Were there any previous attempts before Muhammad by Arabs to unite Arabia and conquer adjacent lands?

What effects do you think the Mongol conquests had on the way Islam was accepted in lands conquered after the Mongols converted? Did the Mongols add/change anything in the way they practiced Islam after their conversion?

Also, just because I've been focusing way too much on this for one of my classes: do you think there has ever been an ideal Islamic state? What has come the closest, do you think?

I remember learning in history class that if some big battles against the Moors and the Turks hadn't been won, all of Europe would be primarily Muslim today.

The professor made it sound like the battle of Tours was basically a hail mary to stop the spread of Islam. Was the battle that decisive and influential, or do you think the significance of the battle of Tours was exaggerated after the fact to make a better story.

Edit: sorry if this isn't a good question. But thanks for the ama!

I've heard the phrase "closing the gates of ijtihad" as a metaphor for Early/Medieval Islam shifting to a preference for jurisprudential and theological precedent over novel interpretations of scripture. Is this a fair assessment and what were the social/political circumstances which led to this?

Hi everyone!

Islam obviously has a history within China. There were Muslims of Chinese origin, and there still are today. But I know nothing about how China was perceived externally by various Islamic states, particularly those of the 'Middle East', or 'Near East' depending on which terminology one prefers. Did any Islamic scholars outside of China attempt to place China in their conception of how the world was ordered? Did they theologically explore Chinese traditional religion and how it differed from that of Islam? What was China's place within the 'Islamic' imagination?

I imagine that these questions are probably a little broad, and (unintentionally) imply more monolithic attitudes than actually existed. In the which case, I'm totally open for the questions being problematised/criticised!

I've always been familiar with Arab scholars preserving and advancing Greek ideas/technology. How did this exchange occur? Why aren't the Byzantines known for preserving these things?

What caused the radicalization of Islam in the modern world compared to say the times of Ibn-Rusdh? What was the turning point? Was it due to a single person or was it much more prolonged than that?

Afternoon!

My question is about the notorious crux in Qur'an 4:157-159, on the death (or non-death) of Jesus. For reference, here's the translation of Haleem (2005):

[The People of the Book said] ‘We have killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the Messenger of God.’ (They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, though it was made to appear like that to them; those that disagreed about him are full of doubt, with no knowledge to follow, only supposition: they certainly did not kill him– 158 God raised him up to Himself. God is almighty and wise. 159 There is not one of the People of the Book who will not believe in [Jesus] before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection he will be a witness against them.)

In a fairly recent article by Benjamin Reynolds ("The Muslim Jesus: Dead or Alive?," Bulletin of the SOAS 72 [2009]: 237-258), he largely abandons traditional interpretations of these verses that affirm that Jesus did not die, and instead thinks that the key to understanding the passage is that its "rhetoric is, above all, marked by anti-Jewish polemic." He writes that "the Quran uses the transitive verb tawaffā to teach [that] humans can no more take a human life than they can create one. God creates life and He takes life away," and - quoting other instances in the Qur'an where God is said to have "taken the life" of Jesus (e.g. Q 5.17) - he concludes that "the Jews who claim to have killed Jesus in sūrat al-nisā' (4) 157 are . . . in error. They . . . arrogated to themselves God’s power over life and death."

That is to say, he did actually die, but that the point of emphasis is that the allowance of his death was due simply to the agency of God himself.

Has he overstated the case here? Is the substitution/docetic interpretation actually to be preferred (might this make more sense of "nor did they crucify him")? Is it possible that we have a plurality of (conflicting) interpretations of Jesus' death in the Qur'an?

How were the Rashidun, Umayyad, and Abbassid Caliphates administered on the sub-provincial level? My understanding is that governors were appointed for provinces, but how were towns and the country-side governed on the level below governors?

Brazilian sociologist Sérgio Buarque de Hollanda argues that the Portuguese were more prone to interracial sex when colonizing Brazil due to their experience and historic relations with the moors. Is there any perspective on this subject in Islamic writing or thought? How were the Portuguese perceived by Islam? Also, how did Islam see the black Muslims sold to Brazil as slaves? Was it an issue or was it not known? There was even a revolt led by those slaves in Brazil that was crushed by the colonial government, is there any mention to these events? (not medieval though... if my memory serves me right it was in the late 1700).

I have two questions

What are some relatively unknown Islamic imprints on Iberian culture?

Is there Islamic vocabulary left in any Chinese language? Assuming there was any to begin with.

Is there any doubt that a historical Mohammed existed?

That is, do historians doubt that there was a man named Mohammed in the 6th century and unified his people?

Why were the Early Mughals a lot more secular than the later era Mughal rulers. In comparison even the Sultanates of India allowed more Religious freedom than Aurangzeb and his successors. What caused this sudden revival?

I grew up with a lot of Sufi poetry and music. The values of Sufism were taught to me all my life and I really respect the religion. But recently one of my friends, he's egyptian, said there Sufism is labeled as devil worship. Is there is difference between South Asian Sufism and Pan Arab Sufiism? What's the deal with Sufism, was it independent developments, or was there an organized push?

Whats with the Dawoodi Bohra muslims. Yemen and Gujurat? Seems like odd placements for a sect.

Were there any notable Islamic philosophers after Al-Ghazali and Averroës?

My introduction to medieval philosophy class didn't really mention any after those two.

In regards to the Shiite-Sunni split, was the split inevitable and Muhammad's succession a convenient excuse, or did it happen organically?

Islamic Banking and Finance was discussed in a r/europe thread. I have done some reading, but I'm interested in your expert answers to a couple questions about it's history.

Why does Islam prohibit interest taking or usury? Did Mohammed have an opinion on this, and did him having a background as a merchant influence Islam's attitude? Was usury such a major problem that all of the Abrahamic religions have some sort of prohibition or restrictions in place? What are some of the interesting economic structures within the Islamic world that deal with the problem, and which I might not know about?

I am fascinated by Biblical criticism and the insights that this scholarly field brought. How does Quranic criticism compare in term of sources, scholars, archeology? Is there some non-theological theories about the origins of the Quran text?

When I first learned about the formation of hadith, verification was never fully elaborated on besides the basics (e.g, such and such was confirmed by x,y,z). I do know however, there are certain categorical strengths and was wondering if you could elaborate on these and how they're commonly used to discuss practices nowadays.

I have some basic questions. What did Islam replace? Was there a predominant religion like Zoroastrianism before it? Was there ever a pantheon of arabic gods similar to greek and roman gods? I guess my general question is, what came before Islam?

I've also always been interested in artifacts. What are some of the coolest or most important pieces from early to medieval Islam?

Last question, so the Europeans had their Kingdoms/Empires that went along with the Papacy. Did Islam have a similar structure or functional head like the papacy/pope? The distinction I guess I'm looking for is who was the moral authority - a pope-like guy, or a King/Sultan/Caliph? Like, was there someone similar to the pope that kind of oversaw the entire realm of Islam?

Al-Jazari's Book of Ingenious Mechanical Devices is a source that I have studied rather extensively in the past. However, one thing I have never quite been able to confirm is a modern reference that explains that al-Jazari stated that the design for his "siphon water pumps" were directly inspired by the Byzantine cheirosiphonae (hand-held Greek Fire projectors). I've looked through the entirety of Donald Hill's translation and was never able to find a line stating that. Might one of you be able to confirm or deny this for me?

Might you also be able to comment on the process of how the zaraqat al naft (naphtha projector) was transferred from ancient Byzantium through the Arab World and on to China by the 10th Century? It seems incredible to me that this technology seems to have spread all the way to China in the span of just a hundred years.

Additionally, I've been looking into studying Islamic educational treatises such as the works of the Banu Musa and also the works of the obscure al-Khwarizmi (the one who wrote Mafatih al-ulum, not the famed mathematician who invented Algebra). I would like to know if there are any places that offer English translations of the works of these great Islamic scholars.

I keep encountering this supposed saying of the Prophet:

'If learning were suspended in the highest parts of heaven the Persians would attain it"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamization_of_Iran#Persian_influence_on_Islamic_culture_and_civilization

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muqaddimah

It looks like ibn Khaldun references in it in his Muqadimmah.

This phrase seems too good to be true. Is this actually in the Hadith? If so, is it regarded as one of the more true hadith? When would the prophet have ever really interacted with Persians, besides Salman Farsi? Is there a comparable hadith praising Greeks/Romans?

A few questions about the conquest of the Sassanid Empire:

1. When the Caliphate conquered the Sassanian empire, how quickly did Sassanian elites (especially the warriors) integrate into the new order? How quickly did Persia as a whole convert to Islam?

2)Were their armies largely content to go on and fight the Byzantines again, but just under a new banner this time?

3)How important were Persian troops in the Byzantine wars?

What impact did the practice of polygamy have on the spread of Islam and the growth of the Muslim population?

/u/yodatsracist , were there similarities between pre-islamic arabia and the steppe nomadic culture which may have predisposed the latter to adopt islam?

What a splendid plethora of minds we have assembled here! Thank you all for your time!

I am interested in the history of Shi'a Islam, of which I have only a very rudimentary understanding yet. As most of you probably know, it was only in the beginnings of Safavid rule in the 16th century that Iran became the primary center of Shi'a Islam. I know that the Fatimids who ruled in Egypt until the 12th century were Shiites, but that's still a considerable gap of three centuries, not to mention what was before the rise of the Fatimids.

Given the historical enmity between Sunni and Shi'a Muslims, how did Shi'a Islam survive in the meantime? What were the traditional centers of Shi'a thought before the conversion of Safavid Iran? Was there already a sizable Shiite population to be found in Mesopotamia and the eastern Arabian peninsula like today or is this the consequence of later Persian influence? Or am I perhaps totally mistaken about the nature of the Sunni-Shi'a relationship and it was much more peaceable in the past than it is portrayed nowadays?

From what I have read about the Caliphate, there was no poverty and it was what you might say kind of a welfare state. The Caliphs were like ordinary citizens and walked in the city without security.

Could you answer this more in detail?

Why is it that most nomadic or barbarian peoples (Germans, Mongols, Turks, etc) converted to the religion of the empires they conquered (the Germans to Christianity, the Turks to Islam, etc), whereas the Arabs retained their own religion (Islam) when they conquered their Empire?

Is this because the Arabs had only just converted to a new religion, or perhaps because the new Arab religion was basically the same as the major religion (Christianity) of the lands the Arabs conquered subsequently?

Why/How did the Emirate of Sicily so quickly Arabize and Islamize its populace? It didn't last very long but the Siculo-Arabs weren't assimilated by Norman Sicily until centuries later.

Was there ever a Witch-hunt like the catholic religion had all over europe during the middleage? And had they also scholars that didn't believe in the Islam and spoke against it? If so how did they threat them?

What caused the Islamic countries to be so much more advanced than the European countries then be surpassed by the Europeans in the early renaissance/late middle ages?

When I was in undergrad, I took a general course on religions. In my east asians religion course, we had a professor who normally taught upper division courses impress upon us to think about Buddhisms and Hinduisms rather than Buddhism and Hinduism (stressing the plural). The TA also stressed that religion changes across time and place.

To what extent does this apply to Islam? How did the religion grow and change as it expanded into Egypt, through the Maghreb and into West Africa, Spain, Eastern Europe, Iran, India, China, and Indonesia?

If we were to take a snapshot of Islamic lands in the 1200s, how would the religion vary across such a vast territory?

Thanks to all the panelists for this AMA!

The novelist Michael Flynn has suggested on his blog that the scientific revolution may have been a uniquely Christian phenomenon in part because - despite being highly educated and skilled philosophers - medieval Islamic scholars essentially believed it was inappropriate to question the works of Allah. This seems simplistic/condescending/questionably racist, but I don't know enough about Islamic philosophy to judge.

Can any of the panelists comment on the extent of natural philosophy in medieval Islam?

Thanks again!

To what degree did Hanifism influence Muhammad and early Islam? Is it possible that Muhammad was a Hanif?

Hi, awesome subject.

One thing that always fascinated me about early Islam is the speed with which Mohammed and the first caliphs managed to extend their domain and to hold on to that vast territory.

Any thoughts from the panel if that was due to being in the right place at the right time or if there was something new or exceptionally clever they did there?

I have a question about identity. For most people, did they identify most with being Muslim, or did this identity compete with regional and ethnic identity?

What were ethnic and regional tensions like in the Umayyad and Abbassid periods?

I'm very interested in the Islamic historians since I like to write quasi-historical stories.

What are some of the best primary works by Medieval Islamic historians- particularly from the perspective of cultural exchange with the Byzantine Empire? I'm reading the Alexiad and the Secret history of the Justinian court but would like some companion works from quasi-contemporary Muslims. What can you recommend?

When and how were the Hadith organized and assigned levels of authenticity?

Has the Muslim stance always been against pictures of the Holy Prophet and other Islamic figures? I read somewhere that the Shi'ites aren't as opposed to depictions as the Sunnis are, is there some truth to this?

How did Islam travel to Southeast Asia, and how did it spread so rapidly?

What sort of blowback or opposition did early Muslims get from preaching their message and trying to spread the religion?

How did early Islam and its followers view the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia? Did they have any knowledge about them or was their focus with the translation movement only Greek texts?

Also, do we know how/if Islam changed the pre-Islamic version of Djinns to better suit the religion? This ties in to a bigger question of how much the pre-existing Arabian mythology influenced or shaped Islam.

Thanks for the AMA, it varies the content on this subreddit from the usual WW2 post.

What could have happened if the county of Barcelona rather than outright conquering it, stablished a permisive Valencian kingdom when they took it? Would the superior islamic culture helped in a possible fight against the pope or how would this ficticious country developed? -As in: would have the aragonese crown helped from asborving the islamic population rather than ignoring it?-

So, probably most of you are aware of this controversial passage:

Surat Al-Mā'idah 5:116 And [beware the Day] when Allah will say, "O Jesus, Son of Mary, did you say to the people, 'Take me and my mother as deities besides Allah ?'" He will say, "Exalted are You! It was not for me to say that to which I have no right. If I had said it, You would have known it. You know what is within myself, and I do not know what is within Yourself. Indeed, it is You who is Knower of the unseen.

From an academic perspective, what's really going on here? Was there confusion in Islam early on about who made up the Christian trinity with Mary the Mother filling in for The Holy Spirit? Could this view have been influenced by some unorthodox, local Christian sect? If so, do we know anything more about this Christian sect?

This is a broad question, but what ultimately led to the defeat of the Muslim forces in Tours, France? I tried looking this up myself but the info is so scant.

Was Islam a culmination of many early cultures separate beliefs or was the whole religion and it's ideals originated from Muhammad?

How many times did early Muslims pray? Uri Rubin's work suggests that early Muslims prayed at sunrise and sunset. Is this true?

In what direction/how did they pray?

I've heard it asserted that in contrast to Europeans, who exalt Saladin as the great noble adversary of the crusaders, Arabs pre-modernity did not regard him as an especially important leader of the crusade period, and treated figures less-known in the west like Baibars as the great heroes of that period. How accurate is this assertion? Would a citizen of Cairo or Damascus a few centuries after Saladin know or care who he was?

I am reading Bernard Lewis' "Middle East" and I'm really confused as to what was the exact role of the caliph.

He seems to say that there was a distrust of politics among the truly pious but yet the caliph was the religous AND political leader.

I understand the early, rightly guided caliphs had much more influence than the latter ones, but what duties exactly were they expected to fulfill? Lewis has left their role ambiguous for me.

If it weren't for the intervention of the Bulgarian khan Tervel during the siege of Constantinople, would've the Arabs been able to conquer Eastern Europe ?

I'm thinking about writing a screenplay based on the life of Baibars, the mamluk turned Sultan, is there any books or resources I should start with?

After Muslims left Spain, What happened to Muslims who stayed there?

1. Other than coins and the Dome of the Rock I don't see much material culture being brought into the revisionist debate over early Islam (revisionist meaning anything along the lines of Crone-Cook even if not as extreme) are there any important archaeological sites from the pre-Abbasid period or any good introductory texts for the material instead of textual side?

2. The estimates for the Battle of Tours (both sides combined) range from 35,000 to 160,000. That's an enormous margin of error. What, if anything, can we know with reasonable certainty about the size, composition, arms and armor of the early Islamic armies?

Thanks!

How is early islam not medieval? It is commenly agreed upon in yhe academic world that the medieval era or dark ages start with the fall of the roman empire in the early fifth century (either the sack of rome in 510 or the death of constantine in 421). And since islam was founded during Mohammed his life (570 - 632) early islam cannot be anything Else then medieval islam.

There was a recent BBC documentary that described the general lack of a central idea of Islam after the death of Mohammad. Muslims praying towards Jerusalem, Mohammad's stories being generally tied to the levant and Jerusalem etc. How correct is this? If there is an element of truth, why was there a reorientation towards Mecca and Medina? Furthering on this, when do we see a unique "Muslim" culture arise?

Also, how eager were early Muslims in their efforts to proselytize those they conquered. From what I've studied in undergrad courses, early Muslims seemed to have viewed Islam as an identifier more than a set of beliefs, similar to how Jews would have viewed their religion. Can anyone provide insight?

How much cultural interchange was there between the Muslims of Spain under the Umayyads and the Abbasids in Damascus (or the Fatimids or other groups throughout the Muslim world)? Besides trade was there formal contact or were they rivals and enemies? This would be 8th-11th centuries I guess.

I read today that Berber resistance to Islam was led by a red haired, jewish queen. Fact, myth, misrepresentation, straight-up bullshit?

This question is directed towards /u/keyilan, but everyone feel free to chime in with any relevant scholarly experience.

When I was studying Arabic in my undergrad, I was struck by how the modern language was very much shaped by Koranic structure. Did the language barrier of early Islamic proselytizers, or the source language of Islam meaningfully impact the formation of Chinese-Muslim philosophy and thought? For example, were concepts like the Zakaat, or the importance of the Hajj easily translated based on existing Chinese linguistic concepts? Was there a sort of growing pain as the language was translated to the everyday practitioners of Islam in China? Anyone with experience in the spread of Islam into other regions outside the Middle East (Al-Andalusia, etc.) is more than welcome to chime in. Secondly, and far less importantly, how did the prohibition of things like pork and alcohol go over with the recent converts in these regions?

In what condition were the ancient trade routes across the Asiatic steppes and the Indian ocean shortly before the rapid spread of Islam, and did the establishment of the Islamic religion across that part of the world have any impact on how all the cultures interacted with each other?

I've heard that the first Christian missionaries to where Islam grew up were considered heretics by the Christian church at that time. If I am indeed recalling that correctly, how has that affected Islamic thought about Jesus?

Edit: Thanks for doing this session! :)

What caused such an explosive growth of Islam in the 7th Century? Would it be fair to say that if the Eastern Roman Empire wasn't at war with the Sassanids for 30 years history would be radically different? And how important did the Islamic invaders take the loss in Tours as opposed to the 2nd Siege of Constantinople?

How well accepted are Fred Donner's ideas about early Islam (that it wasn't seen as a separate religion until after Muhammad's death) among historians? What about among Muslims?

What do we know about the earliest forms of hajj?

Did it experience any period of change/meaning, or are we confident that the Hajj has always been performed in the same way?

Who were the earliest and most vehement opponents of hadiths?

Were there any groups of Hadith rejectors that lasted for a long time?

To what extent was the Arabic language imposed on the newly-conquered lands of Iran? I know the lingua franca for Science and Technology became Arabic, but I have always heard from various family sources and online sources (nothing scholarly) that the Ummayads initially tried to ban any non-Arabic language spoken, in public or in private, and this was one of the reasons that the Ummayads were so hated by the non-Arab subjects of the caliphate, who were increasingly supportive of the incoming and far more inclusive Abbasids. I haven't seen any source in Persian or English that really addresses this aspect of the imposition of Arabic in the private lives of citizens outside of the Govt and Science so any direction would be great.

Thanks

After the Abbasids lost most of their land, what exactly was the Caliph's importance? Did he have any real religious authority, kind of like the Pope, or was he just there?

When did an Islamic religious class or clergy develop?

How did the rise of Islam affect the Jews and Christians living in the Middle east? How did early Islam deal with the fact that Jews and Christians did not recognize Muhammad as a prophet?

we can start small:

To what extent was Islam spread by the sword?

Why did the Seljuk Turks not take the caliphate title for themselves and leave it in the hands of the Abbasid dynasty?

If the other two judeochristian religions have esoteric/occult knowledge (e.g enochian and kaballah). What was Islam's version? Could you perhaps point to some sources that may be available?

This is a random selection of questions.

1. Aside from prominent figures in the Christian Churches who had something to gain from persecution, what did most Christians think of Islam? I was thinking of the nobles who likely had to deal with Muslim subjects in the wars in Greece and modern Turkey, such as the Alexiad or people who lived further away like a figure in the Holy Roman Empire.

2. What would have been the appeal for women to convert to Islam during it's initial spread under Muhammad and the first Caliphs?

3. Of all the religions Russia (I'm calling it this for general convenience and I cannot remember who chose and what his domain was called) could have chosen to make its State Religion, why choose Orthodox Christianity? Islam allowing polygamy seems like something appealing to a family that wanted to produce offspring and Orthodox Christianity has a whole Church which was based outside of the borders of the ruler.

For /u/alfonsoalsabio: Was there much of an Islamic counterculture in Iberia? I've read that there were a number of minor sects and fusion groups which populated the frontier, and was wondering if you could direct me to some details. Conversion back and forth between dominant religions interests me as well - was there any sort of active and organized proselytizing going on, besides with the sword?

The text of the Bible evolved over time, especially in the earlier years of its existence, because (among other reasons) it is a collection of texts from different writers and because large parts were translated. The Quran however has one author* and was always written in Arabic. In what way did the Quran evolve, if at all?

• I am aware that the prophet Muhammed didn't actually write it down.

In a Islamic political thought class I took back then there was lot discussion about the formation of the first Muslim state of Madina and the comparison of it with similar political process in Christianity.

I don't remember a lot of details, but one interesting point that came up from the discussion was: the strong presence of Muhammad as an authoritative source in many aspects of Islamic formation and development (from theological to political) lays a strong, rigid basis for later development. This also affects how Islam maintain a strong orthodoxy (or, rather, a lack of schism/denominations) besides the major Sunni-Shia split, as seen by the term "salafus shalih" as an archetype. This didn't happen with Christianity as the apostles contributed a lot more after Jesus ascendance, and its development of various denominations.

My first question would be... what do you think about that idea?

And my following question would be, in relation with that, what are the important factors in the political process of the state of Madina, so that it was made into an exemplar of Islamic state by later Muslim thinkers? How does the factors and political process relate to the theological development? And what was the important variables that Muhammad brought into Islam so that it evolved into a major force in Arabia, overcoming the previous Nabatean Kingdom and Kindah Kingdom?

Sorry if my questions sound long-winded!

Could someone tell me a bit about the 2uza3i school in Lebanon. I have been told that it was quite a tolerant school and I was wondering how popular it was and why it faded out.

I read on wikipedia that some of the earliest mosques outside of Medina were built in southern India. How did Islam spread there so quickly but not in the north? A few mosques on the list were made within the lifetime of the Prophet...

In western society today, Islam is often depicted as repressive to women; yet as I understand it, Muhammad preached (relative) equity between the sexes; why and how did this change?

What's the difference between Sunni and shitte(I know this is spelled wrong sorry)? What have been the consequences of the schism?

Can you describe the economic system of the earliest Muslim state?

Was the Iqta system at all similar to feudalism?

Could someone please elaborate on Islam and its role in the military of the early Muslim empire? How much did it effect the soldiers and the way that the armies battled their enemies.

Aside from the case of Iberia, were their any other areas or regions that attempted to 'roll back' Muslim empires or influence? I am curious about Afghanistan especially, since at least in popular mythology, it is a region not exactly welcoming to foreign influence.

In addition, aside from India, why did areas such as Uighurstan and Indonesia abandon Buddhism, Manichaenism, or Tengriism for Islam?

How were the Arabian tribes able to competently conquer such a large area with relatively little resources at their disposal? Was it one unified movement to form an Islamic Caliphate, or did certain powers get involved that streamlined the process? What kind of military tactics did they use to conquer so quickly?

How well regarded is "No god but God: The Origins, Evolution, and Future of Islam" by Reza Aslan? Is this a good introduction to the early history of Islam?

How come the Mongols who for a long time had been following their native religion, came to adopt Islam? Also, did they contribute to Islam spreading East?

What are the reasons Islam spread so rapidly during the first decades following the life of Mohammad?

1. Were the elections of the first four caliphs democratic?

2. Which Islamic civilization do you think gave the greatest emphasize on human rights (by modern standards)?

Can you give me some more information on the sack of Baghdad?

How were camels used in the battle of Badr or Uhad, were they used only to transport supplies or were they also ridden into battle?

I hope I'm not too late, I'm really interested in some of the battles, and while I know many of the details were written after the fact, and most historians tend to say they were exaggerated, I'd like to hear your takes on the following battles:
1- Battle of Mu'tah
2- Battle of Firaz
Mu'tah seems to have some very interesting numbers, as well as some reports about it just being a raid, and not a battle.
Firaz has extremely interesting numbers, seems unlikely it was even close, are there any recent estimates?
Most of my information about Mu'tah comes from studying Seera in School, but Firaz, really just wiki.
Thanks

I started playing Crusader Kings a few days ago, what can you guys tell me about Caliphs? My understanding is they were descendants of Mohammad or something?

Since millions of Muslims were massacred during the Mongolian invasion led by Genghis Khan, what kind of effects did this have on the viewpoint of war and defense from foreign powers for Islam? Are there still lasting effects of this? How would the Middle East be different today if the Great Khan had never set his sights upon the Khwarezian Empire?

Are there any good resources on the [Qarmatian] (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qarmatians) sect? Specifically how much of thier beliefs were really Islamic and how much derived from Zorastrianism and other Persian religions? Also, were they really vegetarians (and why)?

Why does the flag of the Beylik of Karaman look so much like the modern Israeli flag? Do the colors and shapes share significance?

Was there any slavery in early Islamic countries? If so, was it widespread, and how were they treated?

How were the Arabs able to so effectively Islamise the Turkic tribes of Central Asia?

I know next to nothing about middle eastern history, and hear next to nothing about it in my cultural surroundings.

All I ever really here is this side note or the Islamic world keeping up the torch while the white man momentary dropped it during the dark ages.

I do hear about the greatness and longevity of the Ottoman Empire, but again know next to nothing about it other than it was around for a really long time.

So, in two parts, if anyone here wants to illuminate in a general way about the role of the middle east and Islam in the dark ages, I would appreciate that.

Secondly, if there is any book recommendations along the lines of A Rise And Fall of the Roman Empire, but for the Middle East, or Islam, I would appreciate that too.

What is your opinion on the theory that the extreme climate events in 535-536 and the waves of the Justinian Plague ( and the emperor's response to the plague) starting in541 caused social conditions which contributed to the rise of Islam

What are your views on the 'Islamic golden age'? Do this time and its inventions correlate with military expansion? If so, is there a link?

Great panel and fascinating subject. What would y'all recommend as a good basic introduction to the life of Muhammad and the rise of Islam?

I've read that the army of the Fatimid army (and the army Saladin "inherited") included very few Arabs and was a whole hodgepodge of other ethnicities. Can you give a better sense of Saladin's army's demography or recommend sources for learning more about this?

May have missed the boat with my question, but I'll give it a burl anyway. I've recently been reading Karen Armstrong's Islam: A Short History, and have been absolutely loving it. What is the academic consensus on Armstrong, and what are some good entry level history texts that you could recommend. Thanks.

I'm studying to become a teacher of history. If you had one story relating to your specialty to interest the average (moderately-interested) individual, what would it be (and how would you tell it)?

I watched a series on the crusades and it stated that during the first crusade Islam was fractured, which gave the Christian forces the advantage.

Was there actual disunity in Islam at the time? If so, what were they?

How common was peaceful immigration in al-Andalus? Also, what was the long-term significance of the rebellion of Ibn Hafsun et al. against the Umayyads?

How readily available was information about prior semitic religions and local myths in Mohammad's time? Would he have to be literate to know extensively about these ? Was he literate?

In old Islamic text, I read Syrians were praised for the unity within themselves. Did other civil wars take place in Syria [and within Syrians] in Islamic history, or is the current one the first one?

I realize this question is incredibly late though. But out of your respective fields, what's your favorite fact or tidbit about Islam?

I missed this, but I've got several questions I'd love to have answered.

1. I understand that the Caliphs had to trace their lineage all the way to the prophet. But there was infighting and war between Muslim dynasties, right? So how impeccable would those lineages be? Were there ever any cases where a caliph wasn't really related? Or any cases where someone declared himself caliph, and nobody listened? Why did Muslims put up with a Shi'ite caliph in Egypt?

2. How did Islamic states deal with competing schools of jurisprudence? Did rulers favor one and outlaw others? Did they fall out of favor? Were they regional? Did rulers just ignore them? Did they seek the approval of all of them?

3. How did the smaller Islamic states treat the existence of a caliphate? Did they work against him, afraid of being conquered? Did they send tribute in exchange for the right to exist? Did they treat him like just another ruler?

4. What would you say explains the stunning success of the qizilbash in Persia? Also, why there? I'd heard that there weren't actually many Shi'ites in The region before that. Could it have happened anywhere? Or was Persia just waiting for a revolution?

5. How did the Sultanates of India exist for so long when they were surrounded by hostile nations and never converted much of the population?

6. Only Muslims who can afford to, make the hajj pilgrimage. What did that mean in the middle ages? Would a merchant do it? A king? An artist?

Thanks so much for any answers or anecdotes.

I have heard it said many times that in the beginning Islam spread by the sword whereas Christianity spread peacefully. Did Islam spread through violence moreso than other world religions?

I'm not sure if I'm still allowed to ask, but I think I'm going to give it a shot.

Traditionally there are several hadiths that forbid the drawing or sculpting of living creatures. The depiction of Muhammad is also forbidden. But in medieval times, such drawings actually existed. Even more, there are illustrations of Muhammad complete with his face drawn. I've read briefly that this kind of drawings had existed from the time of Abbasid.

• How was this possible? Was the hadith not popular back then among Muslims?
• Or is it the case where the drawings are in limited circulation (e.g.: only among the highest ranking of political elites)?
• If it were limited in circulation, how did those privileged people be exempt from the prohibition? Was it related to the relation the ulamas had with the rulers?

In early Islam, how often was the Christian Gosepal used in religious discourse ?

What is the history of the Ghassanid tribe from the southern Arabian peninsula, in terms of identity, migrations, and legacy? I know it is a little out of the scope of this AMA but I thought someone here might know. Thanks!

Maybe a beyond the scope of the AMA, but I've seen it suggested that before the British colonized India, blasphemy was fine in what is now Pakistan. British anti-blasphemy regulations in the Indian subcontinent are a matter of historical record, but is it true that there were no such restrictions before British colonization in what would eventually become Pakistan?

Thank you for your AMA.

At the time of the Mongol invasion of Baghdad, was the city already in decline? How would things have been different had the Mongols not invaded? Thanks.

How did the Ottoman Empire circumvent the Islamic ideas that Muslims should not kill other Muslims in their conquest of Arabic lands?

Q: Is there any evidence of the martial sword tecniques used in the historic Islamic world? if so what form and did it follow using techniques from bow & spear?

How were relations between the Ilkhanate and the Yuan dynasty? Was there much cultural exchange between the two?

All armies bring some sort of tactic or strategy that allows them to be successful. What was it about Muhammad's army that made it so successful?

My main question is regarding the schism between shia's and sunnis.

I have read both accounts of the shiites of the battle of Karbala and the accounts of sunni scholars. Is it really true that while there was this battle going on (which they were going to lose) there was a wedding going on?

I don't know what to believe any more when it comes to this. Modern day shiite practice of hitting themselves etc seems to have emerged from South Asia as well.

How has the shiite belief changed over time and if you could help with a actual account of the battle of karbala, would be great!

Any un biased books detailing on the Rashidun caliphates would be tremendously helpful as well.

Today the Hajj is managed by the Saudi government and the governments of countries that send pilgrims.

How was the Hajj managed from 600-medieval Islam? Who got to go? How easy was it for people who were not rich to travel to Mecca? Did the governments of far off places fund pilgrims to go to Mecca?

Hello! Thank you to all of you for donating your time to answer all these. This is a question directed at /u/alfonsoelsabio, but of course the other panelists are welcome to answer. How was the late-medieval Iberian Peninsula organized? Was it organized into non-secular territories? In other words, were Christian Territories and Islamic Territories kept separate, or forced together under a central kingdom?

Why is Islamic art so restricted today when it was not always so in the past. I am most refering to drawing Muhammad.

Should body or hair coverings be supported for islamic modesty?

Was there ever a sense of kinship in Islam with the religions that led to it, Judaism and Christianity, or were these viewed simply as infidels? How did this perception change over time? I suppose the Crusaders must have had a negative effect in this respect, as they engendered a renewed Jihadist movement?

How much of Mohammed's life was spent conquering and raiding the surrounding tribes/people/cities? And did he only start preaching peace after all those conquests?