Tariq al-Jamil | "Sectarianism, Pre-Modern Islamic History, and the Bequest of Orientalism" (original) (raw)

Orientalism since the Rise of Islam

The questions of unity and sovereignty have never abandoned the Middle Eastern-North African region, war is part of every ancestry of every family in this part of the world. Although a cross-sectarian community of Muslims and Christians –and a very small number of Jews,- it seems that the MENA region was under attack by western imperialism for its profound natural resources, but said attacks, however, were under the name of freeing the people from their Muslim dogmatic dictatorships. The world has witnessed this blunt form of attempted colonialism time and time again since the beginning of written history: from the Crusades until World War I. Since the rise of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula, incorrect translations and interpretations of the Quran led to forming strong ideas and criticisms about this new religion and this area that were not based on first-hand interactions, and these misunderstandings almost always led to bloodshed. Therefore, this phenomena of incorrect Western studying of the Eastern region, has been defined as Orientalism. Edward Said, a Palestinian professor at the University of Michigan, noted in his book that orientalism, originally a Eurocentric term, is nothing more than the need of western imperialists to define themselves through degrading their eastern counterparts. This, consequently, had led to the era of colonialism after WWI and the fall of the Ottoman Empire. This paper will argue that Orientalism –in this case the Orient being the middle-eastern-north-African region, and not the Far East of Asia,- did not emerge as a propaganda to support the White Man’s Burden of imperialism in the 1900s, but rather began with the rise of Islam, in fear for the power of western Christian empires. In order to reach such argument, using journal articles and books, this paper will examine the history of eastern-western relations since Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the medieval era of crusading, the Ottoman Empire and its eventual fall after WWI, and recent conflicts such as the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the US war on Iraq.

Historicizing the Study of Sunni Islam in the Ottoman Empire, c. 1450-c. 1750

Historicizing Sunni Islam in the Ottoman Empire, c. 1450-c. 1750, edited by T. Krstic and D. Terzioglu, 2020

Recent studies in anthropology have increasingly come to understand Islam as a "set of interpretative resources and practices" accumulated over centuries through engaging with the key sources of Islam-the Quran, hadith, and prophetic custom (sunna). In this view, being a Muslim is a result of individual and collective efforts "to grapple with those resources and shape those practices in meaningful ways," giving their practitioners a sense of being embedded in long chains of authenticated interpretation and transmission of a tradition.1 Tradition is here not understood as a simple replication of the past; it is not passively received but rather actively constructed in a particular social and historical setting, simultaneously affirming a "synchronic bond between actors" in a given community and extending it into the past, into a "diachronic community" of Muslims.2 The implication of this approach, which also informs the present volume, is that such efforts to engage with authenticating texts and acts as well as methods of interpretation of Islam transpired throughout history, resulting in numerous historically and contextually contingent understandings of what it means to be a Muslim. However, that is hardly reflected in mainstream historiography, which has long associated dynamism and evolution in Islamic traditions and their interpretation only with the so-called classical or formative period, from the first/seventh to the seventh/thirteenth century, while envisioning stagnation, decline, and derivativeness as the defining features of the centuries that followed. This has been particularly true for the geographies considered marginal to what is often viewed as the "core lands" of Islam (which for the late "formative" period typically means Syria, Egypt, and the Hijaz).3 1 Bowen, A new anthropology 3. 2 Grieve and Weiss, Illuminating the half-life of tradition 3. See also Anjum, Islam as a discursive tradition. 3 For a discussion of how this notion of "core lands" has been influencing writing about Islamic history, see Bashir, On Islamic time. Tijana Krstić -9789004440296 Downloaded from Brill.com09/30/2020 06:11:01PM via free access The millenial sovereign; Hagen, The order of knowledge; Burak, The second formation; El-Rouayheb, Islamic intellectual history; Binbaş, Intellectual networks; Atçıl, Scholars and sultans; Yılmaz, Caliphate redefined; Markiewicz, The crisis of kingship, to name just a few recent studies particularly relevant to the present collection. 5 Ahmed, What is Islam? 81. 6 Ahmed, What is Islam? 356-357. This body of meaning is not purely textual but includes a whole array of emotions, practices, actions, aesthetic choices, etc. that are meaningful to their actors in terms of Islam. Ahmed understands "Con-Text" as "the full encyclopaedia of epistemologies, interpretations, identities, persons and places, structures of authority, textualities and intertextualities, motifs, symbols, values, meaningful questions and meaningful answers, agreements and disagreements, emotions and affinities and affects, aesthetics, modes of saying, doing and being, and other truth-claims and components of existential exploration and meaning-making in terms of Islam that Muslims acting as Muslims have produced." 7 Juynboll, Sunna. Tijana Krstić -9789004440296 Downloaded from Brill.com09/30/2020 06:11:01PM via free access historicizing the study of sunni islam in the ottoman empire Tijana Krstić -9789004440296 Downloaded from Brill.com09/30/2020 06:11:01PM via free access

The Wiley Blackwell History of Islam

Quote as: Salvatore Armando, Babak Rahimi, and Roberto Tottoli (eds). 2018. The Wiley Blackwell History of Islam. Oxford: Wiley Blackwell. [You'll find the Introduction and my two co-authored Chapters in the section 'Book Chapters and Intros' by scrolling down my main academia webpage] A theoretically rich, nuanced history of Islam and Islamic civilization with a unique sociological component. This major new reference work offers a complete historical and theoretically informed view of Islam as both a religion and a sociocultural force. It surveys and discusses the transformation of Muslim societies in different eras and various regions, providing a broad narrative of the historical development of Islamic civilization. This text explores the complex and varied history of the religion and its traditions. It provides an in-depth study of the diverse ways through which the religious dimension at the core of Islamic traditions has led to a distinctive type of civilizational process in history. The book illuminates the ways in which various historical forces have converged and crystallized in institutional forms at a variety of levels, embracing social, religious, legal, political, cultural, and civic dimensions. Together, the team of internationally renowned scholars move from the genesis of a new social order in 7th-century Arabia, right up to the rise of revolutionary Islamist currents in the 20th century and the varied ways in which Islam has grown and continues to pervade daily life in the Middle East and beyond. This book is essential reading for students and academics in a wide range of fields, including sociology, history, law, and political science. It will also appeal to general readers with an interest in the history of one of the world’s great religions.

A BOOK REPORT ON Orientalism: The Intellectual Background To A Clash Of Civilizations

Dr. Zaqzūq ‎ commences with the realist idea that ‘Orientalism’ has become a reality from which no escape ‎nor holding back. It is a fait accompli that we ought to only accommodate ourselves to. A phenomenon that ‎today permeates every aspect of our life. For the average westerner, Orientalism has always been the ‎wellspring of all the facts and figures on Islam. In its worst form, Orientalism was the causation of religious ‎and cultural repugnancy to the Islamic East, besides centuries of the political, economic and industrial ‎dependency on the West.‎

Moslem Schisms and Sects [Abdul Qahir Al-Baghdadi, d.1037]كتاب الفرق بين الفرق [عبد القاهر البغدادي]

1920

The history of Islamic thought are embroidered on to the doctrines of Islam is of sufficient interest to the general student of the world's intellectual effort to authorise the attempt to do for al-Baghdadi what has already been done for Ibn Hazm al-Qurtubi and al-Sharastani and to render his work accessible those who cannot read the Arabic original. English translation by Kate Chambers Seelye in 1920

ORIENTALISM AND ITS CONTRIBUTION TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF ISLAM IN THE MODERN TIMES

ET. Research & Analysis, 2021

Westerners view Islam more sympathetically due to the increase in religious conversions. Christianity's survival was threatened by Islam's growing political power. Soon Islam became a threat to Christianity's spiritual, political, and social self-satisfaction. This was the genesis and use of Orientalism by Westerners for a long time to tarnish Islam's image and Prophet Muhammed (SAW). This phenomenon was sustained for many centuries. However, this phenomenon was soon dispelled by the 18th century when it became apparent that Islamic studies could not be separated from other disciplines. This view may help us to see the contribution of Orientalism to Islam. The 20th-century Orientalism was dominated by the Islamic scientific works of the Orientalists. These had a profound impact on Islamic studies in Muslim countries around the globe. Some Muslim scholars argue that the purpose of studying Islam in Europe and Muslim cultures in Europe during medieval times was to primarily apologize. This paper, therefore, examines orientalism's impact on the Muslim world. It reviews the history of Orientalism, it's development and its impact on the Muslim World. It was discovered that contributions of Orientalism to the Islamic world include: the preservation and development of Islamic Studies and Institutions in the West, augmentation of scientific approaches to understanding Islam and others. In the history of Islam, Islamic Studies and Institutions in the West played a crucial role. Muslims now have access to many academic, rare and complete Islamic studies. Orientalists preserved many of these materials and works.

History of Islamic Philosophy by Henry Corbin (z-lib.org)

vii 9. Shahmardan al-Razi 152 V. The Hellenizing Philosophers 153 Foreword 153 1. Al-Kindi and his pupils 154 2.A1-Farabi 158 3. Abu al-Hasan al-'Amiri 165 4. Avicenna and Avicennism 167 5. Ibn Maskuyah, Ibn Fatik, Ibn Hindu 175 6. Aba al-Barakat al-Baghdadi 177 7. Abu Hamid al-Ghazali and the critique of philosophy 179 VI. Sufism 187 1. Preliminary remarks 187 2. Abu Yazid al-Bastami 192 3. Al-Junayd 194 4. Al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi 195 S.Al-Hallaj 197 6. Ahmad al-Ghazali and 'pure love" 199 VII. Al-Suhrawardi and the Philosophy of light 205 1. The restoration of the wisdom of ancient Persia 205 2. The Orient of the Lights (Ishraq) 209 3. The hierarchy of the universes 212 4. The occidental exile 215 5. The Ishraqiyun 218 Viii CONTENTS VIII. In Andalusia 1. Ibn Masarrah and the school of Almeria 2. Ibn Hazm of Cordoba 3. Ibn Bajjah (Avempace) of Saragossa 4. Ibn al-Sid of Badajoz 5. Ibn Tufayl of Cadiz 6. Averroe's and Averroism Transition 221 221 226 230 236 237 242 249 PART TWO From the Death of Averroes to the Present Day General Survey I. Sunni Thought A. The Philosophers l. Al-Abhari 2. Ibn Sab'in 3. Al-Katibi al-Qazwini 4. Rashid al-Din Fadl-Allah 5. Qutb al-Din al-Razi B. The Theologians of the kalam l. Fakhr al-Din al-Razi 2. Al-Iji 3. Al-Taftazani 4. Al-Jurjani C. The Adversaries of the Philosophers Ibn Taymiyah and his followers D. The Encyclopaedists 1. Zakariya' al-Qazwini 2. Shams al-Din Muhammad al-Amuli 3. Ibn Khaldun II, The Metaphysics of Sufism 1. Ruzbihan Baqli al-Shirazi 2.'Atar of Nishapur 3. 'Umar al-Suhrawardi 4. Ibn al-'Arabi and his school 5. Najm al Din al-Kubra and his school 6. Al-Simnani 7. '