Encyclopaedia of Civilizations in Islam Religion, Tradition, History, Art, Society and Culture Volume-4 (Islamic Religious Practices)

Islam is both a civilization and a religion, a historical reality that spans over fourteen centuries of human history and a geographical presence in vast areas stretching over the Asian and African continents and even some parts of Europe. lt is also a metahistorical and spiritual reality that has transformed the inner and outer life of numerous human beings in very different temporal and spatial circumstances. Today over 1 .2 billion people from different racial and cultural backgrounds are Muslims, and historically Islam has played a significant role in the development of certain aspects of other civilizations, especially Western civilization. Not only is Islam a major presence in today's world, but its influence is also evident in the history of the Christian West, not to mention that of India and other regions of Asia and Africa. Islamic history concerns the historic existence of the peoples of many lands, from North Africa to Malaysia, over vast spans of time. !t has witnessed the creation of some of the greatest empires and the integration into a single social order of many diverse ethnic and linguistic groups. Islamic history has, moreover, directly affected the history of Europe for over a millennium and has been in turn deeply affected by the West since the advent of the colonial period. The present work touches upon all the aspects of Islam. The volumes also present the critical and comparative review and analysis of the faith. The book is a must-read for all scholars of Islamic History and Islamic Arts and Culture.