MMuch of the Arabian peninsula is desert. By the seventh century C.E. farming prevailed in the southwestern mountain valleys with their ample rainfall. In other areas scattered throughout the peninsula, oasis towns sustained sizable populations. Outside the towns were Bedouin (BEH-duh-uhn) nomadic pastoralist tribe. Though always small in number, Bedouins were the most important political and military force in the region. Mecca became the economic and cultural center of western Arabia, in part because pilgrims came to visit the Ka’ba, a temple containing a black stone thought to be a god’s dwelling place. Muhammad’s roots were in this region.