Running head: INTRODUCTION TO ISLAM

Introduction to Islam

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The QURAN: Structure and history of the text. Issues of interpretation and derivation

of reliable guidance from the text

The Holy Qur’an is a collection of books and passages possessed and recited by

Muslims. The individual passages, books, and Ayahs are signs and Surahs. An Ayah is

described as a sentence, part of a sentence, or more than a sentence. Many Ayahs are grouped

to make up a Surahs, 114 in number (Denny, 2015). The structure of the Holy Qur’an has

been set such that one could study and recite it within a given period, such as a month. The

Manzils are the divisions that allow one to recite the Holy Qur’an in equal proportions from

the start to the end, Surah 1-114.

Also, the division of the Holy Qur’an into 540 Ruku is another structure that allows

the faithful to recite it with ease. However, the Ruku are not similar to Surahs because they

have unequal lengths but are related logically. For a faithful to complete the recitation of the

Holy Qur’an using twenty Ruku, they need 27 days (Denny, 2015). The Arabic language is

the primary mode of communication when writing ad reciting the Holy Qur’an. Therefore,

one needs to understand the Arabic language because it is crucial for understanding the divine

message. Although translations have been done, the Arabic language is noted to be divine,

and the Holy Qur’an was originally written in it.

Muslims have utilized oral and written means to hand down the Holy Qur’an.

However, the oral means is the most powerful tool through which the knowledge of the Holy

Qur’an has been spread to nations. The teaching of the Holy Qur’an was first done through

oral means because the Arabic language had not been well developed during the first initial

centuries (Denny, 2015). In the holy book, the custodian of the Islamic faith, Prophet

Muhammad, received instruction from Allah and was visited angel Gabriel. The Holy Qur’an

gives the narrations of the things that transpired between the angel and what Allah
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communicated to the prophet. However, the prophet himself was not literate enough to write,

although many could do so during his time.

The account of Theodor Nöldeke, a German orientalist, is the commonly accepted

chronology of the Western World attempt to date the contents of the Quran. He lived between

1836-1930 and insisted on the revelations from the middle Meccan period and achieved

stylistic changes (Denny, 2015). Western scholarship has increasingly used numbers in

stating a Surah. However, this is not common among Muslims. The Muslims only use

numbers for convenience and do not name the Surahs. At the beginning of each Surah,

Muslims prefer adopting the style of quoting the beginning of the verse being mentioned. The

implication is that verse numberings are not common among Muslims. The use of quotes at

the beginning of passages requires one to memorize the text, so there is a deep understanding

by reciting the Surah. This allows the faithful to relate the content of the Surah to the

identification it has been given.

The ones who have memorized the Holy Qur’an are known as the guardians because

they understand the effort it takes to keep it alive. Such individuals are known to possess

some peculiar wisdom in religious education. They are known as the Shaykh. The community

gives a chance to the hafiz to recite the Holy Qur’an during special occasions because this is

a way of keeping the knowledge of the text alive. A devotional context results in such a

situation. The social occasions organized in homes of people who are pious in the society are

characterized by reciters being given a chance to recite the Holy Qur’an (Denny, 2015). Other

avenues include weddings, funerals, Ramadhan nights, the inauguration of officials and

leaders, the opening and closing of schools, and national observance events. The recitation of

the Holy Qur’an is given priority on such dates and events.

The liturgical division in the Holy Qur’an is another arrangement that exists besides

the usual suras and verses. For instance, the scheme that considers the holy month of
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Ramadhan whereby the recitation of the Holy Qur’an must be done. Therefore, the Holy

Qur’an is divided into equal parts that allow the reciters to do their work without much

burden (Denny, 2015). The division of the Holy Qur’an into 30 parts which are equal to each

other, known as the Juz, is the most common liturgical division.

HADITH AND SUNNA: Issues of Authority and Authenticity, and the classical debates

about the two. Al-Shafii’s contribution to the science of hadith.

Prophet Muhammad had a massive following due to his character, authority, and

relation with people during his lifetime. He was a prophet in two regions, Mecca and Medina,

and his words and actions gave him more power. The people's acceptance of the Quran as a

holy book depended heavily on the "gracious Quran” (Denny, 2015). After the prophet

Muhammad's death, the people collected the pieces that identified his life and brought

together a wholesome piece. This was made a reality through the prophet and the book.

The Sunna, which means the prophet's custom, the habitual prophets, deeds, and

words he bequeathed to his followers, is of immense importance. Although Sunna is just a

word that means the customs followed by the people, prophet Muhammad brought more

meaning to it through his pious life, actions, words, and other aspects that were noted as

authoritative in his life. A Muslim behavior requires Sunna, which is bequeathed to others

through an exemplary life of the pious leaders and their teachings (Denny, 2015). On the

other hand, a hadith is a literary form transmitted by the Sunna. This is a report about the

things that came to pass as observed in the life of the prophet Muhammad. Therefore, the

teachings were renewed and passed from one generation to another through hadith. The

central communication is the prophet's verse, which states that there is no other God except

Allah and Muhammad is Allah's only true prophet.

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After the Arab conquest and the establishment of the Arab rule in regions outside

Mecca and Medina, the conquered people were subjected and converted to worshipping

Allah. They became Muslims because of the authority of the masters who had taken their

land captive. From Iraq to Egypt and Tunisia, the Arab dominance expanded. Each leader

proved to be selfish and driven by conflict of interest and this is why quite few leaders

acquired power legitimately without coup or killing their predecessors. However, the latter

leadership sought to make friendship with the people such that those who were conquered in

battle were shown respect and were convinced to join the Arab empire and convert to Islam

for their benefit and without coercion. This is the point where the Muslims expanded and

became a huge nation. However, the lack of leadership especially after the demise of the

prophet provided a clear point of division in religiously and politically. The unity in the

worship of Allah and creation of authenticity has been established although not in

completeness because there still exists the Shii and Sunni subdivisions of Islam.

In the hadith, the Sunna is given, showing the pious life of the prophet, how he lived

as a perfect example of the people and the society, leading the Muslim faith into a direction

that God wants each one to follow. Compared to the Biblical Messiah, who is Jesus, prophet

Muhammad's life is perfect, without sin and an exemplary one that directs people how they

should live (Denny, 2015). However, in the Bible, Jesus Christ of Nazareth is an individual

who lived with sinners, was the son of God, and ended up dying on the cross as a sinner. This

is something that no Muslim can follow because this is not the pious life that Muhammad

lived. Nonetheless, the Biblical Jesus resurrected after dying as a sinful man on the cross.

However, Muhammad the prophet did not rise again physically, as did Jesus. The holy

personage of prophet Muhammad presents him as sinless, and a role model founder whose

ideas and life lead to perfection.

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Prophet Muhammad's words command his followers to lead a holy life and be

blameless. Just like Moses, Muhammad the prophet was the one who led the people, judging

them. Without any presence of a higher authority, Muhammad the prophet was tasked with

coming up with new ideas, laws, and regulations, which were seen as breaking the ground

and setting the pace in his maiden leadership. He drew the tribal and custom precedent that

did not subvert the Islamic culture in any way but showed people how to lead sinless lives.

The fact that Muhammad the prophet was led into coming up with laws and other concepts

which were mainly breaking the ground because none preceded him meant that he was in a

superior position of authority (Denny, 2015). This accords him the seat of the prophet of

Allah, who was allowed to set up customs that the Islam religion has upheld to date.

The authenticity of the hadiths was tested through the science of men. Both literary

accuracy of the highest order and moral character were essential in determining a person's

trustworthiness. Therefore, the Thiqa allowed the scholars to accept the transmissions of such

an individual. The hadith scholars had to possess the two qualities. The transmitters followed

the Thiqa because they had less accuracy of the literacy skills although their morals were

perfect. Therefore, Hadiths are acceptable to society unless they are challenged at the Thiqa

level. Only a transmitter can question and challenge a hadith. If a transmitter bolsters a

parallel hadith, they could make a weak tradition acceptable. Compared to academic grades, a

weak hadith is on the same level as the grade 'D', a mere pass but not admirable because it is

not far from a failure.

Islamic jurisprudence and the science behind it were contributed by Al-Shafii. This

philosopher disagreed with the early schools since they are of fundamental nature. His

principles became a law to himself because he strictly adhered to them. Imam Malik was the

teacher to Al-Iman Al Shafii and allowed him to study the Mutwatta. Al-Shafii describes the

state of humanity before the arrival of the prophet Muhammad. He divides people into two
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groups. The first one is the Ahl al Kitab and the second one is the Mushrikun (Denny, 2015).

He describes the coming of the prophet Muhammad as a merciful act of Allah of giving the

people light and delivering them from the disbelief and blindness that covered them. The

scholar discusses the relevance of the holy book of the Quran to the people and how man is to

worship God. According to Al-Shafii, students seeking knowledge of the Quran should only

quote it with pure intentions and also infer meanings from the citations.

Al-Shafii’s findings and science has been greatly rejected by many in Islam. This is

the same situation as it was in the beginning when he made the findings. He was isolated due

to his knowledge. However, he did not give up and stuck to his lane and belief. The living

tradition from Medina was being mixed up in Hadith. His teacher Malik had connected the

two but the scholar did a unique work which defined the Islamic law and the Sunna.

After Muhammad: Issues OF SUCCESSION and LEADERSHIP OF THE UMMA.

After the death of Prophet Muhammad, there was a leadership vacuum which was

created by his failure to name a successor or identify someone who could take over from him.

This left the umma in chaotic leadership. The old guards had no way forward and each was

afraid of the others because no one had the honor and dignity that equaled that of the prophet

Muhammad (Denny, 2015). Therefore, they had to arrange a meeting to decide what happens

with the people the first Khalifa, Abu Bakr was selected as a deputy to the prophet

Muhammad in the meeting. Only some few leaders proposed this leader as the deputy to the

prophet, and since the honor of the prophet was so great, some resentment was expected due

to the authoritarian style in which the Medinan community was treated. The leader was

imposed on the people. The Shayk was expected to be selected, but this did not happen, and
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the people resented because they needed someone that they could overpower in case he

became overbearing.

The argument that the prophet could have produced a son to take over from him could

not materialize because he had no male child who had come of age by the time he passed

away. Therefore, some of his relatives presented themselves with the narrative that they were

the ones suitable to replace him. In particular, the Shiis brought Ali and claimed that the

prophet had left the leadership under his hands. This led toa protest by the wider Muslim

society with many of them forming the Sunni sect. They gained a large following such that

the minority Muslims who were at Medina were left with a few members that paid tribute to

Ali. Today, the Sunnis consider themselves as the mainstream Islamic sect that holds on to

the original beliefs and practices of the prophet Muhammad.

The Ridda resulted after the death of prophet Muhammad. He had not managed to

unite all the Arab regions together under his rule while he was alive. Therefore, after his

death, the Umars took over the authority to select one of their own to lead, the Abu Bakr.

They were the power brokers of that time who had the greatest power. The two centers of

Arab power, Medina and Mecca united and the caliphate system of government resulted

(Denny, 2015). Military actions were popular after the death of the prophet because the far

regions outside Arabia and Medina such as Eastern Arabia, Hadramaut and Yemen had to be

subdued. They were brought into the umma under the leadership of the caliphate Abu Bakr.

The great military conquests were also meant to reclaim the wealth lost after the demise of

Muhammad. The reunited Arab tribes needed the conquests because the enormous wealth in

the region could not be left alone, for it would make the umma appear weak economically.

The reunited Arab tribes started occupying the conquered regions and allocated themselves

administrative positions as leaders and administrators of the regions. Settlers moved in and

military garrisons were also built.

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Far lands such as Egypt were conquered with ease after the people supported the

umma and rejected the rue of the Byzantines who extorted them with heavy taxes. The people

saw a brighter future under the rule of the umma and therefore welcomed the Arab conquest.

The Byzantines suffered a great setback after their only source of wealth was captured by the

Arabs (Denny, 2015). Egypt was a strategic agricultural point for the Byzantines who ordered

the people to grow crops for the Constantinople. The Greeks attacked Alexandria and

overpowered it after the mindset of the Egyptians was supportive towards foreign conquests.

However, the Greeks could not keep holding onto Alexandria any longer because the Arab

world had more support and economic power which enabled it to conquer the Greeks and get

them out of Alexandria.

The claim by the Arabs that they were associated with prophet Muhammad and the

fact that they had the support of the two Arab centers, Mecca and Medina made them attract

the support of the people. Therefore, the Arabs faced less resistance when conquering the far

regions in the Arab world. The death of the prophet resulted into division and war among the

Muslims. They became divided even though there was some rebellion that the people had

silently. The prophet has failed to unite the people, and there was some fear in them therefore

they could not revolt against him. The first reason why prophet Muhammad was more

respected was that he had directions from God and was his only prophet (Denny, 2015). The

second reason was that he had the backing of the Arab centers, medina and mecca and this

made him more powerful. Most of the regions under him prevailed with peace and tranquility

but sought to distance themselves after his death. Greed for power rocked the Arab world and

divided the nations. The political divisions were accompanied with religious divisions

whereby the Muslims formed themselves into two groups based on whom they paid

allegiance. The first group was Sunni and the other was Shii.
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Arab conquest continued in nations such as Iraq and Tunisia where the military-built

garrisons and the people settled in them. The influence of the natives was far away from the

Arabs who were highly protected by their armies. Therefore, the Muslims were able to

preserve their culture and their social aspects because they did not intermingle with the

natives. Islamic purity was sensed in the garrisons, and the armies of the Arab world did not

seek to convert the people religiously. Instead, the armies sought to subjugate the conquered

locals.

Umar was attacked by a revolting servant in 644 and sustained serious injuries. He

realized how much trouble the death of Prophet Muhammad had brought the people and

therefore did not want to leave them without a successor. He therefore appointed a Shura,

which was a committee of elders to appoint a caliphate to rule them. The committee chose the

weakest candidate for the caliph position, Uthman (Denny, 2015). The people did not admire

his leadership nor his roots. He ruled through nepotism by appointing his close relatives to

leadership positions, provoking the people to revolt against him. Many people had already

started coming up with their various versions of the interpretation of the Quran. Uthman

however organized the collection of the Quran which helped calm down and prevent the

quarrels that had already risen due to the various interpretations.

The RIGHTLY GUIDED CALIPHS and their contributions to the Islamic polity and

civilization

Ali was the first Caliph who was rightly guided. However, before he took over power,

there was Uthman, his predecessor. Uthman was the Caliph who achieved the feat of

collecting the Quran and guiding the people into reading the same version from prophet

Muhammad. His rule came to a sudden end after he was assassinated by revolting Egyptians
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who stormed his unguarded Medina palace and cut him down. The circumstances seemed

unpromising.

Ali feared provoking the people to start an uprising. He learnt the mistakes of Uthman, such

as nepotism and therefore cancelled many of the appointments that had been made. After

learning that Uthman had become less popular with the people, he failed to protect him from

the Egyptian attackers who killed him (Denny, 2015). He also moved the capital to a garrison

in Iraq where he had massive support to avoid being assassinated.

Muawiya, Uthman's nephew refused to recognize the leadership of Ali and therefore

refused to step down as the governor of Syria to let in the newly appointed governor by Ali.

The caliph and the Syrian governor faced each other at the River Euphrates, but Muawiya's

soldiers played a trickery on the caliph's army by putting on the Quran on the spearheads.

They seized the war and agreed to arbitration.

Muawiya is hailed as one of the most successful and guided leaders as a caliph. He

took power and ruled with a new style that allowed him to win over his enemies after

conquering them in battle. He was great reconciler of conflicts and created peace. However,

his leadership was criticized for being ruthless to the people during his last days as the caliph.

The leaders were rushing to see that their sons benefit and take over leadership at the expense

of the unity of the people (Denny, 2015). For instance, Uthman was a man who practiced a

high-level nepotism and discriminated his people against his relatives. This led to the revolt

by Muawiya who overpowered him at last after being killed by his son. Muawiya was also

fast enough to leave his son on the throne before he could die. This was a step meant to

ensure that the leadership of the Arab world remained in his house. The relation between Iraq

and Syria was worsening after Muawiya took over power and went to Kuta to rule the Arab

world. All the leaders had their selfish interests that led to the collapse of their rule.
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There emerged other great leaders such as Abbasid who contributed immensely to the

peace of the Arab world by executing rebels and assassins. This caliph was known as ‘The

Shadow of God on Earth’ and this gave him mighty power. He had sharp leadership styles

that proved to hold the Arab world together (Denny, 2015). For instance, he eliminated

corruption by all means. He sometimes dressed shabbily and went out to the market. Upon

reaching there, he gave out some bribes to merchants to check if they sought shortcuts in their

dealings. The merchants were surprised after they accepted the bribes because he took off his

loose cap and revealed his identity and ordered for their immediate execution by death. These

actions brought sanity to the society by restoring morality and piousness. Many feared the

rule of the law.

After the death of prophet Muhammad, confusion rocked the Arab world. Revolts

resulted and people’s hopes of a united Arab world were dashed. The Abbasids emerged with

a movement that swept the Umayyads. Led by a paternal uncle to prophet Muhammad, they

presented their choice of the future Arab leadership. They staged a revolution hailed as a

rightly guided caliphs of Medina.

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Reference

Denny, F. (2015). An introduction to Islam. Routledge.