The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition | Date: 2008 Hegira or Hejira the departure of the prophet Muhammad from Mecca in Sept., 622. Muhammad was a monotheist and preached against the polytheism of the Meccan religion. This aroused the hostility of the merchant leaders of his native city, who derived much of their wealth from pilgrimages to Mecca and its surrounding cities. Forced to flee from his enemies, Muhammad went to Yathrib (later renamed Medina ), where he became ruler. The Muslim era is dated from the first day (July 16, 622, in the Western calendar) of the lunar year in which the Hegira took place.

Mecca or Makkah , capital of the Hejaz, W Saudi Arabia. The birthplace c.AD 570 of Muhammad the Prophet, it is the holiest city of Islam , and the goal of the annual Muslim hajj . It is c.45 mi (70 km) from its port, Jidda , and is in a narrow valley overlooked by hills crowned with castles. The city was an ancient center of commerce and a place of great sanctity for idolatrous Arab sects before the rise of Muhammad. Muhammad's flight (the Hegira) from Mecca in 622 is the beginning of the rise of Islam.

Sunni the largest division of Islam. Sunni Islam is the heir to the early central Islamic state, in its ackowledgement of the legitimacy of the order of succession of the first four caliphs., in contrast to the Shiite rejection of the first three as usurpers.Shiites, the second largest branch of Islam, Shiites currently account for 10%-15% of all Muslims. Shiite Islam originated as a political movement supporting Ali (cousin and son-in-law of Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam) as the rightful leader of the Islamic state. The legitimacy of this claim, as initially envisioned by Ali's supporters, was based on Muhammad's alleged designation of Ali as his successor, Ali's righteousness, and tribal customs, given his close relation to the Prophet.

Kaaba,the central, cubic, stone structure, covered by a black cloth, within the Great Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. The sacred nature of the site predates Islam: tradition says that the Kaaba was built by Adam and rebuilt by Abraham and the descendants of Noah. Also known as the House of God, it is the center of the circumambulations performed during the hajj , and it is toward the Kaaba that Muslims face in their prayers. Pre-Islamic Meccans used it as a central shrine housing their many idols.

The Edict of Milan was granted by Emperor Constantine the Great in the West and Licinius Augustus in the East in 313 granting religious freedom throughout the Roman Empire. In addition, the Edict of Milan ordered the restitution of property confiscated from Christians. "When I, Constantine Augustus, as well as I, Licinius Augustus, fortunately met near Mediolanurn (Milan), and were considering everything that pertained to the public welfare and security, we thought, among other things which we saw would be for the good of many, those regulations pertaining to the reverence of the Divinity ought certainly to be made first, so that we might grant to the Christians and others full authority to observe that religion which each preferred; whence any Divinity whatsoever in the seat of the heavens may be propitious and kindly disposed to us and all who are placed under our rule."

The Analects (traditional Chinese: 論語; simplified Chinese: 论语; pinyin: Lún Yǔ), also known as the Analects of Confucius, are a record of the words and acts of the central Chinese thinker and philosopher Confucius and his disciples, as well as the discussions they held. The Chinese title literally means "discussion over [Confucius'] words." Written during the Spring and Autumn Period through the Warring States Period (ca. 479 BCE - 221 BCE), the Analects is the representative work of Confucianism and continues to have a tremendous influence on Chinese and East Asian thought and values today.

Laozi (Lao Tzu: dates uncertain. Speculation ranges from from 600 BC to 200 BC) is, we assume, the author of the Daode Jing (Tao Te Ching), the most beloved and widely translated Chinese philosophical text. The figure of Laozi has always been shrouded in mystery. It deepens the more we discover about the texts. Tradition regarded Laozi as Confucius' (6th Century BC) teacher and the "founder" of Daoism, the "doubt tradition" movement in modern China gave influential arguments for dating the text to the middle "Warring States" period (4th Century BC). The discovery of 1st Century BC version of the text suggested the text was in flux over a long period of time. Scholars in China, on the contrary, have reverted to the traditional dating placing Laozi before Confucius.

Confucius (551-479 BCE), according to Chinese tradition, was a thinker, political figure, educator, and founder of the Ru School of Chinese thought. His teachings, preserved in the Lunyu or Analects, form the foundation of much of subsequent Chinese speculation on the education and comportment of the ideal man, how such an individual should live his live and interact with others, and the forms of society and government in which he should participate. Fung Yu-lan, one of the great 20th century authorities on the history of Chinese thought, compares Confucius' influence in Chinese history with that of Socrates in the West.

Judeo-Christian is a term used to describe the body of concepts and values which are thought to be held in common by Judaism and adapted by Christianity, and considered, often along with classical Greco-Roman civilization) a fundamental basis for Western legal codes and moral values. In particular, the term refers to the common Old Testament as a basis of both moral traditions, including particularly the Ten Commandments; and implies a common set of values present in the modern Western World. The values most commonly assigned to the Judeo-Christian tradition are liberty and equality based on Genesis, where all humans are created equal, and Exodus, where the Israelites flee tyranny to freedom.Other authors discuss more broadly the Jewish beliefs in progress and moral responsibility, as hallmarks of American culture that come from the Judeo-Christian reading of the Bible. The term has been criticized by some theologians for suggesting more commonality than may actually exist.

Practices:Confucianism does not contain all of the elements of some other religions, like Christianity and Islam. It is primarily an ethical system to which rituals at important times during one's lifetime have been added.Beliefs:Confucian ethical teachings include the following values: Li: includes ritual, propriety, etiquette, etc. Hsiao: love within the family: love of parents for their children and of children for their parents Yi: righteousness Xin: honesty and trustworthiness Jen: benevolence, humaneness towards others; the highest Confucian virtue Chung: loyalty to the state, etc.

The literal meaning of Islam is peace; surrender of one’s will i.e. losing oneself for the sake of God and surrendering one’s own pleasure for the pleasure of God. The message of Islam was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad 1, 400 years ago. It was revealed through angel Gabriel and was thus preserved in the Quran. The Quran claims that it combines the best features of the earlier scriptures.The prime message of Islam is the Unity of God, that the Creator of the world is One and He alone is worthy of worship and that Muhammad  is His Messenger and Servant. The follower of this belief is thus a Muslim - a Muslim’s other beliefs are: God’s angels, previously revealed Books of God, all the prophets, from Adam to Jesus the Day of Judgement and indeed the Decree of God. A Muslim has five main duties to perform, namely; bearing witness to the Unity of God and Muhammad  as His Messenger, observing the prescribed prayer, payment of Zakat, keeping the fasts of Ramadhan and performing the pilgrimage to Mecca.

The Great Schism of 1054 was the split between the Eastern and Western Christian Churches. In 1054, relations between the Greek speaking Eastern of the Byzantine empire and the Latin speaking Western traditions within the Christian Church reached a terminal crisis. This crisis led to the separation between the Eastern and Western churches and is referred to as the Great Schism of 1054. The Christian Church split along doctrinal, theological, linguistic, political, and geographic lines. The split, the Great Schism of 1054, led to the development of the modern Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches.

Augustine was born in Tagaste (modern Souk Ahras, Algeria) in 354 and died almost seventy-six years later in Hippo Regius (modern Annaba) on the Mediterranean coast sixty miles away. In the years between he lived out a career that seems to moderns to bridge the gap between ancient pagan Rome and the Christian middle ages.

When the Chou overthrew the last Shang king, they had to convince the people, especially the nobles, that they had the right to rule. The Chou told people that the gods in heaven had told them that they were to rule. This was called "The Mandate of Heaven", heaven's orders. The Chou added that the gods had warned them that they would only rule as long as they were good rulers. If they became selfish, and thought of themselves first, before the people, that heaven would appoint another ruling family.The Mandate of Heaven is based on four principles: The right to rule is granted by Heaven. There is only one Heaven therefore there can be only one ruler. The right to rule is based on the virtue of the ruler. The right to rule is not limited to one dynasty.