The doctrine of salvation in Islam is the doctrine of men being ‘rightly guided by God’ to temporal and eternal bliss through God’s commands. But God’s command was not immediately recognisable in every individual case. Here, problems began to manifest themselves early on and conflicts became apparent. In a world of stormy and continuing change the Revealed Book constantly needed to be interpreted anew and, moreover, to be supplemented through experience and transmission. The spread of Islam, political conflicts, social and economic changes – all these gave the impetus; the older religious communities, forms of government and civilisation which the Arabs encountered in the formation of their empire contributed foundation stones, models and methods. With the evolution of political and religious institutions, there developed the various branches of religious and legal doctrine in which the knowledge given in the Koran was explained and systematised. Islamic doctrine developed out of conflict between the interpreters of the scripture and the forces of change in the community. The very destiny of society and state was experienced and perceived through the prism of conflicts about the interpretation and application of the Revealed Koran, of the ‘way’ based on the Revelation, model and conduct of the Prophet, the sharia of the religious community. From the beginning until the present day, movements and conflicts which are presented as religious in the mirror of the sources – and that means in the minds of the actors themselves – have profoundly affected and indeed shaken state and society (Source: Islam, A Historical Introduction).
Rise of Islam and Early Islamic Expansionism: Revolution Inside and Outside
