Mosque in Kuala Terrengganu.I'll only spend today here. I'm heading for Perhentian Island tomorrow morning.
I couldn't sleep last night, so I read a bunch on Islam. Just to set the matter straight - I feel that there are so many prejudiced ideas about Islam and Muslims, and mostly it is based on ignorance. The more we learn about each other, and break down those stereotypes, the better chance for peace. Here is what I learned about Islam last night.
On Mohammad:
Mohammad was born in 571C.E. in Mecca to a noble clan, but grew up an orphan. His father died before he was born and his mother died when he was six years old. he was raised by his grandfather and his uncle. Not content with the "pleasures of the material world," Mohammad would retire for days at a time in a cave called Hira near Mecca. In the year 610C.E. while meditating in the cave, Mohammad received his first "revelation" from God. He continued to receive revelations for the next 23 years, until right before his death in the year 632C.E. From 610-622 Mohammad faced great opposition in Mecca, and in 622 he was forced to flee to Medina, where he was very successful. By the time of his death, Mohammad united all of Arabia under Islam.
On the Qur'an:
The Qur'an is compilation of all of Mohammad's revelations, come to him from the Angel Gabriel. There are 114 chapters, which were compiled during his last days in Medina. The last passage was revealed to Mohammad in 632C.E. The Qur'an is not arranged in chronological order, for example, Mohammad's first revelation is in chapter 96. The order of the Qur'an was determined by the Angel Gabriel to Mohammad when all the revelations were completed.
When a revelation was received, Mohammad would call a scribe to write it down, then read it back to him to make sure it was recorded accurately. Also, Mohammad's companions committed the entire Qur'an to memory, so that at the time of Mohammad's death, several thousand companions had it committed to memory. The Qur'an was compiled during the time of the first Caliph, right after Mohammad's death.
The entire Qur'an can be summed up in two basic headings:
1) Belief in one God
2) All humans are equal and accorded equal rights
On Islam:
Islam is an Arabic word meaning "submission, surrender and obedience to God." Muslims have two great books - the Qur'an and the Hadith, the second most important book of Islam, which describes the sayings and actions of Mohammad.
Muslims believe that God sent prophets to help guide man, the first being Adam, and the last being Mohammad. Two dozen prophets are mentioned in the Qur'an. The five major prophets before Mohammad were Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus.
Muslim's believe that everything works according to the will and laws of God, but Man has free choice. Man's freedom is not a right, but a test - the eternal fate of man rests on the outcome of this test. Human beings are eternal creatures, only a small part of it is on earth. The rest is in the Hereafter.
On Mohammad:
Mohammad was born in 571C.E. in Mecca to a noble clan, but grew up an orphan. His father died before he was born and his mother died when he was six years old. he was raised by his grandfather and his uncle. Not content with the "pleasures of the material world," Mohammad would retire for days at a time in a cave called Hira near Mecca. In the year 610C.E. while meditating in the cave, Mohammad received his first "revelation" from God. He continued to receive revelations for the next 23 years, until right before his death in the year 632C.E. From 610-622 Mohammad faced great opposition in Mecca, and in 622 he was forced to flee to Medina, where he was very successful. By the time of his death, Mohammad united all of Arabia under Islam.
On the Qur'an:
The Qur'an is compilation of all of Mohammad's revelations, come to him from the Angel Gabriel. There are 114 chapters, which were compiled during his last days in Medina. The last passage was revealed to Mohammad in 632C.E. The Qur'an is not arranged in chronological order, for example, Mohammad's first revelation is in chapter 96. The order of the Qur'an was determined by the Angel Gabriel to Mohammad when all the revelations were completed.
When a revelation was received, Mohammad would call a scribe to write it down, then read it back to him to make sure it was recorded accurately. Also, Mohammad's companions committed the entire Qur'an to memory, so that at the time of Mohammad's death, several thousand companions had it committed to memory. The Qur'an was compiled during the time of the first Caliph, right after Mohammad's death.
The entire Qur'an can be summed up in two basic headings:
1) Belief in one God
2) All humans are equal and accorded equal rights
On Islam:
Islam is an Arabic word meaning "submission, surrender and obedience to God." Muslims have two great books - the Qur'an and the Hadith, the second most important book of Islam, which describes the sayings and actions of Mohammad.
Muslims believe that God sent prophets to help guide man, the first being Adam, and the last being Mohammad. Two dozen prophets are mentioned in the Qur'an. The five major prophets before Mohammad were Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus.
Muslim's believe that everything works according to the will and laws of God, but Man has free choice. Man's freedom is not a right, but a test - the eternal fate of man rests on the outcome of this test. Human beings are eternal creatures, only a small part of it is on earth. The rest is in the Hereafter.
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