Muhammad and the believers at the origins of islam donner fred m 9780674064140 books amazonca. In muhammad and the believers at the origins of islam donner argues that the religion we now know as islam emerged gradually over a number of decades and that its final form differed in many ways from muhammads initial message. The roots of the religion of islam are to be found in the career of a man named muhammad ibn abd allah who was born in mecca a town in western arabia in the latter part of the sixth century ce arabia at this time was not an isolated place. He argues that the origins of islam lie in what we may call the believers movement begun by the prophet muhammad a movement of religious reform emphasizing strict monotheism and righteous behavior in conformity with gods revealed law