Muhammad / Article / Discussion in Class

The Mystical: Of Numbers and Peoples

I had questions about some "mystical" things mentioned about Islam both in the book and in discussion today. So I looked it up. The following are my findings.

From Islam Article, "The Moderate Martyr" . . .

- "the Sohel - where mystical movements often begin" (62)
   Q: Why do "mystical" movements begin there? What type of people live[d] there? What type of culture do they have?
   A:

"The Sahel or Sahel Belt (from Arabic ساحل, sāḥil, shore, border or coast of the Sahara) is a semi-arid tropical savanna ecoregion in Africa, which forms the transitional zone between the Sahara Desert to the north and the more humid savanna belt to the south known as the Sudan (not to be confused with the country of the same name).

. . .

The Sahel stretches from the Atlantic Ocean on the west, eastward through northern Senegal, southern Mauritania, the great bend of the Niger River in Mali, Burkina Faso, southern Niger, northeastern Nigeria, south-central Chad, and through the nation of Sudan to the Red Sea coast. 

The Sahelian kingdoms were a series of empires, based in the Sahel, which had many similarities. The wealth of the states came from controlling the Trans-Saharan trade routes across the desert. Their power came from having large pack animals like camels and horses that were fast enough to keep a large empire under central control and were also useful in battle. All of these empires were also quite decentralized with member cities having a great deal of autonomy. The first large Sahelian kingdoms emerged after 750, and supported several large trading cities in the Niger Bend region, including Timbuktu, Gao, and Djenné." (http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Sahel)

 "Beginning in the seventh century, traders from the north brought Islam and literacy, which had great impact on traditional beliefs and paved the way for jihads (holy wars) across much of the Savanna. By the nineteenth century, these wars reached deep into western Africa. . . . The Niger River flows from west to east through much of the area, turning south through Nigeria to empty by way of a large delta into the Gulf of Guinea. In Mali, the river separates into a number of streams that later reunite in an area called the inland delta. Here, an early civilization flourished, named Djenne after a nearby city renowned as a center of commerce and learning. . . .

The inland delta is also the homeland of various cultures that resisted Islamic proselytizing, such as the Bamana and Dogon (of Mali), the Mossi and Gurunsi (in what is today Burkina Faso), and the Lobi and Moba (in areas bordering on western Africa)." (http://www.artnetweb.com/guggenheim/africa/sahelsav.html)

From Class Discussion . . .

- I really enjoyed our discussion about magical (or "mystical") numbers! I find things like that very interesting.
   Q: What are some lucky / magical numbers in Islam? Why are they lucky?

   A: 5 appears often in Islam. Here is a list (from online) of where it occurs:

1) Allah made man with five elements mud, water, fire, air and soul
2) Five colour Fair, black, brown, red, yellow
3) Allah made man his viceroy Kalifa on earth and gave him five of his power sight , hearing , speech, intelligence , feeling
4) Allah gave human being five system Respiratory system , Circulatory system, Digestive system , Excretory system , Nervous system.
5) Allah gave human being five fingers One Shadad , Roza , zakat , haj and namaj (Thumb)
6) Allah gave five pillar of Islam**
7) Five essential basic need of human being food, drink ,cloth, house, excretion
8) Five Dua Faith , Health , Rizak , Personal haszat , Success
9) Five essential nutrient Carbohydrate, Protein, Vitamin, Mineral & fats
10) Five type of taste , sweet, salty , bitter , sour , spicy
11) Panjetan pak Huzur , Ali, Fatima Hasan , Hussein
12) Five big Prophet Noah , Abraham, Moses , Jesus and Mohammad
** 1. Shahadah: Acknowledge monotheism and accepting Muhammad as God’s messenger. They proclaim: “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”     2. Salah: the requirement to pray 5 times a day
     3. Sawm: Ritual Fasting during Ramadan. Healthy Muslims do not eat or drink during daylight hours.
     4. Zakat: Alms-giving
     5. Hajj: Pilgrimage to the holy city of Mecca. This is expected of every healthy Muslim who can afford to make the trip once in their lifetime.

Read More at http://mysticalnumbers.com/number-5-in-islam

There was also a lot of interesting information on #7 on the same site, but it was more lengthy to include in a Blog post.