THE title provides a very good indication of what is in the book. The subject matter is not new, much has been written about the genius of Islamic civilization but the way the author tackles the topic makes “Lost History” an entertaining and pleasant read. He gives us an insight into how Muslim history has been gradually “forgotten, ignored, misunderstood, suppressed or even rewritten.” He not only brings important characters to life but also shows how events and ideas of the past are directly relevant to our lives today. Most of all, “Lost History” shows us how Islam once stood for “creativity, invention, tolerance and diversity of thought and behavior in both society and in individual lives.”
We are reminded that during the first century of its existence, Islam’s meteoric expansion was not only due to its successful military campaigns but also to its economic success:
“The Arab system of paying soldiers with cash played an important role in creating the urban, cash-based market economy of the early Islamic world,” says Morgan. Furthermore, Muslim conquerors did not force people to convert, but implemented instead a policy of interfaith tolerance. However Muslims, mainly because of the number and speed of their military victories against the Persian and Byzantine armies were perceived as ruthless invaders. This view would last until the 16th century, a time when the Muslim golden age came to an end and Europe began to turn into an imperial power. This power-shift triggered a Eurocentric philosophy which credited Europeans with creating modern mathematics, astronomy, medicine, science and technology, thus overlooking and negating the vital role of a 700-year transmission of superior Muslim science, technology and philosophy.
During the ninth and tenth centuries, Baghdad stood at the zenith of its intellectual influence thanks to its House of Wisdom, a formidable center of learning. Moreover, the young Umayyad Emir, Abd Al Rahman I, recreated in southern Spain his Damascus which had been lost to Abbasids.
From 756 until the 1492 Reconquest by Queen Isabella of Spain, the unique genius of Al-Andalus gave birth to stunning innovations in the fields of architecture, music, literature, philosophy, medicine and science.
Based on the early Muslim tradition of seeking both knowledge and wisdom, new cultural centers developed in Cairo, Istanbul, Samarkand, Bukhara, Ghazni, Isfahan and Delhi.
At the beginning of the 18th century, Mogul India controlled about 25 percent of all the material wealth in the world. For about a 1,000 years a unique and fruitful exchange of people and ideas took place from southern Spain to China.
Even the feared Mongols, mostly seen as a conquering machine, enriched Muslim civilization. When the Mongols reached Arabic lands, they had already conquered China, Tibet, Northern India, Central Asia and Persia. They were implementing a system of laws developed by Genghis Khan which codified ideas such as religious tolerance, peace, trade and the rule of law in order to protect communities against theft and crime.
Relying on ancient Islamic trade routes, the Mongols also set up a highly developed trading system with other countries. They also came up with a set of laws to protect the rights of traveling merchants. After conquering huge swathes of territory, they built new cities and so created a vibrant cosmopolitan atmosphere, a lively mix of Chinese, Islamic and European ideas and cultures.
All the scientists, thinkers and artists who laid the foundation of the modern world in an integrated Muslim universe have now largely been forgotten, and their works, discoveries and inventions are part of the “lost world.” One of the greatest mathematicians the world has ever known was the genial, Al Khwarizmi, who is seldom credited for all he did.
He gave us a system of numbers and new ways of calculation which eventually led to analyzing the reactions of nuclear physics, the cellular processes of biotechnology, pharmaceutical and marketing research, the language and intelligence of software and the confidentiality of mobile phone conversations. Another genius, whose contributions are largely unknown in the West is Ibn Al-Haytham, who wrote about the attraction of masses some 600 years before Galileo and Sir Isaac Newton. Morgan comments, “Considering the earliness of his work and the limits of his time, Ibn Al-Haytham must be considered an equal of Einstein though largely lost to history.”
Muslims have also played an invaluable role in the field of medicine. We must mention Al Razi — known in the West as Rhazes along with Ibn Sina — Avicenna — author of the “Canon of Medicine” which has done more than any other single work to develop and improve European medicine and thought. As a matter of fact, hospitals and pharmacies existed in the Muslim world centuries before they were established in the West.
The first known Muslim hospital was set up in Damascus between 705 and 715. By the year 1000, Baghdad had five hospitals and in the 13th century, the Al-Mansuri Hospital contained 8,000 beds.
In the epilogue, the author argues that the Muslim world could have initiated, like Spain, Portugal and England, voyages of exploration and spearheaded the Age of Imperialism that Christian Europe undertook instead. During the 17th century, European nations began colonizing the Americas; they were rewarded with an abundance of overseas wealth that helped them colonize the Muslim world.
The impact of European imperialism in the Middle East, Iran, Africa, India and Southeast Asia, was fatal. Colonialism pushed these once thriving civilizations into a deep recession and — “Their rich history has been lost, seemingly relegated to the ruins.
The world is changing once again. For every crisis spot, there is now a promising center of innovation in the Muslim world. Immigrant Muslim communities in Europe and the Americas have become meeting places, the intersection of cultures creating not only tensions, but disseminating new ideas and understanding. The first Muslim golden ages are gone. But new ones are likely being born, even though today’s headlines suggest otherwise,’’ concludes Morgan.
“Lost History,” despite its title, proves that the past is still alive. More than ever, there are lessons to be learned from it which can truly become a source of yet another renaissance.