The migration of the prophet from Mecca to Medina. How Russia developed historically, and what place does your generation occupy in this process (3)

Muharram marks the beginning of a new year according to the Muslim calendar. It dates from the date of the migration (in Arabic “hijra”) of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ from Mecca to Yathrib, which was later renamed Medina (“city of the Prophet ﷺ”). This migration took place in the year 622 according to the Gregorian calendar. The history of the hijra is narrated in the book “The History of the Prophets” by the venerable Sheikh Said Afandi al-Chirkawi.

When the oppression from the infidels became unbearable, the Companions complained to the Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ allowed them to move and said that it was better to go to the city of Yathrib. Having received permission from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, the companions in groups began to prepare for resettlement. Since the Favorite of the Almighty ﷺ pointed to Yathrib, everyone who had the opportunity headed there. Due to the obstacles caused by the Meccan unbelievers, the Muslims were forced to set out secretly, late at night.

‘Umar ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ, leaving, openly announced: “Here I am leaving. Who wants his children to be orphaned, his wife to be widowed, his mother to cry, stand in my way!” But will there be a rival for ‘Umar ibn Khattab ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ, full of iman, not afraid of death?! To oppose him and prevent him, one had to not know his saber.

All muhajirs (1 ) moved to Medina, the Favorite of Allah ﷺ remained among the pagans. Until permission from the Almighty was received, he, along with Abu Bakr ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ and ‘Ali ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ, remained in Mecca.

Angel Jibril ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ arrived to the Prophet ﷺ to inform him of the insidious plan of the Quraysh, and advised him to put ‘Ali ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ in his bed at night. He conveyed to him Allah's permission for resettlement (hijra), ordered him to go to Abu Bakr ﺭﺿﻲﷲﻋﻨﻪ and prepare to leave that night.

Everyone wanted the Favorite of the Lord ﷺ to stay with him. The Messenger ﷺ, without singling out anyone, answered in such a way that everyone was satisfied. “Allah commanded the camel, let it go where it is commanded,” he said. The camel with Ahmad ﷺ on its back went forward and stopped, kneeling down, at the site of the future mosque. Then the camel got up from this place, walked further and also stopped at the house of Abu Ayub. After this he stood up again and returned to where he had stayed before and settled there. He looked around and began to purr. The Prophet ﷺ said that this was the place of his dwelling and dismounted. He expressed a desire to build a mosque here. The plot was offered to him for free, but the Prophet ﷺ did not agree to accept the gift. The owners of this land were two orphans, whom the son of Zararat took care of. The favorite of the Almighty ﷺ gave ten dinars to the orphans and began laying the foundation of the mosque.

According to the version given in the book “Is'afu Rraghibin”, construction began at the end of the month of Rabi al-Awwal, and ended the next year in the month of Safar. The Prophet ﷺ himself took part in the construction; he carried stones along with his companions. While others carried one brick at a time, Ammar always took two. Two rooms were also built next to the mosque - for Savda and ‘Aisha. Until the completion of the construction of the mosque and rooms, Abub ﷺ lived in the house of Abu Ayub.

After the second baiyah at Aqaba, the Prophet allowed the ashabs to move to Medina (Yasrib). The first to move here were Amir b. Rabia with his wife Layla bint Hasma, followed by other groups of ashabis from Mecca. Here we must not forget that even earlier, before this move, several ashabs, having left Mecca, settled in Medina. Among them were Abu Salama al-Makhzumi and his wife Ummu Salama and Mus'ab b. Umair with Abdallah b. Ummu Maktum, who moved to Medina before the beyats in Aqaba, who after the first beyat in Aqaba. The Prophet sent him to Medina in order to notify Islam .

Mostly the move was carried out secretly. Because the polytheists Quraysh did not want the Muslims to move away from Mecca, they made every effort to prevent the move, even going so far as to imprison Muslims. For example, when Abu Salama and his wife Ummu Salameh returned from Abyssinia to Mecca, they, taking their son Salameh with them, set off on a journey to move to Medina. But those close to Umm Salama did not allow her to leave Mecca and Abu Salama was forced to leave his wife and child in Mecca and move alone to Medina. On the other hand, the family of Abu Salama, against the tricks of the family of Ummu Salama, took Salama from his mother. Left far from her husband and son, Ummu Salama fell into deep sadness and cried incessantly for a whole year. Finally, her relatives, taking pity on her, allowed her to move to Medina. Then Abu Salama’s family returned the child to his mother. Ummu Salama, together with her son, set off alone towards Medina. Having met Osman b. on the way. Talhu, under his patronage, reached Cuba and met with Abu Salama. Hisham b. Ace completed all preparations for the journey, but the polytheists, led by his own father, forcibly chained him. Ayyash b. Abu Rabi" was halfway through his journey, in Quba, where he was overtaken by his maternal brothers Abu Jahl and Haris b. Hisham, who, with lies about his mother's illness, contributed to his return to Mecca; and of course, after his return, they immediately imprisoned him. Hisham b. "As and Ayyash b. Abu Rabi" in the 7th year of the Hijri (629) escaped from the captivity of the polytheists and moved to Medina. The inhabitants of Mecca learned about the intention of the Hijra Suhaib b. Sinan ar-Rumi did not pay his debts and seized his property. Suhaib was able to carry out the hijra only on the condition that he leave all his acquired property to the residents of Mecca. Here, the different entity is the hijra of Omar. After the tawaf of the Kaaba, he performed two rak'ahs of prayer and, challenging the polytheists, right before their eyes, went out on the road.

After the permission of the Hijra, many of the ashabs moved to Yathrib in a short time. The Prophet Muhammad and Abu Bakr with their families, Ali and his mother, those who were unable to perform the hijra, and some of the ashabs whose relocation was prevented remained in Mecca. Meanwhile, Abu Bakr, turning to the Prophet, asked permission for the hijra, to which each time he received the same answer: “Don’t rush! I hope Almighty Allah will reward you with a friend for the journey.”

The polytheists of Quraish saw that Muslims, within the framework of an unprecedented concept of selflessness, for the sake of faith, voluntarily left their homes and previously acquired property and moved to Yathrib. They began to seriously fear that over time the Prophet Muhammad would move to Medina and, together with the ashabs, would pose a serious danger and threat to them. To determine the strategy of the struggle, they gathered in Daru-n-nadwa (meeting house). Not allowing anyone from the family of the Prophet Muhammad, the Hashemites, to attend this meeting, the polytheists decided to exile or arrest the Prophet. At the end of this meeting, at the suggestion of Abu Jahl, a decision was made on the death sentence of the Prophet and in order to prevent the blood feud of the Hashemites for this murder, they decided that it would be committed not by one person, but by a group consisting of one representative of each tribe. Having learned from wahya (revelation) about this conspiracy, the Prophet and Abu Bakr immediately set about preparatory work for hijras. To provide guide services, they agreed with Abdallah b. Uraykyt. Despite the fact that Abdallah b. Uraykyt was a polytheist, he was a very reliable and courageous person. Abu Bakr handed two camels to the guide and agreed to meet him three days later at the foot of Mount Sevres. The Prophet, in order not to attract the attention of the polytheists by his absence, instructed Ali to return to the owners the things given to him for safekeeping. The Prophet and Abu Bakr set off at midnight and, having reached Mount Sevres, in the southwest of Mecca, hid in one cave. They spent three days there and during this period, Abu Bakr's son visited them at night and reported on city news. Shepherd of the sheep flock Abu Bakr Amir b. Fuhaira, drove the animals to the cave and delivered them milk and food, later Amir b. Fuhaira performed the hijrah with them.

The Quraysh polytheists in the house of the Prophet, instead of him, only Ali interrogated him, but not having achieved the desired answer, they beat Ali and imprisoned him. After being held there for a certain time, they were released. They then went to Abu Bakr and tried to get information from his daughter Asma. Having not received the desired answer from Asma, Abu Jahl, not seeing anything wrong in this, beat the defenseless woman. Not finding the Prophet in Mecca, the polytheists realized that he had left the city and, having searched the entire nearby area, sent messengers to all corners. While searching, they came to the entrance to a cave in Sevres. But, by the will of Allah Almighty, the entrance to the cave was woven with cobwebs; when they saw this, they decided that there was no one inside and turned back. Seeing the polytheists at the entrance to the cave, Abu Bakr experienced great fear, to which the Prophet said: “Don’t be afraid! Of course Allah is with us” (at-Tawba, 9/40), calmed his companion. After three days in the cave, as agreed, the guide Abdallah b. Uraykyt brought camels to Sevres. They set out from Sèvres to Yathrib, in a coastal direction. In order to avoid any danger, instead of ordinary roads, they preferred other paths, at times it was rocky mountains, at times it was a road in the middle of the desert. The Quraish resorted to various tricks to find the Prophet Muhammad and announced a reward of one hundred camels to anyone who found him, but achieved no results. Flattered by the reward of the Quraish, the famous ranger Surak b. Malik went out in search of the Prophet. Having reached the travelers, the hooves of Suraki's horses miraculously sank into the sand. Trying to get out, Suraca abandoned the pursuit. The travelers experienced a similar danger on the lands of the Aslam tribe. Tribal leader Buraydah b. al-Husayb cut the way for the travelers, but after a short conversation with the Prophet, he himself and his entire tribe accepted Islam. Buraidah accompanied the travelers to the border of his lands. Having reached the town of Juhfa, where the roads of the Hijra and the route of the caravans intersected, the Prophet remembered the road to Mecca and, feeling bored with his hometown, plunged into sadness. On this occasion, an verse was revealed (al-Qasas, 28/85), which announced a return to Mecca. During the Hijra, pleasant events also happened. For example, in order to stock up on food in Qubaida, travelers visited the tent in which Umma Ma'bad Atika bint Khalid was located. Here the Prophet, saying “Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim,” began to milk an emaciated goat that had no milk. The goat gave a large amount of milk, which was enough for everyone present and there was even a surplus left. When the husband returned to the tent, Umma Ma'bad told him about what had happened and, at the request of her husband, described the Prophet in literary language. Her expressions became the subject of topics for hilya literature and have survived to this day.

The Muslims in Yathrib learned that the Messenger of Allah had left Mecca and began to worry about his lateness. Every morning they posted an observer in the town of Harra on the roads of Mecca, who was on duty with early morning before the onset of unbearable heat. Again, after waiting fruitlessly for 8 Rabi' al-Awwal (September 20, 622), on Monday, the Muslims returned home. But it was at that moment that a Jewish girl, who was on the roof of a three-story house, noticed a group of horsemen approaching the city, she realized that these were expected guests and loudly screamed and informed the townspeople about a group that was nearby. Hearing this, the Muslims ran out to Harra to meet the priceless Messenger of the Almighty. The Prophet was a guest in the house of Kulthum b. Khidm in Quba, which is one hour's road from Medina. He stayed in this town for several days and built there is a mosque there. Meanwhile, having returned to the owners the things left by the Prophet, Ali, following his decree, left Mecca. Ali went out on the road only at night, during the day he hid from an unwanted meeting with enemies and thus overtook the Prophet in Quba. The legend says that upon arrival in Kubu near Ali were his mother Fatima bint Assad, the wife of the Prophet Muhammad Sawda bint Zam, daughters Fatima and Ummu Kulthum, and the family of Abu Bakr. In addition, there is information that the families of the Prophet and Abu Bakr under the patronage of Zeid b. Harisa and Abu Rafi" arrived in Medina at more late date. The Prophet, together with those around him, on Friday, the 12th day of the month of Rabi al-Awwal 1 (September 24, 622), set out on the road from Quba to Yathrib. When the time came Friday prayer visited the tribe of Salim b. Awf, whose lands were located on the plain of Ranun, read the first Friday khutbah there and performed the duties of an imam during the Friday prayer. The Prophet in this khutbah, after thanking Allah, said that all people in the afterlife will certainly account for everything they have done; everyone will be responsible for their wards; after death, nothing will help a person except good deeds and intentions committed during life; advised, without making any distinction between big and small, to try to do as many good deeds and good intentions as possible and thus prepare for the afterlife. After the prayer, the Prophet continued on his way. The residents of Yathrib delightedly greeted the arrival of the Messenger of Allah; an unprecedented festive and joyful mood reigned in the city. Lined up on both sides of the road, all the residents, young and old, greeted the Messenger of Allah with great joy. To the sound of tambourines, they expressed their feelings in verse: “from behind the mountains of Wada, the moonlight illuminated us, with the continued call to Allah, we are wajip to express gratitude, O Messenger / we can only honor you, welcome to our ranks, this is a great pride for us." Each of them, with all his heart, wanted the Prophet to visit his house, to be his guest, persistent invitations were heard from all sides. Prophet Muhammad, riding his camel Kaswa, greeted the people and expressed his gratitude. Entering the city, he announced that he would visit the house closest to the place where his camel would stop. The honor of providing hospitality to the Prophet fell to Abu Ayyub al-Ansari (Khalid b. Zeid). Thus, the period of Mecca, full of torment and suffering, came to an end and a new period began in the history of Islam. After this, Yathrib began to be mentioned under the name Medinat-ur-Rasul or al-Medina al-munawwara, which means the city of the Prophet.

The sources contain various information about the date of the Prophet’s departure from Mecca, arrival in Cuba and arrival in Medina. As a result of a study of legends on this matter, the following became known: 26 Safar (September 9, 622) on Thursday, the inhabitants of Mecca decided to kill the Prophet, having learned about this, the Prophet left the city that same night and hid in the Sevres cave; from 27 to 29 Safar (September 10-12, 622) he spent in a cave; on Monday 1 Rabi al-Awwal (September 13, 622), leaving the cave, set off in the direction of Yathrib; on Monday 8 Rabi al-Awwal (September 20, 622) arrived in the town of Quba; and on Friday, the 12th day of the month of Rabi' al-Awwal (September 24, 622) entered Medina.

“Immediately Jibril (a.s.) appeared and said: “Oh, Muhammad! Allah Almighty commands you to leave Mecca and move to Medina.”

Allah Almighty says in the Quran:

“So the unbelievers contrived to imprison, kill or expel you. They were cunning, and Allah was cunning, and Allah is the Best of cunning people."(Sura “Prey”, verse 30).

Many mufassirs give such a story.

There was one house in Mecca called Darun Nadwa. One day, four mushriks entered this house to discuss how to ambush the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and kill him. Iblis wormed his way among them. Abu Jahil ordered him to leave this house. But Iblis objected:

I came here from the country of Najid. I have lived a long life, and therefore I can foresee everything. I want to stay with you and tell you something.

Abu Jahil and his companions said:

Since you have come from Najid, stay with us and sit here.

Utba took the floor:

His death will solve all our problems. When Muhammad (peace be upon him) dies, we will be free from his evil and he will no longer be able to harm us.

Iblis intervened in the conversation:

This is a bad judgment,” he said.

Sheiba took the floor:

I propose to imprison him and let him die of hunger there.

This is also wrong,” Iblis said.

After this, As bin Wail spoke:

Let's tie Muhammad (peace be upon him) to a camel and leave him in the desert. Let him die there,” he suggested.

This is also not suitable,” said Iblis.

Then Abu Jahil spoke:

Let's gather the best guys from each tribe and attack Muhammad one night. We will all hit him with our swords together, so that it will not even be possible to establish who exactly killed him. If his loved ones demand a ransom, we will all collect the money and give it back. This way we will get rid of his evil.

“Well said,” Iblis approved.

Everyone agreed to kill the Prophet (peace be upon him), coming to a common decision. After that they left that house.

Immediately Jibril (a.s.) appeared and said:

O Muhammad! Allah Almighty commands you to leave Mecca and move to Medina. I still have one secret business here. This night you will lie in your bed, but you will not sleep, so Allah commands.

When night fell, the Prophet (peace be upon him) gathered his companions to consult.

Which of you will go with me to Medina? - he asked.

Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (r.g.) said:

O Messenger of Allah! Wherever you go, I will go with you.

After this, the Prophet (peace be upon him) looked at the Sahabah and asked:

Whoever of you lies in my bed this night, I guarantee that he will enter Paradise.

Hazrati Ali (r.g.) stated:

I am ready to sacrifice my life on your path. This night I will lie in your bed.

At night, the unbelievers surrounded the house of the Prophet (peace be upon him) and sat and waited. Iblis was also with them. The Almighty sent them into a deep sleep, even Iblis fell asleep. The Prophet (peace be upon him) together with Abu Bakr (r.g.) left the house, then took a handful of earth, scattered it over them and read Surah “Yasin”...

to be continued...

From the book "Anvarul Ashikyn"

On September 20, 622, the migration (hijra) of Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Medina took place. One of the greatest holidays of Islam is Hijri Night. This commemorates the migration of the Prophet Muhammad from Mecca to Medina. That night, Muhammad and Abu Bakr, leaving the prophet’s native Mecca, reached Medina, where by that time a Muslim community had formed. After that islamic religion became known throughout the world, spreading to all corners of the earth.

Today, Muslims around the world remember the event that the righteous caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab marked the beginning of the Islamic calendar. This marked the beginning of the era of Islam.

From the very first day of Islamic preaching, Muhammad and his supporters were persecuted with malice by his unconverted fellow tribesmen. And after the Quraish (the ruling tribe of ancient Mecca; the prophet Muhammad came from the merchants of this tribe) learned that the prophet had entered into an agreement with the inhabitants of the city of Yathrib, and the number of Muslims among them grew, the situation around Muhammad, who was living in Mecca at that time, became completely intolerant.

The fact is that the elders of Yathrib invited the Muslim prophet to move to them and lead them. In Yathrib at that time there lived Jews and Arabs who were constantly at war with each other, but both of them hoped that the reign of Muhammad would end the endless strife and bring the long-awaited peace. This happened in the thirteenth year of the prophet’s preaching.

Since then, Muhammad and his fellow believers were oppressed in Mecca to such an extent that they were forbidden to preach, call people to Islam, and openly pray near the Kaaba. Muslims were mocked and humiliated so much that in the end, supporters of Islam asked Muhammad to allow them to leave their hometown and move to a region where they would be spared persecution, stoning, and attempts to exterminate them from the world. The Prophet Muhammad agreed with their arguments and pointed them to Yathrib, a city that soon received the name Madinat al-Nabi, that is, the city of the Prophet or simply Medina.

The ashabs (supporters of the Prophet Muhammad) began to prepare for resettlement. Fearing the pagans, they were forced to move to Medina secretly. The Askhabs left their native, but such an unkind city, under the cover of darkness and in small groups, not caring about their property. Muhammad's supporters took with them only the most essential things: they were not chasing an easy life when they moved to Yathrib, but only wanting to pray and preach Islam without hindrance.

But not everyone left quietly. For example, the closest companion of Muhammad, the second righteous caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab, known for courage and strength, at the height of the day, in front of many pagans, walked around the Kaaba seven times, offered a prayer to the One God and addressed the crowd of polytheists looking at him with the following speech: “Whoever wants to leave his mother without a son, whoever wants to leave his child orphaned, whoever wants to make his wife a widow, let him try to prevent me from making Hijra” (that is, “migration”).

Little by little, all Muslims left Mecca, except for Muhammad himself, the first caliph and father-in-law of the prophet Abu Bakr, whose daughter Aisha he was married to, Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law Ali, and a few Muslims who could not leave the city due to poor health. The prophet himself asked Abu Bakr to stay with him, awaiting Allah's command for his own resettlement.

Four months have passed. While the prophet and his closest companions remained in Mecca, the Muslim community grew in Medina. A brotherhood was created between the Muhajirs, as the settlers from Mecca were called, and the Ansars, the Muslims of Medina.

But for the pagans surrounded by the Prophet Muhammad, the growth and strengthening of Islam in Medina was like a sharp knife to the heart. Realizing that the heart of Islamic preaching is Muhammad, they met in council and sentenced the prophet to death. It was a cunning plan: not just one person had to kill Muhammad, but one representative of each clan of the city of Mecca. And so that the family of the prophet could not take revenge according to the law of blood feud, all the killers had to strike Muhammad at the same time.

According to Muslim tradition, Allah revealed to Muhammad the evil intent of the pagans by sending the angel Jibril to him. At the same time, the Almighty ordered his prophet to perform the hijra that same night. Muhammad and Abu Bakr immediately left their native Mecca. Only Ali remained in the city, who had to return the property entrusted to him for safekeeping - it was he who met the killers who came after the soul of the Prophet Muhammad.

But they didn't need Ali's head. Having learned that Muhammad, following his co-religionists, performed the hijra, the enraged pagans rushed in pursuit. Muhammad did not have time to go far, and in order to hide from his pursuers, he had to spend three days in the Savr cave not far from the abandoned Mecca. The fugitives experienced terrible moments when the killers reached the cave and were literally on the threshold... but the Almighty darkened their eyes and minds: it didn’t even occur to anyone to look inside.

This date is chosen as the starting point of the Muslim calendar. It was from this day that the new religion preached by Muhammad, Islam (which means “submission”, meaning God), began to spread.

Arabia before Muhammad

Arabia is a peninsula in Western Asia, located adjacent to Africa; it is an arid and desert region, like the Sahara, which continues on the other side of the Red Sea. Agriculture is developing in several oases, in the mountains in the west and south.

At the beginning of the 7th century. Arabs for the most part are tribes of nomadic pastoralists who are constantly at war with each other. Several cities, like Mecca and Yathrib (Medina), are shopping centers, where the caravan routes leading from Syria and Persia end.

Judaism and Christianity are widespread in Arabia. In 525, during the Ethiopian invasion (Ethiopia adopted Monophysite Christianity), Christianity even became the official religion of South Arabia for a time.

But most Arabs remain pagans. In Mecca, the center of pilgrimage, various idols were worshiped, especially the black stone in the Kaaba temple.

Life of Muhammad

Muhammad was born around 570, orphaned early, tended herds, and at the age of 25 became a caravan driver for the rich widow Khadija, whom he later married.

At the age of forty, an angel appeared to him, informing him that God had chosen him as his prophet. He begins to preach a new religion - Islam.

At first his sermons have no success. He arouses the antipathy of the rich merchants of Mecca with his attacks on idols (pilgrimage was the source of income for the city's residents) and demands to share his property with the poor.

To escape persecution, he flees from Mecca to Yathrib, which will be called Medina ("Medina" in Arabic means "city", meaning "city of the prophet"). This exodus (622) was called the Hijra.

Muhammad hopes to find a more receptive audience in Medina, where there are many Jews and Christians. Indeed, success awaits him here, and Muhammad becomes the political and religious leader of Medina. He gathers several tribes under his rule and in 629 returns to Mecca as a winner. He would make peace with the Meccans by making the need for pilgrimage to Mecca a requirement of the new religion. Mecca will become the holy city of Islam. Here he will die in 632, having united most of the Arabs under the banner of a new religion and his power.

The principles of the new religion are set out in the Koran (Arabic for "reading"). It is composed of revelations conveyed by Muhammad to his disciples, who memorized them and later wrote them down.

The Koran is at the same time holy book and the civil code, as it defines the rules public life. Religion and politics are fused together in Islam.

Islam refers to Old Testament and recognizes Abraham and Moses as prophets. To these he adds Jesus, recognized as a prophet, but not the son of God.

Islam is a monotheistic religion. The creed, the Shahada, is simple: “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet.” Like the Jewish religion, Islam prohibits all depictions of God and, to avoid idolatry, prohibits the depiction of humans and other living beings.

The duties of a believer are simple, although not easy to fulfill. These constitute the five pillars of Islam: recitation of the Shahada; performing five daily prayers, which should be said facing Mecca after purification by ablution; fasting during the month of Ramadan (for a whole month you cannot eat or drink from sunrise to sunset); giving alms to the poor. The final duty is to make a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in one's life.

Islam prohibits wine and other alcoholic beverages, as well as the consumption of pork and “unclean” meat (the animal must be slaughtered according to a certain ritual). These same prohibitions are characteristic of Judaism. Islam also prohibits gambling and usury. He tolerates polygamy, but advises limiting it to four wives.

Arab conquests

On the eve of his death, Muhammad called on his disciples to Islamize the world and promised paradise to those who would die in the “holy war” for the faith.

In the next 30 years after the death of the prophet, Islamized Arabs rushed to conquer the world, creating a huge empire from Spain to India.

They quickly conquered Syria and Egypt, where Monophysite Christians were subjected to tax exploitation and religious persecution by the Byzantines. They defeated the Persian Sasanian monarchy and conquered Persia and Central Asia up to the borders of India. In the west they conquered North Africa, then Spain, where they destroyed the Visigothic kingdom. In the country of the Franks, they were stopped at Poitiers in 732 by the majordomo Charles Martell.

From 632 to 661, this entire empire was forced to recognize the power of the heir Mohammed, who bore the title of caliph (leader) and united political and religious power in his person.

In 661, the son-in-law of the prophet Ali was overthrown by the ruler of Syria, who declared himself caliph and founded the Umayyad dynasty. Those who did not recognize this usurpation and supported Ali began to be called Shiites.

In 750, the Umayyads were overthrown by a new dynasty, the Abbasids, who chose Baghdad as the capital of the caliphate. One of the descendants of the Umayyads escaped and reached Spain, where he founded the Cordoba Caliphate. Later, a Shiite caliph, posing as a descendant of Ali, settled in Cairo.

The Muslim world lost its unity, but remained active and rich.

The Koran prescribes to seek knowledge everywhere, even if one had to go to China for it. The first caliphs ordered the translation into Arabic great works of Greek antiquity (the works of Aristotle, Ptolemy) and improve the mathematical, astronomical, and geographical knowledge of the ancients. It was through translations from Arabic to Latin that the European Middle Ages discovered Aristotle.