A New Introduction to Islam

Erscheinungsjahr 2003
ISBN: 978-0-631-21604-9
Verlag: Wiley

Buch, Englisch, 288 Seiten, Format (B × H): 171 mm x 246 mm

'A New Introduction to Islam 'offers students a fresh account of the origins, major features and lasting impact of the Islamic tradition. The development of Muslim beliefs and practices is carefully explored against the background of social and cultural contexts that extend from North Africa to South and Southeast Asia, providing a new and illuminating perspective.

This thought-provoking book:

Introduces students to the history and development of Islamic studies as a discipline, showing how it has shaped our understanding of Islam

Examines how the vibrant religious culture of the Near East produced a unique and brilliant intellectual and religious tradition spanning the fields of Islamic law, theology, philosophy and mysticism

Surveys the ways in which Islamic tradition has enriched the world and in turn been enriched by interaction with other civilizations, from the Mongols to the modern West

Considers the opportunities and challenges facing Muslims today.

Useful student features include detailed chronologies and tables summarizing key information, as well as maps and diagrams. It provides the ideal introductory textbook to the fascinating practice, history and beliefs of Islamic tradition.

Zielgruppe

students of Islam in departments of history, religion or Middle Eastern studies, students of comparative religion or religion and culture, general readers

Autoren/Hrsg.

Brown, Daniel W.

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Islam & Islamische Studien Islam & Islamische Studien

Inhaltsverzeichnis

List of Figures

List of Maps

Introduction: The Problem of Defining Islam

Part I: Islamic Origins:

1. The Conquests:

Psychological Impact

Archaeological Data: The 'Invisible' Conquests

Resources for Further Study

2. Arabia:

Pre-Islamic Poetry

The Book of Idols

Mecca and the Quraysh

The Gifts of the Arabs

Resources for Further Study

3. The Pre-Islamic Near East:

Christianity in the Near East

Religion in the Sßsßnian Empire

The Place of the Arabs in the Near East

Resources for Further Study

4. Religion of Empire:

Arab Colonial Policy

The Problem of Conversion

The Nature of Leadership

The Dome of the Rock

The Constitution of Medina

Resources for Further Study

Part II: The Formation of the Islamic Tradition:

5. The Qurßn:

The History of the Text

The Qurßn in Muslim Piety

Interpreting The Qurßn

Resources for Further Study

6. The Life of Muhammad:

Prologue and Setting

Birth and Childhood

Early Adulthood

The Beginning of Revelation

Opposition

The Night Journey and Ascent to Heaven

The Hijra

Victory and Defeat

The Peace of Al-Hudaybiyya and the Farewell Pilgrimage

Resources for Further Study

7. The Tradition Literature

The Science of Hadî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;th

The Exegetical Origins of Hadî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;th

In Quest of the Historical Muhammad

The Sî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;ra and the Shaping of an Islamic World View

Resources for Further Study

Part III: Islamic Institutions:

8. The Caliphate:

The Shî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;î;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Vision

Shî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;î;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;sm and the Abbßsid Revolution

Twelvers

The Ismß î;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;lî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;s

The Nizßrî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; 'Assassins'

The Khßrijites

The Sßsßnian Revival

Al-Mßwardî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; and the Sunnî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Compromise

Resources for Further Study

9. Islamic Law:

The Coffee Debate

Revelation and Reason

Qiyßs

The Schools of Law

Islamic Law and the State

Ijmß

The Usûl Al-Fiqh

The Substance of the Law

Ritual Purity

Acts of Worship

The Origins of Islamic Law

Resources for Further Study

10. Islamic Theology - Philosophy:

Freedom and Determinism

Gods Attributes

Faith and Works

Leadership

The Sunnî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Consensus

Ahmad ibn Hanbal

al-Asharî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

al-Asharî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; and Kalßm

The Theological Environment

The Challenge Of Philosophy

Prophecy and Revelation in Islamic Philosophy

Philosophy and Mysticism

Resources for Further Study

11. Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;sm:

Stages on the Path

The Spiritual Master

Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Brotherhoods

Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Ritual

The Destination

Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Cosmology

Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;sm in History: The Case of al-Hallßj

Beginnings to the Tenth Century

Classical Manuals and the Growth of Tarî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;qas

The Pervasiveness of Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;sm

Resources for Further Study

Part IV: Crisis and Renewal in Islamic History:

12. Turks, Crusaders and Mongols:

The Saljûqs

Al-Ghazßlî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; and the Sunnî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;; Revival

Slave Soldiers

The Crusades

The Mongols

The Impact of the Mongol Invasions

Resources for Further Study

13. Encounter with the West:

The Ottoman, Safßvid and Mughal Empires

The Rise of European Power

The Religious Environment

The Ulamß and the Empires

Trends in Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;sm

The Wahhßbî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;s

Jihßd Movements

Al-Afghßnî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;

Sayyid Ahmad Khßn and Alî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;garh

Resources for Further Study

14. Islam and Modernity:

From Caliphate to Nation-State

The Idea of the Islamic State

From Sharî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;a to Secular Law and Back

A New Kalßm?

The Vitality of Sûfî;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;sm

Resources for Further Study

Epilogue: Islam in a Postmodern World

Bibliography

Index

Über Autor(innen)

Daniel W. Brown has lived in Egypt and in Pakistan where he was born and spent his first eighteen years. He has been a Visiting Scholar at the International Islamic University in Islamabad, the Institute of Islamic Culture in Lahore and Cairo University, and has taught Islamic Studies at Mount Holyoke, Amherst and Smith Colleges. He is the author of Rethinking Tradition in Modern Islamic Thought.
Independent Scholar