The Islamic Societies History - Book Report/Review Example

The creation of an Islamic empire, and the development of an Islamic society, provided the conditions for the emergence ofa chain of great cities running from one end of the world of Islam to the other. Some of these cities had already existed in the time before the coming of Islam. However, others were the creations of the Islamic conquest or the power of later dynasties. Some of the cities are described below;Mecca is a sacred town and its inhabitants are often sacred including the pilgrims who visit there.

Mecca holds a lot of religious significance since it is the birth place of Prophet Muhammad. Nonetheless, it is peculiar in nature in that it is a valley that lacks trees and no cultivation can thrive on it yet all fruits of the earth can be found in Mecca. Its growth to a prominence city was inspired by Islam. Medina town is the place where the messenger of God migrated for safety and his last resting place. It is famous for its fragrance, which cancels out the unpleasantness of its location that also signifies that when the city was made into a haram, it was also turned into a miraculous sign (Yaqubi 9).

Also, Syria owes its origin as a city to the Islamic religion. It is traditionally a homeland of the prophets, the religious devotees and ascetics called Abdal who are seventy in number, and when one dies, another saint comes to take his place and keep the number up to seventy. It is through their intercessory prayers that God shows mercy on his people and pardons them. It is known for its pure and clear olive oil, which is proverbially famous, and its apples. Baghdad on the other hand is often referred to as the earthly paradise because of the significance attached to river Tigris and Euphrates.

It is the city of peace, the centre of the world, and the dome of Islam. It also is the center of world civilization. Al-Ahwaz town is known for its special features, which include its three towns, each celebrated for its rare and valuable products, which are not found in any other land of the east; that is sugar in Askar Mukram, satin in Tustar and silk in Asus.The city of Samarra came into existence due to development of the Islamic society. It was in the past a barren land completely uncultivated where only a Christian monastery was found and this was later converted into the treasury (Yaqubi 2).

Al-Mutasim asked the Abul al- Wazir to purchase the site from the heads of monastery for 4000 (T̲aʻālibī & Bosworth 305) dinars and assigned construction of the palace that would contain congregational mosques and markets that would surround it. He isolated all the lands granted to the Turks from those granted to other groups so that Turks would not interact with anyone from the local population and so that only Faraghina would live beside them. The caliph ordered Ashnas to oversee the building of mosques and markets.

The water flow was abundant to the cultivated area of the west bank of Sumarra that date palms thrived and the trees put down strong roots.Works CitedT̲aʻālibī, ʻAbd-al-Malik I.-M, and Clifford E. Bosworth. The Latāif Al-Maārif of Thaālibi: Transl. with Introd. and Notes. Edinburgh: Univ. Pr, 1968. Print.Yaqubi, A. "Kitab al-Buldan." (1890). Print