Tag: Intolerance

English, Extremism, Sufism

What Is Sufism? – Mubaraz Ahmed

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Sufism may be best described as Islamic mysticism or asceticism, which through belief and practice helps Muslims attain nearness to Allah by way of direct personal experience of God. While there are other suggested origins of the term Sufi, the word is largely believed to stem from the Arabic word suf, which refers to the wool that was traditionally worn by mystics and ascetics. Belief in pursuing a path that leads to closeness with God, ultimately through encountering the divine in the hereafter, is a fundamental component of Islamic belief. However, in Sufi thought this proximity can be realised in this life. … Continue reading What Is Sufism? – Mubaraz Ahmed

Diversity, English, Extremism

Unsophisticated and naive? Fragmenting monolithic understandings of Islam

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Jawad Syed and Edwina Pio Abstract Mainstream academic literature and media use the word ‘Islam’ or ‘Muslim’ in a monolithic manner that implies internal homogeneity. However, the Islamic faith is subject to multiple interpretations, with multiple types of Muslims who practice Islam based on their ideological interpretations, sect, ethnicity and gender. Drawing on a review of literatures on Islam and Muslims from diverse fields such as religion, gender, diversity and extremism, we present a taxonomy of different types of Muslims, and highlight implications for management, organizations and governance. We trace ideological sources of divergence among variants of Islam and analyze … Continue reading Unsophisticated and naive? Fragmenting monolithic understandings of Islam

English, Extremism

More thoughts on Takfir – Tahir Kamran

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The News, June 29, 2014 My last column ‘Takfir and terrorism’ evoked some responses which were brusque in articulation but well-meaning in intent and purpose. Some pointed out the column’s ‘inadequacies’ with candour. These responses, however, goaded me to reflect on the matter of takfir afresh, and also to deliberate on the process of it taking the centrestage of Muslim hermeneutics by the last years of the 19th century. This article aims to address these issues in the light of these responses, underscoring takfir in the South Asian perspective. One critique alluded to the flaw in the context in which the … Continue reading More thoughts on Takfir – Tahir Kamran

Diversity, English, Extremism

Takfir and terrorism – Tahir Kamran

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Like khalafah, umma, jihad and shahadat, takfir has attained a wide currency in modern day Muslim discourse. For analysts, takfir has a peculiar specificity, especially when referring to modern day proponents of revivalist Islam. Takfir denotes excommunication or declaration of a person or group of people to be non-Muslim. Although the instances of takfir can be gleaned from the early history of Muslims, it started featuring regularly in the Muslim discourse since the last quarter of the 19th century. Deobandi clerics were at the centre of the trend of issuing takfiri fatwas. Though not a takfiri treatise as such, Rashid Gangohi’s Hadayatush Shia (Advice to the Shia) is the first published … Continue reading Takfir and terrorism – Tahir Kamran

Diversity, English, Extremism

Who are the Takfiri Islamist extremists in Pakistan

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The Deobandis are an offshoot of the mainstream Sunni, Hanafi Islam in South Asia. While many of them are moderate and peace loving, a section of this community is influenced by a mutant and Wahhabized strain. Some of these people have aligned themselves with puritanical, literalist and takfiri Salafi and Wahhabi movements that seek to marginalize and apostasize the majority of Sufi, Shia and Barelvi Sunni school of thought. The Deobandi sub-sect is found primarily in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh and has since 1950s spread to the United Kingdom, United States and has also a presence in South Africa. The name … Continue reading Who are the Takfiri Islamist extremists in Pakistan

Diversity, English, Extremism

The Diversity of Islam

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Nicholas Kristof, Oct. 8, 2014 A few days ago, I was on a panel on Bill Maher’s television show on HBO that became a religious war. Whether or not Islam itself inspires conflict, debates about it certainly do. Our conversation degenerated into something close to a shouting match and went viral on the web. Maher and a guest, Sam Harris, argued that Islam is dangerous yet gets a pass from politically correct liberals, while the actor Ben Affleck denounced their comments as “gross” and “racist.” I sided with Affleck. After the show ended, we panelists continued to wrangle on the topic … Continue reading The Diversity of Islam

Diversity, English, Extremism, Sufism

Who Are Sufi Muslims and Why Do Some Extremists Hate Them?

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By Megan Specia, Nov. 24, 2017 Sufism is a mystical form of Islam, a school of practice that emphasizes the inward search for God and shuns materialism. It has produced some of the world’s most beloved literature, like the love poems of the 13th century Iranian jurist Rumi. Its modern-day adherents cherish tolerance and pluralism, qualities that in many religions unsettle extremists. But Sufism, often known as Islamic mysticism, has come under violent attack in recent years. On Friday, Takfiri Islamist militants stormed a Sufi mosque on the Sinai Peninsula, killing at least 305 people in what officials are calling the worst terrorist … Continue reading Who Are Sufi Muslims and Why Do Some Extremists Hate Them?

Diversity, English, Extremism, Sufism

Sufi Muslims face prejudice and negative stereotypes by some sections within Islam

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The world’s 1.6 billion Muslims are united in their belief in God and the Prophet Muhammad and are bound together by such religious practices as fasting during the holy month of Ramadan and almsgiving to assist people in need. But they have widely differing views about many other aspects of their faith, including how important religion is to their lives, who counts as a Muslim and what practices are acceptable in Islam, according to a worldwide survey by the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life. The survey, which involved more than 38,000 face-to-face interviews in over 80 … Continue reading Sufi Muslims face prejudice and negative stereotypes by some sections within Islam