Post+Classical+Period

1. Summary of pg.120 - 125

After the fall of the classical civilizations, religions, in particular, began to spread further beyond the culture in which they were born in. Religions appealed to the civilians whose civilization was in collapsing or in decline; they offered them guidance and comfort of their futures. Emperors and rulers "encouraged" their civilians to convert to the religion that they personally supported, and if they did not convert, then they would have been subjected to higher taxes, or expulsion from the civilization. The increase in trade during the postclassical period also enhanced the communication of ideas and thoughts between civilizations, including talk about religions. As religions grew, however, they began to conflict with each other due to their beliefs and competition with each other to attract more followers or supporters. The focus on religion during this era undermined political affairs. Though postclassical societies were influenced by outside religions, some societies maintained roughly the same societies that they had during the classical era, like China. The status of women, however, saw changes. Many religions stated that in terms of spiritually, women were equal to men, and they even advocated new rights, such as owning property, and leadership positions for women.

As the classical civilizations fell or declined, more journeys of exploration began to occur for the search of more territories, or for improved trade routes. New devices were invented to help with the navigation, such as the compass by the Chinese, or improved ships by the Middle East. New trade routes found helped to link together civilizations of Asia, Europe, and Africa, which then led to the further spread of information. Knowledge of concepts and technologies once unique to certain civilizations spread to the other civilizations through word of mouth on these trade routes. Ideas and inventions, as well as diseases, spread from west to east, and vice versa. As trade increased, and the religions' emphasis on the importance of women's roles, women's roles were reduced in the political and economic life, in exchange for an increase in the religious life.

2. ESPIRIT on Arabian Society pre-Spread of Islam 3. 5 Pillars of Islam Notes 4. Questions, pg. 136 - 143 5. Video Summary Islam first gained its start through a man named Muhammad. In a cave above Mecca, Muhammad witnessed an angel that took on the shape of a human male who ordered Muhammad to spread the word of God to his brethren. Muhammad experienced his first revelation here, and saw that it was his duty to spread the word of God, and thus spread the Islamic religion, altering his path from a mere merchant to that of a prophet or messenger of God. He preached social equality and charity for the poor; many were fascinated by his recitations, as oral skills were highly valued in Arabian society, and took an interest in Islam. His teachings had universal appeal to everybody, one of the reasons why Islam spread so rapidly and far. Muhammad did not question other religions’ ideas or beliefs; he acknowledged that he was not the only prophet of God and that there were other people whom God revealed his messages. However, not everyone welcomed this new religion brought in by Muhammad. Skeptics doubted the idea of a life after death; they wondered how Muhammad could state this idea and could also prove it to them. Islam to them was also a social and economic threat to their Arabian society. Fearing the threat that Islam posed to their society, the skeptics expelled Muhammad and his followers from Mecca, so that Muhammad could not control Mecca in the future. When Muhammad’s family had been wiped out by these skeptics, Muhammad sought refuge in Medina, and built a community there for him and his followers. In the meantime, Mecca gathered its forces to finally eliminate Muhammad’s followers. In retaliation, Muhammad and his believers were preparing to fight; they would fight for the survival of Islam, and were successful in doing so. 6. ESPIRIT on Abbasid 7. Summary on one of the regions for Islam project (Middle East) 8. Explain how the expansion of Islam created a global trading network. Make specific references to trading zones/cities/ideals/methods of spread technology.

Islam created a global trading network connecting various societies unintentionally through trade from their Muslim merchants. At the time, trade, merchants, and traders were regarded highly at the time for their ability to bring foreign products from one society to another society, as well as, most importantly, ideas and thoughts. When Muslim merchants interacted with Christian merchants from the West in Europe or societies near the Mediterranean, since the Muslims at the time controlled the Mediterranean trade route, or when Muslim merchants interacted with India’s merchants or merchants of Southeast Asia, the ideas and messages of Islam spread rapidly. Because the Muslim empire was so powerful and large at the time, it would have been favorable for other merchants at the time to convert to being Muslims, since that would create a stronger bond of trust and faith between societies when conducting business. There would be less fights, debates, arguments, etc. if the merchants that interacted with each other from the different societies were Muslim. Dhows created by the Muslims allowed transportation across bodies of water, such as the Indian Ocean, easier and allowed Muslims to spread their messages at influential ports and from there, spread the words of Islam. The Silk Road helped develop the global trading network because Islam controlled most of India at the time. Trans-Sahara trade network helped bring gold and slaves to the Arabic empire at the time, and to other societies with the help of Muslim merchants. The need of a pilgrimage to Mecca for Muslims required that one trade and barter with other people. Islam promotes trade as well; Muhammad was also a merchant before he became a prophet.