Religion unit Islam

Sawm

1. "All Muslims who have reached the age of puberty and are not ill or traveling are required to keep a month-long fast, called sawm, each year during the ninth Islamic lunar month called Ramadan. It is the month in which Muhammad received his first revelation from God. The fast reminds Muslims to fulfill their obligations to care for the poor and needy. To fast in Islam means to abstain from food, drink, and marital relations from dawn to sundown" 2. "Just before dawn, most Muslims have a light meal. At the break of dawn, the first prayers of the day are recited. After sundown, the fast is broken with a meal. Later in the evening, special prayers and passages from the Qur'an are read and shared at the mosque. During the four weeks of Ramadan, the entire Qur'an is recited in the mosque. Ramadan ends with one of the two major celebrations of Muslims, Eid al-Fitr, the Festival of Breaking the Fast"

Five Pillars of Islam

1. "As Islam is to be understood as a "way of life" and not merely a formal religion, the Five Pillars serve as the religious duties that each Muslim is to perform. In fact, Muslims understand the word Islam to mean the very essence of religion, that is, submission to God. Muslims believe that performing certain acts and forms of worship, such as prayer and fasting, are part also of the guidance revealed to the prophets. Five specific acts, and ways of performing them, form the basis of Muslim practice and worship. These acts are found in the Qur'an and the Sunnah."

Modern period continues

1. "At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Ottoman Empire was in such disarray that it was known as the "Sick Man of Europe." Reform was attempted but unsuccessful. Siding with the Germans during World War I, the Ottoman Empire was defeated. A nationalist movement arose in Turkey. It abolished the caliphate in 1924, set up a republic, and secularized the country. Persian and Indian rulers were deposed or made into mere figureheads. The aftermath of colonial rule established in many cases artificial borders drawn more according to the desires of outside powers for control than in the interests or national groupings of people in these diverse regions." 2. "The Western-initiated process of secularization or marginalization of religion from the active social, economic, and political realm to the private and personal realm has created a great deal of uncertainty and social upheaval on the one hand and political repression on the other hand. The Iranian Revolution of 1978-79, led by the Ayatollah Khomeini, was just one reaction to the perceived attack on Islam by the secularization movement of the "godless" West"

Beliefs and Practices

1. "Belief in one God is at the center of Muslim belief. Along with Judaism and Christianity, Islam is a monotheistic religion" 2. "Also, Muslims believe God is not merely transcendent: God is very involved as a guide in human history and human affairs. Muslims believe in divine providence. God knows what happened in the past, what is presently happening, and what will happen in the future. However, God does not predetermine what is going to happen. Rather, God knows what choices people will make before they make them" 3. "As covered previously, Muslims also believe that Muhammad is the "Messenger (or Prophet) of God." Islamic understanding of "Prophets" differs from the Judeo-Christian understanding. Islamic teaching is that all the Judeo-Christian prophets were Muslims because they submitted to the will of God"

Eid al adha ( festival of sacrifice )

1. "Eid al-Adha is the second of the major festivals in Islam. This feast, celebrated at the end of the hajj, commemorates the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son Ishmael (not Isaac, as in the Hebrew Bible), in accordance with the will of Allah. As the Angel Gabriel substituted a ram for Ishmael, Muslims also slaughter an animal to commemorate their willingness to sacrifice their lives for God. Muslims like to make clear that the slaughter of an animal is not related to washing away sin, as in Judaism or Christianity, but a symbol of their willingness to sacrifice themselves in order to live in the will of God."

Eid al fitr ( festival of breaking the fast )

1. "Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan, occurring on the first new moon twenty-nine or thirty days after the start of the month. Families come together, dressed in their finest clothes, for a festive meal in the homes of relatives"

Inner freedom continues

1. "God's message had been revealed since the time of Adam to the Jews and Christians through the prophets as revealed in the Torah and Gospels" 2. "God would send another prophet to guide the people back onto the straight path. For Muslims, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus were prophets and genuine Muslims who submitted to the will of God. Their message was the true message, but followers of their guidance did not persist in the right path. " 3 "God wanted to bring an end to the faith-apostasy-faith cycle and called upon Muhammad to restore God's true message to the world once and" 4. "Muhammad was God's messenger to all humanity to return to their true calling, that is, to submit to the will of Allah. Allah is at the center of Islamic life—physical, mental, economic, political, social, and spiritual. This chapter offers a brief historical overview of Islam and Islamic beliefs and how those beliefs are expressed in daily living. Islam is a universal community with members from all walks of life"

Submission brings inner freedom

1. "Islam came on the world scene in the seventh century CE with the preaching of the Arab prophet Muhammad" 2. "All three religious traditions believe themselves heirs of Abraham and his belief in one God" 3. "While there are more Christians in the world than any other religion, Islam is not far behind in its number of adherents." 4. "The Arabic word Islam derives from the same root as the Hebrew word shalom for "peace." Islam means "surrender" or "submission" and refers to one who surrenders or submits to the will of God. True peace is promised with that surrender. An adherent of Islam is called a Muslim, which means literally "one who submits to the will of God." 5. "Muslims are so adamant about the oneness of God that some are uncomfortable celebrating the birthday of Muhammad because that celebration may take focus away from God. Muslims use the Arabic word Allah, meaning "The God," to address God. They believe all creation is Muslim. That is, all that Allah created naturally submits to his divine will. While plants and animals instinctively submit to the will of God, human beings have free will to choose to submit or not. Allah does not force anyone to submit. Muslims insist that submitting to God is not a confining, negative command. Rather, it is a gracious surrendering to the all-compassionate, all-merciful Allah where true freedom lies"

Karbala

1. "Karbala, Iraq, is the site of the massacre of the grandson of Muhammad and son of 'Ali, Husayn, and his companions and family. They were on their way to Kufa, Iraq, to lay claim to what they considered as the legitimate leadership of the Muslim people when they were besieged and killed by the Umayyad faction, who also claimed legitimate leadership. Supported by Shi'ah Muslims, the death of Husayn is understood as the martyrdom of those upholding the purity of Islam shared with them by Prophet Muhammad"

Mecca

1. "Mecca, Saudi Arabia, is the holiest city in Islam. It is the birthplace of Muhammad and the area from which he received his first revelations. From Mecca, Muhammad was forced to emigrate for several years because of persecution, but was later able to return in triumph. Mecca is the site of the Ka'bah and the place of pilgrimage for all Muslims who are able. For Muslims, the place of the Kab'ah is similar in importance to the Holy of Holies for the ancient Jews. It is the geographic center of Islam and the symbolic place of the Divine Presence"

Medina

1. "Medina, Saudi Arabia, is only three hundred miles from Mecca. It is the second most holy city in Islam. This was the city to which Muhammad immigrated due to the strong opposition he faced because of his preaching in Mecca."

Mosque

1. "Mosque translates to Masjid, "a place of prostration." It is the building of public worship for Muslims. The main purpose of a mosque is prayer." 2. "Traditionally, mosques are built from stone or brick in the form of a square. The distinctive exterior feature is the minaret. Generally, the minaret is a tower where the muezzin proclaims adan, that is, the call to prayer." 3. "The mosque can be used also for other social occasions like weddings or meetings. In non-Muslim countries, the mosque is a place where Muslim children learn to recite the Qur'an in Arabic."

A brief history of Islam

1. "Muhammad is the "Seal of the Prophets," that is, the final messenger of God. 2. He is the last of the prophets who received messages from God to pass on to humanity." 3. Founder of Islam according to a Muslim definition

Muhammad , message of god

1. "Muhammad was born in approximately 570 CE in Mecca (Makkah), located in present day Saudi Arabia. 2. His father died before he was born and his mother died when he was six years old. 3. Orphaned, Muhammad was raised first by his grandfather, and then by his uncle, Abu Talib, a caravan merchant. When Muhammad was old enough, he traveled with the caravans. In his travels, Muhammad often met with Jews and Christians and heard their stories. 4. Then Muhammad met Khadija, a widowed businesswoman fifteen years his senior. She employed him, and later they married and had children. 5. Muhammad was accustomed to going to a cave about once a month for a time of prayer and reflection and to meditate on life's meaning." 6. "Few people believed Muhammad, for Mecca was a place of many gods. In the center of Mecca was a large, cube-like structure called the Ka'bah, which housed more than 360 idols. Asking the people to believe in only one God was too much for most of the people of Mecca. In addition, calling the various tribes of Mecca to be a people under one God was destructive of the diverse tribal social structures." 7. "Life became so unbearable for these Muslims at Mecca that they had to move. The move in 622 to present day Medina became known as the Hijrah, or "migration." The Hijrah marks the beginning of the Islamic calendar. Hence, the Western calendar date of 622 is 1 AH (After Hijrah) on the Islamic calendar. "

Zakah

1. "Muslims give alms to the needy as an act of worship. Almsgiving is not an option, but an obligation. Muslims believe that almsgiving, called zakah, is one way a person can be freed from those things that are obstacles to Allah" 2. "Other acts of charity are also encouraged. An act of charity can mean anything from a smile to removing an obstacle from the road"

Scared time

1. "Muslims would say all time is sacred because all time belongs to God. If pressed, they would say that the five times reserved for prayer each day are more sacred. The Islamic calendar begins with the year of Muhammad's Hijrah. Like the Jewish calendar, the Islamic calendar is based on lunar months. Whereas the solar calendar used by Christians and the Western world is 365 days, the lunar calendar is 354 days." 2. "There are sacred times on the Islamic calendar that have special significance. Two of the most important Islamic festivals are Eid al-Fitr (Festival of Breaking the Fast) at the end of Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice), celebrated at"

Scared places and scared space

1. "Of all the sacred places in Islam, the mosque is the most common. There are mosques in almost every urban area and several rural areas in the world"

Sacred stories and scared scripture

1. "The Qur'an is the most sacred book for Muslims. It contains a collection of the revelations Muhammad received directly from God in Arabic over a twenty-two year period in both Mecca and Medina. After the Qur'an, the Sunnah is the second authentic source of authority for Muslims. The Qur'an and the Sunnah are indispensable sources of instruction for religious and moral life for Muslims." 2. "However, these books (the Torah, the Psalms, and the Gospels) are believed to be only human words, not the direct words of God. Because they are human words, they are corrupted by human error. Muslims believe that the words of the Qur'an are God's words and thus infallible, uncorrupted by human intervention."

Sunnah

1. "The Sunnah is what Muhammad approved and prohibited, as well as his words and deeds. In short, the Sunnah is Muhammad's way of life" 2. "The Hadith is similar, but not identical, to the Sunnah. Muhammad's followers painstakingly recorded and transmitted oral and written accounts of his teachings and actions. These reports were compiled by the second century of the Islamic calendar." 3. "For Shi'ah Muslims, the teachings and writings of a number of early charismatic leaders called Imams, descended from the Prophet's cousin and son-in-law 'Ali, are an additional source, since they believe these descendants are infallible and consider their words and explanations nearly as authoritative as the Qur'an and Sunnah."

Classical period

1. "The Umayyad caliphate was a marked change in the history of Islam. It was a physical move from Medina to Damascus. Also, for the first time, leadership was made up of others besides companions of Muhammad. By the time 'Ali died, the rise of Islam with its military, political, and religious power spread throughout the Arabian Peninsula" 2. "It spread further to North Africa, Spain, and even France until Charles Martel pushed the Muslims out of France in 713 at the Battle of Poitiers. Though Muslims were rulers of these regions, it took the majority of the people living in these countries a long time to become Muslim because conversion to Islam was not accomplished on command or "by the sword" 3. "The rapid expansion of the Muslim state brought many challenges, especially in an age when communication over long distances was slow. Gradually, Arabic became more widely used as an official language. The requirement to use Arabic in worship and the recitation of the Qur'an was related also to the gradual spread of Islam among the population. With a common language of administration and education, a unified culture began to emerge." 4. "New groups of Muslims asserted their right to a greater voice in society and government. Ruling a large empire required the caliphs to put much energy into the temporal rather than the religious realm. Opposition to their worldliness grew in the beginning of the eighth century. A relative of Muhammad claimed himself to be the rightful caliph"

Modern Period

1. "The advance of Europe's economic, industrial, military, and political power contributed to internal factors in the long, slow decline of Muslim societies. Much of their territory in Africa and Asia came to imperial rule, especially by the English and French, during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries." 2. "Inexpensive European-manufactured goods flooded Indian, Turkish, Arab, and African markets, starving out the old handicraft industries to which European trade had been apprenticed centuries earlier. Merchants and economic treaties were a foot in the door of Muslim countries for increasing European political inroads" 3. "With European markets came Christian missionaries to the Muslim world. While the missionaries saw their work as reclaiming land that was once Christian back from Muslims, Muslims saw Christians as part of the West, corrupting their lands and society." 4. "The political decline of Islam also brought about its social and moral decline. Though there were a number of Muslim reform movements throughout its history, the eighteenth to the twentieth centuries saw a marked rise in revivalism and reform movements. Islamic reform movements tended to go in two directions. One direction was an attempt to return to what they considered the pristine Islam found at the time of Muhammad and the early Muslim community in Medina. Becoming subjects of colonial powers, the belief was that Islam was corrupted by non-Islamic elements and it needed to be purified by returning to the literal teachings of the Qur'an and the Sunnah" 5. "A second direction for Islamic reform was to reinterpret Islam in the light of the social and historical reality of the day. These reformers believed the social and moral decline in Islam was due not only to European colonialism as it was to the personal, social, and moral decline of the Muslim community, as well as an avoidance of flexibility and adaptability, which had been a hallmark of Islam and had enabled it to be a strong force in such things as science, medicine, and architecture"

Jerusalem

1. "The city of Jerusalem is holy not only for Jews and Christians. Muslims believe Muhammad made his "Night Journey" to this holy city. It refers to the night Muhammad was taken miraculously on a winged horse to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem (seen at left). There Muhammad prayed at the head of the assembled but long deceased prophets such as Abraham, Moses, and John the Baptist" 2. "ruined Temple Mount area, which they call Haram al-Sharif, or the Noble Sanctuary. Honoring Muhammad's Night Journey experience, Muslims built a shrine called the Dome of the Rock, whose golden dome is a jewel in the skyline of old Jerusalem"

Ashura

1. "The feast of Ashura marks the day God freed Moses and the Hebrew people from the grips of the Egyptian Pharaoh. Muhammad fasted on this day and requested that his followers do the same. Ashura is marked by all Muslims as a day of fasting, similar to the Jewish Yom Kippur, Day of Atonement. Shi'ah Muslims especially commemorate Ashura as remembering the martyrdom of Husayn at Karbala in 680. Adherents mourn the massacre of Husayn and reenact his death through passion plays"

Medieval period continue

1. "One of the most important and long-term contributions of Islamic civilization was the vast network of trade and communication" 2. "Politically, however, the 'Abbasids were unable to maintain a unified Muslim rule. Little by little beginning in the ninth century, a province here and there began to proclaim their independence from the central government. Local rulers, military factions, and rival caliphates sprang up. By the twelfth century, there were a number of independent Islamic states. In Egypt, a Shi'i group called the Fatimids, named after Muhammad's daughter and 'Ali's wife, Fatimah, founded the great city of Cairo and its famous al-Azhar University, one of the oldest universities in the world." 4. "Like Baghdad, Cordoba was a great intellectual center and could boast of magnificent palaces, mosques, and libraries. Rival factions in Islam forced the demise of the Umayyad dynasty in 1037. As strife grew among Muslims, Christian kingdoms within Spain forged ahead with what they called the Reconquest of Spain, which took place between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries" 5. "In the meantime, Christian Crusaders from the West captured Jerusalem from the Muslims in 1099, only to be retaken by the Muslims in 1187. Though Christians embarked on a number of other Crusades, none were militarily successful. The Fourth Crusade, in which Christians of the West attacked Christians of the East at their capital in Constantinople in 1204, accomplished for Muslims what they could not do themselves. The attack of Christians upon Christians sealed the Great Schism between the Eastern Church and Western Church and left the once great Byzantine Empire in a weakened state" 6. "The Golden Age of Islam came to an end in the thirteenth century. The Mongols had captured China, Russia, and Central Europe and were headed for the Middle East. They ended the 'Abbasid caliphate with the capture of Baghdad in 1258." 7. "After a period of fragmented rule, the next important regional power that developed was the Ottomans. Muslim rule had expanded at the expense of the Byzantine Empire for centuries, but the city of Constantinople eluded them. The Crusaders' attacks and control of the city in 1204 and the expansion of Turkish rule into Byzantine territory left the city helpless, and it finally fell to the Ottomans in 1453. The peak of the Ottoman Empire was in the sixteenth century under a sultan called Suleiman, the great administrator and military leader of the time."

Shahada

1. "Reciting the Arabic words La ilaha ilia Allah, wa Muhammadun rasul Allah, translated as "There is no god but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God," is the first and most important of the Five Pillars of Islam. The other four pillars are outward expressions of the first. This first pillar is akin to the Jewish Sh'ma. Muslims declare this belief in the absolute oneness of God several times a day." 2. "A father whispers these words into the ears of the newborn child so that they are the first words heard on earth. A dying person attempts to have the shahadah be the last words on his or her lips. A convert to Islam recites these words as a statement of belief"

Salah (prayer)

1. "Submitting to God is at the heart of Islam. The Qur'an commands Muslims to pray or worship at fixed times during the day. Muslims ritually pray five times per day called salah. Before Muslims pray, they must cleanse themselves physically and symbolically. In the ritual washing, called the wudu, the mouth, nose, ears, face, hands, arms, and feet are washed. This ritual washing opens and closes with a prayer." 2. "To ensure that the place of prayer is clean, Muslims often use a prayer mat. Whenever a Muslim prays they face the direction of the Ka'bah in Mecca. This direction, marked in the mosque by a niche in the wall, is called the qiblah." 3. "Anywhere a Muslim is, they may pray, as long as the spot is clean. One may find Muslims stopping to pray in their homes, in a corner at the airport, out where they are tending the fields or their flock, or in a library. Even in regions where Muslims are a minority, where it is more difficult for them to stop and pray, conscientious Muslims will stop what they are doing and pray. With no muezzin about to call the community to prayer, modern technology may help. Today, computer programs, digital watches, and special clocks fill in for the muezzin. Whatever the difficulties, many Muslims take the obligation to pray seriously. 4. "Fridays, the second prayer time is made in a mosque and called Jum'ah, or "Assembly." Besides the regular midday prayer, the imam, or prayer leader, delivers a sermon. Since Islam has no clergy, anyone whom the community considers knowledgeable about Islam can be a prayer leader and deliver a sermon. As might be imagined, Muslims in non-Muslim countries find it difficult to attend Jum'ah in the middle of a Friday work or school day"

Islamic living

1. "The Five Pillars are practiced in the Islamic community, or ummah, a collective term meaning "nation." 2. "In turn, the individual becomes a member of the worldwide ummah. Being a Muslim entails duties and responsibilities to other members and to humankind as a whole, as well as the right to the support of the community. Accepting Islam is not an end, but a beginning. It is a lifetime endeavor to practice and perfect one's submission to and belief in Allah." 3. "life covering spiritual, social, personal, political, economic, and physical aspects of existence. Allah is not only ruler of the earth, but of every aspect of a Muslim's life." 4. "According to the Qur'an, Muslims who spend time thinking about the small things in life are losing sight of God. In addition, thinking that charita-ble giving results in depriving the giver of basic needs is incorrect." 5. "Islamic law (Shar'iah) is the centerpiece of Muslim life. It is the guidance provided by God on how to live the way God desires both an individual and a society to live. The primary sources of Shar'iah are the Qur'an and the Sunnah. The Qur'an does have some obligations, permissions, recommendations, and prohibitions regarding some aspects of a Muslim's life. For example, the Qur'an teaches against murder, drunkenness, and sexual relations outside of marriage" 6. "There are many issues in a Muslim's life that are not addressed in either the Qur'an or the Sunnah. Neither are codes of law. For Sunni Muslims, Islamic scholars, ulama, are responsible for the interpretation of shar'iah. They use consensus and analogous reasoning to come to decisions" 7. "The Qur'an says that one should not drink wine, but mentions no other alcoholic beverage. By analogy, the ulama came to the decision that a Muslim was not to drink any intoxicating beverage." 8. "Recall that Islam sees no distinction between one's spiritual and temporal life. Hence, shar'iah covers all aspects of a Muslim's life, both personal and public. Shar'iah also contains the principles of how one is to live as well as the practice or implementation of the foundational principles. Ulama" 9. "As can be imagined, there are many variations of shar'iah. Not only are there differences between Sunni and Shi'ah, but there are geographic, cultural, and historical differences. While some want to reinterpret shar'iah for the age at hand, others see any change in interpretation as abrogating God's"

Hajj

1. "The Hajj is a pilgrimage to the city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where Abraham submitted to the will of Allah. It is held annually in the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar. Hajj is required only once in one's lifetime and only of those Muslims who are physically and financially capable of completing" 2. "For Muslims, the events of Abraham's life are different from the biblical account. In the Islamic tradition, Abraham left his native city of Ur in Mesopotamia when he was unable to convince the inhabitants of that city to do away with their belief in many gods and believe only in one God. They traveled through many parts of the Middle East and then found themselves in Egypt." 3. "Exhausted, she prayed to God for help, and soon water miraculously gushed from near the foot of Ishmael. Today this place is called Zam Zam. Caravans finally arrived and asked that their camels be able to drink from the spring." 4. "Meanwhile, Abraham came to visit from time to time. Upon one visit, when Ishmael reached puberty, Abraham told Ishmael he had a dream in which God told him to sacrifice his son. Ishmael agreed to submit to God's will." 5. "It is important to know how Muslims understand the story of Abraham for the rituals of hajj to make sense. Some of the rituals include circling the Ka'bah to mark its centrality to the Muslim community, running seven times between the two hills" 6. "go out to the Plain of Arafat where Muhammad gave his last sermon." 7. "array of pilgrims throughout the region clad in white garments and offering prayers to God is believed to be a foretaste of the Day of Judgment"

Rightly Guided Caliphs

1. "The successors of Muhammad were called caliphs. The first to succeed Muhammad was Abu Bakr (632-34), one of Muhammad's original disciples. Though caliph for a mere two years, Abu Bakr consolidated the loyalty of the newly Islamized tribes of the Arabian Peninsula to the Muslim leadership and community" 2. "The committee chose 'Uthman (644-656). As caliph, 'Uthman was instrumental in the publication and distribution of the Qur'an (Koran). 'Uthman's rule was marred by some weaknesses, however, which began a period of strife in Muslim history. 3. "Problems developed with the administration in the provinces, and some groups felt that the governors he appointed were not responsive to their needs. 'Uthman was eventually killed by a rival faction within Islam, and Muhammad's cousin 'Ali became the fourth caliph. However, some members of 'Uthman's clan, the Umayyah, could not accept the legitimacy of 'Ali's caliphate because his selection was supported by some who were responsible for 'Uthman's death" 4. "The death of 'Ali opened a rift in the Muslim community that has never completely healed. In 680, not recognizing the legitimacy of the Umayyad caliphate, 'Ali's younger son, Husayn, attempted to make a claim to leadership of the Muslim community" 5. "Though the majority of Muslims, the Sunni, accepted the rule of the Umayyads, they did not always approve. The Shi´ah Muslims, on the other hand, remained loyal to 'Ali and his family. While the Sunni supported a caliphate and called their leaders caliph, the Shiáh supported an imamate and called their leaders Imam."

Quran

1. "The word Qur'an means "recitation." Muhammad was unschooled, unable to read and write. As he received the revelations, he memorized them, and then passed them on to his followers. They memorized what was passed on to them and wrote some of the recitations down. The third Rightly-Guided caliph, 'Uthman, took up the task of having the various copies and fragments of the revelations collected and put into one authoritative text. " 2. "He wanted to make sure these words of God were passed on uncorrupted to the coming generations of Muslims. As Islam spread, a growing number of its adherents had other Arabic dialects as well as other languages. Changes to God's words were inevitable, and 'Uthman did not want the sacred words lost. 'Uthman assigned this task to Muhammad's secretary, Zayd ibn Thabit" 3. "Muslims commonly classify the surahs, or "chapters," as a revelation that occurred to Muhammad in Mecca or in Medina. The content of the earlier Meccan revelations tend to speak about God's unity, power, and glory, right living, the end times, and Judgment Day. The later Medinan revelations have some of the themes found in the Meccan revelations, but also have practical matters important to the infant community" 4. "The Qur'an is divided into 114 surahs. In general, it is neither in chronological order by when Muhammad received the revelations, nor is it arranged by theme or subject. However, there is some continuity that can be detected with the surahs. In some surahs, the last verse of one chapter and the first verse of the following chapter may have similar underlying themes. Since Muslims believe the Qur'an is a word-for-word message from God to Muhammad in Arabic, they remain hesitant to translate the Qur'an into other languages" 5. "From an early age, Muslim children learn to recite and memorize the Qur'an, for proper recitation and memorization of the Qur'an is a religious duty. As noted above, memorizing the entire Qur'an dates back to Muhammad's earliest followers. Those who do accomplish such a task earn an honorary title of hafiz"

Medieval period

1. "Under 'Abbasid rule, Muslim civilization and culture flourished, so much so that this period of time became known as the Golden Age of Islam. They moved the capital from Damascus to Baghdad and expanded Islam beyond its Arab heritage to a more multicultural one. Baghdad became an important Islamic intellectual center. Scientific, literary, and philosophical works from Greek, Persian, and Indian sources were translated into Arabic at Baghdad's House of Wisdom, a library and archive containing thousands of books." 2. "Muslim scholars wrote important commentaries that later passed as Hebrew and Latin translations into Europe, where, centuries later, Jewish scholars like Moses Maimonides and Christian scholars like Thomas Aquinas wrestled with the same questions and often quoted from the works of Muslim philosophers. Scientific research flourished also in Muslim lands. Many books were written on engineering, geography, astronomy, mathematics, and chemistry" 3. "Muslim literature flourished in many fields. Wealthy donors funded libraries housing thousands of books in cities across the Muslim world. Poetry was the most respected type of literature. Stories were popular, as well, from teaching tales like fables from Indian and Greek literature to tales that were later collected into the Thousand and One Nights, which circulated as popular entertainment among all classes in the cities. Fine arts included elaborate geometric and botanical designs. In addition, calligraphy, or artistic writing, was prevalent, especially the artistic writing of Qur'anic verses."