Muhammad, the Seal of the Prophets Muhammad was born in Makkah in the year 570, during the period of history Europeans call the Middle Ages. As he grew up, Muhammad became known for his truthfulness, generosity and sincerity, earning the title of al-Amin, the trustworthy one.
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was of a contemplative nature and had long detested the decadence of his society. At the age of 40, while engaged in a meditative retreat, Muhammad (may the peace and blessings of God be upon him) received his first revelation from God through the Archangel Gabriel. This revelation continued for twenty-three years and is known as the Qur'an.
Muhammad (peace be upon him) began to recite the words he heard from Gabriel, and to preach the truth that God had revealed to him. The people of Makkah were steeped in their ways of ignorance and opposed Muhammad and his small group of followers in every way. These early Muslims suffered bitter persecution.
In 622, God gave the Muslim Community the command to emigrate. This event, the hijrah, 'migration', in which they left Makkah for the city of Madinah, some 260 miles to the north, marks the beginning of the Muslim calendar.
Madinah provided Muhammad (peace be upon him) and the Muslims the safe and nurturing haven from where Islam grew.
After several years, the Prophet (peace be upon him) and his followers returned to Makkah, where they forgave their enemies and established Islam definitively.
Muhammad (peace be upon him) died at the age of 63 and was buried in Madinah. At the time of his death, the greater part of Arabia was Muslim, and within a century Islam had spread to Spain in the West and as far east as China.
How did the spread of Islam affect the world? Within a few decades of Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) death, the territory under Muslim rule had extended onto the three continents of Asia, Africa and Europe.
Among the reasons for the rapid and peaceful spread of Islam was the simplicity of its doctrine - Islam calls for faith in only one God worthy of worship. Islam also repeatedly instructs humans to use their powers of intelligence and observation.
As Muslim civilization developed, it absorbed the heritage of ancient peoples, like those of Egypt, Persia and Greece. The synthesis of Eastern ad Western ideas and of new thought with old, brought about great advances in the various fields of study. Scholars working in the Islamic tradition developed and excelled at art, architecture, astronomy, geography, history, language, literature, medicine, mathematics, and physics.
Many crucial systems such as Algebra, the Arabic numerals, and the very concept of the zero (vital to the advancement of mathematics), were transmitted to medieval Europe through Muslim scholars.
Sophisticated instruments that were to make possible the great European voyages of discovery were developed, including the astrolabe, the quadrant, good navigational charts and maps.
