The Heirs of the Prophet Muhammad

this book review appeared in WEXAS Traveller magazine, Winter 2006

With last year’s biography, The Prophet Muhammad, Barnaby Rogerson helped provide an insight into the powerful and charismatic founder of Islam. Now Rogerson has turned his attention to the heirs of the Prophet, and in this book details the development of the religion from the time of the Prophet’s death in 632. It is a remarkable story, for within 50 years of the Prophet’s death, the armies of Islam had created a new empire.

At the heart of this period lies the schism between the Prophet’s followers which led to the founding of the two main branches of Islam: Sunni and Shia Islam. Sunni Islam follows the caliphs who took power after the Prophet’s death – he left no heir. Shi’ites follow the Prophet’s son-in-law and cousin Ali who they consider to be the rightful heir. Although Ali was allowed the leadership finally, his betrayal and the murder of his son Husayn give Shi’ism a grounding in mourning and martyrdom not shared by Sunnis.

Rogerson deftly draws out the roots of the schism, all the time putting the stories in their geographical and historical context. His background as a travel writer means vivid descriptions with cinematic sweeps of imagery and his treatment of the protagonists humanises a story that many Westerners will find unfamiliar. This is also a military history, outlining the campaigns that underpinned the growth of the early Islamic Empire.

Valuable not just for understanding the basis of Islam and its two main branches, the book helps explain the Middle East today and to show how far back divides in ideology go, giving it a contemporary relevance.

© Kamin Mohammadi.