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Wednesday, 23rd Oct 2013.Sumaira Muhammad Qasmi.Dep. of Islamic studies, IUB. Contemporary Islamic revivalism:Movements, personalities and their thoughts.Speakers information Name: Sumaira Muhammad Qasmi. M.Phil (2013-15), Department of Islamic Studies, IUB. Field of interest: Al-Quran, Hadith, Islamic History.. etc.

The Ottoman Empire / (Devlet-i liyye-i Osmniyye) (12991923)

MottoDevlet-i Ebed-mddet / / The Eternal State

Badi uz zaman Said NaurasiYoung Badi uz zaman

In Old Age.

Mahdi Movement

Product of the Islamic Decline. Fall of the Ottoman empire. Decline in Islamic sciences (religious and secular sciences headed by Muslims). Colonial invasion of the Muslim lands. Impact of the World Wars and the subsequent carving up of the lands of Muslims. Different parts of Islam emphasised differently by different people. Arguably there is a center?Defining the Islamic revivalFew waves of revivalism generally that have existed in the Muslim world. Not all these waves of revival can be called Islamic, nor are they Islamic revivalism. Islamic revivalism must be distinguished from cultural or racial revivalism so as not to confused between the two. The two are distinct phenomena that have their own separate goals and ambitions. Defining the Islamic revivalRefers to a wave of Arab-centric revival that took place in Arabia from the 1830s onwards well into the 1900s. Arguably only ended in 1970s or so. Response to the Egyptian occupation by Frances emperor Napoleon Bonaparte (1798).France installed an Arab ruler by the name of Muhammad Ali in Egypt who in essence was an Egyptian proxy. The Ottoman Caliphate was forced to recognise him. An Nahdah (Cultural revival)Muhammad Ali of Egypt

Spread from Egypt into modern day Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine. Tenets were: intellectual modernization and reform.Arab-centric revival (the idea of pan-Arabism was born here). Advocating the freedom of the Arabs, not just from the French/British but ALSO the Turks (i.e. the Ottoman Empire)Eventually it was this idea that inspired post WW2 pan-Arabism and to push to have a state for Arabs (which was tried for a time but failed). An Nahdah (Cultural revival)Is by definition based on Islam not notions of Arab, or sub-continental, or any other racial, superiority. Driven by a desire to return to Islamic temporal rule (ie religious law being implemented in lifes affairs). Due to the differences of opinion within Islam, there have been a few waves of this Islamic revival. But broad underlying exists on several important issues. Methodologies of how to achieve change not unified (reflection of interpretations)Islamic revival (a distinction)At times, Islamic revivalistic movements and trends have had their aims or ambitions frustrated by the political circumstances or machinations of others. But we can and should still view them as Islamic revivalistic efforts. E.g.: Saudi Arabia and the thought of Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahhab (many argue that the Muhammamad ibn Saud ie the Saudi family) used this thought for their own authority. E.g.: The Taliban in Afghanistan and the collapse of their government post-invasion. E.g.: Hamas and its participation in Palestine. Role of political machinationsThe approaches that Islamic revivers have taken towards it have not always been the same. Are without doubt influenced by context. Earlier vs later revivalism: several trends can be noted. Arguable that these differences have become sharper as the situation of the Muslims has become worse. Islamic revival: shifting perspectivesSome might ask: Should Islamic revival be defined broadly, to include personal practice, or should it be defined to refer specifically to the revival of political Islamic thought? Argument 1: This question is redundant as Islam is complete. Argument 2: Should be based on the former. Argument 3: Should be based on the latter. 1/3 are similar; 2 is unique does not have support in: A) Islamic scripture B) academia C) politics D) Islamic scholarship. A revival of all things Islamic?While the Islamic revival might not by definition refer to the revival of Islamic practice, it has been the inevitable result. Reason: the re-politicisation of Islam by revivalists is based on more than just temporal objectives (ie: not a power grab). Islamic revivalism isnt a sociological phenomenon it is a religious phenomenon. Justified by revivalistsic figures/movements on the basis of Islamic scriptures (Quran/Sunnah etc). A revival of all things Islamic?At the first lecture by Dr. Jan Ali, to which this lecture was a response, we heard that the three key figures in modern Islamic revival were the following figures:Jamal al Deen Afghani (Egypt)Muhammad Abduh (Egypt) Sir Syed Ahmed Khan (India)[4th referred to: Rashid Rida (Egypt)]What you heard about last time1838 1897Origin hotly debated: as to whether Iranian or Afghani.Travelled widely; including India, Afghanistan, Egypt, other provinces of the Ottoman empire; Western lands including London, Russia, France, Germany. Jamal Al Deen Afghani

Views: Anti-imperialism | Muslim (or at least Arab) unity as a response to imperialism | Quran as basis for legislation (but at times this wasnt clear). Criticisms: his links to western intelligence services and more generally foreign powers | Pragmatism | personal habits/reality | recourse to rationalism. 1849 1905 Student of Afghani. Eventually became Mufti of Egypt under the control of the British. Travelled extensively to Europe (France and England) and became well impressed with doctrines of law in these nations. Muhammad AbduhViews: Pan-Arabism and a lesser form of pan-Islamism | modernisation | heavily relied on rationalism (to the point of being called a neo-Mutazili) Criticisms: links to western colonial powers (in spite of advocating anti-imperliaism) | Excessive modernism | maslaha (benefit) | Over reliance of rationality.

Muhammad AbduhSo many thoughts, that served this orientation appeared, for example; religion is flexible and evolving, take and then demand, accept what agrees with the Shara or that which does not contradict the Shara, committing the lesser of two harms or evils, if you cannot take the whole of it, dont throw away most of it, gradualism in taking Islam, it is not rejected that rules change with the time and place, wherever there is an interest, that is the Shara of Allah. These thoughts and their l ike became the intellectual standpoint or principle that they called the modern Islamic revival. Their most important protagonist was the freemason Jamal ud-deen al-Afghani and his freemason student Muhammad Abduh, who was known as the Shaykhul Islam.- Dawah to Islam; Sheikh Ahmed Mahmoud. 1817 - 1898.Indian educator, academic. Founded the world-famous Aligarh Muslim University. Also travelled to, and gained education from, England, which occupied India. Sir Syed Ahmed KhanViews: education as way forward for Muslims | Muslim empowerment Criticisms: Founder of quraniyoon? | Not advocating for Islamic self determination; rather, Islam within a nation state and / or an Islam that borrows from the west without implementing its own unique system.

Depends on the angle of analysis. Perhaps indicative of the intellectual decline of the Muslims that even those things vaguely Islamic were seen (at their time, nor not long thereafter) as being islamic in nature, even if the thoughts were combined with other thoughts. Nominal influence no doubt existed, but its questionable if from TODAYs trends of Islamic revival this is considered particularly momentous. Impact of these figures on Islamic revivalIt was ultimately with the destruction of the Caliphate in 1924 (though the post of Caliph was last occupied by Sultan Muhammad VI in 1918) that the impetus was most strongly felt. Personalities, movements, organisations rose up; conferences were organised to try to bring back the Islamic Caliphate even as it had just been destroyed. Analysis: immediate aftermath and longer-term efforts. Post-Caliphate revivalismOne cannot say that there was an outcry at the time. Nationalism and division had weakened the Muslims considerably. This can be understood by the very nominal control the Ottoman Caliphate had over its provinces. Most notable reaction was from the Indian subcontinent with the formation of the Khilafat Movement. Immediate aftermath of the Caliphates destructionFounded in what is modern day India at the time India/Pakistan didnt exist as they do today. It was a movement that called for pan-Islamic unity and voiced its support for the Ottoman Caliphate it strove to make Muslims want to be part of the empire. The Treaty of Versailles (at the end of WW1) abolished the office of the Caliph in 1919. Movement folded in 1922, but its members remained active as many were well educated scholars and academics. Khilafat movement (India)Great personalities such as Mohammad Ali Jouhar were among its leading figures. While some of the means contestable with our hindsight (eg Jouhar petitioned the British not to have the Sultan removed unlikely they would listen) nonetheless the sentiment was based on Islam. Educated at Oxford University, in Britain. Jailed for 4 years for advocating resistance to the British and support for the caliphate.

Khilafat movement (India)Famous Islamic scholar from India. Scholar of Islamic history, Fiqh, Seerah, etc. Wrote the famous seerat An Nabi, Al Faruq (biography of Omar RA) and the most famous English biography of Imam Abu Hanifah (RH).Shibli Nomani (1857-1914)

SIGNIFICANT: Met both Muhammad Abduh during his travels to Egypt and worked with Sir Syed Ahmed Khan of India. Ultimately disagreed with Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and advocated Pan-Islamism (unification of Muslims under one land). Legacy: Considered one of the greatest scholars India has produced in the last 150 years. 1) Due to you, we feel that the grandeur of Badr, the dignity and splendor of the Haramain (the two sacred mosques) is only due to you.2) Who else except yourself is the supporter and defender of the love of the Holy Prophet (saw). To you is owed the sweetness of the faith of the Holy Prophet (saw). The areas of Islam are strong just because of you.3) Through your majesty and authority the Shariah laws acquired a high status and through your orders the splendour of Islam has risen high.[The Rise and fall of Muslims, Saeed Akbarabadi, Pg. 133]

Shibli Nomanis letter to Caliph Abdul Hamid II in IstanbulIn response to what was by now seen as a crisis, conference of Muslim personalities and scholars was organised to address the Caliphate Issue. 1925: The Mecca Conference. World Muslim Congress held in Mecca and convened by Ibn Saud, with delegates from Palestine, the Hijaz, Egypt, the Sudan, Russia, Turkey, India and Java.The Egyptian Caliphate movement was another movement and they held separate conferences in Cairo: 1925-1927.Blocs formed: Indian movements vs Saudis (clearly backed by Britain). 1931 Jerusalem Conference by now the matter was a farce and success was impossible.

Caliphate Conferences: 1925-1933Clearly these moves, which sent delegations on the basis of the very nation states that they sought to replace, were not going to work. People wanting Islamic revival increasingly saw state institutions and governments as part of the problem. Thus arose movements, personalities that would work outside these state institutions to create change. These movements reflected an understanding in the people of the futility of individualised action. Caliphate Conferences: 1925-1933Individual/family focusedTablighi Jamaat (founded 1926)Gulen Movement Turkey (1960s)Political/activism focusMuslim Brotherhood (founded 1928) with offshoots:Jamaati Islam Pakistan (founded 1941) | Jamaate Islam Bangladesh (1971) | Jamate Islam Hind (India) (1948)Hamas (also militant at one stage)Hizb ut Tahrir (founded 1953)Tanzeem e Islami (founded 1957) Sufi tariqah cum-political movementMurabitun (1970 or so)Physical resistance/actionIslamic Jihad Egypt (1970s)Jamaah Islamiyyah Indonesia (1988/1993)

Islamic Revivalistic methods/movementsIndividual/family/social focusedSheikh Muhammad Ilyas al-Kandhlawi (founder of TJ)Said Nursi (Turkey; precursor to Gulen Movement)Fethullah Gulen (Turkey)Political/activism focus* Shaheed Imam Hasan Al Banna (Muslim Brotherhood)Shaheed Syed Qutb (Muslim Brotherhood)Sheikh Taqiuddin Nabahani (Hizb ut Tahrir) Sheikh Ahmed Yaseen (Hamas)Syed Abul Ala Mawdudi (JI Pakistan)Sheikh Dr. Israr Ahmed (Pakistan)Sufi tariqah cum-political movementSheikh Umar VardilloShaykh Abdalqadir as-Sufi Famous personalities and associationsPhysical resistance/actionImam Anwar al Awlaki (deceased; Yemen)Ayman Al Zawahiri Osama ibn Laden (deceased)Sheikh Abu Muhammad al Maqdisi (Jailed in Jordan)Abu Musab al Zarqawi (deceased; Iraq)Amir Khattab (Chechen Resistance)Abdullah Azzam (Palestine)

Famous personalities and associationsOther figuresAyatollah Ruholla Khomeini (Iran)Abu Bakr Bashir (JI Indonesia)Mullah Mohammad Omar (Taliban; Afghanistan)Tareq Suwaidan (preacher)Sheikh Muhammad al Arifi (Saudi Arabia)Sheikh Nabil al Awady (Gulf)Sheikh Yusuf al Qaradawi (Egypt; exile)Sheikh Wajdi Ghunaim (Egypt, Tunisia)Sheikh Khalid Yasin (America)Sheikh Imran Hossein (Caribbean; eschatology)Sheikh Faisal (jihad)

Famous personalities and associations1906-1949. Founded the MB. (assassinated) Established it in 1928. Hated the British perversion of Egyptian/Islamic culture and the Muslims passivity to it. Method of activism was a combination of politics and social activism. Social activism: mosques, Islamic welfare associations, and neighbourhood groups. Established businesses, clinics, and schoolsHasan al Banna: Muslim Brotherhood

Called for Islamic order in Egypt. All Muslims are guilty if the Islamic State is not installed. This amounts to betrayal not to one Muslim alone but to the entire humanityMethod of 4 stages: Individual Family Community State. 1906-1966. Death by Hanging..Was initially a secularist, but had an Islamic education from his youth. Travelled to the USA, where he was disgusted by various aspects of the materialistic life led in the west. Clash of Civilisations: Islam vs the West was a central thesis of Qutb. Saw them as mutually irreconcilable.

Syed Qutb: MBGemal Abdul Nasir (President of Egypt) initially tried to woo Qutb: We will give you whatever position you want in the government, whether it's the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Arts, etc. He refused. Said that Islam is a system that requires implementation. Was jailed, let out, jailed again and after a show trial was killed.

1903-1979. Founded Pakistani JI. Wrote the most read tafsir of the Indian subcontinent. Strong views on politics and Jihad. Extremely popular due to his publications, tafsir and the publication of his works. Famous quote that summarises his thought: Abul Ala Maududi (JI Pakistan)"Islam is not a religion in the sense this term is commonly understood. It is a system encompassing all fields of living. Islam means politics, economics, legislation, science, humanism, health, psychology and sociology. It is a system which makes no discrimination on the basis of race, color, language or other external categories. Its appeal is to all mankind. It wants to reach the heart of every human being."

1907-1977Founded Hizbut Tahrir(Party of Liberation) in 1953.Had studied in Al Azhar University and graduated with excellence; became judge in Palestine. Wrote extensively. Seeing the decline of the Muslims, did extensive thought and founded HT. Taqiuddin Nabahani (HT; Palestine)Advocated a method of re-establishing Islam that he believed followed the Prophetic model: culturing and creating carriers of Dawah interacting with the Ummah and creating public opinion for change (by reviving Islamic thought) implementing Islam through seeking power from sources of power in society.

1932-2010Founded Tanzeem e Islami after initially having contact with TJ. Gained mass following as a result of publication of his works and popular slots on TV/media. Advocated a method that sought to create revival through Quranic education. Sheikh Dr Israr Ahmed (Pakistan)Tanzeems motto is working for Khilafah.Was a critic of modern democracy and never took part within the Pakistani system of politics. Had warm ties with similar minded organisations like Hizb ut Tahrir (which invited him to speak at their conferences); his son is also said to have studied economics with HT. Had slight differences with HT. Considered himself a product of Mawdudis thought but decried JIs shift.

Syed Qutb was an opponent of participation within political systems of Jahiliyyah (socities where non-Islamic systems are implemented). MBs thought, however, has since evolved. MB and its offshoots in Pakistan, Bangladesh , Egypt, Bangladesh , have partaken in elections in a bid to create change from within the system. Others, such as HT, Tanzeeme Islami, disagree with this approach.

Participation within politics different approachesSome thinkers/scholars advocate/d a method of fighting resistance, or, in other cases, fighting established armies of Muslim nations, as a method of change. Where lands are occupied resist (as a duty) fight allying national armies remaining forces become the forces of a new emirate. Where lands arent national armies (seen as supporters of kufr law) are fought remaining forces/popular revolution leads to creation of emirate/Islamic state. Method criticised for being unrealistic, violent and not in keeping with Prophetic teaching.Variations of this exist which are restricted to just occupied lands and which are more acceptable en mass. Armed resistance as a methodology 1941-1989 (assassinated). Advocate of Jihad and the concept of global obligation as to Jihad upon the Muslims (starting with Afghanistan). Widely recognised as pious, brave fighter who led the Muslims excellently in the Afghan war vs the USSR. Sought to move Jihad to PalestineSheikh Abdullah AzzamFocused on Jihad as a manifestation of the highest form of struggle and epitome of Islamic activism. Thought that lands could only be liberated through fighting and this would lead to ultimate victory.Has influenced many others since, including Sheikh Muhammad al Maqdisi, some of the figures associated with Al Qaeda and arguably Anwar al Awlaki.

The impact of these personalities cannot be denied. Poll after poll in the Muslim world finds that Muslims want to live by divine rule. The uprisings in the Muslim world have had a strongly Islamic favour, with scholars and laypeople alike calling for Shariah (Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, Yemen) rule in the place of the old systems. While several of these movements disagree with each other on the detailed methodologies, what ties contemporary Islamic revivalism together as a thread is the desire to return to Islamic rule. This is what Dr. Jan Ali said at the last event and this is what we have explored in greater depth today. Impact of these thinkers/movements