Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The Birth and Growth of Islam (AD 570-1498)
Given that today one out of every four people are Muslim, there can be no greater moment
of historical importance on the Arabian Peninsula than the birth of the Prophet Mohammed
in the year AD 570.
As one of the world's most influential spiritual leaders, it is easy to focus on Mo-
hammed's teachings and forget his historical context, but in many ways the limited descrip-
tions of his childhood give a good indication of life in the desert at that time. As his father
died before he was born, Mohammed became the poor ward of his grandfather. Although
his family were settled Arabs, he was given to a Bedouin foster mother, as was the custom
at the time, to be raised in the desert. Perhaps it was this experience that gave him a sense
of moderation and the preciousness of resources. In the desert, too, there were no interme-
diaries, no priests and no prescribed places of worship - nothing separating the people from
the things that they believed in.
Books: Early History
Arabia & the Arabs: From the Bronze Age to the Coming of Islam (Robert Hoyland)
Frankincense & Myrrh (Nigel Groom)
Mohammed went on caravans and became a trusted trader before returning to Mecca,
which at that time was a large and prosperous city that profited from being the centre of pil-
grimage. Mecca was the home of the Kaaba, a sanctuary founded by Abraham but occupied
by the images and idols of many other tribes and nations.
The worship of the one-true god and the condemnation of idols was at the heart of Mo-
hammed's teaching and inevitably the Meccans took fright, forcing Mohammed to flee to
Medina in 622. Mohammed's mighty legacy, however, transcended his personal history and
the new religion of Islam quickly spread across the Peninsula and to the world beyond.
Ironically, as the Islamic empire expanded, so the fortunes of Arabia waned, but to this day
the Peninsula holds a special place in history as the birthplace of one of the world's great
monotheistic religions.
Famed 19th-century traveller Richard Burton learnt Arabic and entered Mecca disguised as a hajja (pil-
grim). Nicknamed 'Ruffian Dick' by his contemporaries for his waywardness, he was obliged in his
Personal
Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah and Meccah
to make his 'love of adventure minister to the advance of geo-
graphical science'.
