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Islam Introduction Arabia is a desert region bounded in the north by the Persian Gulf, in the east by the Indian Ocean and to the south by the Red Sea. In the 7th century the Persian Empire lay to the north and the Byzantine Empire lay to the west of Arabia, around the Mediterranean sea. The country was inhabited mainly by Bedouin nomads divided into tribes but in the south-west of the country which was a little bit wetter there were towns such as Mecca where people lived from farming and trade. The Arabs were polytheist, that is, they had a number of gods of the desert, of the mountains, stars, winds, oases etc. They regularly went on pilgrimages to Mecca where idols, or statues, of their gods could be seen on display and worshipped in a holy place called the Kaaba. This is an immense cube, the size of a big house and is built in stone. In one corner is 'the eye of god', a curious black stone that Arabs kissed and touched. It is thought to be a meteorite. Some Arabs, however, were attracted by the monotheism of the Jews and Christians and it is believed that Mohammed must have learnt about these two religions in his travels across Arabia, working as a merchant.
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