Huston Smith 4

8. What is Sufism and how did it come to be?

• Some Muslims after Muhammad's death were known as Sufis.
• Every message in the Koran is important and Sufis believe that it is very sacred and that every message told in it should be practiced as often and accurately as possible.
• Sufis wanted to encounter God directly in their everyday lives.
• Sufism is esoteric and only understood by a handful of outsiders. 
• Symbolism is a principle method as it gives them something to worship God with and give emphasis to a specific idea or concept. 
• Sufism came to be after the death of Muhammad, and is the dimension of Islam practiced mainly through symbols aimed at encountering Allah . 

9.How has Islam changed with the degradation of Muhammad's words

• Islam has become less of a practice and more of a "mere profession"
• Muslims have strayed from the words and path laid out by Muhammad.
• Prayer is an essential aspect to faithful Muslims. 
• Some aspects have remained unchanged, such as the statements that God is great and there is only one god. 
• Some traditions predating Islam may have become intermixed with the culture. 
•  Muhammad is still very important in the religion of Islam, but his words been changed slightly to a  different meaning now. This has lead to a modernization of the religion of sorts and also a change of the religion itself. 

sharia law learning goal #3

Islam Learning Goal #2

1.4

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• The split in Islam dates back to the death of Muhammad in 632 CE, and was started over who would succeed Muhammad in being the leader of the religion. 
• Shia believed in the family line being followed, giving leadership to Ali, the husband of Muhammad's daughter. 
• Sunni believed in a council of the society's elite determining who was best fit to lead the religion. 
• The Sunnis prevailed and chose a successor to be the first caliph.
• While Ali was later elected as Caliph after two were killed, violence had begun and an irreparable rift had formed.
• Hussein, Ali's successor was killed and became a martyr for the shiites, and is commemorated annually. 
• "Twelfth Imam" is the messiah for some Shia Muslims 
• Shia/Persian empire surrounded by Sunni
• Beginning of 20th century: Shiites ruled by Ottomans (Sunni)
• Political instability ensued in Iran, only factor that could not be controlled by the Shah was the Mosque.
• Revolution in 1978 allowed Ayatollah to gain power, created a theocracy and also a stronghold for shiites in the middle east. 
• Sunni governments rejected Ayatollah's design of government, Saddam Hussein reacted the most harshly invading Iran in the 80's.
• Many Sunnis resisted Khomeini solely because he was Shia
• Saddam remained wary of shiites in southern Iraq despite help against Iran in war. 
• US fights Iraq in Kuwait, but doesn't give aid to Shiite revolution efforts despite encouragement.  
• Second US war allowed Shia leader to emerge in Iraq, which lead to more violence and Al-Qaeda opposition 
• Anti-Sunni death squads and street fighting come as a response to bombings. 
• Hezbollah remains a threat to Israel but doesn't get full support because it is Shiite.
• Iran gained strength in the defeat of Iraq and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan.
• US still backing government in Iraq even though it is Shia and is in communication with Tehran.
• Blocking Iran's expansion and fighting against the history of the region are considered ill advised actions for the US. 

1.5

Sufism is the belief in an eternal self and "the journey of the slave to the master. It also includes the idea that ones life is characterized by the sum if ones good actions.


1.6

• Originally part of the Muslim Brotherhood, began after failed assassination attempt on leading figure. 
• Salafist movement called for the creation of Islamic states. 
• Alliance with al-Qaeda makes them a main threat in Europe.
• Salafism: Ultra conservative Sunnis
• Although they are only a small minority, the influence of salafist groups is substantial because of their attacks and use of public unrest to achieve their goals. 
• Many new governments are worried about salafi groups causing second revolutions in unstable countries and gaining a larger following through fear and radicalism. 
• Radicals are pushing for ultra conservative societal conventions like full covering of women, and are taking over mosques, especially in Tunisia. 
• Many salafists were just conservatives who turned to Jihad after the peaceful efforts proved to be less fruitful or slower than they desired. 

1.7

How do social and political factors such as governments and war affect the spread, popularity, and image of a sect of Islam and what are the implications for the future? 

Islam Learning Goal #1

1.2
Both articles focus on interviewing Muslim women and outlining why they chose to unveil and what the implications of it were. Also, they included what how they felt about wearing the veil and what it meant to them.
Most of the women started off wearing the Hijab for conformity's sake, because they were so young they didn't understand what it meant to cover their bodies. As Heina described, once they grew older they saw the metaphors used for reasons to wear the veil as objectifying instead of protecting. As this realization dawned on them, one by one the girls in the articles began unveiling at differing degrees of speed. Now, the women all enjoy the freedom of being unveiled, as Reem says, she gets to feel the full beauty of nature, and as described in the NPR, the Hijab brought out anti-Islamic feelings from the public after 9/11.
1.3
Clothing is essential to keeping the Umma's identity, and is enforced through strong guidelines and rules pertaining to the dress of faithful Muslims. By creating a dress code for all Muslims, there is a clear identifier that keeps them as a separate group, which in turn makes them a more close-knit community. The rules reflect the values of the community by emphasizing modesty through the covering of Awrahs, or parts of the body that should always be covered except in the presence of one's spouse. By covering their bodies, they physically embody the principle of Haya, which is the inherent shyness and modesty of Muslims. Furthermore, the restrictions on men also promote modesty of one's financial standing too, by prohibiting gold and silk adornments. These restrictions all reflect the overall Muslim community's beliefs on personal conduct by physically displaying the values upheld by the religion.

Check In

3/4
1. Completed 1.1
2. Halfway completing 1.2
3. I did as much as I could but I deplore writing in my phone so I'll do the online articles and answer questions at home, unfortunately. 7/10 effort.
3/5
1. Completed 1.2 and 1.3
2. Completed everything I wanted to today.
3. 7/10 effort, worked at a casual pace and did work just to ensure I won't have to do anything over the weekend.
3/6
1. Completed 1.4, 1.6, and 1.7
2.Worked on all of learning goal 2 but couldn't finish because of a lack of time and headphones.
3. 9/10 I'm frustrated that I'll have to do more classwork at home despite already doing so to try and avoid having weekend homework. Overall I think I did all I could do today because I forgot headphones and my partner wasn't here to do the study guide.

Huston Smith P.3

6: How do Muslims live according to their religion?

• Muslims attempt to follow "The straight path" that is free of corruption, and has very distinct standards. 
• Islam has set and defined ways to lead a righteous life, which Muslims see as an advantage because it is free of ambiguity. 
• Prayer should be done on schedule, however it is acceptable to wait or delay praying based on circumstances. Furthermore prayer does not have to be done in congregation and is not as essential as it is to Christianity and Judaism.
• Charity of 1/40th of ones net worth is mandated annually in the five pillars, and is to help those in need instead of religious institutions.
• Fasting is also part of the five pillars in the month of Ramadan, and it is meant to teach self-discipline, and to force us to be compassionate and understand how fragile we are. 
• The Five Pillars help to establish the religions core beliefs as well as to provide a code for daily conduct according to religious values that are associated with rituals. 

7: How does Islam guide its followers in decision making?

• The reliance on a feeling of family and brotherly love among followers to foster compassion.
• The Koran provides spiritual teaching and guides the actions of its readers.
• The idea that the world as a whole requires nourishment to create the sentiment of responsibility for others.
• By using the nuclear family as a guide for the society as a whole as a means of demonstrating how to treat one another.
• Customs like polygamy are allowed by not encouraged as the man is supposed to love each wife equally, a task that is near impossible.
• Islam creates a guide to decision making through the Koran and a sense of community that is reinforced through its teachings and seen in situations like race relations and women's rights.

Huston Smith P2

(Not sure which part this goes with so I'm putting it twice.)

What is "The Standing Miracle"?

• The Koran is considered a miracle because it is written as great poetry by an almost illiterate man, Muhammad.
• Its name means a recitation and it is the most memorized book in the world.
• The created Koran contains the divine reality of the uncreated Koran.
• The Koran considers each sentence to be a revelation because it is said to be from God without any muddling from being passed down.
• The Koran has a strong emotional effect on its followers.
• The Koran's ability to convey its message without losing anything to its followers and that it was written as it is by an illiterate man are what and why it is the standing miracle.

What are the basic theological concepts of Islam?

• Islam shares most of its religious concepts with Christianity and Judaism 
• God: God is invisible, omnipresent, and the only god. This means that according to Muslims, Jesus was created divinely, but was only a prophet, not God incarnate. God is also much more merciful and compassionate than he is portrayed, but humanizing terms like father are rejected by Islam
• Creation: Creation is perfect as it is Allah's work. We too are created by Allah and have divine origin.
• Humanity: We often forget our divine origin or take it for granted, and infidel is someone who lacks faithfulness to this. We must surrender to God, but commitment describes surrendering better than surrender because of military connotations.
• Judgement Day: Individuality and freedom are emphasized on judgement day. Our souls face reckoning for all of their good and bad actions throughout our life and our commitment to Allah in the end. The souls judge themselves.
• The basic concepts are the belief in one god, creation, our existence from divine origin and our upholding of our faith and morality.