Reflection # 4

Reflection # 4

Chapter 11 – Islam

This chapter was great to read as it gave a huge insight on the fastest growing religion in the world. Growing by the thousands without having to go out and try to convert people. Love it. One thing that really caught my attention was Muhammad’s power to capture the attention of his people. I myself would have been a little skeptical if a person came out of nowhere are started to profess the words of this higher divine power. I give him a bow for the way he handled the situation. He could have ran the other direction but decided to preach the word of Allah and change the lives of many people. I also noticed that Islam wasn’t only a religion for the Arab people but a way of life. The Quran is like a guide book for how one should be living. We see this most in what is considered the core message of the Quran which are the Pillars of Islam. One thing that did capture my attention and bothered me a little was the way the Quran was altered by Muhammad’s successors. There was more equality among men and women in the Quran as written by Muhammad. Just like in Christianity, Islam too was divided by the conflict of who should be Muhammad’s successor. I feel as though all the religions I read about are always changed as the years go by which makes me question religion all together.

Very interesting chapter.

Chapter 12 – The Mongols

Interesting group of people.  Amazes me how they were able to grow their empire so rapidly despite most of the population being illiterate and barbaric. I believe that the Mongols are by far the only group of people that actually followed through with their egalitarian ways in terms of men and women.  I like. Another impressive thing about the Mongols was the way didn’t seek to convert people. All they seemed to be interested in was gaining knowledge of practices of other civilization. The Mongols adapted administrative practices, techniques of taxation, and the postal system from the Chinese as stated in our text. I’m very surprised that I had not read about the Mongols before. They left me very impressed. Enjoy this chapter as well.

Chapter 13 – The Worlds of the Fifteenth Century

This chapter was a little less interesting than the previous two. I enjoyed reading about those who there is not much mentioned about in other history books. What was most interesting was China’s rule and imprint in the 15^th century. They did lots to be remembered by. Strayer really left me thinking about what would have been of the world had certain things gone different. I liked his approach there.

Overall great reading.