Post by maruf on Jun 23, 2004 2:45:33 GMT -5
Of course feel free to correct the mistakes or miss-representation in this article.
I would like to see more posts on this subject.
was-salaam
www.ragz-international.com/islam6.htm
The first and the least lasting Muslim intrusion, which came in 711,
resulted indirectly from the peaceful trading contacts that had initially
brought Muslims into contact with Indian civilization. Since ancient times,
Arab seafarers and traders had been major carriers in the vast trading network
that stretched from Italy in the Mediterranean to the South China Sea. After
converting to Islam, these traders continued to frequent the ports of India,
particularly those on the western coast. An attack by pirates sailing from
Debul (in Sind in western India) on ships owned by some of these Arab traders
prompted Hajjaj, the viceroy of the eastern provinces of the Umayyad Empire,
to launch a punitive expeditior against the king of Sind. An able Arab
general, Muhammad ibn Qasim, who was only 17 years old when the campaign
began, led over 10,000 horse- and camel-mounted warriors into Sind to avenge
the assault on Arab shipping.
After victories in several fiercely fought battles and successful sieges
of the great stone fortresses that stood guard over various parts of the arid
and thinly peopled Sind interior, Muhammad ibn Qasim declared the region, as
well as the Indus valley to the northeast, provinces of the Umayyad Empire.
Soon after the territories haddbeen annexed to the Umayyad Empire, a new
caliph, who was a bitter enemy of Hajjaj, came to power in Damascus. He purged
Hajjaj and recalled and executed his son-in-law, Muhammad ibn Qasim. Though
the personnel of the ruling Arab elite shifted as a result, the basic policies
established by Muhammad ibn Qasim were followed by his Umayyad and Abbasid
successors for several centuries.
In these early centuries, the coming of Islam brought little change for
most of the inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent. In fact, in many areas
local leaders and the mass of the populace had surrendered towns and districts
willingly to the conquerors, who offered the promise of lighter taxation and
greater religious tolerance. The Arab overlords decided to treat both Hindus
and Buddhists as protected "people of the book," despite the fact that their
faiths had no connection to the Bible, the book in question. This meant that
though they were obliged to pay special taxes, non-Muslims enjoyed the freedom
to worship as they pleased and to maintain their temples and monasteries.
As in other areas conquered by the Arabs, most of the indigenous
officials and functionaries retained their positions, which did much to
reconcile them to Muslim rule. The status and privileges of the Brahmin castes
were also respected. Virtually all the Arabs, who made up only a tiny minority
of the population, lived in the cities or special garrison towns. Because
little effort was expended in converting the peoples of the conquered areas,
they remained overwhelmingly Hindu or Buddhist and, initially at least,
displayed scant interest in the beliefs or culture of their new overlords.
Indian Influences On Islamic Civilization
Though the impact of Islam on the Indian subcontinent in this period was
limited, the Arab foothold in Sind provided contacts by which Indian learning
could be transmitted to the Muslim heartlands in the Middle East. As a result,
Islamic civilization was enriched by the skills and discoveries of yet another
great civilization. Of particular importance was Indian scientific learning,
which rivaled that of the Greeks as the most advanced of the ancient world.
Hindu mathematicians and astronomers traveled to Baghdad after the Abbasids
came to power in the mid-8th century. Their works on algebra and geometry were
translated into Arabic, and their instruments for celestial observation were
copied and improved upon by Arab astronomers. Most critically, Arab thinkers
in all fields began to use the numerals that Hindu scholars had devised
centuries earlier. Because these numbers were passed on to the Europeans
through contacts with the Arabs in the early Middle Ages, we call them Arabic
numerals today, but they originated in India. Because of the linkages between
civilized centers established by the spread of Islam, this system of numerical
notation has proved central to two scientific revolutions: the first in the
Middle East, which was discussed previously, and a second, more sustained and
fundamental transformation first in Europe and subsequently in much of the
rest of the world from the 16th century onward.
In addition to science and mathematics, Indian treatises on subjects
ranging from medicine to music were translated and studied by Arab scholars.
Indian physicians were brought to Baghdad to run the well-endowed hospitals
that the Christian Crusaders found a source of wonderment and a cause for
envy. On a number of occasions, Indian doctors were able to cure Arab rulers
and high officials whom Greek physicians had pronounced beyond help. Indian
works on statecraft, alchemy, and palmistry were also translated into Arabic,
and it is believed that some of the tales in the Arabian Nights were based on
ancient Indian stories. Indian musical instruments and melodies made their way
into the repertoires of Arab performers, and the Indian game of chess became a
favorite of both princes and ordinary townspeople. Arabs who emigrated to Sind
and other Muslim-ruled areas often adopted Indian dress and hairstyles, ate
Indian foods, and rode on elephants as the Hindu rajas (kings) did. In this
era additional Arab colonies were established in coastal areas, such as
Malabar to the south and Bengal in the east. These trading enclaves would
later provide the staging areas from which Islam was transmitted to island and
mainland Southeast Asia.
[See Tomb At Agra: Built in 1626 at Agra, this exquisite tomb of white marble
encrusted with semiprecious stones provides a superb example of the blending
of Islamic and Hindu architectural forms and artistic motifs.]
Muslim Invasions: The Second Wave
After the initial conquests by Muhammad ibn Qasim's armies, little
territory was added to the Muslim foothold on the subcontinent. In fact,
disputes between the Arabs occupying Sind and quarrels with first the Umayyad
and later the Abbasid caliphs gradually weakened the Muslim hold on the area
and led to the reconquest of parts of the lower Indus valley by Hindu rulers.
The slow Muslim retreat was dramatically reversed by a new series of military
invasions, this time launched by a Turkish slave dynasty that in 962 had
seized power in Afghanistan to the north of the Indus valley. The third ruler
of this dynasty, Mahmud of Ghazni, led a series of expeditions that initiated
nearly two centuries of Muslim raiding and conquest in northern India. Drawn
by the legendary wealth of the subcontinent and a zeal to spread the Muslim
faith, Mahmud repeatedly raided northwest India in the first decades of the
11th century. He defeated one confederation of Hindu princes after another and
drove deeper and deeper into the subcontinent in the quest of ever richer
temples to sack and loot.
Mahmud's raids and those of his successors became a lasting source of
enmity between Hindus and Muslims in South Asia. After capturing and looting a
rich Hindu temple in 1008, he became obsessed with the promise of treasure and
the chance to strike a blow at the infidel Hindu faith, which the great temple
complexes provided. His most spectacular raid was directed in 1024 at the
massive Somanth temple in Gujarat. The temple was served by more than 1,000
Hindu priests and hundreds of temple dancers and singers, supported by 10,000
villages, and defended by nearly 50,000 warriors. Its capture marked the high
point of Mahmud's career as general and religious zealot. After stripping the
captured shrine of its legendary jewels and golden decorations, Mahmud ordered
his followers to smash its idols and destroy the intricate complex of shrines
and passageways that housed them. The main idol of the temple was cut into
many pieces, and the parts were placed in the floors and stairways at the
entrances to Muslim mosques, where the faithful would regularly trod on them
when going to prayer. The persecution of both Hindus and Buddhists by
invaders, such as Mahmud, gave the Muslims a reputation among the Indian
peoples for intolerance and aggression that would greatly hinder the efforts
of later and more tolerant Muslim potentates to reconcile Hindu subjects to
their rule.
I would like to see more posts on this subject.
was-salaam
www.ragz-international.com/islam6.htm
The first and the least lasting Muslim intrusion, which came in 711,
resulted indirectly from the peaceful trading contacts that had initially
brought Muslims into contact with Indian civilization. Since ancient times,
Arab seafarers and traders had been major carriers in the vast trading network
that stretched from Italy in the Mediterranean to the South China Sea. After
converting to Islam, these traders continued to frequent the ports of India,
particularly those on the western coast. An attack by pirates sailing from
Debul (in Sind in western India) on ships owned by some of these Arab traders
prompted Hajjaj, the viceroy of the eastern provinces of the Umayyad Empire,
to launch a punitive expeditior against the king of Sind. An able Arab
general, Muhammad ibn Qasim, who was only 17 years old when the campaign
began, led over 10,000 horse- and camel-mounted warriors into Sind to avenge
the assault on Arab shipping.
After victories in several fiercely fought battles and successful sieges
of the great stone fortresses that stood guard over various parts of the arid
and thinly peopled Sind interior, Muhammad ibn Qasim declared the region, as
well as the Indus valley to the northeast, provinces of the Umayyad Empire.
Soon after the territories haddbeen annexed to the Umayyad Empire, a new
caliph, who was a bitter enemy of Hajjaj, came to power in Damascus. He purged
Hajjaj and recalled and executed his son-in-law, Muhammad ibn Qasim. Though
the personnel of the ruling Arab elite shifted as a result, the basic policies
established by Muhammad ibn Qasim were followed by his Umayyad and Abbasid
successors for several centuries.
In these early centuries, the coming of Islam brought little change for
most of the inhabitants of the Indian subcontinent. In fact, in many areas
local leaders and the mass of the populace had surrendered towns and districts
willingly to the conquerors, who offered the promise of lighter taxation and
greater religious tolerance. The Arab overlords decided to treat both Hindus
and Buddhists as protected "people of the book," despite the fact that their
faiths had no connection to the Bible, the book in question. This meant that
though they were obliged to pay special taxes, non-Muslims enjoyed the freedom
to worship as they pleased and to maintain their temples and monasteries.
As in other areas conquered by the Arabs, most of the indigenous
officials and functionaries retained their positions, which did much to
reconcile them to Muslim rule. The status and privileges of the Brahmin castes
were also respected. Virtually all the Arabs, who made up only a tiny minority
of the population, lived in the cities or special garrison towns. Because
little effort was expended in converting the peoples of the conquered areas,
they remained overwhelmingly Hindu or Buddhist and, initially at least,
displayed scant interest in the beliefs or culture of their new overlords.
Indian Influences On Islamic Civilization
Though the impact of Islam on the Indian subcontinent in this period was
limited, the Arab foothold in Sind provided contacts by which Indian learning
could be transmitted to the Muslim heartlands in the Middle East. As a result,
Islamic civilization was enriched by the skills and discoveries of yet another
great civilization. Of particular importance was Indian scientific learning,
which rivaled that of the Greeks as the most advanced of the ancient world.
Hindu mathematicians and astronomers traveled to Baghdad after the Abbasids
came to power in the mid-8th century. Their works on algebra and geometry were
translated into Arabic, and their instruments for celestial observation were
copied and improved upon by Arab astronomers. Most critically, Arab thinkers
in all fields began to use the numerals that Hindu scholars had devised
centuries earlier. Because these numbers were passed on to the Europeans
through contacts with the Arabs in the early Middle Ages, we call them Arabic
numerals today, but they originated in India. Because of the linkages between
civilized centers established by the spread of Islam, this system of numerical
notation has proved central to two scientific revolutions: the first in the
Middle East, which was discussed previously, and a second, more sustained and
fundamental transformation first in Europe and subsequently in much of the
rest of the world from the 16th century onward.
In addition to science and mathematics, Indian treatises on subjects
ranging from medicine to music were translated and studied by Arab scholars.
Indian physicians were brought to Baghdad to run the well-endowed hospitals
that the Christian Crusaders found a source of wonderment and a cause for
envy. On a number of occasions, Indian doctors were able to cure Arab rulers
and high officials whom Greek physicians had pronounced beyond help. Indian
works on statecraft, alchemy, and palmistry were also translated into Arabic,
and it is believed that some of the tales in the Arabian Nights were based on
ancient Indian stories. Indian musical instruments and melodies made their way
into the repertoires of Arab performers, and the Indian game of chess became a
favorite of both princes and ordinary townspeople. Arabs who emigrated to Sind
and other Muslim-ruled areas often adopted Indian dress and hairstyles, ate
Indian foods, and rode on elephants as the Hindu rajas (kings) did. In this
era additional Arab colonies were established in coastal areas, such as
Malabar to the south and Bengal in the east. These trading enclaves would
later provide the staging areas from which Islam was transmitted to island and
mainland Southeast Asia.
[See Tomb At Agra: Built in 1626 at Agra, this exquisite tomb of white marble
encrusted with semiprecious stones provides a superb example of the blending
of Islamic and Hindu architectural forms and artistic motifs.]
Muslim Invasions: The Second Wave
After the initial conquests by Muhammad ibn Qasim's armies, little
territory was added to the Muslim foothold on the subcontinent. In fact,
disputes between the Arabs occupying Sind and quarrels with first the Umayyad
and later the Abbasid caliphs gradually weakened the Muslim hold on the area
and led to the reconquest of parts of the lower Indus valley by Hindu rulers.
The slow Muslim retreat was dramatically reversed by a new series of military
invasions, this time launched by a Turkish slave dynasty that in 962 had
seized power in Afghanistan to the north of the Indus valley. The third ruler
of this dynasty, Mahmud of Ghazni, led a series of expeditions that initiated
nearly two centuries of Muslim raiding and conquest in northern India. Drawn
by the legendary wealth of the subcontinent and a zeal to spread the Muslim
faith, Mahmud repeatedly raided northwest India in the first decades of the
11th century. He defeated one confederation of Hindu princes after another and
drove deeper and deeper into the subcontinent in the quest of ever richer
temples to sack and loot.
Mahmud's raids and those of his successors became a lasting source of
enmity between Hindus and Muslims in South Asia. After capturing and looting a
rich Hindu temple in 1008, he became obsessed with the promise of treasure and
the chance to strike a blow at the infidel Hindu faith, which the great temple
complexes provided. His most spectacular raid was directed in 1024 at the
massive Somanth temple in Gujarat. The temple was served by more than 1,000
Hindu priests and hundreds of temple dancers and singers, supported by 10,000
villages, and defended by nearly 50,000 warriors. Its capture marked the high
point of Mahmud's career as general and religious zealot. After stripping the
captured shrine of its legendary jewels and golden decorations, Mahmud ordered
his followers to smash its idols and destroy the intricate complex of shrines
and passageways that housed them. The main idol of the temple was cut into
many pieces, and the parts were placed in the floors and stairways at the
entrances to Muslim mosques, where the faithful would regularly trod on them
when going to prayer. The persecution of both Hindus and Buddhists by
invaders, such as Mahmud, gave the Muslims a reputation among the Indian
peoples for intolerance and aggression that would greatly hinder the efforts
of later and more tolerant Muslim potentates to reconcile Hindu subjects to
their rule.