Among all the official world religions, Islam is one of the youngest. This religion appeared on the Arabian Peninsula around the beginning of the 7th century AD. During this period, lived its founder Muhammad, from whom the spread of Islam in the world began, and which continues to this day.
Prerequisites for the emergence of Islam
On the eve of the emergence of a new religion, a large number of tribes lived on the peninsula, each of which had its own pagan beliefs. It should be noted that conflicts on religious grounds were very rare. One of the largest sanctuaries in which rituals of worship were held was Mecca, which contained idols revered by many tribes. There was also the famous meteorite, which was worshiped by local residents and which is now considered sacred by Muslims.
The entire history of religion is traditionally divided into several periods. In this case, the first is considered to be the pre-Islamic one, which lasted until the appearance of the Prophet Muhammad.
The emergence of a new religion
The second stage in the history of Islam is associated precisely with Muhammad. It is worth noting that Islam appeared later than such religions as Christianity and Judaism. For the first time, it became widely known about him from Muhammad, revered by Muslims as the main prophet. According to the scriptures, he once had an appearance of an angel. When he appeared, the messenger of the higher powers revealed to the prophet his purpose, the foundations of a new religion, and also dictated a part of the sacred text, which later became part of the Koran - the main holy book of Muslims. After that, Muhammad began to preach religion in Mecca, where he did not find much support at first.
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Then he had to go with several students to Medina, where the new teaching found a larger number of followers. A new Muslim community was gradually formed, which gained an increasing number of followers, despite the opposition of other communities. And after some time, the founder returned back to Mecca, already with the support of his large community.
As for the historical background, it was during this period of time that complex processes began to take place on the Arabian Peninsula, during which people began to be divided according to class. At the same time, there was a constant struggle in political terms, so the emergence of a new religion could resolve many emerging problems.
Over time, under the banner of this religion, all the tribes inhabiting the peninsula were united, and as a result, an influential Caliphate emerged, whose possessions spread far beyond the Arabian Peninsula. Later, the huge Muslim empire was nevertheless divided into smaller states, but Islam continued to develop, and today it is one of the most widespread world religions.
Some researchers believe that during the formation of Islam, it was influenced by local cults prevalent at that time on the territory of the peninsula among the Arab tribes. In addition, religion has many things in common with Christianity, as well as with Judaism.
Further development of religion
The next stage in the history of Islam began some time after the death of Muhammad. It was marked by the fact that all believers were divided into 2 main branches - Sunnis and Shiites. Their ideology differed in some points, for example, there were controversial issues regarding the successors of the prophet. These trends still exist today, while it is worth noting that most Muslims belong to the Sunni branch of Islam. But, despite the differences, the basic concepts of Islam are common among both Sunnis and Shiites.
The personality of the prophet Muhammad
Muhammad is revered by Muslims as the main prophet. It was he who is the founder of this religion, who established all the basic principles and postulates of the teaching. Many legends have been created about his life, but it is known for certain that this man was born at the end of the 6th century. The sacred city of Mecca is considered the birthplace. It was there, at the age of about 40, that he first began to preach a new doctrine. Despite the fact that Muhammad had no education, he had good abilities and curiosity, and during his travels he got acquainted with the basics of Christianity, as well as Judaism. As a result, the foundation was laid for the birth of a new religion. The personality of the Prophet Muhammad is unique, as in the difficult social and political situation on the peninsula,he was able to unite all the Arab tribes under the banner of a new religion and one god.
This religion is interethnic and monotheistic, anyone can accept it, therefore it has adherents in many countries of the world. But at the same time, believers are required to strictly follow all accepted traditions and customs, deviation from which is unacceptable.