The Historical MuhammadIn his quest for the historical Muhammad, Zeitlin's chief aim is to catch glimpses of the birth of Islam and the role played by its extraordinary founder. Islam, as its Prophet came to conceive it, was a strict and absolute monotheism. How Muhammad had arrived at this view is not a problem for Muslims, who believe that the Prophet received a revelation from Allah or God, mediated by the Angel Gabriel. For scholars, however, interested in placing Muhammad in the historical context of the seventh-century Arabian Peninsula, the source of the Prophets inspiration is a significant question. It is apparent that the two earlier monotheisms, Judaism and Christianity, constituted an influential presence in the Hijaz, the region comprising Mecca and Medina. Indeed, Jewish communities were salient here, especially in Medina and other not-too-distant oases. Moreover, in addition to the presence of Jews and Christians, there existed a third category of individuals, the Hanifs, who, dissatisfied with their polytheistic beliefs, had developed monotheistic ideas. Zeitlin assesses the extent to which these various influences shaped the emergence of Islam and the development of the Prophets beliefs. He also seeks to understand how the process set in motion by Muhammad led, not long after his death, to the establishment of a world empire. |
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Contents
Ibn Khalduns Social and Economic Theory | |
PreIslamic Arabia | |
The Role of Abraham Hagar and Ishmael | |
Recent and Current Scholarship | |
Possible Influences on Muhammads Inspiration | |
Watts Muhammad at Mecca | |
William Muirs Analysis | |
Muhammad and the Jews | |
Concluding Sociological Reflections | |
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Common terms and phrases
Abraham and Ishmael Abyssinian agricultural Ahmad appears Arab tribes Arabian Peninsula Badr Banu battle battle of Badr became Bedouin believed Bell Byzantine called caravan century Christian cited in parentheses clan conquest Crone deities desert Donner earlier early Islamic evidence fact following the quoted Graetz group feeling hadith Hagar hanif Haykal Hebrew Henninger Hijaz Hijr Hijra historical Hitti Ibn Hisham Ibn Ishaq Ibn Khaldun idols influence Ishmael Islam Islamic origins Jewish Jewish tribes Jews Judaism Kaaba Khaybar Khazraj later learned Margoliouth Medina monotheism monotheistic Moses Muhajirun Muir Muir’s Muslim Muslim sources Muslim tradition Nadir Newby nomadic observes pagan parentheses immediately following Persian pilgrimage poetry political polytheism polytheistic pre-Islamic Arabia Prophet Qaynuqa qibla question quoted passage Quran Quraysh Qurayza raiding recognized references regarded religion religious Rubin sacred sanctuary scholars sedentary seems settled social solidarity story Syria Taif Torrey tribal verses victory Watt Watt’s worship writes Yathrib Zayd
Bibliographic information
| Title | The Historical Muhammad |
| Author | Irving M. Zeitlin |
| Publisher | John Wiley & Sons, 2013 |
| ISBN | 0745654886, 9780745654881 |
| Length | 184 pages |
| Subjects | › › Political Science / General Political Science / Globalization Political Science / International Relations / General |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |