ISLAM IN INDIA: AN OVERVIEW

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ISLAM IN INDIA AN OVERVIEW

• Dr. Doris Jakobsh

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Adherents.comWORLD-WIDE MUSLIM POPULATIONS900
MILLION
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ISLAM

• Meaning Submission/Surrender
• To Allah (the God)
• God alone is great

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CONTEXT

• 3 great super-powers
• Byzantine Empire - Christian
• Ethiopian Empire Christian
• Persian Empire Zoroastrian, with Jewish and
  Christian minorities
• Arabia of Muhammad - polytheistic

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HANIFS

• Already a movement towards monotheism, due to the
  belief that worldview of the super-powers was
  more progressive than that of polytheism
• Movement that affirmed monotheism, but distinct
  from Christianity, Judaism, Zoroastsrianism

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MUHAMMAD

• 570-632 CE
• Born in Mecca

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MUHAMMAD

• Merchant family
• Part of Quraysh tribe (custodians of sacred
  places of Mecca)
• 25 years old entered service of Khadija, a
  wealthy widow much older than Muhammad
• Fatima their daughter

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Muhammad leads a caravan
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MUHAMMAD AND GABRIEL

• 611 CE
• Solitary meditations in caves
• Archangel Gabriel

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HIJRA

• 611-621 Muhammad preaches to fellow Meccans about
  the oneness of God
• 622 accepts an invitation to Yathrib (Medina)
• This journey is called HIJRA
• This is the date from which the Muslim calendar
  starts

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MUHAMMAD IN MEDINA
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MUHAMMAD RETURNS TO MECCA
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• USING MEDINA AS A BASE, ALL OF ARABIA IS BROUGHT
  UNDER MUHAMMADS CONTROL
• HE WAS THE RELIGIOUS LEADER, POLITICAL RULER,
  MILITARY COMMANDER

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• HIS DIVINE REVELATIONS CONTINUE TO THE END OF HIS
  LIFE
• THESE REVELATIONS TOGETHER MAKE UP THE TEXT OF
  THE QURAN, THE HOLY SCRIPTURES OF ISLAM

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MUHAMMADS DEATH
In 632, he was suddenly taken ill. on June 8,
with his third wife Aishah beside him, the
Messenger of God "died with the heat of noon."
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ISLAMS EXPANSION, 25 YEARS
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MECCA TODAY
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5 PILLARS OF ISLAM

• SHAHADA - WITNESS
• SALAAT - PRAYER 5 TIMES DAILY
• ZAKAT - ALMSGIVING
• SAWM OR SIYAM, FASTING, RAMADAN
• HAJJ - PILGRIMAGE

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1) SHAHADA CORNERSTONE OF ISLAM
There is no God but God, and Muhammad is his
messenger (Quran, 4829).
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SHAHADA

• In Arabic, the first part is la ilaha illa'Allah
  - 'there is no god except God' ilaha (god) can
  refer to anything which we may be tempted to put
  in place of God--wealth, power, and the like.
  Then comes illa'Allah 'except God', the source
  of all Creation. The second part of the Shahada
  is Muhammadun rasulu'Llah 'Muhammad is the
  messenger of God.' A message of guidance has come
  through a man like ourselves. It is taken
  directly from the Qur'an

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QURAN 318, BEARING WITNESS

• "God bears witness that there is no god but God
  and so do the angels and those possessed of
  knowledge. In justice, there is no god but Him,
  He is the exalted, the wise."

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2) SALAAT PRAYER

• dawn
• noon
• mid-afternoon
• sunset
• nightfall
• Prayers determine the rhythm of the entire day
• Prayers can be performed anywhere, but preferably
  in a mosque

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SALAAT, POSTURES

• The Salaat consists of standing, bowing,
  prostrating and sitting positions.
• Before, during and after each of these positions,
  Muslims recite verses from the Holy Qur'an and
  glorify Allah as directed by Prophet Muhammad
  (pbuh) who was taught the details by Archangel
  Jibril (Gabriel, pbuh).

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• Muslims performing Salaat facing toward Ka'bah.
  RIGHT Pilgrims in prostration.

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CALL TO PRAYER

• God is most Great. God is most Great.God is
  most Great. God is most Great.I testify that
  there is no God except Allah.I testify that
  there is no God except Allah.I testify that
  Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.I testify
  that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.Come to
  prayer! Come to prayer!Come to success (in this
  life and the Here after)! Come to success!Allah
  is most great. Allah is most great.There is no
  God except Allah.
• (heard in Muslim mosques)

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MUSLIMS, CALCUTTA
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3) ZAKAT ALMSGIVING

• all things belong to God
• wealth is therefore held by human beings in
  trust.
• Zakat literally means grow (in goodness) or
  'increase', 'purifying' or 'making pure'.
• So the act of giving zakat means purifying one's
  wealth to gain Allah's blessing to make it grow
  in goodness.

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ZAKAT RELIGIOUS PAYMENT

• Zakat is a religious payment made by Muslims
  from their wealth or income, or business, or
  crops,
• In the form of money or crops or animals
  usually 2.5
• Often Zakat committee set up, or, in Islamic
  countries, government

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ZAKAT QURAN 9103

• "Take from their wealth a portion for charity, in
  order to clean them thereby, and sanctify them."

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4) SAWM OR SIYAM

• Fasting
• Every year in the month of Ramadan, all Muslims
  fast from first light until sundown, abstaining
  from food, drink, and sexual relations.

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SAWM OR SIYAM

• Those who are sick, elderly, or on a journey, and
  women who are pregnant or nursing are NOT
  required to complete the entire fast
• They can break the fast and make up an equal
  number of days later in the year
• They can also feed a needy person for every day
  missed.

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RAMADAN

• Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar
• The Month of Ramadan is also when it is believed
  the Holy Quran was sent down from heaven to
  guide humankind and offer the way of Salvation

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RAMADAN

• Ramadan is a time when Muslims concentrate on
  their faith and spend less time on the concerns
  of their everyday lives. It is a time of worship
  and contemplation

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QURAN

• One may eat and drink at any time during the
  night "until you can plainly distinguish a white
  thread from a black thread by the daylight then
  keep the fast until night."

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ID/EID-AL-FITR

• Begins with the sighting of the new moon
• Fasting is forbidden on this day, as it marks the
  end of the month long fast of Ramadan

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EID

• One is encouraged to rise early and eat a light
  snack
• Then bathe, as always, but with the remembrance
  that this is a special day.
• Muslims are encouraged to dress in their best
  clothes, new if possible.

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EID MUBARAK
EID GREETING CARDS
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5) HAJJ PILGRIMAGE

• a once-in-a-lifetime obligation upon male and
  female ADULTS whose health and means permit it
• about two million people go to Makkah each year
  from every corner of the globe

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HAJJ PREPARATIONS

• Before setting out, a pilgrim should redress all
  wrongs, pay all debts, plan to have enough funds
  for his/her own journey and for the maintenance
  of the family while he/she is away, and prepare
  him/herself for good conduct throughout the Hajj.
  

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HAJJ LUNAR CALENDAR

• Although Makkah is always filled with visitors,
  the annual Hajj begins in the twelfth month of
  the Islamic year
• so Hajj and Ramadan are at times celebrated in
  the fall or winter

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QURAN, 2226-30

• Behold! We gave the site to Abraham of the
  (Sacred) House (saying) "Associate not any thing
  (in worship) with Me and sanctify My House for
  those who compass it round or stand up or bow or
  prostrate themselves (therein in prayer)."And
  proclaim the Pilgrimage among men they will come
  to thee on foot and (mounted) on every kind of
  camel lean on account of journeys through deep
  and distant mountain highways"That they may
  witness the benefits (provided) for them and
  celebrate the name of Allah through the Days
  appointed over the cattle which He has provided
  for them (for sacrifice) then eat ye thereof and
  feed the distressed ones in want."Then let them
  complete the rites prescribed for them perform
  their vows and (again) circumambulate the Ancient
  House."Such (is the Pilgrimage) whoever honors
  the sacred rites of Allah for him it is good in
  the sight of his Lord. Lawful to you (for food in
  pilgrimage) are cattle except those mentioned to
  you (as exceptions) but shun the abomination of
  idols and shun the word that is false.

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MINA

• On the first day of the Hajj, pilgrims sweep out
  of Mecca towards Mina, a small uninhabited
  village east of the city.
• Pilgrims generally spend their time meditating
  and praying, as the Prophet did on his
  pilgrimage.

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HAJJ CLOTHING

• Pilgrims wear simple but special white clothes
  simple because no distinctions of class and
  culture are to be shown
• Ihram', a garment made of two seamless white
  sheets or towels symbolising purity and equality
  that must be worn by men
• all are equal before God

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HAJJ RITES

• Ablutions (as before prayer times)
• Abstention from any killing, sexual activity,
  cutting hair or nails

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TOUCH KAABA

• The Ka'aba is a stone building located near the
  center of the quadrangle of the Grand Mosque in
  the Holy City of Makkah. Set in a silver
  surround in the east corner of the Ka'aba, some
  four feet above ground level, is the Black Stone.
  This sacred Stone, the focal point of the Hajj,
  is the only remnant of the shrine which Abraham
  built when it was given to Abraham by the angel
  Gabriel.
• Kiss or touch KAABA
• Circumambulate 7 times (Tawaaf)

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KAABA, DRAWING
Each year an Arab nation provides the beautiful
drapes which cover the Kabah for the Hajj.
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REFLECTIONS AT KAABA

• To touch and kiss the stone is to travel back in
  time and follow in the footsteps of all those
  pious and noble greats in history who have
  touched it. It is not easy to do that, though. It
  seems there are always too many people ahead who
  are trying to do the same. The closest we came to
  it was about ten feet and there we raised our
  hands in salutation and to say that 'God is
  great.

Reflections of a devotee at the
Haj, http//users.erols.com/ameen/hajjexp.htm j
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HAJJ KAABA
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KAABA

• Islam's holiest place was not built by its last
  Prophet Muhammad
• tradition has it that the Ka'bah was originally
  built by Prophet Adam and was rebuilt by Prophet
  Ibrahim (Abraham) and his eldest son Prophet
  Isma'il (Ishmael), nearly four thousand five
  hundred years ago.

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TALBIAH (prayer during Tawaaf circumambulation)

• Here I am O Allah, at Thy Command. Here I am, at
  Thy Command.There is no partner unto Thee. Here
  I am, at Thy Command.Verily Thine is the praise,
  the blessings and the sovereignty of the
  universe.There is no partner unto Thee.

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ZAMZAM

• Zamzam well
• Where the water sprang up under Ismaels feet
• Now enclosed in a marble chamber in the Ka'bah

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REFLECTIONS, ZAMZAM

• As we drink from Zamzam, we know it is the same
  well that sprang up in the middle of the desert
  so Hagar and Ishmael could drink from it.

http//users.erols.com/ameen/hajjexp.htm
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SAY RUNNING

• Run 7 times up and down a colonnade between 2
  hills (450 yards apart) SAY - Hagar searching
  for water for Ishmael
• Hagar, is said to have run back and forth seven
  times between two rocky hillocks, al-Safa and
  al-Marwah and then found the sacred water known
  as Zamzam

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Reflections at Hajj

• As we walk and run between Safa and Marwah, the
  two hillocks in the northeast of Ka'bah, we know
  these are the same hills where Hajerah (Hagar)
  ran to search for water for infant Ishmael.

Reflections of a devotee at the
Hajj http//users.erols.com/ameen/hajjexp.htm
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(No Transcript)
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RETURN TO MINA

• Before daybreak on the third day, pilgrims move
  back to Mina. There they throw white pebbles that
  have been collected earlier.
• According to some traditions, this practice is
  associated with Prophet Ibrahim.
• As pilgrims throw seven pebbles at each of these
  pillars, they remember the story of Satan's
  attempt to persuade Ibrahim to disregard God's
  command to sacrifice his son.

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REFLECTIONS AT MINA

• As we gather pebbles at Muzdalfah to throw at
  the pillars designated as the place where Satan
  tempted Prophet Abraham, we realize that some of
  the very pebbles may have been touched by the
  Prophet and his companions. At this place, we are
  in the grip of history. We can see it, hear it,
  feel it, touch it and drink from it. It is in
  Mina where Satan tempted Prophet Abraham and he
  threw pebbles at Satan to keep him at bay. In the
  memory of that incident, we also throw pebbles at
  the symbolic Satan reminding ourselves the satan
  within us exploiting our weaknesses and tempting
  us with riches, pleasures, and non-productive
  activities.

http//users.erols.com/ameen/hajjexp.htm
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FESTIVAL OF SACRIFICE

• Following the casting of the pebbles, most
  pilgrims sacrifice a goat, sheep or some other
  animal. They give the meat to the poor after, in
  some cases, keeping a small portion for
  themselves.

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CAMELS, FOR FESTIVAL OF SACRIFICE
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END OF HAJJ

• Men either shave their heads or clip their hair,
  and women cut off a symbolic lock, to mark their
  partial deconsecration. This is done as a symbol
  of humility. All proscriptions, save the one of
  conjugal relations, are now lifted.

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REFLECTION END OF HAJJ

• The most difficult time comes when leaving the
  House of Allah. One is never completely satisfied
  with the time spent here. There is always a
  desire for visiting it again and to enjoy the
  peace and tranquility of this holy place of the
  Prophets. We make the farewell Tawaaf and pray
  that we come back here soon.

http//users.erols.com/ameen/hajjexp.htm
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HAJJ, REFLECTION

• "It would require a master pen to describe the
  scene, poignant in its intensity, of that great
  concourse of humanity of which I was one small
  unit, completely lost to their surroundings in a
  fervor of religious enthusiasm. Many of the
  pilgrims had tears streaming down their cheeks
  others raised their faces to the starlit sky that
  had witnessed this drama so often in the past
  centuries. The shining eyes, the passionate
  appeals, the pitiful hands outstretched in prayer
  moved me in a way that nothing had ever done
  before, and I felt caught up in a strong wave of
  spiritual exaltation. I was one with the rest of
  the pilgrims in a sublime act of complete
  surrender to the Supreme Will which is Islam."

Lady Evelyn Cobbold, 1934 http//www.islam.org/Mos
que/jlthajj/hajj.htm
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• ISLAM IN INDIA

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FIRST MUSLIMS 711

• Caliphate of Damscus

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MAHMUD OF GHAZNI

• Afghanistan
• 1001 1026 CE
• 17 invasions
• The Idol Breaker

GHAZNI VICTORY TOWER, GHAZNI, AFGHANISTAN
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ANANDPAL, RAJA OF PUNJAB

• 1008 CE
• Peshawar
• Runaway
• Elephant

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TIMUR
Tamerlane 1398, India
"I am the scourge of God appointed to chastise
you, since no one knows the remedy for your
iniquity except me. You are wicked, but I am more
wicked than you, so be silent!"
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BABUR
1526-1530
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PURANA QILA, DELHI
Babur's Purana Qila, Delhi
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HUMANYUN

• 1530-1556

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AKBAR

• 1556-1605
• Son of Humayun
• Greatest of Mughal
• line

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Jahangir's birth, Rejoicing, Mughal, c. 1590.
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JAHANGIR

• 1605-1627
• Muslim emperor in power when first Europeans came
  to India
• Built Sikandra, Akbars tomb

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SHAHJAHAN

• 1627-1658
• Shahjahan
• Mumtaz

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TAJ MAHAL
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AURANGZEB

• 1658 to 1707

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BRIDGES ISLAM AND HINDUISM

• Kabir
• Nanak
• Akbar

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KABIR, THE WEAVER
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KABIR

• Are you looking for me? I am in the next seat.
• My shoulder is against yours.
• You will not find me in stupas, not in shrine
  rooms, nor in temples
• Not in masses, nor kirtan, not in eating nothing
  but vegetables.
• When you really look for me, you will see me
  instantly
• You will find me in the tiniest house of time.
• Kabir says Student, tell me, what is God?
• He is the breath inside the breath.

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KABIR

• Swan, tell me your story.
• What country have you come from, swan, what
  shores are you flying to?
• Where do you rest at night, and what are you
  looking for?
• Its dawn, swan, wake up, soar to the air, follow
  me!
• There is a land not governed by sadness and
  doubt, where the fear of death is unknown.
• Spring forests bloom there and the wind is sweet
  with the flower He-Is-Myself.
• The bee if the heart dives into it and wants no
  other joy.

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KABIR

• 1440 1518 CE
• Weaver caste in Varanasi
• (At an earlier time weaver caste of Varanasi had
  converted to Islam)
• Advantageous to do so
• Kabir raised as Muslim

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KABIRS CRITIQUE OF ISLAM

• Im asking you, Mr. Muslim
• With your red and yellow
• Rags and robes.
• Now you, Mr. Qazi religious administrator
• What kind of work is that,
• Going from house to house
• Chopping heads?
• Who gave you the order for chickens and goats?
• Who told you to swing the knife?
• Arent you afraid to be called a sage
• As you read your verses
• And dupe the world?
• Kabir says, this high class Muslim
• Wants to force this way on the world.
• Fast all day
• Kill cows at night,
• Here prayers, there blood
• Does this please God?

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- KABIR URGED PEOPLE OF ALL FAITHS TO FIND
SALVATION IN TOTAL SURRENDER TO GOD - THIS ALONE
IS THE TRUE PATH
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KABIR

• O servant, where does thou seek me?
• Lo! I am beside thee.
• I am neither in temple nor in mosque.
• I am neither in Kaaba nor in Kailash.
• Neither am I in rites and ceremonies,
• Nor in yoga and renunciation.
• If thou are a true seeker,
• Thou shalt at once see me.
• Thou shalt meet me in a moment of time.
• Kabir says, O Sadhu
• God is in the breath of all.

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AKBAR

• Conquest is not what he is known for
• Unification and consolidation
• Policy of conciliation

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AKBAR

• Abolished jizya special tax on non-Muslims
• Sought out Hindu holy men
• Employed Hindus

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GENUINE CULTURAL SYNTHESIS

• Began as a policy of conciliation
• Evolved into something much bigger
• CULTURAL SYNTENSIS OF THE FINEST ELEMENTS OF ALL
  THE WORLDS RELIGIONS

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AKBAR LEADS BY EXAMPLE

• Married 4 wives Muslim, Buddhist, Christian,
  Hindu

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FATEHPUR SIKRI

• Visible model of policy of cultural fusion
• Combined elements of both Muslim and Hindu
  traditions

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Diwan-i-kas - Akbar's audiences
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(No Transcript)
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Buland gate, entrance to Masjid
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Din-i-Ilahi

• divine faith
• New religion
• One that would incorporate both the common and
  the BEST elements of the worlds religions
• Religious syncretism

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FATEHPUR SIKRI A DREAM?

• YET, IN A LITTLE MORE THAN 20 YEARS, FATEHPUR
  SIKRI WAS ABANDONED
• POSSIBLY BECAUSE OF A SHORTAGE OF WATER
• TODAY, IT IS QUIET AND DESERTED PLACE