Islam in historical perspective / Alexander Knysh.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 500-510) and index.

Machine generated contents note: What Is Islam? -- Multiplicity of Approaches to the Study of Islam -- Islam as an Object of Interpretation and a Source of Meaning -- Notes -- 1.Arabia: The Cradle of Islam -- Geography -- The Arabs -- Bedouin Lifestyle -- Social Structures -- Raiding and Warfare -- Mecca: A Trade Hub -- Mecca: A Religious Center -- Other Religious Communities of Arabia -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 2.Muhammad and the Beginnings of Islam: The Making of the Muslim Community -- Muhammad's Background and Early Life -- The First Revelations -- Muhammad's Public Preaching and Opposition to It -- Migration (Hijra) and the Formation of the Islamic Umma -- Muhammad as Political and Religious Leader and Private Individual -- The Battle of Uhud -- The Battle of the Ditch -- Muhammad and the Bedouin Tribes of Arabia -- The Conquest of Mecca and Beyond -- Conclusions -- Question to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes

Note continued: 3.After Muhammad: The Rightly Guided Caliphs and the Conquests -- The Muslim Conquests Under 'Umar -- The Conquest of Syria and Palestine -- The Conquest of Iraq -- The Conquest of Egypt -- The Conquests Continue: The Fall of the Sasanid Empire -- The Death of 'Umar and the Succession of 'Uthman -- Conclusions -- Question to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 4.The Murder of 'Uthman, the Fitna Wars, and the Rise and Consolidation of the Umayyad Dynasty -- Who's "Right" and Who's "Wrong"? -- The Election of 'Uthman -- Grievances Against 'Uthman -- The Accession of 'AH and the Battle of the Camel -- The Struggle Between 'AH and Mu 'awiya -- The Battle of Siffin -- The Kharijites -- The Last Years of 'All's Caliphate -- Mu 'awiya Becomes Caliph -- The Death of 'Mu awiya, the Accession of Yazid, and the Tragedy at Karbala' -- The Caliphate of 'Abdallah born al-Zubayr -- The Rebellion of Mukhtar

Note continued: The End of 'Abdallah born al-Zubayr's Caliphate and the Triumph of the Marwanids -- The Consolidation of Umayyad Power Under 'Abd al-Malik and His Successors -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 5.The Principal Source of Islam: The Qur'an -- The Qur'an as Revelation and Sacred Book -- The Name and Structure -- The Language of the Qur'an -- The Mysterious Letters -- The Collection of the Qur'an -- The Central Theme of the Qur'an: God -- The Prophets and Messengers -- The Judgment Day, Paradise, and Hell -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 6.The Prophetic Hadith and Sunna and the Emergence of the Shari'a -- Hadith as the Muslim Gospel? -- The Importance of Hadith -- The Types of Hadith -- The Transmission and Collection of Hadith -- The Writing Down of Hadith and the Elevation of the Status of the Prophet's Sunna -- The Six Sunni Hadith Collections -- The Shi'ite Hadith

Note continued: Sacred or Holy Hadith (Hadith Qudsi) -- The Emergence of the Shari'a Law -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 7.The Problem of the Just Ruler and the First Divisions Within the Community -- Opposition to the Umayyads -- The Rise of the Mawali -- The Kharijites -- Àli's Party -- The Uneasy Loyalists -- Some Early Theological Concepts -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 8.The 'Abbasid Revolution and Beyond -- The Theological Underpinnings -- The Sources of Discontent -- The Turn of the Wheel: 'Abbasid Propaganda and the Beginning of the Third Fitna -- The Triumph of the 'Abbdsid Cause -- The Consolidation of 'Abbdsid Power -- The Rearticulation of the Doctrine of the Imamate -- Conclusion: The 'Abbdsid Empire at Its Prime -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 9.Islamic Scholarship Under the 'Abbasids: The Rise and Development of the Schools of Law -- Introduction

Note continued: The Major Stages of the Evolution of Islamic Legal Thought -- The Qur'anic Roots of Islamic Law -- Qur'anic Legislation Pertaining to Marriage, Divorce, and Inheritance -- Qur'anic Punishments for Homicide -- Fiqh, the Fuqaha', the Muftis, and the Judges -- The Abrogation Theory -- The "Qur'anic Commands" That Are Not in the Qur'an -- The Formation of the Regional Schools of Law -- Muhammad al-Shdfi'i (d. 820) and the Crystallization of the Islamic Legal Theory -- The Four Roots of Islamic Jurisprudence -- Later Developments -- Parallel Systems of Justice Under the 'Abbasids -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 10.Islamic Scholarship Under the 'Abbasids: Theological Debates and Schools of Thought -- The Qur'an as the Foundation of Islamic Faith and Cult and an Object of Disputation -- The Beginnings of Theological Reasoning in Islam -- Divine Predestination Versus Human Free Will

Note continued: The Doctrine of Postponement and the Problem of Faith -- The Emergence of Mu 'tazilism -- The Supporters of Hadith and Their Theological Creed -- Ibn Hanbal and the Inquisition -- The Theological "Middle Way": Ash'arism -- Ash 'arism, Maturidism, and the Hadith Party -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 11.Twelver Shi'ism and Zaydism -- The Crystallization of the Shi'ite Creed in Opposition to Sunnism -- The Divergence of the Shi'ite and Sunni Visions of Islam -- The Vicissitudes of the Shi'ite Imamate Under the 'Abbasids -- The Shi'ite Community in the Absence of the Divinely Ordained Guide -- The Political and Social Aspects of the Doctrine of Occultation -- "The Shi'ite Century" (946 -- 1055): Political and Social Aspects -- The Blossoming of Shi'ite Theology and Jurisprudence -- Shi'ite Views of the Qur'an -- Zaydism -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes

Note continued: 12.Shi'ism as a Revolutionary Movement: The Isma'ilis -- Who Are the Isma'ilis? -- The Rise and Spread of Revolutionary Isma'ilism -- The Teaching and the Mission -- The Proclamation of 'Abdallah ('Ubaydallah) the Mahdi, and the Qarmati -- Fatimid Split -- The Rise of the Fatimids -- The Conquest of Egypt and the Consolidation of Fatimid Power -- Another Split: Al-Hakim and the Druzes -- The Crisis Over Al-Mustansir's Succession and the Rise of the Nizari Community -- The Principal Articles of the Nizari Creed -- The Collapse of the Fatimid Caliphate -- The Hafizi-Tayyibi Split and Its Impact on the Fortunes of Later Isma'ilism -- The Qarmati Revolt and the Rise and Fall of the Qarmati State in Bahrain -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 13.Ascetic and Mystical Movement in Islam: Sufism -- Introduction -- The Name and the Beginnings -- Basic Ideas and Goals -- The Archetypal "Sufi": Al-Hasan al-Basri and His Followers

Note continued: Regional Manifestations -- The Formation of the Baghdadi School of Sufism -- The Systematization of the Sufi Tradition -- The Maturity of Sufi Science: Al-Ghazali the Conciliator -- Sufism as Literature -- Sufi Metaphysics: The Impact of Ibn 'Arabi -- Major Intellectual and Practical Trends in Later Sufism -- The Rise and Spread of Sufi Brotherhoods (Tariqas) -- Sufism and the Cult of "Friends of God" (Saints) -- Sufism and Shi'ism -- Sufism Today -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 14.Intellectual Struggles in Premodern Islam: Philosophy Versus Theology -- Falsafa as a Rational Discipline -- Falsafa and Kalam -- Falsafa as an Elaboration of Neoplatonic Doctrines -- The Beginnings of Falsafa -- Al-Kindi, the Philosopher of the Arabs -- Abu Bakr al-Razi, the Physician and Freethinker -- Al-Farabi, the Second Teacher -- Ibn Sina (Avicenna) -- Al-Ghazali, the Proof of Islam -- Ibn Rushd (Averroes), the Commentator -- Conclusions

Note continued: Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 15.Transmission and Conservation of Knowledge: Ùlama', Madrasas, and Sufi Lodges -- The Status, Venues, and Bearers of Learning in Muslim Societies -- Elementary Education: The Kuttab -- The Muslim College: Madrasa -- The Economic Foundations of Madrasa Education -- Methods and Curricula of Madrasa Education -- Sufi Lodges -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 16.The Basic Beliefs and Practices of Islam: Islamic Life Cycle -- Islamic Ethos and the Five Pillars -- Visiting the Prophet's Tomb at Medina -- How Religion Shapes the Lives of Individual Muslims -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 17.Islamic Art and Religious Architecture (Mosque) -- The Qur'an as the Focus of Devotion -- Scriptural Evidence Against Figural Arts -- How Did Artists Respond to the Restrictions? -- The Mosque: Architectural and Devotional Aspects -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder

Note continued: Summary -- Notes -- 18.Women in Islamic Societies -- The Controversial Topic -- Women in the Qur'an -- Women in Hadith and Fiqh -- Theorizing the Muslim Woman -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 19.Islam and the West -- The Arab Conquests of Christian Lands -- The Beginnings of the Crusader Movement in Europe -- God's Wars: The First Crusades and the Muslim Response -- The Muslims Strike Back -- The Legacy of the Crusades -- The Founder of Islam and His Message in the Eyes of His Followers and Through the Christian Looking Glass -- The Scandinavian Caricatures of Muhammad and the Resurgence of Old Prejudices -- Islamic Influences on European Culture -- The Curious (and Inexplicable) Rise of the West -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 20.Islam in the Gunpowder Empires: The World of Islam Faces Modernity and European Colonialism -- The Gunpowder Empires -- What Is Modernity?

Note continued: The Beginnings of European Colonial Expansion -- Muslim Responses: Economic and Social -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 21.Renewal and Reform in Islam: The Emergence of Islamic Modernism and Reformism -- Different Reformers and Different Reforms -- The Fundamentalist Reform of Muhammad born 'Abd al-Wahhab (d. 1792) -- The Modernist Reforms of al-Afghani and 'Abdo -- Muhammad Rashid Rida (d. 1935) and al-Manar -- By Way of Conclusion: A Summary of the Major Precepts of Islamic Reform -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 22.Islam as a Political Force and Vehicle of Opposition -- Major Stages of the Movement for Reform and Renewal of Islam -- The Complicated Issue of Terminology -- The Latest Stages of the Evolution of Islamic Activism -- Ayatollah Khomeini (d. 1989) and the Iranian Revolution -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 23.Islam Reinterpreted: Major Trends in Islamic Thought Today

Note continued: In Quest of Liberal Islam -- The Principal Themes of Islamic Liberalism -- The Geopolitical Roots of Liberal Islam -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes -- 24.The Ideology and Practice of Globalized Jihadism -- The Afghan War, 'Abdallah 'Azzam, and the Rise of Transnational Jihadism -- Changing the Target and Means: al-Qa'ida, Usama bin Ladin, and Ayman al-Zawahiri -- Instead of a Conclusion: Does the Islamist Project Have a Future? -- Conclusions -- Questions to Ponder -- Summary -- Notes.