Islamic Thought and Literature
qiyas
"Analogy" Fourth source for deriving legal principles. Used to apply Hadith and Quranic verses to extra-textual situations. Example: Grape wine is prohibited. Why? What is the 'illa (cause of prohibition)? Then extrapolate to rule date wine prohibited as well. Qiyas is used by the Hanafi, Maliki, and Shafi'i schools, and rejected by Hanbali and Zahiri schools. Also rejected by the Fatimid school, whereas it is accepted by the Zaydi school.
Mu'min
"Believer" (the term Mu'min is used more often in the Qu'ran than the term Muslim)
maslaha
"Common good" A concept used to prohibit or permit something based on whether it is beneficial or harmful to the general public. Employed dominantly by the Maliki school, whereas the Hanafi school has a similar concept (istihsan). Shafi'i regarded this principle as exceeding the legitimate use of ra'y (reason) and believed that the Quran, Sunna, qiyas, and ijma' were sufficient to cover the maslaha of man.
ijtihad
"Inquiry" The process of inquiry, regarding laws and rulings, that implies a struggle to find an answer. One of the four sources of Sunni Law. Ijtihad requires knowledge of many Islamic sciences, including theology, Quran, Hadith, fiqh, etc. Scholars use these sources, and then analogical reasoning (qiyas) to determine rulings. Prominently used in 9th and 10th century, merging with the use of reason (ra'y). Rejected by the Fatimid school, but accepted by the Zaydi school. By the end of the 10th century, "the doors of ijtihad close."
aql
"Intellect" Fourth source of deriving legal principles in Shia Law (as opposed to qiyas, in Sunni Law). Very similar to the ra'y (in fact, I don't think Prof. Qutbuddin described the differences). Aql is using intellect or logic to deduce law.
qadi
"Judge" - The Umayyads created the position of the qadi in garrison towns to implement administrative and fiscal laws. Mu'awiya organized this judiciary, which held wide discretionary powers. The qadi would rule within the principles of the Qur'an but sometimes utilized local legal traditions, and even relied on non-Islamic sources for their decisions. The position of the qadi is contrasted with the 'ulama, as many of the 'ulama held that the law should be Islamized. Under the Abassaids, the qadi was encouraged to rely on the principles articulated by the 'ulama.
istihsan
"Juristic preference" Used by the Hanafi school to moderate harsh rulings. In a case where there is a choice between a harsh and lenient punishment, the offender is given the more lenient punishment. The reasoning behind this was to preserve the human interest. Similar to the Maliki school's maslaha (greater good). Shafi'i school rejected the use of istihsan.
hiyal
"Legal artifice" A legal device used by the Hanifi school usually to achieve an unlawful objective through lawful means. For example, usury is prohibited in Islam, so how else could a lender be rewarded for sharing his wealth with the borrower? The hiyal would be to make an agreement between the two parties that, after the loan period is due, the borrower will engage in a separate transaction where he would purchase an item from the lender for an exorbitant price.
mujtahid
"One who practices ijtihad" It is considered a religious duty to perform ijtihad if one meets the qualifications of a mujtahid (i.e. being competent in the Islamic sciences listed above).
hudud
"Punishment" Punitive measures that are to be taken for certain crimes, i.e. certain number of lashings for adultery for unmarried parties, or stoning to death for married adulterers. These punishments are usually severe, but are intended to be preventative, and not commonly carried out. The requirements to validate a hudud tend to be extremely difficult, and therefore are rarely enacted. (Four adult male eye-witnesses needed to find adulterer guilty)
ulama
"Scholars" The term 'ulama usually refers to a group of scholars in a certain region, but may have broader implications. The 'ulama played a major role in shaping Islamic law. By the end of the 7th century, the 'ulama debated among themselves about the adequacy of Umayyad legal practice, acting under the principle of "command the right and forbid the wrong." This movement of scholars, called "legal review," is notable because it was conducted by scholars who did not hold positions of political authority, nor was the review sanctioned by the government.
ijma'
"consensus" A principle source of Sunni law. If a consensus on a ruling is reached, then that ruling is valid. But what determines what comprises a consensus? Some argued that consensus only included scholars of a certain region; others considered it to be everyone. This idea is based on the Hadith "My ummah will never agree upon an error." Ijma' is not as important in Shia Law. Hanafi consensus: Public agreement of Islamic jurists (fuqaha) Shafi'i consensus: Agreement of entire community and public at large Maliki consensus: Agreement amongst the residents of Medina Hanbali consensus: Agreement and practice of the Companions (Sahaba)
Abd al-Malik
'Abd al-Malik b. Marwan was a major Ummayad caliph, r. 685-705. Four major reforms: minted coinage, Arabized government bureaus, standardized weights and measures, and revised the Arabic script. He also built the Dome of Rock in 692. His minting of coinage led to war with the Byzantine Empire, which he won.
Quraysh
(6-7Century CE) The dominant nomad merchant tribe in Mecca, they were part of a commercial and diplomatic network (the "Meccan commonwealth"). This commercial organization was the leading network throughout northern and western Arabia, based on the prestige of the haram. Among the clan, there were lineages of greater and lesser clout, leading to various rivalries. They opposed Mohammad and his teachings primarily because he condemned the tribal ancestors, and repudiated all local deities and idols. Tensions rose between the community of believers and the Quraysh, such that the community had to emigrate to Yathrib. (Kennedy 25-27, Egger 25-27)
Ridda Wars
(632 CE) - Following the death of the Prophet Muhammad, a host of tribes throughout the Arabian Peninsula (many of whom had only converted Islam within the preceding few years and were thus not as fully integrated into the Muslim polity) revolted against the newly sworn-in caliphate of Abu Bakr and refused to pay the zakat. Some of these breakaways apostatized (ridda literally means "relapse" and was used to refer to apostasy) and rallied around one of at least four new prophets that sprung up across the region, of whom the strongest in anti-Muslim opposition was Musaylimah. Abu Bakr dispatched military forces under the leadership of the eminent Khalid ibn al-Walid to retake control of the aforementioned tribes; between 633-634, Arabia had become successfully reunited under the Medina-based government. At some point, the "Ridda wars" metamorphosed into the larger Muslim enterprise of conquering lands outside the Peninsula.
Battle of Nahrawan
(657 CE) - Initially staunchly pro-Ali, the Kharijites (or "seceders") saw Mu'awiyyah and 'Uthman as the epitomes of injustice and condemned 'Ali for having compromised with the former leader at Siffin. As the Kharijites rose up to challenge the caliphate of 'Ali, the latter acted to crush this extremist splinter group at the Battle of Nahrawan, near (where Abbasid Baghdad would be built) , and ended up killing their leader Ibn Wahb and the majority of his followers. Nonetheless, the Kharijites persisted in the form of uprisings against the caliphates of 'Ali (who was assassinated by a Kharijite) and later Mu'awiyah.
Battle of Siffin
(657 CE) - The respective armies of Governor of Syria Mu'awiyah and newly-elected Kufa-based Caliph 'Ali met along the Euphrates river at Siffin and engaged in a series of military encounters and truces, which culminated in the infamous appearance of Qur'ans on the lance tips of Mu'awiyyah's soliders in an apparent appeal to let God decide the matter finally. 'Ali agreed to an arbitration and in so doing undermined his own position as caliph by treating Mu'awiyyah as a political equal with which to be reckoned. Mu'awiyyah eventually went on to depose Ali, proclaim himself the new caliph, and launch incursions into the Hejaz, Egypt, and Iraq, thus paving the way for the establishment of the Umayyad Dynasty.
Umayyad governorate
(716-750) The establishment of the Umayyad governorate in Cordoba was a signal of consolidating Umayyad power (Egger, 98-102). Relations between the Umayyads and the North African Berbers were established. The Muslims of al-Andalus also maintained consistent communications with more easterly parts of the Muslim world, though they did not acknowledge the Abbasid caliphate's power. The Umayyads never managed to fully centralize their rule over al-Andalus, though they created a thriving agricultural economy in the Iberian peninsula. Aside from Cordoba, other major cities of the Umayyad governorate included Seville, Toledo, and Zaragoza.
Mu'tasim
(833-842) al Ma'mun's younger brother. Abbasid caliph who creates large private army of Turkish soldiers, leading to large influx of Turkish troops who cause commotion in Baghdad, so moves the Abbasid capital to Samarra. Under his reign, Turkish slaves become increasingly important as they move into other parts of the administration. His private army of several thousand mamluk soldiers (of mainly Turkish origin) marked the beginning of the practice of drawing on populations from the periphery of the empire to staff the military. Moved the capital to Samarra (Egger 89-90).
Mutawwakil
(847-861) Abbasid caliph whose rise to the position of Caliph is notable because he was chosen by a Shura of Turkish officers and bureaucrats, rather than being designated by the previous Caliph. Under him the army becomes a dominant power in the Abbasid state. Tried to counter Turkish soldier's control over state by putting his sons into key positions of power and recruiting other groups into the army (Armenians, bedouisn, old 'abna') but was unable to outmaneouvre the Turks and was eventually murdered by the military, who then installed puppet leaders in the form of the next four caliphs after him.
Battle of Badr
13, 15, or 17 March 624 CE. First battle between Muslims of Medina and the Quraysh of Mecca. The Ansar, whose only obligation was to protect the prophet while in Medina, joined in fighting with the Muhājirūn. The original intent may have been only to plunder Meccan caravans at Badr, as they had been doing at various locations for some time. The Quraysh, lead by the Umayyad clan, attempting to intercept Muhammad's forces at Badr. Muslims won decisively, perhaps the result of disunity among the Quraysh, some bands of which fled the battle. Boosted Muhammad's prestige.
Hijra
622 CE: Muhammad and hundreds of Muslim followers move from Mecca to the oasis of Yathrib, which became known as Medina. The move was precipitated by the death of the prophet's uncle, Abu Talib, in the year 619 CE, after which Muhammad and his followers no longer had protection from persecution in Mecca. After some time trying unsuccessfully to find a nearby town where they could settle, a group of converts from Yathrib invited the prophet to their oasis..
Battle of Uhud
625 CE. Muhammad and followers attack the city of Mecca, but are defeated. The Meccans do not pursue them, and they are able to recover as a result. (Whilst outnumbered, the Muslims gained the early initiative and forced the Meccan lines back, thus leaving much of the Meccan camp unprotected. When the battle looked to be only one step away from a decisive Muslim victory, a breach of Muhammad's orders by the Muslim archers, who left their assigned posts to despoil the Meccan camp, allowed a surprise attack from the Meccan cavalry, led by Meccan war veteran Khalid ibn al-Walid, which brought chaos to the Muslim ranks. Many Muslims were killed, and even Muhammad himself was badly injured leading to a Meccan victory.)
Battle of the Trench
627 CE. Mecca mounts largest attack on Medina, but defenses are thoroughly prepared beforehand. Dug a moat, which made cavalry useless. Successfully rebuffed Meccan attack, and gave Muslims confidence that their cause would be victorious.
Farewell pilgrimage
632 CE. Months before the prophet died, he prepared to make the pilgrimage to the Ka'aba, during which time he taught his followers the rites of Islamic pilgrimage and established his response to various pre-Islamic Arabian traditions. Much of the oral tradition of the pilgrimage stored in hadith and Qur'an.
Date of Conquest (Syria, Egypt, Iraq, Iran)
633-640 Syria 635-638 Iraq 639-641 Egypt 638-654 Iran
Buyid Takeover of Baghdad
A Persian Islamic dynasty controlled much of Iran and Iraq in the 10th and the first few decades of the 11th centuries, with their capital in Shiraz. The dynasty was founded by the three Buyeh brothers, with Ahmad bin Buyeh being the first Buyid ruler. Though they were Zaydi Shi'a, over time the Buyids did not strictly adhere to Zaydi convictions and Twelver Shi'ism became more prominent. Moreover, they tolerated and worked with the Sunni caliph in Baghdad. The backbone of their army were the Daylawite soldiers, although the Turks were of great importance and sometimes took precedence over the Daylawites. The Buyids struggled with the Byzantines and nomads in the latter half of the 10th century. However, their biggest threat came from the Seljuk Turks and the Ghaznavids in the east, who eventually defeated the dynasty in 447/1055. As a Shi'a dynasty, the Buyids set the precedent of working with the Abbasid caliph rather than executing him and overthrowing the institution, which suggests that the Abbasid caliph, though devoid of any real power by then, had symbolic virtue as a legitimizer of power and authority. The Buyids were also important in that they first set the practice of regularly paying their soldiers, they managed to create a relatively stable government with the help of a stable and united military, and also consolidated the iqta's as an administrative institution to divide up and control the land. They also had a degree of religious tolerance, allowing Christians to take up important administrative posts. Perhaps these military and civic practices set a precedent for future dynasties to follow. (Egger, 142-44; Encyclopedia of Islam, "Buwayhids and Buyids)
Ghadir Khumm
A pond midway between Mecca and Medina where Muhammad and his followers, having just performed the Prophet's final pilgrimage in Mecca, stopped on their journey back to Medina. Here, Muhammad, according to Shi'i belief, publicly declared his cousin and son-in-law 'Ali as his successor. This event came to be a key element of Shi'i argument for the legitimacy of 'Ali's claim to political authority immediately following the Prophet's passing. According to many Sunnis, Muhammad's words at al-Khumm are to be interpreted as nothing above an endorsement of 'Ali's elevated spiritual status and special connection to the Prophet.
Banu Hashim
A prominent tribe within the Quraysh. The Banu Hashim are the family to which the Prophet Muhammad belonged. Two branches form this tribe: the Alids and the Abbasids. The term Hashimi usually refers to this family; however it also may be used to refer to the Shi'i group, which believed that the imamate should be passed down through the Hashimi line, in particular the grandson of Ali.
Udhri poetry
A style of poetry begun during the Umayyad period by the Udhra tribe in the northern Hijaz. Udhri poetry describes a love, which is preordained and continues after death, for a specific beloved who is righteous, beautiful, and unreachable. The most famous Udhri poet was Jamil ibn Ma'mar, whose poetry extolled a woman named Buthayna
Jahiliyyah
A term literally meaning the "(Age of) Ignorance" and used by Muslims to refer to the pre-Islamic period
Tawhid
A term referring most fundamentally to the oneness, unity, and indivisibility of Allah with certain divergent theological connotations according to different schools of thought (see: Ash'ari, Mu'tazili)
Abd al-Rahman I
Abd al-Rahman I was the first Umayyad caliph to rule al-Andalus. He established his rule in 756. He began construction of the great mosque at Cordoba
Parents of Prophet
Abdullah (Father of the Prophet) Died before the Prophet was born. Not terribly important. Aminah (Mother of the Prophet) Died when the Prophet was 6 years old.
Ibn al-Zubayr
Abdullah ibn al-Zubayr was the son of one of Muhammad's close Companions. He lead a revolt from 682 to 692 against four Ummayad caliphs. His power base was in the Hijaz and Iraq, both of which he controlled for several years.
Shafi'i
Abu Abdallah ibn Idriss As-Shafii was born in Gaza (southern Palestine) in 767 (150 h.), the same year Abu Hanifa died, and is a Qurayshi descendant on his father's side of Al-Mutallib (the brother of Hashim [paternal great-grandfather of Muhammad]). After his father's passing at an early age, he moved with his Mother to Mecca where he had family and had a humble upbringing during which he took an interest in archery and poetry. He would eventually pursue religious studies, learning under the scholars of Mecca, including Sufyan b. Uyayna who would later be the teacher of Ibn Hanbal. Shafi eventually moved to Medina as Malik b. Anas grew in prominence where he studied with him for the remainder of Malik's life (about 10 years). Shafi would eventually travel to Iraq, but according to Encyclopedia of Islam it is unclear whether he studied with Muhammad al-Shaybani (student of Abu Yusuf and Abu Hanifa) before or after his brief stay in prison for his views during the reign of Harun al-Rashid--who reportedly pardoned As-Shafi at Shaybani's request. He would eventually settle in Fustat, Egypt perhaps because Malik had dominance in Egypt as did Shaybani in Iraq. While he met some resistance from Malikis in Egypt, his teachings would eventually win out with Egypt adopting the Shafi madhab. As-Shafi would ultimately die in Fustat in 820.
Abu Bakr
Abu Bakr was early convert and was said to be highly respected confidant of the prophet and his father in law through the Prophet's wife Aisha considered to be the Prophet's favorite. After the Prophet death, he became the first Muslim Caliph and the first of those considered to be rightly guided by Sunnis. The Ridda wars were fought under his rule and the Islamic conquests outside of the Arabian peninsula also started under his reign beginning in Syria. He also known as the first one to compile the Quran into a single book when before it had been written in various parts or memorized. In the autumn of 633, four Arab armies entered southern Syria and were joined by fifth army that Abu Bakr transferred to Syria from Iraq which totalled about 24,000 troops in infantry and cavalry. His time as Caliph lasted from 632-634 A.D
Abu Hanifa
Abu Hanifa is the founder of the earliest madhab (school of thought/law) of the four schools of thought that would later become accepted within the Sunni tradition of Islam that included the Maliki, Shafi and Hanbali schools. Born in Kufa [although his father came from Afghanistan] in 699 (80 hijri) and died in 767 (150 h.), Abu Hanifa would live out his life studying under the chief religious scholars of the time in Iraq to include Jaafar al-Sadiq (the 6th Shia Imam), and teaching his own ideas to various disciples. His legal positions that would later crystalize into his school of thought were never written down by himself personally, but were dictated to his students most notably Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani. Abu Hanifa never became a Qadi while in Iraq and is believed to have been imprisoned in Baghdad (where he died) due to his refusal to serve as the chief Qadi under the second Abbasid Caliph Al-Mansur who reigned from 754-775 (136-158 h.), and instead remain independent. He was known during his time by an honorific title Imam al-A'zam or "the greatest Imam [in the Sunni sense]".
Ibn Hanbal
Ahmad b. Muhammad b. Hanbal was born in Baghdad in 780 to an Arab family originally from Basra that settled in Baghdad after his father Muhammad returned from Khorasan where he was serving in the Abbasid army. Ibn Hanbal studied under a number of notable scholars of the time to include Abu Yusuf and is said to have at least encountered As-Shafi on one occasion. However, it was his numerous trips to the Hijaz (went on Hajj 5 times) where he studied the hadith traditions and learned from Sufyan b. Uyayna who was the greatest authority of the school in the Hijaz at the time. Ibn Hanbal gained notoriety following his years of imprisonment and punishment during the mihna under the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mamun (813-833) for his position against the Mutazilite view that the Quran was created. After years in prison he was finally released and banished from Baghdad by Abbasid Caliph Al-Wathiq (842-847) but was later invited back to Baghdad by the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mutawakil (847-861) who ended the mihna. His most famous work is his Musnad which is a collection of hadith compiled from numerous hadith specialists throughout Iraq, Syria and Arabia. He would eventually die in Baghdad in 855.
Qadi al-Nu'man
Al-Qadi al-Nu'man was a famous judge under the Fatimid empire. The exact date of his birth is not known, but it is probable that he was born in the last decades of the third century of the Hijra. His connections with the Fatimids began with his entering the service of Imam Mahdi (the first Fatimid Caliph), and serving him for the last nine years of his life (A. H. 313-322). Thereafter he continued to serve Imam Qa'im (the Second Fatimid Caliph) for the- whole of his life. During his time Nu'man was concerned chiefly with the study of history, philosophy and jurisprudence and the composition of his numerous works. Just prior to Imam Qa'im's death, which occurred in 335/946, he was appointed a Qadi. His rank increased during the time of Imam Mansur (the third Fatimid Caliph) and he reached his zenith in the time of the fourth Fatimid Caliph, Imam Mu'izz (d. 3651976). whom he predeceased by two years. Officially, he does not seem to have been appointed "qadi'l-qudat", a designation given for the first time to Nu'man's elder son 'Ali, but during the reign of Imam Mu'izz, Nu'man acquired great power and was in effect the highest judicial functionary of the realm, one of the most important figures in the hierarchy of the Da'wat.
Ali
Ali the cousin of the Prophet and son of the law of Prophet Muhammed as he married the Prophet's daughter Fatima. He was only known to be first male convert to Islam as a boy. He had fought in major battles with courage and skill and been contender for Caliphate two times. Once after the Prophet death but Abu Bakr received the position, another time he was among candidates as a successor to Umar but had lost to Uthman ibn Affan. Upon Uthman's death, the mutineers and others in Medina elected Ali as the new Caliph. Long critical of the policies that had benefited the Qurayash at the expense of the common Muslim. His selection as Caliphat time, however was controversial resented by some. Aisha, Muhammed's favorite wife held an old grudge against Ali and others among Muhammed's closest friends all resented his association with the mutineers. This lead to the Battle of Camel. Also the legtimacy of Ali Caliphate was challenged by a relative of Uthman named Mu'awiya, the governor of Syria. For the next five years Ali and Muawiyah struggled for supremacy over the Islamic Empire. In 657, after skirmishes for several months, Muwayiah's army asked for arbitration of the issue of the Caliphate which Ali had to agree because of sentiment of many muslims to avoid the shedding of Muslim Blood. A certain group from Ali's followers rejected Ali agreeing to arbitration and defected and they became known of the Kharijites. Ali feel threatened by their defection and called for them to return to his side which they refused. So he massacred a group of them. The survivors of the massacre responded by assassinating Ali in 661 in Kufa. This resulted in Muawiyah gaining control of the Islamic empire and the birth of the Umayyad Caliphate.
Abu Jafar Muhammed Kulayni
An Imami scholar who lived from (864-941 CE) he is the author of Kitab Al-Kifi considered to be one of the four authoritative collection of Shia Hadith and by some as the most authoritative The work which he spent twenty four years working on was meant to be a guide to the authoritative Imami doctrine in theology and Fiqh. The book is divided into several topics such as the Usul , dealing with mainly theology, prophecy, the imamate and prayers, the furu', dealing with Fiqh and final volume containing miscellaneous traditions. However in his life and century after his death, his ideas held little prominence among Shia community. Also there was mixed reception even after a century went by. Though Shakyh Mufidi (one of the Great Imami scholars from the 11th century) considered it one of the authoritative collections on Hadidth, Shakyh Mufidi's student Al-Murtada censured the work objecting to anti anthropomorphic ideology of Kuylani. However in Safavid and Post Safavid era it was celebrated as one of the most authoritative collection of Imami hadidth.
Abd al-Rahman III
Announces his caliphate in Cordoba in 929. He founds the Medinat al-Zahra, which comes to rival Baghdad as an intellectual center
Uthman ibn Affan
Another early convert to Islam and a member from one of the most influential and powerful Qurayash tribes Ban Ummya which former enemies of Prophet such as Abu Sufyan belonged. In his rule the campaign against the Sassanian empire ended finally when the Sassanian Emperor Yazdagird was murdered by his own companions in 651. His reforms included converting the Quran into a single book with one Arab dialect instead of as book written in various different dialects. It was supposed to avoid confusion but only lead to major controversy as certain groups of Muslims accused of Uthman of attempting to change the Quran. Another change he made that resulted in controversy was that Uthman changed the registry system to those salary being determined by how long they participated in military campaigns rather than how long he has been a Muslim. Also Uthman followed the time-honored tribal practice of naming his close relatives to be leaders of all the major provinces as well as the important garrison towns of Kufa and Basra. Egger reasons that Utham was not intentionally hurting the older muslims. He probably tried to introduce more centralized control into the empire and his choice of relatives as governors were customary in traditional tribal values and necessary to bring coherence to the administration of the empire. Unforunately in 656, several hundred Arabs from Iraq and Egypt marched to Meidna to protest the new policies before Uthman which resulted in end in the death of Caliph. Uthman reigned from 644-656.
Abu Lahab
Another of the Prophet's uncles. Referred to in the Qur'an as "the flame man" - doomed to hell. He was an opponent of the growth of Islam from the early stages. Became the leader of Banu Hashim after Abu Talib died.
khutba
Arabic term for the sermon delivered at the Friday noon prayer in the mosque. Contains prayers for the caliph recognized at a specific time in a specific part of the umma which declare his sovereignty
Sunna
Arabic term meaning "customary practice." It came to mean the ritual and ethical practice of (1) the Companions of the Prophet (2) The Prophet himself. A generation of jurists during the last third of the eight century, insisted that the Quran and the example of the Prophet be the norms from which all jurisprudence be based. They viewed local consensus and analogical reasoning of individual scholars, even if based on religious precedent, with suspicion. The earlier jurists had sought guidance from the sunna (meaning way, custom or practice ) of the first generation of Muslims, assuming that it ultimately derived from the example of the Prophet; now their successors explicitly sought only the Prophet's words and deeds. Those who sought guidance from the Sunna of the Propeht called themselves ahl al-Sunna wa al-jamaa'a, or the People of the (Prophet's) Sunna and of the Community. They collected reports or traditions known as arabic as Hadidth of the Prophet's declarations and his behavior in certain circumstances and urged that Hadidth and Quran be the sole legal standards for legal practice.
Fatimid/Ismaili school
Birthed out of a Shi'a-based sectarian movement (Isma'ili), the Fatimids were most influential in North Africa, though they also held Sicily, Syria and Palestine for much of the first half of the tenth century. They unsuccessfully attempted to overpower the Abbasids, and assume the caliphate. The first Fatimid caliph, ( Ubayd Allah) Badr al-Jamali, engendered a great following based on his religious teachings until he had amassed enough socio-religious power to proclaim himself al-Mahdi (a messianic title meaning, the Divinely Guided One)—thereby setting the precedent for Fatimid caliphs as being both political and (infallible) religious rulers. Very centralized administration, leaving governors with virtually no autonomy. During their period of rule, Fatimids dealt with sectarian issues due to a large Kharijite minority in much of North Africa, and Sunnis who were followers of the Maliki school/tradition; conflicts with neighboring Berber tribes; subduing the Byzantines to obtain Sicily; invading Normans (who eventually took Sicily in the mid 12C); political unrest in the Levant (which they eventually could not contain, lost in the late 11C); economic crises and famines (particularly because of issues with the Nile impacting the Fatimids' ability to feed their empire); and the aftermath of the Hilalian invasion. (Encyclopedia of Islam, 2nd Ed.; Encyclopedia Britannica; Egger 94-98)
Abu Yusuf
Born around 729, Abu Yusuf (whose lineage is traced back to Medina) spent most of his life in Kufa and Baghdad where he studied under the founder of the Hanafi madhab Abu Hanifa (although he also studied under Malik b. Anas- founder of the Maliki madhab), and where he helped spread the teachings of Abu Hanifa through the numerous works he published on his teachers ideas. Abu Yusuf served as the chief judge (Qadi al-Qudat) in Baghdad during the reign of the fifth Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid (786-809), a position he held until his death in 798. In addition to the numerous works written expounding his teacher's positions on fiqh (jurisprudence), Abu Yusuf is also famous for his treatise on taxation and the fiscal problems of the state Kitab al-Kharaj that was commissioned by Harun Al-Rashid. Although his ideas were largely in line with Abu Hanifa's legal positions, Abu Yusuf notably became more reliant on hadith than his teacher, perhaps in part due to the growing availability of authentic hadith not available to Abu Hanifa.
Shaybani
Born around 750 in Wasit, Iraq, Muhammad b. Hasan al-Shaybani (whose father moved to Iraq from Damascus) moved to Kufa and was a pupil of Abu Hanifa for the last two years of the latter's life and then continued his learning of the Hanafi madhab under Abu Hanifa's chief disciple Abu Yusuf at the age of 18. Like Abu Yusuf, Al-Shaybani would also travel to Medina to study under Malik b. Anas (founder of Maliki madhab) and wrote his own commentary on Malik's Muwatta. Muhammad al-Shaybani would move to Baghdad where he would continue his studies and soon caught the attention of Harun al-Rashid who appointed Shaybani as the Qadi in Ar-Raqqah, Syria towards the end of the 8th century. Relieved of his duties in 803, Shaybani moved back to Baghdad to continue his educational work and became a teacher of Muhammad b. Idris ash-Shafii (founder of the Shafi madhab, who would later write a book refuting Shaybani's arguments). Shaybani was reinstated as a Qadi in Rayy, Khorasan where he would die in 805. In addition to his works on Hanafi law, he also wrote books on the proper conduct of Muslims engaged in jihad, the treatment of non-Muslims under Muslim control, and also works on international law.
Sahnun
Born in Qayrawan in 777, Muhammad ibn Said ibn Habib (nicknamed Sahnun- a type of bird, because of his shrewdness) would go on to become a Maliki jurist in Qayrawan (in modern day Tunisia) and played a major role in the conversion of North Africa and Al-Andalus to Maliki Sunni Islam. During his time studying under scholars in Qayrawan, he studied under Ali b. Ziyad who was a student of Malik b. Anas, and would then go on to study under Maliki scholars in Egypt and eventually Medina. He would eventually return to Qayrawan where he was appointed Qadi under the Aghlabid Dynasty. Sahnun's greatest contribution to Muslim scholarship was Al-Mudawwana, a compendium of the legal opinions of the school of Medina as stated by Imam Malik. Known as the mother of Maliki fiqh, his work Al-Mudawwana was instrumental in spreading the Maliki school of thought in North Africa and Al-Andalus. He would ultimately die in Qayrawan in 855.
al-Mansur
Brother of the first Abbasid caliph al-Saffah, he was the second Abbasid caliph, reigning from 136-58/754-75. After putting down several revolts and ridding himself of political and military rivals, including the formidable Abu Muslim, he set about building a centralized, largely secular state that was based on a salaried army and an efficient revenue-gathering system. He was famous for establishing Baghdad as his capital, where his favored group of soldiers, the Khurasaniyya, who had helped him overthrow the Umayyads and formed a powerful political bloc. Al-Mansur was considered particularly autocratic and did not seem to be popular among the masses, but historians believe that without his firmness the Abbasid empire may have very quickly fragmented and fallen apart.
Hijazi poetry
First movement of classical Arabic poetry, based in the Hijaz, which around 650 CE introduced a type of love poetry which describes the actions and reactions of a real-life person, who addresses the audience directly.
Prophet Muhammed
Early life: Orphaned by the age of six. Lived with grandfather then uncle. Became known for his patient and empathetic personality. Married the widow Khadijah and thus became wealthy, but as a result sought deeper religious connection. He became discontent with the local religion. Meditated in a cave and contributed to helping the poor. Revelation: He began receiving visions and trances in the year 610 CE. Initially hesitant to embrace the visions he came to accept the role he felt ordained for him as God's messenger with the help of his wife and her cousin During his lifetime he served as both a spiritual and political leader Emigration to Mecca believed to have been about the age of forty Death: 632 CE
al-Mahdi
Generic term: The Mahdi is a messianic figure who will, in the name of God, establish justice on earth for believers. The concept seems to have first been introduced in Islam by al-Mukhtar during his rebellion. Mukhtar was defeated but the eschatological concept he had initiated would inspire later ideology, particularly among less well-off Muslims. Caliph: Son of the second Abbasid caliph al-Mansur and was himself the third Abbasid caliph, reigning from 158-169/775-785. Ascended to the throne backed by the Khurasani army, who were his ardent supporters. He placed more emphasis on the religious role of the caliph and attempted to heal the rift between the Abbasids and the Alids by inviting the latter to court and offering them pensions. His reign oversaw the rise of the power of the Barmakids as kuttab (secretaries), with Yahya al-Barmaki tutoring his son Harum, who would become the future caliph al-Rashid. Al-Mahdi's rule was generally prosperous and peaceful, despite some disturbances in Khurasan and the ongoing battles on the Byzantine frontier.
al-Andalus
Geographically, al-Andalus is constituted by southern Spain and Portugal, and stretches eastward across the Iberian Peninsula. It was conquered by the Muslims in 711 as a province of the Umayyad caliphate. Following Abu Muslim al-Khorasani's defeat of the Umayyads in Khorasan and the Abbasid takeover, the "mini" caliphate of al-Andalus was founded by the only surviving Umayyad prince who was able to abscond to the region, 'Abd al-Rahman I. al-Andalus became a seat of intellectual production and a stronghold for Muslims that established and sustained ties with North Africa and remained under Muslim control- at least in part- on and off until the late 1400s.
Conquest of Mecca
In 628 CE, Muhammad traveled to Mecca with a group of lightly armed Muslims, saying they wished to perform the pilgrimage to the Ka'aba. Muhammad negotiated with the much cowed Meccan leaders to be able to enter the city the following year, a demonstration of their recognition of him as a legitimate political power. In 630 CE he lead an army against the city, which conceded defeat with little resistance. Subsequently most Meccans submitted to Muhammad's cause, and he appointed the most talented among them to his administration, eventually helping to win the loyalty of former enemies. (The conquest of Mecca was accomplished by Treaty of Hudaybiyya which was ten year treaty between Medina and Mecca and would allow Muhammed accompanied by Muslims to make pilgrimage to Mecca next year. In 630 CE Banu Bakr an ally of Qurayash attacked Banu Khuza'a an ally of the Prophet. The Prophet offered that three options: they compensate for the attack through money, break alliance with Banu Bakr or dissolve the treaty. Qurayash dissolved the treaty which resulted in the conquest.)
risala
In Quranic and Umayyad contexts, the oral transmission of a message (such that the Prophet is also "rasul" or messenger). Can also in other/later contexts indicate a written letter, and is a useful prose record for historians studying political and intellectual developments and debates.
fiqh
Islamic jurisprudence, or the understanding of God's divine law (shari'a) and the application of it in society by a faqih (a doer of jurisprudence, or legal scholar), gathered through the process of ijtihad (legal reasoning). There are four main Sunni schools of jurisprudence: Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali. There is a distinction to be made between Shari'a, God's divine law, and fiqh, the scholar's method of determining the Shari'a, the latter of which is always at most assumed to be probably correct, and which is attained through the process of ijtihad (legal reasoning).
shari'a
Islamic law was intended to replace the earlier tenants and systems of Jewish and Christian legal traditions. There are 4 primary sources in the Sunni tradition: the Qur'an, the Sunna (Muhammad's precedent), 'ijma (consensus of legal experts), and qiyas (making analogies based on the reason behind a specific prohibition or regulation to things which have not been explicitly prohibited or regulated). There is a distinction to be made between Shari'a, God's divine law, and fiqh, the scholar's method of determining the Shari'a, the latter of which is always at most assumed to be probably correct, and which is attained through the process of ijtihad (legal reasoning).
Khadijah
Khadija was a prominent merchant in the Prophet's community. She was the first one to whom the Prophet relayed the revelation and was the first Muslim. Always supported the Prophet. She died in about 619.
Husayn b. Ali
Kufan political leaders tapped Husayn to lead resistance against Yazid in 680. Before he could arrive at the city, however, he was killed. His death became a pivotal moment in Sunnism, and served as the impetus for Shi'ism's founding.
Mahdi
Mahdi is the first Fatimid caliph (name = Messiah) who seized power from the Aghalbids in 909 and establishes his rule in Qa'da, near Kairouan (which had been the Aghlabid caliphate). He then moves the capital to Mahdiyya on the coast. Most of his subjects were Maliki Sunnis, though there was a large population of Kharijite Berbers under him who were displeased with Fatimid rule. Dajjal, a leader amongst the Khariji Berbers leads a revolt during ( actually it was the 2nd Fatimid Caliph Al-Qa'im Bi-Amrillah's reign that revolt occured) Mahdi's rule that is ultimately quashed by Mansur. His reign ends in 934.
Malik
Malik b. Anas, the founder of the Maliki school of law, was born circa 711 in Medina where he died in 795. Malik b. Anas studied under the chief scholars at the time but also studied with Abu Hanifa and Jaafar al-Sadiq (6th Shia Imam). Author of Al-Muwatta (the Approved), Malik's book is considered the earliest surviving Muslim law book that contains a number of hadith with what is considered to have the most authoritative chain of transmitters, along with periodic comments by Malik himself. According to the encyclopedia of Islam, during the Alid rebellion in Medina against Abbasid rule (762-763) by brothers Muhammad and Ibrahim b. Abdallah (descended through Hasan), Malik b. Anas issued a fatwa stating that because the baya (oath of allegiance) given to the Abbasid Caliph Al-Mansur was compelled it is not binding. Malik would later be flogged for his stance after the rebellion was crushed, although this doesn't appear to have damaged his prestige and he continued his teachings and advising throughout the remainder of his life.
Fatimah
Married Ali. She was also the mother of Hasan and Husayn. Fatima became an important figure for the Alids, as she was how they traced their lineage back to the Prophet.
Battle of Khaybar
May / June 628 CE: Muhammad and 1,800 or 1,600 men and 100 horses (according to some sources) marched on the majority Jewish settlement of Khaybar which had been an ally off Mecca. This resulted in a siege and a month and a half of hostilities, during which the Muslims suffered few casualties. It was eventually conquered, and served as a point from which raids could be launched to the north. The defeat of Khaybar also allowed for the eventual victory over Medina.
Mu'awiya
Mu'awiya b. Abi Sufyan (Mu'awiya I) was the founder of the Umayyad Caliphate (although the family itself had first come to power under Uthman), and reigned from 661-680 CE. He established the Umayyad capital in Damascus, and precipitated the Second Civil War by forcing political leaders at the time to accept Yazid as his successor. He also fought Ali with "Justice for 'Uthman!" as his rallying cry in the First Civil War. He was a governor of Syria and relative of 'Uthman who challenged the legitimacy of Ali's claim to the caliphate. He founded the Ummayad Caliphate (which became dynastic when he appointed Yazid as his successor) after winning the First Civil War against Ali.
Yazid
Mu'awiya's son, whom he appointed successor, reigned from 680 to 683. Kufan political leaders invited Husayn to their city to lead resistance to Yazid, but the Umayyad military (led by Ubaydallh b. Ziyad) intercepted Husayn at Karbala and killed him in 680.
Pledge of Aqaba
Muhammad met with the six members of the Khazraj tribe from Yathrib at Aqaba in the year 620 CE when they converted to Islam and agreed to propogate it. The following year (621 CE) five of the original 6 plus 7 new people from Yathrib (two from the tribe of Aws) met the Prophet again at Aqaba, when they made a pledge to protect him. Also known as the "Pledge of Women" because no promise to fight was involved (as opposed to second Pledge of Aqaba).
Yathrib
Oasis where Muslims moved in Hijra (622 CE). Approximately 240 miles north of Mecca. Became known as "Medina." Home to at least three Jewish tribes and two Arab ones, who were in a state of constant warfare when Muhammad arrived.
Banu Qaynuqa
One of the major Jewish tribes of Yathrib/Medina. It was comprised mostly of traders, merchants, and craftsmen. They did not readily accept the teachings of the Prophet, so he used a conflict between them and a group of Muslims to beseige them and then expel them from Medina shortly after the Battle of Badr.
Banu Qurayzah
One of the three major Jewish tribes of Medina. During the Battle of the Trench (Khandaq), this purportedly neutral tribe collaborated clandestinely with the Quraysh against the Muslim polity. Following the battle, the Banu Qurayzah were not permitted to leave Medina as had been the case post-Uhud for the Banu Nadir who had since proven to be a much greater threat in exile in Khaybar to the Muslims. In accordance with Arab custom of the time, all the men of the Banu Qurayzah were killed and their women and children sold into slavery. This event was primarily of political significance (the harsh penalties meted out against the Qurayzah were designed to send a strong message to the Jewish opposition in Khaybar and pagan opposition in Medina thereby facilitating the expedient ending of hostilities) and does not appear to have been indicative of antagonism from the Prophet Muhammad and his followers toward Jews or Judaism in general as other smaller Jewish groups continued to live on in Medina after the fact.
Banu Khazraj
One of the two main pagan Arab tribes of Medina (the other being their bitter rival Banu Aws). Conversion to Islam among the Kharzaj (and Aws) began prior to the Prophet Muhammad's arrival in Medina and continued thereafter until almost the entire tribe had become Muslim.
Twelver/ Ja'fari school
Recognizes four sources of Islamic law: the Quran, the Sunnah (including traditions reported by the Prophet and the imams), consensus (which must include the Prophet's or an infallible imam's opinion to establish its validity), and human reason. Human reason is capable of inferring categorical judgments drawn from both pure and practical reason. Whatever is judged necessary by reason is also judged necessary by revelation. This correlation between reason and revelation has allowed Shii jurists to derive religious rulings on many issues not covered in normative sources such as the Quran and Sunnah
Ansar
Residents of Yathrib who converted to Islam and received and helped the emigrants (Muhājirūn) from Mecca upon their arrival. Only constituted members of the two Arab tribes. Fought alongside Muhājirūn at Battle of Badr and thereon.
Qa'im
Rules 934-935 and is the 2nd Isma'ili/Fatimid Caliph.
Hajjaj b. Yusuf
Seen as one of the most famous and most able governors of the Umayyads. Born in Ta'if around 661/41, little is known about his early life. He came to the forefront when he moved from Ta'if to Damascus to serve in the police force and succeeded in a short time in restoring discipline among the mutinous troops with whom the caliph was about to set out for Iraq. His successful defeat of Zubayr at Mecca (692) restored the unity of the state and won him the governorship of Iraq and, soon after, Khurasan and Sijistan. He was known for forcing Iraqis to fight on long campaigns while reducing their pay and prestige compared with their Syrian counterparts. Later, he changed the system of ata so that one was paid according to current military status, rather than one's history of battles fought. All of these contributed to the undermining of the status of the Kufan elite to the benefit of the Umayyad Caliph, 'Abd al-Malik.
Shafi'i school
Shafi is said to be the founder of a systematic usul al-fiqh or the roots/sources of jurisprudence. As-Shafi relied on the Quran (the word of God and thus authoritative), the Sunna of the Prophet (his sayings and actions), ijma (the consensus of the community, usually the informed scholars), and qiyaas (analogical reasoning based off a strict determination of the illa or cause of a prohibition [ie. wine forbidden because it is an intoxicant, therefore all intoxicants are prohibited]). As-Shafi's adherence to the Sunna of the Prophet (based on Quranic injunctions to obey the Messenger) as an equal to the Quran in terms of its strength as a source in determining law was a clear departure from Malik b. Anas' reliance on the Sunna of the community of Medina over hadith he came across. Shafi's requirement that qiyaas only be exercised when the cause or matter resembling a prohibition is found within the Quran and Sunna was also in reaction to the less restricted use of ra'y in determining a matter's permissibility as practiced in the Hanafi school. As-Shafi's ideas are codified in his Ar-Risala (the letter or treatise) and Kitab al-Umm. The Shafi madhab would become dominant in Egypt, East Africa, and the coastal regions of India.
shu'ubi poetry
Shu'ubi poetry (shu'ub means "peoples" or "nations" in Arabic) arose in the 9th c. CE as a reaction to the cultural and social superiority claimed by Arab Muslims as the original, pure members of the umma. Especially popular among ethnic Persians, who were tapped into the rich political, literary, and cultural tradition of the former Sassanian Empire, this poetry emphasized the noble history of non-Arab Muslims (especially Persians) as rulers of great historical empires, and the important contributions of non-Arab ethnic groups to Islamic society. Because the non-Iranian subethnic groups in the Muslim community (namely, the Egyptians, the Kurds, and the Berbers) had no similar tradition of oral or written epic history, they had a much harder time preserving and promoting their identities as non-Arab Muslim subcultures, and became swept up in the Arab mainstream.
Shura Council
Shura literally means "consultation," and it is the process by which 'Uthman was elected caliph by the Companions of the Prophet and notables of Mecca and Medina.
Ja'far al-Sadiq
Sixth imam in line of Ali, going through Husayn. Lived during Abbasid period, d. ca. 765, represented Shi'is who accepted a non militant imamate during a period of Shi'i rebellion. Remained neutral during most Shi'i-inspired uprisings, spent his life teaching in Medina. Designated his son Ismail as next imam, but Ismail died before him, so then designated another son Abdullah as Imam. This caused a split among the Shi'a: most of Ja'far's followers accepted Abdullah and his sons as imams and are now known as Twelver Shi'is, while some rejected Ismail's death and accepted him and his sons as imams and are now known as the Ismailis. Most Shi'ite ideas crystalized around him - (1) nass, the recognition of the imamate in a single person of the Alid line, with the living imam's designation of his heir, (2) ilm, or esoteric knowledge God gives imams (3) the idea that one can be Shi'a without revolting against the ruling Most prominent Shi'te authority among Twelver scholars, but also widely recommended among Sunnis - so much that when scholars were debating the acceptance of Shi'ism as a Sunni legal school they planned to name it Jafarism.
Mu'izz (conquest of Egypt)
Son of Mansur, rules 953-975. The conquest of Egypt occurs under his rule in 969, at which point the Fatimid capital moves from Mansuriyyah to Cairo. (Qahira in Arabic means Victorious, and the city became a testament to Fatimid strength). Fun fact: according to Qadi Nu'man (whose text we read on fasting), Mu'izz commissioned the invention of a pen with an internal inkwell. He is also known for having been relatively tolerant toward the Coptic Christians under his rule, the number of which grew substantially due to the conquest of Egypt.
Mansur
Son of Qa'im, rules 945-953 and quashes Berber revolt. He is known for being a skilled orator and military leader, and establishes the capital in Mansuriyyah (also near Kairouan). His son Mu'izz conquers Egypt and later moves the capital to Cairo.
Ma'mun
Son of fifth Abbasid caliph Harun al-Rashid and a Persian slave. Ruled from 813-833, after a bitter battle with his brother the Arab-descended caliph al-Amin for power. He decided to base his capital in Merv, but fighting among various factions got so intense in Baghdad that he decided to move there and took over the city without too much struggle. The whole empire was very fractured because of a decade of unrest, and al-Ma'mun attempted to restore unity. Although he managed to gain control of the lands between Iran and Benghazi, the Maghrib and the Iberian Peninsula remained outside Abbasid orbit. Due to the weakness of the central government, al-Ma'mun saw the need to appeal to Shi'ite groups, and designated as his heir Imam Ali al-Rida. Soon after that, however, he died - probably assassinated by the Abbasids.
Harun al-Rashid
Son of the third Abbasid caliph al-Mahdi and was himself the fifth Abbasid caliph, ruling from 170-193/786-809, after what seems to have been the murder of his older brother the caliph al-Hadi by his mother al-Khayzuran and advisor Yahya al-Barmaki. Due to this he appointed Yahya as one of his governors, and he and his sons were to hold great influence for the next 17 years. Political necessity forced al-Rashid to rely increasingly on his mawali and eunichs, who played an important role in controlling other political groups. Al-Rashid's reign, although glorified in the Arabian Nights stories, in fact saw much political disturbance, with constant tensions in Syria, a revolt in Yemen and several uprisings in Daylam and Khurasan. Al-Rashid emphasized the religious character of the caliphate and continued the anti-Alid and anti-Zindik policies of his predecessors, and seemed to have had a harsher stance against non-Muslims. Al-Rashid was perhaps most famous for his battles against the Byzantines, some of which he himself participated in, gaining him much popularity for fulfilling what many Muslims saw as an important caliphal duty. In his final years, al-Rashid seems to have lost some compitence as a ruler, and many of his descisions then, such as dividing the empire among his sons, are believed to have planted the seeds of the disintigration of the Abbasid Empire.
hadith/sunna
Sunna ("path, way" Arabic)—example of the prophet as recorded in the Hadith Hadith ("speech, report" Arabic; plural hada'ith)—reports of Muhammad's actions, statements, and practices receiving his tacit approval. Each hadith contains the text of the report and the chain of authorities (isnad) by which it has been transmitted. By the 9th c. collection and verification of hadith was an organized discipline. Sunnis believe the isnad must go back to the Prophet through his asHab in order to be legitimate and recognize al-Bukhari and Muslim to be compliers of the 2 most authentic collections of Sunna. Twelver Shi'a have 4 canonical collections of hadith (also known as akhbar). Because Twelvers belief that all twelve Imams were protected from sin, the chain of transmission must only reach back to one of the first 11 imams, not necessarily the Prophet. Much of the Sunni hadith are not considered authentic by twelver Shi'a since many of the asHab are considered untrustworthy.
Tariq ibn Ziyad
Tariq b. Ziyad invaded Spain in 711- capturing much of the peninsula by 716 and establishing what would come to be al-Andalus under Umayyad rule. He was dispatched under al-Walid ibn 'Abd al-Malik.
Battle of the Camel
The Battle of Camel resulted in struggle between Ali and Aisha's wife of the Prophet and two of the Prophet's companions, Talha and Zubair. This was due to mix of personal vendettas and outrage by the opposing party to Ali in his lack of efforts to bring Uthman's murderers to justice. Ali marched to Kufa, where Uthman policies were especially resented, (656 CE)
Buyids
The Buyids likely hailed from Daylam and reigned from 935-1055 When 'Ali b. Buya occupied Fars he took unto himself the title "King of Kings" (Shahanshah) His brother, Ahmad b. Buya, similarly took the title Supreme Commander when he occupied Baghdad They adopted/continued many Sassanian ruling traditions, as per their region of dominion, and though they hailed from the Zaydi Shi'a tradition, they began to look to Twelver Shi'ism after seizing power. They were eventually toppled by the Ghaznavids and Seljuks in the region.
Fatimids
The Fatimids were based in North Africa, and seized the city of Fez in 922. They constituted a legitimate threat to the Umayyads after they took over Ifriqiyya from the Aghlabids and expanded their naval forces. They declared rightful rule of the Islamic empire shortly before Abd al-Rahman III's same declaration. Fatimid rulers claimed to be both caliphs and imams, establishing rightful rule over the Abbasids. They take power from the Aghlabids in 909 with the help of the Qudama Berbers. In 1130 after the death of the last Fatimid caliph the region fragments until Saladdin comes to power.
Ka'ba
The Ka'bah is referred to as Baytullah or the "House of God" around which Muslim pilgrims to Mecca circumambulate in worship to this day; houses the black stone, which is said to have fallen from Heaven
Maliki School
The Maliki school, as the heir to the Medinese traditions, was unique it its adoption of 'amal or the practices of the community of Medina as a chief source of jurisprudence. When a hadith contradicted an aspect of the sunna practiced by the community of Medina, Malik b. Anas would reject it and give priority to the Medinese practice, with the assumption that as the city where the Prophet established his community and also died, the people of Medina were closest to the actual practices of the Prophet. While very skeptical towards exercising personal opinion, the Maliki madhab does make room for maslaha or consideration of the public good. The Maliki madhab would become dominant school of law in North Africa and Al-Andalus.
Abd al-Mutallib
The Prophet's grandfather, with whom he lived for a short time before living with his uncle
Abu Talib
The Prophet's uncle who raised him and gave him protection among the Quraysh. Died in 619, after which the community of believers moved to Medina. Leader of Banu Hashim.
Battle of Nahavand
The Sasanians had been defeated in Iraq, but Yazdagird's generals organized a large army on the Iranian plateau with the intention of driving out the invaders. Umar ordered a campaign to meet him that entailed having to advance throughout the Zagros Mountains, a terrain unfamiliar to the Arab army. The Zagros at that point are 125 miles wide. They run north and south and are arranged in parallel, rugged ride that contain deep gorges. It was in the Zagros that the Arab army encountered Yazdagird at Nahavand in 642, the most difficult and costly of all the battles the Arab had to fight against the Sasanian forces. The Arabs won, however, and Yazdagird once again fled to the east as the fugitive, with the Arabs in pursuit.
Zanji Revolt
The Zanji revolt was instigated by slaves of East African origin used for land reclamation in southern Iraq. In 869, a rebellion began which lasted until 883. The leader of the revolt was an Arab from Iran named Ali b. Muhammad. At certain points, Ali claimed to be a prophet and he recruited among the Zanj and the tribes of eastern Arabia with the promise to overthrow the existing social order. In 871 the rebels took Basra and controlled much of southern Iraq for a decade. The revolt was quite violent, with the large scale killing of prisoners and the sacking of Basra. Al-Muwaffaq launched a campaign to put down the rebellion in 879 and in 883 Ali was killed and Basra was recaptured. The rebellion contributed to the problems facing the Abbasids by the disruption of trade in the Persian Gulf, which coincided with a loss of revenue throughout the empire.
Amsar
The amsar, or garrison towns, started out as encampments to house the Arab Muslim military and prevent their acculturation. Eventually, they were filled not only with soldiers, but also with soldiers' families and other Muslims from the Arabian Peninsula. Due to their size, they became centers of Islamic culture. Locations: Basra and Kufa, in Iraq, and Fustat, in what would later become Cairo.
Mecca
The city of Muhammad's birth and home to the Ka'bah. Makkah was a center of trade and commerce as well as religious life across Arabia - an annual pilgrimage in pre-Islamic times attracted Arabs from throughout the Peninsula to the city during the sacred month of Dhul-Hijjah.
Battle of Yarmouk
The conquest of Syria under Umar's reign and the Damascus surrendering in 636 lead to huge Byzantine army reinforced by Arab and Armenian mercenaries arriving in Syria. At the Yarmuk River, a tributary of the Jordan River just south of Lake Tiberias (the Sea of Galilee), the Muslims and their local allies decisively defeated the Byzantine coalition, effectively sealing the fate of Syria. The general who lead the Muslim army was Khalid ibn Walid a late convert to Islam and one of the major generals of the Islamic conquests.
Hanafi School
The earliest of the four schools of thought, the Hanafi Madhab is practiced predominantly in South Asia, Central Asia, the Balkans, Caucasus and Turkey. Its predominance as the most widely followed madhab of the four schools of thought is due in large part to the empires who adopted it as their official school of law namely the Abbasid Empire, Ottoman Empire and Mughal Empire. Considered the most lenient of the four schools of thought, the Hanafi school places the highest value on ra'y (reasoned opinion) compared to the other schools. Their sources of law included the Quran, the verifiable Sunnah of the Prophet, ijma (consensus of the community), qiyas (analogical reasoning), istihsan (judicial preference [ie a judge might chose the more lenient of two optional punishments]), hiyaal (a legal artifice used to skirt certain prohibitions like ribah or interest by allowing people for example to give $100 and get back $110 if they sold a pen for $10), urf (local custom that doesn't contradict the Quran or Sunnah) and darura (necessity, ie eating pork if you have no other food, despite its clear prohibition). The Hanafi school is considered the heir to the prior schools in Kufa.
Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah
The first Abbasid caliph, Abu al-Abbas al-Saffah came to power in 132/754. He gained the title al-Saffah, "the bloodthirsty" or "the generous." Upon coming to power his main goal was the total annihilation of the Umayyads, who had been the previous Islamic rulers. Abbasid troops massacred all the Umayyad chiefs they could find - often in extremely brutal fashion - and desecrated the tombs of the Umayyad caliphs. He dealt out a similar fate to the Alids, who felt betrayed by the Abbasids and attempted to revolt against them. When he had killed all of his enemies, al-Saffah moved to eliminate any of the Abbasid political and military chiefs that he believed had become too powerful. Al-Saffah died in 136/754, and had seen the move of his dynasty from the revolutionary phase to a phase of consolidation.
Muhammad al-Baqir
The first of Husayn's descendants was the son Ali Zayn al-Abidin, a survivor of Karabala and the fourth Imam. He in turn had two sons who became better known than he was. One was Zayad whom Zaydism was named; and the other was Muhammed al-Baqir, one of the most highly respected of the religious scholars in the first third of the 8th century and the 5th Imam of the Twelver Shia Imamate. He became the leader of the Husayni branch of the Alids about the year 713. Muhammed Al-Baqir's son succeeded him as leader in 737 and became the sixth Imam. During the half century of leadership by Muhammed al-baqir and Jafar al-Sadiq, the self conscious identity that we call Shiasm can be seen for the first time. Both men won universal respect for their learning and wisdom. Among a certain group of Alids, however they were regarded as more than mere scholars of erudition and piety. They were spokesmen for God. Muhammed Al-Baqir and Jafar managed to inspire a devoting following without appearing to threaten the political authorities. They developed three ideas that became characteristic of subsequent Shia life and thought. First, they taught that an Imam was known by the fact that previous Imam had designated him. This doctrine stood in sharp contrast to the Zaydi position, as well as to the belief that an Imam would be simply be recognized by the quality of his teaching. Second, they confirmed that the Imam possessed spirtual knowledge that was different in king, not just in degree, from other religious scholars. Learned and pious scholars were certainly useful in a community, but an imam was indispensable. he had access to knowledge about God that was available from other source. The Achievement of Muhammed al-Baqir and Jafar al-Sadiq was to create self-conscious identity for the Shite community and to make it possible for an individual to recognize the Husayni Imams without engaging in revolt.
Cordoba
The seat of the Umayyad governorate/the caliphate of Abd al-Rahman I and Abd al-Rahman III, he is known for introducing many Abbasid-inspired reforms during his rule. Abd al-Rahman II meanwhile is known mostly for government reforms that served to provoke revolts and unrest amongst his subjects (Egger, 102). Abd al-Rahman III understood his caliphate as having absolute rule over the Islamic world and as a champion of Sunnism.
Marwan I
There are two relevant grandsons of Ummaya, the eponymous founder of the Ummayad clan. The first is Abu Sufyan, from whom 'Uthman and the first three Ummayad caliphs (Mu'awiya I, Yazid I, and Mu'awiya II) are descended. The second is Hakam b. Wa'il. Marwan I is descended from the latter grandson. He founded the Marwanids upon assuming the caliphate after Mu'awiya II abdicated in 684.
Umar al-Khattab
Umar Al-Khattab one of the early converts to Islam and the 2nd Muslim Caliph and among those considered by Sunnis as rightly guided. Reigned for nearly ten years years and Syria, Iraq and most of Iran were conquered under his reign. Multiple reforms occurred under his reign such as the Diwan, a register in which persons was paid by how long he has been a Muslim and in which battles he had participated in. Also the amsar, garrison towns such as Kufa, Fustat and Basra in which Muslims armies lived with their tribes and family separated from conquered people was his idea. Also the Islamic calendar, the Hijra Calendar starting from the Prophet Muhammad journey to Medina from 622 was his creation. His reign was from 634-644
Umar II
Umar b. 'Abd al-Aziz reigned from 717 to 720. Ordered the first collection of hadith. In addition: abolished unpaid labor, made the jizya tax only apply to non-Muslims (rather than also applying to converts), state officials could not engage in trade, grazing grounds were common property of all Muslims. Also created welfare programs for "the orphan, the destitute, and the wayfarer" with the fifth of plunder accorded to the state.
Battle of Qadisiyya
Under Umar reign, Muslims began their attack on Iraq, local Arab nomads and the Aramic towns fought to protect themselves. Soon, however, the primary Muslim army devastated a much larger Sasanian force at Qadisiya, northwest of Hira. It then moved on to capture Ctesiphon, the capital of Sasanian Empire. From that point, the larger Nestorian and Jewish population of central Iraq put up little resistance. This occurred in 636 over 5 day battle. The major Persian general Rustam died in this battle and this battle lead to the herald the end of the Sasanian Empire.
Hanbali school
Unlike As-Shafi, Ibn Hanbal did not create a codified legal system and much of Ibn Hanbal's ideas were compiled by his students. The Hanabli madhab views the Quran and Sunna as the primary sources of law. The Quran is to be understood in its literal sense (ie. God is as He describes Himself, sitting on a throne, etc.) and the Sunna of the Prophet is to be accepted as authoritative as well. The Hanbali madhab rejects ijma as a general rule but accepts the ijma of the companions of the Prophet. The Hanbali madhab also rejects qiyaas but due to the inclusion of more hadith, some of which are considered weak, it is believed that the Quran and collected Sunna has everything needed to make law. The Hanbali madhab is dominant in Saudi Arabia but often through the filter of Ibn Taymiyah and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab.
Mu'allaqa
Very famous pre-Islamic poem/ode composed by Imru' al-Qays al-Kindi (6th c. CE) which reportedly was written in gold letters and hung on the Ka'aba in pre-Islamic times. One of the most famous examples of Jahiliyya poetry.
Aisha
Wife of the Prophet and daughter of Abu Bakr. Aisha was with the Prophet when he died. Held a longstanding grudge against Ali and fought against him in the Battle of the Camel (so named because she was riding atop a camel during the battle) in 656. She was at one point accused of infidelity to the Prophet, but there was no supporting evidence, and the Qur'an pronounced in her favor days later.
Mt Hira
`This was the place where the Prophet liked to go meditate and was eventually the place where the Quran was given to him.
adab
an Arabic term which originally meant "customs, habits" but which came to be used for "etiquette" and then came to indicate the intellectual pursuits required to make a person civilized (i.e. literature, philosophy). Rough English equivalent is "humanities." One who is cultured/civilized in this way is an adib.
Year of Delegations
c 631 CE. Following the Muslim conquest of Mecca, Arab tribes began sending delegations to Mecca to seek terms of understanding with Muhammad. He allied with more powerful ones while making others pay a tax and submit to Islam.
zajal poetry
genre of Arabic poetry popular in al-Andalus from 1100 CE. Composed mainly in the Andalusian vernacular dialect (as opposed to high Classical Arabic) and meant to be sung. A famous composer of zajal poetry was al-Shushtari, an Andalusian Sufi.
muwashshahat poetry
genre of Arabic poetry popular in al-Andalus which developed around the end of the 9th c CE. These poems were divided into two parts: the main body which was composed in Classical Arabic, and then a final part composed in a mix of vernacular Arabic and Romance languages. Themes often include love, wine, renunciation of wordly desires, etc. and the end part was often a real or fictitious quote from a character in the poem, a personified idea, or the poet himself. al-Shushtari also composed muwashshahat.
Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik
r. 105-25/724-43 He was known for his simplicity, wearing the same green cloak throughout his reign. He continued the welfare projects of Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz. His reign inherited many problems such as revolts and rebellions by the Khariji Berbers in North Africa and the Abbasids in Iraq. He continued jihad campaigns against the Byzantines. His reign saw the successive suppression of revolts in North African, Iraq, and Sind; however, there were a series of military setbacks in the Caucases and in Transoxiona.
Categories of Acts) Differences between them, what each applies to obligatory, recommended, neutral, disapproved, forbidden permissible (halal) / forbidden (haram) valid (sahih) / invalid (batil)
● For this, it is important to know that the Quran and Sunna outline things that are expressly forbidden, such as adultery, consumption of wine, eating the flesh of swine, etc. As such, these things will fall under the category of forbidden or haraam. Everything that isn't expressly forbidden is by definition permissible, although there are categories of matters that are permissible (recommended [additional prayers, fasting, charity], neutral [when you go to sleep], and disapproved [eating too much, shaving one's beard, eating prawns (Hanafi madhab), etc.] Practices that are obligatory include the 5 daily prayers, fasting the month of Ramadan, paying zakat, the testament of faith, and pilgrimage if you can afford to. A matter is considered sahih or batil if a marriage contract for instance is followed in accordance with Islamic law...if it isnt' it is considered batil and therefore non-binding (this should not be confused with the difference between sahih and da'if (weak) hadith).