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But year after year
went by and nobody
wrote it, and so I
set my mind on doing
it even though the
effort it would
require seemed
daunting. A big part
of the early
learning had to do
with figuring out
what I needed to
learn, and I found
that what I needed
to learn was almost
entirely in the
original source
material, not in
secondary literature
and other people’s
biographies. Over
the course of
several years I
acquired practically
all of the
foundation documents
of Islam that have
been translated into
English.
On a part-time
basis, it would take
10 years to complete
a book like this. I
finally arranged to
work on it full time
by giving myself a
three-year
sabbatical, clear of
any distractions. I
devoted my time to
writing and studying
what needed to be
studied, namely the
works of Ibn Ishaq,
Tabari, Waqidi, Ibn
Sad, Bukhari,
Muslim, Abu Dawud,
and others. These
names won’t mean
anything to people
who haven’t delved
into this subject,
but they are
important in that
these people
provided the core of
the original
literature. Through
them, I parachuted
into 7th century
Western Arabia and
lived the life of an
itinerant enquirer,
notebook in hand. I
came across a lot of
interesting
characters, people
you can identify
with once you get to
know them. Muhammad
became
three-dimensional.
Hugely interesting,
but armed and
dangerous, capable
of having your head
cut off with the
snap of his fingers. |
