Once Called the Land of the Prophet Muhammad, This Nation is Now a Global Giant

One nation that featured prominently in popular Islamic narratives about the Prophet Muhammad is China. In a widely known Islamic expression, the Prophet is said to have encouraged his followers to “seek knowledge even unto the land of China.”

Although many hadith scholars consider this expression to lack a strong chain of transmission, the phrase retains important symbolic meaning. It reflects China’s great reputation as a centre of civilisation, knowledge, and advancement during the Prophet Muhammad’s lifetime, roughly the 6th to 7th centuries CE.

“The phrase indicates that China had already gained a great reputation in Arab countries at that time,” wrote Yang Fuchang in the journal China-Arab Relations in the 60 Years’ Evolution (2018).

During the Prophet Muhammad’s lifetime (570-632 CE), the world was not centred solely on the Arabian Peninsula. Various great civilisations developed in parallel. One of the most prominent was China, particularly during the Tang Dynasty era (618-907 CE).

The Tang Dynasty was founded on 18 June 618 by Li Yuan. At that time, the Prophet Muhammad was 48 years old, had become the Messenger, and was actively spreading Islamic teachings. Under the leadership of Li Yuan, known as Emperor Gaozu, China experienced a great revival. He united fragmented territories and built an economic foundation based on trade.

In the book China’s Cosmopolitan Empire: The Tang Dynasty (2009), China’s economic rise is explained as being supported by the optimisation of various important export commodities, including silk, fabric, ceramics, paper, horses, gunpowder, and other raw materials. All these commodities were traded through both land and sea routes.

Through the land route, trade was conducted via the Silk Road, which stretched over 6,000 kilometres, connecting China with Central Asia through to the Middle East. Meanwhile, sea routes operated through ports in southern China, using large vessels that sailed to various parts of the world.

This commercial interaction brought the Chinese people into contact with various world civilisations. There was an exchange of goods, knowledge, technology, and ideas. Chinese products spread to various regions, whilst the Middle Kingdom itself absorbed knowledge from abroad and accelerated the advancement of its civilisation.

This trading relationship opened an indirect connection between China and the Arab world, particularly Mecca, where the Prophet Muhammad lived, which had long been known as an international trading city.

In the book Muhammad the Prophet (2001), Karen Armstrong wrote that Mecca was an important junction in a trading network linking the Eastern Mediterranean with European and Chinese civilisations.

“Mecca was known as a hub of the trading network connecting the Eastern Mediterranean with European and Chinese civilisations,” Armstrong wrote.

This fact explains why China had become known to the people of the Arabian Peninsula since the 7th century. In the perspective of Arabs at that time, China was even regarded as the farthest known land of human civilisation, long before the world knew of America and Australia.

However, direct relations between the Islamic world and China began to form in 626 CE when Emperor Taizong came to power. At that time, a Companion of the Prophet, Sa’ad ibn Abi Waqqas, is recorded as having made a journey to China on the orders of Caliph Uthman ibn Affan.

In the research A Brief History of Muslims in China (1983), Iqbal Shafi wrote that the arrival of this Muslim delegation became the first moment when Chinese society came into direct contact with Islamic teachings.

Centuries after that era of ancient civilisation, this historical trajectory has now found renewed relevance in modern China. The nation once known as the centre of world civilisation has now emerged as one of the greatest global economic and geopolitical powers.

In recent decades, China has grown as the world’s manufacturing hub, a pivot of global supply chains, and a dominant player in technology, energy, and strategic industries. Its products flood international markets, its investments spread across continents, and its economic influence reshapes the global balance of power.

Thus, the expression that once lived as a symbol of civilisation now finds its new context. China is not merely remembered in history, but exists as a real force and a global giant.