xviii
Introduction
theMiddleEast,only
high
culturetraveledwithit,notthe"ev-
eryday cultural
patterns
ofits underlying village
and town
life.
’u
TheMiddleEasthadPersian
techniques
of
government,
itsowntraditionsofurbanculture,anddistinctattitudestoward
religion;
these were
adapted by
other Muslim
peoples
and
deeply
affectedtheir
ways
oflife.In
Hodgson’s
words:.
Whatwascarried
throughnut
Islamdom,then,wasnotthewhole
Irano-Semiticsocial
complex
but the Islamicized Irano-Semitic
high
culturaltraditions;what
may
becalledthe"Perso-Arabic"
traditions,afterthetwochief
languages
inwhichtheywerecarried,
atleastoneofwhicheveryIIIEIIIofserious
Islamicateculturewas
expectedtousefreely.
The
cosmopolitanunity
intowhich
peoples
enteredinso
manyregions
wasmaintained
independently
ofthe
everyday
culture,andonthelevelofthePerso-Arabic
high
culture;
itsstandardsaffectedandeven
increasingly
modifiedthe cultureof
everydaylife,butthatcullureremainedessentially
IndicorEuro-
pean
orsouthcrnornorthern,
according
tothe
region.
AsIslam
expanded
tonew
regions
fartherfromitsMiddleEast-
ernheartland,"the
everyday
cultureofthenewer
Muslimareas
hadlessand lessincommon
withthat
in
the
original
Irano-
Semiticlands.
’’z
Still,"especially
inthecentrallandsbutalso
wherever Islamwasreceived, the
’high
culture’hada
steady
influence in
moulding
the
everyday
culture.
’’a
Thus,
non-
IslamicMiddleEastern
patterns
affected
manyaspects
ofMus-
limlife.
Thesethree
paths
ofIslamicateinfluenceaccountbralmost
allelementscommontoMuslitns,
includingmilitaryslavery.
The
systematic
enslavement
of
soldierswas
neither
an
Islamic
pre-
ceptnor
aMiddle Easterntrait; rather,itresulted fromthe
nonimplementation
ofIslamic
precepts
and ideals in
public
life.
14
Indeed,it
symbolizes
the
impossibility
of
attaining
Islamic
political
and
military
goals.WhenMuslimpeoples
perceived
that
10.
Ibid.,2:10.
- Ibid.
- Ibid.
13.Ibid.,2:63.
14.
plan
tofollowthisbookwithacompanionstudythatdealswithim-
plementationin
selected
aspects
of
private
life.