SPREAD OF ISLAMHow did the acceptance of Islam spread throughout the world? The Successors after Muhammad
During their administration, Islam was introduced and accepted by people outside Arabia.
Muslim Expansion Following the death of Ali Ibn Abi Talib in 661 CE, the Muslim ummah continued to grow under new administration. One of the most misrepresented facts of Muslim history is the method of expansion by Muslims. Many history books explain that Islam was “spread by the sword”, which immediately gives rise to the assumption that Islam is a religion which promotes oppression, subjugation, power and control. Unfortunately, this is the only perspective that has been emphasized and popularized as historical fact, particularly by many Western missionaries and orientalists.
As early as 622 CE or following the hijrah (journey) of the Prophet Muhammad, Muslim messengers were sent off to invite the leaders of other nations to consider accepting Islam as their faith and way of life. Leaders, including Heraculus, Emperor of Byzantine, Kisra or the King of Persia, and the Negus, King of Abyssinia, were not only invited to learn about Islam, but were also asked to allow their people to have the same opportunity. This concept of fatih or opening the way for people to have equal and free access to new ideas and information, and to have the opportunity to decide whether they wish to accept or reject those ideas without compulsion, is regarded in Islam as a fundamental right of every human being - regardless of culture, status, colour, gender, language, or belief. Muslims were taught very early on that whether an individual or a nation, “there is no compulsion in religion” (The Qur’an 2: 256).
In most cases, Islam was introduced by Muslim traders and explorers in regions including East and Central Africa and Southeast Asia, where most of the people accepted it as their new way of life. Many Muslims immigrated from other parts of the world, settled and contributed to the native communities, bringing with them their faith, culture, and scientific knowledge of the Muslim ummah. (Cultural Atlas of Islam 1986 by Al-Faruqi) |
Following the death of Muhammad in 632 CE (11 AH), the Muslim ummah (community) was lead successively by four “Rightly Guided Khulafah” or Caretakers. (The word “caliph” is the English form of the Arabic word “khalifah”). The title of Khalifah was first used for Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, who was elected head of the Muslim community after the death of Prophet Muhammad.
