion www.macedoniadir
ect.com
52
The Travels of Paul

• Word spread that Jesus had been seen alive after
  his crucifixion, and small Christian (Greek for
  followers of Christ) communities emerged
• Paul (born Saul) an educated Hellenic Jew
  originally opposed to the Christians had an
  epiphany on the road to Damascus that converted
  him to Christianity
• He then traveled the Roman world arguing that
  Jesus was the Son of God who had died to atone
  for the sins of humanity
• Traveled 8000 miles preaching put to death in
  Rome in 65 CE. As a result of his work, large
  numbers of Christian communities emerged

www.fccoc.org
53
Appeal of Christianity

• Christianity spread because it upheld the
  equality of all, and was a dynamic, aggressively
  proselytizing religion offering salvation

• The simplicity of its demand of absolute
  allegiance to one god and rejection of all other
  creeds offered permanent values in a time of
  confusion
• Egalitarian it stressed value of every soul,
  and common humanity, regardless of class or
  national background, and was a universal religion
  that all could join
• Hope of afterlife a compelling vision missing
  in traditional religions, as well as some sects
  of Judaism. While other mystery cults also
  stressed an afterlife, the courage of the
  Christian martyrs gave their beliefs credibility

54
Further Appeal of Christianity

• It satisfied the universal need to belong to a
  community. Older close-knit social structures
  such as the world of the poleis were long since
  gone the Roman empire was filled with rootless
  and displaced individuals with few links to
  traditional communities. Persecution only
  strengthened the bonds of the early Christian
  church
• The Church gave communities social stability as
  well it took care of the sick, widowed and
  orphaned, and gave a sense of self-respect to the
  poor.

55
Persecution of the Christians

• But Christianity seen as a subversive threat to
  Rome traitors to the state religion!
• Christians a secret anti-social group refused to
  join the army and condemned other religions
• Persecutions took place during the first two
  centuries of the Empire
• In the 3rd and 4th Cs, when the Empire was in
  danger of collapse, major persecutions launched
• Bloodiest under Diocletian (285 305) -
  Christian martyrs died rather than sacrifice to
  the pagan gods
• Eventually the Emperor Constantine converted to
  Christianity, and it became the state religion
  early in the 4th century

Christian martyrs in the Coliseum www.artunfrance.
com
56
Council of Nicaea

• In 313 Constantine decreed that Christianity
  would be tolerated throughout the Empire (Edict
  of Milan)
• He invited all of the leading Christian thinkers
  of the time to assemble at the Council of Nicaea
  (325) which formally recognized Christianity
• By the reign of Theodosius I, pagans were being
  persecuted by Christians
• Eventually the roles were completely reversed
  when a Christian mob murdered the female
  philosopher Hypatia at Alexandria in 415, urged
  on by the Archbishop.

Byzantine painting of the Council of Nicaea
www.sfusd.k12.ca.us
57
The Nicaean Creed

• Delegates at Nicaea decided on this declaration,
  which later became known as the Nicaean Creed
• I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker
  of heaven and earth, and of all things visible
  and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the
  only begotten Son of God, and born of the Father
  before all ages. (God of God) light of light,
  true God of true God
• Begotten not made, consubstantial to the Father,
  by whom all things were made
• Who for us men and for our salvation came down
  from heaven
• And was incarnate of the Holy Ghost and of the
  Virgin Mary and was made man was crucified also
  for us under Pontius Pilate, suffered and was
  buried and the third day rose again according to
  the Scriptures.

58
Nicaean Creed Continued

• And he ascended went up into heaven, sits at
  the right hand of the Father, and shall come
  again with glory to judge the living and the
  dead, of whose Kingdom there shall be no end
• And (I believe) in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and
  Giver of life, who proceeds from the Father (and
  the Son), who together with the Father and the
  Son is to be adored and glorified, who spoke by
  the Prophets. And one holy, catholic, and
  apostolic Church
• We confess (I confess) one baptism for the
  remission of sins. And we look for (I look for)
  the resurrection coming back to life of the
  dead and the life of the world to come. Amen."
•  

59
Part Three Islam

• The word Islam means submission,
• signifying obedience to the will of
• Allah (the only god in this monotheistic
  religion)
• One who accepts the Islamic faith is a Muslim,
  i.e. one who has submitted
• Islam quickly attracted followers and took on
  political and social significance, as well as
  religious
• During the first century of the new faiths
  existence it reached far beyond its Arabian
  homeland
• And by the 8th Century the world of Islam was
  matched only by Byzantium as the great political
  and social structure of the postclassical world

60
Origins of Islam The Bedouins

• Islam arose in the Arabian Peninsula and
  reflected the conditions of its homeland
• In the desert agriculture is only possible at
  oasis cities like Medina
• Yet nomadic Bedouin peoples have occupied the
  region for millennia as, organized in clan groups
• In this harsh environment strong clan loyalties
  developed, and these survived for centuries even
  after the arrival of Islam

www.robertlandau.com/
61
Early Life of Muhammad (b. 570 CE as Muhammad ibn
Abdullah)

• The prophet Muhammad was born into this world of
  nomadic Bedouin pastoralists and merchants C. 570
  CE
• His parents died before he was six
• raised by his uncle and grandfather
• Employed by a wealthy woman a widow
• named Khadija - who he married in c. 595
• By age 30 he was a successful merchant
• living in Mecca, where the people
• recognized many gods, and where there
• were many Jewish and Christian
• communities

62
Spiritual Transformation

• About 610, aged 40, Muhammad underwent a profound
  spiritual transformation
• He became convinced that there was only one true
  deity (Allah God), and that recognition of
  other gods was wicked
• Muhammad experienced visions we he interpreted as
  revelations (delivered through the archangel
  Gabriel a messenger from god)
• Without meaning to found a new religion, he told
  his family and friends of these revelations, and
  by 620 a zealous minority of Meccans had joined
  Muhammads circle

63
The Quran

• As Muhammad spoke about the revelations he had
  received, some of his followers prepared written
  texts of his teachings
• During the early 650s, devout followers compiled
  these written versions and issued them as the
  Quran (recitation) the holy book of Islam
• A work of superb poetry, the Quran powerfully
  expounds Muhammads understanding of Allah and
  his relation to the world
• Serves as the definitive authority for Islamic
  religion and social organization
• There are also a number of other important
  Islamic sources, including the hadith (9th 11th
  Centuries)

64
Muhammads Migration to Medina

• Growing popularity of Muhammads preaching
  brought him into religious conflict with the
  rulers of Mecca (monotheism offended the
  polytheistic Arabs)
• Muhammads attack on idolatry and greed was seen
  as dangerous to many merchants, and many of his
  followers were forced to flee to Ethiopia
• Eventually the pressure mounted until in 622
  Muhammad also fled to the rival trading city of
  Yathrib, which Muslims soon started calling
  Medina (the city of the prophet)
• Known as the hijra (migration) Muhammads move to
  Medina serves as the official starting date for
  the Islamic calendar

Ruins of the old city of Medina
65
Muhammad in Medina

• In Medina Muhammad became the head of a growing
  society in exile, and he organized his followers
  into a cohesive community called the umma
  (community of the faithful)
• Personally led the umma in daily prayers, and in
  various battles with enemies in Medina, Mecca and
  other places
• Also organized successful commercial ventures,
  and used the profits to provide relief for
  widows, orphans and the poor
• Also began to refer to himself as the final
  prophet through whom Allah would reveal his
  message to humanity
• He accepted earlier prophets like Abraham, Moses
  and Jesus, and held the Hebrew scriptures and
  Christian Bible in very high esteem

Muhammad preaching in Medina
66
Establishment of Islam in Mecca

• By 630 Muhammad and his followers were so strong
  that they attacked and conquered Mecca
• Forced elites to accept Allah, and instituted a
  government devoted to Allah
• Destroyed pagan shrines and built mosques,
  buildings that sought to instill a sense of
  community where Muslims gathered for prayer
• Retained one old pagan shrine the huge Kaba
  (black rock) which was transformed into a shrine
  to Allah,
• which only the faithful could approach
• Muhammad himself led the
• first pilgrimage (hajj) to the
• Kaba, establishing the hajj
• as an example for all
• devout Muslims

This image and overleaf The Kaba in Mecca today
67
www.bible.ca/islam/ islam-photos-islam-today.htm
68
Spread of Islam Throughout Arabia

• Muhammad and his followers then launched a
  series of campaigns against other towns and
  Bedouin clans, and by the time of his death in
  632, much of Arabia was under their control

69
Further Expansion of Islam

• After Muhammads death his advisors selected one
  of his closest friends and disciples to serve as
  caliph (deputy)Abu Bakr became head of the
  Islamic state, as well as chief judge and
  religious and military leader
• Under his leadership Islamic armies then began to
  carry their message into the Byzantine and
  Sasanian worlds beyond Arabia
• They attacked at precisely the moment that these
  great civilizations were exhausted and soon
  conquered Palestine and Mesopotamia

70
Islamic Conquests of West and Central Asia

• During the 640s Arab forces conquered Egypt and
  North Africa
• By 661 they had toppled the Sasanians and
  incorporated Persia into their realm
• By 711 they were in Afghanistan and N. India, and
  in 718 they crossed the Straits of Gibraltar and
  conquered most of Spain

Straits of Gibraltar from space
71
The Expansion of Islam
72
Disagreements Over Succession

• Disagreements over succession led to the
  emergence of the Shia sect, which offered an
  alternative to the standard Sunni
  (traditionalist) version
• The Shia had favored the appointment of Ali
  (Muhammads son-in-law) as successor instead of
  Abu Bakr
• Eventually Ali was assassinated, and his
  supporters organized their own Shia (party)
• Ever since the Shia has functioned as a source of
  support for those who opposed the policies of the
  Sunni leadership

73
The Five Pillars of Islam

• Muhammads faith was based on five obligations
• Muslims must acknowledge Allah as the only god,
  and Muhammad as the last prophet
• The must pray to Allah daily while facing Mecca
• They must fast during the daylight hours of the
  month of Ramadan
• They must contribute alms for the relief of the
  poor
• They must try and undertake the hajj at least
  once in their lives

74
Changing Status of Women

• Pre-Islamic society was patriarchal, but women
  enjoyed unusual rights (to inherit property,
  divorce their husbands, engage in business)
• Quran enhanced the security of women by outlawing
  female infanticide and ensuring dowries went
  directly to brides, not their husbands
• Women are portrayed not
• as possessions but
• honorable individuals
• equal to men before Allah
• Muhammads own kindness
• and respect to his wives
• served as an example of this

75
Male Dominance

• But for the most part the Quran (and later sharia
  law) reinforced male dominance
• Succession was through the male line, and a
  premium was placed on genealogical purity
• To ensure the legitimacy of heirs the social and
  sexual lives of women were subject to strict
  control by men
• Reinforcing patriarchy, men could also have up to
  four wives, women only one husband

76
Veiling of Women

• When Islam moved into Central Asia and Byzantium,
  it adopted long-standing traditions like the
  veiling of women (which had been practiced in
  Mesopotamia since the 13th C BCE)
• Women were forced to veil in public, and could
  only leave home in the company of servants or
  chaperones
• The increased
• emphasis on male
• authority (as
• interpreted by jurists
• and Quran
• interpreters) thus
• reflected the influence
• of older strongly
• patriarchal societies
• conquered by Islam

77
Islamic Law The Sharia

• Islamic holy law (the sharia) emerged in the
  centuries after Muhammads death, offering
  guidance on all aspect of daily life
• Worked out by legal experts, the sharia was
  inspired by the Quran
• It offers precise guidance on marriage and family
  life, inheritance, slavery, business dealings,
  politics and crime
• Through the sharia Islam became more than a
  religious doctrine, but a way of life with a
  complete set of social and ethical values

78
Islamic Values and Cultural Exchanges

• Muslim theologians looked to the Quran and other
  sources to formulate moral guidelines
• Sharia law that resulted created a level of
  cultural unity throughout the vast multi-cultural
  Islamic world that is of great significance in
  world history
• Ulama, Qadis and missionaries also helped bridge
  cultural differences
• They held prominent positions in all Islamic
  cities and resolved disputes according to Islamic
  law

79
Education

• Formal educational institutions also helped
  promote Islamic values
• Mosques maintained schools, supported by wealthy
  Muslim merchants
• Universities (known as madrasas) were established
  all over the Muslim world by the 12th century
• Rulers (who needed literate,
• educated bureaucrats)
• supported the madrasas,
• and inexpensive paper
• facilitated learning

Madrasa in Italy, 2005
80
Islam and the Cultures of Persia, India and Greece

• In the regions ruled by the Umayyads and
  Abbasids, large numbers of conquered people
  converted to Islam, bringing with them their own
  cultural traditions
• Muslims then adapted these traditions for their
  own purposes, particularly Persian administrative
  techniques
• Persian also became the principal language of
  literature (and law) in the Islamic World

Famous examples of Persian-Islamic literary
masterpieces are the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam,
and the Thousand and One Nights
81
Indian Influences

• Indian mathematics intrigued Arab and Persian
  Muslims
• They quickly adopted Hindi numerals, which
  Europeans later called Arabic numerals because
  they were brought to Europe by the Arab Muslims
• Indian numerals were far more flexible than Roman
  (easier to multiply 11 x 99 than XI x XCIX, eg!)
• These numbers also simplified bookkeeping and
  were a boon for Islamic merchants

82
Greek Influences

• Muslims admired the literature and science of
  classical Greece
• Translated Plato and Aristotle, and attempts were
  made to synthesize Greek and Muslim philosophy
• Ibn Rushd (qadi of Seville in mid 12th Century)
  followed Aristotle in attempting to construct a
  purely rational view of the world
• This influenced the emergence of scholasticism in
  universities in W Europe (where Rushd is known as
  Averroes) leading to attempts to rationalize
  Christianity with Aristotelian thought

Statue of Averroes (Ibn Rushd) in Seville, Spain
83
Conclusion Islam and World History

• Muhammad did not intend to found a new religion,
  but to express his faith in Allah and perfect the
  teachings of earlier Jewish and Christian
  prophets
• But his message attracted prophets, and by his
  death most of Arabia had adopted Islam
• Arab conquerors then spread Islam throughout
  Afro-Eurasia, leading to the creation of a
  massive trade and communication network
• As a result of the cultural exchange that ensued,
  the dar al Islam became the most prosperous and
  cosmopolitan society of the post-classical world

84
Thats It for Today!

• Hope you have enjoyed this long and EXHAUSTING
  day as much as I have!
• When we meet again we will have five sessions on
  Eras 4 and 5, offering both content information
  and also some pedagogical ideas
• Then, on our final day we will
• try and cover Eras 6, 7 and 8 in
• just five more sessions!
• See you soon!, and thank you!