In the name of Allah, All praise is due to Allah
Society before Islam was in a state of major ‘jahiliyyah’. Civilization lost touch with the true message of their previous Prophets, and fell at the whims of paganism. Preislamic arabia was a pagan civilization with corruption across the land, yet surrounding territories were far more lost in their ignorance. From the Romans and the Greeks to the Persians, Indians, and Chinese, society was engulfed in the darkness of polytheism. Consequently, each of these lands had their own ignorant political, religious, and moral customs that led to their downfall.
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Preislamic arabia was a weak civilization with no central government. The condition of rulership in the land was tribal where heads of tribes and clans were independent authorities with full autonomy. The political situation inside Arabia was corrupted by tribal conflict, disunity, religious disputes, and rivalry. (Al-Mubarakpuri, 2002, p.17) With no central independent ruler, the Arabs turned to the people of Hijaz to watch over their religious sanctuary Al-Ka’bah. The rulers of Hijaz led with both secularly and religiously, mainly focusing on looking after the Ka’bah as a political base of Arabia.
The religious situation of the Arabs was polytheism and worship of idols. Although the Arabs began their worship based on the message of Prophet Ibrahim, they strayed away from the call of Ismail and Ibrahim (alaihim asalaam) through the misfortune of a man known as Amr ibn Luhai. He introduced idols into the land of Arabia, and eventually spread into Hijaz where idol worship became prominent inside the Ka’bah. Polytheism was the dominant religion of Arabia; however, other religions were still followed. Judaism, Christianity, Magianism and
Sabianism, were also present
The ethical conditions the Arabs possessed were a distinguishing factor compared to the rest of the preislamic world. They were hospitable people, they stuck by their promises, had a sense of honor and self respect, and lived simple lives in the desert. According to Saifur Rahman al-Mubarakpuri, “such priceless ethics coupled with a favourable geographical position of Arabia were in fact the factors that lay behind selecting the Arabs to undertake the burden of communicating the Message and leading mankind down a new course of life.” ( Al-Mubarakpuri, 2002)
Arabia was not the sole land of ignorance. The Arabian peninsula was surrounded by two of the worlds largest empires, both of which led the world out of the light of God before Islam came to revive it. The Byzantines Empire and the Persians were the two political superpowers of the Pre-Islamic world. Unlike the Arabs, rulership in Rome and Persia was led by oppressive Kings who led with blind pride, and waged war for the sake of bloodshed albeit having political power over massive territories.
Christianity developed as the Byzantines claimed to follow monotheism, losing the true message Prophet Isa (alahi asalam). A religious conflict developed in Rome as the belief in monotheism battled the belief in the trinity. The Persians followed the Zorastrian doctrine of Magianism. These two major powers lacked an ethical code. They led an extravagant, promiscuous, economically oppressive system; as a result, these qualities led to their decline.
The lands of China and India were even further in the dark than the superpowers mentioned. China had fallen at the hands of the Sui Dynasty who spread the cause of Buddhism in the land through violence and bloodshed. (Al-Balaghah, 1977) Taoism was also an oppressive religion which was inflicted on civilization through political power. The rich reigned free and the poor fell at the hands of these religions. A similar fate encompassed India, as the idol bearing religion of Hinduism bled into the political system of the land. A corrupt caste system full of unethical practices like human sacrifice brought this society into the deepest pits of ‘jahiliyyah’.
Major changes islam brought
In this period of wickedness, Allah (swt) sent down the Prophet (salla allahu alaihi wasallam) as a light for mankind. In Yasir Qadhi’s series on the Seerah, he mentioned the Prophet said (salla allahu alaihi wasallam), “My Lord has commanded me to to teach you that which you are ignorant of.” As a result, he brought noor to the political, religious, and moral faults of the world before him.
The Prophet (salla allahu alaihi wasallam) brought unity and true leadership into Arabian politics. He developed a system of ‘shoora’ or consultation to rule based on his people, rather than the old customs of tribalism. He disapproved of tribal rulership, and called for a world where Arabs lived as one regardless of their religion, race, or tribe. He also implemented an honorable system of appointing leaders based on their humble and fair nature to ensure justice spread across Arabia and the world. In this way, he brought a sense of security to the land.
The message that he came with was ‘Tawhid’ and the complete reliance on Allah alone. With this message he revived the true belief of Allah without the use of idols, and gradually brought his people out of the ignorance they were accustomed to. He also abandoned their old customs and traditions by teaching new Islamic principals and morals that forbade the evil ways of ignorance. He established this belief through action by introducing the true way of worship through direct prayer and obedience of Allah. He also spread this belief through teaching. Ali Kapar explains “Allah's first command to Prophet Muhammad was ‘Read’,” indicating that knowledge and education were major changes that caused Islam to become a powerful religion at the time of the Prophet (salla allahu alaihi wasallam).
Before the advent of islam, society had lost its way. Allah wiped out these traditions and sent down a mercy to the world throught the Prophet Muhammad (salla allahu alaihi wasallam) who gradually and drastically transformed the world. He became the leader of the Arabian lands, and spread his moral rulings onto the lands of darkness through the will of Allah (swt).
Bibliography
- Al-Mubarakpuri, Saifur Rahman. (2002). The Sealed Nectar. Dar-us-Salam Publications; Revised Edition edition. pp. 11-22
- Al-Ghazali, Muhammad. (2015) Fiqh-Us-Seerah: Understanding the Life of Prophet Muhammad. International Islamic Publishing House.
- Qadhi, Yasir. (2015). Seerah of Prophet Muhammed 04 - Religious status of the world before Islam. https://www.islamicity.org/series/seerah-of-prophet-muhammed-04-religious-status-of-the-world-before-islam/
- [bookmark: _q5izvt4gxpj]Al-Balagh Foundation. Prophet Muhammad [s] - A Brief Biography. pp.2-6
- https://www.al-islam.org/printpdf/book/export/html/13696
- Kapar, Ali. (2010). What Changes did Prophet Muhammad make to the Society in which he Lived? http://www.lastprophet.info/what-changes-did-prophet-muhammad-make-to-the-society-in-which-he-lived
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