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131-445: The city reached its peak in the 12th century, with a population of approximately 200,000. It was the centre of administrative power in Egypt, until it was ordered burnt in 1168 by its own vizier , Shawar , to keep its wealth out of the hands of the invading Crusaders . The remains of the city were eventually absorbed by nearby Cairo , which had been built to the north of Fustat in 969 when

262-454: A hadith may have drifted from its original telling to when it was finally written down, even if the chain of transmission is authentic. Overall, some Western academics have cautiously viewed the hadith collections as accurate historical sources, while the "dominant paradigm" in Western scholarship is to consider their reliability suspect. Scholars such as Wilferd Madelung do not reject

393-470: A jinn , which made him no longer want to live. In desperation, Muhammad fled from the cave and began climbing up towards the top of the mountain to jump to his death. But when he reached the summit, he experienced another vision , this time seeing a mighty being that engulfed the horizon and stared back at Muhammad even when he turned to face a different direction. This was the spirit of revelation ( rūḥ ), which Muhammad later referred to as Gabriel ; it

524-462: A Prophet; otherwise, he would be a liar. When they returned to Mecca and asked Muhammad the questions, he told them he would provide the answers the next day. However, 15 days passed without a response from his God, leading to gossip among the Meccans and causing Muhammad distress. At some point later, the angel Gabriel came to Muhammad and provided him with the answers. In response to the first query,

655-411: A basic unit consisted of rooms built around a central courtyard, with an arcade of arches on one side of the courtyard being the principal means of access. In the mid-12th century, the caliph of Egypt was the teenager Athid , but his position was primarily ceremonial. The true power in Egypt was that of the vizier, Shawar . He had been involved in extensive political intrigue for years, working to repel

786-452: A cloak and tucked him in her arms until his fears dissipated. She had absolutely no doubts about his revelation; she insisted it was real and not a jinn. Muhammad was also reassured by Khadija's Christian cousin Waraqah ibn Nawfal , who jubilantly exclaimed "Holy! Holy! If you have spoken the truth to me, O Khadijah, there has come to him the great divinity who came to Moses aforetime, and lo, he

917-574: A few months after returning from the Farewell Pilgrimage , he fell ill and died. By the time of his death, most of the Arabian Peninsula had converted to Islam . The revelations ( waḥy ) that Muhammad reported receiving until his death form the verses ( āyah ) of the Quran, upon which Islam is based, are regarded by Muslims as the verbatim word of God and his final revelation. Besides

1048-425: A greater emphasis on the hadith instead of the biographical literature, since hadith maintain a traditional chain of transmission ( isnad ); the lack of such a chain for the biographical literature makes it unverifiable in their eyes. The hadiths generally present an idealized view of Muhammad. Western scholars have expressed skepticism regarding the verifiability of these chains of transmission. It

1179-455: A job leading caravans on the northern segment of the route to Syria. The historical record of Mecca during Muhammad's early life is limited and fragmentary, making it difficult to distinguish between fact and legend. Several Islamic narratives relate that Muhammad, as a child, went on a trading trip to Syria with his uncle Abu Talib and met a monk named Bahira , who is said to have then foretold his prophethood. There are multiple versions of

1310-451: A major role in Muhammad sending them there. According to W. Montgomery Watt , the episodes were more complex than the traditional accounts suggest; he proposes that there were divisions within the embryonic Muslim community, and that they likely went there to trade in competition with the prominent merchant families of Mecca. In Urwa 's letter preserved by Tabari, these emigrants returned after

1441-526: A message to Akhnas ibn Shariq , a member of his mother's clan, requesting his protection so that he could enter in safety. But Akhnas declined, saying that he was only a confederate of the house of Quraysh . Muhammad then sent a message to Suhayl ibn Amir , who similarly declined on the basis of tribal principle. Finally, Muhammad dispatched someone to ask Mut'im ibn 'Adiy , the chief of the Banu Nawfal . Mut'im agreed, and after equipping himself, he rode out in

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1572-504: A message, rather than to strictly and accurately record history. Other important sources include the hadith collections, accounts of verbal and physical teachings and traditions attributed to Muhammad. Hadiths were compiled several generations after his death by Muslims including Muhammad al-Bukhari , Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj , Muhammad ibn Isa at-Tirmidhi , Abd ar-Rahman al-Nasai , Abu Dawood , Ibn Majah , Malik ibn Anas , al-Daraqutni . Muslim scholars have typically placed

1703-527: A more illustrious suitor. When Muhammad was 25, his fortunes turned around; his business reputation caught the attention of his 40-year-old distant relative Khadija , a wealthy businesswoman who had staked out a successful career as a merchant in the caravan trade industry. She asked him to take one of her caravans into Syria, after which she was so impressed by his competence in the expedition that she proposed marriage to him; Muhammad accepted her offer and remained monogamous with her until her death. In 605,

1834-413: A mountain cave named Hira for several nights of prayer. When he was 40, c.  610 , Muhammad reported being visited by Gabriel in the cave and receiving his first revelation from God. In 613, Muhammad started preaching these revelations publicly, proclaiming that 'God is One', that complete 'submission' ( Islām ) to God ( Allāh ) is the right way of life ( dīn ), and that he

1965-523: A new capital. When Alexandria fell in September 641, Amr ibn al-As , the commander of the conquering army, founded a new capital on the eastern bank of the river. The early population of the city was composed almost entirely of soldiers and their families, and the layout of the city was similar to that of a garrison. Amr intended for Fustat to serve as a base from which to conquer North Africa, as well as to launch further campaigns against Byzantium. It remained

2096-410: A non-Muslim or even a slave, although women continued to be expressly barred from the office. Historically, the term has been used to describe two very different ways: either for a unique position, the prime minister at the head of the monarch's government (the term Grand Vizier always refers to such a post), or as a shared 'cabinet rank', rather like a British secretary of state . If one such vizier

2227-503: A place for the poor to gather to receive alms, food, and care. Christians and Jews were also allowed to participate in community worship at the mosque. Initially, Muhammad's religion had no organized way to call the community to prayer in a coordinated manner. To resolve this, Muhammad had considered using a ram's horn ( shofar ) like the Jews or a wooden clapper like the Christians, but one of

2358-424: A rubbish dump, though it still maintained a population of thousands, with the primary crafts being those of pottery and trash-collecting. The layers of garbage accumulated over hundreds of years, and gradually the population decreased, leaving what had once been a thriving city a wasteland. Today, little remains of the grandeur of the old city. The three capitals, Fustat, al-Askar and al-Qatta'i were absorbed into

2489-422: A significant clandestine meeting was convened, again at Aqaba. In this gathering, seventy-five individuals from Medina (then Yathrib) attended, including two women, representing all the converts of the oases. Muhammad asked them to protect him as they would protect their wives and children. They concurred and gave him their oath, commonly referred to as the second pledge at al-Aqabah or the pledge of war. Paradise

2620-464: A successful attack on Egypt in order to expand the Crusader territories, had finally achieved a certain amount of success. He and his army entered Egypt, sacked the city of Bilbeis , slaughtered nearly all of its inhabitants, and then continued on towards Fustat. Amalric and his troops camped just south of the city, and then sent a message to the young Egyptian caliph Athid , only 18 years old, to surrender

2751-476: A violent man. The next day, a number of Quraysh approached him, asking if he had said what they had heard from their companions. He answered yes, and one of them seized him by his cloak. Abu Bakr intervened, tearfully saying, "Would you kill a man for saying God is my Lord?" And they left him. The Quraysh attempted to entice Muhammad to quit preaching by giving him admission to the merchants' inner circle as well as an advantageous marriage, but he refused both of

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2882-511: Is a high-ranking political advisor or minister in the Near East . The Abbasid caliphs gave the title wazir to a minister formerly called katib (secretary), who was at first merely a helper but afterwards became the representative and successor of the dapir (official scribe or secretary) of the Sassanian kings. In modern usage, the term has been used for government ministers in much of

3013-410: Is depicted sitting in a ratha . In Nabagunjara Ganjifa , the vizier is depicted as Arjuna . Muhammad Muhammad ( / m oʊ ˈ h ɑː m ə d / ; Arabic : مُحَمَّد , romanized :  Muḥammad , lit.   'praiseworthy'; [mʊˈħæm.mæd] ; c.  570  – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and

3144-562: Is generally associated with Jerusalem. Over time, these different traditions merged to present the journey as one that began in Mecca, passed through Jerusalem, and then ascended to heaven. The dating of the events also differs from account to account. Ibn Sa'd recorded that Muhammad's Mi'raj took place first, from near the Kaaba to the heavens, on the 27th of Ramadan , 18 months before the Hijrah , while

3275-627: Is referred to as Muhammad in a number of verses. The Quranic text also describes the settlement of his followers in Yathrib after their expulsion by the Quraysh, and briefly mentions military encounters such as the Muslim victory at Badr . The Quran, however, provides minimal assistance for Muhammad's chronological biography; most Quranic verses do not provide significant historical context and timeline. Almost none of Muhammad's companions are mentioned by name in

3406-630: Is the official translation of minister in the Urdu language, and is used in ministerial oath taking ceremonies conducted in Urdu. In East Africa – Kenya and Tanzania , ministers are referred to as Waziri in Swahili and prime ministers as Waziri Mkuu. In the Nation of Islam , Louis Farrakhan is sometimes given the honorific title of Wazir In Pakistan , the foreign minister is known as Vazir-e-Khārjah. In Brunei

3537-555: Is the prime minister, he may hold the title of Grand Vizier or another title. Wazīr is the standard Arabic word for a government minister. Prime ministers are usually termed as Ra'īs al-Wuzara (literally, president of the ministers) or al-Wazīr al-'Awwal (prime minister). The latter term is generally found in the Maghreb , while the former is typical of usage in the Mashriq (broadly defined, including Egypt , Sudan , Levant , Iraq and

3668-449: Is the prophet of his people." Khadija instructed Muhammad to let her know if Gabriel returned. When he appeared during their private time, Khadija conducted tests by having Muhammad sit on her left thigh, right thigh, and lap, inquiring Muhammad if the being was still present each time. After Khadija removed her clothes with Muhammad on her lap, he reported that Gabriel left at that moment. Khadija thus told him to rejoice as she concluded it

3799-410: Is widely accepted as the starting point, but there is disagreement among Islamic traditions as to what constitutes "the farthest place of worship". Some modern scholars maintain that the earliest tradition saw this faraway site as a celestial twin of the Kaaba, so that Muhammad's journey took him directly from Mecca through the heavens. A later tradition, however, refers to it as Bayt al-Maqdis , which

3930-450: Is widely believed by Western scholars that there was widespread fabrication of hadith during the early centuries of Islam to support certain theological and legal positions, and it has been suggested that it is "very likely that a considerable number of hadiths that can be found in the hadith collections did not actually originate with the Prophet". In addition, the meaning of

4061-566: The Hijrah , maintains that Muhammad penned the text and divulges its assumed content without supplying any isnad or corroboration. The appellation is generally deemed imprecise, as the text neither established a state nor enacted Quranic statutes, but rather addressed tribal matters. While scholars from both the West and the Muslim world agree on the text's authenticity, disagreements persist on whether it

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4192-555: The hadith which have been compiled in later periods, but judge them in their historical context. Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim was born in Mecca c.  570 , and his birthday is believed to be in the month of Rabi' al-Awwal . He belonged to the Banu Hashim clan of the Quraysh tribe, which was a dominant force in western Arabia. While his clan was one of

4323-656: The Arabian Peninsula ). Thus, for example, the Prime Minister of Egypt is in Arabic a wazīr . In Iran the ministers of government are called Vazir in Persian (e.g. foreign/health Vazir ), and prime minister of state before the removal of the post, was called as Nokhost Vazir . In Pakistan , the prime minister (de facto ruling politician, formally under the president) is called Vazīr-e Azam (Persian for Grand vizier ), other Ministers are styled vazir s. In India , Vazīr

4454-642: The Ayyubid dynasty. With Fustat no more than a dying suburb, the center of government moved permanently to nearby Cairo. Saladin later attempted to unite Cairo and Fustat into one city by enclosing them in massive walls, although this proved to be largely unsuccessful. In 1166 Maimonides went to Egypt and settled in Fustat, where he gained much renown as a physician, practising in the family of Saladin and in that of his vizier Ḳaḍi al-Faḍil al-Baisami, and Saladin's successors. The title Ra'is al-Umma or al-Millah (Head of

4585-499: The Black Stone and performing the ritual tawaf . As Muhammad passed by them, they reportedly said hurtful things to him. The same happened when he passed by them a second time. On his third pass, Muhammad stopped and said, "Will you listen to me, O Quraysh? By Him (God), who holds my life in His hand, I bring you slaughter." They fell silent and told him to go home, saying that he was not

4716-526: The Fatimids conquered the region and created a new city as a royal enclosure for the Caliph. The area fell into disrepair for hundreds of years and was used as a rubbish dump. Today, the ruins of Fustat lie within the modern district of Old Cairo , with few buildings remaining from its days as a capital. Many archaeological digs have revealed the wealth of buried material in the area. Many ancient items recovered from

4847-608: The Middle East and beyond. Several alternative spellings are used in English, such as vizir , wazir , and vezir . Vizier may be derived from the Arabic wazara ( lit.   ' to bear a burden ' ), from the Semitic root W-Z-R . The word is mentioned in the Quran , where Aaron is described as the wazir (helper) of Moses, as well as the word wizr (burden) which is also derived from

4978-469: The Quran . But Muhammad asserted that the Quran, in the form he conveyed it, was already an extraordinary proof. According to Amr ibn al-As , several of the Quraysh gathered at Hijr and discussed how they had never faced such serious problems as they were facing from Muhammad. They said that he had derided their culture, denigrated their ancestors, scorned their faith, shattered their community, and cursed their gods. Sometime later, Muhammad came, kissing

5109-587: The Year of the Elephant , when Abraha , the Aksumite viceroy in the former Himyarite Kingdom , unsuccessfully attempted to conquer Mecca. Recent studies, however, challenge this notion, as other evidence suggests that the expedition, if it had occurred, would have transpired substantially before Muhammad's birth. Later Muslim scholars presumably linked Abraha's renowned name to the narrative of Muhammad's birth to elucidate

5240-456: The vizier is classified into five titles, which are: In the rare case of the Indian princely state of Jafarabad (Jafrabad, founded c. 1650), ruled by Thanadar s, in 1702 a state called Janjira was founded, with rulers (six incumbents) styled wazir ; when, in 1762, Jafarabad and Janjira states entered into personal union, both titles were maintained until (after 1825) the higher style of Nawab

5371-460: The 2nd and 3rd centuries of the Hijri era (mostly overlapping with the 8th and 9th centuries CE respectively). These include traditional Muslim biographies of Muhammad, which provide additional information about his life. The earliest written sira (biographies of Muhammad and quotes attributed to him) is Ibn Ishaq 's Life of God's Messenger written c.  767 (150 AH). Although

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5502-638: The Abyssinian Kingdom of Aksum and found a small colony under the protection of the Christian Ethiopian emperor Aṣḥama ibn Abjar . Among those who departed were Umm Habiba , the daughter of one of the Quraysh chiefs, Abu Sufyan , and her husband. The Quraysh then sent two men to retrieve them. Because leatherwork at the time was highly prized in Abyssinia, they gathered a lot of skins and transported them there so they could distribute some to each of

5633-718: The Arabic term for vizier (na'ib) became synonymous to the name for playing cards in the Italian Renaissane (naibi) and even in Spain today (naipes). In the Mysore Chad Ganjifa , the Vizier (Amatya or Mantri), is one of six court cards. It ranks third, after the King (Raja) and Queen (Rajni), and before the Knight (Senani), Jack (Padathi or Sevaka), and Banner (Dhwaja). In these cards, the vizier

5764-540: The Aws, who had been at odds for so long—accept Islam and adopt Muhammad as their leader, unity could be achieved between them. The next year, five of the earlier converts revisited Muhammad, bringing with them seven newcomers, three of whom were from the Banu Aws. At Aqaba, near Mecca, they pledged their loyalty to him. Muhammad then entrusted Mus'ab ibn Umayr to join them on their return to Medina to promote Islam. Come June 622,

5895-537: The Banu Khazraj. These men had a history of raiding Jews in their locality, who in turn would warn them that a prophet would be sent to punish them. On hearing Muhammad's religious message, they said to each other, "This is the very prophet of whom the Jews warned us. Don't let them get to him before us!" Upon embracing Islam, they returned to Medina and shared their encounter, hoping that by having their people—the Khazraj and

6026-546: The Isra' from Mecca to Bayt al-Maqdis took place on the 17th night of the Last Rabi’ul before the Hijrah . As is well known, these two stories were later combined into one. In Ibn Hisham 's account, the Isra' came first and then the Mi'raj, and he put these stories before the deaths of Khadija and Abu Talib. In contrast, al-Tabari included only the story of Muhammad's ascension from

6157-428: The Meccans, but he was met with a response: "If you are truly a prophet, what need do you have of our help? If God sent you as his messenger, why doesn't He protect you? And if Allah wished to send a prophet, couldn't He have found a better person than you, a weak and fatherless orphan?" Realizing his efforts were in vain, Muhammad asked the people of Ta'if to keep the matter a secret, fearing that this would embolden

6288-453: The Muslims in the community had a dream where a man in a green cloak told him that someone with a loud booming voice should announce the service by crying out " allahu akbar " ('God is greater') to remind Muslims of their top priority; when Muhammad heard about this dream, he agreed with the idea and selected Bilal , a former Abyssinian slave known for his loud voice. The Constitution of Medina

6419-657: The Nation or of the Faith), was bestowed upon him. In Fustat, he wrote his Mishneh Torah (1180) and The Guide for the Perplexed . Some of his writings were later discovered among the manuscript fragments in the geniza (storeroom) of the Ben Ezra Synagogue , located in Fustat. While the Mamluks were in power from the 13th century to the 16th century, the area of Fustat was used as

6550-646: The Nile, such as Thebes and Memphis , depending on which dynasty was in power. After Alexander the Great conquered Egypt around 331 BC, the capital became the city named for him, Alexandria , on the Mediterranean coast. This situation remained stable for nearly a thousand years. After the army of the Arabian Caliph Umar captured the region in the 7th century, shortly after the death of Muhammad , he wanted to establish

6681-663: The Persian king, to wipe out all Jews living in Persia. In Shatranj , from which modern chess developed, the piece corresponding to the modern chess " queen " (though far weaker) was often called Wazīr . Up to the present, the word for the queen piece in chess is still called by variants of the word "vazīr" in Middle Eastern languages, as well as in Hungarian ("vezér", meaning "leader") and Russian ("ferz' (ферзь)"). In Ganjifa cards,

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6812-517: The Quran tells a story about a group of men sleeping in a cave (Quran 18:9–25), which scholars generally link to the legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus. For the second query, the Quran speaks of Dhu al-Qarnayn , literally 'he of the two horns' (Quran 18:93–99), a tale that academics widely associate with the Alexander Romance . As for the third query, concerning the nature of the spirit,

6943-413: The Quran, Muhammad's teachings and practices, found in transmitted reports, known as hadith , and in his biography ( sīrah ), are also upheld and used as sources of Islamic law . The Quran is the central religious text of Islam. Muslims believe it represents the words of God revealed by the archangel Gabriel to Muhammad. The Quran is mainly addressed to a single "Messenger of God" who

7074-455: The Quran, hence not providing sufficient information for a concise biography. The Quran is considered to be contemporary with Muhammad, and the Birmingham manuscript has been radiocarbon dated to his lifetime, its discovery largely disproving Western revisionist theories about the Quran's origins. Important sources regarding Muhammad's life may be found in the historic works by writers of

7205-592: The Quranic revelation asserted that it was beyond human comprehension. Neither the Jews who devised the questions nor the Quraysh who posed them to Muhammad converted to Islam upon receiving the answers. Nadr and Uqba were later executed on Muhammad's orders after the Battle of Badr , while other captives were held for ransom. As Uqba pleaded, "But who will take care of my children, Muhammad?" Muhammad responded, "Hell!" In 615, Muhammad sent some of his followers to emigrate to

7336-472: The Quraysh decided to roof the Kaaba , which had previously consisted only of walls. A complete rebuild was needed to accommodate the new weight. Amid concerns about upsetting the deities, a man stepped forth with a pickaxe and exclaimed, "O goddess! Fear not! Our intentions are only for the best." With that, he began demolishing it. The anxious Meccans awaited divine retribution overnight, but his unharmed continuation

7467-500: The Quraysh sent Nadr ibn al-Harith and Uqba ibn Abi Mu'ayt to Yathrib to seek the opinions of the Jewish rabbis regarding Muhammad. The rabbis advised them to ask Muhammad three questions: recount the tale of young men who ventured forth in the first age; narrate the story of a traveler who reached both the eastern and western ends of the earth; and provide details about the spirit. If Muhammad answered correctly, they stated, he would be

7598-601: The advances of both the Christian Crusaders, and the forces of the Nur al-Din from Syria. Shawar managed this by constantly shifting alliances between the two, playing them against each other, and in effect keeping them in a stalemate where neither army could successfully attack Egypt without being blocked by the other. However, in 1168, the Christian King Amalric I of Jerusalem , who had been trying for years to launch

7729-456: The attack but changed their minds upon hearing the voices of Sawdah and some of Muhammad's daughters, since it was considered shameful to kill a man in front of the women in his family. They instead chose to wait until Muhammad left the house the next morning; one of the men peeked into a window and saw what he believed to be Muhammad (but was actually Ali dressed in Muhammad's cloak), though unbeknownst to them, Muhammad had previously escaped from

7860-507: The back of the residence. When Ali went outside to go for a walk the following morning, the men realized they had been fooled, and the Quraysh consequently offered a 100-camel bounty for the return of Muhammad's body, dead or alive. After staying hidden for three days, Muhammad subsequently departed with Abu Bakr for Medina, which at the time was still named Yathrib; the two men arrived in Medina on 4 September 622. The Meccan Muslims who undertook

7991-568: The beginning of the Islamic calendar , also known as the Hijri calendar. In Medina, Muhammad united the tribes under the Constitution of Medina . In December 629, after eight years of intermittent fighting with Meccan tribes, Muhammad gathered an army of 10,000 Muslim converts and marched on the city of Mecca . The conquest went largely uncontested, and Muhammad seized the city with minimal casualties. In 632,

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8122-456: The caliph's policies, and the far more powerful wazīr al-tafwīd ("vizier with delegated powers"), with authority over civil and military affairs, and enjoyed the same powers as the caliph, except in the matter of the succession or the appointment of officials. Al-Mawardi stressed that the latter, as an effective viceroy, had to be a Muslim well versed in the Shari'a , whereas the former could also be

8253-670: The centre of their caliphate in Baghdad , moving the capital from its previous Umayyad location at Damascus . Similar moves were made throughout the new dynasty. In Egypt, they moved the capital from Fustat slightly north to the Abbasid city of al-Askar , which remained the capital until 868. When the Tulunid dynasty took control in 868, the Egyptian capital moved briefly to another nearby northern city, al-Qatta'i . This lasted only until 905, when al-Qatta'i

8384-402: The city or suffer the same fate as Bilbeis. Seeing that Amalric's attack was imminent, Shawar ordered Fustat city burned, to keep it out of Amalric's hands. According to the Egyptian historian al-Maqrizi (1346–1442): Shawar ordered that Fustat be evacuated. He forced [the citizens] to leave their money and property behind and flee for their lives with their children. In the panic and chaos of

8515-407: The command. As Muhammad reiterated his inability to read, Gabriel choked him again in a similar manner. This sequence took place once more before Gabriel finally recited the verses, allowing Muhammad to memorize them. These verses later constituted Quran 96:1-5 . When Muhammad came to his senses, he felt scared; he started to think that after all of this spiritual struggle, he had been visited by

8646-407: The conversion to Islam of a number of individuals in positions such as Hamza and Umar . Along with many others, Tabari recorded that Muhammad was desperate, hoping for an accommodation with his tribe. So, while he was in the presence of a number of Quraysh, after delivering verses mentioning three of their favorite deities (Quran 53:19–20), Satan put upon his tongue two short verses: "These are

8777-457: The destruction of Fustat, the Syrian forces arrived and successfully repelled Amalric's forces. Then with the Christians gone, the Syrians were able to conquer Egypt themselves. The untrustworthy Shawar was put to death, and the reign of the Fatimids was effectively over. The Syrian general Shirkuh was placed in power, but died due to ill health just a few months later, after which his nephew Saladin became vizier of Egypt on March 2, 1169, launching

8908-442: The divine origin of his revelations. Some historians posit that the graphic descriptions of Muhammad's condition in these instances are likely genuine, as they are improbable to have been concocted by later Muslims. Shortly after Waraqa's death, the revelations ceased for a period, causing Muhammad great distress and thoughts of suicide. On one occasion, he reportedly climbed a mountain intending to jump off. However, upon reaching

9039-407: The early community has been reevaluated. By the 20th century, Muslim scholars unanimously rejected this incident. On the other hand, most European biographers of Muhammad recognize the veracity of this incident of satanic verses on the basis of the criterion of embarrassment . Historian Alfred T. Welch proposes that the period of Muhammad's turning away from strict monotheism was likely far longer but

9170-415: The end of the encounter, Addas felt overwhelmed and kissed Muhammad's head, hands, and feet in recognition of his prophethood. On Muhammad's return journey to Mecca, news of the events in Ta'if had reached the ears of Abu Jahl , and he said, "They did not allow him to enter Ta'if, so let us deny him entry to Mecca as well." Knowing the gravity of the situation, Muhammad asked a passing horseman to deliver

9301-468: The end, there were no Muslims left in Mecca. Islamic tradition recounts that in light of the unfolding events, Abu Jahl proposed a joint assassination of Muhammad by representatives of each clan. Having been informed about this by the angel Gabriel, Muhammad asked his cousin Ali to lie in his bed covered with his green hadrami mantle, assuring that it would safeguard him. That night , the group of planned assassins approached Muhammad's home to carry out

9432-465: The end. Muhammad's other uncle, Abu Lahab , who succeeded the Banu Hashim clan leadership, was initially willing to provide Muhammad with protection. However, upon hearing from Muhammad that Abu Talib and Abd al-Muttalib were destined for hell due to not believing in Islam, he withdrew his support. Muhammad then went to Ta'if to try to establish himself in the city and gain aid and protection against

9563-460: The exodus, the fleeing crowd looked like a massive army of ghosts.... Some took refuge in the mosques and bathhouses...awaiting a Christian onslaught similar to the one in Bilbeis. Shawar sent 20,000 naphtha pots and 10,000 lighting bombs [mish'al] and distributed them throughout the city. Flames and smoke engulfed the city and rose to the sky in a terrifying scene. The blaze raged for 54 days.... After

9694-574: The exotic and beautiful wares in the Fustat markets: iridescent pottery, crystal, and many fruits and flowers, even during the winter months. From 975 to 1075, Fustat was a major production centre for Islamic art and ceramics , and one of the wealthiest cities in the world. One report stated that it paid taxes that were equivalent to US$ 150,000 per day, to the administration of Caliph al-Mu'izz. Modern archaeological digs have turned up trade artefacts from as far away as Spain, China, and Vietnam . Excavations have also revealed intricate house and street plans;

9825-453: The famous Isra' and Mi'raj. Nowadays, Isra' is believed by Muslims to be the journey of Muhammad from Mecca to Jerusalem , while Mi'raj is from Jerusalem to the heavens. There is considered no substantial basis for the Mi'raj in the Quran, as the Quran does not address it directly. Verse 17:1 of the Quran recounts Muhammad's night journey from a revered place of prayer to the most distant place of worship. The Kaaba , holy enclosure in Mecca,

9956-555: The first mosques built in Africa), the Mosque of Amr , is still in use, but has been extensively rebuilt over the centuries, and nothing remains of the original structure. In February 2017 the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation was inaugurated on a site adjacent to the mosque. It is believed that further archaeological digs could yield substantial rewards, considering that the remains of

10087-519: The founder of Islam . According to Islam , he was a prophet who was divinely inspired to preach and confirm the monotheistic teachings of Adam , Noah , Abraham , Moses , Jesus , and other prophets . He is believed to be the Seal of the Prophets and last Ulu al-ʿAzm Prophet in Islam along with the Quran , his teachings and normative examples form the basis for Islamic religious belief. Muhammad

10218-425: The growing city of Cairo. Some of the old buildings remain visible in the region known as " Old Cairo ", but much of the rest has fallen into disrepair, overgrown with weeds or used as garbage dumps . The oldest-remaining building from the area is probably the Mosque of Ibn Tulun , from the 9th century, which was built while the capital was in al-Qatta'i. The first mosque ever built in Egypt (and by extension, one of

10349-559: The high flying ones / whose intercession is to be hoped for." This led to a general reconciliation between Muhammad and the Meccans, and the Muslims in Abyssinia began to return home. However, the next day, Muhammad retracted these verses at the behest of Gabriel , claiming that they had been cast by Satan to his tongue and God had abrogated them. Instead, verses that revile those goddesses were then revealed. The returning Muslims thus had to make arrangements for clan protection before they could re-enter Mecca. This Satanic verses incident

10480-630: The hostility of the Quraysh against him. However, instead of accepting his request, they pelted him with stones, injuring his limbs. He eventually evaded this chaos and persecution by escaping to the garden of Utbah ibn Rabi'ah , a Meccan chief with a summer residence in Ta'if. Muhammad felt despair due to the unexpected rejection and hostility he received in the city; at this point, he realized he had no security or protection except from God , so he began praying. Shortly thereafter, Utbah's Christian slave Addas stopped by and offered grapes, which Muhammad accepted. By

10611-590: The imminent final judgment and the threat of hellfire for skeptics. Due to the complexity of the experience, Muhammad was initially very reluctant to tell others about his revelations; at first, he confided in only a few select family members and friends. According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad's wife Khadija was the first to believe he was a prophet. She was followed by Muhammad's ten-year-old cousin Ali ibn Abi Talib , close friend Abu Bakr , and adopted son Zayd . As word of Muhammad's revelations continued to spread throughout

10742-528: The inhabitants of Mecca , who were indifferent to his proselytizing activities, but when he started to attack their beliefs, tensions arose. The Quraysh challenged him to perform miracles , such as bringing forth springs of water, yet he declined, reasoning that the regularities of nature already served as sufficient proof of God's majesty. Some satirized his lack of success by wondering why God had not bestowed treasure upon him. Others called on him to visit Paradise and return with tangible parchment scrolls of

10873-469: The kingdom's generals. But the king firmly rejected their request. While Tabari and Ibn Hisham mentioned only one migration to Abyssinia, there were two sets according to Ibn Sa'd . Of these two, the majority of the first group returned to Mecca before the event of Hijrah , while the majority of the second group remained in Abyssinia at the time and went directly to Medina after the event of Hijrah . These accounts agree that persecution played

11004-419: The legal group, traditions could have been subject to invention while historic events, aside from exceptional cases, may have been subject only to "tendential shaping". Other scholars have criticized the reliability of this method, suggesting that one cannot neatly divide traditions into purely legal and historical categories. Western historians describe the purpose of these early biographies as largely to convey

11135-434: The literate ones recorded it in writing. Muhammad also introduced rituals to his group which included prayer ( salat ) with physical postures that embodied complete surrender ( islam ) to God , and almsgiving ( zakat ) as a requirement of the Muslim community ( ummah ). By this point, Muhammad's religious movement was known as tazakka ('purification'). Initially, he had no serious opposition from

11266-606: The meaning of a decree , mandate , and command , but later as its use in Dinkard also suggests, came to mean judge or magistrate . Arthur Jeffery considers the word to be a "good Iranian" word, as it has a well-established root in Avestan language . The Pahlavi vičir , is in fact from the Avestan vīčira , which means deciding . This Avestan root is behind the Modern Persian form of

11397-574: The migration were then called the Muhajirun , while the Medinan Muslims were dubbed the Ansar . A few days after settling in Medina, Muhammad negotiated for the purchase of a piece of land; upon this plot, the Muslims began constructing a building that would become Muhammad's residence as well as a community gathering place ( masjid ) for prayer ( salat ). Tree trunks were used as pillars to hold up

11528-409: The more distinguished in the tribe, it seems to have experienced a lack of prosperity during his early years. According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad was a hanif , someone who professed monotheism in pre-Islamic Arabia . He is also claimed to have been a descendant of Ishmael , son of Abraham . The name Muhammad means "praiseworthy" in Arabic and it appears four times in the Quran . He

11659-445: The morning with his sons and nephews to accompany Muhammad to the city. When Abu Jahl saw him, he asked if Mut'im was simply giving him protection or if he had already converted to his religion. Mut'im replied, "Granting him protection, of course." Then Abu Jahl said, "We will protect whomever you protect." It is at this low point in Muhammad's life that the accounts in the Sīrah lay out

11790-479: The next day was seen as a sign of heavenly approval. According to a narrative collected by Ibn Ishaq , when it was time to reattach the Black Stone , a dispute arose over which clan should have the privilege. It was determined that the first person to step into the Kaaba's court would arbitrate. Muhammad took on this role, asking for a cloak. He placed the stone on it, guiding clan representatives to jointly elevate it to its position. He then personally secured it within

11921-514: The next two years, until he was eight years old, Muhammad was under the guardianship of his paternal grandfather, Abd al-Muttalib , until the latter's death. He then came under the care of his uncle, Abu Talib , the new leader of the Banu Hashim. Abu Talib's brothers assisted with Muhammad's learning – Hamza , the youngest, trained Muhammad in archery , swordsmanship , and martial arts . Another uncle, Abbas , provided Muhammad with

12052-587: The nose of the nation's naïve sultan, just as Jaffar in the 1940 movie The Thief of Bagdad dethroned his master, caliph Ahmad. Others include Zigzag from The Thief and the Cobbler (the original inspiration for the character of Jafar in Disney's Aladdin ), the character Iznogoud in the eponymous French comic book by René Goscinny and Jean Tabary , Prince Sinbad's advisor Yusuf in the DC Vertigo series Fables , and

12183-586: The offers. A delegation of them then, led by the leader of the Makhzum clan, known by the Muslims as Abu Jahl , went to Muhammad's uncle Abu Talib , head of the Hashim clan and Muhammad's caretaker, giving him an ultimatum to disown Muhammad: "By God, we can no longer endure this vilification of our forefathers, this derision of our traditional values, this abuse of our gods. Either you stop Muhammad yourself, Abu Talib, or you must let us stop him. Since you yourself take

12314-541: The original city are still preserved under hundreds of years of rubbish. Some archaeological excavations have taken place, the paths of streets are still visible, and some buildings have been partially reconstructed to waist-height. Some artifacts that have been recovered can be seen in Cairo's Museum of Islamic Art . Vizier A vizier ( / ˈ v ɪ z i ər / ; Arabic : وزير , romanized :  wazīr ; Persian : وزیر , romanized :  vazīr )

12445-418: The original work was lost, this sira survives as extensive excerpts in works by Ibn Hisham and to a lesser extent by Al-Tabari . However, Ibn Hisham wrote in the preface to his biography of Muhammad that he omitted matters from Ibn Ishaq's biography that "would distress certain people". Another early historical source is the history of Muhammad's campaigns by al-Waqidi ( d.  207  AH), and

12576-471: The pavilion of the metropolis ' .) Egyptians to this day call Cairo Miṣr , or, in Egyptian Arabic , Maṣr , even though this is properly the name of the whole country of Egypt. The country's first mosque, the Mosque of Amr , was later built in 642 on the same site of the commander's tent. For thousands of years, the capital of Egypt was moved with different cultures through multiple locations up and down

12707-704: The peak, Gabriel appeared to him, affirming his status as the true Messenger of God. This encounter soothed Muhammad, and he returned home. Later, when there was another long break between revelations, he repeated this action, but Gabriel intervened similarly, calming him and causing him to return home. Muhammad was confident that he could distinguish his own thoughts from these messages. The early Quranic revelations utilized approaches of cautioning non-believers with divine punishment, while promising rewards to believers. They conveyed potential consequences like famine and killing for those who rejected Muhammad's God and alluded to past and future calamities. The verses also stressed

12838-484: The people of Mecca and the Muslims. Muhammad delivered Quranic verses permitting Muslims to fight the Meccans. According to the traditional account, on 11 February 624, while praying in the Masjid al-Qiblatayn in Medina, Muhammad received revelations from God that he should be facing Mecca rather than Jerusalem during prayer. Muhammad adjusted to the new direction, and his companions praying with him followed his lead, beginning

12969-518: The primary base for Arab expansion in Africa until Qayrawan was founded in Tunisia in 670. Fustat developed as a series of tribal areas, khittas , around the central mosque and administrative buildings. The majority of the settlers came from Yemen , with the next largest grouping from western Arabia , along with some Jews and Roman mercenaries. Arabic was generally the primary spoken dialect in Egypt, and

13100-508: The rest of his family, they became increasingly divided on the matter, with the youth and women generally believing in him, while most of the men in the elder generations were staunchly opposed. Around 613, Muhammad began to preach to the public; many of his first followers were women, freedmen , servants, slaves, and other members of the lower social class . These converts keenly awaited each new revelation from Muhammad; when he recited it, they all would repeat after him and memorize it, and

13231-468: The roof, and there was no fancy pulpit; instead, Muhammad stood on top of a small stool to speak to the congregation. The structure was completed after about seven months in April 623, becoming the first Muslim building and mosque; its northern wall had a stone marking the direction of prayer ( qibla ) which was Jerusalem at that time. Muhammad used the building to host public and political meetings, as well as

13362-570: The same position as we do, in opposition to what he’s saying, we will rid you of him." Abu Talib politely dismissed them at first, thinking it was just a heated talk. But as Muhammad grew more vocal, Abu Talib requested Muhammad to not burden him beyond what he could bear, to which Muhammad wept and replied that he would not stop even if they put the sun in his right hand and the moon in his left. When he turned around, Abu Talib called him and said, "Come back nephew, say what you please, for by God I will never give you up on any account." The leaders of

13493-553: The same root. It was later adopted as a title, in the form of wazīr āl Muḥammad ( lit.   ' Helper of the Family of Muhammad ' ) by the proto- Shi'a leaders al-Mukhtar and Abu Salama . Under the Abbasid caliphs , the term acquired the meaning of "representative" or "deputy". Another possibility is that it is Iranian word , from the Pahlavi root of vičir , which originally had

13624-546: The sanctuary in Mecca to "the earthly heaven". Tabari placed this story at the beginning of Muhammad's public ministry, between his account of Khadija becoming "the first to believe in the Messenger of God" and his account of "the first male to believe in the Messenger of God". As resistance to his proselytism in Mecca grew, Muhammad began to limit his efforts to non-Meccans who attended fairs or made pilgrimages. During this period, Muhammad had an encounter with six individuals from

13755-598: The site are on display in Cairo's Museum of Islamic Art . Fustat was the capital of Egypt for approximately 500 years. After the city's founding in 641, its authority was uninterrupted until 750, when the Abbasid dynasty staged a revolt against the Umayyads . This conflict was focused not in Egypt, but elsewhere in the Arab world. When the Abbasids gained power, they moved various capitals to more controllable areas. They had established

13886-438: The story with details that contradict each other. All accounts of Bahira and his meeting with Muhammad have been considered fictitious by modern historians as well as by some medieval Muslim scholars such as al-Dhahabi . Sometime later in his life, Muhammad proposed marriage to his cousin and first love, Fakhitah bint Abi Talib . But likely owing to his poverty, his proposal was rejected by her father, Abu Talib, who chose

14017-567: The streets and engage in public debates without being physically harmed. At a later point, a faction within Quraysh, sympathizing with Banu Hashim, initiated efforts to end the sanctions, resulting in a general consensus in 619 to lift the ban. In 619, Muhammad faced a period of sorrow. His wife, Khadija , a crucial source of his financial and emotional support, died. In the same year, his uncle and guardian, Abu Talib , also died. Despite Muhammad's persuasions to Abu Talib to embrace Islam on his deathbed, he clung to his polytheistic beliefs until

14148-570: The tent of 'Amr ibn al-'As (585–664), the Muslim conqueror of Egypt , just before he was to march against Alexandria in 641. His camp at that time was just north of the Roman fortress of Babylon . Amr declared the dove's nest as a sign from God, and the tent was left untouched as he and his troops went off to battle. When they returned victorious, Amr told his soldiers to pitch their tents around his, giving his new capital city its name, Miṣr al-Fusṭāṭ , or Fusṭāṭ Miṣr , popularly translated as ' city of

14279-421: The tents ' , though this is not an exact translation. The word Miṣr was an ancient Semitic root designating Egypt, but in Arabic also has the meaning of a ' large city, metropolis ' (or, as a verb, ' to civilize ' ), so the name Miṣr al-Fusṭāṭ could mean ' metropolis of the tent ' . Fusṭāṭ Miṣr would mean ' the pavilion of Egypt ' . (Since it lacks the article on the word Miṣr it would not be '

14410-466: The unclear passage about "the men of elephants" in Quran 105:1–5. The Oxford Handbook of Late Antiquity deems the tale of Abraha's war elephant expedition as a myth. Muhammad's father, Abdullah , died almost six months before he was born. Muhammad then stayed with his foster mother, Halima bint Abi Dhu'ayb , and her husband until he was two years old. At the age of six, Muhammad lost his biological mother Amina to illness and became an orphan. For

14541-407: The villains of the video games Prince of Persia (also called Jaffar, before the release of Disney's Aladdin ) and King's Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow . A much older example of this archetype is the character Haman from the biblical book of Esther . The book describes the rise of a Jewish woman to Queen of Persia , and her role in stopping the plot of Haman, chief advisor to

14672-599: The vizier is a face card holding the second-highest rank in a suit, after the king . In Mamluk Kanjifa , there are two vizier ranks: the first vizier (na'ib malik), and the second vizier (na'ib thani). When Mamluk Kanjifa was introduced to Europe, the two ranks were transformed into the knight and knave in Latin-suited playing cards , and into the ober and unter in Swiss- and German-suited playing cards . The vizier may have had an important role in early playing card games as

14803-487: The wall. The financial security Muhammad enjoyed from Khadija , his wealthy wife, gave him plenty of free time to spend in solitude in the cave of Hira . According to Islamic tradition, in 610, when he was 40 years old, the angel Gabriel appeared to him during his visit to the cave. The angel showed him a cloth with Quranic verses on it and instructed him to read. When Muhammad confessed his illiteracy, Gabriel choked him forcefully, nearly suffocating him, and repeated

14934-548: The word which is večer which means judge . This etymology is supported - among other scientists - by Johnny Cheung, Ernest David Klein and Richard Nelson Frye . The office of vizier arose under the first Abbasid caliphs, and spread across the Muslim world. The vizier stood between sovereign and subjects, representing the former in all matters touching the latter. The 11th-century legal theorist al-Mawardi defined two types of viziers: wazīr al-tanfīdh ("vizier of execution"), who had limited powers and served to implement

15065-562: The work of Waqidi's secretary Ibn Sa'd al-Baghdadi ( d.  230  AH). Due to these early biographical efforts, more is known about Muhammad than almost any other founder of a major religion. Narratives of Islamic Origins Many scholars accept these early biographies as authentic. However, Waqidi's biography has been widely criticized by Islamic scholars for his methods, in particular his decision to omit his sources. Recent studies have led scholars to distinguish between traditions touching legal matters and purely historical events. In

15196-593: Was Muhammad's promise to them in exchange for their loyalty. Subsequently, Muhammad called upon the Meccan Muslims to relocate to Medina. This event is known as the Hijrah , literally meaning 'severing of kinship ties'. The departures spanned approximately three months. To avoid arriving in Medina by himself with his followers remaining in Mecca, Muhammad chose not to go ahead and instead stayed back to watch over them and persuade those who were reluctant. Some were held back by their families from leaving, but in

15327-493: Was a legal covenant written by Muhammad. In the constitution, Medina's Arab and Jewish tribes promised to live peacefully alongside the Muslims and to refrain from making a separate treaty with Mecca. It also guaranteed the Jews freedom of religion. In the agreement, everyone under its jurisdiction was required to defend and protect the oasis if attacked. Politically, the agreement helped Muhammad better understand which people were on his side. Ibn Ishaq , following his narration of

15458-606: Was a major city, and in the 9th century, it had a population of approximately 120,000. But when General Gawhar of the Tunisian -based Fatimids captured the region, this launched a new era when Egypt was the centre of its own power. Gawhar founded a new city just north of Fustat on August 8, 969, naming it Al Qahira ( Cairo ), and in 971, the Fatimid Caliph al-Mu'izz moved his court from al-Mansuriya in Tunisia to Al Qahira. But Cairo

15589-422: Was a prophet and messenger of God, similar to the other prophets in Islam . Muhammad's followers were initially few in number, and experienced persecution by Meccan polytheists for 13 years. To escape ongoing persecution, he sent some of his followers to Abyssinia in 615, before he and his followers migrated from Mecca to Medina (then known as Yathrib) later in 622. This event, the Hijrah , marks

15720-464: Was a treaty or a unilateral proclamation by Muhammad, the number of documents it comprised, the primary parties, the specific timing of its creation (or that of its constituent parts), whether it was drafted before or after Muhammad's removal of the three leading Jewish tribes of Medina, and the proper approach to translating it. Following the emigration, the people of Mecca seized property of Muslim emigrants to Medina. War would later break out between

15851-480: Was also known as "al-Amin" ( lit.   ' faithful ' ) when he was young; however, historians differ as to whether it was given by people as a reflection of his nature or was simply a given name from his parents, i.e., a masculine form of his mother's name "Amina". Muhammad acquired the kunya of Abu al-Qasim later in his life after the birth of his son Qasim, who died two years afterwards. Islamic tradition states that Muhammad's birth year coincided with

15982-481: Was assumed. In contemporary literature and pantomime , the " Grand Vizier " is a character stereotype and is usually portrayed as a scheming backroom plotter and the clear power behind the throne of a usually bumbling or incompetent monarch. A well-known example of this is the sinister character of Jafar in the Disney animated film Aladdin , who plots and uses magic to take over the entire Kingdom of Agrabah under

16113-470: Was born c.  570 CE in Mecca . He was the son of Abdullah ibn Abd al-Muttalib and Amina bint Wahb . His father, Abdullah, the son of Quraysh tribal leader Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim , died around the time Muhammad was born. His mother Amina died when he was six, leaving Muhammad an orphan. He was raised under the care of his grandfather, Abd al-Muttalib, and paternal uncle, Abu Talib . In later years, he would periodically seclude himself in

16244-459: Was destroyed and the capital was returned to Fustat. The city again lost its status as capital city when its own vizier, Shawar , ordered its burning in 1168, fearing it might fall into the hands of Amalric , king of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem . The capital of Egypt was ultimately moved to Cairo . According to legend, the location of Fustat was chosen by a bird: A dove laid an egg in

16375-500: Was known for its prosperity, with shaded streets, gardens, and markets. It contained high-rise residential buildings, some seven storeys tall, which could reportedly accommodate hundreds of people. Al-Muqaddasi in the 10th century described them as minarets , while Nasir Khusraw in the early 11th century described some of them rising up to 14 stories, with roof gardens on the top storey complete with ox-drawn water wheels for irrigation. The Persian traveller Nasir-i-Khusron wrote of

16506-402: Was later encapsulated in a story that made it much shorter and implicated Satan as the culprit. In 616, an agreement was established whereby all other Quraysh clans were to enforce a ban on the Banu Hashim , prohibiting trade and marriage with them. Nevertheless, Banu Hashim members could still move around the town freely. Despite facing increasing verbal abuse, Muhammad continued to navigate

16637-484: Was not Satan but an angel visiting him. Muhammad's demeanor during his moments of inspiration frequently led to allegations from his contemporaries that he was under the influence of a jinn, a soothsayer, or a magician, suggesting that his experiences during these events bore resemblance to those associated with such figures widely recognized in ancient Arabia. Nonetheless, these enigmatic seizure events might have served as persuasive evidence for his followers regarding

16768-422: Was not a naturalistic angel , but rather a transcendent presence that resisted the ordinary limits of humanity and space. Frightened and unable to understand the experience, Muhammad hurriedly staggered down the mountain to his wife Khadija. By the time he got to her, he was already crawling on his hands and knees, shaking wildly and crying "Cover me!", as he thrust himself onto her lap. Khadija wrapped him in

16899-408: Was not intended as a center of government at the time—it was used primarily as the royal enclosure for the Caliph and his court and army, while Fustat remained the capital in terms of economic and administrative power. The city thrived and grew, and in 987, the geographer Ibn Hawkal wrote that al-Fustat was approximately one third the size of Baghdad . By 1168, it had a population of 200,000. The city

17030-448: Was reported en masse and documented by nearly all of the major biographers of Muhammad in Islam's first two centuries, which according to them corresponds to Quran 22:52. But since the rise of the hadith movement and systematic theology with its new doctrines, including the Ismah , which claimed that Muhammad was infallible and thus could not be fooled by Satan, the historical memory of

17161-556: Was the language of written communication. Coptic was still spoken in Fustat in the 8th century. Fustat was the centre of power in Egypt under the Umayyad dynasty, which had started with the rule of Muawiyah I , and headed the Islamic caliphate from 660 to 750. However, Egypt was considered only a province of larger powers, and was ruled by governors who were appointed from other Muslim centres such as Damascus , Medina , and Baghdad . Fustat

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