A New Introduction To Islam

Description

By (author) Brown, Daniel W; By (author) Brown Daniel W.

Short /annotation:
Covering the origins, key features, and legacy of the Islamic tradition, the third edition of A New Introduction to Islam includes new material on Islam in the 21st century and discussions of the impact of historical ideas, literature, and movements on contemporary trends.

:

Covering the origins, key features, and legacy of the Islamic tradition, the third edition of A New Introduction to Islam includes new material on Islam in the 21st century and discussions of the impact of historical ideas, literature, and movements on contemporary trends.

• Includes updated and rewritten chapters on the Qur’an and hadith literature that covers important new academic research
• Compares the practice of Islam in different Islamic countries, as well as acknowledging the differences within Islam as practiced in Europe
• Features study questions for each chapter and more illustrative material, charts, and excerpts from primary sources

Table of contents:

List of Illustrations xi

Preface to the Third Edition xv

Source Acknowledgments xvii

Part I The Formation of the Islamic Tradition
1

1 Islam in Global Perspective 3

The Problem of Defining Islam 3

Mapping the Islamic World 5

Arabs and Non-Arabs 9

Sunnis and Shiʿites 10

Islamic Ritual 11

What to Expect from This Book 14

Essential Resources for the Study of Islam 16

Questions for Study and Discussion 17

2 Arabia 19

Geography 19

Pre-Islamic Poetry 21

Arab Religion 25

Women in Pre-Islamic Arabia 27

Mecca and the Quraysh 28

The Gifts of the Arabs 31

Resources for Further Study 34

Questions for Study and Discussion 35

3 The Pre-Islamic Near East 37

Christianity in the Near East 39

Saints and Relics 45

Zoroastrianism 46

Judaism 47

Manichaeism 49

Mazdak 49

The Place of the Arabs in the Near East 50

Chronology of the Near East of Late Antiquity 52

Resources for Further Study 53

Questions for Study and Discussion 54

4 The Life of Muhammad 55

Prologue and Setting 56

Birth and Childhood 57

Early Adulthood 59

The Beginning of Revelation 61

Opposition 63

The Night Journey and Ascent to Heaven 65

The Hijra 66

The Battle of Badr 68

Confrontation with the Jews of Medina 69

The Battle of Uh. ud 70

The Peace of al-H. udaybiya and the Farewell Pilgrimage 72

Evaluation 73

Resources for Further Study 74

Questions for Study and Discussion 75

5 The Qur ʾan 77

The Qurʾan in Modern Imagination 77

The History of the Text 79

The Language of the Qurʾan 84

The Context of the Qurʾan 87

Jesus in the Qurʾan 88

The Qurʾan in Muslim Piety 90

The Eternity of the Qurʾan 91

The Inimitability of the Qurʾan 93

Interpreting the Qurʾan 94

Central Themes 95

Qurʾanic Narratives 96

Qurʾanic Law and the Problem of Abrogation 97

Women and Gender in the Qurʾan 98

Qurʾan, Sīra, and Hadith 99

Resources for Further Study 99

Questions for Study and Discussion 100

6 The Tradition Literature 103

The Science of Hadith 104

The Origins of the Hadith 108

In Quest of the Historical Muhammad 111

The Sīra and the Shaping of an Islamic Worldview 115

Resources for Further Study 119

Questions for Study and Discussion 120

Part II The Expansion of Islam
121

7 The Conquests 123

Psychological Impact 127

Archeological Data: The “Invisible” Conquests 129

Resources for Fu