Key figures representing important trends include:
- Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi who is credited with creating modern Islamist political thought in the 20th Century , argued that Science was itself merely re-discovering that all matter and energy obeys laws, and that Kafir claims that humankind was free of obligation to comprehend and obey such laws, had to be resisted by Muslim s. '' Caliphate And Monarchy '' was his most important work. He established the Jamaat-e-Islami in India . This and the Egypt ian Ikhwan Al Muslimin (" Muslim Brotherhood ") were revivals of the Tarika tradition and committed to religious, political, and intellectual reform of Islam. Nasser exploited the latter to gain power in 1952 but then turned against the Brotherhood, murdering and torturing many members. The leader Sayed Qutb was executed with five others in 1966 . But the key difference between the Indian Maududi and the Egyptian Qutb was that the former accepted democratic means, albeit of a limited form. This contrasts with Qutb who developed a Liberation Theology , requiring "true" Muslim s to declare war on anyone who opposed their ultimate goal.
- Muhammad Iqbal sought an Islamic revival based on Social Justice ideals and emphasized traditional rules, e.g. against Usury . He argued strongly that dogma, territorial Nationalism and outright Racism , all of which were profoundly rejected in early Islam and especially by Muhammad himself, were splitting Muslims into warring factions, encouraging Materialism and Nihilism . His thought was influential in the emergence of a movement for independence of Pakistan , where he revered as the national poet. Indirectly this strain of Islam also influenced Malcolm X and other figures who sought a Global Ethic through the Five Pillars Of Islam . Iqbal can be credited with at least trying to reconstruct Islamic thought from the base, though some of his philosophical and scientific ideas would appear dated to us now. His basic ideas concentrated on free-will, which would allow Muslims to become active agents in their own history. His interest in Nietzsche (who he called 'the Wise Man of Europe') has led later Muslim scholars to criticise him for advocating the dangerous ideals, that according to them have eventually formed in certain strains of Pan-Islamism . Some claim that the Four Pillars Of The Green Party honor Iqbal and Islamic traditions.
- values, 'are not exhausted at any point in history' but require constant interpretation. Rahman was driven to exile from his homeland, Pakistan , where he was part of a committee which sought to interpret Islam for the fledging modern State . Some of his ideas from English (which he claimed were from the Islamic tradition) were reprinted in Urdu and caused outrage among conservative Muslim scholars in Pakistan . These were quickly exploited by opponents of his political paymatser, General Ayyub Khan , and led to his eventual exile in the United States Of America .
- Modern Islamist s movements are considered the 'dominant' voice today, though this belies the reality. Some Islamist s (the word itself has yet to be well-defined, since there is no overall global " Islamist " movement) have entered the limited democratic processes in the Gulf States , and others, such as those in Pakistan , have long been on the political stage. The vast majority of Muslim s remain within, what has been termed, Traditional Islam , which is largely apolitical and accomodationist (and so a subject of criticism from certain activists). Advocates of violence, like Qutb , were opposed to the traditional scholars of Al-Azhar , because they regard them as complicit in the crimes of the Secular State . One general feature of Islamist movements is that they advocate creation of "the Islamic state", though this often means "Islamisation" of the modern Nation-state .
In general, the first two trends are more commonly understood in the Islamic World whereas the latter trends, are more known in non-Muslim and Muslim-minority nations, or ones receiving substantial aid from Developed Nation s. Some argue that this suggests that these trends are insincere and that alternations between Fundamentalism and secular Military Dictator s are somehow inherently part of the Politics of the Arab World in particular. One response is that such trends were likewise observed in other regions, e.g. Latin America , with Communism as a form of fundamentalism, and that those regions often democratize once outside interference is limited.
Modern Islamic Philosophy by ''Oliver Leaman''
- http://www.muslimphilosophy.com/ip/rep/h008.htm
Islamic Philosophy by ''Oliver Leaman''
- http://www.rep.routledge.com/article/H057
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