1. Three Empires and Many Cultures Ottoman, Safavid, Mughal

2.  The Five Pillars of Islam  1. No God but God  2. Salat: (worship) five per day  3. Zakat: alms-giving  4. Fast during month of Ramadan  5. Hajj: pilgrimage to Mecca  History and Misunderstandings  The Three Gunpowder Empires  The Ottoman Empire

3.  Steppe bureaucracies:Turkish, Mongol people  Dynastic states, military creations, personal command, king owned land  Autocratic authority of rulers  All leaders of the Sufi order or closely associated with it  Agriculture economics were at foundation of Islamic empires  All significant change 16th to 18th centuries, Safavid disappeared entirely