Summary
Highlights
Before the arrival of Islam, trade was conducted through a barter system. The Philippines had trade relationships with China, Southeast Asia, and other surrounding countries. The people of Mindanao and Sulu were polytheistic animists, worshipping natural objects and ancestral spirits (devatas and anitos). Burial practices involved primary and secondary burials, with bones being placed in jars or vessels, indicating a cultural practice rather than a formal religion. A writing system existed before Islam's arrival, but formal religion was not widely established.
Islam arrived in the Philippines through two main trade routes: one from the Malay Peninsula and another from Indo-China (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos). Arabs, who were also traders, established Islamic principalities and communities in Malaysia and Indonesia, eventually filtering Islam into the Philippines. This was not an accidental phenomenon but a divinely guided movement. Early Muslim traders, like Tuwan Masha'ika, were instrumental in introducing Islam and integrating into indigenous communities, as evidenced by tombstones dating back to 1310 AD.
The arrival of missionaries in Sulu, contemporary with those in Java, led to the conversion of locals to Islam around the second half of the 14th century. In 1380, Sheikh Karim-ul Makhdum, an Arab missionary, arrived and built the first mosque in the Philippines in Tubig Indangan, Simunul Island. This introduced monotheism, the belief in one God. By the 15th century, with the coming of Raja Baginda Ali, who brought with him religious scholars, Muslim political institutions began to form, notably the Sultanate under Sharif-ul Hashem.
Sharif-ul Hashem, Raja Baginda's son-in-law, established the Sulu Sultanate in 1405, making Islam the state religion. This led to strong Islamization in the southern Philippines. Islam, for Muslims, is not merely a religion but a complete way of life, organizing political, economic, and educational systems. This comprehensive approach allowed for the advancement of the 'Ummah' (community). By the 16th century, Sulu became an integral part of an expanding Dar-al Islam in Malaysia, often referred to as the Brunei Empire, with Sulu and ultimately Manila paying tribute.
The historical saga of Islam in the Philippines highlights the importance of tolerance and mutual respect between Muslims and non-Muslims to achieve peace and harmony in the country.