Makkah 610-622 CE

Muhammad Before Prophethood
1. He was born into the powerful Quraysh tribe, although his family was poor and unimportant
2. A monk spotted the mark of the prophet on Muhammad
3. He married Khadijah in 595 CE
4. He had a good reputation. Nicknames included 'the truthful' and 'the trustworhty'
5. He has children
6. He knew people from different religions
7. He hated Meccan society for its greed and selfishness
8. He had contact with Hanifs
9. He was a good, honest man with a positive reputation but he wanted a fairer society, he wanted more from religion
Muhammad's First Revelation
1. Prayed and meditated in cave Hira, on Mount Nur
  1. End of Ramadan, 810 CE
2. God sent angel Gabriel
  1. Told Muhammad to recite 'read in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher who created, created man out of a mere clot of blood'
    1. Muhammad protested saying he couldn't read, but eventually read it
3. He woke up in abject terror, his body was shaking
4. He was completely shattered as it wasn't a pleasant experience
5. Ran home to Khadijah
  1. She told him that he was being called by God
6. Waraqa said he was the prophet God promised to be sent to Arabs in the Bible
Themes of Mihammad's Meccan revelations
1. Tawhid
  1. Belief in God's unity
  2. Meccan's response
    1. Angry
      1. Muhammad is telling them that what they've dedicated their lives to is wrong
    2. Threat of violence as it's jahilyyah
  3. Man's response,: gratitude and worship
    1. Pray in public to show they're Muslim
    2. Men show they're grateful by praying
    3. Men prostrate to show that God is more important
  4. God's goodness and power
    1. Saved Quraysh from famine
    2. Seen in nature
      1. Formation of human beings
        Conception, birth and growth
    3. Gave creations items for survval
2. Risalah
  1. Belief in prophets (including angels and holy books)
  2. Muhammad's own vocation
    1. Muhammad was a messenger
      1. Became leader of believers
    2. Muhammad wanted people to know he's linked with previous prophets
      1. He's nothing new
  3. Meccan's response
    1. Christians and Jews are offended as he's telling them that they've betrayed their religion
3. Akirah
  1. Belief in the Final Judgement and life after death
  2. Return to God for judgement
    1. Aimed at non believers
    2. There's a day where you'll be judged
  3. Meccan's response
    1. Angry
      1. Go to hell if current behaviour continues
      2. Dead relatives are in hell
  4. Man's response
    1. Gratitude
      1. Pray in public to show they're Muslim
      2. Men show they're grateful by praying
      3. Men prostrate to show that God is more important
    2. Generosity
      1. Humans should use their wealth to help the needy
        Wealth doesn't get you into heaven
      2. God will help if you're a giver
      3. Those who are selfish with wealth will end up in hell
Muhammad's Second Revelation
1. At home, under a blanket
  1. Ordered him to 'rise and warn'
    1. Started with friends and family
2. Sura 74, The Mantled One
3. Revelations continued and a pattern emerged
  1. 1) Meccan polytheism was wrong 'there's no God but God'
    1. Beginnings of Tawhid
  2. 2) He was being called to bring Arabia back to the religion of Islam and not a new religion to Arabia
    1. Beginnings of risalah
  3. Arabs were to be judged by God on their religion and life,, they had to change and repent to a good life of honesty
    1. Beginnings of Akirah
Opposition and Persecution
1. Reasons
  1. If Muhammad became the leader of the young men in Mecca then eventually he would become the leader of the whole of Mecca
    1. Scared to lose their authority, power and influence
  2. There was a tradition that a man of great wisdom would rise and become leader of Mecca, people may think Muhammad was this man
    1. Scared to lose their power
  3. Muhammad was saying Bedouin Polytheism was wrong. This would stop traders coming to Mecca if the pilgrimage stopped
    1. Scared to take away wealth/scared they'd be forced to share their wealth
2. Methods
  1. Tortured/killed by exposure to midday sun
  2. Attempts to kill Muhammad
  3. Meetings broken up by hooligans
  4. Rubbish and thorns were thrown at his door
  5. Boycott of Hashim (cut off members of his clan)
  6. Stopping him from preaching
  7. Offer him money to stop
The Pledge of Aqaba
1. Where people agree to only serve the prophet, worship God and live moral lives
  1. Sent Meccan Muslim leaders to instruct converts so there'd be more converts
The Second Pledge of Aqaba
1. Where people agree to accept Muhammad as their political leader as well as their prophet
  1. Made by those who returned with 63 converts
Why did Muhammad leave Mecca?
1. 1) He saw the pledges by the converts from Yathrib as a sign from God that he was to leave
  1. All part of God's plan
2. 2) The reaction of the Meccans when news of the Second Pledge leaked out (tortured converts stopped Meccan Muslims leaving), if Meccans against it, God was for it
  1. He has got to go, as him and his followers lives are in danger. If he stops and is killed then he has failed
3. 3) Islam was a way of life not just a religion, politics had to be part of it. Going to Yathrib to be the political leader and a prophet meant he could show what Islam is all about
  1. Gets to show that Islam isn't just a religion it's a way to govern people
4. 4) Worried about the safety of his followers in Mecca, could protect them in Medina
  1. If he doesn't protect his followers then he'll get no more
5. 5) Wanted to be able to preach once more, openly about the revelations from God
  1. Has to leave so he can do the job God wants him to do - preach and 'rise and warn'
The Hijrah
1. The emigration of Muhammad and his followers to Medina from Mecca in 622 CE
The significance of the Hijrah for Muslims today
1. Don't give in to persecution
2. Go through difficulties for their faith
3. Trust God
4. God will protect/guide
5. How society is run, based on the ummah
6. Islam was able to continue and grow
7. People moved with Muhammad, showing their faith and his power
8. How Islam is a way of life
9. Muhammad battled for what he believed in
10. Without it monotheism would've continued
11. Medina helped spread the word
'Muhammad's message wasn't new'
1. Agree
  1. Some people worshipped Allah in Bedouin Polytheism
  2. On the night journey he saw prophets in the same prayer position, showing they're Muslim
  3. Pilgrimage to Mecca already existed
  4. Main theme Tawhid existed
  5. Original religion of Arabia
  6. Part of a long line of Prophets
  7. People messed up the same message previously, creating different religions
  8. Main idea, Monotheism was present in Christianity, Judaism and Hanifs
2. Disagree
  1. The Qur'an was introduced which Islam is based on
  2. Islam had an order, people would pray - unlike followers of Bedouin Polytheism (so didn't copy)
  3. People at first didn't accept his message as they hadn't heard of it before
  4. Islam didn't exist before it
  5. The message had new teachings
  6. Islam is a way of life, unlike Christianity
  7. Monotheism was new to many
  8. Belief in life after death and judgement was new to Bedouin Polytheists
  9. New/different prayer positions
  10. Christians and Jews regarded the message as new
  11. Introduced a moral code
Muhammad was forced out of Mecca
1. Agree
  1. He was in fear of his life
  2. Some of his followers had been persecuted
  3. Wasn't able to spread his message in Mecca
  4. Stopped him from doing his job - preaching
  5. Interrupted meetings
  6. Boycotted trade
2. Disagree
  1. Meccans wanted him to stay so they could kill him
  2. He was invited to go to Medina
  3. May have seemed that others were forcing him out, Islam teaches that everything's part of God's plan
  4. If he moved he could become a political and a religious leadet
  5. He could show that Islam is a way of life
  6. Able to fulfil his duties of a Prophet by preaching
  7. He was able to build an army to ensure safety
  8. Test for his followers, if they'd leave the tribal system to create and Ummah
Development of Islam in Mecca between 610 and 622 CE
1. Call to be a prophet in 610 CE
2. Private phase
  1. Married Khadijah
  2. Had children
  3. Prayer established
3. Public preaching
  1. Criticism and warning
  2. Proclamation of monotheism
  3. Threat to pilgrimage business
  4. Attracts younger members of society
4. Faced opposition and boycot
  1. Emigrated to Abyssinia
5. Loss of protection
6. Restriction on preaching
7. Invitation to Medina
8. Few followers
Muhammad's most important role in Makkah between 610 and 622 CE was as a Warner
1. Agree
  1. Command to 'rise and warn'; prominent in Qur'an verses revealed at that time
  2. Summoned people to just hear this message
2. Disagree
  1. Monotheism - condemnation of idol worship and rejection of social and moral evils also important
    1. Main cause of opposition
  2. No one part of his message is more important that the others
    1. Command to 'Recite' gives him his mission
    2. Simply hearing the Qur'an is said to bring about reversion to Islam
Main themes of the prophet's teachings between 610 and 622 CE
1. Social
  1. Condemns drunkenness, dishonest trade, gambling and the abuse of widows and orphans
2. Religious
  1. Condemns idol worship, shirk, requires worship of the One God, and gratitude to God
  2. Teaches resurrection and judgement
  3. Prayer
Muhammad's most important message in Mecca was 'judgement is coming'
1. Agree
  1. The Qur'an calls Muhammad 'the warner'
    1. Much of the teaching concerns the punishments of hell and the reward of heaven
  2. Summoned the leaders together to announce the coming judgement
  3. Teaching responded to the immediate needs of the situation
2. Disagree
  1. Primary duty was to recite the revelations that came to him; none were more important than the others
  2. Condemnation of social evils
  3. Tawhid

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Makkah 610-622 CE

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