Early Muslims in the context of "Arab Muslims"

Zoroastrianism, also called Mazdayasna or Behdin, is an Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, Zoroaster (Greek: Ζωροάστρις Zōroastris). Among the world's oldest organized faiths, its adherents exalt an uncreated, benevolent, and all-wise deity known as Ahura Mazda (𐬀𐬵𐬎𐬭𐬀⸱𐬨𐬀𐬰𐬛𐬁), who is hailed as the supreme being of the universe. Opposed to Ahura Mazda is Angra Mainyu (𐬀𐬢𐬭𐬀⸱𐬨𐬀𐬌𐬥𐬌𐬌𐬎), who is personified as a destructive spirit and the adversary of all things that are good. As such, the Zoroastrian religion combines a dualistic cosmology of good and evil with an eschatological outlook predicting the ultimate triumph of Ahura Mazda over evil. Opinions vary among scholars as to whether Zoroastrianism is monotheistic, polytheistic, henotheistic, or a combination of all three. Zoroastrianism shaped Iranian culture and history, while scholars differ on whether it significantly influenced ancient Western philosophy and the Abrahamic religions, or gradually reconciled with other religions and traditions, such as Christianity and Islam.

Originating from Zoroaster's reforms of the ancient Iranian religion, Zoroastrianism began during the Avestan period (possibly as early as the 2nd millennium BCE), but was first recorded in the mid-6th century BCE. For the following millennium, it was the official religion of successive Iranian polities, beginning with the Achaemenid Empire, which formalized and institutionalized many of its tenets and rituals, and ending with the Sasanian Empire, which revitalized the faith and standardized its teachings. In the 7th century CE, the rise of Islam and the ensuing Muslim conquest of Iran marked the beginning of the decline of Zoroastrianism. The persecution of Zoroastrians by the early Muslims in the nascent Rashidun Caliphate prompted much of the community to migrate to the Indian subcontinent, where they were granted asylum and became the progenitors of today's Parsis. Once numbering in the millions, the world's total Zoroastrian population is estimated to comprise between 110,000 and 120,000 people, with most of them residing either in India (50,000–60,000), in Iran (15,000–25,000), or in North America (22,000). The religion is thought to be declining due to restrictions on conversion, strict endogamy, and low birth rates.

As part of the early Muslim conquests, which began under Muhammad in 622, the Rashidun Caliphate conquered the Sasanian Empire between 632 and 654. This event led to the decline of Zoroastrianism, which had been the official religion of Persia (or Iran) since the time of the Achaemenid Empire, circa 550 BC. The persecution of Zoroastrians by the early Muslims during and after this conflict prompted many of them to flee eastward to India, where they were taken as refugees by various kings.

While Arabia was witnessing the rise of Islam in the 7th century, Persia was struggling with unprecedented political, economic and social issues as well as military weakness; the Sasanian army had greatly exhausted itself in the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628. Following the execution of Sasanian shah Khosrow II in 628, Persia's internal political stability began to deteriorate rapidly, leading to ten new royal claimants being enthroned within the next four years. Shortly afterwards, Persia was further devastated by the Sasanian Interregnum, a large-scale civil war that began in 628 and resulted in the government's decentralization by 632.

Abd Allah ibn Abi Quhafa (Arabic: عَبْدُ اللهِ بْنُ أَبِي قُحَافَةَ, romanized: ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʾAbī Quḥāfa) (c. 573 – 23 August 634), better known by his kunya Abu Bakr, was a senior companion, the closest friend, and father-in-law of Muhammad, the Islamic prophet. He served as the first caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, ruling from 632 until his death in 634. Abu Bakr was granted the honorific title al-Ṣiddīq (lit. the Veracious) by Muhammad, a designation that continues to be used by Sunni Muslims to this day.

Born to Abu Quhafa and Umm al-Khayr of the Banu Taym, Abu Bakr was among the earliest converts to Islam and propagated dawah to the Mushrikites. He was considered the first Muslim missionary, as several companions of Muhammad converted through Abu Bakr. He accompanied Muhammad on his migration to Medina and became one of his bodyguards. Abu Bakr participated in all of Muhammad's campaigns and served as the first amir al-hajj in 631. In the absence of Muhammad, Abu Bakr led the prayers.

Ali ibn Abi Talib (Arabic: عَلِيُّ بْن أَبِي طَالِب, romanized: ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib) (c. 600 – 661 CE) was the fourth Rashidun caliph who ruled from 656 CE until his assassination in 661, as well as the first Shia Imam. He was the cousin and son-in-law of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. Born to Abu Talib ibn Abd al-Muttalib and Fatima bint Asad, Ali was raised by his elder cousin Muhammad and was among the first to accept his teachings.

Ali played a pivotal role in the early years of Islam when Muslims were severely persecuted in Mecca. After the immigration (hijra) to Medina in 622, Muhammad gave his daughter Fatima to Ali in marriage and swore a pact of brotherhood with him. Ali served as Muhammad's secretary and deputy in this period, and was the flag bearer of his army. Numerous sayings of Muhammad praise Ali, the most controversial of which was uttered in 632 at the Ghadir Khumm, "Whoever I am his mawla, then Ali is his mawla." The interpretation of the polysemous Arabic word mawla is disputed: For Shia Muslims, Muhammad thus invested Ali with his religious and political authority, while Sunni Muslims view this as a mere statement of friendship and rapport. When Muhammad died in the same year, a group of Muslims met in the absence of Ali and appointed Abu Bakr (r. 632–634) as their leader. Ali later relinquished his claims to leadership and resigned from public life during the reigns of Abu Bakr and his successor, Umar (r. 634–644). Even though his advice was occasionally sought, the conflicts between Ali and the first two caliphs are epitomized by his refusal to follow their practices. This refusal cost Ali the caliphate to the benefit of Uthman (r. 644–656), who was thus appointed to succeed Umar by the electoral council. Ali was also highly critical of Uthman, who was widely accused of nepotism and corruption. Yet Ali also repeatedly mediated between the caliph and the provincial dissidents angered by his policies.

The persecution of Zoroastrians is a significant aspect of the later part of the community's history. It is speculated that religious strife existed between Zoroastrians and early Christians, particularly within the context of the Roman–Persian Wars, though the extent of this phenomenon remains unclear. While it was a widespread religion in West Asia for over a millennium, Zoroastrianism began to decline drastically in the aftermath of the Muslim conquest of Persia. The annexation of the Sasanian Empire by the Rashidun Caliphate marked a monumental shift for the former's Zoroastrian-majority society, which was eventually subsumed by the ensuing process of Islamization. During this period, discrimination and harassment against Zoroastrians typically took place in the form of forced conversions and sparse violence. Early Muslims who arrived in the region are recorded to have destroyed Zoroastrian temples or repurposed them as mosques. Zoroastrian practices gradually became circumscribed under Islamic law, which included the levying of the jizya, a tax on non-Muslims.

Early Muslim behaviour with Zoroastrians may have been motivated in part by the fact that they are not explicitly classified as "People of the Book" in the Quran. Although some interpretations do extend this status to the community, the wider consensus among Muslim scholars is that "People of the Book" only identifies the followers of pre-Islamic Abrahamic religions—chiefly Judaism and Christianity—and consequently excludes Zoroastrianism, which is classified as an Iranian religion. Thus, the relative lack of amnesty and privileges for Zoroastrians at this time prompted a large part of the community to flee from Persia to neighbouring India, where they were granted asylum by local kings. The descendants of these Zoroastrian refugees of the early Muslim conquests are known as the Parsi people, who comprise the most prominent community of Indian Zoroastrians today.

Allah (/ˈælə, ˈɑːlə, əˈlɑː/ A(H)L-ə, ə-LAH; Arabic: الله, IPA: [ɑɫˈɫɑːh] ) is the Arabic language term for God, specifically the monotheistic God of Abraham. Outside of Arabic languages, it is principally associated with Islam (in which it is also considered the proper name), although the term was used in pre-Islamic Arabia and continues to be used today by Arabic-speaking adherents of any of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism and Christianity. It is thought to be derived by contraction from al-ilāh (الاله, lit. 'the god') and is linguistically related to other semitic God names, such as Aramaic (ܐܲܠܵܗܵܐ ʼAlāhā) and Hebrew (אֱלוֹהַּ ʾĔlōah).

The word "Allah" now conveys the superiority or sole existence of one God, but among the pre-Islamic Arabs, Allah was a supreme deity and was worshipped alongside lesser deities in a pantheon. Many Jews, Christians, and early Muslims used "Allah" and "al-ilah" synonymously in Classical Arabic. The word is also frequently, albeit not exclusively, used by Bábists, Baháʼís, Mandaeans, Indonesian Christians, Maltese Christians, and Sephardic Jews, as well as by the Gagauz people.