In chapter 9, Strayer discusses the world of Islam as a whole. Islam after the Classical Era was very large and influential. It united with much of Afro-Eurasia and was influential internal and externally. Islam was home to Arabia, Mecca, Byzantine and Sassanid Empires, and the "children of Abraham." Muhammad Ibn Abdullah had a series of revelations and that became the Quran. The religion of Abraham returned and there was a revolutionary message of social justice called the Umma. The Five Pillars of Islam are declaration of faith (Shahadah), obligatory prayer (Salat), compulsory giving (Zakat), fasting in the month of Ramadan (Sawn), pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj). The transformation of Arabia was caused by the tensions in Mecca and the Hijra. They entered into Mecca in 630 and there were wars and alliances. This caused for most of the Peninsula to be under a unified Islamic state, and there was a fusion of religious and political authority. The Arab Empire was starting to expand; it was in control from the Iberian Peninsula to the Indus River. There were conversions of many different things; like spiritual versus, slaves, and merchants. The Islamic world had multiple influences that they got from the Persians. The elite women in Islam had many restrictions during the golden age. India was invaded by the Turks, and they disillusioned Buddhists and lower-caste Hindus. Anatolia was also invaded by the Turks, and they were part of the Ottoman Empire. West Africa consisted of many muslim scholars and merchants, and they had major urban centers. They weren't really connected with the rural world and popular culture. Spain had increased their intolerance and there was a Christian reconquest and expulsion. Islam had glories in the Western encroachment and since there were many countries under the control of Islam, there was a lot of diversity.

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