Islam: A Religion and Culture Essay -- Exploratory Essays Research Pap

Islam: A Religion and Culture Islam is one of the oldest religions in history dating back to about 600 AD. It began when a man named Muhammad heard a voice from the heavens instructing him to proclaim the word of god. Currently there are over 800 million followers of the Muslim religion. The main text of the religion is the Quran which is said to be the word of God, or Allah as called in Muslim. Within the Quran, The five pillars of Islam are proclaimed along with many other concepts very unique to the Muslim religion. Prayer is a very important aspect of Islam as well. Islam has a long history of invention, heritage, and world imperialism that must be understood to completely identify with the concepts of the religion and culture. In 570 AD, Muhammad was born into one of many feuding Arabian clans. Muhammad was not happy with the religion of idol worship of which he lived. At the age of forty years he experienced a vision of the angel Gabriel who told him to proclaim the word of Allah. He began to have more visions and heard voices until he sought refuge by journeying into the mountains of Hira in 610 AD. Muhammad was told he was the last prophet of Islam and that there had been many prophets before him. Muslims believe that God sent other prophets besides Muhammad, including Jesus, Abraham, and Moses but Muhammad was that last and greatest prophet. He began by telling his immediate family and clan of his experiences as the belief was spread through the clan. Many merchants and others did not agree with the ideas of Muhammad. They began persecuting Muhammad, and soon after his immediate family died in Mecca, He was caste out along with his followers. Muhammad made his way to the city of Medina where his followers b... ...o to all efforts to destroy it. These radical Muslims give the rest of the Islamic culture a bad name and are frowned on by Islam. It is argued that peace will never fully come to the Middle East. From the moment Islam was started it has never stopped growing, changing, and leaving its mark on the world. Islam has had an everlasting effect on culture throughout the world in areas of architecture and art. The Mogul empire was a perfect example of one of the most powerful empires in history. The Quran has become one of the most influential religious texts in history as it is interpreted in so many different ways. Islamic Traditions are practiced all over the world by millions of followers. Islam is the second largest religion in the world and is fast growing only behind Christianity. The history and culture that the religion of Islam has left is unimaginable.