{"product_id":"the-crucible-of-islam","title":"The Crucible of Islam","description":"\u003cp\u003eLittle is known about Arabia in the sixth century CE. Yet from this distant time and place emerged a faith and an empire that stretched from the Iberian peninsula to India. Today  Muslims account for nearly a quarter of the global population. G. W. Bowersock seeks to illuminate this most obscure and yet most dynamic period in the history of Islamfrom the mid-sixth to mid-seventh centuryexploring why arid Arabia proved to be such fertile ground for Muhammads prophetic message  and why that message spread so quickly to the wider world.  In Muhammads time Arabia stood at the crossroads of great empires  a place where Christianity  Judaism  and local polytheistic traditions vied for adherents. Mecca  Muhammads birthplace  belonged to the part of Arabia recently conquered by the Ethiopian Christian king Abraha. But Ethiopia lost western Arabia to Persia following Abrahas death  while the death of the Byzantine emperor in 602 further destabilized the region. Within this chaotic environment  where lands and populations were traded frequently among competing powers and belief systems  Muhammad began winning converts to his revelations. In a troubled age  his followers coalesced into a powerful force  conquering Palestine  Syria  and Egypt and laying the groundwork of the Umayyad Caliphate.  The crucible of Islam remains an elusive vessel. Although we may never grasp it firmly  Bowersock offers the most detailed description of its contours and the most compelling explanation of how one of the worlds great religions took shape.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"My Store","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44954551451701,"sku":"ByrdShop_0674057767","price":61.13,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0627\/8139\/0901\/files\/9780674057760.jpg?v=1770274624","url":"https:\/\/atxbooks.com\/products\/the-crucible-of-islam","provider":"ATX Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}