Introduction xxv J
and community identity; 4) a linear view of his-
tory from creation to Judgment Day, overlapped
by cyclical celebrations of weekly and seasonal
holy days; 4) claims to possession of a holy land
connected with stories about the origins of each
of the religions and the performance of pilgrim-
ages (religious journeys); and 5) belief in human
mortality, followed by resurrection, judgment, and
reward or punishment in the afterlife.
Identifying the family resemblances shared by
the three Abrahamic religions does not mean that
they are therefore identical, nor that they have
remained unchanged in history. Rather, it draws
our attention to their relative degrees of similarity
and difference and begs further inquiry concern-
ing how to account for resemblances and degrees
of difference, as well as the changes these religions
have undergone through time as a result of the
mutual interactions. Seen in this light, Islam can
be understood relationally, rather than isolated
from other religious traditions and communi-
ties. Muslims themselves understand their reli-
gion relationally, although in many respects their
understandings differ from those of non-Muslim
students of religion, as defined within modern
humanities and social science frameworks.
Who Are the Muslims?
Discussing what Islam is entails additional discus-
sion about who the Muslims are. As is the case with
Islam, there are different ways in which this ques-
tion can be answered too. One way to answer this
question is to note that from a basic Islamic point of
view, a Muslim is a person who submits to a single,
almighty, and merciful God, as delineated in the
Quran and sunna (precedent based on the hadith).
Collectively, Muslims understand themselves ide-
ally to be members of a single community of believ-
ers, known as the umma. The original basis for the
universal Muslim community was the community
founded by Muhammad in Medina after his emigra-
tion, or Hijra, from Mecca (about 260 miles south
of Medina) with a small group of mostly Arab fol-
lowers in 622. Muslims have come to see this event
as being so momentous that they use it to mark the
year one on their lunar calendar. The community in
Medina became exemplary for succeeding genera-
tions of Muslims, especially with regard to matters
of piety, worship, and law. The embodiment of the
umma as a territorial entity ruled by Muslims and
following the sharia, or sacred law, was expressed by
the concept of the dar al-Islam, or “house of Islam.”
This territorial understanding was superseded by
modern nation-states created in Muslim lands dur-
ing the 19th and 20th centuries.
In addition to viewing themselves as a commu-
nity united in their belief in God and his prophet,
Muslims also identify themselves with different
strands of Islamic tradition. The main ones are
Sunnism, Shiism, and Sufism. Sunni Muslims are
the majority and today make up about 85 percent
of the total Muslim population (estimated to be
1.4 million in mid-2007, according to the Ency-
clopaedia Britannica). Their name comes from an
Arabic phrase meaning “the people of the sunna
and the community of believers” (ahl al-sunna
wa’l-jamaa). Their Quran commentaries, hadith
collections, legal schools (the Hanafi, Maliki,
Shafii, and Hanbali schools), and theological tra-
ditions are the ones most widely circulated and
respected. It is from their ranks that most Muslim
rulers and dynasties have arisen. Leading coun-
tries with Sunni majorities include Indonesia,
Pakistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Turkey, Morocco,
and Nigeria.
The most prominent alternative, or sectarian,
form of Islam is that of the Shia, who today con-
stitute up to 15 percent of all Muslims, between
156 and 195 million. Known as the faction of Ali
(shiat Ali), Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law
(d. 661), they are found in many parts of the
world, but they constitute majorities in the mod-
ern countries of Iran (89 percent of its popula-
tion), Iraq (60 percent), Bahrain (70 percent), and
Azerbaijan (85 percent). Shii Muslims maintain
that the most legitimate authorities in all matters
are the Imams—select members of Muhammad’s