Arabia before Islam

Edited by Omer  Ibn  Abdullah

Religion is central to human civilization. Research conducted on the origin and development of human civilization concludes that all civilization that arose in the modern-day Middle East were connected to the Mediterranean Sea. The mainspring of the civilizations that emerged near its shores, or in proximity to Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Greece, was religion. Regardless of its variations, religion has shaped the world and continues to do so, even today. Despite the many attempts to dislodge it, contemporary civilization still inclines toward religion, and religion continues to court contemporary civilization. Perhaps one day, religion may even assimilate it..
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam emerged in this cradle of religion-based civilizations. Christianity reached Rome and, with the backing of empire, spread far afield. However, it was stopped at Persia, where Zoroastrianism was the norm. Both Christianity and Zoroastrianism had their own ideas of colonialism and expansion. Judaism and Christianity had made some inroads in Yemen, but this land, with its Ma`rib dam and economic, cultural, and religious development, never commanded the desert people’s respect, and its temples never became a religious center.

The peninsula’s desert tribes remained pagans, satisfied with worshipping the numerous deities located in the Ka`bah of Makkah and their homes. Moreover, Makkah had been a pagan pilgrimage site since the beginning of Arab history. Since every Arab sought to travel to it, it was a de facto capital of the peninsula. And in this preeminent city, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) would be born in 570.