Religion - Islam is a heavenly religion or the religion of the sky brought by the Prophet SAW at the command of Allah SWT. The word "Islam" itself comes from the Arabic word aslama which means safe. Prosperity or surrender. Islam also means peace and safety based on surrender to Allah SWT. Islam is also interpreted as wise actions and people who adhere to the Islamic religion are called Muslims.
Just like any other religion on earth, Islam has a history that its adherents need to know. History or in the teaching of Islamic education is referred to as the science of date.
1. The Age Before the Coming of Islam
Before Islam came to the world, especially in the Middle Eastern countries, the Arab region was surrounded by two great empires, namely the Eastern Roman Empire in the West and Persia in the East. Byzantine territory included Syria, Egypt, Palestine, Turkey, Asia Minor, and parts of continental Europe. The peak of Roman glory was during the leadership of Justin (483-565 AD), at that time there was a war between the Eastern Roman and Persian empires.
The war with Persia caused their influence to weaken so that when Islam grew and became stronger they could be overthrown and their territory came under the control of the Islamic religion. Christianity was a major religion that at that time was developing in areas under Roman rule and Emperor Constantine recognized Christianity as a legitimate religion that was widely adhered to by many people and made it the state religion.
Meanwhile, in the Persian kingdom, the religion followed was the Zoroastrian religion. Emperor Parwiz (590) was the last ruler of the Persian empire who loved power, wealth, luxury, and had a Christian wife. Emperor Parwiz also tore up a letter from the Prophet Muhammad and expelled the messenger who brought the letter. During the time of Emperor Yazdigard III (634-652) Muslim troops from Arabia succeeded in conquering Persia.
2. Arab Society Before Islam
In the period leading up to the arrival of Islam, the political, economic and cultural conditions of Arab society were chaotic and divided, and there were no leaders among them. Arab society was divided into tribes and tribes based on blood relations and interests in defending their tribe.
Pre-Islamic Arabs believed in myths passed down from their ancestors and relied on a pagan belief system, namely beliefs that worshiped gods, spirits, ghosts, amulets, and so on, which in the Qur'an is referred to as polytheism.
Pre-Islamic Arabs also worshiped idols except for Jews and Christians, who were not many in number. Not only that, they worshiped the sun, rocks, trees, stars and wind. The biggest idols they worshiped were named Lata, Mana, 'Uzza and Hubal and the idols were placed around the ka'bah that could be worshiped in religious events at that time.
On the other hand, there are a number of followers of Judaism and Christianity who still defend their religious teachings, including the teachings of the oneness of God or monotheism.
3. Early Time of the Arrival of Islam
The time of the arrival of Islam began with the birth of Prophet Muhammad SAW, the prophet of the end times and then he spread Islam to all Arabs after Allah SWT appointed him as a Messenger.
4. The birth of Prophet Muhammad SAW
Islam came to be brought by the Prophet of the end of time, Prophet Muhammad SAW who was born from among the noble Quraish. He was born an orphan, his father named Abdullah bin Abu Muthalib died while trading and his mother named Aminah binti Wahab. It is known that Prophet Muhammad is a descendant of Prophet Ishmael.
Muhammad saw was born on 12 Rabi'ul Awal in the Year of the Elephant, or on April 20, 571. When he was 40 years old he was appointed as an Apostle with the revelation of the first revelation of the Qur'an which was spoken by Allah and delivered by the angel Gabriel, namely Surah al-Alaq verse 1 -5.
5. Prophet Muhammad's Da'wah
The Prophet Muhammad SAW first preached to the Quraish people who lived in Mecca and introduced them to Allah SWT as the one and only God. He said that Allah is the creator of the entire universe, creator of life, death, giver of sustenance and so on.
This da'wah was initially carried out secretly in a friend's house, then gradually the da'wah was conveyed openly. There were those who accepted the preaching and there were those who openly rejected it and even wanted to harm the prophet Muhammad and expel him from Mecca. When the religion of Islam was introduced, there were only 10 people who adhered to it, including Khadijah, the wife of the prophet, Abu Bakar, the prophet's uncle, and Ali bin Abi Talib, the son of the prophet's uncle.
6. Preaching Strategy of Muhammad SAW
Some of the preaching strategies applied by Prophet Muhammad SAW at that time are
A. Instilling faith in the companions
of Prophet Muhammad SAW introducing monotheism to his companions and people as the basis of human life. The Prophet SAW taught the essence of human creation is to worship Allah SWT.
This means that if someone has faith in Allah SWT then he is obliged to apply it in everyday life, including to defend religious interests and defend Islam. This is what made the Prophet's friends willing to fight and sacrifice everything for the sake of the Islamic religion.
B. Da'wah in stages.
In preaching the apostle used clear strategies and stages, he started preaching to his own family and then spread it to the immediate environment and then to the outside community little by little by inviting friends who had previously converted to Islam.
The Prophet also invited friends who were respected by the Quraysh nation to help spread the religion of Islam and use its influence. The Apostle gradually also taught Islamic values and how to carry out worship such as prayers, both obligatory prayers and sunnah prayers, Ramadan fasting, zakat, almsgiving, Hajj and so on.
C. Utilizing the existing potential of
the Prophet Muhammad in his preaching he utilized all existing human potential in an effective way. He married Khadijah and invited his uncle, who had more wealth, to fund his da'wah. The Prophet also had friends who had great influence in the Quraysh tribe who would help and protect him in war, such as Umar bin Khatab and Hamzah.
The Messenger also utilized the intellectual potential of companions such as Ali bin Abi Talib, Zaid bin Tsabit and Abdullah bin Mas'ud for the sake of spreading Islam. (read companions of
the Khulafaur-Rasyidin period
After the Prophet Muhammad SAW died, he was replaced by a leader who was not a prophet but a caliph. There were the first four caliphs who succeeded Rasulullah SAW who were called Khulafaur Rashidin.
They were the closest friends of the Prophet Muhammad SAW, namely:
- Abu Bakr Ash Shidiq,
- Umar bin Khatab,
- Ustman bin Affan and
- Ali bin Abi Talib.
The task of the four caliphs is to ensure that Muslims continue to carry out the commandments of the Islamic religion taught by the Prophet Muhammad.
After the caliphate period ended, dynasty periods emerged in Saudi Arabia, such as the Umayah and Abasiyah eras, and the power of these dynasties strengthened in line with the strengthening influence of the Islamic religion in Europe and Africa. Islam then spread throughout the world through da'wah efforts that did not stop and were interrupted after the death of the prophet Muhammad SAW.
KHULAFAURASYIDIN
Caliph Replacement of Rasulullah
After the death of the Prophet, Medina was still the capital of the Muslim community and was led by four friends known as khulafaur rasyidin.
1. Abu Bakar
- Abu Bakar was appointed to stop the dispute between the Muhajirin (Mecca Muslims who migrated to Medina) and the Ansar (Medina Muslims) who were fighting for leadership.
- Reigned for 2 years
- Progress in the social, cultural and legal fields
- Collection of the Qur'an in one mushaf
- The territory reached Persia, parts of the Arabian Peninsula, and occupied parts of the Byzantine Empire
- The problem of disputes between Arab tribes which were reluctant to submit to Medina after the death of the Prophet was also resolved
- Died at the age of 61 years in 634 AD due to illness.
2. Umar bin Khathab
- Chosen as caliph based on the will of Abu Bakr who had previously negotiated with his friends
- Reigned for 10 years
- The territories covered the Arabian Peninsula, Palestine, Syria, most of Persia, and Egypt
- Divides the country into 8 administrative provinces, namely: Mecca, Medina, Syria, Jazirah Basrah, Kufa, Palestine and Egypt
- Start setting up salary and land tax payment systems
- Create a government administration system
- Established courts and baitul mall
- Forging currency
- Create a Hijri calendar
- Umar died in 644 AD or 23 Hijriyah
3. Uthman bin Affan
- Nicknamed dzunnurain (light of two moons) because he married two of the Prophet's daughters
- Reigned for 12 years
- Islamic territories included Armenia, Tunisia, Cyprus, as well as the remaining parts of Persia, Transoxania and Tabaristan
- Build dams to regulate water distribution and stem floods, roads, bridges, mosques, and expand the Prophet's Mosque
- A rebellion arose because the Uthman family was appointed as state officials
- Uthman died in 644 AD or 35 Hijriyah because he was killed in a rebellion attack
4. Ali bin Abi Talib
- Ali succeeded Uthman as caliph with great support from the people
- Ali's reign lasted for 6 years
- Due to alleged neportism committed by Uthman, the governors were deactivated, took back the land distributed by Uthman and returned it to the state
- Returning to using the annual tax distribution system that Umar once implemented
- There was a rebellion led by Talha, Zubair, and Aisyah because of Ali's reluctance to execute Uthman's killers, which resulted in the Camel War, Ali won.
- Resistance emerged from governors who felt they had lost power, led by Muawiyah, Governor of Damascus
- At the end of Ali's reign, Islam split into 3, namely Muawiyah, Shiites (Ali's supporters), and the Khawarik (groups who came out of Ali's ranks)
- On the 20th of Ramadhan 40 Hijriyah, Ali was killed
The Legacy of Islamic Civilization
Islamic history records that after the leadership of Khulafaur Rasyidin, Islam entered a period of dynasties that used a mornarchy system. Starting with the Umayyad Dynasty who led in Damascus. Islamic civilization continues to develop and leaves behind legacies in various areas of life.
1. Legacy in the Field of Science
Ibn Sina or in the western world known as Avicena is the father of medical science. His writing entitled Al Qanun fii Thib (Canon of Medicine) has been used for almost 10 centuries as the basis of modern medical science.
The science of algebra was first introduced by Al Khawarizmi or known as Algebra. Created the numerical system that we now know, replacing the Roman numerals that were still used at that time. Jabir ibn Hayyan is a famous Muslim scientist in the field of chemistry.
Al Jazari discovered a humanoid system that was applied to the hourglass. This system is the basis of today's robotic systems.
2. Relics in the Military and Armament Sector
of the Alhambra Fortress, the center of defense of the Islamic army as well as the center of government in the city of Granada, Spain. The Damascus sword is a very famous sword because it was used by Salahuddin Al-Ayyubi on the crusades.
3. Heritage in the Field of Architecture
Islamic architectural styles are heavily influenced by Asian and European cultures Rome, Egypt, Persia and Bzantium, a combination of west and east. The building has a dome roof and stone walls decorated with various mosaic ornaments, wall paint, statues and reliefs with Islamic motifs.
Admin : Beatrice Bedelia
Web Blog : Dialog Kebenaran
