A history of God, ch5, Unity: The God of Islam

Mecca - thriving city

From nomadic to settlement, money from, capitalism

Individualism superseded communal ideal

Muruwah, pre Islam ideology, tribal, egalitarian

Sayyid, tribal chief

Jahiliyyah

Influence of empires surrounded to Arab world from merchants

al-Lah similar to god in Judaism and Christianity - some Arab belief

Kaaba, hajj, reason for mercantile success

Bedouin valued independence,  didnt accept foreign ideology

Haniffiyyah, 4 followers, religion of Abraham

Hira in 610, revelation

Gabriel, holy spirit

Khadija consoled

Waraqa said Muhammad prophet

Revelation, bit-by-bit, at times clear, but sometimes inarticulate

-Difficult process

Koran is central to spirituality, repetitive, for liturgical purpose

Muhammed role was warner to start with

Preaching of Muhammad in mecca, salat, egalitarian stance

Koran, No theological speculation

Koran, talk about god in parables

Koran, stresses need for intelligence

-last judgement,paradise,etc.. Not literal but ineffable reality

-koranitself is wonder,to be recited in Arabic - divine dimension

- wonder and shock felt by early converts - umar

-new literary form not ready for some but thrilled others

-deep congruence between art and religion

Initial years, Islam was developing until it turn to strict monotheism

Satanic verses - from Tabari, venerated banat-Allah, Gabriel told its satanic origin, replaced with srong versus against

Allah, known thru his activities, wajh-allah, 99 names

Muhammad never asked Jew Christian to convert

Hijra

Brought laws in par with Jews after reaching medina

Ummah, super-tribe

Jews rejected muhammed, and he disappointed

Some discussed bible with Muhammad and he got aware of prophets better

Arab tradition from Abraham and Ishmael

Not political leader at outset, 'no compulsion in religion', hajj

Muhammad unexpected death

Women equality, later generation hijacked that

Shia, faction based on Ali and his descendants

Hadith and sunnah

Ahl al hadith. Traditionist, direct contact with Allah and no intercessor needed

Mutazilis, rationalist, god rational

Ibn hanbal, traditionist, opposed rationalist and al-Karabisi

Al-Ashari, used rationalism to claim god is beyond human understanding

Al-Baqillani, asharite, atomism, everything in depend on god

Kalam - theology - rational methods to show god incomprehensible rationally

Rationalist minority

Other Muslims radical hellenisation of God

Philosophy and mystery of God