Can Islamism Be Regarded as The Root Cause of Extremism?

By Dr. Mohammad Ghitreef, New Age Islam 30 June 2022 The Political Interpretation Of Islam On Which All Extremists Such As Osama Bin Laden, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, Baghdadi, And Others Rely Is Very Aptly Criticized And Refuted By Some Great Muslim Minds Of Modern-Day Islam. Like Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi, Maulana Waheeduddin Khan, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi Main points 1. Extremism in Muslim societies is fed by the old Fiqhi (jurisprudential) mindset and further augmented by political Islam. 2. To reform the community, you need to rethink and rebuild certain Fiqhi premises by revisiting the original sources. 3. Madrasa system is also a source of extremism. ------ The world was dumbfounded when it witnessed the forming of ISIS, a new kind of Caliphate established in the name of Islam some years back in the Levant. The world also shuddered at what this so-called Caliphate did; the brutal killing of thousands of innocents. In fact, it was a terrorizing cabal with kidnapping, beheading of enslaved children, and Western journos in cold blood, videographing the dreadful murder and then releasing its videos to a world audience. Not only that, but raping captive women, forcing them to satisfy the sexual needs of the Caliphate's young fighters and sending waves of shock with its unlimited bloodshed. Yes, the overwhelming majority of Muslims worldwide were stunned and quickly shunned this ideology. Yet bewildered Islamists around the world at this turn of events were initially in a denial mood. Some were even snuffing Western conspiracy behind all this. Some were warmly welcoming the move putting all the blame on big powers and thus hardly criticizing and refuting its raison de' etre as well as its modus operandi. Yet it is also strangely astonishing at the same time that the idea of a Caliphate would attract so many young Muslim minds driving them out of their comfort zone to achieve this goal from many Muslim lands, even from European countries. That creates the question in the minds of non-Muslims what the attraction was? Answering this question, I would say that the idea of the revival of the old type of Caliphate was motivating them. Yet why? The question still wants an explanation. Most Muslims generally believe that the cause of the enmity between Jews and Muslims is the Palestinian issue. And the hatred of some Muslims for Americans or Westerners is because of their unwavering support for Israel, constant interference in Muslim countries, etc. But if this is the case, what about the generous U.S. aid to Egypt, Palestine, Pakistan, and even Afghanistan? No, these people sincerely believe that the times can be pushed back to centuries ago, and the same model of the Caliphate can be brought back where Abu Bakr and Umar(R.A.) ruled and got half of the world at the threshold of Islam. Hizb ut-Tahrir and other movements have repeatedly propagated that the revival of the Khilafah will alleviate all the suffering of Muslims. Influenced by such massive propaganda over decades, these poor people are ready to go to any lengths to achieve this utopia. I think the root cause of all the extremism we see in Muslim societies today lies in our theology which tells us that establishing a Khilafa is a must for Muslims. And the way this is imparted to our younger generation in our madrasa and mosques is also responsible. Political Islam is augmenting this extremism. To show how Islamic thought became obsolete and problematic, I have to borrow the words of reformist scholar Javed Ahmad Ghamidi who says: "This monster of extremism didn't fall directly from heaven. This evil is a by-product of religious ideology. Taught for a long time in our madrasas and institutions and how it is interpreted therein. Its main features are: Imposing of Shariah, jihad, fighting, and of course eradicating of Kufr, shirk (infidelity and association), and ending of apostasy from the surface of the earth. Extremists - individuals and outfits - take inspiration from that ideology, and incorporate that with some practical alterations in the blueprints for their terror actions" (Maqamat: P;256) Secondly, there is a Fiqhi principle based on which Muslim jurists draw more general injunctions pertinent to non-Muslims. That a non-Muslim individual is not an innocent and Godly protected one. In contrast, a Muslim man or woman is innocent and respectable. It means that non-Muslim blood can be shed without fear of Godly punishment, though in the world, actually his killer may be punished. Moreover, some ideologues of Islamism, like Maulana Syed Abul A'la Maududi, inferred from his literal reading of many Holy Quran verses and the prophet's sayings that a non-Muslim also is not entitled to rule in the world, administer the state affairs, and be in significant leading positions. Yes, he can live in his infidelity in this world because there is no compulsion in the matters of religion, yet in a subjugated condition, not in power. In his view ruling the world and, of course, managing a country is the sole privilege of pious and righteous Muslims (مومنين صالحين) only. In Maududi's view, it is incumbent on a group of righteous, pious Muslims to snatch the reins of power from the hands of Kafirs (infidels) and even from the hands of irreligious or less religious-secular Muslims. Hence, he was hell-bent on opposing Mohammad Ali Jinnah and his Muslim League. They were secular to the core and non-practicing Muslims, regarded by the clergy as agents of Kufr and Shirk and of Taghut (Satan, deity, unjust and despotic ruler). However, many of them followed him in his two-nation theory on religious grounds for purely practical purposes. This means that once the proposed state of Pakistan is established, the clergy will be fully entitled to usurp the power from the secularists in the state. Although there are many scholars and modernist Muslim reformers who do not subscribe to either the old jurists' above-mentioned theory or the Maududi's political ideas, which give impetus, motive, and inspiration to many more zealots and stalwarts of Islamism. In fact, in Maududi’s scheme of things, the reform process is a top-down process like Communism, while to other Ulama and scholars, it is another way around. The political interpretation of Islam on which all extremists such as Osama Bin Laden, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, Baghdadi, and others rely is very aptly criticized and refuted by some great Muslim minds of modern-day Islam. Like Abul Hasan Ali Nadwi, Maulana Waheeduddin Khan, Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, et al. Yet, the extremists' narration is still prevalent. The counter narrative didn't take root and didn't find its way into young Muslim minds because instead of reasonable free debate and discussion and scientific exchange of ideas in most Muslim societies, there is a chaotic situation. The norm is to raise storms on non-issues, commotion, protest, taking to the streets, arson, killing innocent people, and lawlessness. That is why the desired change of mindset is not coming around. And to grasp the actual situation around Muslim lands, you don't need to be well-versed in rocket science to understand that our biggest problem is religious extremism. The phenomenon has now become fatal. It started first on the plane of thinking, perceiving things, then writing them, and now crossed to the realms of action, resulting in brutal killings and violence. It does not spare politics, economy, and all the social walks of life. And this monster so far has taken thousand of innocent lives of youths, elders and of course children. Some words on the Madrasa system are also due. The madrasa system is centuries old in its running. Its curricula and methods of teaching are all outdated now. Here I would like to elaborate my point with an example: Without a standard minimum curriculum of twelve years or so, no human society allows anybody to take the initiative and admit children to any specialization, such as engineering, medicine, or any other educational field. But in madrasa tradition prevalent, especially in the subcontinent, there is no bar. For, all these madrasas belonging to different sects take students, primarily because of their poor backgrounds and weak social stratum, from the age of 4-5-6-7-10 to 12 years, without any prior standard secular education. This intake is mostly compelled to memorize Quran, then take Maulvi, Alim, and lastly, Fazil courses. Without any scrutiny, without knowing the children's inclinations, aptitude and personal preferences, they are all supposed to become Hafiz of the Quran or Alim in compulsion. There is a real possibility that many madrasa children could be doctors, engineers, scientists, writers, poets, journalists, and artists, yet all the madrasas deprive them of these opportunities altogether. This is the first. Secondly, these madrasas compel their students and graduates to be alienated from everyday social life. In the words of Maulana Munazir Ahsan Geelani, an educationist and himself a graduate of Deoband. "having lived in a cave like the legendry Cave People (اصحاب كهف) when they become graduate and Farigh, and come out of that cave, their certificates and degrees have no market value." They only have in their hands a dud check. Masjids and madrasas are essential formations for Muslims because the basics religious imperatives like daily five-time prayers, funeral rituals, solemnizing marriage ceremonies, etc., could not be done without them. But the flip side is that both have become a handy tool in the clergy's hands. Ulama, by dint of that tool, have quickly established their mini empires within Muslim societies, mainly in the subcontinent. They are ruthlessly exploiting this tool to either propagate their false and narrow viewpoints or to excommunicate their adversaries, detractors, or critics. There should be an awareness in the society to liberate both the institutions from their clutches. If madrasas and mosques could retain their pristine purity and could be returned to Allah Almighty, instead of remaining in the hands of the Ulama community, extremist ideologies and stereotyped outlooks could be gradually eradicated from society. ----- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Dr. Mohammad Ghitreef is a Research Associate with the Centre for Promotion of Educational and Cultural Advancement of Muslims of India, AMU Aligarh. URL: https://newageislam.com/radical-islamism-jihad/islamism-extremism-extremists/d/127368 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism