In Muslim terminology, the Arab society before the advent of Islam is called jahiliyah (the state of ignorance). From a religious point of view, the most definitive characteristic of that society was idolatry. Yet a sociologist would probably emphasize another trait: tribalism.
Life in the arid Arabian Desert was very harsh, and the only way to survive was to live in a closely-knit group. Therefore the Arabs had created many clans and tribes, and the individual was easily sacrificed for the good of these collective kinships. Because of constant warfare between the tribes, and subsequent attrition, men were considered to be more valuable, and there often was a shortage of them. Moreover, poverty precluded the possibility of raising a large family. Therefore, families might decide to kill some of their newborn females, who were seen as not as useful and honorable as males. What mattered was the interest of the tribe, not the nameless individuals who happened to be a part of it.
Similarly, the penal system recognized the tribe, not the individual. Since it was very easy for an individual to disappear without a trace in the desert, there was no way to punish the criminal who had perpetrated the disappearance. Instead, both the crime and the punishment were handled with a collective vendetta. If someone from tribe A killed a person from tribe B, then the former would be asked to offer one of its members as retribution. It was the classic idea: eye for an eye—but any eye.
This collectivism was necessitated by geography, to be sure, but also by theology—or the lack thereof. The Arabs believed in multiple gods, but not one of these deities was perceived as a judge who could hold men accountable for their deeds. There was no belief in an afterlife, so the individual had no unique eternal destiny. “The only immortality that a man or woman could achieve,” as one historian puts it, “was in the tribe and the continuation of its spirit.”
But the Qur’an would challenge all these assumptions. First, it defined man as God’s “viceroy on earth,” elevated above all other creatures, including the angels. From the very beginning, the Qur’an also emphasized the individual’s personal responsibility to his Creator.
Life in the arid Arabian Desert was very harsh, and the only way to survive was to live in a closely-knit group. Therefore the Arabs had created many clans and tribes, and the individual was easily sacrificed for the good of these collective kinships. Because of constant warfare between the tribes, and subsequent attrition, men were considered to be more valuable, and there often was a shortage of them. Moreover, poverty precluded the possibility of raising a large family. Therefore, families might decide to kill some of their newborn females, who were seen as not as useful and honorable as males. What mattered was the interest of the tribe, not the nameless individuals who happened to be a part of it.
Similarly, the penal system recognized the tribe, not the individual. Since it was very easy for an individual to disappear without a trace in the desert, there was no way to punish the criminal who had perpetrated the disappearance. Instead, both the crime and the punishment were handled with a collective vendetta. If someone from tribe A killed a person from tribe B, then the former would be asked to offer one of its members as retribution. It was the classic idea: eye for an eye—but any eye.
This collectivism was necessitated by geography, to be sure, but also by theology—or the lack thereof. The Arabs believed in multiple gods, but not one of these deities was perceived as a judge who could hold men accountable for their deeds. There was no belief in an afterlife, so the individual had no unique eternal destiny. “The only immortality that a man or woman could achieve,” as one historian puts it, “was in the tribe and the continuation of its spirit.”
But the Qur’an would challenge all these assumptions. First, it defined man as God’s “viceroy on earth,” elevated above all other creatures, including the angels. From the very beginning, the Qur’an also emphasized the individual’s personal responsibility to his Creator.
