Expanding Culture in the West and East essays

Expanding Culture in the West and East essays The Islamic civilization has been considered by any to be one of the greatest civilizations to survive. It is an excellent example of how a society can be influenced by ancient cultures and cosmopolitan ideas at the same time. The post-classical Arab world in the seventh century was known for its greatness but it also experienced rough times. Because the region had long been governed by Roman and Persian empires, the Arab society did not experience a stable political system. Individuals were members of small groups, or tribes, and this type of social structure in the Arab world was the foundation for an unstable economy. The Islamic culture was primarily influenced with the emergence of Muhammad. Muhammad was a very spiritual man who began teaching Islam in Mecca, a popular Arabian city. He was extremely dissatisfied with what religions offered people and declared that God called him to change how most Arabians believed. He claimed that Gabriel, a messenger of God, had delivered revelations to him. He was extremely popular among the people and influenced culture through his religious teachings. In 622, many of Muhammad's followers asked him to establish a haram in Medina, which he decided he would do. His journey from Mecca to Medina is considered by many historians to be the "beginning of a new era" (Noble 1994 p. 273) in the Arab world. It was necessary for Muhammad to control Medina as well as Mecca in order to convert as much of Arabia as possible. Muhammad's teachings reached far beyond Arabia and because other cultures were quite receptive, Muhammad's teachings survived. After Muhammad's death, Islam experienced great expansion. Abu Bakr was Muhammad successor and his greatest accomplishment was winning wars against the Bedouins. By the time Umar succeeded Bakr, Arabia was almost completely united. Umar instigated conquests of Roman and Persian empires ...