Lecture notes
A-level religious studies ISLAM
- Module
- Unit 6 - Western Religions
- Institution
- WJEC
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Jahiliya Muslim scholars refer to the period in The social and political situation of Pre-
Arabia before Muhammad as pre- Islamic Arabia:
Islamic Arabic. The desert areas were populated by Bedouin
It is also called Jahiliya - this means nomads (a community with no fixed habitation).
the days of ‘ignorance’. For some But there were more populated areas around
people this means there were days Makkah and Madinah.
when the people of Arabia were Prior to the sixth century CE, there were complex
tribal systems.
Tribes of Pre-Arabia The lifestyle was a harsh life of raiding and
Hejaz—consisted of the tribes that trading. But it did have principles of rules or codes
adopted Christianity including, The of conduct between tribes. This was known as oral
Ghassanids, clients to the Byzantine tradition (the preservation and transmission of
empire. literature by the spoken word).
Yathrib---this area constituted of the The tribes had a goal of social justice. The social
Jewish clans Of Banu Nadir, Banu system also included virtue and bravery inherited
Qainuqu and Banu Qurayza through the bloodline of a tribe. This is
Yemen---Aws and Khazraj were pagan called muruwa (manliness and honour).
Arabs situated in Yemen and later Tribes would aim to weaken and eventually
migrated to Yathrib. These two tribes absorb other tribes.
were in conflict with each other but After Constantine conquered Byzantium in 324
later the conflict died and both tribes CE, Christianity spread to Arabia: The principal
constituted of the Ansaar and helpers tribes that embraced Christianity were the
to the Prophet ()ﷺ. Himyar, Ghassan, Rabi’a, Tagh’ab, Bahra, and
Tunukh, parts of the Tay and Khud’a, the
,Society was rife with immorality. The tip of this was
the feudal system in which life was cheap and there
was nothing immoral about killing. Trading for profit
and raiding other tribes was the norm; indeed,
robbery was not considered immoral unless you stole
the goods of kinsmen.
The strong ruled and the weak were oppressed and
exploited. Poverty was ignored and charity a rarity.
Population control was often by female infanticide
and the life of a woman had little value. In general,
women, like slaves, were not treated particularly well
and had no specific rights, human or legal.
, The extent to which pre–Islamic Arabia impacted the prophet
Muhammad SAW mission.
At the time of Muhammad, there were various However, Muhammed's attitudes
influences. We need to look at how Muhammed towards alcohol, infanticide and
reacted to these. For example, it can be argued that gambling contrasted to those of the
he was influenced by certain key ideas from his societies. His view of women as
religious, social and historical context such as entitled to their rights, their roles and
bringing back the original religions and returning it status was also seen as radical and
to its purity by restoring elements that were already absurd. The prophet ﷺalso put his
there. focus in helping the poor of Arabia,
For example, the acceptance of previous prophets the helping of the weak was a central
and the acknowledgement of Jesus made Islam a theme for him and the introduction of
return to the traditions of the old and the use of the his mission. Therefore, his mission
wasn't impacted much by Arabia's
social aspects because of the
In pre–Islamic Arabia there was also Arabian social
values that the prophet ﷺhad been influenced by. Some ideas the Prophet SAW
For example, Muhammed had replaced blood ties rejected outright were things like
and tribal identity with a more similar, but more showing his outright disapproval of
universal model of religious affinity and identity. the practise of polytheism and
He emphasised all that was Honourable from worshipping of idols. Therefore, the
ancient tribal codes., particularly the ideas of loyalty prophet had created an entirely
and protection to unite the ummah. The community new religion, reacting against his
also embraced influences of moral code from immediate environment of
different moral traditions. Therefore, the prophet paganism and idol-worshipping.
Muhammed ﷺmission was affected by the social Therefore, he was not impacted by
context and Arab ideas in the formation of new
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