Chapter 2 The tenets of Islam of Muhammad vs. those of his successors
The tenets or beliefs of Islam as envisioned by Muhammad and as recorded in
The Koran were eventually modified by what is called the traditions, or hadiths, i.e. the behavior and words of Muhammad as recalled by his family members and companions. Initially Muhammad viewed Islam as a religion for Arabs who followed the Muslim belief in complete surrender to the Creator, the Jews having their own religion as established by the "Book" (the Bible).Some of Muhammad's beliefs and subsequent changes were:
1. War Muhammad believed war is abhorrent and should not be waged except in one's own self-defense. But his struggle against political adversaries among the tribes of Arabia soon changed to a fight to survive. Constant warfare between tribes became the norm and Muhammad felt obliged to use it in his struggle to convert other Arabs to Islam (K. Armstrong, A History of God, p, l56).
The Koran states Muhammad's position on war:
Sura 2:186:
"And fight for the cause of God against those who fight you: but do not commit the injustice of attacking them first: for God does not love such injustice.
But once the war has begun, Muslims should battle the enemy furiously:
Sura 2:187-189:
"And kill them wherever you shall find them, and eject them from any place that they have ejected you: for civil discord is worse than slaughter: still do not attack them at the sacred Mosque, unless they attack you there; but if they do attack you, kill them. Such is the reward of the infidels.
But if they stop, then truly God is Gracious, Merciful.
Fight therefore against them until there is no more civil discord, and they worship only God: but if they stop fighting, then let there be no hostility, except against the wicked."
In other words, the end of hostilities and civil discord would come at a price: acceptance and worship of the God of Islam, Allah! Defeated tribes who worshipped gods besides, or other than, Allah must thereafter worship only Allah.
Robert Spencer asks in Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam whether jihad warfare can only be defensive. He cites the answer of South African mufti Ebrahim Desai to a question at "Islam Q & A Online" about offensive jihad: (quote) if any country prevented or hindered the propagation of Islam to its inhabitants, to save them from "the Fire of Hell", then a Muslim ruler would be justified in waging jihad against that country! (unquote) (Spencer, pp.22-23; also see p.236: Note 1.)
Now non-Muslims and unbelievers of Islam will find that to be a crock of camel dung! Such gall would be ludicrous if it weren't a serious threat to their very existence, whether they be Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, whatever!
And Muhammad himself, albeit that Sura 9:29 is alleged to be Gabriel's message from Allah, preached making war on unbelievers.
Sura 9:29:
"Make war upon any of those to whom the Scriptures have been given who do not believe in God, or in the last day of resurrection, and who do not forbid what God and His apostle have forbidden, until the pay tribute out of hand (Rodwell suggests by right of subjection, cf. not 10, p.450), and they are humbled (cf. Rodwell, ibid., note 11, p.450 re the conditions of negotiation for peace by Jews with the Gentiles).
Engagement in war became Muhammad's modus operandi for spreading his new religion, Islam. It is noteworthy that this was to be the rule throughout the history of Muhammad's followers, the Muslims, as well, even to the present day. And it figures to offer only three options in negotiation between non-Muslims and Muslims in the near, and distant, future: submission by non-Muslims to Islam, subjugation (with taxation) and other forms of humiliation of non-Muslims, or death to non-Muslims at the hands of Muslims! (Editor's note: What was Brig. Gen. Anthony McAuliffe 's reply when the Germans in World War II demanded surrender? "Nuts!" And non-Muslims and unbelievers of Islam would have to concur in McAuliffe's reply as well, in answer to Muslims.)
2. Conversion According to K. Armstrong, Muhammad never forced non-Arabs to convert to Islam and conversion was not encouraged in the century following M's death. (Armstrong, pp. 151,156.) In 700 A.D. conversion became forbidden by law. Muslims then believed Islam was solely for Arabs. They respected Jews and Christians as "people of the Book" who were granted minority religious liberty (dhimmis). Later (750) the Abbasid caliphs encouraged conversion. (ibid., p. 159.)
Conversion to Islam offered two alternate options for non-Muslims: subjugation (dhimmitude) or death! On the subject of dhimmitude, compare again Sura 9:29 with Rodwell's notations( See 1 above) :
Sura 9:29:
"Make war upon any of those to whom the Scriptures have been given who do not believe in God, ... until they pay tribute out of hand,...and they are humbled."
Engagement in war offers only three options in truce or negotiation between non-Muslims and Muslims in the near, and distant, future: submission by non-Muslims to Islam, dhimmitude or subjugation (with taxation) and other forms of humiliation of non-Muslims, or death to non-Muslims at the hands of Muslims!
On the subject of dhimmitude,
C. Stephenson, in Medieval History, writes that the Muslim conquest was mainly political, as its leaders sought to avoid massacre of non-Muslims or even forced conversion to Islam; non-Muslims, because the special taxation (dhimma) on non-Muslims would provide the financial support of the Islamic state (p.146).Significant dates in Muhammad's life and his efforts to convert others to Islam:
570 Born in Mecca
610 Visions of Gabriel resulting in
The Koran over 23 years; preaching to family, friends, converting most to Islam613 Muhammad began to preach publicly
622
Number of converts reached 200+; decision to migrate to Medina; Jewish tribes disdained Muhammad as a prophet624 Struggle against Meccans; confrontation with Jewish tribes of Medina; defeat of other Jewish tribes
628 Confrontation and negotiation with Meccans re pilgrimage to Mecca next year
630 Final expedition to Tabuk; achieved peaceful settlement with tribal chiefs without major bloodshed
632 Muhammad made his last visit to Mecca. He died, after a short illness.
According to A. Hourani, the number of
converts to Islam by the mid-eighth century A.D. is estimated on a study based on evidence of adoption of Muslim names: less than 10% of the population of Iran and Iraq, Syria and Egypt, Tunisia and Spain was Muslim, with the proportion in the Arabian peninsula likely greater. Apart from the Arab tribes already in pre-Muslim Iraq and Syria, most converts were probably from either the lower social ranks e.g. soldiers captured in battle, or Sasanian government officials in service to the new rulers. Converts lived mainly in or near the main urban centers of Arab population and power, where Islamic institutions ( the mosque, the law court) arose and these cities served as centers for the spread of Islam.( A. Hourani, A History of the Arab Peoples, pp.46-47.)By the tenth century A.D
. the picture had changed. A large part of the population was Muslim made up of townspeople and a large number of rural people, probably because Islam had become more clearly defined separating Muslim from non-Muslim.. Muslims now had an elaborate and distinct system of ritual, doctrine and law unlike that of non-Muslims. Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians were treated as a distinct and inferior class. Under a compact of protection (the "Pact of 'Umar") they were not forced to convert to Islam, but they had to suffer restrictions: a special tax; forbidden to wear certain colors ( e.g. green which was associated with the Prophet and Islam) and required to wear others (yellow); they could not marry Muslim women; their testimony in law courts was not accepted against that of Muslims; their houses of worship could not be ostentatious but kept simple; they were generally excluded from positions of power (except as secretaries or financial officers for a Muslim ruler). Such restrictions were an encouragement to convert to Islam. (ibid., A. Hourani, pp.47, 117.)In addition to restriction of colors, like green, non-Muslims (Jews and Christians) were required by Islamic law to carry signs of their differences, i.e. to wear special dress; could not carry weapons or ride horses; could not build new houses of worship (synagogues, churches) or repair old ones without permission and repairs could not be higher than mosques. There were variations of these restrictions. (ibid., p.117.)
However, Islamic laws of marriage and inheritance were more strictly observed: non-Muslims could not inherit from a Muslim; a non-Muslim man could not marry a Muslim woman, but a Muslim man could marry a Jewish or Christian woman. Conversion of Muslims to other religions was strictly forbidden. (ibid., p.117.)
By the 11th century A.D. Islam was the religion of rulers, dominant groups and a growing proportion of the population
, though probably not the religion of a majority outside the Arabian peninsula. (ibid., p. 96)
By the 15th century A.D. the flood of Arabic Islam had covered the whole region
and was mainly in its Sunni form, although adherents of doctrines evolved in earlier centuries still existed. (ibid., p.96)During centuries of Muslim rule there were some periods of sustained persecution of non-Muslims by Muslims, not by religious spokesmen, says Hourani, but more likely from urban masses in times of economic hardship or war when hostility might be directed against non-Muslim officials of the ruler. Then the laws would be enforced strictly, but later relaxed. Such crises happened several times under Mamluk rule in Egypt and Syria. (ibid.,p.118.)
The communal organization of Jews and Christians could provide some protection in the face of the disadvantage of minority status. The terms of the dhimma (contract of protection) between the Muslim ruler and his non-Muslim subjects-- peace, obedience, order-- were honored. (ibid., p.119)
After all, non-Muslims represented an important source of revenue to Muslims, through the tax they were obliged to pay as the price of subjugation for peace and order. [Editor's note: This policy sounds like the Sicilian mafia's guarantee of protection in exchange for money! In a word -- racketeering]
3. Prayer Muhammad required converts to Islam to bow down in ritual prayer (salat) twice a day. According to K. Armstrong, the act of prayer at first revolted members of his tribe, the Quraysh, who as wealth as wealthy traders were too proud to grovel to Allah. Later Muhammad commanded Muslims to pray three times a day and to fast on the Jewish Day of Atonement like the Jews. Later again, Muslims were required to pray five times a day. Muhammad commanded Muslims to pray facing Mecca instead of Jerusalem, thus returning to what Armstrong calls the "primordial religion of Abraham." (K.Armstrong, p. 155)
The Koran mentions prayer in the following suras (herein listed by location where recorded, Mecca first, then Medina):
(Mecca)
(Sura 17:80) "Observe prayer at sunset, till the first darkening of the night, and the daybreak reading - for the daybreak reading hath its witnesses..."
(Sura 11:116) "And observe prayer at early morning, at the close of the day, and at the approach of night; for the good deeds drive away the evil deeds. This is a warning for those who reflect:.. "
(Sura 50:38-39) "...celebrate the praise of thy Lord before sunrise and before sunset:
And praise Him in the night: and perform the two final prostrations."
(Medina)
(Sura 2:l04) "And observe prayer and pay the legal impost; ... "
J.M.
Rodwell enumerates in a footnote the 5 times for Muslim prayer:1) 4 minutes after sunset (moghreb) 2) after dark (eshe) 3) daybreak (soobh or fegr) 4) just after noon (doohr) 5) midway between noon and nightfall (asr). (Cf. Sura 2:104, note 46, J.M.Rodwell,( Everyman J.M.Dent 1994 London 2001 reprint).(Sura 2:239) "Observe strictly the prayers, and the middle* prayer, and stand up full of devotion towards God."
* Note 88, ibid., Rodwell defines middle prayer as either the asr, midway between noon and nightfall or the prayer immediately after midday.
Except for Rodwell's enumeration of the 5 times a day for prayer, Muhammad's verses quoted above indicate only three times a day for prayer. A search of A. Guillaume's The Life of Muhammad, a translation of Ishaq's Sirat Rasul Allah, reveals the same number of 5 times a day for prayer, in a section of Part II: The Prescription of Prayer, pp. 112f. It also relates the part Gabriel played in teaching Muhammad how and when to pray.
4. Equality of the Sexes During his lifetime, Muhammad regarded the sexes as equal. His first wife was a successful merchant. Women were among Muhammad's first converts. Pre-Islamic Arab women had no political or human rights and female infanticide was common. The Koran forbade the killing of female children and gave women legal rights of inheritance and divorce. Muhammad encouraged women to be active in community affairs of the ummah (ibid., Armstrong, p.158). Sura 33: 35 addressed women and men equally:
Sura 33:35:
"Truly the men who surrender themselves to God (Muslims), and the women who surrender...: for them God has prepared forgiveness and a rich compensation."
That all changed after Muhammad's death as his followers struggled for leadership. The early struggle was between the Sunnah and Shiah ( Armstrong, ibid., p.158). That struggle persists today in post-Saddam Iraq as the Sunnis and Shiites vie to gain political superiority. However, women are now beginning to emerge from their second-class status, participating as elected members of parliament and returning to Muhammad's original intention of equality of the sexes in a Muslim society.
The elections of 2006 in Kuwait revealed that 27 women ran against 222 men for the parliament's 50 seats; however, none won seats to that legislative body. One of the women who ran reportedly said "it hurt to feel that women were not regarded as equal to men in her conservative country but that she would not give up and planned to stand in the next elections, due in 2010." ( Reported by Diana Elias, The Associated Press, "Female candidates shut out in Kuwait parliament vote," printed in the Orlando Sentinel, 7/1/06, p. A21.)
The situation is very different today in Iran. Islamic law in Iran imposes stringent restrictions on women. Iranian women must have a male guardian's permission to work or travel and are rarely allowed to attend public sports events. As reported by The Associated Press in May 2006, Iran's president flip-flopped on the question of permitting women to attend soccer game events. First he ruled in April that he would allow women to go to soccer games, albeit in a separate section of the stands, as a way to (quote) "improve soccer-watching manners and to promote a healthy atmosphere" (unquote).
But then Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has the final say under the Islamic Republic's constitution, reversed that move. President Ahmadinejad had provoked outrage among hardline Shiite Muslim clerics who have tightly controlled Iranian society since the 1979 Islamic revolution. So Iranian women will be barred from attending soccer games; and so they had to miss the opportunity of attending the World Cup soccer event of 2006.
5. The Veil There is a discrepancy between sources on the subject of the veil. According to K. Armstrong, only Muhammad's wives had to wear the veil as a mark of their status as his wives. She adds that the Koran does not prescribe the veil for all women. (Armstrong, p.158).
Yet The Koran assumes that women do wear the veil in the company of others. Cf,. Sura 24:31 on what The Koran says about women and the veil:
(Following warnings about not entering other persons' houses without permission Sura 24:31 warns: )
"And speak to the believing women that they refrain their eyes, observe continence; that they do not display their ornaments, only those that are external; and that they spread their veils over their bosoms, ..."
After Islam had become established in the civilized world, says Armstrong, Muslims adopted customs from Persia and Christian Byzantium that relegated women to second-class status, i.e. the veiling of women and their seclusion in harems (Armstrong, p.158).
6. The Burqa Of the sources consulted, only Spencer mentions the subject of complete covering by women. He quotes from Abu Dawud, Muhammad's caution to his daughter Asma about wearing thin clothes. When Abu Bakr (Muhammad's first successor) came to visit Muhammad, he advised Asma that it is not suitable for a woman at the age of menstruation to display the parts of her body except the face and hands (Abu Dawud, book 32, no. 4092). (p. 68, op cit., R. Spencer.)
So, in truth, it appears that Muhammad had some control in what Muslim women should wear and that the adopted customs from Persia and Christian Byzantium reinforced the complete covering by Muslim women. That is a sad commentary on the individual rights of Muslim women to dress as they see fit.
7. 2008 update to Muslim women's wear in Saudi Arabia:
According to an Associated Press news article by Donna Abu-Nasr, dated October 1, 2008, from Jiddah, Saudi Arabia, the women's black abaya (cloak) is now appearing in stores trimmed with color, crystal, and prints. As fashion statements they are risky acts of defiance; Saudi religious police have for years raided stores to confiscate "illegal" abayas, to uphold Saudi Arabia's rigid interpretation of Islamic teachings. In Saudi Arabia girls are required to wear abayas when they reach puberty. Associated Press (AP)
Again, what a sad commentary on limits to women's rights in this Muslim nation!
Chapter 3 of Koranlore will discuss Arab attitudes on homosexuality, masturbation and circumcision.