HumanisTim

I know there are very strong reasons to doubt the existence of people, like Jesus and Moses and various other bible characters. My question is this. Is Mohammed*sp* known to have existed as a real historical, person. Thanks for any help, I've been curious about this for a while.

Toto

Robert M. Price wrote an article for Free Inquiry entitled "Of Myth & Men: Digging Up Dirt on Jesus, Moses, Muhammad & Buddha" which seems to be online here under a slightly different title:

Of Myth and Men: A closer look at the originators of the major religions-what did they really say and do?
(scroll down about 2/3 of the page to get to Mohammed.)

The assumption always has been that Mohammed was historical. He is fairly recent as religious founders go, left his own writings, is referenced in other traditions. But evidently most of what we think we know about him may be highly mythologized.

Seraphim

Yes, Muhammad (Prophet to Muslims, bad guy to Christians) is actual person. He lived about 1,400 years ago in Mecca and founded Islam. This is supported by various Muslim and non-Muslim scholars plus some other proofs such as his grave in Mecca.

Starboy

I think this is a common fate for well-known historical figures. Take someone as recent as George Washington. Many of the stories attributed to be about him are fabrications. Yet no one would doubt that George Washington was a flesh and blood human being that contributed to the founding of the USA. Perhaps two thousand years from now he may become as mythical a figure as Mohammed.

Starboy

Vorkosigan

Ther's a whole wing of researchers like Patricia Crone who have argued that Mohammed is not a historical figure at all. See Crone's The MEccan Trade and the Rise of Islam, for example.

Vorkosigan