New religious movements aren't earthquakes - they're not generated by blind natural forces, and they're not inevitable. Social and spiritual change requires a catalyst to set it in motion. And in the case of Islam, that catalyst has a name: Muhammad.

He was a charismatic individual, born of the existing culture of sixth-century Arabia and yet somehow alienated from it. He drew on existing religious ideas in radically new ways that would change his world - and ours - forever.

Join Maria Dakake of George Mason University for a riveting exploration of Islam's founding prophet. The Life and Legacy of Muhammad leads you through the earliest historical accounts of the prophet's life and personality. Along the way, you'll examine struggles over Muhammad's legacy in the centuries since his death. You'll also examine the ways Muslims have understood the meaning of Muhammad in their religious lives and the ongoing debates among scholars and Muslims over his life, example, and teaching.

The Sufis have a saying: "Muhammad is a man, but not like other men; he is a ruby, while other men are stones." These 10 illuminating lectures are your chance to discover just what that means.