Islam (Civ5)/Civilopedia

The second largest religion in the world, Islam, is based on the belief that there is only one true God, Allah, and he has made his will known through a number of prophets on Earth. The most important of these prophets, Muhammad, recorded God's words in the Muslim holy book, the Koran.
Born in the city of Mecca (in modern Saudi Arabia) in 570 AD, Muhammad was raised as a merchant and later worked as a shepherd. However, at age 40, he experienced visions from God, and recorded God's word verbatim in the Koran. From this point forward, Muhammad preached the word of God and instructed his followers that the only true path to salvation was to devote themselves entirely to God through daily prayer, and the strict adherence to the laws set forth by God. The Five Pillars of Islam, the framework through which salvation can be attained, state in their most basic form that there is no god but God, and Muhammad is his prophet; one must pray daily to God at the five established times; one must give to the needy to support them; one must fast from dawn until dusk during the month of Ramadan; and one must make a pilgrimage to Mecca, at least once, during the holy month of Dhu al-Hijjah.
As was the case with the founding of many religions, Muhammad and his followers were met by staunch resistance from other faiths. Despite this, Muhammad's message spread across the Middle East following his death in 632 AD. Since that time, Islam has splintered into a number of competing branches, the largest being the Sunni and Shia denominations. Although bound by their overarching beliefs, these sects differed in their interpretation of who should lead Islam's following since the time of Muhammad's death.