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What Did Muslims Bring to the World (television programme)

By Ragheb Al-Sergani

ماذا قدم المسلمون للعالم (برنامج تلفزيوني)

A television programme whose regular guest is Ragheb El-Sergani, of which the Assabile archive keeps fifteen video episodes. In them he answers the host's questions on what Islamic civilization gave the world: civilization defined by three relationships, the world and Arabia before Islam, the Qur'an and Sunna as the springs of civilization, the contribution of non-Arabs, the society of Medina and its balance, the rights of human beings, minorities and animals, and the ethics of war.

Depth

At a glance

Region
Global / Diaspora
Review

Contested: This record includes matters on which scholars differ. The speaker's views are labelled as his, and other views are marked where no cited source yet exists.

History-writing and social thoughtRights and freedomsNon-Muslim minorities under Muslim ruleAnimals and mercyLaws of war and peaceEthics and character

Summary

The Assabile archive keeps fifteen video episodes of a television programme titled Madha qaddama al-muslimun li-l-alam ("What did Muslims bring to the world"), whose regular guest is Ragheb El-Sergani, in conversation with a host who introduces him as professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Cairo University and supervisor of the Islam Story website. 1 2 Each episode opens with questions put by the host, which the guest then answers, with breaks marked by a song that recurs at the start and end of the episodes. 3 4 The subject of the programme is what Islamic civilization gave the world: the definition of civilization, the state of the world before Islam, the sources of Islamic civilization, the society of Medina, the rights of human beings, of minorities and of animals, and the ethics of war. 5 6 7 8 9 10 The programme carries the title of a book of his of the same name, which won the prize of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs in 2009. 11

The machine transcripts of the episodes read clearly for the most part, with garbled places in names and numbers that are not written here. In the fifteenth episode the host refers to an earlier episode on war and peace that is not among the episodes in the archive, so the fifteen episodes are part of the programme, not the whole of it. 12 The guest's views, figures and dates are attributed to him, and the history he narrates is his account.

Episode 1: why study history, and what civilization is

He says Islamic civilization was wronged in how it was recorded and written about, and that studying history is the way out of the community's crises because God's patterns in nations are fixed, citing a book by al-Sakhawi answering those who disparage history. 13 14 15 He then sets out definitions of civilization among Muslims and Westerners and gives his own: man's relationship with the environment, with other people, and with his Lord. 16 17 See: the science of history, Sunnat Allah, Islam and the rise of civilisation.

Episode 2: the three levels, the best community, and witness over mankind

He completes his definition and applies it to present-day civilizations, saying the three criteria came together only in the Muslim community, and reads the verse of "the best community" in Surat Al Imran and the verse on witness over people in that light. 18 19 20 21 He cites what he attributes to Rib'i ibn Amir before Rustam, to the effect that God sent the Muslims to bring people from the worship of fellow servants to the worship of the Lord of servants. 22 23 See: the middle community.

Episode 3: the world on the eve of Islam

He says that about a hundred years before the mission the great civilizations had sunk to a degree of decay that threatened the ruin of the world. 6 He describes Greek civilization as attending to thought while neglecting practice and morals, and cites Aristotle's justification of slavery. 24 25 He says Harun al-Rashid and al-Ma'mun, in their treaties with the Eastern Roman state, exchanged prisoners for books. 26 27 He describes the Roman state as draining the wealth of its provinces and treating them as granaries, and its arenas where beasts tore slaves apart before the crowd, and then the extent of the Persian state from Iraq to the borders of China. 28 29 30

Episode 4: Arabia before the mission

He says that whoever reviews the history of Arabia finds no earlier civilization there, except the civilization of Saba in Yemen, which had ended long before. 31 He illustrates the Arabs' smallness before Persia and Rome with Abu Sufyan before Heraclius. 32 He then lists Arab virtues such as truthfulness, generosity, chivalry and courage. 33 34 35 See: the virtues of the Jahiliyya Arabs.

Episode 5: Arab society before Islam

He describes tribal society, the forms of marriage, vendetta and military weakness. 36 37 38 39 He says at the end that the minds of the Arabs in that age were ordinary minds and that it was Islam that transformed them. 40 See: the social condition of the Jahiliyya.

Episode 6: the Qur'an and the Sunna as the springs of civilization

He asks how the Muslim community grew so far in so few years, and cites Gustave Le Bon to the effect that Europe owes its civilization to the Muslims. 7 41 He says the difference between the Companions and later generations lay in acting at once on what they heard, with examples such as Abu Talha, who gave away his most beloved property on hearing the verse, and a Companion at Badr who threw away the dates he was eating and fought until he was killed. 42 43 44 45 He then makes the Sunna the second spring, saying that God's preserving the Qur'an includes preserving the Sunna. 46

Episode 7: Arabs and other peoples in Islam

He says Islam judges individuals by piety and deeds, not by race, distinguishes love of one's people from blameworthy tribalism, and recalls how the Prophet ﷺ gave Bilal the call to prayer and said of Salman that he was of the household. 47 48 49 See: asabiyya.

Episode 8: the contribution of non-Arabs

He tells the report of Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik and al-Zuhri about the mawali who led the regions, and estimates the share of non-Arabs among Islam's great figures. 50 51 52 See: the mawali.

Episode 9: the society of Medina

He makes brotherhood the distinctive mark of Medinan society, speaks of the brotherhood pact, and then of self-sacrifice, which he says took root in the community until a Muslim would give even to those he did not know. 53 54 See: the brotherhood of the Muhajirun and the Ansar.

Episode 10: the balance of Islamic civilization

He says Muslim society is balanced: ascetic from one angle, busy with trade and building from another. 55 He contrasts this with civilizations swinging between extremes, naming in Persia Zoroaster, Mani and Mazdak. 56 57 58 He mentions the Prophet's search for a site for the market of Medina at its founding, and sets Nietzsche's school of the individual against Durkheim's school of society. 59 60 61

Episode 11: human rights

He rejects the idea that the first declaration of human rights was the United Nations' in the twentieth century, saying Islam regards the human being as honoured whatever his creed or colour, and that his rights were legislated by God so that no ruler can change them. 8 62 63 He counts freedom of belief the most important right, then mentions equality in the rows of prayer, the Prophet's rebuke of Abu Dharr for taunting a man about his mother, and the right of sufficiency. 64 65 66 See: freedom in Islam.

Episode 12: the rights of minorities

He speaks of the treatment of minorities, tells the story of Ali and the Jew before Shurayh, and defends the jizya. 67 68 69 See: ahl al-dhimma, Shurayh's judgement on the armour, jizya.

Episode 13: the rights of animals

He sets out Islam's view of the animal, the hadiths of mercy towards it and the manners of slaughter. 70 71 72 See: hayawan, Abu Ishaq al-Shirazi.

Episode 14: animals in fiqh and in society

He speaks of the rulings on animals in the books of fiqh, and then of kindness to them in society: Adi ibn Hatim (may God be pleased with him) and the ants, Amr ibn al-As (may God be pleased with him) and the dove, the Damascus endowments for cats and old horses, and Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz, before criticizing bullfighting. 73 74 75 76 77 78 See: Adi ibn Hatim, al-Fustat, waqf, Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz.

Episode 15: the ethics of war

He says morals are an inseparable part of Islamic civilization even on the battlefield, and sets out his count of those killed in the Prophet's campaigns, the forbidding of killing non-combatants, safe-conduct, the charges given to armies and the treatment of captives. 79 80 81 82 83 84 See: the ethics of war, aman, the prisoners of Badr, the capture and Islam of Thumama ibn Uthal.

Connections

Explore the connections

About
Why Islam rose by its own merits· The science of history· Sunnat Allah (God's pattern in creation and history)· The middle community (ummat wasat)· The virtues of the Arabs of the Jahiliyya· The social condition of the Arabs before Islam· Asabiyya (group solidarity)· The mawali (clients)· The brotherhood of the Muhajirun and Ansar· Freedom in Islam· Ahl al-Dhimma (the protected non-Muslim subjects of an Islamic state, their covenant, rights, duties and limits)· Jizya (capitation on treaty peoples)· Shurayh's judgment on Ali's coat of mail· Hayawan (animal: food, slaughter, zakat and care)· Abu Ishaq al-Shirazi· Adi ibn Hatim· Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz· Al-Fustat· Waqf· The ethics of war (akhlaq al-harb), as Ragheb El-Sergani presents them· Aman (safe-conduct granted to enemies in war)· The affair of the Badr prisoners· The capture of Thumama ibn Uthal al-Hanafi and his acceptance of Islam

People and things also explored

Muhammad· Medina· The ethics of war (akhlaq al-harb), as Ragheb El-Sergani presents them· Muwatta 760· The Prophetic Era· Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Karim (lecture series)· Aman (safe-conduct granted to enemies in war)· Qissa wa-Fikra, A Story and an Idea (television programme)

Sources

  1. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:01:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  2. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 13, at 00:01:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  3. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:00:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  4. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:15:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  5. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:01:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  6. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:04:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  7. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:02:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  8. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 11, at 00:02:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  9. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 13, at 00:02:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  10. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:02:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  11. Ragheb Al-Sergani — Arabic Wikipedia
  12. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:01:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  13. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:02:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  14. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:05:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  15. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:11:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  16. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:12:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  17. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 1, at 00:20:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  18. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 2, at 00:03:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  19. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 2, at 00:12:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  20. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 2, at 00:13:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  21. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 2, at 00:24:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  22. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 2, at 00:16:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  23. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 2, at 00:18:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  24. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:08:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  25. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:10:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  26. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:12:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  27. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:12:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  28. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:15:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  29. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:16:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  30. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 3, at 00:21:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  31. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 4, at 00:03:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  32. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 4, at 00:10:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  33. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 4, at 00:14:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  34. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 4, at 00:19:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  35. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 4, at 00:19:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  36. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 5, at 00:02:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  37. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 5, at 00:04:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  38. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 5, at 00:08:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  39. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 5, at 00:13:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  40. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 5, at 00:24:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  41. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:03:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  42. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:15:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  43. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:17:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  44. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:18:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  45. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:18:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  46. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 6, at 00:22:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  47. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 7, at 00:12:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  48. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 7, at 00:24:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  49. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 7, at 00:25:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  50. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 8, at 00:05:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  51. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 8, at 00:08:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  52. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 8, at 00:23:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  53. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 9, at 00:05:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  54. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 9, at 00:20:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  55. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:02:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  56. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:03:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  57. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:04:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  58. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:05:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  59. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:18:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  60. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:20:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  61. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 10, at 00:21:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  62. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 11, at 00:10:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  63. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 11, at 00:11:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  64. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 11, at 00:12:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  65. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 11, at 00:24:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  66. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 11, at 00:24:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  67. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 12, at 00:02:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  68. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 12, at 00:18:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  69. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 12, at 00:23:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  70. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 13, at 00:03:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  71. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 13, at 00:12:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  72. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 13, at 00:21:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  73. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 14, at 00:03:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  74. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 14, at 00:16:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  75. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 14, at 00:18:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  76. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 14, at 00:20:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  77. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 14, at 00:22:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  78. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 14, at 00:23:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  79. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:02:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  80. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:07:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  81. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:14:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  82. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:18:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  83. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:21:00 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
  84. Assabile archive of Ragheb El-Sergani's lessons , What Did Muslims Bring To The World, episode 15, at 00:23:30 · Listen at the archive (opens the audio at this time)
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “What Did Muslims Bring to the World (television programme)”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/work/what-did-muslims-bring-to-the-world/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-11-01.

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Ideas

Beliefs, concepts, sciences and schools, explained in plain words. Related

Muhammad

The Prophet of Islam (c. 570–632 CE), through whom Muslims believe the Qur'an was revealed, and the founder of the first Muslim community in Medina.