Chapter 3 3. Islam

Let me talk about Islam first. Islam is undoubtedly successful.From the founding of Muhammad in Medina in AD 622 (the first year of the Islamic calendar) to becoming a world religion and world civilization, it took only a short period of more than a hundred years.Before the Battle of Talas, the Arab Empire had stretched across Asia, Africa and Europe. It bordered Tang Dynasty in the east, reached North Africa in the south, and bordered the Frankish Kingdom in the west. It included Syria, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Spain, northern India and the whole Arabian peninsula were placed under the banner of the crescent, turning the Mediterranean into its own inner lake.This is something that only Alexander and the Romans could do before.

However, Alexander did not establish the "Macedonian civilization circle", and the Roman civilization circle also collapsed after the end of the Western Roman Empire.However, in 1258 AD (the year when Kublai Khan attacked Ezhou), the Arab Empire was destroyed by the Mongolian army, but the Islamic civilization was not destroyed. On the contrary, the sparks continued to spread until the 18th century. This is why ? Some say it's because of faith. Is that right? may be. Indeed, the Macedonians were without faith.However, all Muslims believe that Allah is the only true God and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.In addition, they also believe in angels, classics, future generations, and predestination.It is these unwavering beliefs that unite them to jointly create and maintain their own civilization.

◎The beginning (Iran, 17th century AD). "Quran" means "reading", and it has 114 chapters, which are very similar to the content of the Old Testament, but it is called the Book of Heaven.Muhammad believes that only Arabic records the words of Allah without corruption, which is why it cannot be translated into other languages ​​but can only be explained or interpreted. ◎Used in architecture (Spanish architecture).The majestic Alhambra is a palace built by the Moorish dynasty in Granada, Spain.The windows of the Alhambra are surrounded by examples of the art of Arabic calligraphy, especially the scriptures used as decorations. The reliefs, carvings and painted tiles make the building magnificent.

But with that said, there is a problem.The Romans also had faith, so how could they fail to preserve Roman civilization?The Jews have the earliest monotheism, and India is a big religious country. Why are the Jewish and Indian civilizations not universal? May wish to look at them one by one. India's question is the easiest to answer: they have never had a unified and lasting religion and belief.The Mauryan Dynasty believed in Buddhism, the Gupta Dynasty believed in Brahmans, the Turkic Delhi Sultanate, and the Mongol Mughal Dynasty all believed in Islam.In modern India, Brahmanism, Islam, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism coexist, like a cocktail.With such diversity and variety, it is not easy to keep yourself, how can you go to the world?So even whether there is a unified and continuous Indian civilization is still inconclusive.

Rome's question is not difficult to answer: civilization was born before religion.When Christianity gained legal status, the Romans already had a history of state and civilization for 800 years, and it was only a hundred years before the demise of the Western Roman Empire. How could the two coexist and perish?On the contrary, Islam establishes the religion first and then the state. Only with religion can there be civilization.So the Roman civilization finally fell, but the Islamic civilization flourished forever. More importantly, Islam, which was born together with civilization, is not only a religion about heaven, the afterlife, and the end of the world, but also an ethics about the world, the world, and the present.This is their uniqueness and excellence.Yes, the Jewish prophets obtained the revelation of God, Sakyamuni realized the Righteous Enlightenment, Plato knew the Absolute Concept, Christ Jesus redeemed the original sin of mankind, and Confucius arranged our daily life.But these great wise men are either on this shore or on the other shore.Only Muhammad is the one who travels freely between heaven and earth.

In fact, what Muhammad created and Muslims jointly established is not only religious consciousness and belief system, but also social system, way of life, cultural form, historical tradition, and even the characteristics of the times.And hadith, not only herald the past and the future, but also directly guide people's basic necessities of life, words and deeds, and way of life.Such coverage and influence can only be achieved by Chinese Confucianism.But Confucianism is not a religion, nor did it arose at the same time as Chinese civilization. Civilization and religion have the same origin, birth and development at the same time, and the integration of religious belief and cultural spirit, ultimate concern and secular society is unique in the world.

But isn't Jewish civilization similar to this? That's right, although Judaism was not established at the beginning of the founding of the country, it was at the time of the restoration of the country, that is, after the "Babylonian captivity".Therefore, Jewish civilization can also be said to be in sync with religion.Their religious beliefs and secular life are also integrated.It is a pity that Judaism has a problem, that is, preference.The so-called "special selection" means that only they are "God's chosen people" and "top students" specially selected by God.This concept came into being under a special historical background, so we have to talk about it.Moreover, precisely because of special elections, the Jews who have lost their homeland and are scattered all over the world can maintain their own culture and unite into the same nation.But in this way, it will be very difficult for Jewish civilization to have a global character.

Islam, on the other hand, talks about special kindness and universal kindness.The so-called "special mercy" means that Allah is especially kind to Muslims; the so-called "universal mercy" means that Allah is very kind to all people.This not only has closeness and distance, but also treats people equally, and as a result, it has gone to the world. Here we see a spirit. In fact, the worldwide character of Islamic civilization lies in the "Islamic spirit".The core of this spirit is God's inherent "most merciful and merciful", which are called "Rahman" and "Rahim" in Arabic.Therefore, if a person believes in Allah, his heart will be peaceful; if human beings believe in Allah, the world will be peaceful.Obedience to Allah, peace of mind, and peace are the original meaning of "Islam".Those who obey Allah and perform good deeds are called "Muslims".

Yes, the original meaning. Therefore, a true Muslim must love peace, respect life, and care for others.For example, against suicide, because life is given by Allah.Fasting has to be done because other people are starving.You can defend yourself justly, and you can't abuse the enemy, and chase after them fiercely, because Allah doesn't like the excessive, and he doesn't like to kill.In fact, the so-called "Jihad" (Jihad in Arabic) cannot be translated as "Jihad".Its original meaning is struggle, and its full meaning is "struggle for the way of God", not specifically war.Fighting against aggression is just a "little jihad".According to the command of the Lord, the person who becomes the favor of Allah through his own efforts is the "Great Jihad".

Similarly, the most benevolent and the most benevolent are fair and just, free and equal, and generous and tolerant.For example, when you go to a mosque to pray, whoever goes early will be in front.Because before Allah, there is only first come, first served, there is no high or low.For another example, those who marry conditionally must marry, but both parties must be voluntary, and even slaves cannot be forced.As for treating the achievements of other civilizations with a tolerant and pragmatic attitude, it is not surprising that he spared no expense in translation and promotion. Obviously, the spirit of Islam comes from belief and transcends belief.It is precisely because of this spirit that Islamic civilization diffused silently from the Arabian Peninsula to all parts of the world, and even the Mongols who conquered the Arab Empire were Islamized.In fact, although Islamic civilization spread by force in West Asia, North Africa, and Europe in the early days; but in the later period, it mainly relied on commerce and trade in Southeast Asia and mainland China (excluding Xinjiang).For example, the Arabs never conquered Indonesia, which is the largest Islamic country in the world.

It is not for nothing that Islam has become a world civilization. Therefore, when Greece and Rome withdrew one after another, the Chinese Empire shrank and restrained, Indian Buddhism went far away, and the European continent lost its light, it was Muslims who held up the torch of civilization throughout the Middle Ages, assumed the responsibility of connecting the East and the West, and laid the foundation for today's world pattern. foundation. After that, it was the turn of the Westerners.