June 11 weekly reading

This week I was excited to learn about Islam.  It is such a major part of our world.  I am told it is a very misunderstood religion.  As I read about the prophet Muhammed and the Quran and the Pillars of Islam, it seemed to be a peaceful religion.  I did not see anything bad about it.  The Pillars seemed to be good rules to follow.  As for jihad, the sixth rule, I had a different idea of what it meant.  I had always thought that jihad meant "war".  I thought when they talked about jihad they were excited about war.  But if you read about what Muhammed said, he said that jihad is the personal effort of each Muslim against greed and selfishness and the striving toward a God conscious life.  The Quaran only approves of force against infidels or establishing Muslim rule.  I guess they can argue that is why they shout jihad.  Maybe they believe they are trying to establish Muslim rule and the Quran says its ok.  I am not sure, it depends on how you decipher it.  It would depend on who is reading it and what your beliefs are.What I found ironc is that jihad is supposed to remind Muslims about not being greedy or selfish but the Arabs could not resist and used jihad as an excuse to conquer other empires.  They said it was a sign from God. They made it in their favor by turning it into their perspective.  I do not think that is what Muhammed wanted.  After he died, the merchant leaders wanted to gain trade routes and wealthy agricultural regions.  The Arab empire was no different than any other empire.  They too became greedy.  The Arab armies were able to take over the Byzantine and the Sassanid empires.  After those victories, they went westward across North Africa, to Spain, France and to Central Asia.  To the Arabs, they believed God gave them their success only fueling their belief in the Quran and jihad.It just seems a far cry from what the original prophet Muhammed believed.  In reading further, the more power they gain, the more rules and the more authority over women.  In the begining of the chapter, the Quaran seems to talk as if the men and women are a community and almost equal, at least on a spiritual level.  At least when Muhammed speaks.  As the Arabs gain power, the more they seem to make rules to hide women.  It all depended on what area you were from.  I just always wonder who makes those rules. They said in the begining that the Quran was the word of God.  How is it that humans always make rules around Gods rule to their liking?  As history proves, power changes things. What once started as a simple belief in a beautiful religion by a prophet turns into an overpowering empire.  Greed seems to always take over.
When I read about the Mongols, I wasn't surprised to learn that they conquered so many civilizations. I remember they said Chinngis Khan was a ruthless warrior.  He fought beside his men and was brutal.  He took out civilizations before they could become too big and cause a threat. What I did not know was that they were the first to start biological warfare by hurling infected corpses (with the plague) into the city of Caffa.  The death rate was between 1/3-2/3 of the population in a few years.  People died within days of being exposed.  Although it may have seemed like a brilliant plan to wipe out your enemy, it also wiped out many of the Mongols.  As with all empires, they only last so long.